ered the room, and was greatly alarmed at
finding Captain Adams laboring under a severe attack of illness. He
was seized with pains in the head and back, accompanied with scorching
fever. His pulsations were strong, quick, and irregular. He said he
must have caught a violent cold the night before, by remaining on
deck without his coat or hat. I did not contradict him; but I had seen
persons in a similar condition, and I knew he was suffering from yellow
fever in its most alarming form.

All the medical skill I possessed was put in requisition; but the
captain grew worse, and before night he was aware of the true character
of the disease, and seemed to feel there was no chance for his recovery.
I strove to minister consolation and inspire him with hope, but in vain.
He acknowledged that life had charms of the most attractive description;
fortune had favored him beyond his expectations; he had relations and
friends whom he dearly loved; and there was one bright being in his
native town to whom he had plighted his vows of affection, and to whom
he hoped to have been united for life if Providence had willed his
return. But he was resigned to the will of the Almighty. He did not even
murmur at the fate which he knew awaited him. He prayed to his God to
pardon the sins he had committed, and looked forward with hope to a
glorious immortality.

The breeze had been light and the sea remarkably smooth since we left
St. Pierre; and the brig, steering to the north-west, had made slow
progress. On the morning after the captain was taken sick we expected to
be in sight of Porto Rico; and Captain Adams asked Mr. Ricker, the mate,
if any land was in sight. The mate thoughtlessly replied, "'The Dead
Man's Chest' can just be seen off deck." This was the English name of a
small island, or cluster of rocks, some five or six miles south of Porto
Rico, resembling in appearance a coffin, and called, in Spanish, "Moxa
del Muerta."

Captain Adams remarked, in a soliloquizing strain, "The Dead Man's
Chest? Already in sight? Well, it will soon be wanted; I am ready."

The sufferings of this excellent man were intense. The pains in his head
and back kept increasing; yet his mind was tranquil, and he retained
command of his mental faculties until the last moment of his life.
During his illness he expressed kindness for others, and made
suggestions to the mate about sailing the brig and carrying on the work.
As he grew weaker, he gave explicit d