Success attends their skill; the dangers o'er;
The port is doubled and beheld no more.

Now Morn, her lamp pale glimmering on the sight,

Scatter'd before her van reluctant Night:
She comes not in refulgent pomp array'd,
But sternly frowning, wrapp'd in sullen shade:
Above incumbent vapours, Ida's height,
Tremendous rock! emerges on the sight.
North-east the guardian isle of Standía lies,
And westward Freschin's woody capes arise.

With whining postures, now the wanton sails Spread all their snares, to charm th' inconstant gales.

The swelling stud-sails now their wings extend, Then stay-sails sidelong to the breeze ascend: While all to court the wandering breeze are placed;

[haze,

With yards now thwarting, now obliquely braced.
The dim horizon lowering vapours shroud,
And blot the sun, yet struggling in the cloud:
Through the wide atmosphere, condensed with
His glaring orb emits a sanguine blaze,
The pilots now their rules of art apply,
The mystic needle's devious aim to try.
The compass placed to catch the rising ray,t
The quadrant's shadows studious they survey!
Along the arch the gradual index slides,
While Phoebus down the vertic circle glides.
Now, seen on Ocean's utmost verge to swim,
He sweeps it vibrant with his nether limb.
Their sage experience thus explores the height
And polar distance of the source of light:
Then through the chiliad's triple maze they trace
Th' analogy that proves the magnet's place:
The wayward steel to truth thus reconciled,
No more th' attentive pilot's eye beguiled.

The natives, while the ship departs the land,
Ashore with admiration gazing stand;
Majestically slow, before the breeze,
In silent pomp she marches on the seas;
Her milk-white bottom casts a softer gleam,
While trembling through the green translucent

stream.

The wales, that close above in contrast shone,
Clasp the long fabric with a jetty zone.
Britannia, riding awful on the prow,
Gazed o'er the vassal-wave that roll'd below;
Where'er she moved, the vassal waves were seen
To yield obsequious and confess their queen.
Th' imperial trident graced her dexter hand,
Of power to rule the surge, like Moses' wand,
The eternal empire of the main to keep,
And guide her squadrons o'er the trembling deep.
Her left, propitious, bore a mystic shield,
Around whose margin rolls the watery field:
There her bold Genius, in his floating car,
O'er the wild billow hurls the storm of war.
And lo! the beasts that oft with jealous rage
In bloody combat met, from age to age,

Studding-sails are long narrow sails, which are only used in fine weather and fair winds, on the outside of the larger square sails. Stay-sails are three cornered sails, which are hoisted up on the stays, when the wind crosses the ship's course either directly or obliquely.

The operation of taking the sun's azimuth, in order to discover the eastern or western variation o the magnetic-needle.

The wales, here alluded to, are an assemblage of strong planks which envelope the lower part of the ship's side, wherein they are broader and thicker than the rest, and appear somewhat like a range or noops, which separates the bottom from the upper works.

From the broad margin to the centre grew
Shelves, rocks, and whirlpools, hideous to the view!
Th' immortal shield from Neptune she received
When first her head above the waters heaved.
Loose floated o'er her limbs an azure vest;
A figured scutcheon glitter'd on her breast;
There, from one parent soil, for ever young,
The blooming rose and hardy thistle sprung:
Around her head an oaken wreath was seen,
Inwove with laurels of unfading green.
Such was the sculptured prow-from van to rear
The artillery frown'd, a black, tremendous tier
Embalm'd with orient gum, above the wave,
The swelling sides a yellow radiance gave:
On the broad stern a pencil warm and bold,
That never servile rules of art controll'd,
An allegoric tale on high pourtray'd,
There a young hero, here a royal maid.
Fair England's genius in the youth express'd,
Her ancient foe, but now her friend confess'd,
The warlike nymph with fond regard survey'd;
No more his hostile frown her heart dismay'd.
His look, that once shot terror from afar,
Like young Alcides, or the god of war,
Serene as summer's evening skies she saw;
Serene, yet firm; though mild, impressing awe.
Her nervous arm, inured to toils severe,
Brandish'd th' unconquer'd Caledonian spear;
The dreadful falchion of the hills she wore,
Sung to the harp in many a tale of yore,
That oft her rivers dyed with hostile gore:
Blue was her rocky shield, her piercing eye
Flush'd like the meteors of her native sky:
Her crest, high plumed, was rough with many a

