It was with no purpose of making a book, that the record from which the volume is drawn was kept; on the contrary, the chief difficulty I have found, in fitting it for the press, has arisen, from its being so strictly personal and private. To remodel the manuscript so as to change its character in these respects, would have been a labor which I was unwilling to undertake; and to select from it such matter as might be at once suitable for publication, and acceptable to the general reader, without affecting the connection and unity of the whole, has proved a task not easily accomplished. In attempting it, I may have erred in judgment by putting into print, in some instances, what might better have been omitted; and again perhaps, in others by omitting what would have been welcomed by the reader. Besides such matter as was essential in giving an outline of the cruise of the Congress, and such observation of the places visited by her, as would be expected in a work of the kind, I have thought it proper to retain of that which related specifically to the ship, sufficient to convey a general idea of life on board a man-of-war; and also, of that which referred to myself in my office, enough to throw light upon the position, duties, and influence of a chaplain in the naval service. Should the volume meet with any degree of acceptance from the public in general, I shall be grateful; and should its circulation be limited to the decks of a man-of-war, or to the forecastle of a merchant-ship, the object in its publication will not be entirely lost. C. S. S. RIVERSIDE, 1856. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. PAGE Departure from Cape Henry—Sacrifices in Naval Life—Evening Prayers—First Casualty—Sabbath at Sea—Scene in the Gulf Stream—My Ship and Shipmates—The Crew, 1 CHAPTER II. Great Caycos—Case of Punishment—The Cat-o’-nine Tails—Moral Effects of the Lash—Evening on board a Man-of-War—Scenes off Havana—Entrance into Port, 13 CHAPTER III. The Prisoners of Contoy—Excitement at Havana—The Captain General and Chief of Police—Visits of Ceremony—Drive on Shore—The Volante—Paseo and Champs de Mars—Evening Promenade—Visit to Regla by Night—The Captive Filibusters—Destiny of Cuba, 26 CHAPTER IV. Gulf of Florida—The Wreckers—Incidents in the Sick Bay—Maury’s Wind and Current Charts—The Doldrums—Crossing the Line—Neptune Aboard—Dreams of Home—Impediments to Piety on board a Man-of-War—Giving up Grog, 42 CHAPTER V.