the mother screamed out:

'She's sinking! she's sinking! Oh, God! Oh, God!' and she fell on her
knees, her horrified eyes, set in a face of ashen grey, looking out
between the rails.

But at the instant all eyes saw the man's figure rise in the water as he
began to dive. There was a hush which seemed deadly; the onlookers
feared to draw breath. And then the mother's heart leaped and her cry
rang out again as two heads rose together in the waste of sea:

'He has her! He has her! He has her! Oh, thank God! Thank God!' and
for a single instant she hid her face in her hands.

Then when the fierce 'hurrah' of all on board had been hushed in
expectation, the comments broke forth. Most of the passengers had by
this time got glasses of one kind or another.

'See! He's putting the cap on the child's head. He's a cool one that.
Fancy him thinking of a red cap at such a time!'

'Ay! we could see that cap, when it might be we couldn't see anything
else.'

'Look!' this from an old sailor standing by his boat, 'how he's raisin'
in the water. He's keeping his body between her an' the spindrift till
the squall has passed. That would choke them both in a wind like this if
he didn't know how to guard against it. He's all right; he is! The
little maid is safe wi' him.'

'Oh, bless you! Bless you for those words,' said the mother, turning
towards him. 'At this moment the Second Officer, who had run down from
the bridge, touched Mr. Stonehouse on the shoulder.

'The captain asked me to tell you, sir, that you and Mrs. Stonehouse had
better come to him on the bridge. You'll see better from there.'

They both hurried up, and the mother again peered out with fixed eyes.
The Captain tried to comfort her; laying his strong hand on her shoulder,
he said:

'There, there! Take comfort, ma'am. She is in the hands of God! All
that mortal man can do is being done. And she is safer with that gallant
young giant than she could be with any other man on the ship. Look, how
he is protecting her! Why he knows that all that can be done is being
done. He is waiting for us to get to him, and is saving himself for it.
Any other man who didn't know so much about swimming as he does would try
to reach the lifebuoy; and would choke the two of them with the spindrift
in the trying. Mind how he took the red cap to help us see them. He's a
fine lad that; a gallant lad!'

CHAPTER XXIV--FROM THE DEEPS

Presently the C