But alas, thrice alas, for the poor little fire-fish of the sea, whose radiance but reveals them to their foes, and lights the way to their destruction.

CHAPTER XXXIX They Fall In With Strangers

After quitting the Parki, we had much calm weather, varied by light breezes.  And sailing smoothly over a sea, so recently one sheet of foam, I could not avoid bethinking me, how fortunate it was, that the gale had overtaken us in the brigantine, and not in the Chamois.  For deservedly high as the whale-shallop ranks as a sea boat; still, in a severe storm, the larger your craft the greater your sense of security.  Wherefore, the thousand reckless souls tenanting a line-of-battle ship scoff at the most awful hurricanes; though, in reality, they may be less safe in their wooden-walled Troy, than those who contend with the gale in a clipper.

But not only did I congratulate myself upon salvation from the past, but upon the prospect for the future.  For storms happening so seldom in these seas, one just blown over is almost a sure guarantee of very many weeks’ calm weather to come.

Now sun followed sun; and no land.  And at length it almost seemed as if we must have sailed past the remotest presumable westerly limit of the chain of islands we sought; a lurking suspicion which I sedulously kept to myself However, I could not but nourish a latent faith that all would yet be well.

On the ninth day my forebodings were over.  In the gray of the dawn, perched upon the peak of our sail, a noddy was seen fast asleep.  This freak was true to the nature of that curious fowl, whose name is significant of its drowsiness.  Its plumage was snow-white, its bill and legs blood-red; the latter looking like little pantalettes.  In a sly attempt at catching the bird, Samoa captured three tail-feathers; the alarmed creature flying away with a scream, and leaving its quills in his hand.

Sailing on, we gradually broke in upon immense low-sailing flights of other aquatic fowls, mostly of those species which are seldom found far from land:  terns, frigate-birds, mollymeaux, reef-pigeons, boobies, gulls, and the like.  They darkened the air; their wings making overhead an incessant rustling like the simultaneous turning over of ten thousand leaves.  The smaller sort skimmed the sea like pebbles sent skipping from the shore.  Over these, flew myriads of birds of broader wing.  While high above all, soared in air the daring “Diver,” or sea-kite, the power of whose vision is truly wonderful.  It perceives the little flying-fish in the water, at a height which can not be less than four hundred feet.  Spirally wheeling and screaming as it goes, the sea-kite, bill foremost, darts downward, swoops into the water, and for a moment altogether disappearing, emerges at last; its prey firmly trussed in its claws.  But bearing it aloft, the bold bandit is quickly assailed by other birds of prey, that strive to wrest from him his booty.  And snatched from his talons, you see the fish falling through the air, till again caught up in the very act of descent, by the fleetest of its pursuers.