The Story of the Atlantic Telegraph

As the week drew on, it was evident that they were approaching the end of their voyage. By Thursday they had passed the great depths of the Atlantic, and were off soundings. Besides their daily observations, there were many signs, well known to mariners, that they were near the coast. There were the sea-birds, and they could almost snuff the smell of the land, such as once greeted the sharp senses of Columbus, and made him sure that he was floating to some undiscovered shore. Captain Anderson had timed his departure so that he should approach the American coast at the full moon; but for the last two or three nights, as the round orb rose behind them, banks of cloud hung so heavily upon the water, that the moonlight only gleamed faintly through the vaporous air, and the fleet seemed like the phantom ships of the Ancient Mariner, drifting on through fog and mist.