304 Dr Buchanan on an extraordinary appearance of the Sea. 
had observed the same appearance formerly in the same sea. 
They had several times, however, passed it, without observing 
any thing similar. No one on board had seen any thing of the 
kind in any other sea, except the gunner, who, in a voyage to 
China, had seen itolf Java Head. The captain of the vessel in 
which he was, being alarmed, hove too immediately, sounded 
with 50 fathoms, but meeting with no ground, he proceeded on 
his voyage. 
Observations . — The animalcules which occasion the usual lu- 
minous appearance on the sea, emit light only when strongly 
agitated, and, hence, appear chiefly close by the sides of the 
ship, or when any large fish passes swiftly, or when a bucket 
of water is drawn, and the water is suddenly poured out. In 
doing this, I have often observed that one of the animalcules 
stuck to my hand and shone for a little, but as my hand dried, 
the light disappeared ; so that I never could bring the animal to 
a light so as to discover it by a magnifying glass. So much 
seems necessary to explain what I observed on the 31st of July 
1785, when the luminous animals were not only larger and more 
numerous, but also emitted a stronger light than usual. 
In the year 1805, in returning from St Helena to England, a 
little north from the Equinoctial line, and at no very great dis- 
tance from the coast of Africa, I had an opportunity of seeing a 
still more splendid appearance of the luminous animalcules. Soon 
after dark in the evening, it being nearly calm, we saw numer- 
ous lights at a distance like the lamps of a great city. The 
lights gradually approached the frigate, and on reaching us, ap- 
peared to arise from a great many large fishes (albicores) sport- 
ing in the water, and agitating the animalcules so as to excite 
their luminous powers. The Marquis Wellesley, Sir George 
Cockburn, Sir Colin Campbell, and several other gentlemen of 
distinction, were witnesses of this splendid phenomenon, which 
was not, however, accompanied by the milky appearance. 
Francis Hamilton. 
