such as they did not often get, and Madge in her mind was
already reckoning up her gains. Far better for the Indiaman had she
dropped her treasure overboard and sent it to the bottom of the sea, where
she would be ere long; for Madge could tell at any distance what a ship's
cargo was worth, and if it was a small one she let the vessel sail on in
peace.

Up aloft was the old witch dancing and singing, and down below struggled
the perishing crew, captain, sailors, passengers, men, women and children,
shrieking aloud for help, but seeing never a living creature coming to
give them a hand. Their cries might have melted hearts of iron, but not
the hearts of those who were hiding behind the rocks watching with greedy
interest for the moment when they might go down and seize their prey.
One by one the cries ceased as the sea swallowed up the poor struggling
creatures, then presently the vessel broke up, and in on the waves came
floating cases, casks, chests, broken spars, mingled with the dead bodies
of men and women and little babies.

As fast as they appeared they were seized on, and quickly stripped of
everything that was of value, the ladies were robbed of their jewels and
dresses, and even of their long hair, and even the babies were robbed of
the necklaces which still hung around their chubby necks.

When the bodies were stripped they were not thrown into the sea again,
but were carried away and buried in a great green hollow near Perloe Cove,
with a stone at the head of each to mark the spot. Though the graves
cannot be distinguished now, the hollow may yet be seen.

For weeks after the wreck of the Portuguese Indiaman, the wreckers were
continually finding gold and jewels washed in to the sand, and now and
again more bodies were washed ashore, all richly dressed. Oh, it was a
fine haul the wreckers had after that black storm, but one very curious
thing happened such as had never happened before.

Amongst the bodies washed in was that of a beautiful lady, dressed in the
richest of robes, and wearing more magnificent jewellery than any of the
other poor creatures. In addition to her jewellery, too, she had,
fastened about her, a very large amount of money and treasure, as though,
poor lady, she had thought that she could not only save herself, but a
great deal else as well.

When Madge Figgy, who had claimed this body, had finished stripping it,
she stood gazing at it very attentively for a long time. She appe