thoughts seem as if flying towards his distant home, where, in the country inn, with a buxom lass on his shoulder, he has waltzed away many a happy hour. The whole village, with all its familiar faces, seems to revive in his memory during the playing of the melody,--now he fills his glass; now he clinks it merrily with that of his companion; now he presses his sweetheart more closely to his side: Lo! suddenly a shrill whistle pierces the air, the music ceases, the call is heard "to fall in," and the yet dance-stricken sailor, suddenly, as if awakening from a sweet reverie, is once more standing on the deck of the _Novara_! The frigate, in the Mediterranean also, maintained her superiority as a sailer. The corvette _Caroline_ was able to keep the prescribed distance from the _Novara_ only by the latter reefing some of her sails. As some magnetic observations were to be made at Gibraltar, and, as we had to ascertain the results of the various chronometers on board, on the 12th of May we signalled the corvette to take her own time and rejoin us at Gibraltar, as we were anxious to avoid unnecessary detention. The acquisitions of the naturalists had, as yet, been very scanty: to their great annoyance they could not even obtain any of the tortoises, which, from time to time, approached the ship, though they were repeatedly fired at, and on one occasion a boat was launched, in the hope of catching some of them. The specimens which we saw were from fifteen to twenty inches in diameter; they mostly floated quietly on the surface, and seemed sleeping or basking themselves in the sun. The night of the 16th May was exceedingly boisterous, and almost tangible darkness prevailed; thunder, lightning, and occasionally strong easterly squalls, raged furiously, and only subsided towards the morning, when it cleared up with fresh southerly breezes. Not being far from Cape de Gatt, on the Spanish coast, prudence required us to change course, and, during the continuance of stormy weather, to keep at a respectful distance from the shore. Here a merchantman, apparently an American, bore down so close upon us, that, in the darkness, an unpleasant collision seemed unavoidable. However, we tacked about, and thus, fortunately avoiding our dangerous neighbour, safely proceeded on our course.