d in 1840,
translated into several languages, and adopted by the British Admiralty
for distribution in the Navy. Few sailors are without a copy in their
chest. 'The Seaman's Friend,' which Dana published in the following
year, was inspired by his indignation at the abuses he had witnessed in
the merchant marine.

Dana did not follow up his first success, and his life henceforth
belongs to the history of the bar and politics of Massachusetts, rather
than to literature. The fame of his book brought to his law office many
admiralty cases. In 1848 he was one of the founders of the Free Soil
party; later he became an active abolitionist, and took a large part in
the local politics of his State. For a year he lectured on international
law in Harvard college. He contributed to the North American Review, and
wrote besides on various legal topics. His one other book on travel, 'To
Cuba and Back, a Vacation Voyage,' the fruit of a trip to that island in
1859, though well written, never became popular. He retired from his
profession in 1877, and spent the last years of his life in Paris and
Italy. He died in Rome, January 6th, 1882.

A DRY GALE

From 'Two Years Before the Mast'

We had been below but a short time before we had the usual premonitions
of a coming gale,--seas washing over the whole forward part of the
vessel, and her bows beating against them with a force and sound like
the driving of piles. The watch, too, seemed very busy trampling about
decks and singing out at the ropes. A sailor can tell by the sound what
sail is coming in; and in a short time we heard the top-gallant-sails
come in, one after another, and then the flying jib. This seemed to ease
her a good deal, and we were fast going off to the land of Nod,
when--bang, bang, bang on the scuttle, and "All hands, reef topsails,
ahoy!" started us out of our berths, and it not being very cold weather,
we had nothing extra to put on, and were soon on deck. I shall never
forget the fineness of the sight. It was a clear and rather a chilly
night; the stars were twinkling with an intense brightness, and as far
as the eye could reach there was not a cloud to be seen. The horizon met
the sea in a defined line. A painter could not have painted so clear a
sky. There was not a speck upon it. Yet it was blowing great guns from
the northwest. When you can see a cloud to windward, you feel that there
is a place for the wind to come from; but here it seemed to come