ddition. The toasts drunk were "The Queen," "The
Captain," and "Absent Friends." The next day, as we had then been a
month at sea, the sailors "buried the dead horse." As they receive a
month's wages in advance, they do not begin to earn anything until
they have been a month at sea. During this period they are said to
be "working off the dead horse." A barrel covered with matting
formed the body, and appendages for the requisite number of legs and
the tail were put on. The animal was then dragged round the deck to
the accompaniment of a melancholy song--the refrain of which is
"poor old horse." The horse is next put up for sale, and on the
present occasion was knocked down to one of the saloon passengers
for 16s. The money was not really paid, but a collection was made
which came to more than the sum bid. Next, amid the lamentations of
the sailors and the glare of blue lights, the animal was hoisted up
to the main-yard with a sailor on its back, who, dexterously
disengaging himself, let the beast fall with a dull thud into the
water. The sea was so calm that some apprehension was expressed lest
the carcass should be seen the next morning not far to leeward, but
this anti-climax was averted. We have all read of the coming on
board of Neptune at the time of crossing the line, but on our voyage
no notice was taken of it, the reason being, as was supposed, that
the sailors were dissatisfied with the result of the sale of the
dead horse. Well, though it might have been amusing, it was
doubtless more their loss than ours, because when the thing is
analysed, all sailors' doings fundamentally resolve themselves into
an appeal for subscriptions from good-natured passengers. About 15th
January we crossed the sun, which for a short time was vertical at
noon. Peter Schlemihl could then have walked about without
detection, for no one had a shadow.

On our journey we met several ships and steamers, and as the captain
never missed an opportunity of signalling, the course of our voyage
was known from various quarters. First, the number of the Hampshire,
JNBV, is displayed by the flags, each flag representing a letter. A
complete code of arbitrary signals is in use, by which almost any
intelligence can be interchanged. We then told the port we sailed
from, London, and our destination, Melbourne. From one barque, the
County of Anglesea, on her way from Cardiff to Rangoon, which we
fell in with early on the voyage, the captain came on bo