y rode bravely from wave to wave, or
sometimes wondering at some large ship as it passed by, on which men
live for weeks and months without ever touching land. We used to sail
long distances, and occasionally be out for several days and nights
together. My brother-in-law's skipper could tell me what country
almost every vessel that we saw was bound for. Some were sailing to
climates where the heat is so great that our most sultry summer in
England is comparatively cold; others were off northward, perhaps
whale-fishing, where they would see huge icebergs and hear the
growling of the polar bears.

We were taking our last cruise of the season. It was already near the
end of October, and the weather was becoming stormy. Passing out of
the Solent into the Channel, we found the sea much rougher than we
expected, and as night came on it blew a regular gale. The wind and
sea roared, the rain poured down in torrents, and the night seemed to
me to be the darkest I had ever known. But on board the "Swallow" we
had no fear. We trusted to the seamanship of our skipper and the
goodness of our vessel, and went to bed with minds as free from fear
as if the sea were smooth and the sky clear.

I awoke just as dawn was breaking, dressed quickly, and throwing a
water-proof cloak over me popped my head up the companion-ladder to
see how things looked. The old skipper was on deck; he had not turned
in during the night. I wished him good-morning, and he remarked, in
return, that the wind was going down, he thought. Looking at the sea,
I observed two or three large fragments of wood floating near, and
they attracted his notice at the same moment.

"Has there been a wreck, captain?" I asked, with a feeling of awe.

"That's about what it is, miss," answered the old seaman.

"Do you think the people are drowned?" I inquired, anxiously.

"Well," replied Captain Bounce, casting, as I thought, rather a
contemptuous glance at me, "people don't in general live under water,
miss."

[Illustration: CHARLEY'S WELCOME HOME.]

"Perhaps they may have had boats," I said, meekly. "Do you think
boats could have reached the shore in such a storm?"

"Well," answered the old captain, "they might have had boats, and they
mightn't; and the boats, supposing they had 'em, might have lived
through the storm, and at the same time they mightn't."

This was not giving me much information, and I thought to myself that
my friend the skipper did not seem so much