344 TRAVEL, ADVENTURE, AND SPORT. 



That I had awful thoughts of the Eternity into 

 which I felt gradually sinking is certain; but it is 

 wonderful how faintly I thought of the future world. 

 All such thoughts were overthrown by alternate hope 

 and despair connected with this life. Once, when I 

 had resigned myself to death, and was supplicating 

 the mercy of our Eedeemer, I thought I heard the 

 shrill cry of sea-birds flying over my head, and in- 

 stantly I returned again to the hope of life. Oh, for 

 such wings ! but mine I thought were broken, and 

 like a wounded bird I lay floating powerlessly on the 

 waves. 



The night before I had had a severe rheumatism 

 in my head, and now remembered that I had some- 

 where about me a phial of laudanum. I swallowed 

 the whole of it, and ere long a strange effect was 

 produced. I fell into a delirium, and felt a wild 

 pleasure in dancing along over the waves. I im- 

 agined myself in a vessel and on a voyage, and had 

 a dreamy impression that there was connected with 

 it something of glory. Then I believed, in a mo- 

 ment after, that I had been bound, thrown over- 

 board, and forsaken by a mutinous crew. As these 

 various fancies alternated, I recollect, in my delirium, 

 bursting out into loud peals of laughter singing to 

 myself and huzzaing with a mad kind of enjoyment. 

 Then suddenly a cold tremulous sickness would fall 

 on me a weight of sadness and despair. Every now 

 and then there came these momentary flashings of 



