JOURNEY BY MOONLIGHT. 245 
sea. Two native female attendants alternately 
carried the child, while Mrs. Ellis and I walked on 
the shore, occasionally climbing over the rocks, or 
sinking up to our ankles in fragments of coral and 
sand. Wearied with our walk, we were obliged 
to rest before we reached the place where we 
expected to embark again. Mrs. Ellis, unable to 
walk any further, sat down upon a rock of coral, 
and gave our infant the breast, while I hailed the 
natives, and directed them to bring the canoe over 
the reef, and take us on board. Happily for us, 
the evening was fair, the moon shone brightly, and 
her mild beams, silvering the foliage of the shrubs 
that grew near the shore, and playing on the 
rippled and undulating wave of the ocean, added 
a charm to the singularity of the prospect, and 
enlivened the loneliness of our situation. The 
scene was unusually impressive. I remember dis¬ 
tinctly my feelings as I stood, wearied with my 
walk, leaning on a light staff by the side of the 
rock on which Mrs. Ellis with our infant was 
sitting, and behind which our female attendants 
stood. On one side the mountains of the interior, 
having their outline edged, as it were with silver, 
from the rays of the moon, rose in lofty magni¬ 
ficence, while the indistinct form, rich and diver¬ 
sified verdure, of the shrubs and trees, increased 
the effect of the scene. On the other hand was 
the illimitable sea, rolling in solemn majesty its 
swelling waves over the rocks which defended the 
spot on which we stood. The most profound 
silence prevailed, and we might have fancied 
that we were the only beings in existence, for 
no sound was heard, excepting the gentle rust¬ 
ling of the leaves of the cocoa-nut tree, as the 
light breeze from the mountain swept through 
