temper the transition between bright sunshine and
darkness--the one ensuing almost immediately after the other without any
"toning down," as painters express it, to lessen the effect of the
change.

Hearing, as I fancied, a whale spouting nearer than usual--these
monsters of the deep making a noise as they eject the water through the
spout-holes on top of their heads in a fountain of spray, after drawing
it with their gills, like surf breaking on a distant shore--the sound
somehow or other took back my thoughts to the chart, and I suddenly
remembered what I had told the mate about the danger of the ship
approaching the Islets of Saint Paul.

These are a cluster of rocks, called by the early Portuguese navigators
the Penedo de Saint Pedro, lying almost in mid-ocean, close to the
equator, in latitude zero degrees 55 minutes 30 seconds North, and
longitude 29 degrees 22 minutes West; and, from the water being beyond
soundings in their immediate neighbourhood, they must form the peak of
some submarine mountain range. They are only about sixty feet or so in
height clear above the level of the sea; and, consequently, being only
visible at a comparatively short distance off--not more than a couple of
leagues at the outside, even in broad daylight--and situated as the
shoal is in the direct track of the trade wind, the rocks form a source
of great peril to mariners traversing their bearings, especially at
night time, nothing existing to give warning of their proximity until a
vessel may be right on to them, as it were.

Thinking of all this, which I had read in the "Sailing Directions for
the North Atlantic," a book which the skipper had lent me to study, in
order to perfect me in navigation, I felt a sudden fear lest the ship
should be wrecked on the reef, making up my mind to tell Jorrocks about
the error I had discovered in our position on the chart, which I
determined to ask him to fetch for me, so as to show it to Captain
Billings.

Jorrocks, however, was a long time coming forwards after being relieved
from charge of the deck by Mr Macdougall, remaining some little time
talking to him on the poop; so that it was nearly two bells, and quite
dusky, when he made his way to where I was standing looking out for him,
I having asked one of the hands to say that I wanted to speak with him.

"Well, Mister Leigh," he said, on making his appearance, "here I am at
last; better late nor never, as the old folks say! But that ble