distinctly seen. It was impossible to tell where they
were; and in darkness and uncertainty, fearing the worst, and quaking
with terror, the unhappy passengers and crew waited for their doom, as
men and women have done so often under circumstances similarly
appalling. There was nothing they could do but wait and pray; and they
were the happiest who could keep alive in their bosoms the faintest
spark of hope, and who, being ready either to live or die, had
confidence in the strong arm and watchful care of Him who holds the
waters in the hollow of His hand.

At length there was a startled cry, "Breakers to leeward!" and that
discovery increased the excitement and terror a hundredfold. All eyes
were strained in the endeavour to ascertain something of their
position, and presently the Farne Lights became visible. After a
moment's consultation, the awful truth made the men desperate. There
was no doubt as to the imminent and immediate peril in which they were,
for the dangerous character of the coast of the islands was well known.
The captain and men, aroused to almost superhuman effort by the awful
catastrophe that was coming upon them, tried to avert what seemed
almost inevitable, by endeavouring to run the vessel through the
channel that lies between the Farne Islands and the mainland. But the
gloomy apprehensions of all who understood the state of the case were
rather increased than diminished by the attempt; for the vessel would
not answer her helm; and the furious, turbulent sea tossed her hither
and thither, making her the sport of its own awful will.

It was between three and four o'clock when, with her bow foremost, the
"Forfarshire" struck on the rock.

Those who are not acquainted with the Farne Islands can scarcely form
an idea of the ruggedness of those rocks, which stand up in the ocean
as if intent on destroying all that comes near them. The rock on which
the "Forfarshire" struck is so sharp and rugged that it is scarcely
possible for persons to stand erect upon it, even when it is dry, and
it descends sheer down into the water more than a hundred fathoms deep.

The shock, therefore, and the awful scene that followed, may be
imagined, but cannot be described. The night was round about the
helpless passengers, and added to their danger and dismay. The sea was
tremendously high, and the waves seemed to be so many graves rising to
receive the bodies that must shortly drop into them. The noise and
tu