Of course the dingey had its Sunday voyage at Cowes, and was everywhere
received with kindness. It went to the Royal Yacht here, as it had done
to the Emperor's yacht at St. Cloud, and the sailors were grateful for
books to read, for they have plenty of time on Sundays. When I went
afterwards with my canoe to the Nile, my next neighbour at the hotel
dinner in Port Said was the owner of an English yacht, who gratefully
expressed his thanks for books given to his crew at Cowes.

It did not appear to be the fashion at Cowes to work the crews for
pleasure sailing seven days a week; indeed, we saw only one yacht sail in
on Sunday, and she was arriving after a night's voyage.

CHAPTER XVI.

The life-raft--A travelled hen--Prussian adventure--American--Going
up-stairs--Portsmouth--Fair visitor--Cruises--A review--Questions.

The 'Nonpareil' American life-raft was in Cowes after her Atlantic voyage
of forty-three days at sea. Two of her three adventurous crew were
Germans, who could speak English only imperfectly, and the third was a
Yankee. This uncomfortable voyage was undertaken partly to promote the
sale in England of these rafts, and partly to pay the three men by fees
from visitors, while they could see Europe themselves at a cheap rate.
One of Mr. White's steamers towed the raft in front of the Castle, where
the members of the Royal Yacht Squadron Club have their spacious house,
with a sea wall over the waves.

From the accompanying sketch it will be seen that she is schooner-rigged,
and very coarsely rigged too. Gigantic flags and streamers overwhelm her
masts, but fourteen of us on her deck seemed to sink the buoyant
life-raft only an inch more in the water.

[Picture: The raft]

She is made of three long tubes of india-rubber blown up by bellows; and,
when the air is out, these can be packed away snugly, weighing in all
about a ton, and intended to be inflated and launched from a ship's deck
in case of disaster. A small raft in the capacity of a dingey, but
formed like the other, was towed beside her, and as a special favour I
was piloted to go away in this, which was easily worked by oars or sculls
upon outriggers.

The men had for shelter during their long voyage only a small waterproof
tent on the deck, with a gutter round its edge to catch the rainwater,
and so to replenish their supply, kept in bags on each side, and now
handed about in glasses as "travelled liquor