Reminiscences of Foreign Travel

Front matter

REMINISCENCES OF FOREIGN TRAVEL. JBg tbe same autbor. ACROSS THE PAMPAS AND THE ANDES. 11 Almost as exciting as a novelette by Jules Verne."— Daily News. "It is quite a treat to read a book like this. Written by a man who h.is something to say, and who saye it well. . . . Compiled with great skill. . . . The reader's interest never flags. . . . Mr. Crawford always writes with great simplicity and freshness and vigour." — Guardian. "A capital volume of description and travel." — Globe. " His experiences were often exciting and dangerous, and his story never flags. . . . The book is a valuable contribution to the literature of the subject." — Contemporary Review. " Lion-hunting in Algeria is no doubt a very fine, manly sport; crossing the Atlantic in a five-ton yacht is an agreeable and adven turous mode of spending a short holiday ; but for a delightful com bination of the utile with the dulce, not unmixed with the enjoyable zest derived from an occasional dash of mortal danger, we recommend strongly to aspiring youth a turn at civil engineering in South America. . . .

Mr. Craws ord's interesting pages. " — Pall Mall Gazette. "There are some capital stories here . . . whole pages of descrip tion and incident that would not disgrace the pen of Mayne Ruid." — Daily Telegraph. " Probably he was helped to follow the path of virtue by the fact that he had a most interesting subject." — Saturday Review. " Mr. Crawford has a sensitive eye for the beauties of Nature." — Academy. " Mr. Crawford tells his story pleasantly."— Athenæum. " It is always pleasant and profitable to make acquaintance with such a book." — Illustrated London News. "This valuable work." — Graphic. " A most interesting account of this formidable journey."— Literary World. "Mr. Crawford's excellent book."— Land and Water. " All through the narrative the reader's interest is sustained." — Nature.

"An excellent map, nnd illustrations admirably executed by Mr. Whymper, add to the interest of tho volume."— Times. "Gives a lively account of everything in animate and inanimate Natuio that attracted his attention. "Spectator. " Will be read by all sportsmen and lovors of Nature with great interest."— Tablet. London : LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO. KEMINISCENCES OF FOREIGN TRAVEL BY ROBERT CRAWFORD, M.A. HONORARY M.E., DUBLIN UNIVERSITY; MEMBER OF THE INSTITUTION OF CIVIL ENGINEERS ; WIRKLICHES MITGLIED DES ARCHITEKTEN UND IKGENIECR-VEREIN ZU HANNOVER ; LATELY PROFESSOR OF CIVIL ENGINEERING IN THE UNIVERSITY OF DUBLIN etc: etc. Author of " Across the Pampas and the Andes." LONDON: LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO. AND NEW YORK : 15 EAST 16* STREET. 18S8. [AU rightis ruervcd.] ■BaHantrmt £>res* BALLANTYNE, HANSON AND CO, EDINBURGH AND LONDON

Preface

. Perhaps the best return I could make to the reviewers for the kind reception they gave my former book would be to abstain from putting them to the trouble of having to deal with the produce of my pen again. On the other hand, so numerous are the volumes which are constantly appearing, that one from me — like a drop of rain falling upon the ocean — can add but little to the whole, or increase the task of the reviewers only by a quantity too small to be appreciable. But cautious friends may warn me, that although a lenient judge is often inclined to pardon a first offence, he seldom permits a repetition of the crime to go unpunished. In support of this view, no doubt it might also be urged that, having crossed the ice once already, and reached the bank without tumbling down, it

PREFACE.

. VI would be more prudent not to trust myself again upon the too smooth surface. Without entering into any discussion of the question, in its abstract form, as to whether, on this account, it might not be better to abandon skating altogether, and allow the art to become a lost one, I will only say that, wisely or otherwise, I have decided, instead of permitting my skates to rust, to buckle them on and try my luck once more. I approach the ice, not with any great confidence in my own powers, or the expectation of being able to execute elaborate figures (although I feel very much on the " outer edge "), content if I may but enjoy the exhilarating exercise for a while with moderate success. And if an occasional fall must follow, for it can't be denied that ice is usually slippery — the testimony of Sam Weller is conclu sive on that point, never having been impeached — there is nothing for it but to bear the bumping misfortune bravely, and rub the injured part to make it well.

As to the subject of the present volume, it con sists of various incidents and scenes associated with foreign travels, many of them so dissimilar in their nature, that to weave them into one continuous web

PREFACE.

