p. 32

14

up the ghost, they are a handsome fish their wings
are lengthened fins placed upon each side of the body
towards the head, and with which they can fly two or three
hundred yards at a stretch, then drop into the water like
a handful of small pebbles thrown in, just wet their
wings and off they go on another flight, their wings
often enable them to escape from the dolphins and the
porpoises, but they find enemies in the sea birds that
seize them in their flight. We often got a sight of large
sharks following the ship, the sailor's dreaded and deadly
foe, ready for anything that might fall overboard from a
man to a mouse, we caught several with large hooks
baited with some salt meat, one monster we caught
so big that it took several men to haul him on deck
and then it was 'stand clear' for probably a broken
leg would have been the result of a blow from his tail,
it was rare fun to the sailors to have their dreaded enemy
so wholly in their power, and he was soon hacked to pieces
The Chinese and other nations cook and eat portions of the
shark and our cook tried his art upon a part of this
one but without a satisfactory result, at all events we
did not like it. We had at times innumerable quantities of
sea birds following in the wake of our ship, for the sake
I imagine of what might fall or be thrown overboard they were
of all sizes, mostly varieties of the "Stormy Petrel" and were
very many leagues from land.

Connolly doing very well but very uneasy when he hears the
boatswain to "Grog O.", and under our good little fat doctor's
care, ably seconded by his good tempered Scotch assistant
the crew were all kept in a healthy state.

We now approached the 'Line' and preparations were