I 
1831.] ISLAND OF ST. PAUL. 99 
From this period, the decks of the Potomac almost daily pre- 
sented the novel spectacle of two hundred and fifty men mrder 
arms, learning the use of the musket ; to march and counter- 
march, load, prime, and take aim, who probably never before, in 
all their lives, had handled a piece of less calibre than a thirty-two- 
pounder. These exercises, and the object to which they led, 
seemed now to engross the minds and feelings of the whole crew; 
so that the ordinary tediousness of headwinds and cross seas was 
but partially felt. In these exercises the marines on board were 
of great service, and served as a nucleus upon which to form and 
drill the other divisions. 
On the afternoon of Friday, the fifth of January, the island of 
St. Paul was seen, bearing by compass east-half-south. On the 
morning of the following day, the wind hauling ahead, the island 
could not be reached by several tacks ; a boat was then sent on 
shore to procure some fish, of which there is a great abundance, 
and of the finest quality, in the waters surrounding this " barren 
little isle of the ocean." 
The island of St. Paul, which was first discovered by the 
Dutch navigator Vlaming, in 1697, is in the Indian Ocean, lati- 
tude 38° 42' south, longitude 76° 54' east. Its dimensions are va- 
riously estimated by navigators ; some giving it only four miles in 
length, and two and a half in breadth, while others allow it a length 
of eight or ten miles, with a breadth of five. The truth, probably, 
lies between the two. When bearing northeast from the observer, 
the island presents an elevated and somewhat level aspect, sloping 
down to the sea at each extremity. It is evidently of volcanic 
origin, as cones, Avith regular-formed craters, are to be found in 
several parts of it. The soil, being formed of decomposed lava, 
is a rich mould, that produces grass, but no trees. It contains 
several hot springs, in some of which fish could be cooked fit for 
the table. These, together with the constant rising of vapour and 
steam, plainly indicate the existence of internal fires. 
This island is inaccessible except on its eastern side, where is 
an indentation, cove, or basin, formed by the sea's forcing a lateral 
breach through that side of the principal crater ; through which 
the tide flows in and out, at the rate of three miles an hour, rising 
and faUing eight or nine feet, at the full and change of the moon. 
The shape of this basin is that of an ellipsis, about a mile and a 
G 2 