. VII would have necessitated the introduction of an amount of "padding" likely to prove highly in jurious to the texture of the whole. They must, therefore, be regarded rather as a string of rough beads of different kinds, connected only by the thread on which they hang. In conclusion, I have to state that, in the chap ters on Algeria, much of my information respecting the climate and many of the facts regarding the history of the country have been taken from Sir Lambert Playfair's very useful guide-book. London, January 1888. CONTENTS.

Chapter I. At Sea

PAGE A squall — Men falling from the rigging — Man overboard — Saved — Ship on fire — Hatches batteued down — Panic below — On the Banks of Newfoundland — A gale in the Atlantic — Injuries to the ship — Companions in misfortune — Another ship on fire — Whales and porpoises — Breakers ahead — Narrow escape — The pilot — Sandy Hook — New York harbour ........ 1-9

Chapter II. New York To Montreal

New York — Fire in Montreal — Exaggerated report — Leave for Canada — Hudson River — River steamboat — Politics on board — Steamboat race — Steamer blown up — Albany — Troy — Saratoga — Lake Champlain — Mountains of Vermont — Rouse's Point — Boundary-line — River St. Lawrence — Montreal 10-19 CONTENTS. X

Chapter III. At Work

PAGE Montreal waterworks — My companions — The Bush and Indians — First day out — Make acquaintance with an Indian chief — Disenchantment — The real chief — Running the Lachine Rapids — Waterworks surveys — Temptations — Liberality of orchard-owners — Thought I had made a mistake — Change to the railway staff — A runaway — Life in the Bush — Severe frost — Frozen to death — On short allowance — Great hardships — Difficulty in getting men along — Find a clearing — A lively night ...... 20-31

Chapter IV. Opposition To Railways

Engineers driven off works — A near thing — Succeed at last — A challenge — Answer returned — Reprimand — Opposition during construction of works — Obstructions upon rails — Difficult navigation — An obstructive mill-owner — Muffled oars — Accident to the mill-dam — A professional opinion wanted — Difficulties about problems in hydraulic engineering — A lady opponent — Badly treated — Saved from swearing ........ 32-39

Chapter V. Lost In The Bush

Lost at night — A brave woman — A female guide through the Bush — Lost again — A false alarm — Rescued by a horse 40-51 CONTENTS. XI

Chapter VI. Intelligence Of Animals

PAGE A spirited horse — Met by a steamboat — Kindness to horses will repay labour — Meeting a circus company — Taking the water — Intelligence of dogs — A house on fire — Saved by a dog — Kaffir suits the punishment to the offender — Retreats before a bear ...... 52-59

Chapter VII. Wild Animals

Hunted by wolves — Reflections on fox-hunting — An interview with a bear — Mother bear taking her family out for a walk — A bear killed with an axe — A tame bear and a pet raccoon — Offer of a present of a wounded lynx — Visited by a lynx — A family of foxes — Ermines — Minks — Musk-rats — Squirrels — Porcupines 60-70

Chapter VIII. The Lake Of The Thousand Islands

The St. Lawrence — The Lake of the Thousand Islands — Autumnal tints — Curious effect on the water — Evening boating — Watching the Indians spearing fish — A hunted stag — An exciting adventure — Boat upset — To the rescue — A long row — Difficulties on railway works — Camp-followers — Epidemic of small-pox — A strike — A burglary — Tried again — Suspicious characters . . . . 71-88 CONTENTS.

Chapter IX. Miscellaneous

PAGB Lake of the Two Mountains — The Ottawa — St. Anne's — Fallen through the ice — A brave act — The bells of St. Anne's — " Running the rapids " — A tandem drive — A row and its consequences — A banker arrested — A cobbler moves his house — Engines nearly meeting — A narrow escape — The inspectors have a bath — A change of fortune . . 89-104

Chapter X. In Austria And Germany

Completion of Grand Trunk Railway — Empress Elizabeth Railway of Austria — Kindly Austrians — A journey with a madwoman — Roman camp and remains — An antiquarian discovery — A Boman road — Summa Crusta — The Burgomeister and the antiquary — Edie Ochiltree and Monkbarns over again — A divided house — Double military service — A robbery — Who shall prosecute — Much ado about nothing 105-114

Chapter XI

TnROUGn THE BLACK FOREST. Rumours of war — A thoughtful Minister — An open secret Preparations for arrest — Off on the journey — A fellow-traveller— A sleepy tourist — Process of pumpin<*— Taken CONTENTS. XIII PACK for spies — The Lake of Constance — The wrong steamer — Police unintentionally outwitted — The spies escape — Public clamour — Illustrated paper — Lo3t opportunity 1 15-122

