10 MOKHA AND PERIM. 



once closed, iind the atmosphere below becomes stifling, 

 whilst slee})ino- on deck is not always safe when the 

 vessel is tossino- or rolling heavily, and the waves 

 breaking over lier deck. On one such night, at about 

 one in the morning, a perfect panic was created 

 amongst the passengers 1)}^ the sudden stopping of the 

 engine ; fig\n-es rushed upstairs in a frantic manner, 

 and in the most irregular guises, but fortunately the 

 alarm Avas a false one, for the Captain's order to 

 " sound " was the sole reason, which, in a heavy sea, 

 cannot l^e done with accuracy whilst steaming along 

 at a great speed, " All right " soon reassured us, and 

 the next command, " Go ahead," found most of us 

 already in our berth, or on the table in the large 

 saloon, as the case might be. 



On the fifth day after leaving Suez we first passed 

 Mokha, a small fortified seaport on the Arabian coast, 

 surrounded by a hot sandy waste ; it is hence that the 

 famous coffee bean is exported. Soon after Perim, in 

 the Straits of Bab-el -Mandeb, appeared in sight. The 

 latter island is bare, only three and a half miles by two 

 and a half in extent, but holding a commanding position 

 at the entrance of the Red Sea, and has a fort on its 

 summit, garrisoned by some seventy native soldiers, 

 and a few English officers, who must lead a most 

 miserable existence in that lonely spot. 