scar,

And o'er her helmet gleam'd the northern star.
The warrior youth appear'd of noble frame,
The hardy offspring of some Runic dame;
Loose o'er his shoulders hung the slacken'd bow,
Renown'd in song the terror of the foe!
The sword, that oft the barbarous north defied,
The scourge of tyrants! glitter'd by his side:
Clad in refulgent arms, in battle won,
The George emblazon'd on his corslet shone.
Fast by his side was seen a golden lyre,
Pregnant with numbers of eternal fire,
Whose strings unlock the witches' midnight spel
Or waft rapt Fancy through the gulfs of hell.
Struck with contagion, kindling fancy hears
The songs of Heaven! the music of the spheres!
Borne on Newtonian wing, through air she flies,
Where other suns to other systems rise!
These front the scene conspicuous; over head
Albion's proud oak his filial branches spread;
While on the sea-beat shore obsequious stood,
Beneath their feet, the father of the flood;
Here, the bold native of her cliffs above,
Perch'd by the martial maid the bird of Jove;
There, on the watch, sagacious of his prey,
With eyes of fire, an English mastiff lay.
Yonder fair Commerce stretch'd her winged sail
Here frown'd the god that wakes the living gale.
High o'er the poop the flattering winds unfurl'd
Th' imperial flag that rules the watery world:
Deep blushing armours all the tops invest,
And warlike trophies either quarter dress'd:
Then tower'd the masts; the canvass swell'd on
high;

And waving streamers floated in the sky.
Thus the rich vessel moves in trim array,
Like some fair virgin on her bridal day:
Thus, like a swan, she cleaves the watery plain,
The pride and wonder of th' gean main.

ADIEU, ye pleasures of the rural scene,
Where Peace and calm Contentment dwell serene!
To me, in vain, on earth's prolific soil,
With summer crown'd th' Elysian valleys smile!
To me those happier scenes no joy impart,
But tantalize with hope my aching heart.
For these, alas! reluctant I forego,
To visit storms and elements of wo!
Ye tempests! o'er my head congenial roll,
To suit the mournful music of my soul !
In black progression, lo! they hover near;
Hail, social Horrors! like my fate severe !
Old Ocean, hail! beneath whose azure zone
The secret deep lies unexplored, unknown.
Approach, ye brave companions of the sea,
And fearless view this awful scene with me!
Ye native guardians of your country's laws!
Ye bold assertors of her sacred cause!
The muse invites you, judge if she depart,
Unequal, from the precepts of your art:
In practice train'd, and conscious of her power,
Her steps intrepid, meet the trying hour.
O'er the smooth bosom of the faithless tides,
Propell'd by gentle gales, the vessel glides.
Rodmond, exulting, felt th' auspicious wind,
And by a mystic charm its aim confined:
The thoughts of home, that o'er his fancy roll,
With trembling joy dilate Palemon's soul:
Hope lifts his heart, before whose vivid ray
Distress recedes, and danger melts away.
Already Britain's parent cliffs arise,
And in idea greet his longing eyes!
Each amorous sailor too, with heart elate,
Dwells on the beauties of his gentle mate:
Even they th' impressive dart of Love can feel,
Whose stubborn souls are sheathed in triple steel.
Nor less o'erjoy'd, perhaps with equal truth,
Each faithful maid expects th' approaching youth:
In distant bosoms equal ardours glow;
And mutual passions mutual joy bestow.
Tall Ida's summit now more distant grew,
And Jove's high hill was rising on the view;
When, from the left approaching, they descry
A liquid column, towering, shoot on high.
The foaming base an angry whirlwind sweeps,
Where curling billows rouse the fearful deeps.
Still round and round the fluid vortex flies,
Scattering dun night and horror through the skies:
The swift volution and th' enormous train
Let sages versed in Nature's lore explain!

