part of St. Domingo was, as
far as they could judge, about twenty-five leagues distant, to reach
which they supposed they must go through the Mona passage, the most
dangerous in the West Indies.

One of the cutters had forty-five men on board, the other forty-two,
the jolly-boat twenty-two, and the gig fourteen; in all, a hundred and
twenty-three persons. The wind increased as the day advanced, and
became so violent that it seemed almost by a miracle that the boats
were enabled to resist the fury of the storm. In the afternoon the
danger increased, and the men were obliged to heave overboard the
remainder of their bread and water, and never for an instant could
they relax in their efforts to keep the boats free from water. God in
His mercy preserved those who had shown such trust in Him; for we can
scarcely suppose that such noble acts of humanity, courage, and
self-sacrifice as were evinced by these men could arise from other
than the highest and holiest principles.

Before the evening closed in, they caught a glimpse of the land, but
too distant for them to make out what part of the coast it was. The
boats were hove to for the night, and a dreary night it was to these
poor men. They were without food, almost without clothing, weak from
want of nourishment, and exhausted by fatigue; and in this miserable
state they awaited the break of day, the rain falling in torrents, and
the sea breaking over the boats.

On the morning of the 28th, they again made sail, and landed the same
evening in a small cove of a bay between Vieux Cap Francois and Cap
Cabron. Here, to their bitter disappointment, they could get nothing
to eat--not even a spring of fresh water could be found,--and all the
nourishment they had that night was a few limpets, and the rain water
that had remained in the holes of the rocks,--sorry fare for men who
had been exposed to the inclemency of the weather for two days and two
nights, in open boats, without food.

However, it was a great thing to be on shore; for many of the people
had suffered severely from being so closely stowed in the bottom of
the boats, and their limbs had been terribly cramped. They now wisely
endeavoured to make themselves as comfortable as circumstances
allowed, by lighting a fire to keep off the insects, and to dry their
clothes, and then they composed themselves to sleep, which they much
needed. The next morning, being somewhat refreshed, they started
across the bay to a place