All this while the storm increased, and the sea, which I had never been upon before, went very high, though nothing like what I have seen many times since; no, nor like what I saw a few days after:  but it was enough to affect me then, who was but a young sailor, and had never known any thing of the matter.  I expected every wave would have swallowed us up, and that every time the ship fell down, as I thought, in the trough or hollow of the sea, we should never rise more; and in this agony of mind I made many vows and resolutions, that if it would please God here to spare my life this one voyage, if ever I got once my foot upon dry land again, I would go directly home to my father, and never set it into a ship again while I lived; that I would take his advice, and never run myself into such miseries as these any more.  Now I saw plainly the goodness of his observations about the middle station of life, how easy, how comfortably he had lived all his days, and never had been exposed to tempests at sea, or troubles on shore; and I resolved that I would, like a true repenting prodigal, go home to my father.

These wise and sober thoughts continued during the storm, and indeed some time after; but the next day, as the wind was abated, and the sea calmer, I began to be a little inured to it:  however, I was very grave for all that day, being also a little sea-sick still; but towards night the weather cleared up, the wind was quite over, and a charming fine evening followed; the sun went down perfectly clear, and rose so the next morning; and having little or no wind, and a smooth sea, the sun shining upon it, the sight was, as I thought, the most delightful that I ever saw.

I had slept well in the night, and was now no more sea-sick, but very cheerful, looking with wonder upon the sea that was so rough and terrible the day before, and could be so calm and so pleasant in a little time after.  And now, lest my good resolutions should continue, my companion, who had indeed enticed me away, came to me and said, “Well; Bob,” clapping me on the shoulder, “how do you do after it?  I warrant you were frightened, wa’n’t you, last night, when it blew but a cap-full of wind?”—­“A cap-full do you call it?” said I; “it was a terrible storm.”—­“A storm, you fool you,” replied he, “do you call that a storm? why it was nothing at all; give us but a good ship and sea-room, and we think nothing of such a squall of wind as that; but you’re but a fresh-water sailor.  Bob, Come, let us make a bowl of punch, and we’ll forget all that; do you see what charming weather it is now?” To make short this sad part of my story, we went the old way of all sailors; the punch was made, and I was made drunk with it; and in that one night’s wickedness I drowned all my repentance, all my reflections upon my past conduct, and all my resolutions for my future.  In a word, as the sea was returned to its smoothness of surface and settled calmness by the abatement of that storm, so the hurry of my thoughts