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CHAPTER I. Men-of-War.
CHAPTER I. Men-of-War.
If the reader should at any time find himself a visitor to the first naval port of Great Britain—which he need not be told is Portsmouth—he will find, lying placidly in the noble harbour, which is large enough to accommodate a whole fleet, a vessel of modern-antique appearance, and evidently very carefully preserved. Should he happen to be there on October 21st, he would find the ship gaily decorated with wreaths of evergreen and flags, her appearance attracting to her side an unusual number of
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CHAPTER I. The Great Atlantic Ferry.
CHAPTER I. The Great Atlantic Ferry.
We all know what the “Grand Tour” meant a few generations ago, and how without it no gentleman’s education was considered complete. Now-a-days the journey can be made by almost any one who can command thirty or forty pounds, and the only really grand tour left is that around the world. M. Verne tells us—inferentially, at all events—that it can be made in eighty days, while Puck, as we know, speaks of putting a “girdle round the earth in forty minutes.” But this statement of the popular French au
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CHAPTER II. Ocean to Ocean.—The Connecting Link.
CHAPTER II. Ocean to Ocean.—The Connecting Link.
Sufficient mention of New York has already been made in this work. The tourist or traveller bound round the world, viâ the great trans-continental railway and San Francisco, has at starting from the commercial metropolis of America, and as far as Omaha, a choice of routes, all the fares being identical for a “through ticket” to the Pacific. You may go among the Pennsylvanian mountains and valleys, and catch many a glimpse of the coal and coal “ile” fields; the country generally being thickly woo
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CHAPTER II. Men of Peace.
CHAPTER II. Men of Peace.
No form of life presents greater contrasts than that of the sailor. Storm and calm alternate; to-day in the thick of the fight—battling man or the elements—to-morrow we find him tranquilly pursuing some peaceful scheme of discovery or exploration, or calmly cruising from one station to another, protecting by moral influence alone the interests of his country. His deeds may be none the less heroic because his conquests are peaceful, and because Neptune rather than Mars is challenged to cede his t
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CHAPTER III. The Pacific Ferry—San Francisco to Japan and China.
CHAPTER III. The Pacific Ferry—San Francisco to Japan and China.
A very ordinary trip now-a-days for those rounding the world is that from San Francisco to China, calling at Japan on the way. The steamships of the Pacific Mail Company are those principally employed, and a voyage on such a vessel as the China , which is one of the crack vessels of the service, is one almost invariably of pleasure. The China is a steamship of over 4,000 tons, and cost 800,000 dollars, or, roughly, £160,000 sterling. She will often carry 2,000 tons of tea on a return voyage, to
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Chapter III. The Men of the Sea.
Chapter III. The Men of the Sea.
Dr. Johnson, whose personal weight seems to have had something to do with that carried by his opinion, considered going to sea a species of insanity. 31 “No man,” said he, “will be a sailor who has contrivance enough to get himself into a jail: for being in a ship is being in a jail, with the chance of being drowned.” The great lexicographer knew Fleet Street better than he did the fleet, and his opinion, as expressed above, was hardly even decently patriotic or sensible. Had all men thought as
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CHAPTER IV. Perils of the Sailor’s Life.
CHAPTER IV. Perils of the Sailor’s Life.
England, and indeed all Europe, long prior to 1870 had been busily constructing ironclads, and the daily journals teemed with descriptions of new forms and varieties of ships, armour, and armament, as well as of new and enormous guns, which, rightly directed, might sink them to the bottom. Among the more curious of the ironclads of that period, and the construction of which had led to any quantity of discussion, sometimes of a very angry kind, was the turret-ship—practically the sea-going “monit
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CHAPTER IV. The Pacific Ferry.—Another Route.
CHAPTER IV. The Pacific Ferry.—Another Route.
A popular route now to New Zealand and Australia is that viâ San Francisco, Honolulu, and Fiji, the bulk of the voyage being usually over the quieter parts of the Pacific; it takes the passenger, of course, through the tropics. Honolulu, the capital of the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands, is now a civilised and pleasant city, while the natural attractions of the islands themselves are many and varied. One need not now fear the fate of poor Captain Cook. Most of the natives, of whom there are 50,000
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CHAPTER V. Woman at Sea.
CHAPTER V. Woman at Sea.
So sings Waller, and his words are only the repetition of a sentiment much more grandly expressed by Horace, who wrote now near two thousand years ago:— “Surely oak and threefold brass surrounded his heart who first trusted a frail vessel to the merciless ocean.” And once more, just to show the unanimity of the poets on this point, Dr. Watts has said:— Now, if all this is said of man, what shall be said of the woman who first trusted herself on the great deep? Who was she? It would be most diffi
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CHAPTER V. Perils of the Sailor’s Life (continued).
CHAPTER V. Perils of the Sailor’s Life (continued).
It is impossible to read the account of any great disaster at sea, without being strongly impressed with the enormous value of maintaining in the hour of peril the same strict discipline which, under ordinary circumstances, is the rule of a vessel. Few more striking examples of this are to be found, than in the story of the loss of the Kent , which we are now about to relate. The disaster of the Medusa , which we shall record later, in which complete anarchy and disregard of discipline, aggravat
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CHAPTER VI. Round the World on a Man-of-War.
CHAPTER VI. Round the World on a Man-of-War.
In this and following chapters, we will ask the reader to accompany us in imagination round the world, on board a ship of the Royal Navy, visiting en route the principal British naval stations and possessions, and a few of those friendly foreign ports which, as on the Pacific station, stand in lieu of them. We cannot do better than commence with the Mediterranean, to which the young sailor will, in all probability, be sent for a cruise after he has been thoroughly “broken in” to the mysteries of
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CHAPTER VI. Davy Jones’s Locker and its Treasures.
CHAPTER VI. Davy Jones’s Locker and its Treasures.
So dreamed Clarence on a memorable night, and, indeed, what treasures, known and unknown, must not the ocean cover! The well-known term which forms the heading of this chapter, with its popularly-understood meaning, is familiar to every schoolboy, yet its origin is most obscure. Mr. Pinkerton, an ingenious correspondent of that valuable medium of inquiry, Notes and Queries , 25 argues as follows, and his opinion is entitled to respect. He says:— “I have arrived at the conclusion that the phrase
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CHAPTER VII. Davy Jones’s Locker, and those who Dive into it.
CHAPTER VII. Davy Jones’s Locker, and those who Dive into it.
The art of unassisted diving having been considered, the reader’s attention is invited to divers and diving aided by scientific appliances. But for these developments, how could one hope to recover anything large or valuable that had once disappeared beneath the waves? How properly build gigantic breakwaters, piers, and bridges, or examine and clear choked ports and channels? 29 Some of the grandest achievements of modern practical science would have been impossible without their aid. Every read
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CHAPTER VII. Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued). MALTA AND THE SUEZ CANAL.
