deserved. They generally started off in a very few minutes with the excuse, that if they stayed longer they would get sick too.

Burns says, in his " Address to the tooth-ach"

And admirably, I think, is this adapted also to sea-sickness.

Neither did Saturday bring us any relief; indeed, we were fully worse that day than the one preceding. Towards the afternoon, when we thought, with sorrowful hearts, we had left the English shores for a long time behind, the wind, which, till then, had kept fair, came right against us, and increased to a gale. The swell of the sea, too, became great; the rain descended in torrents; the bitter unfriendly wind kept howling through the rigging; and every now and then a big wave struck, and broke over the vessel. The whole scene, indeed, was a most dismal and dis

heartening one,-just calculated to sink still farther, our already too-far depressed spirits.

I shall always remember the night well. As I lay in the evening, in my cot, wishing myself any where but where I was, quite worn out both in body and mind, and careless what became either of myself or the ship, if I was only allowed to remain at rest, a message came that one of the men was taken ill, and that it was necessary I should see him. It was a most disagreeable piece of intelligence. Much rather would I have gone twenty miles at any other time to visit him on shore, than get up that night to go twenty yards. But there was no getting off well. So up I got; and having reached the deck, I proceeded cautiously along, groping my way in the midst of the storm, in quest of my patient. But just as I had nearly reached the place, a tremendous sea came gush in where part of the bulwark had been carried away, and half drowned me. Says I to myself-if this be the kind of practice I am to have now, it matters not how soon I am done with it. However, that was no

place for reflection; I found out the sick man, and found the way back to my own birth again. But still the work was not done; other misfortunes still awaited me. My patient required a little medicine; and after I had, with no small difficulty, weighed out the different ingredients, and was just on the eve of putting past my weighing apparatus, and parcelling up my medicine, the vessel took a roll, and my cot, which was hanging up, taking one with it, struck me so forcibly that I was thrown from my seat, and away went the scales one way, and the weights another, and the paper with the medicine went off with the rest, and all my labour was to do over again. In sorrow, I ejaculated, as I lay on the floor amid the general ruin,—if a man could be in search of such a thing as misery, let him go to sea and he'll be sure to find it: who is it, that either for curiosity, or gain, or glory, would lead such a horrible life? who is it that would not prefer the scantiest pittance on shore to the greatest affluence here? Let me be once more upon dry land, and if ever I set my foot on board ship again

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may I never get out of it. But complaints were vain; so after a few such melancholy reflections, I gathered up my scattered materials, and, setting to work again with rather more caution, got the business finished.

All Saturday night we fought against the storm, but finding it impossible to make head against it, on Sunday morning we put about ship, and stood back for the land. My sickness still continued as bad as ever, and had now reduced me almost to skin and bone; but though I was scarcely able to move, when I heard the glad tidings, that we were again making for the land, and likely to get relief, at least for a time, to our troubles, I once more made my way to the deck; and there I witnessed a most melancholy scene. I was not, I soon found, the only one that had suffered; for there I saw the greater number of those I had left on Thursday night, in good spirits, with ruddy countenances and masculine figures, most miserably changed. The fine clothes, before so clean and neatly fitted, were now only half put on, and largely coated over with blanket-wool.

The fashionable-tied neckcloth, and the spruce done up hair, were no longer to be seen. The bloom of the cheek was altogether gone; the energy of the eye had fled with it; the features were shrunken; and this, with the long black beard, which had evidently been allowed to grow

in

peace for some days, gave to the whole countenance, nay, to the whole man, a most woful and haggard appearance. The spectacle altogether was, indeed, a lamentable one; as we thus stood, upon the deck in silent sadness, eagerly bending our eyes in the direction of the land, the place where, alone, we looked for comfort.

Well might a spouter have said, as Macbeth,

What are these,

So wither'd, and so wild in their attire,

That look not like the inhabitants o' the earth,
And yet are on it! Live you, or are you aught
That man may question ?—This is a sorry sight.

On Sunday evening at six o'clock, after many ineffectual attempts and hard struggles, we got in to Falmouth harbour; and so great a dislike to a sea life had I impressed upon me at that

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