ts bend above it. But now
the decisive moment approaches, and the foreman, standing on
the poop of the largest boat, in the middle of the flotilla, on
the side furthest from the shore, awaits the instant when the
Zinkstuk shall come into precisely the foreordained position.
At that instant he utters a shout and makes a signal; the ropes
are cut, the raft plunges downward, and disappears forever, while
the boats recover their proper position."

M. Havard merits the space we have given him; for he describes
a work the like of which has never been seen elsewhere in the
world, any more than have the conditions which necessitated it.
But the picturesqueness of the actual scene can hardly be conveyed
in words. Under an azure sky we behold outstretched a sparkling
sea, its waters shading from green to blue and from yellow to
violet, harmoniously blending. In the distance, as though marking
the horizon, stretches a long, green strip of land, with the
spires of the churches standing out in strong relief against the
sky. At our feet is the Zinkstuk, surrounded by its flotilla.
The great red sails furled upon the masts, the green poops, the
rudders sheathed with burnished copper, the red streaks along
the sides of the boats, the colored shirts, brown vests, and
blue girdles of the men, touched by the warm rays of the sun,
compose a striking picture. On all sides the men are in motion,
and five hundred brawny arms are flinging the contents of the
boats upon the great raft; a truly Titanic stoning! Projectiles
rain from all sides without pause, until the moment comes when
the decisive command is to be given. Then silence, absolute and
impressive, falls upon the multitude. Suddenly the signal is
given; a creaking noise is heard; the fifty boats right themselves
at the same instant, and turn toward the point where the great
raft which had separated them has just disappeared. They bump
against one another, they get entangled, they group themselves in
numberless different ways. The swarming men, stooping and raising
up, the uplifted arms, the flying stones, the spurting water
covering the boats with foam; and in the midst of the confusion the
polder-jungens flinging the clods of earth with giant strength and
swiftness upon the raft. At certain points the tumult declines;
flags are hoisted from the tops of masts, the large sails are
shaken out, and aided by the breeze some vessels get loose, sail
out, and desert the field of battle. T