CHAPTER VII. Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued). MALTA AND THE SUEZ CANAL.
Calypso’s Isle—A Convict Paradise—Malta, the “ Flower of the World ” —The Knights of St. John—Rise of the Order—The Crescent and the Cross—The Siege of Rhodes—L’Isle Adam in London—The Great Siege of Malta—Horrible Episodes—Malta in French and English Hands—St. Paul’s Cave—The Catacombs—Modern Incidents—The Shipwreck of St. Paul—Gales in the Mediterranean—Experiences of Nelson and Collingwood—Squalls in the Bay of San Francisco—A Man Overboard—Special Winds of the Mediterranean—The Suez Canal an
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CHAPTER VIII. Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued). THE INDIA AND CHINA STATIONS.
CHAPTER VIII. Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued). THE INDIA AND CHINA STATIONS.
The Red Sea and its Name—Its Ports—On to the India Station—Bombay: Island, City, Presidency—Calcutta—Ceylon, a Paradise—The China Station—Hong Kong—Macao—Canton—Capture of Commissioner Yeh—The Sea of Soup—Shanghai— “ Jack ” Ashore there—Luxuries in Market— Drawbacks: Earthquakes, and Sand Showers—Chinese Explanations of Earthquakes—The Roving Life of the Sailor—Compensating Advantages—Japan and its People—The Englishmen of the Pacific—Yokohama—Peculiarities of the Japanese—Off to the North. The
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CHAPTER VIII. The Ocean and Some of its Phenomena.
CHAPTER VIII. The Ocean and Some of its Phenomena.
Many features and phenomena of the ocean have been incidentally noted in the foregoing pages; but there are points, hitherto untouched, which deserve our attention. Its saltness is due, not merely to the presence of chloride of sodium, or what we call common salt, but to a large number of other minerals, including the chlorides of magnesium and potassium, the sulphates of magnesia and lime, carbonate of lime, sulphuretted hydrogen, bromide of magnesia, hydrochlorate of ammonia, iodine, iron, cop
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CHAPTER IX. Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued). NORTHWARD AND SOUTHWARD—THE AUSTRALIAN STATION.
CHAPTER IX. Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued). NORTHWARD AND SOUTHWARD—THE AUSTRALIAN STATION.
The Port of Peter and Paul—Wonderful Colouring of Kamchatka Hills—Grand Volcanoes—The Fight at Petropaulovski—A Contrast—An International Pic-nic—A Double Wedding—Bering’s Voyages—Kamchatka worthy of Further Exploration—Plover Bay—Tchuktchi Natives—Whaling—A Terrible Gale—A Novel “ Smoke-stack ” —Southward again—The Liverpool of the East—Singapore, a Paradise—New Harbour—Wharves and Shipping—Cruelties of the Coolie Trade—Junks and Prahus—The Kling-gharry Drivers—The Durian and its Devotees—Austr
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CHAPTER IX. Davy Jones’s Locker.—Submarine Cables.
CHAPTER IX. Davy Jones’s Locker.—Submarine Cables.
In the year 1850 a copper wire, insulated with gutta-percha, was submerged between England and France, and that connecting link between the two greatest countries of Europe was the first considerable success of its kind. To-day Great Britain is connected with the European continent by a dozen cables, and there are over 50,000 miles of submerged wires silently conveying their messages over the face of the globe. Thirty years of practical scientific labour has united the whole world. You can teleg
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CHAPTER X. The Ocean and its Living Wonders.
CHAPTER X. The Ocean and its Living Wonders.
Pliny says that “Nature is nowhere more perfect than in her smaller works.” How gradually, yet beautifully, do the lower forms of life ascend to the higher! Here we may well remember the following: Scientific naturalists, men of logical minds arranging the facts of Nature with methodical and almost mathematical precision, have distributed the forms of animal life into divisions, classes, orders, families, genera, and species. These divisions, however convenient, are, it must be noted, merely of
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CHAPTER X. Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued). THE PACIFIC STATION.
CHAPTER X. Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued). THE PACIFIC STATION.
Across the Pacific—Approach to the Golden Gate—The Bay of San Francisco—The City—First Dinner Ashore—Cheap Luxury—San Francisco by Night—The Land of Gold, Grain, and Grapes—Incidents of the Early Days—Expensive Papers—A Lucky Sailor—Chances for English Girls—The Baby at the Play—A capital Port for Seamen—Hospitality of Californians—Victoria, Vancouver Island—The Naval Station at Esquimalt—A Delightful Place—Advice to Intending Emigrants—British Columbian Indians—Their fine Canoes—Experiences of
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CHAPTER XI. The Ocean and its Living Wonders (continued).
CHAPTER XI. The Ocean and its Living Wonders (continued).
Among the interesting and comparatively familiar forms of ocean’s treasures must be counted the Madrepores, often regarded as corals, but quite distinct as a scientific group from the precious coral of commerce. The Madreporidæ are very numerous, and are formed by colonies of polyps. The poet has truly described them:— The polyps of the madrepores resemble flowers when their upper disc is expanded and their feelers are out in the water. When contracted, they are concealed from sight in the calca
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CHAPTER XI. Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued). FROM THE HORN TO HALIFAX.
CHAPTER XI. Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued). FROM THE HORN TO HALIFAX.
The dreaded Horn—The Land of Fire—Basil Hall’s Phenomenon—A Missing Volcano—The South American Station—Falkland Islands—A Free Port and Naval Station—Penguins, Peat, and Kelp—Sea Trees—The West India Station—Trinidad—Columbus’s First View of it—Fatal Gold—Charles Kingsley’s Enthusiasm—The Port of Spain—A Happy-go-lucky People—Negro Life—Letters from a Cottage Ornée—Tropical Vegetation—Animal Life—Jamaica—Kingston Harbour—Sugar Cultivation—The Queen of the Antilles—Its Paseo—Beauty of the Archipe
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CHAPTER XII. The Ocean and its Living Wonders (continued).
CHAPTER XII. The Ocean and its Living Wonders (continued).
And now, the bivalves having had their turn, let us direct our attention to a higher class of animals, to which nature has been more generous. They, unlike the first-named molluscs, have heads. “This head,” says Figuier, “is still carried humbly; it is not yet os sublime dedit ; it is drawn along an inch or so from the ground, and in no respect resembles the proud and magnificent organ which crowns and adorns the body of the greater and more powerfully organised animals.” The Acephalous, or “hea
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CHAPTER XII. Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued). THE AFRICAN STATION.
CHAPTER XII. Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued). THE AFRICAN STATION.
