o the mystery. According
to the charts there was no land in that part of the ocean. Could it be a
whale, I wondered? The more I thought of it the more perplexed I became.
The night was very dark and I could see nothing about me in any
direction, so I concluded that the only thing to do was to remain
standing just where I was until daybreak. It was a long and tedious wait
and I suffered much from stiffness and cold, but at last dawn appeared
and I anxiously strained my eyes, looking about in every direction. Then
my head nearly burst with a feeling of joyousness, for within two
hundred yards of me I discerned the outline of what appeared to be a
hill of rocks protruding from the deep, and as the light grew brighter I
started to wade slowly towards it. This was an extremely tiresome
undertaking, as the bed upon which I had been resting was very rocky and
uneven and I received many bruises before finally reaching its base. My
limbs too were thoroughly numb and almost refused to work, but with each
step ahead the water became shallower and my progress less arduous. As I
went forward I thought it was by the miraculous hand of God that my life
had been saved, for the time being at least. Then, again, it occurred to
me, that if it was the hand of the Almighty that saved me, it must have
been by His hand also that I was thrown overboard, for if He directed
the one act He must have surely directed the other. So why blame the
sailors for attempting to take my life if it was God's will that it
should be done?

Reaching the base of the rocks in a feeble condition and staggering like
a man under the influence of liquor, I threw myself down and went to
sleep just as the sun peeped over the horizon.

Several hours later I awakened with a start to find the burning sun
directly overhead and my body dripping with perspiration, my throat
parched and an awful feeling of thirst within me. My tongue felt as
though it was several inches thick and it seemed as though I would choke
immediately for the want of something to drink. Aside from the thirst,
however, I felt considerably refreshed and sprang to my feet with my
usual agility.

The first thing that attracted my attention as I looked about in a
curious manner, was that this strange pile of stone which protruded from
the sea, bore evidence of having once been a part of some mammoth
building which had apparently been shaken down and now lay in a chaotic
heap. Some of the stones were of t