t, they laid hands upon him. David
resisted with all his might, but they overpowered him in a moment,
bound his hands and feet, and cast him with much force into their
boat. Then David was sorely disheartened; but he waited, committing
his soul to God. While he waited, he saw a strange thing; on the beach
there lay a box, tightly corded; the men raised this up very gently,
and with difficulty, as it seemed to be heavy. Then they carried it up
above the tide-mark; and, making a hole among the loose stones, they
buried it very carefully, casting stones over it. Then one of them
with a chisel made a mark on the cliff behind, to show where the box
lay--and then, first looking carefully out to sea, they came into the
boat, and rowed off to the ship, which seemed almost deserted; paying
no more heed to David than if he had been a log of wood.

The old man who understood English steered the boat; and David tried
to say some words to him, to ask that he should be released; but the
old man only shook his head; and at last bade David be silent with
great anger. They rowed slowly out, and David could see the great
rocks, that had now been his home so long, rising, still and peaceful,
in the morning light. Every rock and cranny was known to him. There
was the place where, when he first came, he was used to fish. There
was the cliff-top where he had made his fire; he could even see his
little window in the front of the rocks, and he thought with grief
that it would be dark and silent henceforth. But he thought that he
was somehow in the hand of God; and that though to be dragged away
from his home seemed grievous, there must be some task to which the
Father would presently set him, even if it were to go down to death;
and though the cords that bound him were now very painful, and his
heart was full of sorrow, yet David felt a kind of peace in his spirit
which showed him that God was still with him.

When they got to the ship, there arose a dispute among the men as to
whether they should run out to sea before it was dark, or whether they
should lie where they were; there was but little wind, so they made up
their minds to stay. David himself thought from the look of the sky
that there was strong weather brewing. The old man who spoke English
asked him what he thought, and he told him that there would be wind.
He seemed to be disposed to believe David; but the men were tired, and
it was decided to stay.

They had unbound David that