Its Extent—Ascension—Turtle at a Discount—Sierra Leone—An Unhealthy Station—The Cape of Good Hope—Cape Town—Visit of the Sailor Prince—Grand Festivities—Enthusiasm of the Natives—Loyal Demonstrations—An African “ Derby ” —Grand Dock Inaugurated—Elephant Hunting—The Parting Ball—The Life of a Boer—Circular Farms—The Diamond Discoveries—A £12,000 Gem—A Sailor First President of the Fields—Precarious Nature of the Search—Natal—Inducements held out to Settlers—St. Helena and Napoleon—Discourteous Tr
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CHAPTER XIII. The Service.—Officers’ Life on Board.
CHAPTER XIII. The Service.—Officers’ Life on Board.
In the previous pages we have given some account of the various stations visited by the Royal Navy of Great Britain. Let us next take a glance at the ships themselves—the quarter-deck, the captain’s cabin, and the ward-room. In a word, let us see how the officers of a ship live, move, and have their being on board. Their condition depends very much on their ship, their captain, and themselves. The first point may be dismissed briefly, as the general improvement in all descriptions of vessels, in
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CHAPTER XIII. The Ocean and its Living Wonders (continued).
CHAPTER XIII. The Ocean and its Living Wonders (continued).
In the Crustacea we find the lowest form of articulate animals. They possess feet, breathe through gills, and derive their name from their hard crusty covering, which is mainly carbonate of lime with colouring matter. They have nearly all of them claws, which most of them know well how to employ offensively. “They have been compared,” says Figuier, “to the heavily-armed knights of the middle ages—at once audacious and cruel; barbed in steel from head to foot, with visor and corselet, arm-pieces
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CHAPTER XIV. The Reverse of the Picture—Mutiny.
CHAPTER XIV. The Reverse of the Picture—Mutiny.
The Royal Navy has ever been the glory of our country, but there are spots even on the bright sun. The service has been presented hitherto almost entirely under its best aspects. Example after example of heroic bravery, unmurmuring endurance, and splendid discipline, have been cited. Nor can we err in painting it couleur de rose , for its gallant exploits have won it undying fame. But in the service at one time—thank God those times are hardly possible now—mutiny and desertion on a large scale w
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CHAPTER XIV. Ocean Life.—The Harvest of the Sea.
CHAPTER XIV. Ocean Life.—The Harvest of the Sea.
The scientific classification of fishes usually adopted is that of Muller. He divided them into five groups, the Leptocardia , Cyclostomata , Selachia , Ganoidea , and Teleostea . The first of these is represented by a single genus, Amphioxus , a little slender gelatinous fish, rarely over two inches in length, and commonly found on all sandy coasts. The second order is characterised as serpentine, void of fins, and with a mouth formed for suction. The lamprey is a familiar example. The third or
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CHAPTER XV. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests.
CHAPTER XV. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests.
It will not now be out of place to take a rapid survey of the progress of naval architecture, from log and coracle to wooden walls and ironclads, noting rapidly the progressive steps which led to the present epoch. It is only from the Scriptures, and from fragmentary allusions in the writings of profane historians and poets, that we can derive any knowledge of the vessels employed by the ancients. Doubtless our first parents noticed branches of trees or fragments of wood floating upon the surfac
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CHAPTER XV. Ocean Life.—The Harvest of the Sea (concluded).
CHAPTER XV. Ocean Life.—The Harvest of the Sea (concluded).
A great and important group of the bony fish is comprised under the family name Clupedæ . It includes such useful fish as the herring, pilchard, shad, and anchovy. The family is as interesting to the merchant as to the gastronomist. The herring hardly needs description here, but it may just be remarked, en passant , that its back, indigo-coloured after death, is greenish during life. The curious markings often found on the herring have been considered by ignorant fishermen to signify mysterious
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CHAPTER XVI. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
CHAPTER XVI. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
The spirit of adventure, fostered by the grand discoveries which were constantly being made, the rich returns derived from trading expeditions, and from the pillage of our enemies, was at its zenith in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. Nor was it confined to mere soldiers of fortune, for we find distinguished noblemen of ample fortunes taking to the seas as though their daily bread depended thereupon. Among these naval adventurers “there was no one,” says Southey, “who took to the seas so much in th
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CHAPTER XVI. Monsters of the Deep.48
CHAPTER XVI. Monsters of the Deep.48
Some years ago, when an invalid wrote to Mark Twain seeking advice as to the value of fish as “brain food,” the answer of that humourist was plain indeed:— “Fish-food is good: abounds in phosphorus and nutrition. In your case I must recommend a small whale!” Unfortunately, Mark Twain fell into a very common error. The whale is not a fish; it is a mammal: it suckles its young. The writer has eaten whale—that is, a little bit of one. Whale brain, enclosed in batter, and treated as a fritter, is no
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CHAPTER XVII. By the Sea-Shore.
CHAPTER XVII. By the Sea-Shore.
The sea-side is nowhere more thoroughly appreciated than in our own rock and water girt island, as the popularity of so many of our coast watering-places fully attests. The wonders of the shore are so many and varied that they would require volumes like the present to do them full justice. Here, then, the subject can only be briefly discussed. 51 “The sea-side,” says Gosse, a writer who is both artist and scientist in his powers of description, “is never dull. Other places soon tire us; we canno
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CHAPTER I. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
CHAPTER I. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
Many and vast are the subjects which naturally intertwine themselves with the history of the sea! Great voyages have not been organised for the mere discovery of so much salt water—except as a means to an end—and the good ship has almost always sailed with a definite and positive mission. The history of but a single vessel involves the history, more or less, of hundreds of people; it may mean that of thousands. So the history of the ocean is that also of lands and peoples, far off or near. Subje
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CHAPTER XVIII. By the Sea-shore (continued).
CHAPTER XVIII. By the Sea-shore (continued).
A Submerged Forest—Grandeur of Devonshire Cliffs—Castellated Walls—A Natural Palace—Collection of Sea-weeds—The Title a Miserable Misnomer—The Bladder Wrack—Practical Uses—The Harvest-time for Collectors—The Huge Laminaria—Good for Knife-handles—Marine Rope—The Red-Seeded Group—Munchausen’s Gin Tree Beaten—The Coralline a Vegetable—Beautiful Varieties—Irish Moss—The Green Seeds—Hints on Preserving Sea-weeds—The Boring Pholas—How they Drill—Sometimes through each other—The Spinous Cockle—The “ Re
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CHAPTER II. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
CHAPTER II. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
Charles I., as we all know, had a fatal amount of belief in the royal prerogative. One of his first acts, after ascending the throne, was to assume the direct government of Virginia, and not only to treat the charter of the company as annulled, “but broadly declared that colonies founded by adventurers, or occupied by British subjects, were essentially part and parcel of the dominion of the mother country.” The Virginia Company vainly complained that they had expended a fifth of a million sterli
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CHAPTER XIX. Sketches of our Coasts.—Cornwall.
CHAPTER XIX. Sketches of our Coasts.—Cornwall.
