existence. Till the fact is better ascertained, I should think the
account of them ought to be torn out of our geographical grammars.



LETTER XVI.



I set out from Fredericstadt about three o'clock in the afternoon,
and expected to reach Stromstad before the night closed in; but the
wind dying away, the weather became so calm that we scarcely made
any perceptible advances towards the opposite coast, though the men
were fatigued with rowing.

Getting amongst the rocks and islands as the moon rose, and the
stars darted forward out of the clear expanse, I forgot that the
night stole on whilst indulging affectionate reveries, the poetical
fictions of sensibility; I was not, therefore, aware of the length
of time we had been toiling to reach Stromstad. And when I began to
look around, I did not perceive anything to indicate that we were in
its neighbourhood. So far from it, that when I inquired of the
pilot, who spoke a little English, I found that he was only
accustomed to coast along the Norwegian shore; and had been only
once across to Stromstad. But he had brought with him a fellow
better acquainted, he assured me, with the rocks by which they were
to steer our course, for we had not a compass on board; yet, as he
was half a fool, I had little confidence in his skill. There was
then great reason to fear that we had lost our way, and were
straying amidst a labyrinth of rocks without a clue.