A CONCERT AT SEA. 



and, by a curious coincidence, before we weighed anchor, the 

 boat that did the mischief came into harbour. 



We were soon off again, and as we steamed away from 

 land the wind freshened, and there was more motion than 

 some of us quite liked. 



In the evening there was a concert, but our musical 

 talent on board is not great, as it consists chiefly (if very 

 young girls with untaught school-room voices, and elderly 

 dames with the remains of what might, in prediistoric times, 

 have been good. An Irish lady with a sweet voice and a 

 delicious brogue was the one exception. Poor thing ! she 

 suffered terribly from mal de mer, and had to run below 

 between each song. Of course, the irony of Fate gave 

 her the only two encores of the evening. A Parsee gentle- 

 man sang " Queen of my Heart " with much feeling, but 

 the boys rather spoilt the effect, as they persisted in 

 treating the last line of each verse as a chorus. 



The phosphorescence in the water to-night was lovely ; 

 the sea one blaze of light, dotted with innumerable sparks 

 of fire wildly chasing each other to and fro. Our poet 

 remarked that it resembled " golden moths entangled in 

 a silver net." 



Wednesday. — A decided swell prevailed, and those 

 who appeared at breakfast had an air of pardonable pride 

 about them. I took refuge in chess, and I believe that it- 

 was only racking my brain over a tough problem that 