The Land’s End has a particular interest to the reader of this work, for its very name indicates a point beyond which one cannot go, except we step into the great ocean. Round the spot a certain air of mystery and interest also clings. What is this ending place like? It is the extreme western termination of one of the most rugged of England’s counties, one which has produced some of her greatest men, and has always been intimately connected with the history of the sea. Cornwall has afforded more
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CHAPTER III. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
CHAPTER III. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
The second of the greatest epochs of discovery—one, indeed, hardly inferior to that of Columbus and Da Gama, when Dampier, Byron, Wallis, and Carteret, Cook, and Clerke may be said to have substantially completed the map of the world in its most essential and leading features—would follow in proper sequence here, but for a pre-arranged plan, which will place “The Decisive Voyages of the World” by themselves. One voyage of this period, that of Commodore Anson, deserves mention, inasmuch as it was
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CHAPTER IV. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
CHAPTER IV. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
During the early part of the eighteenth century, while Europe was distracted by war, the American colonies were, “by peaceful and undisturbed pursuits, laying the foundation of that prosperity which enabled them, before the close of the century, to demand and obtain their severance from the mother country, and their social and political independence.” So early as 1729, Philadelphia had 6,000 tons of shipping, and received in that year 6,208 emigrants from Great Britain. New York was then carryin
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CHAPTER XX. Sketches of our Coasts.—Cornwall (continued).
CHAPTER XX. Sketches of our Coasts.—Cornwall (continued).
Mr. Collins’s experiences as a pedestrian are amusing. Says he:— “We enter a small public-house by the road-side to get a draught of beer. In the kitchen we behold the landlord and a tall man, who is a customer. Both stare as a matter of course; the tall man especially, after taking one look at our knapsacks, fixes his eyes firmly on us, and sits bolt upright on the bench without saying a word—he is evidently prepared for the worst we can do. We get into conversation with the landlord, a jovial,
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CHAPTER V. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
CHAPTER V. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
The employment of animal power in the propulsion of vessels is of very ancient date, and we shall see that steam-power was proposed for the same purpose as soon as the steam-engine had been utilised for pumping mines, although it was some time before it could be applied practically and profitably. We are told that “in some very ancient manuscripts extant in the King of France’s library, it is said that the boats by which the Roman army under Claudius Caudex was transported into Sicily, were prop
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CHAPTER XXI. Sketches of our South Coasts.
CHAPTER XXI. Sketches of our South Coasts.
Southampton, one of the most important towns in the South of England, is a place of great antiquity, having been in existence prior to the Conquest, while many Roman remains are to be found in its neighbourhood. What schoolboy is not familiar with the story of King Canute and his courtiers, who flattered their royal master that even the winds and waves would do his bidding? The Danish monarch was made of too stern material to believe such nonsense; and to convince his fawning courtiers that he d
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CHAPTER XXII. Sketches of our South Coasts (concluded).
CHAPTER XXII. Sketches of our South Coasts (concluded).
The coast north-east from Beachy Head is rugged and interesting till Eastbourne is reached, one of the quietest and prettiest of the south-coast watering-places, and one which has been very greatly improved of late by the lavish expenditure of his Grace the Duke of Devonshire, the principal landowner in the neighbourhood. Some of the promenades are planted with trees à la boulevard . The bathing and boating are both excellent; while in the neighbourhood are the ruins of Pevensey, an old Norman c
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CHAPTER VI. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
CHAPTER VI. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
What a contrast to the days of Henry Bell does the Clyde now present! From a mere salmon stream it has become, in little more than half a century, by far the largest and most important ship-building river in the wide world. “Ancient historians have told us that when the first Punic war roused the citizens of Rome to extraordinary exertions in the equipment of a fleet for the destruction of the maritime supremacy of Carthage, the banks of the Tiber resounded with the axe and the hammer, and that
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CHAPTER VII. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
CHAPTER VII. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
Turning by way of that contrast which our subject so abundantly presents, let us pass from the consideration of well-regulated, well-found steam-ship lines, to a different class of vessels—those “coffin-ships” of which we heard so much a few years since. As we all know, the term has been lately used to signify unseaworthy ships of all kinds—such as that mentioned by Mr. Plimsoll, which was loaded at Newcastle with nearly twice her proper tonnage, and dispatched to the Baltic in mid-winter, with
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CHAPTER XXIII. Sketches of our East Coasts:—Norfolk—Yorkshire.
CHAPTER XXIII. Sketches of our East Coasts:—Norfolk—Yorkshire.
Proceeding now to the east coast of our island, we come to a series of places interesting to the men of the sea, and some of them renowned as watering-places. Leaving the mouth of the Thames, we soon arrive at Harwich, which is acquiring considerable importance in view of the Continental routes with which it is connected. It is situated on high land at the mouth of the Stour, and near the confluence of the latter with the Orwell, immediately opposite the well-known Landguard Fort. The shore is b
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CHAPTER XXIV. The Art of Swimming—Feats in Natation—Life Savers.
CHAPTER XXIV. The Art of Swimming—Feats in Natation—Life Savers.
So sang Lord Byron after his memorable swim across the Hellespont with Lieutenant Ekenhead, of H.M.S. Salsette . The distance from Abydos to Sestos is about a mile, but the distance swum was four; the current there runs so strongly that no boat can cross direct. “It may,” says Byron, “in some measure be estimated from the circumstance of the whole distance being accomplished by one of the parties in an hour and five, and by the other in an hour and ten minutes. The water was extremely cold from
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CHAPTER VIII. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
CHAPTER VIII. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
Many competent authorities doubt whether the ships of the future will be so very much larger than the largest now in use, but it is one of those questions on which it is idle to theorise, and absurd to dogmatise. The greatest ship of this or any other age has not proved a success, except for some very special purposes for which no other vessel would have proved available. The history of the Great Eastern is one of interest to all, and especially to too sanguine and over-ambitious individuals and
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CHAPTER XXV. The Haven at Last—Home in the Thames.
CHAPTER XXV. The Haven at Last—Home in the Thames.
The poet’s enthusiasm may be pardoned, for, although there are scores of rivers, considered only as such alone, that outvie the Thames, regarding it in its relation to the sea—aye, to the whole world—it stands pre-eminent and alone. To the sailor the Thames and the Mersey have an interest and importance which belong to the streams of no other country. The reader has, in spirit, voyaged with poor Jack to the farthest corners of the earth; he has seen much of his life of peril and heroism; he has
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CHAPTER IX. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
CHAPTER IX. The History of Ships and Shipping Interests (continued).
Early in these chapters, allusion was made to one of the most important of all vital topics connected with shipping interests—the ironclad question—and as it concerns the well-being of the Royal Navy, it concerns that of the nation itself, and no excuse can be needed for its discussion here. Day by day we hear of new types of armoured vessels, single specimens costing the price of a small fleet of former days. That, under certain conditions, they must prove very formidable, there can be no doubt
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CHAPTER X. The Lighthouse and its History.
