ooner belonging to Mr. W., a planter on a neighbouring islet. All
the signs pointed to a coming cyclone, and suddenly it shot from the
mountains, furrowed the sea, and ruled supreme for two days. From
the director's house I watched the whirling squalls gliding over
the water, lifting great lumps of spray, that shot like snow over
the surface and disappeared in the misty distance. Rain rattled in
showers on the roof; everywhere was a hissing, rushing, thundering;
the surf broke in violent, irregular shocks like the trampling of an
excited horse; the wind roared in the forest till the strongest trees
trembled and the palms bent over with inverted crowns. In a moment
the creeks swelled to torrents, and in every gully there ran rivers,
which collected to a deep lake in the plain. In the house the rain
penetrated everywhere, leaked through the roof, dripped on the beds,
and made puddles on the floor.

Meanwhile the captain and engineer of the launch had passed an
unpleasant time; they had stayed aboard till the rolling of the boat
drove them to the larger yacht; but seeing the schooner break her
two chains and drift on to the reef, they became frightened and went
ashore in the dinghey, and home along the beach. Later they arrived
at the station and reported "all well," and were amazed when I told
them that the launch had stranded. I had just been looking from the
veranda through the glass at the boats, when a huge wave picked up
the launch and threw her on the beach. There she had rolled about a
little, and then dug herself into the sand, while the tide fell and
the wind changed. Next day the cyclone had passed, but the swell
was still very heavy. Equipped with everything necessary to float
the launch, we marched along the beach, which was beaten hard by the
waves. We had to cross a swollen river on an improvised raft; to our
satisfaction we found the boat quite unhurt, not even the cargo being
damaged; only a few copper plates were torn. Next day Mr. W. arrived,
lamenting his loss; for his beautiful schooner was pierced in the
middle by a sharp rock, and she hung, shaken by the waves that
broke over her decks and gurgled in the hold. The rigging was torn,
the cabin washed away, and the shore strewn with her doors, planks,
beams and trade goods. It was a pitiful sight to see the handsome
ship bending over like a fallen warrior, while the company's old
yacht had weathered the cyclone quite safely.

During the work of refloa