We were to get shore liberty without doubt, and the ship was to be coaled by outside labor.

We took no stock in the latter rumor till an officer voiced it--then we believed.

Our clean blues were furbished up, lanyards scrubbed, and money counted.

We understood that there was little to see at Key West; that it was a dull and uninteresting place.

Still it was land, and we had not set foot ashore for almost three months.
If we had not been so anxious to get ashore we might have been able to appreciate the marine picture.
The harbor, if it could be called a harbor, was full of war vessels, prizes, and colliers.