CHAPTER X. The Lighthouse and its History.
Round the history of ships and shipping interests innumerable subjects intertwine. But for the good ship, we should not need coast fortifications, grand breakwaters, and artificial harbours, lighthouses, lifeboats, and coast-guard organisations. Just as England stands pre-eminent on the sea, so in all subsidiary points connected therewith she is fully represented. To the lighthouse and its history attention is now invited. Not long since many an anxious eye was turned Channelwards from Plymouth
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CHAPTER XXVI. What Poets have Sung of the Sea, the Sailor, and the Ship.
CHAPTER XXVI. What Poets have Sung of the Sea, the Sailor, and the Ship.
The sea, the sailor, and the ship, have been fertile subjects for the poets, although countries and lands, and those who dwell therein, have occupied by far the larger part of their attention. Sooth to say, however, there has not yet arisen a single great writer whose name could fairly be identified with the ocean as its own particular poet. There may be reasons for this. The poet is usually of delicate organisation, and is more likely to be found studying Nature on the quiet shore than on the t
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CHAPTER XI. The Lighthouse (continued).
CHAPTER XI. The Lighthouse (continued).
Some eleven miles eastward from the mainland of Scotland, near the entrances to the Firths of Forth and Tay, lies an extensive ledge of very dangerous rocks, nearly two miles in length. This sunken reef was a source of much peril to the unfortunate sailors driven too near its nearly hidden dangers, and early in the fourteenth century the Abbot of Arbroath, or Arberbrothok, caused a bell to be placed upon the principal rock, so that— Southey has, in his ballad of “The Inchcape Rock,” immortalised
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CHAPTER XII. The Lighthouse (concluded).
CHAPTER XII. The Lighthouse (concluded).
Lighthouses on Sand—Literally screwed down—The Light on Maplin Sands—That of Port Fleetwood—Iron Lighthouses—The Lanterns themselves—Eddystone long Illuminated with Tallow Candles—Coal Fires—Revolution caused by the invention of the Argand Burner—Improvements in Reflectors—The Electric Light at Sea—Flashing and Revolving Lights—Coloured Lights—Their Advantages and Disadvantages—Lanterns obscured by Moths, Bees, and Birds. The difficulties involved in constructing a lighthouse on solid rock have
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CHAPTER XIII. The Breakwater.
CHAPTER XIII. The Breakwater.
In 1781 an eminent French engineer proposed that, instead of one continuous breakwater, a number of large masses or congregations of stones, separated from each other on the surfaces but touching at the bases, should be built on the sea bottom, believing that they would break the force of the waves almost equally well. As a part of his plan he suggested that they should be sunk in large conical caissons of wood, 150 feet in diameter at the base and sixty feet broad at the top. These wooden cones
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CHAPTER XIV. The Greatest Storm in English History.
CHAPTER XIV. The Greatest Storm in English History.
“The dangers of the seas” are little enough to some countries, but to England they mean much indeed. Think of the maritime interests of the port of London, the docks of which cover considerably over 300 acres of water-space, and to which 7,000 or more vessels enter annually. Over 100 vessels, exclusive of small craft, enter the port daily; its exports form nearly one-fourth of the total exports of the United Kingdom. Liverpool in some maritime interests excels it. This, the second largest city i
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CHAPTER XV. “Man the Life-boat!”
CHAPTER XV. “Man the Life-boat!”
The history of the life-boat is one that concerns every Englishman. In this isle of the sea, our own beloved Britain, our sympathies are constantly excited on behalf of those who suffer from shipwreck. It would not be too much to say that one-half the population of the United Kingdom have some direct interest in this matter. Let us not be misunderstood. Pecuniary interests in shipping are held here more largely than in any other country, but we are not all shipowners or merchants. But how many o
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CHAPTER XVI. “Man the Life-boat!” (continued).
CHAPTER XVI. “Man the Life-boat!” (continued).
A “ Dirty ” Night on the Sands—Wreck of the Samaritano —The Vessel boarded by Margate and Whitstable Men—A Gale in its Fury—The Vessel breaking up—Nineteen Men in the Fore-rigging—Two Margate Life-boats Wrecked—Fate of a Lugger—The Scene at Ramsgate— “ Man the Life-boat! ” —The good Steamer Aid —The Life-boat Towed out—A Terrible Trip—A Grand Struggle with the Elements—The Flag of Distress made out—How to reach it—The Life-boat cast off—On through the Breakers—The Wreck reached at last—Difficult
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CHAPTER XVII. “Man the Life-boat!” (continued).
CHAPTER XVII. “Man the Life-boat!” (continued).
A Portuguese Brig on the Sands—Futile Attempts to get her off—Sudden Break-up—Great Danger to the Life-boat—Great Probability of being Crushed—An Old Boatman’s Feelings—The Life-boat herself on the Goodwin—Safe at Last—Gratitude of the Portuguese Crew—A Blaze of Light seen from Deal—Fatal Delay—Twenty-eight Lives Lost—A Dark December Night—The almost-deserted Wreck of the Providentia —A Plucky Captain—An Awful Episode—The Mate beaten to Death—Hardly saved—The poor little Cabin-boy’s Rescue—Anoth
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CHAPTER XVIII. “Wrecking” as a Profession.
CHAPTER XVIII. “Wrecking” as a Profession.
The great historian, Hallam, says: “In the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries a rich vessel was never secure from attack, and neither restitution nor punishment of the criminals was to be obtained from Government, who sometimes feared the plunderer, and sometimes connived at the offence.” As we have seen before, some of the greatest names of the Elizabethan and later days were often not much better than legalised pirates. But the poor sailors and owners were not merely the prey of these sea wol
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CHAPTER XIX. “Hovelling” v. Wrecking.
CHAPTER XIX. “Hovelling” v. Wrecking.
The Contrast—The “ Hovellers ” defended—Their Services—The Case of the Albion —Anchors and Cables wanted by a disabled Vessel—Lugger wrecked on the Beach—Dangers of the Hoveller’s Life—Nearly swamped by the heavy Seas—Loss of a baling Bowl, and what it means—Saved on an American Ship—The Lost Found—A brilliant example of Life-saving at Bideford—The Small Rewards of the Hoveller’s Life—The case of La Marguerite —Nearly wrecked in Port—Hovellers v. Wreckers— “ Let’s all start fair! ” —Praying for
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CHAPTER XX. Ships that “Pass by on the other Side.”
CHAPTER XX. Ships that “Pass by on the other Side.”
From time to time there appear in the public journals accounts given by sailors who have been saved from imminent peril from drowning by passing ships. Many and many an honourable case could be cited; but there are, alas! ships that “pass by on the other side.” An article in the journal 79 issued quarterly by that grand society the National Life-boat Institution explains some of the reasons for this sad state of affairs. The writer generally denies that the majority of the masters of ships who w
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CHAPTER XXI. A Contrast—The Ship on Fire!—Swamped at Sea.
