have never undergone it myself; and cannot therefore speak of it with any degree of positiveness; but it is said to be dreadful by those who have known it by experience. Indeed, it must be so, when it brings the stoutest man on board a ship to the same level with the weakest person that breathes there. It is a sickness (if it may be called by this name) that, instead of exciting our sympa thies towards the sufferer, makes us laugh at him.

The ship being one of the largest size, there was a great particularity about her, as the custom is in all respectable vessels. The strictest attention was paid even to the coiling of ropes and other minor duties, both in the cuddy and out of it; and any neglect that came under the observation of the Captain was punished by his severe threat or otherwise, as the case required. The deck was scrubbed with a species of earth called holy-stone, and every part of the ship was well washed.

As the Tudor left Calcutta rather late in the season, she could not secure a sufficient member of passengers. There were now five of them; of whom two were ladies. Had there been more, we should in all probability have spent the passage more agreeably ; but with so few, the ship had comparatively a lonesome appear

ance.

Their manner of passing time was as follows. In the morning they used to walk about for exercise till breakfast, which took place at 9, A. M. From this time to the middle of the day, they were accustomed to read, talk, and walk about. At 12 o'clock, those who wished, partook of some lunch, which consisted of biscuit and wine. Dinner was on the table at 4, P. M. A quarter of an hour before the exact time, the bugle sounded to give notice to all to get ready; when it was on the table, it sounded again, which brought the passengers to it. This meal consisted of almost all those things that one could have ashore, as a good supply of every necessary and luxury was laid up. They sat at table till ab. out 5 o'clock, and, after that, rose up to walk about. Supper, which consisted of tea, biscuit of different sorts, and some other things,

was on the table when it was nearly dark. We may say, in pleasant weather the evening was the best part of the day, as at this time, the band (for we had one on board) was almost always ordered to play, and all the passengers were out to amuse themselves, some on deck and others on the poop; and the sailors being freed from their daily toil, were accustomed to enjoy themselves in various ways.

Besides the cuddy passengers, we had some insane soldiers too on board, who were being sent to England for the benefit of their health; most of them had nearly recovered, but one was at times very wild; this wildness, however, was supposed by some to have proceeded from his ill temper rather than from a deranged head.

For a considerable period after our sailing from Calcutta, we did not meet with any thing striking or remarkable; but there were times during this passage, when we had high winds and gales, which made the sea as boisterous as I could have wished to witness. There have been instances in my voyage, when I have seen the

mighty deep" in all its fury and excitement. These scenes, accompanied with thunder, lightning and rain, have been awfully sublime. When the ship is impelled by a steady breeze, her sailing is what may be termed beautiful; at such times she is gliding on smoothly, and there is little around you, to put you into unusual inward stir; but when the breeze is turned into a strong wind, or gale, or storm, then the beautiful is lost (almost always quite imperceptibly) into the sublime. This appears to be the highest kind of sublimity that one could witness. You behold the ocean in the greatest commotion and rising "mountains high," hear the "voice of many waters" and the angry roar of thunder, and see the vivid flash of lightning. At times like this, what is the largest ship compared with these mighty elements which contend with each other. When there are "voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and earthquakes," a vessel (even of the largest size) is as a light leaf tumbling about on the bosom of the ocean; she seems to be lost in nothingness in comparison with these irresistible elements that play

above, beneath, and round about her. Were it not for the particular providence of the Almighty in such circumstances, the slightest stroke of a heavy sea, would hurl her down to the bottom to rise

no more.

However, taking another view of the sailing of a ship, it affords us a sort of pleasure. When the wind is high and the sea exceedingly rough, a vessel sails at a furious rate and with a great noise. The rough sea by the high waves, which rise in her path, impedes her course in a great measure, so that she has to struggle with the sea in making her way through them; but even then, large ships in general, run about ten miles an hour. Now consider the ship in the light of a mighty monster, struggling with the still mightier elements of destruction to make her way; and when you see that all around you is a vast and boundless expanse of troubled water, land at the distance of thousands of miles, the high winds wrestling with the powerful waves, and, if all this were not enough to terrify impotent man, the worm of the dust, you hear the thunder mingling its terrible peals with the loud and awful roar of the wind, as well as of the waves, and now and then the flash of lightning from the dark angry clouds dazzling your eyes; yet when you see the ship, with all this dreadful scenery about her, nobly making her way through the rough and troubled sea and going on at the rate of ten miles an hour, safely arrive at its "desired haven," say, is not this also sublime !

