man a second time, but the latter once more dived and gave
him his death-blow; he then regained his canoe almost exhausted. The shark
soon after turned on his side, discolouring the water with his blood. Four
men in a canoe threw a rope over his tail and towed him on shore, where
all the town came to meet the courageous fisherman, with the magistrates
at their head, who presented him with his well-merited reward and his
liberty. The shark was dissected and the skeleton sent to Spanish Town,
where a few years afterwards it fell to pieces for want of care. This
unfortunate town has been twice destroyed by an earthquake; the ruins on a
clear day may be seen in three-fathom water.

We had been refitting and amusing ourselves on shore by dancing at dignity
balls given by the upper-class copper-coloured washerwomen, who are the
quintessence of perfection in affectation, when we were obliged to bid
adieu to these interesting copper and coal-skinned ladies, as the ship was
reported ready for sea, and the following morning we weighed and stood out
of the harbour. As we passed the point we saw handkerchiefs without number
waved by our dear, motley-coloured damsels as a farewell. We beat up to
St. Domingo and anchored in Cape St. Nicholas mole, where we found the
_Leviathan_, _Raisonable_, _Sampson_, and several frigates. We remained a
week, and sailed with the above-named ships on a cruise round the island.
On the third night after sailing, which was very dark with a fiery
sea-breeze, the _Sampson_ (sixty-four) ran on board of us. She came with
such force that she, by the shock, carried away her fore-mast, bowsprit,
main-top mast and figure-head. She fortunately struck us abaft the main
channels; had she done so amidships, it would have meant the destruction
of both ships and of about a thousand lives. Her larboard bumpkin
dismounted the eighteen-pounder in the foremost lieutenant's cabin in the
wardroom, and in falling clear she swept away both quarter galleries from
the side, one of which was fitted up as a library for the first
lieutenant, who lost all his books. Some of the mids who loved him were
wicked enough to say that it was a punishment inflicted on him for
mastheading them so often. I say nothing!

The _Sampson_ was towed to Jamaica by the _Success_ frigate to repair her
damages, and a fortnight afterwards we followed. The heroes of the cockpit
declared the commodore was ashamed of our appearance. As we had only
galler