CHAPTER XXI. A Contrast—The Ship on Fire!—Swamped at Sea.
No greater horror can occur at sea than for the good ship to be on fire. At first sight, indeed, it might appear that in the midst of an unbounded waste of waters nothing could be easier than to extinguish a conflagration on board a vessel, but examples already cited in this work have shown the difficulties in the way. Steam-ships have special facilities for pumping water into almost any part of their hulls, yet one of the saddest examples of a ship on fire is afforded in the loss of the Amazon
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CHAPTER XXII. Early Steamship Wrecks and their Lessons.
CHAPTER XXII. Early Steamship Wrecks and their Lessons.
The Rothsay Castle was a steamship built in 1812, and was little enough adapted for marine navigation. She was one of the first vessels of the kind on the Clyde, and was perhaps constructed for the ordinary wear and tear to which a river vessel is exposed, but certainly, at her age, should never have been allowed to leave Liverpool for Beaumaris in weather so bad that an American vessel which had been towed out that day had been compelled to return to port. She had been, it was said, at one time
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CHAPTER I. The Pirates and Bucaniers.
CHAPTER I. The Pirates and Bucaniers.
Who was the first pirate is a question easier to ask than to answer. We may be sure, however, that not long after navigation had become a recognised art the opportunities for robbery on the sea produced a breed of “water-rats,” who infested the ocean, and were the terror of the honest shipowner. That “hardy Norseman,” of whom we sing so pleasantly, was in very truth nothing better; while some of the great names among the mariners of the middle ages are, practically, those of pirates, whose occup
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CHAPTER II. The Pirates and Bucaniers (continued).
CHAPTER II. The Pirates and Bucaniers (continued).
Bold attempts were the order of the day. A certain pirate named Portuguez was cruising off the Cape Coriente in Cuba, where he met a ship from Maracaibo and Carthagena bound to the Havannah provided with twenty “great” guns of the period, and seventy passengers and crew. This ship he attacked, and was at first beaten off. The assault was renewed on the part of the pirates, and after a long and dangerous fight the rovers became the victors. The Portuguese lost only ten men and had four wounded. B
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CHAPTER III. The Pirates and Bucaniers (continued).
CHAPTER III. The Pirates and Bucaniers (continued).
Captain Henry Morgan was born in Wales; his father was in easy circumstances, as many who bear that name in Wales were and are known to be. Morgan, when young, had no inclination for the calling of his father, and therefore left the country and came to the sea-coast, to seek some other employment more suitable to his aspirations. He volunteered on board a vessel bound for Barbadoes, the captain of which, according to the frequent practice of those times, sold him as soon as he went ashore. “He s
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CHAPTER IV. The Pirates and Bucaniers (continued).
CHAPTER IV. The Pirates and Bucaniers (continued).
On receipt of the captain’s letter Morgan called his men together and asked them whether they were going to fight or surrender. They answered unanimously that they would fight to the last drop of blood rather than surrender so easily the booty they had obtained with so much danger. “Among the rest one said to Captain Morgan, ‘Take you care for the rest, and I will undertake to destroy the biggest of those ships with only twelve men; the manner shall be by making a brulot , or fire-ship, of that
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CHAPTER V. The Pirates and Bucaniers (continued).
CHAPTER V. The Pirates and Bucaniers (continued).
Among the great bucaniers of the seventeenth century were Captains Coxon, Harris, Bournano, Sawkins, and Sharp, of the exploits of only one or two of whom we shall have space to speak. On one of their principal expeditions they started with nine vessels, having on board 460 men, and, after a desertion of two of the ships’ companies, had still three-fourths of the number left. Their march from the coast of Darien—the point of destination being the unfortunate city of Panama—presented similar diff
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CHAPTER VI. The Pirates of the Eighteenth Century.
CHAPTER VI. The Pirates of the Eighteenth Century.
Avery sailed for Madagascar, where he was joined by two sloops, the sailors on board which were themselves well inclined to his enterprise, having just before run away with the vessels from the East Indies. They sailed in company, and off the mouth of the Indus the man at the masthead espied a sail, and they gave chase. She was evidently a fine tall vessel, possibly an East Indiaman. She proved something better, for, when they fired a shot at her, she hoisted Mogul colours, and appeared ready fo
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CHAPTER VII. The Pirates of the Eighteenth Century.
CHAPTER VII. The Pirates of the Eighteenth Century.
When the royal pardon was granted to all pirates in the West Indies who should abandon their mode of life before a given date, the crew with whom Mary was serving availed themselves of it, and for some little time afterwards we find Mary working on a privateer. The crew on this vessel soon after mutinied, and turned her into a pirate ship, on which Mary is said to have behaved with almost ferocious bravery. When the vessel was at last captured, she, with another female pirate, named Anne Bonney,
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CHAPTER VIII. Paul Jones and De Soto.
CHAPTER VIII. Paul Jones and De Soto.
A celebrated character now appears on the scene; and the writer must avow that Paul Jones has hardly been treated fairly in many works of fiction 8 and so-called history. He was not a pirate in the true sense of the word, although very generally regarded as such, but was a privateer, employed by colonies rebelling against the mother country. John Paul—for such was his real name—was born on the estate of Lord Selkirk, near Kirkcudbright, Scotland, in 1728, his father being head gardener. Young Pa
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CHAPTER IX. Our Arctic Expeditions.
CHAPTER IX. Our Arctic Expeditions.
On the afternoon of May 29th, 1875, the old town of Portsmouth presented in an unusual degree that gala aspect which it can so readily assume at short notice. It is true that it was the official anniversary of Her Majesty’s birthday, and a military review had been announced; but granting full credit to the loyalty of Hants, there was still something to be explained, for visitors had crowded into the town by tens and tens of thousands, and the jetties, piers, and shores presented the aspect of a
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CHAPTER X. Cruise of the “Pandora.”
CHAPTER X. Cruise of the “Pandora.”
The Arctic expedition of 1875-6 has been the subject of very general interest, and has led to much comment and some adverse criticism. With the latter we have little or nothing to do. If a certain amount of disappointment exists regarding the still undiscovered Pole, let the reader remember that no Arctic expedition whatever has yet fulfilled all the promises and hopes of its youth, and that our brave seamen have taken our flag to a higher point than ever attained before. Britain is again foremo
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CHAPTER XI. The “Alert” and “Discovery.”
CHAPTER XI. The “Alert” and “Discovery.”
