She's doing all she can--she's going her best gait, but it won't save her.

Now, don't you know, there ain't a watch in the ship that's making better time than she is, but what does it signify?
When you hear them eight bells you'll find her just about ten minutes short of her score sure." The ship was gaining a full hour every three days, and this fellow was trying to make his watch go fast enough to keep up to her.

But, as he had said, he had pushed the regulator up as far as it would go, and the watch was "on its best gait," and so nothing was left him but to fold his hands and see the ship beat the race.

We sent him to the captain, and he explained to him the mystery of "ship time" and set his troubled mind at rest.

This young man asked a great many questions about seasickness before we left, and wanted to know what its characteristics were and how he was to tell when he had it.