nly scraggy fir, that seemed too exposed to the
winds from the sea to have much health or verdure. The underbrush was
wanting to a great extent, but moss was here in large quantities, and
thick clusters of alder bushes. Wild shrubs also--such as raspberries
and blueberries--were frequently met with; while ledges of
weather-beaten rock jutted out from amid thick coverings of moss.

Walking here was not at all difficult, and he went on without any
interruption, until, at last, he found any farther progress barred by a
precipice. He was at the lower or western end of the island.

He looked down, and found beneath him a great precipice, while rocks
jutted out from the sea, and ledges projected beyond. The gulls were
present here, as elsewhere, in great flocks, and still kept up their
noisy screams.

Tom looked out over the sea, and saw its waters spread far away till it
was lost in the horizon. On the line of that horizon he saw a faint
gray cloud, that looked like a fog bank. It had, to his eyes, a
certain gloomy menace, and seemed to say to him that he had not seen
the last of it yet. On the left of the broad sea, the Nova Scotia
Coast ran along till it was lost in the distance; and on the right was
the long line of the New Brunswick shore, both of which had now that
dark hue of olive green which he had noticed on the land opposite
before he had started.

Suddenly, while he was looking, his eyes caught sight of something
white that glistened brightly from the blue water. It was about midway
between the two coasts, and he knew it at once to be some sailing
vessel. He could not make out more than one sail, and that showed that
the vessel was either coming up the bay or going down; for if it had
been crossing, she would, of course, have lain broadside on to his
present locality, and would have thus displayed two sails to his view.
The sight of this vessel agitated him exceedingly; and the question
about her probable course now entered his mind, and drove away all
other thoughts. Whether that vessel were going up or down became of
exclusive importance to him now, if she were coming up, she might
approach him, and hear his hail, or catch sight of his signals.
Suddenly he reflected that he had no way of attracting attention, and a
wild desire of running back and setting up the longest pole or board
that he could find came into his mind; but such was the intensity of
his curiosity, and the weight of his suspense, t