ess enemy. She has evidently seen rough and long service.
Her decks have been swept by many a heavy sea; her spars have been
broken and spliced. The foremast is sprung, the main-topgallant mast is
gone, and the mizzen has been snapped off close by the deck. Her
bulwarks are patched here and there, and her general appearance bears
evidence of the tremendous power of Ocean.

It would be difficult in that weatherworn hull to recognise the trim
full-rigged ship that left the Hoogly many months before.

It was not a recent gale that had caused all this damage. In the South
Atlantic, several weeks before, she had encountered one of those
terrific but short-lived squalls which so frequently send many of man's
stoutest floating palaces to the bottom. Hence her half-wrecked
condition.

The passengers on board the Wellington did not, however, seem to be much
depressed by their altered circumstances. The fact was, they had become
so used to rough weather, and had weathered so many gales, and reached
their damaged condition by such slow degrees, that they did not realise
it as we do, turning thus abruptly from one page to another. Besides
this, although still some weeks' sail from the white cliffs of old
England, they already began to consider the voyage as good as over, and
not a few of the impatient among them had begun to pack up so as to be
ready for going ashore. And how carefully were those preparations for
landing made! With what interest the sandal-wood fans, and inlaid ivory
boxes and elaborately carved chess-men and curious Indian toys, and
costly Indian shawls were re-examined and repacked in more secure and
carefully-to-be-remembered corners, in order that they might be got at
quickly when eager little hands "at home--" Well, well, it is of no use
to dwell on what was meant to be, for not one of those love-tokens ever
reached its destination. All were swallowed up by the insatiable sea.

But let us not forestall. The elephant and rhinoceros were the only
members of the community that had perished on the voyage. At first the
elephant had been dreaded by many, but by degrees it won the confidence
and affection of all. Houses innumerable had been built for it on deck,
but the sagacious animal had a rooted antipathy to restraint. No sort
of den, however strongly formed, could hold him long. The first
structures were so ridiculously disproportioned to his strength as to be
demolished at once. On being put