16 
INCIDENTS OF THE VOYAGE, 
out before the breeze, just as the poet has described 
it,— 
“ tumidoque inflatur carbasus Austro.” 
Reluctantly the passengers one by one retire, and 
the meditative watch is left in undisputed possession 
of the silent deck. 
At length all eyes were directed westward to look 
out for land: and presently (on the 28th of November) 
the little isle Desirada was detected on the horizon 
like a thin band of blue cloud. Antigua and Gua- 
daloupe succeeded, both dim and distant ; then 
Montserrat appeared ahead, and quickly grew distinct 
and palpable. It w^as afternoon, and the sun was 
sunk behind its heights as we neared it, so that we 
could see nothing but one dark blue ragged mass, 
tapering down at each extremity, and rising into 
irregular peaks in the centre. We rounded the 
north end, and saw the opposite side, where the 
beams of the slanting sun shone full upon the green 
woods and verdant cane-fields, displaying many white 
houses scattered about the hills. On the summits 
of the mountains many palm-trees elevated their 
noble feathery heads above the general mass of foliage. 
The central peaks were shrouded in a cap of cloud, 
and while we looked on the smiling scene, the mists 
began to roll down the mountain sides like the falling 
of a curtain ; and soon the beautiful island was but 
a shapeless mass of grey haze. 
The fresh breeze rapidly swept us along between 
Montserrat and another object of interest that now 
appeared. It was Radonda, a vast mass of barren 
