THE OCEAN.

The ocean hath its silent caves,
Deep, quiet, and alone;

Though there be fury in the waves,
Beneath them there is none.

The awful spirits of the deep,
Hold their communion there;

And there are those for whom we weep,-
The young, the bright, the fair.

Calmly the weary seamen rest,
Beneath their own blue sea;
The ocean solitudes are blessed,
For there is purity.

The earth has guilt, the earth has care,
Unquiet are its graves;

But peaceful sleep is ever there,

Beneath its dark blue waves.

Fom Chingles Lor

A SCENE OFF BERMUDA.

The evening was closing in dark and rainy, with every appearance of a gale from the westward, and the weather had become so thick and boisterous, that the lieutenant of the watch had ordered the lookout at the mast-head down on the deck. The man on his way down, had gone into the main-top to bring away some things he had left in going aloft, and was in the act of leaving it, when he sung out, "A sail on the weather-bow!" "What does she look like?" "Can't rightly say, sir; she is in the middle of the thick weather to windward." 66 Stay where you are a little. Jenkins, jump forward, and see what you can make of her from the foreyard." Whilst the topman was obeying his instructions, the lookout again hailed. "She is a ship, sir, close-hauled on the same tack; the weather clears and I can see her now."

The wind ever since noon had been blowing in heavy squalls, with appalling lulls between them. One of these gusts had been so violent as to bury in the sea the lee-guns in the waist, although the brig had nothing set but her close-reefed main-topsail, and reef

ed foresail. It was now spending its fury, and she was beginning to roll heavily, when, with a suddenness almost incredible to one unacquainted with these latitudes, the veil of mist that had hung to the windward the whole day was rent and drawn aside, and the red and level rays of the setting sun flashed at once, through a long arch of glowing clouds, on the black hull and tall spars of his Britanic majesty's sloop Torch. And, true enough, we were not the only spectators of this gloomy splendor; for, right in the wake of the moonlike sun, now half sunk in the sea, at the distance of a mile or more, lay a long warlike-looking craft, apparently a frigate or heavy corvette, rolling heavily and silently in the trough of the sea, with her masts, yards, and the scanty sail she had set, in strong relief against the glorious horizon.

Jenkins now hailed from the foreyard, "The strange sail is bearing up, sir." As he spoke, a flash was seen, followed, after what seemed a long interval, by the deadened report of the gun, as if it had been an echo, and the sharp half-ringing, half-hissing sound of the shot. It fell short, but close to us, and was evidently thrown from a heavy cannon, from the length of the range. Mr. Splinter, the first lieutenant, jumped from the gun he stood on Quartermaster, keep her away a bit," and dived into the cabin to make his report.

Captain Deadeye was a staid, stiff-rumped, wall-eyed, old first lieutenantish-looking veteran, with his coat of a regular Rodneycut, broad skirts, long waist, and standing-up collar, over which dangled either a queue, or a marlinspike with a tuft of oakum at the end of it, it would have puzzled Old Nick to say which. His lower spars were cased in tight unmentionables, of what had once been white kerseymere, and long boots, the coal scuttle tops of which served as scuppers to carry off the drainings from his coat-flaps in bad weather; he was, in fact, the "last of the sea-monsters," but like all his tribe, as brave as steel; when put to it, as alert as a cat. He had no sooner heard Splinter's report than he sprung up the ladder. My glass, Wilson," to

his steward.

"She is close to, sir; you can see her plainly without it," said Mr. Treenail, the second Lieutenant, from the weather nettings, where he was reconnoitering. After a long look through his star board blinker, (his other sky-light had been shut up ever since Aboukir,) Deadeye gave orders to "clear away the weather-bow gun;" and as it was now getting too dark for flags to be seen distinctly, he desired that three lanterns might be got ready for hoisting vertically in the main rigging.

"Then hoist

"All ready forward there?" "All ready, sir." away the lights, and throw a shot across her forefoot-fire!" Bang went our carronade, but our friend to windward paid no regard to the private signal; he had shaken a reef out of his topsails, and was coming down fast upon us.

The enemy, for such he evidently was, now all at once yawed, and indulged us with a sight of his teeth; and there he was, fifteen ports of a side on his main deck, with his due quantum of carronades on his quarter deck and forecastle; whilst his short lower masts, white canvass, and the tremendous hoist in his topsail, showed him to be a heavy American frigate; and it was equally ertain that he had cleverly hooked us under his lee, within comfortable range of his long twenty-fours. To convince the most unbelieving, three jets of flame, amidst wreaths of white smoke, glanced from his main deck; but, in this instance, the sound of the cannon was followed by a sharp crackle and a shower of splinters from the foreyard.

It was clear that we had got an ugly customer; poor Jenkins now called to Treenail, who was standing forward near the gun which had been fired, "Och, sir, and its badly wounded we are here." The officer was a Patlander, as well as the seaman. "Which of you, my boy; you or the yard?" "Both of us, your honor; but the yard badliest." " Come down, then, or get inte the top, and I will have you looked after presently." The poor fellow crawled off the yard into the foretop, as he was ordered, where he was found after the brush, badly wounded by a splinter in the breast.

Jonathan, no doubt, "calculated," as well he might, that this taste of his quality would be quite sufficient for a little eighteengun ship close under his lee; but the fight was not to be so easily taken out of Deadeye, although even to his optic it was now high time to be off.

