The Mutiny of the Elsinore

Jack London (1876 - 1916)

This is the story of a voyage of a sailing ship from Baltimore to Seattle, east-to-west around Cape Horn in the winter. It is set in 1913 and the glory days of “wooden ships and iron men” are long over. The Elsinore is a four-masted iron sailing vessel carrying a cargo of 5000 tons of coal. She has a “bughouse” crew of misfits and incompetents.

This book was published in 1915 and some actions of some of the characters seem odd to us today. There is romance, but it is strangely platonic. Two important characters disappear with no real explanation. The disparity between the officers on the one hand and the fo’c’sle on the other is striking (literally). Some people will be offended by the bigotry.

The “men against the sea” descriptions -and the weather descriptions- are among Jack London’s finest. In my opinion he is right up there with Joseph Conrad and Joshua Slocum in this effort. We also have a mutiny, complete with shootings and deliberate starvation. My personal favorite is chapter 38.

Note: The chapter titles were assigned by the reader. London gave only numbers. (Introduction by Tom Crawford)

Genre(s): Action & Adventure Fiction, Nautical & Marine Fiction, Romance

Language: English

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 01 01: I Don't Play Chopsticks Tom Crawford
00:16:14
Play 02 02: Mister Pike Tom Crawford
00:16:46
Play 03 03: The Greek Overboard Tom Crawford
00:11:01
Play 04 04: About Captain West Tom Crawford
00:08:03
Play 05 05: A Bughouse Crew Tom Crawford
00:16:46
Play 06 06: My Accomodations Tom Crawford
00:10:00
Play 07 07: We Never Discuss Sailors Tom Crawford
00:11:12
Play 08 08: Making Sail Tom Crawford
00:14:24
Play 09 09: Either a Calm or Northeast Gale Tom Crawford
00:18:40
Play 10 10: Mister Mellaire Tom Crawford
00:16:21
Play 11 11: Captain West is No Conversationalist Tom Crawford
00:10:52
Play 12 12: Captain West is a Samurai Tom Crawford
00:09:51
Play 13 13: Bedbugs! Tom Crawford
00:19:27
Play 14 14: Mulligan Jacobs Tom Crawford
00:17:07
Play 15 15: O'Sulllivan Used a Razor Tom Crawford
00:16:25
Play 16 16: Possum Has a Fit Tom Crawford
00:12:10
Play 17 17: The Gangsters in the Forecastle Tom Crawford
00:16:04
Play 18 18: The Greek Overboard Again Tom Crawford
00:12:21
Play 19 19: The Daughters of Herodias Tom Crawford
00:10:29
Play 20 20: Miss West is Never Idle Tom Crawford
00:11:39
Play 21 21: Charles Davis Murdered O'Sullivan Tom Crawford
00:09:32
Play 22 22: Captain West Reprimands Mister Mellaire Tom Crawford
00:08:33
Play 23 23: Two Sharks Tom Crawford
00:09:44
Play 24 24: Sidney Maltham Tom Crawford
00:10:09
Play 25 25: Rats Tom Crawford
00:06:46
Play 26 26: Slaves and Masters Tom Crawford
00:05:47
Play 27 27: "Oh Dear, oh dear" Tom Crawford
00:08:35
Play 28 28: Off the River Plate Tom Crawford
00:21:43
Play 29 29: A Sunset and Elsinore on Her Side Tom Crawford
00:13:45
Play 30 30: Number Three Hatch Tom Crawford
00:23:43
Play 31 31: She is Margaret Tom Crawford
00:16:14
Play 32 32: Old Stiff Tom Crawford
00:09:05
Play 33 33: Twenty-eight Point Six Four Tom Crawford
00:18:44
Play 34 34: Aloft in a Gale Tom Crawford
00:11:25
Play 35 35: A Cask and Three Devils Tom Crawford
00:31:41
Play 36 36: ...And no Westing Tom Crawford
00:11:33
Play 37 37: I have Found the Love of Woman Tom Crawford
00:13:38
Play 38 38: Did the Samurai Make a Mistake? Tom Crawford
00:28:31
Play 39 39: And God Help the Man That Don't Jump Tom Crawford
00:12:09
Play 40 40: We Make Westing Tom Crawford
00:17:35
Play 41 41: We Are Around the Horn Tom Crawford
00:06:06
Play 42 42: The Mutiny of the Elsinore Tom Crawford
00:32:45
Play 43 43: Twenty-seven of Them Against Eleven of Us Tom Crawford
00:21:27
Play 44 44: Where Do They Get Their Food? Tom Crawford
00:16:47
Play 45 45: Our First Truce Tom Crawford
00:14:46
Play 46 46: A Navigator Aft Tom Crawford
00:13:00
Play 47 47: Two Assaults and an Ambush Tom Crawford
00:15:15
Play 48 48: Rough-on-Rats Tom Crawford
00:09:51
Play 49 49: Sulfuric Acid and Sulfur Fumes Tom Crawford
00:23:50
Play 50 50: The Final Chapter Tom Crawford
00:31:08