wise purpose or other; though, I must say, I prayed for
death to release me from my sufferings, a maddening thirst now consuming
me, to add to the torture that was preying on my mind," replied the
other, shuddering at the recollection. "At last, the wind began to blow
more strongly and the sea to get up. This lessened my pangs of thirst;
but, the waves, constantly breaking over the side, almost drowned me, so
one evil took the place of another, and this was all the benefit I
reaped from the change. It must have been the following day, I think,
for I became so numbed with the cold and exposure, the circulation of my
blood being arrested by my cramped position, that I took no heed how the
time went, when a ship at length hove in sight, and my heart began to
beat again with renewed hope, in spite of my despairing thoughts and
misery. Oh, heavens! The ship came nearer and nearer, so that I could
see she was a vessel of war belonging to the French nation, and my
torturing hope became a certainty. But, would you believe it, senor,
when she had closed the wreck so that I could see the gun-ports on her
upper deck, she luffed up and bore away again, hoisting her tricolour
flag, which I shall always loathe the sight of now, as if in mockery of
my condition. Fancy, deserting a shipwrecked man like that!"

"The commander of this very ship stopped us to say he had sighted the
wreck of your vessel; but, unhappily, he was unable to lay-to to send a
boat aboard," explained Captain Farmer, to excuse the French captain's
conduct. "If he had not done this, perhaps we would never have come
across you and been able to take you off, which I am heartily glad we
were fortunate enough to succeed in doing!"

"Gracias, senor," rejoined the Spaniard, stretching out his hand, which
our captain gripped in cordial interchange of friendship, "but _you_ did
not tell another ship to go to my rescue, _you came yourself_! The
English are always brave and generous!"

"By Jove, he's right about that French ship," observed Mr Jellaby to
me, aside, when the captain had translated this remark of the Spaniard,
leaving out, however, his personal compliment to himself and our nation.
"It was a scurvy trick to sail off like that, without examining the
wreck. But it's just like those Johnny Crapauds, youngster. They're
deuced good fair-weather friends but never stand by a fellow in
distress!"

"I have not much more to tell you," went on the Spaniard a