Chapter XII. Sardinia

Sardinian railways — Through Paris — Garibaldi's admirers — " Get me a token from Caprera ' ' — Corsica — Ajaccio — Relics of Napoleon — His name and fame — Sardinia — Porto Torres — Unpleasant bathing-place — Villages on hills — Fevers — The tomb of the foreigners — Lost in a cork forest — With the brigands — A fierce-looking lot — Safe away — An engineer attacked by brigands — He escapes — They are taken — Caprera — Garibaldi's popularity — His son and secretary — A strange flag — A rough passage to Genoa — Short commons on board — A friend in need . . . 123-130

Chapter XIII. To Egypt In

A HURRY. A surprise — Getting ready — A hurried departure for the Soudan — Lost luggage — Touch at Malta — Alexandria — A fight between sharks — Fishing for sharks at the baths — One caught — My dragoman — " Above all price " — My colleagues arrive — Difficulties with the custom-house — Free entry — Backsheesh — Tedious negotiations — Cairo — To the pyramids — Ascent — Difference with guides — Practical joke — Backsheesh again — Boy bitten by a snake— A hitch in the negotiations — Recalled to England — Austrian Lloyd's steamer to Trieste — Touch at Corfu — Fine weather — Meals on deck — Trieste — Miramar — Sbmmering railway — Gratz — Polite general 13 1- CONTENTS. XIV PAOK

Chapter XIV. Turkey

A Turkish " firman "—Circassian escort — Mess inspection — Table manners — A mistake about quarters — The wrong house — Confusion — Explanations — War imminent — Constantinople — The Black Sea — Circassian beauties — Varna to Rustchuk — South-Eastern Europe — The Danube — At the frontier — Too officious — Steamer lies up for the night — Making his last bed — The Iron Gates — Traces of the Romans — A bath under difficulties — Travelling with the letters l43-«55

Chapter XV. During The Franco-german War

Travelling in Germany — Introduction to the horrors of war — Wounded soldiers — The dead and dying — The saddest sight — Chastened joy — Hideous spectacle — Brave young soldiers — A sad procession — A touching sight — Unable to salute — Mistaken for one of the enemy — A French general — The soldier's wife — A town in mourning — Suspicions — Strict but polite — To the siege of Strasburg — Prussian officers — Prudent advice — Unpleasant proximity to sentries — Firing on trains — A beleaguered city — Bursting shells — Miseries of the besieged — The fall of Strasburg — Visit the city — Epidemic of small-pox — Disinfecting chambers — Treatment of the vanquished — Kindly acts — Good conduct of the prisoners ....... 156-165

Chapter XVI. The River Plate

Across tho Atlantic — Buenos Ayres — Pleasant suburbs — Soothing influences — A humming-bird's nest — The hum- CONTENTS. XV PAGE ming-bird and. the toad — Drawbacks to pleasure of resi dence in suburbs — Robber bands — A doubtful party — Murder — An unpleasant meeting on a lonely road at night — Another narrow escape — A friend pursued — Prosperity of Irish in the River Plate — A good priest — The adviser of the sheep-farmers — Advice to get married — Matrimony, how it is brought about — A lovers' conversation — A hot time for the priest — Paterfamilias and his troubles — Strange orders — Speculating in governesses . . 166-178

Chapter XVII. Voyages Of The

"DAUNTLESS" AND HER SISTER- VESSELS. The " Dauntless " — Her sister vessels — How to get them out — Consultation of experts — Fitted out for sea and manned — Sets sail — "All in the Bay of Biscay" — A terrible gale — A steamer founders — " Lying to " — Good behaviour — Tossed about — Difficulty in crossing the line — Puts into Sierra Leone — A sad logbook — Deaths on board — Silence — Recovery — Refits and puts to sea again — This time successful — Sister vessel — Runs before a gale — Wrecked in port — Captain lost overboard — Difficulties of position — Learning navigation — Vessel taken back — New captain — Brazilian navy — Run down by an iron-clad — The wounded drowned — Women-soldiers — Mother and son — Maternal love 179-186

CHAPTER XVIIL SHOOTING AND OTHER EXCURSIONS.

