31 



Yet, whate'er be the cause of thy sadness, young seaman, 

 That the weight be soon lighten'd, I send up my vow ; 

 From the stings of remorse, I '11 be sworn, thou 'rt a 

 freeman, 



No guilt ever ruffled the smooth of that brow ! 



That sigh which you breath'd sprang from pensive 

 affection ; 



That song, though so plaintive, sheds balm on the 

 heart ; 



And the pain which you feel at each fond recollection, 

 Is worth all the pleasures that vice could impart. 



Oh, still may the scenes of your life, like the present, 



Shine bright to the eye, and speak calm to the breast; 

 May each wave flow as gentle, each breeze play as 

 pleasant, 



And warm as the clime prove the friends you love best ! 



And may she, who now dictates that ballad so tender, 

 Diffuse o'er your days the heart's solace and ease, 



As yon lovely moon, with a gleam of mild splendour, 

 Pure, tranquil, and bright, over-silvers the seas ! 



December 16. 



What little wind there is blows so perversely, 

 that we have been obliged to alter our course ; 

 and instead of Antigua, we are now told that the 

 Summer Islands (Shakspeare's " still vexed Ber- 

 moothes") are the first land that we must expect 

 to see. 



I am greatly disappointed at finding such a 

 scarcity of monsters; I had flattered myself, that 

 as soon as we should enter the Atlantic Ocean, 



