THE OCEAN VOYAGE 99 



the parting rays intended to make the best of the few 

 minutes' time assigned to them. The clouds of the heav- 

 ens were their objects and the wide horizon their play 

 yard, which soon appeared in the most exquisite color- 

 ings, from the deepest violet to the lightest carnation, 

 and shining golden yellow; the wonderful shapes of colors 

 and clouds were such that it really did not require an 

 enthusiast to recognize the most charming mountain 

 scenes, forests, valleys, snow-caps, ruins of the middle 

 ages, whole cities and villages in those fantastic shapes. 

 Every second brought new changes, not only in the forms, 

 but in colors ; when one would fade another would appear 

 in its brightest hue, and so en. 



The surface of the ocean appeared like a mirror with 

 the exception of the slow waves which measured about 

 a hundred feet in width, and the reproduction of the 

 burning colors of the horizon upon the quiet waters was 

 almost as marvelous as the scene above. Turning to the 

 east, one would be struck by a different but not less beau- 

 tiful spectacle. The full moon had arisen and shone 

 through the foggy evening atmosphere, its full light was 

 cast upon dark grey figures, no less strange than those 

 of the western part of the horizon and throwing upon the 

 water the floating silvery bridge which I had often 

 watched with longing, dreaming glance while sitting on 

 the banks of our little lake or river at home. Thus we 

 were placed between two beautiful heavens, representing 

 evening and night, purer and more marvelously beautiful 

 than I had ever seen them before. 



The light Southeast wind blew hardly enough to fill the 

 upper sails, while the lower ones struck constantly 

 against masts and spars, creating the only noise in the 

 prevailing sultry silence. 



Everybody was on deck, lounging quietly during the 

 oppressive heat. The man at the wheel had just rung 

 his seven bells when my curiosity was aroused by a 

 strange, raven black cloud of unusual shape, which ap- 

 peared upon the Southwestern horizon. At first it ap- 

 proached slowly, then quicker and quicker, taking larger 



