SURF ON EDGE OF REEF. 



121 



Weeks, the boatswain, with their assistants, imme- 

 diately commenced operations for cutting through 

 the decks, in order to £et out the two five tun tanks, 

 which, from their size, could not be got up the 

 hatchways. Mr. M'Gillivray and I found our pur- 

 pose of exploring and collecting on the reef frustrated 

 by the depth of water. The reef was about a quarter 

 of a mile wide, and ran nearly due N. and S. for 

 several miles. It appeared indeed to stretch to the 

 horizon in both directions, the breaks in its con- 

 tinuity being so narrow as to be barely perceptible. 

 A fresh breeze was blowing from the S.E., and 

 rather a heavy sea running outside. The water was 

 perfectly clear, and of great and almost unfathom- 

 able depth right up to the outer slope or submarine 

 wall of the reef. The long ocean swell being sud- 

 denly impeded by this barrier, lifted itself in one 

 great continuous ridge of deep blue water, which, 

 curling over, fell on the edge of the reef in an un- 

 broken cataract of dazzling white foam. Each line 

 of breaker was often one or two miles in length, 

 with not a perceptible gap in its continuity. After 

 recovering from this leap, and spreading for some 

 distance in a broad sheet of foam, the wave gra- 

 dually swelled again into another furious breaker of 

 almost equal height and extent with the first, and 

 then into a third, which, although much less con- 

 siderable, yet thundered against the bows of the 

 wreck with a strength that often made her every 

 timber quiver. Even then the force of the swell 



