b sought for, but in no
place could he be found. At length all thought that he had sought a
grave in the deep sea, and that no one would see him more. His fate had
been a sad one, and all felt that it had been so.

All on board thought a great deal of Saib. All that day did they think
of him, and the next day, and the next, and the next. But there was no
one who thought of poor Saib so much as Mrs. Bright did; she thought of
him so much that she saw him in her dreams, and she would start up in
her bed and call Saib! Saib! and this would seem so real that she could
not think it had been a dream.

One night when she had had this same dream, and had seen Saib, as she
thought, at the foot of her bed, she rose up with a start, but still he
was there! This was most strange. "Saib! Saib!" she said, "you _are_
there, and it is no dream."

But Saib was gone! and there was no trace of him to be seen. Yet so
sure did Mrs. Bright feel that she _had_ seen him, and that he was _not
dead_, that she could have no peace of mind. She thought of him the
whole of that day, and at night she made up her mind that she would not
go to sleep, but would lie quite still, as though she were gone to
sleep.

When she had been in bed two or three hours, she heard a slight noise
in her room, yet she did not move. All was soon still, and then once
more she heard a noise. The sound was like that of a piece of wood _on
the slide_, but so soft it was that it could not have been heard by
ears less quick than the ears of Mrs. Bright were just at that time.
Once more she was still, and then she heard the soft step of a foot.
The watch-light was dim, and yet such ray as there was, fell on the
form of Saib! Yes! it was he, there he stood; Mrs. Bright saw, and she
could not doubt that it _was_ he!

She lay quite still, nor could she have made the least sign of life had
she had the wish to do so. Her eyes were not shut, so she could see all
that was done. Saib at first stood quite still, as if to be sure that
he was safe; and then he went with step soft and slow to a tub of dry
ship cakes, that Mrs. Bright kept in her room. She saw him take four or
five of these in his hand, and then he stole back to the place from
whence he had come.

All this she saw, but she could not have made known to Saib that she
saw it. Yet when he was gone out of her sight she gave one loud scream.
Mr. Bright, who slept in the berth next to hers, was up and on the
floor just in