The horrid apparition still draws nigh,
And white with foam the whirling surges fly;
The guns were primed-the vessel northward veers
Till her black battery on the column bears.
The nitre fired; and, while the dreadful sound,
Convulsive, shook the slumbering air around,
The watery volume, trembling to the sky,
Burst down a dreadful deluge from on high;
Th' affrighted surge, recoiling as it fell,
Rolling in hills disclosed the abyss of hell.
But soon, this transient undulation o'er,
The sea subsides, the whirlwinds rage no more:
While southward now th' increasing breezes veer,
Dark clouds incumbent on their wings appear:
In front they view the consecrated grove
Of cypress, sacred once to Cretan Jove.
The thirsty canvass, all around supplied,
Still drinks, unquench'd, the full aerial tide;
And now, approaching near the lofty stern,
A shoal of sportive dolphins they discern.
From burnish'd scales they beam refulgent rays,
Till all the glowing ocean seems to blaze.
Soon to the sport of death the crew repair,
Dart the long lance, or spread the baited snare:
One in redoubling mazes wheels along,
And glides, unhappy! near the triple prong.
Rodmond, unerring, o'er his head suspends
The barbed steel, and every turn attends;
Unerring aim'd, the missile weapon flew,
And, plunging, struck the fated victim through:
Th' upturning points his ponderous bulk sustain,
On deck he struggles with convulsive pain.
But while his heart the fatal javelin thrills,
And flitting life escapes in sanguine rills,
What radiant changes strike th' astonish'd sight!
What glowing hues of mingled shade and light!
Not equal beauties gild the lucid west,
With parting beams all o'er profusely dress'd.
Not lovelier colours paint the vernal dawn,
When orient dews impearl th' enamell'd lawn,
Than from his sides in bright suffusion flow,
That now with gold empyreal seem'd to glow;
Now in pellucid sapphires meet the view,
And emulate the soft, celestial hue;
Now beam a flaming crimson on the eye,
And now assume the purple's deeper dye.
But here description clouds each shining ray;
What terms of Art can Nature's powers display!
Now, while on high the freshening gale she
The ship beneath her lofty pressure reels;

[feels,

8

swell'd,

canvass

Swift and more swift the yielding bark impell'd.
Impatient thus she glides along the coast,
Till, far behind, the hill of Jove is lost:
And, while aloof from Retimo she steers,
Malacha's foreland full in front appears.
Wide o'er yon isthmus stands the cypress grove
That once inclosed the hallow'd fane of Jove:
Here, too, memorial of his name! is found
A tomb, in marble ruins on the ground:
This gloomy tyrant, whose triumphant yoke
The trembling states around to slavery broke,
Through Greece, for murder, rape, and incest
known,

The Muses raised to high Olympus' throne.
For oft, alas! their venal strains adorn

The prince whom blushing Virtue holds in scorn;
Still Rome and Greece record his endless fame,
And hence yon mountain yet retains his name.

But see! in confluence borne before the blast,
Clouds roll'd on clouds the dusky noon o'ercast;
The blackening ocean curls; the winds arise;
And the dark scud in swift succession flies.
While the swoln canvass bends the masts on
high,

Low in the wave the leeward cannon lie, t
The sailors now, to give the ship relief,
Reduce the topsails by a single reef.
Each lofty yard with slacken'd cordage reels,
Rattle the creeking blocks and ringing wheels.
Down the tall masts the topsails sink amain;
And, soon reduced, assume their post again:
More distant grew receding Candia's shore,
And southward of the west Cape Spado bore.
Four hours the sun his high meridian throne
Had left, and o'er Atlantic regions shone:
Still blacker clouds, that all the skies invade,
Draw o'er his sullied orb a dismal shade.
A squall deep-lowering blots the southern sky,
Before whose boisterous breath the waters fly:
Its weight the topsails can no more sustain;
"Reef topsails, reef!" the boatswain calls again!
The haliards and top bow lines | soon are gone,
To clue lines and reef tackles next they run :
The shivering sails descend; and now they square
The yards, while ready sailors mount in air.
The weather-earings and the lee they pass'd;
The reefs enroll'd, and every point made fast,

Scud is a name given by seamen to the lowest clouds, which are driven with great rapidity along the atmosphere, in squally or tempestuous weather.

When the wind crosses a ship's course, either directly or obliquely, that side of the ship upon which it acts, is called the weather side; and the opposite one, which is then pressed downwards, is called the lee side. Hence all the rigging and furniture of the ship are, at this time, distinguished by the side on which they are situated; as the leecannon, the lee-braces, the weather-braces, &c.

The topsails are large square sails, of the second degree in height and magnitude. Reefs are certain divisions or spaces by which the principal sails are reduced when the wind increases; and again enlarged proportionably when its force abates.

