s to swim."

"Faith, I don't think she's swimming now," said Gerald.

"No," answered Nat; "but she is not going down, and that is of
considerable consequence to us. When daylight comes I suppose we shall
find out where we are. I hope that land is not far off, or we may have
to make a voyage on a raft, as the boats won't hold us all."

Norman Foley's chief feeling was disappointment at the probability of
not being able to return to Jamaica for an indefinite period of time.
The distance was too great to perform with any safety in boats; indeed,
it was doubtful, without masts to hoist her out, whether the launch
could be got into the water.

As other shipwrecked seamen have done, all wished for day to relieve
their anxieties. At present it was impossible to decide what to do.
Gradually the ship became steadier. As the sea broke over her less
frequently, the master was of opinion that the tide was falling, and
that she had been driven on shore at high water.

The commander and his first lieutenant accompanied the carpenter round
the ship to ascertain more particularly her condition. They quickly
came to the conclusion that she was hopelessly wrecked. "The first
thing to be done, then, is to get the stores from the hold while the
tide is out, and to save the ammunition," observed the commander.
"Should we reach the shore, we must not leave ourselves defenceless."

The crew were accordingly at once ordered to set to work, and beef,
pork, flour, and other stores were hoisted up, while the powder was got
out of the magazine and placed in the commander's cabin with a guard
over it.

Daylight found all hands thus busily employed. The wind had gone down
and the sea was perfectly smooth. The commander was on deck when the
first light streaks of dawn appeared in the sky. As the light
increased, he discerned a line of cocoa-nut trees rising out of one of
the low islands, known as keys in those seas, scarcely half a mile off,
while in the intermediate space were numerous dark rocks, the upper
portions of reefs which extended on every side. Between them, however,
were wide spaces of calm water, so that there would be nothing to stop
the boats from reaching the island. The satisfactory intelligence was
soon made known through the ship. The smaller boats were at once
lowered, while the carpenter and boatswain set to work to erect shears
for hoisting out the launch. As soon as the boats were ready, the
commander order