Nares’ Expedition—Wonderful Passage through Baffin’s Bay—Winter Quarters of the Discovery —Capital Game-bag—Continued Voyage of the Alert —Highest Latitude ever attained by a Ship— “ The Sea of Ancient Ice ” —Winter Quarters, Employments, and Amusements—The Royal Arctic Theatre—Guy Fawkes’ Day on the Ice—Christmas Festivities—Unparalleled Cold—Spring Sledging—Attempt to reach the Discovery —Illness and Death of Petersen—The Ravages of Scurvy—Tribute to Captain Hall’s Memory—Markham and Parr’s No
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CHAPTER XII. The First Arctic Voyages.
CHAPTER XII. The First Arctic Voyages.
And now, having noted the results attained by the latest expedition which has dared to attempt the discovery of the North Pole, 19 let us glance at the progress of northern discovery from the very beginning, and watch the gradual steps by which such discoveries were rendered possible. We shall have to go back to a period when no compass guided the mariner on his watery way, when sextants and artificial horizons were undreamed of, when navigation, in a word, was but in its second stage of infancy
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CHAPTER XIII. Early Arctic Expeditions.
CHAPTER XIII. Early Arctic Expeditions.
While these attempts at a north-east passage were being made, the north-west question was by no means forgotten. Several learned men, including Sir Humphrey Gilbert, employed their pens in arguing the practicability of such a passage. In his defence of such an attempt he spoke of a friar of Mexico who had actually performed the journey, but who, on telling it to the King of Portugal, had been forbidden to make it known, lest it should reach England. Whatever the facts of this case, some enthusia
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CHAPTER XIV.
CHAPTER XIV.
Near one of the islands off the coast of Nova Zembla Barents and a boat-load of his men were almost swamped by an enormous white she-bear, which they had wounded, and secured by a rope. The animal, in its pain and fury, more than seconded their efforts to get it on board—for they had fancied that they might take her alive to Holland—and a panic ensued. Fortunately the rope caught round a rung or hook of the rudder, and one of the bolder men then struck her into the water. The rest immediately go
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CHAPTER XV.
CHAPTER XV.
The following year (1609) we find Hudson on a third voyage of discovery, in the service of the Dutch. His movements were very erratic, and the only record left us does not explain them. He first doubled the North Cape, as though again in quest of the north-east passage; then turned westward to Newfoundland; thence again south as far as Charleston (South Carolina); then north to Cape Cod, soon after which he discovered the beautiful Hudson River, at the mouth of which New York is now situated. Hu
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CHAPTER XVI.
CHAPTER XVI.
On July 30th the weather was exceedingly lovely, and the scene around them, says Captain Phipps, “beautiful and picturesque; the two ships becalmed in a large bay, with three apparent openings between the islands that formed it, but everywhere surrounded with ice as far as we could see, with some streams of water; not a breath of air; the water perfectly smooth; the ice covered with snow, low and even, except a few broken pieces near the edges; the pools of water in the middle of the pieces were
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CHAPTER XVII. The Expeditions of Ross and Parry.
CHAPTER XVII. The Expeditions of Ross and Parry.
It was perfectly understood whence the larger part of this ice must be derived. Scoresby the younger, in a letter to Sir Joseph Banks, recorded the fact that some 18,000 square miles of the surface of the Greenland seas included between the parallels of 74° and 80° were known to be void of ice, and that this immense change had been effected within two years. Intelligence received at Copenhagen in 1816 from Iceland indicated that the ice had broken loose from the opposite coast of Greenland, and
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CHAPTER XVIII. Parry’s Expeditions (continued).
CHAPTER XVIII. Parry’s Expeditions (continued).
A very important event—at least, so far as concerned the members of Parry’s expedition—was that which occurred on September 4th, 1819. On that day the commander had the satisfaction of announcing to officers and crew that they had crossed the meridian of 110 W. from Greenwich, by which they had become entitled to the reward of £5,000 offered by the Government to “such of His Majesty’s subjects as might succeed in penetrating thus far to the westward within the Arctic circle.” To a bluff headland
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CHAPTER XIX. Parry’s Boat and Sledge Expedition.
CHAPTER XIX. Parry’s Boat and Sledge Expedition.
The Hecla left the Nore April 4th, 1827, on this her fourth Arctic voyage; and the expedition reached Hammerfest April 19th, where eight reindeer 32 were taken on board, with a supply of moss for their provender. A number of snow-shoes and “kamoogas” (leather shoes, intended to be worn with the former) were also obtained. On May 14th the Hecla reached Hakluyt’s Headland, where a severe gale was encountered, which almost laid the ship on her beam-ends, and her canvas had to be reduced to her main
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CHAPTER XX. The Magnetic Pole.—A Land Journey to the Polar Sea.
CHAPTER XX. The Magnetic Pole.—A Land Journey to the Polar Sea.
Immediately after the return of Parry’s expedition in 1827, Sir John Ross submitted to the Admiralty the plans for the voyage of which we are about to speak. Hitherto all voyages of discovery in the Arctic seas had been made in sailing vessels. Ross deserves the credit of having been the first to urge the employment of a steam-ship in that service. His proposals were not accepted, and he therefore laid the scheme before a wealthy friend, Mr. Sheriff Booth. At that time the Parliamentary reward o
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CHAPTER XXI. VOYAGE OF THE “TERROR.”
CHAPTER XXI. VOYAGE OF THE “TERROR.”
Captain Back was in 1836 appointed to the command of an expedition to the Arctic, partly formed for purposes of survey. He was instructed to proceed to Repulse or Wager Bay, as the case might be; thence he was to take a party across the intervening land to the eastern shore of Prince Regent’s Islet. Among other explorations he was to examine the coast line as far as the Point Turnagain of Franklin. It is unnecessary to go into further details, as the expedition, geographically considered, was a
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CHAPTER XXII. Franklin’s Last Voyage.
CHAPTER XXII. Franklin’s Last Voyage.
The name of Sir John Franklin, whose sad destiny it was to perish at the moment of triumph, stands pre-eminent as one of the brightest ornaments in our long list of naval heroes. Peculiarly adapted by the bent of his mind to the profession he had adopted, he brought to his aid the love of adventure, a perfect knowledge of seamanship, and a zeal for geographical discovery, combined with an integrity of purpose and a hardy intrepidity, that, even in the service he so highly adorned, have never bee
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CHAPTER XXIII. THE FRANKLIN SEARCH.
CHAPTER XXIII. THE FRANKLIN SEARCH.
In October, 1854, the startling news came from Dr. Rae that he had at length found some definite traces of the lost expedition. For several years he had been engaged in the search—principally at the expense of the Hudson’s Bay Company—during which time he had descended the Mackenzie and Coppermine Rivers, and explored the shores and islands of the Polar Ocean without success. During his last journey, however, in 1853-4, he had obtained positive evidence from the Esquimaux regarding the fate of t
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CHAPTER XXIV. The Last Traces.
CHAPTER XXIV. The Last Traces.
