taking
observations with a sextant, we knew he was "a character." Then there
was his active son, and a younger brother, and a sister in bright red,
and a sailor boy. They looked even more numerous, because they kept for
ever moving out of sight, and then appearing in new costume, under and
above the awning, which like a large umbrella, was spread on their boom.

It was a treat to lunch with this kind hale yachtsman, and to see the one
minute cabin full of mirrors, pictures, statuettes, crockery, and
furniture. To make room for the visitor two of the inhabitants ate their
share of a huge pie in the punt alongside.

Then, to rise at once to the largest yacht of them all, there was the
beautiful 'Zara,' a schooner of 315 tons, fitted out for a Mediterranean
cruise, but making her first voyage from Cowes to Southampton, convoyed
by the Rob Roy, and as her reefing topsails and her Flemish horse got
entangled aloft by new stiff ropes, she drifted against another fine
schooner; but with cool heads and smart hands on board of each of them,
the pretty craft were softly eased away from a too rough embrace, and no
damage was done.

About twenty of the yachts were steamers, and at least as many besides
had steam-launches, a new adjunct rapidly becoming popular, and which
soon will be almost a necessary for every yacht of 200 tons. All of
these that I saw were lifeboats, built on "Lamb and White's" principle,
that is, with air chambers along the sides, so that they decline to
upset, and if they are filled by the sea, they are not only still
floating but steady also.

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution build boats with ballast below
and with air-chambers so disposed at the ends and in the bottom as to
cause the boat to right itself when it has been overturned, while Mr. S.
White's boats are constructed so as rather to prevent a capsize than to
right the boat afterwards.

During an experimental trial in a heavy sea, one of these side-chamber
boats was intentionally overturned, and it then kept steadily floating
bottom upwards, so that the crew clambered up safely on the keel, where
the handles provided for the purpose enabled them to hold on. Of the
fourteen men, however, only thirteen could be counted, and so it was
found that "Jem" was missing; but when he was called, Jem answered from
the _inside_ of the boat, "All right!" "What! Are you inside?" "Yes,
I'm looking for my cap." He was safe enough in the vacant spa