he island the form of a
mountain became clear in the star-light; then the twinkling of lights at
its base revealed the location of a city. When within half a mile of the
shore, the water in the harbor became too shallow for large vessels, so
the screw propeller of the Moltke ceased revolving and the ship came to
anchor.

"May we go ashore to-night?" many asked.

"Certainly, there is no objection," replied the captain.

A number of the passengers, eager to see the attractions of the place,
and too impatient to wait until morning, were rowed across the dark
water to the pier. In the city, Funchal, we found that at so late an
hour the main attractions were gambling places, dance halls, and
lotteries, the owners of which were greedy for American money. The main
Casino, in the midst of a beautiful garden, was brilliantly illuminated
and its halls were filled with well dressed people. Some of the party
who had placed their silver on the tables of chance showed on their
return to the steamer handfuls of coins that fortune had brought them;
others who had made similar experiments were silent as to the results.

[Illustration: SUNLIGHT SHONE ON THE WHITE WALLS OF FUNCHAL.]

"We should have read up the Madeiras before leaving home," said one of
the tourists at our early breakfast the morning after our arrival, "but
we were too busy then with other things. While you were ashore last
night I found in the library an old English book of travel that gave
some information about the islands."

[Illustration: IT IS NOT RAPID TRANSIT.]

"Share it with us while the stewards are bringing the coffee, won't
you?"

[Illustration: ONLY THE BOYS STOPPED THEIR PLAY TO GAZE.]

"I made very few notes," she replied. "As we are to be in Funchal but
one day, I skipped the statistics of population, hotels, exports, and
history. But here are some facts just as I jotted them down:

"'The Madeira Islands, about six hundred miles west of Gibraltar, were
settled by the Portuguese and are owned by Portugal.

"'The principal and only town large enough to be called a city is
Funchal, situated on the southern side of Madeira on the slope of a
hill.

"'The city has an equable climate. Mild sunshine, gentle ocean breezes,
and protection from harsh winds by mountains, give to Funchal throughout
the whole year the temperature of England in the month of May.

"'The island is very mountainous, gashed with many deep gorges which
extend in from the sea.