We were progressing favourably on our voyage, which would in a short
time terminate. I have said little or nothing about the wonders of the
ocean, for they have been so often described. I cannot, however, avoid
mentioning a beautiful phenomenon which occurred one night as we were
approaching the Australian coast. There was a light breeze, which just
rippled the water into wavelets, amid which the brig glided onward. The
sky was overcast sufficiently to hide the stars. Dark as it was
overhead, the whole ocean was flashing with light,--at some places in
streaks, at others in vast masses, the spouts of several whales
appearing like jets of liquid fire; while numberless huge medusae
floated about, appearing as if composed of molten silver.

"I wonder the ship doesn't catch fire!" exclaimed Tommy, who had just
come on deck. "It would be a bad job if it did, for how should we ever
put it out again? What can light up the water in this fashion?"

My father overheard him. "We call it the phosphorescence of the sea,
because it resembles the glow emitted by phosphorus," he answered.
"Those who have studied the subject say that it is caused by the
presence of myriads of minute marine organisms, some soft and
gelatinous, and others--such as the Crustacea--of a hard nature; but, in
reality, under some conditions of the atmosphere all sorts of marine
creatures, like those huge medusae, shine both in the water and out of
it."

This appearance continued many hours. I got up Edith, who had already
retired to her cabin, to look at it. She was as delighted as we were,
and wanted us to have a bucketful brought on deck. Greatly to our
surprise, the water in the bucket shone almost as brilliantly as it did
in the ocean.

The next day the wind changed, and the weather became much worse than it
had been since we had been taken on board. The wind was continually
shifting, now coming from one quarter and now from another. I saw that
my father was unusually anxious. He felt that the safety of the vessel,
and the lives of all on board, depended on him. It was a long time
since he had been at sea, and he had never been off this coast before.
I believe that it would have been better for us had we at once stood off
the land. It was too late to hope to do so, when the wind, coming round
to the eastward, began to blow a perfect hurricane. My father then
hoped to find shelter within the coral reefs which ran along the coast
at a