e ready, and
go forwards into the bows. I want you, the instant I sing out, to give
a slash across the painter holding us to our moorings."

"What, and lose our bundle of sealskins!" exclaimed the practical Fritz.

"Lose them? Of course! Do you think we'd have time to lug them into
the boat before we'd be pooped! What are the blessed things worth in
comparison with our lives?"

"I beg your pardon," said Fritz humbly, always ready to acknowledge when
he was in the wrong. "I spoke unthinkingly; besides, if we lose these,
we've got plenty more under the cliff by our hut."

"Aye, if we ever reach there!" replied Eric grimly. Although taking
advantage of every possible device to reach the island again, as a
sailor he was fully conscious of the dire peril they were in. "Now,
Fritz," he called out presently, as a big white wave came up astern,
"cut away the painter, and just give a hoist to the jib and belay the
end of the halliards, half-way up. There, that will do. Lie down for
the present, old fellow. The wind has reached us at last; so, it's a
case of neck or nothing now!"

Hardly had Eric uttered the last words, when a sudden rush of wind
struck the boat's stern like a flail, seeming to get underneath and lift
it out of the water. The next instant the little craft sank down again
as if she were going to founder stern foremost; but, at the same moment,
the wind, travelling on, caught the half-set jib, and blowing this out
with a sound like the report of a cannon, the small sail soon began to
drive the boat through the swelling waves at racing speed.

Onward speeded the boat, faster and yet faster. Fortunately, the mast
was a strong spar, or otherwise it would have broken off like a carrot;
as, even with the half-hoisted jib, it bent like a whip, thus yielding
to the motion of the little craft as she rose from the trough of the sea
and leaped from one wave crest to another. The boat appeared just to
keep in advance of the following rollers that vainly endeavoured to
overtake her, and only broke a yard or so behind her stern--which, on
account of her being a whale-boat, was built exactly like her bows and
thus offered a smaller target for the billows to practise on, as they
sent their broken tops hurtling after her in a shower of thick foam.

Eric had an oar out to leeward steering, while Fritz crouched down
amidships, with the belayed end of the jib halliards in his hand, ready
to let them go by the run