Rambles about Portsmouth. Sketches of persons, localities, and incidents of two centuries: principally from tradition and unpublished documents. By Charles W. Brewster.

NCIDENTS AND,PASTIMES. 267
selected from drift-wood on ithe beach, to serve as paddles
started on their voyage. It awas soon learned that their
bark was by no means water-tight, for a little cascade was
visible at every seam, and while two of the young gentlemen were engaged in propelling it, the third found full
employment in keeping it free of water. They reached
their destination in safety, and, after exploring the little
islet without meeting a Selkirk or a Fernandez, but instead
thereof plenty of bushes that gave promise of future
whortleberries, they gathered a few memorials of theirvisit
from the sand, and started on their return. The precaution
"had been taken to haul their boat upon a ledge of rocks,
fearing it might take in, during their absence, an inconvenient supply of the briny element; and in the process of
setting it again afloat, some hard knocks were experienced,
which, unlike Mr. Weller^s watch, did not have a tendency
to improve it, for it leaked worse than ever; how many
" strokes an hour;," as the logbook is not at hand to determine, cannot be stated with nautical precision, but the
young gentleman wvho took his turn at bailing found it'harder wovk than le had fancied, and soon after leaving the
island met with a mishap that placed the adventurous navigators in a situation on the shady side of comfort. The
artidle used for throwing out the water was a broken
pitcher, found in the boat, which an unlucky blow against
the gunwale shivered to atoms, and left them without anything that would answer as a substitute. The tide was,
besides, against them, and their progress necessarily slow;
fortunately, however, they reached in safety the starting
point, but not until the water was a foot deep in their craft.
The adventure being a contraband affair, entirely against
the rules and regulations, their mysterious absence, during
which search was made for them, remained unexplained
until after they had returned to town.
The last of these reminiscences for which space remains,