found
her, half afloat, and secured by her painter to a small anchor dug well
into the sand. Lifting the anchor with the utmost care, I noiselessly
deposited it in her bows, and then, making sure that her oars were in
her, I lifted her bow and slid her off the sand until she was fairly
afloat, when I gently turned her round, gave her a vigorous push, and
scrambled in over her stern, taking care to do everything without noise.
Then, throwing out an oar over the stern, I headed the boat in the
direction of the scarcely visible felucca, and proceeded to scull off to
her.

Thus far everything had gone smoothly and without the ghost of a hitch,
but the really difficult part of my enterprise was still to come. I
estimated that a good four hundred miles lay between the cove and Port
Royal harbour, which distance, at an average speed of six knots, would
take me the best part of three days and nights to cover, under the most
favourable conditions. To do this, I should need both food and water,
and I had not the most remote idea whether either was to be found on
board the felucca, although I hoped they might be, for I had seen
half-a-dozen men go off to her regularly every day, for some purpose
which I could not divine, unless perchance it were to pump her out. But
food and water were absolutely necessary to ensure my success, and
unless I could find at least a sufficiency to last me three days, I must
return and take measures to provide a supply; for to start without would
be simply courting disaster. That, however, was a point which could
only be settled upon my arrival on board.

Taking the matter very easily, husbanding all my strength for the
exceedingly difficult task of getting the felucca under way
single-handed--in the event of all things conspiring to render such a
decided step justifiable--and sculling so gently that I scarcely raised
a ripple on the highly phosphorescent water, I at length glided quietly
up alongside the felucca and, taking the end of the boat's painter with
me, climbed in over the vessel's low bulwarks, passed the dinghy astern,
made her fast, and forthwith proceeded to overhaul the craft which I had
thus surreptitiously visited.

My first visit was to her tiny cabin, the companion door of which I
found unlocked. But when I got below it was so intensely dark that I
could see nothing, and I felt that at all costs I must have a light, or
it would be morning, and my flight would be discovered