the rigging, but nothing could be seen but the gently heaving sea, the fair blue sky, and the clouds.

By this time the captain, astonished at the unusual noise and bustle on deck, for he had also heard the vehement ringing of the bell, had left his cabin, and was silently listening to the inquiries made by his lieutenant. This last-named officer now reported in due form to his superior what had occurred, but that he had failed to detect the offender for the present.

Our captain was one of the peppery breed-hasty, but good-natured -a strict disciplinarian, and a thorough seaman. He heard the lieutenant, then the quartermaster, and one or two of the waisters, describe what they knew of the matter; but as all their statements amounted to nothing, he cut the affair short by ordering every man in the watch to have his grog stopped until the culprit was found.

Clang, clang, clang, went the bell again, as soon as the words were out of the captain's mouth. Well, of course, the captain was petrified, so was the lieutenant; and as for the quartermaster and the rest of the watch, it would be difficult to describe their sensations, for they were a compound of terror at the sound of the bell and joy at the prospect of having the stoppage taken off their grog; for of course the captain could now judge for himself who it was that was having a freak with his bell.

"This is very unaccountable," said the captain.
"Very," replied the lieutenant.

"Young gentleman," said the captain, "go below and inquire if any one sounded a bell just now between decks."

"Ay, ay, sir," and the midshipman of the watch dove down the after-hatchway, and there he found everybody asking everybody the very question he came himself to ask; nobody knew anything about the matter.

As soon as the youngster came on deck he reported accordingly. From whence then could these sounds proceed? No bell, by the ordinary mode of conveying sound, could be heard from the distance they could see. Even while the whole of the ship's company were palpitating with the excitement, the inexplicable sounds continuedelang, clang, clang.

The crew now crowded on deck-midshipmen, marines, doctor, purser, cook, and idlers. The men stood at a respectful distance from the sacred precincts of the quarter-deck; but giving the mysterious bell a wide berth, not so much from fear, as to remove all doubt

about touching it, and to keep out of (h)arm's way of having their grog stopped.

Presently the same loud ringing was heard again; this time it floated high over head, and increased in intensity, and then it died away in long cadences, only to be renewed with fresh energy. Now it sounded broad upon the bow-now upon the beam, and then astern -while the whole of this time there hung the ship's bell, seen by all, and untouched.

Astonishment sat upon every countenance, from the captain to the cook's mate, and it was pretty evident that it would have been a relief to have exchanged the anxiety produced by their invisible enemy for a rattling broadside with the most spanking frigate that ever floated. Many a man believed they heard the ship's knell, and many a hardy tar grew pale.

The bell now ceased for a time, and a capstan consultation was instituted among the oldest seamen and officers in the ship. Nothing of the kind had ever been heard in all their experience at sea before. One old forecastle man admitted that he had seen the Flying Dutchman, that he was sartin of; another equally observant son of Neptune had seen (or else he was blind) a mermaid; many had heard all sort of dismal noises in great storms, and seen large fires at night burning upon the sea; but as for the bell-ringing, they had never heard of the like before. Among the officers there were many opinions as to the place from whence the sounds came; some believed they proceeded from above, others from the ship; but the majority were incredulous, and suspected the whole affair was a trick; but, then, how could it be performed? And in order to settle all doubts upon that point, the bell was unhooked and placed upon the deck; but nevertheless the same mysterious clang, clang, clang, ran fore and aft the ship.

It was now evident that the sounds did not come from the ship's bell; and being satisfied upon that point, the investigation was pushed in another direction. Luckily for us all, we had a purser of a scientific turn in the frigate. He was one of those idlers belonging to a ship of war, who, having no sea duties to perform, are, nevertheless, always busy. He was always studying something; and he now stepped forth and assured us that the sounds which had so puzzled all hands were caused by some strange vessel at a distance.

"But no ship is in sight," remarked the first luff, in an incredulous

tone.

"No matter," said the purser.

Why, we can see miles from the mast-head, in every direction, and not an inch of canvas is visible."

"No matter," doggedly said the purser. "One of two things is certain," the sounds either proceed from the frigate's bell, or from some ship's bell not at present in sight. You admit that, I presume?"

"Well," said the captain, "go on."

“And you do not believe with the quartermaster that Neptune, Davy Jones, or the Flying Dutchman, have any hand in the matter?" The officers did not believe they had, evidently giving way before the reasoning of the purser.

"Well, then," continued he, "if these remarkable sounds do not proceed from this ship's bell, and you discard supernatural agency, then the inference is, that they must come from some ship in the distance."

"But how?" inquired the first lieutenant, triumphantly. "Explain that if you can."

"In this way," calmly replied the purser. "In the theory of sound there is a known principle, called, I believe, the acoustic tube." "What's that?" demanded the officers.

