light directly after, followed by a flash
and a wax match burned brightly in the doctor's fingers, for those he
carried in a little silver box proved to be dry.

"Ha!" ejaculated Bostock, reaching up to the lamp, which was slowly
subsiding from its pendulum-like motion. "I hate being in the dark,
even if it's only a fog. You never know which way to steer."

"Can you light the lamp?"

"Yes, sir, all right, in a minute. Wick's got shook down. That's
better; give me hold, or you'll burn your fingers; mine's as hard as
horn. Well done; first go."

For the wick caught and burned brightly, the glass was replaced, and the
doctor was able to examine his patient once more.

"How is he, sir?"

"Just the same," replied the doctor.

"Well done; that's better than being worse, sir. And I say, it's
blowing great guns still, but nothing like what it was an hour ago.
Dessay it'll pass over before long. Come and let's see what it's like
on deck."

They went up together into a storm of blinding spray, which swept by
them with a hissing rush; but there were no raging billows striking the
steamer's sides and curling over in turns to sweep the deck, and,
getting into shelter, they tried vainly to make out their position.

They had no difficulty in stepping to the side of the saloon deck, for
there was no water to wade through, and the great vessel was as steady
now as if built upon a foundation of rock, and as soon as they had wiped
the spray from their eyes they tried hard to pierce the gloom.

But in vain. It was not very dark, but there was a thick mist which
seemed to glow faintly with a peculiar phosphorescent light that was
horribly weird and strange, and after a few minutes' effort they turned
to descend to the cabin again.

"This won't last long, sir," shouted the old sailor in the doctor's ear;
"these sort o' storms seldom do. Dessay it'll be all bright sunshine in
the mornin'. We're safe as safe, with the reef and the breakers far
enough away, but the old _Chusan_ will never breast the waves again."

"And all our friends?"

"Don't talk about it, sir. They were in sound boats, well manned, and
with good officers to each, but--oh dear! oh dear!--the sea's hard to
deal with in a storm like this."

"Do you think, then, that there is no hope?"

"Oh no, sir, I don't say that, for, you see, the waves didn't run high.
They may weather it all, but where they're carried to by the wind and
the awful currents the