354 Voyage of the Novara. 



so that tlie land seemed desolate and deserted, there now- 

 smiled upon us, as we doubled Green Island, the city of 

 Victoria, rising amphitheatre-like ; and, lying invitingly be- 

 fore us, its harbour, all alive with numbers of stately ships 

 and steamers, looking like an inland lake, — in fact, entirely 

 land-locked. Several old ships of the line, which the English 

 use as hospitals and coal depots, filled the back-ground, among 

 which was the Royal Charlotte, 130 guns, the first three- 

 decker that has passed the Equator. 



At 10 a. m. we cast anchor directly opposite the town ; 

 and amid the flags of England, America, France, Holland, 

 and Russia, there now flaunted proudly forth the flag of 

 Austria ! 



