acht careened over from the pressure on
the three great sails, and it seemed to the lad that the next moment
they would be lying flat upon the water, so he clung to the hatchway
fittings for dear life. But the next moment the _Silver Star_ rose from
the wave in front, and literally rushed on, quivering from stem to stern
like a live creature, the waves parting and hissing to form an
ever-widening path of foam astern.

Jack caught the full fresh breeze in his teeth as he struggled on deck,
and breathlessly staggered to the side, looking as if he were going to
leap overboard; then clinging to the rail, he crept hand-over-hand to
where his father now stood with the captain.

"That you, Jack?" cried Sir John. "Good-morning. Well done! Come,
this is brave."

"Splendid!" cried Captain Bradleigh. "Why you have soon come round."

Jack woke fully to the fact now that it was a false alarm, and strove
hard to get rid of the scared look with which he had come on deck for
help to drag Doctor Instow up. But still he was not quite assured, for
he started suddenly as, _plosh_! there came another rush of water over
the bows. "What's that?" he cried.

"Sea having a game with the yacht," said the captain merrily.
"Splashing her nose. Look how she rises and glides over that wave.
Regular racer, isn't she?"

"Yes, going so fast," panted Jack breathlessly. "But--but is there no
danger--of her sinking?"

"Just about as much as there would be of a well-corked-up bottle, my
lad. The more you pushed her under, the more she'd bob up again. Oh
no, she won't sink."

"I'm glad you came up," said Sir John. "This breeze is glorious, and I
never saw the sea more beautiful; look how the waves glisten where the
moon falls upon them on one side, and how they catch the soft pearly
light from the east on the other. It is a lovely effect."

"Yes, father, very beautiful," said the boy sadly. "Are we far from
land, Captain Bradleigh?"

"Yes, and getting farther every minute. Don't want any steam with this
breeze. If it holds, we shall regularly race across the bay."

"Bay?" said Jack, feeling that he must say something to keep them from
seeing how nervous he was. "Mount's Bay?"

"Mount's Bay?" said the captain, smiling, "No; the Bay of Biscay. We
passed Mount's Bay three days ago, while you were lying so poorly in
your berth. Oh, that's nothing to mind," he added quickly. "I was
horribly bad for a week in smoother water than