Page:Travel letters from New Zealand, Australia and Africa (1913).djvu/221

 removing their clothing. The same wave poured water into the skylight over the dining-room, and flooded everything. After that, passengers were not permitted on the storm side of either deck Late in the afternoon I went to my room to take a nap. In order to get about the ship, it was necessary to catch a quiet moment, and then take a run. I soon went to sleep after reaching my room, but was awakened by a tremendous rattle and bang in the bar, next door. A big roll had sent most of the glassware crashing to the floor, and Mr. Riley will be compelled to drink out of bottles. It was a great comfort to me to get even with the bar-*room The stewards say the approach to the coast of South Africa is always rough. The passengers are saying that the storm will be very much worse during the night; that a sailor told them so, but the chief engineer told me that a wireless message announces that the weather at Durban is calm, and that we shall certainly run out of the storm during the night At dinner, not half the passengers were in their places, but Adelaide and I occupied our usual seats at table, although we had a difficult time getting down the two stairways to the dining-room. The dishes were fenced up, so that they could not roll off the tables, and the port-holes were under water at every roll of the ship. The sick man who has been seen on deck nearly every day of the voyage, surprised us all by appearing at dinner for the first time, although he was almost literally carried down the stairways, and across the dining-room floor. The diners at the two centre tables were forced to go to other tables, owing to a crash in the skylight above, and a downpour of water.