short of conscious innocence could have supported him in the severe trials he had to undergo.

The melancholy effects which tyrannical conduct, harsh and opprobrious language, ungovernable passion, and a worrying and harassing temper, on the part of naval commanders, seldom fail to produce on the minds of those who are subject to their capricious and arbitrary command, are strongly exemplified in the cause and consequences of the mutiny in the Bounty, as described in the course of this history. Conduct of this kind, by making the inferior officers of a ship discontented and unhappy, has the dangerous tendency, as in the case of Christian, to incite the crew to partake in their discontent, and be ready to assist in any plan to get rid of the tyrant. We may see in it, also, how very little credit a commander is likely to gain, either with the service or the public at large, when the duties of a ship are carried on, as they would appear to have been in the Pandora, in a cold, phlegmatic, and unfeeling manner, and with an indifference to the comfort of all around him,-subjecting offenders of whatever description to unnecessary restraint, and a severity of punishment, which, though strictly within the letter of the law, contributes in no way to the ends of discipline or of justice.

The conduct of Bligh, however mistaken he may have been in his mode of carrying on the duties of the ship, was most exemplary throughout the long and perilous voyage he performed in an open boat, on the wide ocean, with the most scanty supply of provisions and water, and in the worst weather.

The result of such meritorious

conduct holds out every encouragement to both officers and men, by showing them that, by firmness and perseverance, and the adoption of welldigested measures, steadily pursued in spite of opposition, the most hopeless undertaking, to all appearance, may be successfully accomplished.

And lastly-The fate that has attended almost every one of those concerned in the mutiny and piracy of his Majesty's ship Bounty ought to operate as a warning to, and make a deep impression on the minds of, our brave seamen, not to suffer themselves to be led astray from the straightforward line of their duty, either by order or persuasion of some hot-brained, thoughtless, or designing person, whether their superior or equal, but to remain faithful, under all circumstances, to their commanding officer, as any mutinous proceedings or disobedience of his orders are sure to be visited upon them in the long run, either by loss of life, or by a forfeiture of that liberal provision which the British government has bestowed on its seamen for long and faithful services.

P.S. Just as this last sheet came from the press, the editor has noticed, with a feeling of deep and sincere regret, a paragraph in the newspapers, said to be extracted from an American paper, stating that a vessel sent to Pitcairn's Island by the missionaries of Otaheité has carried off the whole of the settlers to the latter island.

If this be true-and the mention of the

name of Nott gives a colour to the transaction -the 'cherubim' must have slept, the flaming sword' have been sheathed, and another Eden has been lost and, what is worse than all, that native simplicity of manners, that purity of morals, and that singleness of heart, which so peculiarly distinguished this little interesting society, are all lost. They will now be dispersed among the missionary stations as humble dependents, where Kitty Quintal and the rest of them may get food for their souls,' such as it is, in exchange for the substantial blessings they enjoyed on Pitcairn's Island.

ADDITIONAL NOTE.

In reference to the subject of extraordinary passages made in open boats on the wide ocean, and the note thereon at page 121, the following may be added as another instance, the most painfully interesting, and the most calamitous, perhaps, ever recorded. It was related to Mr. Bennet, a gentleman deputed by the Missionary Society of London, together with the Rev. Daniel Tyerman, to visit their several stations in the South Sea Islands, by Captain George Pollard, the unfortunate sufferer, whom these gentlemen met with at Raiatea, then a passenger in an American vessel, having a second time lost his ship near the Sandwich Islands. The narrative is extracted from • The Journal of Voyages and Travels,' just published, of the two gentlemen above-mentioned, and is as follows:

'My first shipwreck was in open sea, on the 20th of November, 1820, near the equator, about 118° W. long. The vessel, a South Sea whaler, was called the Essex. On that day, as we were on the look out for sperm whales, and had actually struck two, which the boats' crews were following to secure, I perceived a very large one-it might be eighty or ninety feet long-rushing with great swiftness through the water, right towards the ship. We hoped that she would turn aside, and dive under, when she perceived such a baulk in her way. But no! the animal came full force against

our stern-post: had any quarter less firm been struck, the vessel must have been burst; as it was, every plank and timber trembled, throughout her whole bulk.

'The whale, as though hurt by a severe and unexpected concussion, shook its enormous head, and sheered off to so considerable a distance that for some time we had lost sight of her from the starboard quarter; of which we were very glad, hoping that the worst was over. Nearly an hour afterwards, we saw the same fish-we had no doubt of this, from her size, and the direction in which she came-making again towards us. We were at once aware of our danger, but escape was impossible. She dashed her head this time against the ship's side, and so broke it in that the vessel filled rapidly, and soon became water-logged. At the second shock, expecting her to go down, we lowered our three boats with the utmost expedition, and all hands, twenty in the whole, got into them-seven, and seven, and six. In a little while, as she did not sink, we ventured on board again, and, by scuttling the deck, were enabled to get out some biscuit, beef, water, rum, two sextants, a quadrant, and three compasses. These, together with some rigging, a few muskets, powder, &c., we brought away; and, dividing the stores among our three small crews, rigged the boats as well as we could; there being a compass for each, and a sextant for two, and a quadrant for one, but neither sextant nor quadrant for the third*. Then, instead of pushing away for some

*If there were three instruments and three boats, there must have been one for each, for the quadrant was just as good as a sextant.—ED.