During the summer of 1858 M’Clintock made several detailed examinations of Eclipse Sound, Pond’s Bay, Peel Strait, Regent’s Inlet, and Bellot Strait, without discovering the faintest trace of the lost party. The Fox was again to winter in the Arctic—this time, however, under favourable circumstances—Port Kennedy, a harbour of Bellot Strait, being selected. The early winter of 1858-9 passed away without any occurrences of great importance, the ship being safely placed and the crew still well prov
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CHAPTER XXV. Kane’s Memorable Expedition.
CHAPTER XXV. Kane’s Memorable Expedition.
Although the expedition about to be described left the United States in 1852—several years before M’Clintock’s memorable voyage—and although it was organised especially for the Franklin search, its consideration has been deferred till now, in order not to interfere with the narrative of the discoveries relative to the lost expedition. Dr. Kane was not, indeed, to share with Rae and M’Clintock the honour of determining the fate of Franklin and his brave companions, but he was, and long must be, d
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CHAPTER XXVI. Kane’s Expedition (continued).
CHAPTER XXVI. Kane’s Expedition (continued).
The arrival and visit of a number of Esquimaux at the brig caused some little excitement. They were fine specimens of the race, and evidently inclined for friendship. At first only one of them was admitted on board. His dress is described as a kind of hooded capôte or jumper of mixed blue and white fox-skins arranged with some taste, and booted trousers of white bear-skin, which at the end of the foot were made to terminate with the claws of the animal. Kane soon came to an understanding with th
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CHAPTER XXVII. Kane’s Expedition (concluded).
CHAPTER XXVII. Kane’s Expedition (concluded).
Kane had now been two years in the arctic regions, and the day of release, so far at least as their little brig was concerned, seemed as far off as ever. Nearly all the men were invalids, and it took all the doctor’s unremitting attention to keep them from utter despondency; others, again, wanted only strength to become mutinous. Kane writes at the beginning of March that his journal “is little else than a chronicle of sufferings.” Brooks, his first officer, “as stalwart a man-o’-war’s-man as ev
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CHAPTER XXVIII. Hayes’ Expedition—Swedish Expeditions.
CHAPTER XXVIII. Hayes’ Expedition—Swedish Expeditions.
It will be remembered that Dr. Hayes was associated with Dr. Kane at the period when Morton discovered that open water which seemed to many scientific men of the day positive proof of the existence of an “open polar sea.” Dr. Hayes was an evident believer in the theory, and his enthusiastic advocacy of it induced many in the United States to come forward and lend material aid towards the solution of the problem. A private subscription, to which that worthy New Yorker Mr. Grinnell, who had alread
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CHAPTER XXIX. The Second German Expedition.
CHAPTER XXIX. The Second German Expedition.
On the 24th of October, 1868, a number of gentlemen were assembled round a festive board in Bremen to celebrate the happy return of the first German expedition, under Captain Karl Koldewey. Among the guests was Dr. A. Petermann, the eminent geographer, to whose exertions in great part the inauguration of the expedition had been due. Its object had been to reach as near the North Pole as might be, the route selected being that between Greenland and Spitzbergen. Baffled by an icy barrier off the S
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CHAPTER XXX. On an Ice-Raft.
CHAPTER XXX. On an Ice-Raft.
Slowly but steadily their ice-field drifted to the south, and by November 3rd they had reached Scoresby’s Sound, sometimes being near the coasts and sometimes far from them. Since the ship had sunk, fourteen days before, the ice had closed in upon them, and even the blocks which had broken away from their field had frozen to it again. Their floating ice-raft was by degrees investigated in every quarter, roads cleared, and marks set up for short tours. The mass of ice was at this time about seven
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CHAPTER XXXI. Hall’s Expedition—The Austro-Hungarian Expedition—Nordenskjöld.
CHAPTER XXXI. Hall’s Expedition—The Austro-Hungarian Expedition—Nordenskjöld.
But little record has been made, except in transient literature and Government reports, of the expedition concerning which we are about to write. Captain Charles Francis Hall’s name is, with the public, more intimately associated with “Life with the Esquimaux,” and but little with the fact that he succeeded in taking a vessel to a higher latitude than ever reached in that way before. He returned to America in 1869, having for five years lived with, and to a great extent as the natives, the resul
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CHAPTER XXXII. The Antarctic Regions.
CHAPTER XXXII. The Antarctic Regions.
One might well inquire, without a previous knowledge of the reasons, why the South Pole has not received the attention which has been lavished on the North. The fact is that while the Arctic regions do not present many attractions for travel, and certainly even less for residence or settlement, the Antarctic regions are still more unpromising in both particulars. The extreme intensity of Antarctic cold is found to commence at a much higher latitude than in the northern hemisphere. In the Arctic
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CHAPTER XXXIII. Decisive Voyages in History.—Diaz—Columbus.
CHAPTER XXXIII. Decisive Voyages in History.—Diaz—Columbus.
“We have,” says Clarke, “no relation of the particulars of this voyage, and only know that the first spot on which Diaz placed a stone pillar, in token of discovery and possession, was at Sierra Parda , in about 24°, 40′ S., which is said to have been 120 leagues further to the south than any preceding navigator. According to the Portuguese historians, Diaz sailed boldly from this place to the southward, in the open sea, and never saw the land again until he was forty leagues to the east of the
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CHAPTER XXXIV. Decisive Voyages in History.—Columbus. Vasco da Gama.
CHAPTER XXXIV. Decisive Voyages in History.—Columbus. Vasco da Gama.
On the return of Columbus to Spain, he brought home, as before, some gold and other samples of Nature’s productions in the islands. But other voyagers returned, who loudly abused the new colony, and whose often wan and sallow features provoked the satirical remarks of the people, that they had come back with more gold in their features than in their pockets! In short, the novelty of the excitement had passed, and like many really valuable colonies of our own day which have been at first over-lau
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CHAPTER XXXV. The Companions and Followers of Columbus.
CHAPTER XXXV. The Companions and Followers of Columbus.
Alonzo de Ojeda, a native of New Castile, was one of this numerous class. He had fought against the Moors when a youth, and had accompanied Columbus on his second voyage when only twenty-one years of age. One of his relatives, a Dominican friar, was one of the first inquisitors of Spain, and was an intimate of the Bishop Fonseca, who had the chief management of the affairs of the Indies, which then included all the countries as yet known in the New World. Ojeda, therefore, was naturally and easi
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CHAPTER XXXVI. The Companions and Followers of Columbus (concluded).
CHAPTER XXXVI. The Companions and Followers of Columbus (concluded).
Nicuesa remained some time in San Domingo after the sailing of his rival’s fleet, obtaining so many volunteers that he had to purchase another ship to convey them. That commander was much more the courtier than the man of business, and expended his money so freely that in the end he found himself seriously involved. Some of his creditors, knowing that his expedition was not favourably regarded by the governor, Admiral Don Diego Columbus, threw every obstacle in the way of his departure, and neve
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