WRECK OF THE ALMA. 193 



intense astonishment at such an unseemly addition to 

 the ship's company. Nevertheless we were presented 

 by the first lieutenant to the highest in rank of the 

 company, the English Ambassador to China, who had 

 just happily succeeded in bringing on the Anglo-French 

 war with China. He graciously gave us an audience, 

 and exchanged a few words with each of us in his 

 mother tongue, being rather proud of his own extensive 

 linguistic acquirements and delighting to display them. 

 At the approach of night each sought his camping 

 place on deck, but our rest was long disturbed by 

 the ladies, who could not make up their minds to 

 return to the stifling cabins. 



We had slept only a few hours, when we were 

 rudely awakened from our dreams. A violent shock 

 caused the ship to tremble, two others followed still 

 more violent, and when we had sprung up in alarm 

 we felt the ship heeling over. I had luckily not taken 

 off my boots, only laid aside hat and spectacles. When 

 I looked round for these, I perceived my hat already 

 on the way to the sinking ship's side, and involun- 

 tarily followed it in the same direction. Wild, terri- 

 fied, ear-piercing shrieks resounded on all sides, then 

 a general clatter, as everything on deck was taking its 

 course to the deep. Everybody instinctively made for the 

 higher part of the ship, most were able to reach it. I came 

 off worse, having lost time in my search for hat and 

 spectacles. Already the water streamed over the ship's 

 side, and warned me to think of my own safety. The 



deck had in a few seconds assumed so oblique a po- 



13 



