intly seen
astern, low down on the water.

"It means," said Eric, answering his own question, without waiting
longer for his brother's reply, "that the same wind which bore us away
from our dear little bay is about to waft us back again to it; still, we
must look out sharply to help ourselves and not neglect a chance. Oars
out, old fellow!"

"But, it is impossible to row amidst these waves," the other
expostulated.

"Bah, nothing is impossible to brave men!" cried the sailor lad
valiantly. "I only want to get her head round to sea. Perhaps, though,
my old friend that served me in such good stead when the _Gustav
Barentz_ foundered may serve my turn better now; we'll try a floating
anchor, brother, that's what we'll do, eh?"

"All right, you know best," replied Fritz, who, to tell the truth, had
very little hopes of their ever seeing the island again. He thought
that, no matter what Eric might attempt, all would be labour in vain.

The sailor lad, on the contrary, was of a different opinion. He was not
the one to let a chance slip when there seemed a prospect of safety,
however remote that prospect might be!

Rapidly attaching a rope round the bale of sealskins that were
amidships, thinking these more adapted for his purpose than the oars,
which he had first intended using, he hove the mass overboard, gently
poising it on the side and letting it slip gradually into the water. He
did this in order that he might not disturb the balance of the boat,
which any sudden rash movement would have done, causing her probably to
heel over--for the waves, when they raced by, came level with her
gunwale, and an inch more either way would have swamped her.

In a few seconds after this impromptu anchor was tried, the effect on
the whale-boat's buoyancy became marvellous.

Swinging round by degrees, Eric helping the operation by an occasional
short paddle with one of the oars he had handy, the little craft
presently rode head to sea, some little distance to leeward of the
sealskins whose weight sunk them almost to the level of the water; and
then, another unexpected thing happened.

The oil attached to the still reeking skins came floating out on the
surface of the sea, so calming the waves in their vicinity that these
did not break any longer, but glided under the keel of the boat with a
heavy rolling undulation.

"This is more than I hoped!" exclaimed Eric joyfully. "Why, we'll be
able to ride out the gale capitally