ell.
A towering cliff of ice appeared over our mast-heads--still we hurried
on. There was a loud thundering clash. The stoutest held their breath
for fear. Our deck was deluged with spray. Several quickly-following
seas struck our stern, lifting the ship before them. The summit of the
vast iceberg had fallen--perhaps by the concussion of the air as we
moved under it. A moment later, and we should have been crushed to
atoms--driven far, far down into the depths of the ocean! The iceberg
was passed. It seemed to be guarding the portals of that narrow inlet.
As the dawn came on, we could discover the ice trending away to leeward.
All day we stood on, gradually increasing our distance from icebergs
and fields of ice, till we had, to our no little satisfaction, left them
far astern.

CHAPTER NINETEEN.

A VISIT TO JAVA.

We had won many a prize from the vasty deep with no little toil, and
visited many strange people living under burning suns, when we found
ourselves at anchor in the Roads of Batavia, the capital of the large
and fertile island of Java. It was taken by the English in the year
1811 from the Dutch, or rather from the French, who had temporary
possession of it. The British fleet employed on the occasion was under
the command of Admiral Sir Robert Stopford, and the army under that of
General Wetherall and Colonel Gillespie. That admirable and talented
man, Sir Stamford Raffles--the greatest benefactor the islands of the
East had ever known, till Sir James Brooke followed in his footsteps,
was then appointed governor, and had his counsels and prayers been
followed, it would still have been a bright jewel in the British crown.
Unhappily neither were heeded. His letters describing the fertility and
unbounded resources, when properly developed, of that immense territory,
remained unread, unopened at the Colonial Office; and at the general
peace Java was cast back as a worthless trifle into the heap to be
enjoyed by others, which England had gained by so much blood and
treasure. The Dutch took possession, and very speedily re-established
the system of close monopoly and grinding tyranny which the enlightened
policy of Sir Stamford Raffles had abolished.

Newman had now so completely established himself in the good opinion of
the captain, that he was treated more as an officer than a foremast-man,
and whenever duty would allow, he was permitted to go on shore to visit
whatever was worthy of notice.