crew, in order to discuss the unpleasant situation. We had not, however, proceeded far with the matter, when we were interrupted by a loud crash, and the Penguin was swung completely round, as if she had been a mere bubble. We all lost our feet, but the first mate fared badly. He happened to be sitting carelessly on the bulwark, chewing tobacco, and ridiculing the idea of even temporarily leaving the vessel, when he was suddenly tossed high into the air, spun round a few times, turned upside down, and then disappeared, but not before he had invoked a few blessing's on the volcano in his usual rhetorical style. Meanwhile the Penguin rose and sank, heaved and travelled, varying the motion occasionally by spinning round. The thundering and crashing increased, and steam issued from the water in several places.
We now began to travel rapidly in one direction towards the south, and it soon became clear that we were in a current of hot water, which carried the Penguin along smoothly and quickly in a south-easterly direction. The current was only a few chains wide, yet we were quite helpless to do anything, and on we must go, the sky in front becoming redder as we advanced. Whither we were going I knew not. However, I noticed with regret