Monte Grande and Santa Catalina — Rare birds — Lomas de Zamora— San Vicente — Snipe-shooting — The Samborombon — Five days' shooting — The bag on different occasions — Mr. Frank Parish — A week's shooting — Birds killed by CONTENTS. PAGE ■20O 211 224 telegraph wires — Chascomus — Numerous wild-fowl — Shooting a bullock — A colony of foxes — A misunder standing — The crime of vulpicide — An enterprising American — " The bark was still there, but the waters were gone" — The River Salado — Wild-fowl shooting — After ostriches — Net-fishing — Woods at the Salado — An hour's shooting — Between the Salado and Somborombon — Deer stalking — Wild horses — The bag — The nutria . . 187-

Chapter XIX

shooting excursions — {continued). A shooting party — Household difficulties — Helping the cook — A clever and accomplished hostess — What we shot — To Azul and Tandil — Firing at a puma with snipe-shot — Was it a red wolf ? — A family of cats — Azul — Tame Indians — Tandil — The rocking-stone — A coffin to spare — A strange inducement — Life on the frontier — Indian attack — Hut burnt — Horses and cattle driven off — Robber Gauchos — A house sacked — Looking on at a murder — Escape of the murderer 201-

Chapter XX. Shooting

EXCURSIONS— (contin lied). " A professional cut-throat " — The dictator Rosas — His unwritten law — A strange plea — Admitted valid — Attempted assassination — Had to fly the country — The cut-throat's guest — His home and family — Narratives of bloodshed An unprotected bedroom — At home with the sea-lions Held by the heels — Useless shooting — Good-bye to my host and hostess — Another excursion— Shooting from horseback — Exchange of horses— Bucked off— Nothing the worse A strange offer — A proud husband — An accomplished wife Dancing under diflicultios — Curious dreams . . 212-: CONTENTS. XVII

Chapter XXI. In Pursuit Of The Swallows

PAOE A German story — Literary laws — A skirmisher — An eminent story-teller — His armorial bearings — Honest confession — Is it abreach of confidence? — Stealing stories — Identity lost — Treatment of foundlings — Agenerous heart — A fairy godmother — Gipsy kidnapping — Changing clothes — Family likeness — The swallow and the ant — Break down as a lecturer — Ordered to the south — Speedy travelling — The steamer Ville de Bome — Steer for Algiers — Length of passage 225-231

Chapter XXII. Algiers

First view of Algiers — Its position — Seen in detail — The suburbs — A bright winter climate — Sun and shade — In meditative mood — A varied and lively scene — The old town — Narrow streets — Projecting houses — Mutual support — Stepped streets — Old Moorish houses — Their interior — Floral brightness — Domestic prisons — A turnkey-husband — Saves the servant's time — An Arab al ways knows where to find his wives — Moorish ladies — Monotonous life — Seldom out of doors — Dull cheerfulness — Pleasure parties in the cemetery — Enthusiastic photographers — Ejecting an artist — The boulevards of Algiers — English work — The harbour — Barbary pirates — Memorial slabs — Pirates sack a village in Ireland — Prisoners carried off into captivity — Vessel, passengers, and crewseized by pirates in the Channel — Lord Inchiquin and his son made prisoners — France the greatest sufferer — Consuls blown away from the guns — An undesirable post — Scourges of Christendom — Purchasing immunity from the pirates — The matter brought nearer home — Overthrow of the pirates — Their fleet destroyed — Captives liberated — A touching episode of the bombardment of Algiers ....... 232-243 b CONTENTS. PAGE '253 272

Chapter XXIII

A L G I E R S — (continued). The mosques — Snake-charmers — John Bull's pre-eminence in danger — Numerous bulldogs — Algerian law-courts — Trial for murder — Hotels in Algiers — Noisy streets — In search of new quarters — Difficulty in choosing — Perplexing thoughts — A fast parson — " A Fir glass house " . 244-

Chapter XXIV. Mustafa

My new residence — A Moorish villa — A choice of rooms — Heavy rains — Wet blankets — Villa gardens — Rank vegetation — The approach of spring — Bright flowers — Enjoyment of the scene — Listening to the nightingale — Sad reflections — Christian captives — Beautiful views — Fine sunrises — Delightful walks — " Trespassers beware " — Sensitive landowners — Interviewing a proprietor — Politeness gains the day — Trees by the roadside — The new winding road at Mustafa — Villa gardens — Beautiful glimpses — The Colon de Voirol — The Bois de Boulogne; — Doubtful taste — Wellingtonias — Large trees — Eucalyptus — Sanitary effects — Large cedar-tree — Botanical gardens — Fine specimens of Coniferæ — Plane-trees — Bamboos — Palms — India-rubber tree — The Ombii or Belle umbra — Reprehensible custom — Arab horses — Donkeys — Camels . 254-