Haliards are either single ropes or tackles, by which the sails are hoisted up and lowered when the sail is to be extended or reduced.

Bow lines are ropes intended to keep the windward edge of the sail steady, and to prevent it from shaking in unfavourable wind.

Clue-lines are ropes used to truss up the clues, or lower corners of the principal sails to their respective yards, particularly when the sail is to be close reefed or furled. Reef-tackles are ropes employed to facilitate the operation of reefing, by confining the extremities of the reef close up to the yard, so that the interval becomes slack, and is therefore easily rolled up and fastened to the yard by the points employed for this purpose.

**Earings are small cords, by which the upper corners of the principal sails, and also the extremities of the reefs, are fastened to the yard-arms.

Their task above thus finish'd, they descend,
And vigilant th' approaching squall attend:
It comes resistless, and with foaming sweep,
Upturns the whitening surface of the deep.
In such a tempest, borne to deeds of death,
The wayward sisters scour the blasted heath.
With ruin pregnant now the clouds impend,
And storin and cataract tumultuous blend.
Deep on her side the reeling vessel lies;
"Brail up the mizen, quick!" the master cries,
"Man the clue-garnets let the main-sheet; fly!"
The boisterous squall still presses from on high,
And swift, and fatal, as the lightning's course,
Through the torn main sail bursts with thundering
force.

While the rent canvass flutter'd in the wind,
Still on her flank the stooping bark inclined.
"Bear up the helm a-weather!" Rodmond
cries;

Swift at the word, the helm a-weather flies.
The prow, with secret instinct, veers apace;
And now the foresail right athwart they brace;
With equal sheets restrain'd, the bellying sail
Spreads a broad concave to the sweeping gale.
While o'er the foam the ship impetuous flies,
Th' attentive timoneer the helm applies.
As in pursuit along the aerial way,

With ardent eye, the falcon marks his prey,
Each motion watches of the doubtful chase,
Obliquely wheeling through the liquid space;
So, govern'd by the steersinan's glowing hands,
The regent helm her motion still commands.

But now the transient squall to leeward pass'd, Again she rallies to the sullen blast.

The helm to starboard¶ turns-with wings inclined,
The sidelong canvass clasps the faithless wind,
The mizen draws; she springs aloof once more,
While the fore-staysail balances before.
The fore-sail braced obliquely to the wind,
They near the prow th' extended tack confined;
Then on the leeward sheet the seamen bend,
And haul the bow line to the bowsprit end.
To topsails next they haste-the bunt lines gone,
The clue lines through their wheel'd machinery

run;

On either side below the sheets are mann'd:
Again the fluttering sails their skirts expand.
Once more the top-sails, tho' with humbler plume,
Mounting aloft their ancient post resume.
Again the bow lines and the yards are braced,††
And all the entangled cords in order placed.
The sail, by whirlwinds thus so lately rent,
In tatter'd ruins fluttering, is unbent.

The mizen is a large sail of an oblong figure, extended upon the mizen-mast.

Clue garnets are employed for the same purposes on the mainsail and foresail as the clue-lines are upon all other square sails. See note, col. 1.

It is necessary in this place to remark, that the sheets, which are universally mistaken by the English poets and their readers for the sails them selves, are no other than the ropes used to extend the clues or lower corners of the sails to which they are attached. To the mainsail and foresail there is a sheet and a tack on each side; the latter on which is a thick rope, serving to confine the weather clue of the sail down to the ship's side, whilst the former draws out the lee clue or lower corner on the opposite side. Tacks are only used in a side wind.

The helm is said to be a-weather, when the bar by which it is managed is turned to the side of the ship next the wind."

Timoneer (from timonnier, Fr.) the helmsman

or steersman.

The helm being turned to starboard, or to the right side of the ship, directs the prow to the left, or to port, and vice versa. Hence the helm being put a starboard, when the ship is running northward, directs her prow towards the west.

This sail, which is with more propriety called the fore-topmast staysail, is a triangular sail, that runs upon the fore-topmast stay, over the bowsprit. It is used to command the fore part of the ship, and counterbalance the sails extended towards the stern. See also the last note of this Canto.

tt A yard is said to be braced when it is turned about the mast horizontally, either to the right or left: the ropes employed in this service are accordingly called braces.