helm," "Starbord," "Steady." In
this intricate navigation the captain leaves the bridge to the officer
of the watch, and temporarily takes the post of the forward lookout. Now
we run close in under some towering headland, now sheer off from a green
isle so near that none but an experienced pilot would dare to hug the
shore so closely. At many points the sea seemed to be completely
land-locked, like the Lakes of Killarney, framed in by lofty hills. Too
much had not been promised us in this special voyage through the Inland
Sea. For once, fruition was confirmation. We could have sailed on and
on, over those still, deep waters and among those fairy-like isles, for
weeks unwearied, and when at last we anchored in the snug harbor of
Nagasaki the voyage had been only too brief.

A sad interest attaches to the small but lofty island of Pappenburg,
which stands like a sentinel guarding the entrance to the harbor of
Nagasaki. It is the Tarpeian Rock of the far East. During the
persecution of the Christians in the seventeenth century, the steep
cliff, which forms the seaward side of the island, was an execution
point, and from here men and women who declined to abjure their faith
were cast headlong on to the sea-washed rocks far below. The present
verdure and beauty which so characterize the spot are in strong contrast
with the sad history of the place; nor could we gaze upon its
precipitous side, as we steamed slowly by, without a shudder at the
tragedies once enacted there.

Nagasaki was found to be a thrifty commercial city of about a hundred
thousand inhabitants, with a fine harbor, the entrance being as narrow
as that of Havana; but once inside, the combined fleets of the world
might find good anchorage under the shallow of the lofty hills which
surround its deep, clear waters. The extreme length of the harbor must
be about four miles, by two in width. Tall, dark pines and a verdant
undergrowth mark the deep ravines and sloping hill-sides, upon which
European dwellings may be seen overlooking the bay, interspersed with a
few Buddhist temples. During a delightful afternoon stroll and climb
among these hills, we came upon many wild flowers, shaded by oaks and
camphor-trees of great size and beautiful foliage, with occasional
specimens of the Japan wax-tree. Still farther up, the hills were
covered with dark, moss-crowned grave-stones, bearing curious characters
and marking the sleeping-place of by-gone generations, the unbrok