ess of the chance of lurking Spaniard or Carib, an
instinctive cheer burst from every throat. Poor fellows! Amyas had much
ado to prevent them going on shore at once, dark as it was, by reminding
them that it wanted but two hours of day.

"Never were two such long hours," said one young lad, fidgeting up and
down.

"You never were in the Inquisition," said Yeo, "or you'd know better how
slow time can run. Stand you still, and give God thanks you're where you
are."

"I say, Gunner, be there goold to that island?"

"Never heard of none; and so much the better for it," said Yeo, dryly.

"But, I say, Gunner," said a poor scurvy-stricken cripple, licking his
lips, "be there oranges and limmons there?"

"Not of my seeing; but plenty of good fruit down to the beach, thank the
Lord. There comes the dawn at last."

Up flushed the rose, up rushed the sun, and the level rays glittered on
the smooth stems of the palm-trees, and threw rainbows across the foam
upon the coral-reefs, and gilded lonely uplands far away, where now
stands many a stately country-seat and busy engine-house. Long lines of
pelicans went clanging out to sea; the hum of the insects hushed, and a
thousand birds burst into jubilant song; a thin blue mist crept upward
toward the inner downs, and vanished, leaving them to quiver in the
burning glare; the land-breeze, which had blown fresh out to sea all
night, died away into glassy calm, and the tropic day was begun.

The sick were lifted over the side, and landed boat-load after boat-load
on the beach, to stretch themselves in the shade of the palms; and in
half-an-hour the whole crew were scattered on the shore, except some
dozen worthy men, who had volunteered to keep watch and ward on board
till noon.

And now the first instinctive cry of nature was for fruit! fruit! fruit!
The poor lame wretches crawled from place to place plucking greedily the
violet grapes of the creeping shore vine, and staining their mouths
and blistering their lips with the prickly pears, in spite of Yeo's
entreaties and warnings against the thorns. Some of the healthy began
hewing down cocoa-nut trees to get at the nuts, doing little thereby but
blunt their hatchets; till Yeo and Drew, having mustered half-a-dozen
reasonable men, went off inland, and returned in an hour laden with the
dainties of that primeval orchard,--with acid junipa-apples, luscious
guavas, and crowned ananas, queen of all the fruits, which they had
found