1894.] ESSAYS. 71 



For lier who lives on the wide, wide sea, 



On the craggy ice, in the frozen air, 



And only seeking her rocky lair 



To warm her young and teach them to spring 



At once o'er the waves on their stormy wing." 



We ofteu amuse ourselves catching white Cape Horn pigeons with 

 "bended pins for hooks." Immediately upon landing on deck they 

 are seasick and stagger about for a moment as though dizzy. We 

 caught one away out at sea with a pink ribbon around its neck. 

 We wrote our names, latitude, and longitude on the ribbon and tying 

 it around its neck parted with it, in hopes that some lonely voyager 

 on the wide ocean might be amused as we had been. 



In warm latitudes south of the Equator we have been surrounded 

 with schools of flying fish. They spring from the water at a height of 

 eight or ten feet, keeping on the wing for a few seconds, when they 

 dip into a wave to wet their wings, in this manner flying for quite a 

 distance. Although they were as thick as bees around the ship there 

 was no way we could entice them on board. Sometimes they would fly 

 on the deck in the night, and then the cook would surprise the most 

 favored person on board with fried flying fish for breakfast. On the 

 island of Barbadoes they are caught in large quantities in nets, and 

 boneless flying fish is one of the delicacies which we remember in con- 

 nection with that lovely isle. You have all heard of the young man, 

 who, on his return from his first voyage, was asked by his mother to 

 relate some of the sights which he had seen ; he told her he had seen 

 mountains of sugar, rivers of rum, and fish that could fly. The old 

 lady said she could believe there were mountains of sugar and rivers 

 of rum, but that she would never believe that fish could fly. 



While at Sagua la Grande, Cuba, we took the boat and rowed to a 

 beach which was covered with large shells. The}^ were somewhat 

 broken and faded, being exposed to the sun. The natives dive for 

 the handsome piuk-liued shells and eat the animal which inhabits 

 them. It is very amusing to see these shells walking around on deck. 

 One of the captains while walking on the beach picked up some small 

 shells and put them in his pocket. Afterwards he called at his 

 broker's office, and while sitting there talking they came out of his 

 pocket and crawled up his coatsleeve, to the great amusement of a 

 young lady who was in the office. 



" The tiny shell is forlorn 

 Void of the little living will 

 That made it stir on the shore." 