Chapter XXV. Excursions Round Algiers

Bou-Zarea — Windingroad through Algiers — Fort de 1'Empereur — The obstinate pair— The top of the Sahel — Trappist monastery of Staouelli— Self-contained— Various callings —Diet— Dormitories— No Irish need apply — The monk's CONTENTS. XIX PAGE perplexities — The saints and the ladies — A faithful janitor — " None of your sex may enter here " — Monkish politeness and hospitality — Without the walls — Daily doles — A young coquette — "She stoops to conquer" — Good-bye to the monks — Sidi-Feruch — Landing of the French — Battle of Staouelli — White heath — Pointe Pescade — St. Eugene — "Notre Dame d'Afrique " — Prayers for those lost in the Mediterranean — The Cardinal Archbishop — Impressive ceremony — Church devoted to the sailor's interests — Arab rites — Soothsayers — Reach Algiers .... 273-283

Chapter XXVI. The Gorge Of The Chiffa And Hammam Rhira

Fartherafield — The Metidja plain — Blidah — Paailway — Malaria —"Blue gum" trees — Small towns — The Gorge of the Chiffa — Good roads — Giddy travelling — Mountain waterfalls — Maiden-hair ferns — Apes — " Ruisseau des Singes " — Waiting for dinner — At home with the apes — A family party — Very human — The Scotch doctor and the monkey — Relatives at the Zoo — Travelling organ-grinders — African forest — Not the only observers — Expectant eagles — The " harpy " of Brazil — Safe from assault — Return to the inn — A roguish pet — A reasoning ape — Hammam Rhira — Roman station — " Aquœ calidœ" — Hot baths — Good for rheumatism — Large hotel — Hamrr.am Rhira in winter and summer — Railway route — Uncongenial weather — Musical ladies — Private concerts — " Father O'Flynn " — Worthy to be an Irishman — Roman remains — Kabyle villages ......... 284-297

Chapter XXVII. Beasts And Birds Of Algeria

A panther killed — Jackals and hyenas — Discordant voices of the night — Meeting a jackal — Growing scarcity of the CONTENTS. XX The PAGE larger beasts of prey — Price set on their heads — Diffi culties of lion-hunting — List of the wild animals killed during the last twelve years — Foxes numerous — General shooting — Scarcity of game — The market supply — " Who killed Cock Robin ? " — Rival stalkers — A vigilant look-out — Off in time — " La Chasse riservie " — Other game — The smaller birds 298-303

Chapter XXVIII. Conclusion

soil of Algiers — Algiers as an agricultural colony — The climate — The Sirocco — Blast from a furnace — Dr. Bodi chon's opinion — Selfishness produced by " augmenting the personality" — Most suitable for Calvinist and Puritans — Extremes of temperature — Rainfall — General review — Associations of ancient days — The historian — Antiquary — Zoologist — Botanist — Lastly, the Irishman — A new emblem — The land of the " evergreen blackthorn " . . 304-308 TRAVEL.

Chapter I. At Sea

The wind had been blowing hard all morning1 — a fresh breeze the captain called it — and I, the solitary cabin passenger on board an American " Liner " bound from Liverpool to New York, occupied my self in the undisturbed contemplation of the restless ocean. It was no doubt a somewhat monotonous employment, but there is a strange fascination in gazing over a ship's side into the troubled waters below as she buffets the waves, casting them on either side and ploughing her way along with resist less force. It must not be inferred from what I have said A that there were no other passengers on board ; on the contrary, the ship was engaged in the emigrant trade, and her living freight consisted of some seven hundred souls. My position was, in a certain sense, a lonely one, but it suited me. I was rather done up from hard reading, and being on my way to Canada, to be employed upon a railway there, I was glad enough of the rest and extra holidays that I should secure by making the voyage in a sailing vessel instead of by steamer.

On the particular day when my story opens, the wind towards noon became boisterous, so that the watch was " piped " up to shorten sail. I followed the men with my eyes as they scrambled hastily up the rigging and made their way out along the top-gallant-yard, where they proceeded to take in the canvas. While carrying out the operation with their hands, both of which were needed for the purpose, they lay with their breasts upon the spar, and kept themselves from falling by pressing the soles of their feet against the foot-rope and pushing it out behind them. To a landsman like myself their position ap peared perilous in the extreme. I was standing Q AT SEA 3 on the quarter-deck, near the captain, while this was going on, watching with excited interest the performance of the dangerous duty. From time to time he gave an anxious look to windward, and there was no need to ask any question in order to ascertain the cause of his anxiety, for a squall was approaching that looked formidable indeed.

