From Sail to Steam 15 



and, owing to the uncertainty of the 

 wind, for a long period the method of 

 propulsion was by oars. Slaves were 

 cheap, so hundreds of men were cooped 

 up between the decks of the galleys 

 tier upon tier of naked men working 

 for dear life under the lash of cruel 

 taskmasters, who walked to and fro along 

 the decks of these horrible vessels. 



Many of these galleys had sails as 

 well; some had sails only. We know 

 that years before the Christian era these 

 galleys reached the coasts of Britain, and 

 tradition says that they went round 

 Africa too. 



The paddle-wheel steamer is gradually 

 disappearing. Here we find an idea still 

 in being which was known to the Chinese 

 and the Romans, only the medium em- 

 ployed for driving the paddle-wheels was 

 men instead of steam. 



Coming rapidly along, we look with 

 amazement on the beautiful Viking ship, 

 of which here and there examples have 