The Captain, at the time of our leaving Calcutta, had not as far we knew, designed to touch at the Cape; but afterwards he changed his mind. Our passage from Calcutta to this place had been unusually pleasant; but the weather about the Cape is well known to be boisterous and stormy; the sea that washes these shores has, doubtless, been instrumental in the destruction of innumerable ships and lives. As far as some trouble and a little delay were concerned, we also had our share; but at length on the 19th of April, we reached the Cape, which had been the theme of universal talk for a number of days. Our flags were hoisted up long before we

reached the Port: and the Medical Examiner was soon on board.. Almost immediately after our arrival here, the ship was surrounded by small boats in which people came from ashore for various purposes :—some to satisfy their curiosity; some as suppliers of the necessaries wanted; some to invite passengers to their respective lodgings; while others had come to see whether they could find any employment as sailors. No one was prevented from coming on board; and some, that happened to find their acquaintances, remained on board to a late hour. I must confess that, I looked on most of these visitors as untameable wild men ; which character of theirs might very properly be attributed to the vagrant life that they always lead. I can say, I never found any difficulty in distinguishing this class from the better sort.

On the evening of our arrival no body went ashore; but on the next day the Captain, with his lady and some others, set his feet on terra firma. The day when I landed was a disagreeable one, which circumstance left a very unfavourable impression on my mind, with regard to the Cape. The weather was wet, the streets muddy, and the town had an aspect of uncleanliness about it; but of course I form no conclusive opinion from this. The houses and shops, and the make of streets and side paths I afterwards found to be like those of England. The population was a mixed one, composed of Europeans and Africans. The ship was to remain here only for a short time; I had no opportunity, therefore, of making even a short tour in the interior, and consequently my observations regarding it must be exceedingly limited.

From the very day that I reached the Cape, I had a great curiosity to see some of the miserable and long oppressed children of Ham in their own land. At last I saw alongside the ship a small boat, in which were an old man and a boy, who had brought some fruit for sale; so I gratified my curiosity by closely observing their peculiarities. I did this to a greater advantage however, when I was ashore. A great number of them were busy on the wharf. The first impression that they make on one is unfavourable to them;

but this gradually wears off by seeing them oftener. I shall not trouble my readers with a description of their features, &c. as they are generally known. I am inclined to believe they are a dirty race. The costume of the Cape Africans is somewhat like that of the English; but this holds true with regard to only those, who live in the colony; because others, who inhabit the interior, apart from all foreign influence, must have every thing original about them. The Colony Africans are said to be of the Christian religion; but before knowing this, I had the curiosity to ask some of them, whether they were Mahommadans, but they not understanding me, I enquired again, whether they believed in the Qurán, to which they answered, there was plenty of corn there; I asked them again whether they were Christians; but they pointed to a house and said, a European of that name lived there. These were poor Inbouring men, and of course very illiterate; their English was broken, because their present mother tongue is Dutch, which they have derived from their former masters.

The same inscrutable designs of Providence, which are to be met with elsewhere, appear to view here also; for with the exception of the two ancient celebrated nations, that is, the Egyptians and the Carthaginians, Africa has always been sunk in the grossest barbarism. From what account of certain of their tribes travellers and missionaries give, it is no wonder that some, who give no credence to Revelation, should take them for the connecting link between the brute and the human creation. However, from the signs of the times and the evident developement of certain prophetical writings, we may, I believe, safely conclude, that their deliverance from the chains of barbarism and ignorance draweth nigh.

The most unfavourable thing, that appears to be a preventive to the temporal comfort and happiness of this race, is, the general extreme dryness of their climate and the barrenness of their soil. Were this not the case, they might live with a measure of comfort, as far as their temporal support is concerned. But we believe every difficulty of this kind will yield, when revolutions and refor