skippers around fire a volley of muttered blanks at the 'old tub' as she makes for the harbour's mouth. But with the ketch-rig the helmsman of the 'Iris,' by manipulating the mizzen-sheet, threads her in safety to or from the wind along a shallow tortuous gut left by the fallen tide. Remember she is 60 ft. by 12 ft. 6 in., and with _a draught of less than 3 ft. 6 in._ Her ability to take the ground upright is a source of gratification to the artistic members of her crew; neither flowing nor ebbing tide, nor a shift of wind, makes it necessary to alter the positions of the sketching-seats, easels are a convenience that may be comfortably indulged in, and then the operations of the steward are not disturbed. But there is another great advantage in being able to take the ground in this manner when you have to stop in harbours that are nearly half dry at low water--an advantage having a large element of safety, and best illustrated by a case in point, an incident in our recent cruise. We had spent the night on the beach at Ireland's Eye, an island north of Howth, rich in geological, archæological, and botanic interest. On one side a shingle and a silver strand, a ruined abbey, and a charming view. On the other, wild and romantic cliffs, thousands of sea birds, a smuggler's cave, a seal cave, and a very remarkable profile rock. Here in the summer you may see a Lord Justice picnicking with his family, a Bankruptcy Judge, a gallant and skilful yachtsman, prowling after rabbits, a Churchill gazing at profile rock and smoking like a furnace, an Academician describing the hermit's cell, a citizen from Dublin dining with his friends, an excursion of the Dublin Sketching Club working in platoons, and, should lovely harmony startle the night air, perhaps some members of an opera company have come down by the last train after the performance to breathe the fresh air and sleep aboard the 'Iris.' [Illustration: The Bailey, Dublin Bay.] Well, as I said, we spent the night at Ireland's Eye, and in the morning found the barometer dropping rapidly far away at the harbour on the mainland. The coastguards had hoisted the one point downwards, indicating a gale from the south'ard. We were in perfect shelter, but as we had arranged to help the Tennis Club Entertainment that afternoon by playing some stringed instruments, we hoisted sail and made for Howth Harbour, coming to anchor in nice time to escape the preliminary bursts of the truthfully predicted 'blow.' The wind blew off shore, and so there was no send or swell in the harbour. We were free to anchor in very shallow water, careless whether we were left high and dry or not, and herein lay our safety, not from wind nor wave, but from vessels rushing for shelter into the small and crowded portion of the harbour where the water is deep, and also from craft dragging.