III.
The prince went[1] aboard the White Ship with _one_ hundred and forty youthful nobles, among whom were eighteen noble ladies of the highest rank. All[2] this gay company, with their servants and the fifty sailors, made three hundred souls aboard the White Ship.
“Give three[3] casks _of_ wine, Fitz-Stephen,” said the prince, “to the fifty sailors of renown. My[4] father the king has sailed out of the harbour. What[5] time is there to make merry here, and yet reach England with the rest?”
“Prince[6],” said Fitz-Stephen, “before morning my fifty and the White Ship shall overtake the swiftest vessel in attendance on your father the king, if we sail at midnight.”
[1] to go aboard ship, +sich auf ein Schiff begeben+; the young noble, +der junge Adelige+; ‘to be’, here +sich befinden+; eighteen — rank, +achtzehn dem höchsten Range angehörige Damen+. The words ‘aboard the White Ship’ take the last place in the clause.
[2] This clause requires the following construction: With the servants (+Dienerschaft+, f.) and the fifty sailors consisted the whole gay company upon the White Ship of (+aus+) three hundred persons.
[3] Construe according to App. § 5.
[4] Say ‘My royal father’; has sailed out of = has left. Supply the adverb +soeben+ after the auxiliary. This will greatly improve the rendering.
[5] Also the two following passages require a different construction; say ‘How long can we still make merry (+sich gütlich thun+) here (to be placed before ‘still’), if we will arrive in England at the same time (+zugleich+) with the others?’ The words ‘in England’ should stand before the verbs, which arrange according to App. § 18.
[6] Say ‘“If we sail at (+um+) midnight, O prince (see S. 27, N. 8), my fifty men (+Leute+) and the White Ship shall nevertheless (+dennoch+) before the coming morning overtake the swiftest ship in the service of thy royal father,” replied Fitz-Stephen’.—‘The swiftest — father’ = the swiftest in the service of thy royal father standing ship. (Comp. S. 48, N. 6.)
_Section 50._
THE WHITE SHIP.