It reached us before long with a sudden and violent rush. The ship shook and trembled, as if endued with life, and lay over till her bulwarks touched the water, bowing, as it were, before the majesty of the storm, while the masts and spars, in spite of the stout ropes that stayed them, bent until I thought they would snap across under the influence of its fury ; and the wind rattled and hissed angrily through the rigging. I looked up to see how the poor sailors aloft stood it, and, as I did so, I beheld the flapping sail torn from their hands, and three of them knocked off the spar. It was an awful sight to see human beings thrown into the air from such a height. One fell towards the deck, another overboard, while the third was hurled with force against the standing rigging, which he grasped with desperation, and clung to for a moment, but then let go again, and fell, seizing, however, another rope, which he kept hold of till he got his legs twined round it, and slid safely down.

The moment the accident happened the captain ran for a life-buoy hanging near, and, standing at the stern, held it ready to cast into the sea when the man should appear upon the surface ; but there was no trace of him to be seen. Some one sug gested to look over the side, and there was the missing sailor being towed along. In his fall he had caught a rope, the end of which was made fast below, and to this he clung with the proverbial tenacity of a drowning man. Immediately upon his position being discovered a comrade, properly secured, went to the straggler's aid, and passed a rope round his body, by which he was easily hoisted to the deck. Not a moment too soon did this succour reach him, for the rescued man was well-nigh exhausted. Short as had been the time of his immersion, the ordeal was almost more than ho could bear, with death so near him starin^ him in tho face.

The poor man's strength was so far gone that AT SEA 5 he was unable to walk, and had to be carried below. Meanwhile the sailor who had fallen towards the deck was picked up insensible — lifeless, it was at first thought. The force of his fall had, however, been broken two or three times in the descent by striking against obstructing ropes, and finally he had been thrown into a boat on deck, in which loose sails were lying. After a time he regained consciousness, when it was found his injuries were not severe. It was a cause for great thankfulness that no life had been lost in such a serious accident, and when the storm abated things on board went on as usual. Not long afterwards we had another exciting scene. The ship caught fire in the cook-house, and as the sea was running high at the time, occasionally washing over the deck, the captain ordered the gratings of the hatchways to be fastened down, to prevent the steerage passengers crowding upon deck in the way of the sailors, besides running the risk of being swept overboard.

The panic that ensued is far beyond my powers of description. The companion-ladders underneath the gratings became the scene of frightful struggles between men, women, and children for a vantage ground from which to implore, in heartrending supplications, to be set free. From time to time the sea, breaking over the deck, sent torrents of water down upon them, increasing their terror ten fold, for drowning was the only alternative they saw to burning. The captain was not an impressionable man, and went about the task of conquering the flames apparently regardless of the confusion and fright that reigned below. When the fire was extin guished he released his prisoners. At first there was a frantic rush on deck ; but soon the pas sengers, seeing that the danger was past and all once more in order, began to return below.

Just then a couple of heavy seas were shipped in quick succession, drenching those who still loitered on the deck, and hastening their movements downwards. On the banks of Newfoundland the weather was calm and foggy ; and as the ship lay motionless we beguiled the time by fishing for cod, of which we caught a good many. Aster a few days of this listless sort of life the AT SEA 7 wind sprang up again, and we sailed on, meeting with a furious gale, which knocked us about a good deal and did considerable damage to the sails and rigging. This storm lasted from the afternoon well through the night, and when daylight broke next morning we could see that the loss of a boat, the cow and cow-house, some fowls and their coops, besides a sail or two, were the chief injuries we had sustained. We found also that our ship had several companions in misfortune, most of them having suffered more than we did.

Signals were sent backwards and forwards between these ships to ascertain whether any of them needed assistance, but all were able to effect their own repairs, and, when this was done, parted company to sail on for their respective destinations. Shortly after dark one night we sighted a ship on fire, but as it was far from our course, and others had been seen during the day sailing in that direc tion, the captain decided it was unnecessary to go to her assistance. At sea we met with the usual whales and porpoises and other denizens of the deep, while Mother Carey's chickens accompanied the ship nearly across the ocean, only giving place to other birds of various kinds when close to land; but no incident of importance except those already related occurred to us till we were almost at the end of our voyage.