sant appearance to the country round.
California College is situated in Oakland.

On Sabbath we had the pleasure in the morning of listening to a sermon
from an old friend, and in the evening grandpa told the people of what
God had wrought through the missionaries in the Sandwich Islands.

Monday morning we were taken a long ride over the country about Oakland.
On our way back, we stopped at Mr. B.'s orchard, and had some very nice
plums, white and purple. There were nectarines, also, which have the
skin of a plum and the stone of a peach; apricots, which have the skin
of a peach and stone of a plum; I never knew the difference in those two
fruits before. We had some delicious peaches, and brought away a branch
of the almond-tree, with the nuts on it, which looked like green
peaches. We then took the Oakland boat and were soon at our home in San
Francisco. California is noted for its fine fruits, and sometimes we saw
baskets of assorted kinds looking like those fine paintings we admire so
much.

On Thursday, August 13, we bade our kind and hospitable California
friends farewell, and went down to embark on the steamer Golden Age.
The kindness of our friends did not end when we left their houses, as
beautiful bouquets and baskets of fruit in our staterooms testified. We
parted from them with regret, for we had received nothing but kindness
from their hands. Farewells were said, and San Francisco soon faded from
our sight. We were again on the restless ocean, but we were _homeward
bound!_

XXII.

Homeward Bound.

"Aunty, aunty, please come and tell us our story," said little Alice;
"we are all waiting. You know this is our last story, for we go home
to-morrow." So down I went.

* * * * *

We were fairly at sea again. Our steamer was a very good one, and we had
pleasant accommodations. Grandpa and grandma had a fine, large
stateroom, and as there were not a great number of passengers, I, also,
had a stateroom all to myself. I had the lower berth taken out, and my
trunks brought up and placed under my berth; then I spread down my rug,
and brought in my deck chair, and my room had quite a cozy, homelike
air; and I took a great deal of comfort in it. The officers on the boat
were very pleasant, and we became acquainted with some of the
passengers.

On Sabbath morning, eight of the younger people met together and formed
a choir, practiced sacred music, and sung in the morning s