PROFESSOR SMITH’S JOURNAL. 255 
vessels proceeding with a brisk and cool westerly wind. 
We are now at the distance of 14 to 15 leagues only from 
the coast of Africa. Should the wind continue as it is, we 
shall soon reach the latitude of Cape Palmas, and probably 
then be out of this hot and tedious pacific ocean, and ap- 
proach the line, when, I suppose we shall have to go 
through the usual ceremony of being shaved by Neptune. 
Our whole party continues to be cheerful and agreeable. 
Poor Cranch is almost too much the object of jest. Galwey 
is the principal banterer. 
April 30. To day we had the most violent squall we 
yet had witnessed, and the Captain himself owned that he 
had never seen a horizon so dark as that, towards which 
we were now sailing this afternoon. At the horizon flashes 
of lightning crossed each other in the deep darkness, 
which soon surrounded us. The rain, falling in torrents, 
and accompanied by flashes of lightning in rapid succes- 
sion, approached us. We could no longer gaze at this 
dreadful phenomenon, but were obliged to retreat into the 
cabin. After somewhat more than the half of the squall 
had passed us, we ventured up again, and enjoyed the 
most sublime scene of the whole heaven beautifully illumi- 
nated by flashes of lightning. It generally darted forth 
from two points, now rising like spouts of water, now run- 
ning in zigzag, and spreading itself into innumerable 
branching shapes. No lightning I had seen in Europe 
bore any resemblance to this. 
From the third to the tenth of May we had a southeriy 
wind, that carried us far into the Bay of Guinea. Innu- 
