e magnitude. After his death, at the
battle of Hastings, his sons and several of his chief nobility escaped
in the remnant of their fleet to the coasts of Norway, and gave no
little annoyance to the Norman Conqueror, William.

It must be remembered that the Duke of Normandy, as he was then styled,
had, to bring over his army, nine hundred transports; but he burnt them
when he landed, to show his own followers, as well as the Saxons, that
he had come to die or to conquer.

Such is a very brief account of the navy of England up to the time of
the Norman Conquest.

It is more easy to describe what the ships of those days were not like
than to give an exact description of them. Certainly the ships
represented on tapestry, on seals, or on coins are very unlike any piece
of naval architecture which ever had existence. Every seaman knows how
impossible it is for an ordinary landsman to draw anything like a
faithful representation of a ship, however picturesque a production the
thing might appear to him. We are bound, therefore, to look with grave
suspicion on the performances of the draughtsmen of those early days;
who had but a poor idea of drawing the objects they had constantly
before their eyes.

Our artist has given a fair representation, I suspect, of what a ship
was in those early days. She probably had another mast aft, and some
more head sail of a square shape. What are called fore and aft sails
were not generally used till comparatively modern times. She looks as
if she really was fitted to cross the channel, to carry a number of men,
and even to contend with heavy seas. The tall masts, heavy rigging, and
large tops, on which a number of men could stand and fight, had not then
been employed on these northern seas.

I have hitherto spoken only of the war-ships of those early days. There
were, however, merchant-ships which traded to far-distant shores. They
were probably good wholesome craft, of somewhat tub-like form, of about
the size of a vessel of the present day of one hundred to one hundred
and fifty tons, rigged with two or three big sails, with one bank of
oars, and manned by a hardy and numerous crew, who patiently waited for
the coming of a fair wind before they ventured to make sail; and who,
though generally addicted to hugging the shore, yet at times ventured to
stand out into the boundless ocean, guided alone by the stars. The
mercantile marine was encouraged in every way by the wiser sove