Page:The Romance of Isabel, Lady Burton.djvu/216



The smallest bark on life's tumultuous ocean
 * Will leave a track behind for evermore;

The slightest wave of influence set in motion
 * Extends and widens to the eternal shore.

STARTED from Liverpool on a bleak morning in January with many a "God-speed," and in possession of many aids to enjoyment, youth, health, strength, and the society of a dearly loved husband, whose companionship is a boon not often bestowed upon mortals in this nether world.

After the inevitable wettings from spray, and the rope which gets wrong, and the hat which blows over, and the usual amount of hilarity—as if it were a new thing—at the dishevelled head of one's fellow-creature, we set foot on board the African steamship Spartan at 1 p.m. We had still two hours in the Mersey, so we formed a little knot on deck, and those who knew Richard gathered around us. There was much joking