rly set with two reefs.

As to the foresail and the second jib, which had been furled before the
tempest, those sails were set without a great deal of trouble, in spite
of the force of the wind.

At last, on that day, at ten o'clock in the morning, the "Pilgrim" was
sailing under her foresail, her top-sail, and her jib.

Dick Sand had not judged it prudent to set more sail. The canvas which
he carried ought to assure him, as long as the wind did not moderate, a
speed of at least two hundred miles in twenty-four hours, and he did
not need any greater to reach the American coast before ten days.

The novice was indeed satisfied when, returning to the wheel, he again
took his post, after thanking Master Jack, assistant helmsman of the
"Pilgrim." He was no longer at the mercy of the waves. He was making
headway. His joy will be understood by all those who are somewhat
familiar with the things of the sea.

The next day the clouds still ran with the same velocity, but they left
large openings between them, through which the rays of the sun made
their way to the surface of the waters. The "Pilgrim" was at times
overspread with them. A good thing is that vivifying light! Sometimes
it was extinguished behind a large mass of vapors which came up in the
east, then it reappeared, to disappear again, but the weather was
becoming fine again.

The scuttles had been opened to ventilate the interior of the ship. A
salubrious air penetrated the hold, the rear hatchway, the crew's
quarters. They put the wet sails to dry, stretching them out in the
sun. The deck was also cleaned. Dick Sand did not wish his ship to
arrive in port without having made a bit of toilet. Without overworking
the crew, a few hours spent each day at that work would bring it to a
good end.

Though the novice could no longer throw the log, he was so accustomed
to estimating the headway of a ship that he could take a close account
of her speed. He had then no doubt of reaching land before seven days,
and he gave that opinion to Mrs. Weldon, after showing her, on the
chart, the probable position of the ship.

"Well, at what point of the coast shall we arrive, my dear Dick?" she
asked him.

"Here, Mrs. Weldon," replied the novice, indicating that long coast
line which extends from Peru to Chili. "I do not know how to be more
exact. Here is the Isle of Paques, that we have left behind in the
west, and, by the direction of the wind, which has been constant, I