The last point on which our eyes rested was the Island of Ascension,
always interesting to every one at school as the most solitary-looking
spot in the dreary South Atlantic. A whaler tacked and came near us;
two of the men stood aloft watching for whales. Feeling that they were
the last of our race whom we should behold for some time, and with
sincere respect for the hardy men on their ocean hunting-ground, I
waved my hat to them, and the two caps aloft made hearty response.