but when the
rain began to fall I heard the captain and several of the officers remark
that the rain would lay the sea; for the result of their experience was,
"that a fall of rain always beats the sea down." What they had stated
would occur took place in this instance within two or three hours. This
shows forcibly what great results a slight force, continued for a long
time, will produce.

September 15.

Whilst standing on the deck of the Beagle this evening we remarked large
luminous spots in the water. They appeared to be about 12 inches in
circumference, were very numerous, and perfectly stationary. The light
they emitted was phosphorescent, but far brighter than I had ever before
witnessed; it was so vivid as to be distinctly visible for nearly a
quarter of a mile.

September 16.

We saw this morning an immense number of fin-backed whales, some of which
were quite close to the vessel. In the course of half an hour I counted
thirty of them. Could they have been feeding on the phosphorescent
animals we saw last night?

We are today about 600 miles from the Cape, and there is a strange
discordance amongst the elements. From the south-west comes a long and
heavy swell; a strong breeze is blowing from the east, and threatening
clouds spring upwards from the north. These omens have a meaning. Down to
the southward, somewhere off Cape Horn, there blows a furious gale. The
wind will draw round shortly to the northward. That is the interpretation
and the reading.

A swell like this one can only witness off the Cape of Good Hope. It was
to me a novel and magnificent sight. Uniform and lofty ridges of waves
advancing in rapid succession, and yet with so regular and undisturbed a
motion that one might easily fancy these great walls of water to be
stationary: yet onward they moved in uniform and martial order; whilst as
the ship rose upon their crests she seemed to hover for a moment over the
ocean in mid air. And now the wind drew round to the northward and it
blew almost a gale. The vessel felt its power and bent before it. It was
beautiful to watch the process of hand-reefing topsails and making the
vessel snug--the ready obedience to the word of command and the noiseless
discipline with which each duty was fulfilled. First had the men
clustered on the rigging like bees; then at the word to lay out they
fearlessly extended themselves along the yard-arm, and whilst they took
in the reefs the ship pitched and rolled so