l evergreen foliage; and the entrance
to the harbour of the island was to be seen within and beyond these
outlying sentinels, stretching up inland towards a mass of purple
mountains from a beach of yellow sand.

Next, we passed to the leeward of Martinique; and, then, towards sunset
of the same day, as we approached Saint Kitts, islet after islet jumped
up out of the sea in front of us, to the right hand and to the left.
They were all misty at first, but changed their colours from slaty grey
to green as we approached them nearer, although their shape was all
pretty much the same--tall sugar-loaf peaks surrounded by verdure
sloping down in graceful curves to the water's edge, the surf breaking
against the shore of those to leeward in clouds of spray, while the
waves washed the rocky feet of those on the windward side without a
ripple.

When the sun disappeared below the western horizon, Montserrat, Redonda,
Nevis, Saint Christopher, and Saint Eustatius were all in sight around
us; and, just at ten o'clock at night, when the moon was at the full,
lighting up the scene with its silvery beams as brightly almost as if it
were day, we passed between Saint Eustatius and the island of Saba. We
approached the latter within two miles, but when its north point bore
west we steered for Dog Island, clearing the reefs somewhere about the
middle watch.

Soon after sunrise next morning we weathered Sombrero, the last of the
Antilles, and thus got fairly out into the Atlantic, leaving the West
Indies behind us as we hauled our wind and bore away for the Azores--
although a long stretch of ocean had to be crossed ere we might hope to
reach this half-way port on our voyage.

But I have not yet described our ship and those on board.

The _Josephine_ was an old-fashioned barque of about five hundred tons
burden, built with a high poop and a topgallant forecastle, "or
fo'c's'le," as seamen call it.

She was a roomy vessel, possessing great breadth of beam, which made her
a staunch sea-boat in rough weather, for she could tumble about as much
as she pleased without causing much damage to her timbers or risk of her
stability; and this roominess, besides, allowed good accommodation aft
for a large number of passengers, although in this instance I was the
single solitary "landsman" aboard--that is, if a young shaver of
thirteen can be dignified with such a high-sounding title!

Her officers and crew consisted of eighteen hands all told;