and the captain approached the bar. He made several observations from the masthead: after which he announced that he would never dare to risk the passage. But just then, when everything seemed desperate, a ship was espied in the distance, in Baker's bay, making toward Cape Disappointment, and hope sprang up again at once in all hearts. " Let us see how they come out, then we can go in by the same way," was the unanimous expression. For the space of an hour all eyes were fixed on this ship, which seemed to be approaching us. Vain hope! At the moment when the signal of distress was about to be displayed on our vessel, the other disappeared all at once from our eyes. What phantoms the imagination creates under the influence of distress! The captain had heard vaguely at Lima that a large English man-of-war had been sent out to blockade the entrance of the Columbia, and this at once came to his mind. "Assuredly it is the fatal vessel that we have seen." The observation that it was only a twomasted craft instead of a large three-master, hardly sufficed to calm the disturbed minds. The second officer had before this been offering to go and reconnoiter the mouth of the river, and the captain's well-founded fear of those tumultuous unknown waters was at last overcome by his urgency. Preparations were soon made, and at three in the afternoon, the little boat, with four men only, was making its way through the waves, which seemed on the point of swallowing it every instant. As far as we could make it out, we followed it with our eyes - it bore our last gleam of hope.
On the 31st, the day of our Holy Founder, five masses were celebrated in his honor. The sisters approached the holy table and joined us in imploring him to show himself that day the kind father of his children. Early in the morning, all eyes were again fixed on the spot where the skiff had disappeared the night before: toward halfpast nine it came in sight again. At once all glasses were fastened upon it-the agreed signal which was to