62 THE SEA. 



"Soon after this adventure we all went to bed, full of thanKtulness that it had 

 ended as well as it did ; but also not, so far as I am concerned, to rest in peace. In about 

 two hours I was awakened by a tremendous weight of water suddenly descending 1 upon 

 me and flooding the bed. I immediately sprang out, only to find myself in another 

 pool on the floor. It was pitch dark, and I could not think what had happened; so I 

 rushed on deck, and found that, the weather having moderated a little, some kind 

 sailor, knowing my love of fresh air, had opened the skylight rather too soon, and 

 one of the angry waves had popped on board, deluging the cabin." 



The Sunbeam encountered a wreck, and the account given of its inspection will be read 

 with interest. Mrs. Brassey says : " When I went on deck, at half-past six, I found a 

 grey, steamy, calm morning, promising a very hot day, without wind. 



"About 10.30 a.m. the cry of 'Sail on the port helm!' caused general excitement,, 

 and in a few minutes every telescope and glass in the ship had been brought to bear upon 

 the object which attracted our attention, and which was soon pronounced to be a wreck. 

 Orders were given to starboard the helm and to steer direct for the vessel ; and many were 

 the conjectures hazarded and the questions asked of the fortunate holders of glasses. f What 

 is she? ' ' Is there any one on board?' ' Does she look as if she had been long abandoned?* 

 Soon we were near enough to send a boat's crew on board, whilst we watched their move- 

 ments anxiously from the bridge. We could now read her name the Carolina surmounted 

 by a gorgeous yellow decoration on her stern. She was of between two and three hundred 

 tons burden, and was painted a light blue with a red streak. Beneath her white bowsprit the 

 gaudy image of a woman served as a figure-head. The two masts had been snapped short off 

 about three feet from the deck, and the bulwarks were gone, only the covering board and 

 stanchions remaining, so that each wave washed over and through her. The roof and sup- 

 ports of the deck-house and the companions were still left standing, but the sides had dis- 

 appeared, and the ship's deck was burst up in such a manner as to remind one of a quail's 

 back. . . . We saw the men on board poking about, apparently very pleased with what 

 they had found ; and soon our boat returned to the yacht for some breakers, as the Carolina 

 had been laden with port wine and cork, and the men wished to bring some of the former 

 on board. I changed my dress, and putting on my sea-boots, started for the wreck. 



" We found the men rather excited over their discovery. The wine must have been very 

 new and very strong, for the smell from it as it slopped about all over the deck was almost 

 enough to intoxicate anybody. One pipe had already been emptied into the breakers and 

 barrels, and great efforts were made to get some of the casks out whole ; but this was 

 found to be impossible, without devoting more time to the operation than we chose to spare. 

 The men managed to remove three half empty casks with their heads stove in, which they 

 threw overboard, but the full ones would have required special appliances to raise them 

 through the hatches. It proved exceedingly difficult to get at the wine, which was stowed 

 underneath the cork, and there was also a quantity of cabin bulkheads and fittings floating 

 about under the influence of the long swell of the Atlantic. It was a curious sight, stand- 

 ing on the roof of the deck-house, to look into the hold, full of floating bales of cork, 

 barrels, and pieces of wood, and to watch the sea surging up in every direction through 

 and over the deck, which was level with the water's edge. I saw an excellent modern iron 



