ry; it was almost as quiet as it had been at Hamburg before
we started, and its color was a beautiful greenish blue. Birds were all
the time in the air, and it was worth while to live merely to hear their
songs. And soon, oh joyful sight! we saw the tops of two trees!

What a shout there rose! Everyone pointed out the welcome sight to
everybody else, as if they did not see it. All eyes were fixed on it as
if they saw a miracle. And this was only the beginning of the joys of
the day!

What confusion there was! Some were flying up the stairs to the upper
deck, some were tearing down to the lower one, others were running in
and out of the cabins, some were in all parts of the ship in one minute,
and all were talking and laughing and getting in somebody's way. Such
excitement, such joy! We had seen two trees!

Then steamers and boats of all kinds passed by, in all directions. We
shouted, and the men stood up in the boats and returned the greeting,
waving their hats. We were as glad to see them as if they were old
friends of ours.

Oh, what a beautiful scene! No corner of the earth is half so fair as
the lovely picture before us. It came to view suddenly,--a green field,
a real field with grass on it, and large houses, and the dearest hens
and little chickens in all the world, and trees, and birds, and people
at work. The young green things put new life into us, and are so dear
to our eyes that we dare not speak a word now, lest the magic should
vanish away and we should be left to the stormy scenes we know.

But nothing disturbed the fairy sight. Instead, new scenes appeared,
beautiful as the first. The sky becomes bluer all the time, the sun
warmer; the sea is too quiet for its name, and the most beautiful blue
imaginable.

What are the feelings these sights awaken! They can not be described. To
know how great was our happiness, how complete, how free from even the
shadow of a sadness, you must make a journey of sixteen days on a stormy
ocean. Is it possible that we will ever again be so happy?

It was about three hours since we saw the first landmarks, when a number
of men came on board, from a little steamer, and examined the passengers
to see if they were properly vaccinated (we had been vaccinated on the
"Polynesia"), and pronounced everyone all right. Then they went away,
except one man who remained. An hour later we saw the wharves.

Before the ship had fully stopped, the climax of our joy was reached.
One o