"Why, your speaking trumpet-the speaking pipe by which messages are conveyed from one part of a large building to anotherwhispering galleries, in which the softest sound is carried round vast areas, as the dome of St. Paul's-a thunder-clap, or the discharge of a gun on an elevated situation, which produces an echo from cliff to cliff-are familiar examples of this principle."

"But we have no cliffs within hundreds of miles to repeat the echo," remarked the captain.

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True," said the purser; "but we have clouds." "Clouds!"

"Yes, clouds!" echoed the man of science; "for in all matters where reason is concerned, the best demonstrations must be adopted as the heir apparent to truth; so now, the most probable conjecture is, that this large mass of cloud, hanging so like a cupola over our heads, assisted, perhaps, by some electrical or other peculiar state of the atmosphere, has repeated or reflected the sound of the ringing of a ship's bell now lying just without the verge of our horizon."

"Very learned, indeed," said the captain.

"And most unsatisfactory," repeated the lieutenant, who felt himself in duty bound to side with his commanding officer.

"But it may be true, nevertheless," replied the purser. “At all events, it is a much more rational conclusion than supposing the sounds to be the result of supernatural agency."

It was evident that the hypothesis of Old Nipcheese, as the purser was nicknamed, was scouted by "Jack ;" and, indeed, the majority of the "hands" put their heads together and prophesied that evil would come of it. "There never was such a stupid yarn ever spun as the purser's. A cow sticks indeed!-what had that to do with bell-ringing? He'd better attend to his own business, and serve out better 'baccay and slops." Then followed all manner of absurd predictions; for, like their officers, the men preferred to believe in the impossible rather than in the probable.

However, as the sounds were now discontinued, the frigate's bell was rehooked, the captain returned to his cabin, and the crew to their respective duties; but it was remarked on that night, that every mess spun more yarns about supernatural events than had been heard for months before.

But the reader demands to know if the hypothesis of the purser was confirmed. Happily it was. After we had been becalmed another day, a stranger hove in sight, borne down to us by a whiffing catspaw that died away just as she reached us. She proved to be an outward-bound Indiaman. If I remember right, her name was the "General Palmer." As the two ships lay becalmed for some hours very near each other, we sent a boat on board for news from England -the frigate having been in the East for three years. While discussing other matters, we heard that the Indiaman had crossed the line on the day of our alarm at the bell-ringing, and that they had performed the usual ceremony of shaving the "greenhorns" on that occasion, accompanied with immense fun.

After the usual compliments, somewhat hastened by an appearance of a breeze, we were about to step over the side, when it suddenly occurred to the officer in command of the boat to ask the captain of the Indiaman if, during the saturnalia of crossing the line, his ship's Lell had been rung very violently.

"Very," replied the captain; "very; it was one of the main features of our droll pastime. But why do you ask?"

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"Oh, nothing particular—at least not very," he said hesitatingly; only we fancied we heard it."

"What! on board your frigate?" replied the captain; "that's impossible. Why, we never sighted you till this morning."

"Nevertheless, I believe we heard your bell," said the lieutenant; and then followed a description of the peculiar manner in which the bell was rung, which so exactly tallied with what had occurred on board the Indiaman, that no doubt any longer existed as to the truth of the hypothesis so cleverly advanced by the purser. But, notwithstanding this explanation, and its singular confirmation, there were scores of sailors in the frigate, bold, hardy, strong-willed men, who resolutely refused to believe; and to the day of their deaths were doubtless prepared to maintain that the ship's bell was rung by supernatural agency.

GRATITUDE OF A FISH.

Ta meeting of the Liverpool Literary and Philoso phical Institution, the following curious facts were narrated by Dr. Warwick, one of its members, with respect to instinct of animals. He stated that when he resided in Dunham, he was walking in a park, and came to a pond where fish intended for the table were kept. He took notice of a fine pike, about six pounds in weight, which, when he observed him, darted hastily away. In so doing, it struck its head against a tenter hook in a post (of which there were several in the pond to prevent poaching), and, as it afterwards appeared, fractured its skull, and turned the optic nerve on one side. The agony evinced by the fish was most horrible. It rushed to the bottom, and boring in to the mud, whirled itself round with such velocity that it was almost lost to the sight for a short interval. It then plunged about the pond, and at length threw itself completely out of the water on the bank. He (the doctor) went and examined it, and found that a very small portion of the brain was protruding from the fracture of the skull. He carefully replaced this, and with a small silver tooth-pick raised the indented portion of the skull. The fish remained still for a short time, and he then put it again into the pond. It appeared at first a good deal relieved, but in a few minutes it darted and plunged about, until it threw itself out of the water a second time. A second time Dr. Warwick did what he could to relieve it, and again put it into the water. It continued for several minutes to throw itself out of the water, and with the as