Reply #7: That would be his sea-chest. [View All]

[necso]

And the "on" would be like rats "on" a cheese. The surviving pirates are splitting up the swag (including personal possessions) after a bloody fight (possibly over a "flimsy shift") among the crew:
"And they lay there that took the plum,
With sightless glare and their lips struck dumb,
While we shared all by the rule of thumb,
Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!"

No coffins involved:
"We wrapped 'em all in a mains'l tight,
With twice ten turns of a hawser's bight,
And we heaved 'em over and out of sight".