moment of sunset, and in those latitudes the duration of twilight is
exceedingly brief. Still, following upon sunset there were a few
minutes during which the light would be strong enough to enable a sharp
eye on board the distant brig, especially if aided by a good glass, to
detect the presence of the two boats under sail; and I was curious to
see whether anything would occur on board the brig to suggest that such
a discovery had been made. For a few minutes nothing happened; the
brig's canvas, showing up clear-cut and purple almost to blackness
against the gold and crimson western sky, revealed no variation in the
direction in which she was steering; but presently, as I watched the
quick fading of the glowing sunset tints, and noted how the sharp
silhouette of the brig's canvas momentarily grew more hazy and
indistinct, I suddenly became aware of a lengthening out of the fast-
fading image, and I had just time to note, ere they merged into the
quick-growing gloom, that the two masts had separated, showing that the
brig had shifted her course and was now presenting a broadside view to
us. That I was not alone in marking this change was evidenced a moment
later when, as we drew up alongside the gig, which had been waiting for
us, Simpson hailed me with the question:

"Did ye notice, sir, just afore we lost sight of the brig, that he'd
hauled his wind?"

"Yes," said I, "I did. And I have a suspicion that he has done so
because he had a hand aloft to watch for and report the sinking of the
schooner; and that hand has caught sight of the boats. If my suspicion
is correct, he has waited until he believed we could no longer see him,
and has then hauled his wind in the hope that by making a series of
short stretches to windward he will fall in with us in the course of an
hour or two and be able to make an end of us. He probably waited until
we had been lost sight of in the gathering darkness, and then shifted
his helm, forgetful of the fact that his canvas would show up against
the western sky for some few minutes after ours had vanished."

"That's just my own notion, sir," answered Simpson, "I mean about his
wishin' to fall in with and make an end of us. And he'll do it, too,
unless we can hit upon some plan to circumvent him."

"Quite so," said I. "But we must see to it that we do not again fall
into his hands. And to avoid doing so I can think of nothing better
than to shift our own helm and shape a course eit