298 NIMROD OF THE SEA; OB, 



point the course ; with the faithful chronometer to preserve 

 the time of Greenwich ; with the nautical almanac to give 

 the positions of named stars for years in advance ; with the 

 quadrant and the sextant to measure altitudes and take 

 meridians; with the mysteries of the logarithm to resolve 

 the calculations ; and with the chart of the earth's surface 

 before him, the sailor to-day, as the shepherds of old, may 

 find his way to a haven of sure **est by following the mo- 

 tions of a star in the east. Though seeming lost on the 

 trackless ocean, by observing the meridian of the sun, our 

 rough old captain has stuck a pin in his cunningly-lined 

 chart, and given us a course "North -by- west -half -west, 

 and steady at that." And, although months have intervened 

 since we saw a plain or a mountain peak, and -although thou- 

 sands of leagues have been traversed, we to-day have learned 

 that that reason the good God has endowed us with is more 

 than equal to the instincts of my mast-head companion, the 

 frigate-bird. Yet I have met those who, in the safety of 

 home, have said to me, "A chance rules ;" " There is no God." 

 Poor souls ! What power not of God could plant that some- 

 thing which guides alike the bird and the man in the dark- 

 ness and storm, through the immeasurable loneliness of the 

 seas, to the land and home ?" 



At sunset 'the cloudy outline had taken definite form ; the 

 grand volcanic dome of Manna Kea stood out against a 

 glowing, sky, and as the last rays of evening light lingered, 

 the snow and ice of that lofty mountain gleamed in the 

 heavens as a beacon, fourteen thousand feet above our heads. 

 As I sat in the bows and drank in this glorious scene, I felt 

 the presence of infinite power and majesty. 



I doubt whether there is another spot on earth so grand- 

 ly calculated to inspire the artist with a sense of magnitude, 

 as the entrance to the straits which divide the island of 

 Hawaii from Maui. This passage is about twenty miles 



