ourselves have in the great war, and the duty--to say nothing of
privilege--which lies upon us to lend a helping hand in the good cause.

Before going into the marrow of the subject, let us put on the wings of
imagination, and soar to such a height that we shall be able to take in
at one eagle glance all the coasts of the United Kingdom--a sweep of
about 5000 miles all round! It is a tremendous sight, for a storm is
raging! Black clouds are driving across the murky sky; peals of thunder
rend the heavens; lightning gleams at intervals, revealing more clearly
the crested billows that here roar over the sands, or there churn and
seethe among the rocks. The shrieking gale sweeps clouds of spray high
over our windward cliffs, and carries flecks of foam far inland, to tell
of the dread warfare that is raging on the maddened sea.

Near the shore itself numerous black specks are seen everywhere, like
ink-spots on the foam. These are wrecks, and the shrieks and the
despairing cries of the perishing rise above even the roaring of the
gale. Death is busy, gathering a rich harvest, for this is a notable
night in the great war. The Storm-fiend is roused. The enemy is abroad
in force, and has made one of his most violent assaults, so that from
Shetland to Cornwall, ships and boats are being battered to pieces on
the rocks and sands, and many lives are being swallowed up or dashed
out; while, if you turn your gaze further out to sea, you will descry
other ships and boats and victims hurrying onward to their doom. Here,
a stately barque, with disordered topsails almost bursting from the
yards as she hurries her hapless crew--all ignorant, perchance, of its
proximity--towards the dread lee-shore. Elsewhere, looming through the
murk, a ponderous merchantman, her mainmast and mizzen gone, and just
enough of the foremast left to support the bellying foresail that bears
her to destruction.

Think you, reader, that this sketch is exaggerated? If so, let us
descend from our lofty outlook, and take a nearer view of facts in
detail. I quote the substance of the following from a newspaper article
published some years ago.

The violence of the storm on Wednesday and Thursday night was terrific.
The damage to shipping has been fearful. On sea the tremendous gale
proved disastrous beyond precedent. Falmouth Harbour was the scene of
several collisions, and one barque and a tug steamer sank at their
anchors. A wreck is reported at L