The Nineteenth Century 169 



On which the monarch donned his robes 

 And bade the fish avast. 

 "Pray, harness up the Royal Car, 

 Behold! the day wanes fast." 



And in those grand, and wave-like tones 

 No mortal can assume. 

 He blessed our ship, from truck to keel 

 And vanished in the gloom. 



Cynics may sneer, and skeptics l«ugh. 

 And call our King a myth; 

 Yet we who sail his broad domain 

 Are loyal to the pith. 



The Sons of Freedom own his sway. 

 And happiest thought of all — 

 Ovir King stands firm while earthly thrones 

 In angiy strife shall fall. 



And so we shout, Long live the King! 

 By all good tars adored. 

 Aid wish the doubters had been there, 

 When Neptune came aboard. 



At Sea, May 20th, 1870. 

 1873 



On the 19th [of June 1873] we sighted the only steamer we have seen, — 

 standing to the southward. In the evening were hailed by Neptune to ascer- 

 tain if any of his subjects who had not yet crossed the Line were on board. 

 Receiving an answer, he promised to board us the following day. On the 

 20th, he came on board and received about a hundred green ones as an 

 addition to his kingdom. 



(Manuscript diary in Library of Congress. Kept by William A. H. Allen, 

 assistant engineer, U. S. Navy, on board U.S.S. Richmond, crossing about 

 4 a. m. in longitude 28° 57' 45" west. ) 



This time, in contrast to Allen's crossing in 1866, nothing is said about the ceremony as 

 anything but the accepted rule of faith and practice. Splicing the mainbrace seems to have 

 lasted until the days of Josephus Daniels as Secretary of the Navy. 



1875 



Einige gute Tage brachten uns schnell vorwärts. Dann kamen wieder einige 

 schlechte Tage. Der grosse Bär imd der Polarstem tauchten immer tiefer 

 hinab, und vor ims stieg das südhche Kreuz in die Höhe. 



Der südhche Sternenhimmel ist öde im Vergleich mit dem unsrigen, und 

 um sich für die Schönheit des südhchen Kreuzes begeistern zu können, muss 



