h
poor Quid had received, and the beauty of the funeral service which
I had heard read over him--"I am the resurrection and the life." The
moon, which had been obscured, suddenly burst from a cloud, and a cry
of horror proceeded from the look-out man on the starboard gangway.
I ran to inquire the cause, and found him in such a state of nervous
agitation that he could only say,--"Quid--Quid!" and point with his
finger into the water.

I looked over the side, and, to my amazement there was the body of
Quid,

"All in dreary hammock shrouded,"

perfectly upright, and floating with the head and shoulders above
water. A slight undulation of the waves gave it the appearance of
nodding its head; while the rays of the moon enabled us to trace the
remainder of the body underneath the surface. For a few moments, I
felt a horror which I cannot describe, and contemplated the object in
awful silence; while my blood ran cold, and I felt a sensation as if
my hair was standing on end. I was completely taken by surprise, and
thought the body had risen up to warn me; but in a few seconds I
regained my presence of mind, and I soon perceived the origin of this
reappearance of the corpse. I ordered the cutter to be manned, and,
in the meantime, went down to inform the first lieutenant of what had
occurred. He laughed, and said, "I suppose the old boy finds salt
water not quite so palatable as grog. Tie some more shot to his feet,
and bring the old fellow to his moorings again. Tell him, the next
time he trips his anchor, not to run on board of us. He had his
regular allowance of prayer: I gave him the whole service, and I shall
not give him any more." So saying, he went to sleep again.

This apparently singular circumstance is easily accounted for. Bodies
decomposing from putridity, generate a quantity of gas, which swells
them up to an enormous size, and renders them buoyant. The body of
this man was thrown overboard just as decomposition was in progress:
the shot made fast to the feet were sufficient to sink it at the time;
but in a few hours after were not competent to keep it at the bottom,
and it came up to the surface in that perpendicular position which I
have described. The current in the bay being at the time either slack
or irregular, it floated at the spot whence it had been launched into
the water.

The cutter, being manned, was sent with more shot to attach to the
body, and sink it. When they attempted to hold it with the