Us.

"All hands make sail, Mr. Splinter; that chap is too heavy for Mr. Kelson," to the carpenter, "jump up and see what the toreyawl will carry. Keep her away my man," to the seainen at the heim; "Crack on, Mr. Splinter; shake all the reefs out; set the fore-topsail and loose top gallant sails; stand by sheet home, and see all clear to rig the booms out, if the breeze lulls. In less than a minute we were bowling along before it; but the wind was breezing up again, and no one could say how long the wounded foreyard would carry the weight and drag the sails. To mend the matter, Jonathan was coming up, hand over hand, with the freshening breeze under a press of canvass; it was clear that escape was next to impossible.

46

Clear away the larboard guns!" I absolutely jumped off the deck with astonishment; who could have spoken it? It appeared such downright madness to show fight under the very muzzles of the guns of an enemy, half of whose broadside was sufficient to sink us. It was the captain, however, and there was nothing for it.

In an instant was heard, through the whistling of the breeze, the creaking and screaming of the carronade slides, the rattling of the carriage of the long twelve pounder amidships, the thumping

and punching of handspikes, and the dancing and jumping or Jack himself, as the guns were being shot and run out. In a few seconds all was still again, but the rushing sound of the vessel going through the water and of the rising gale amongst the rigging. The men stood clustered at their quarters; their cutlasses buckled round their waists, all without jackets and waistcoats, and many with nothing but their trousers on.

"Now, men, mind your aim; our only chance is to wing him. I will yaw the ship, and, as your guns come to bear, slap it right into his bows. Starboard your helm, my man, and bring her to the wind." As she came round, blaze went our carronades and long guns in succession, with good will and good aim, and down came his foretop-sail on the cap, with all the superincumbent spars and gear; the head of the topmast had been shot away The men instinctively cheered. "That will do; now knock off, my boys, and let us run for it. Keep her away again; make all sail."

Jonathan was for an instant paralysed by our impudence; but just as we were getting before the wind, he yawed, and let drive his whole broadside; and fearfully did it transmogrify us. Half an hour before we were as gay a little sloop as ever floated, with a crew of one hundred and twenty as fine fellows as ever manned a British man-of-war. The iron shower sped: ten of the hundred and twenty never saw the sun rise again; seventeen more were wounded, three mortally; we had eight shot between wind and water, our main-top-mast shot away as clean as a carrot, and our hull and rigging otherwise regularly cut to pieces. Another oroadside succeeded; but, by this time, we had bore up, thanks 'o the loss of our after sail, we could do nothing else; and, what vas better luck still, whilst the loss of our main-top-mast paid the rig off on the one hand, the loss of the head-sail in the frigate >rought her as quickly to the wind on the other; thus most of her shot fell astern of us; and before she could bear up again in chase, the squall struck her and carried her main-top-mast overboard.

This gave us a start, crippled and bedevilled though we were; and, as the night fell, we contrived to lose sight of our large friend. With breathless anxiety did we carry on through that night, expecting every lurch to send our remaining top-mast by the board; but the weather moderated, and next morning the sun shone on our blood-stained decks, at anchor off the entrance to St. George's harbor.-Scottish Magazine.

CAPTAIN JOHN CLIPPERTON.

About the beginning of the year 1718, some English merchants. foreseeing war between England and Spain, resolved to fit out two ships for the South Seas. Two ships were accordingly provided, one called the Success, the other the Speedwell. The command of the former was given to captain Clipperton and captain Shelvock was appointed to command the latter. They sailed from Plymouth on the 13th of February, 1719, with a fair wind; but the whole stock of wine, brandy and other liquors, for the use of both ships, was still on board the Speedwell. On the 15th, had squally weather with rain; in the evening, unbent the best and small bowers in the Success, stowed their anchors, and found themselves often obliged to shorten sail for the Speedwell. Captain Shelvock came this day under the lee of the Success, and complained to Clipperton of the crankness of his ship, which proceeded from having too much weight aloft; and, therefore, desired him to send for his wine and brandy, which would give him an opportunity of striking down some of his guns into the hold This was never done.

About ten o'clock at night, on the 19th, there arose a fresh breeze, so as to oblige both ships to take in their topsails. Tue gale increasing, the Success made a signal for the Speedwell to bring to, and by seven o'clock both ships were under bare poles, nor able to bear a rag of canvass during the night. On the 20th. the storm abated, when Clipperton made sail, steering S. and by E., whereas Shelvock stood away to the N. W., so that from this day they never saw each other till they met by accident in the South Seas.

The Canaries being the first place appointed for a rendezvous, Clipperton sailed thither with such expedition as to arrive on the 5th of March. After waiting ten days he determined to continue his voyage, lest he should miss his consort at the next place of rendezvous, which was the Cape de Verd Islands. On the 21st. they saw St. Vincent, and next morning anchored in the bay They remained here ten days, but not meeting with their consort. proceeded on their voyage.

On the 29th of May, found themselves off the north point of the entrance of the straits of Magellan, and the next day entered the straits. They arrived in the South Seas on the 18th of August. and on the 7th of September cast anchor off the island of Juan Fernandez. They left this island on the 8th of October, leaving behind two deserters whom they had not been able to find. After taking a number of valuable prizes, the Success bore away for the Gallapagos, in order to refresh; and anchored in York Road on the 9th of January, 1720. On the 11th of August anchored