THE VOYAGE OF THE HASSLER 135 
March 9 
I Lerr you on Thursday, just after we had rounded 
the point of San Mathias Gulf and river, keeping on 
our southern course again. We had a fine day and be- 
ing nearly out of the ““Pampiro” region began to flatter 
ourselves we had escaped, but the sun went down in 
magnificent clouds which the Captain said were full 
of wind and looked risky. The whole evening the 
lightning was superb with chains of electricity from 
cloud to cloud and down into the ocean. Still the 
night was still as sleep and the water almost without 
a ripple. At about ten o’clock with the force of a hur- 
ricane and the suddenness of lightning, the land wind 
struck the ship. After that there was little sleep for 
any one; everything (in sailor’s parlance) that could 
‘fetch away” “fetched away”; among other things 
my bed, which as Helen and Sallie will remember 
was clamped with an iron bar to the inner one, 
worked itself loose and I found myself adrift. I 
jumped on to the inner bed, and there I remained 
blockaded calling for help. Finding no one heard in 
the noise of the storm I climbed over it and called to 
the carpenter to make all fast. At last I was settled. 
Towards morning the row abated, and we got a 
nap. We waked to fine weather though a very rough 
sea and came out to hear the funny adventures of 
the night — upsetting of water-pitchers, drenching 
of beds, smashing of crockery, etc.,— but we came 
through safe and sound, no harm done and have seen 
the elephant in the shape of a “Pampiro”’; once is 
enough. I don’t appreciate the grandeur of storms at 
