.

The mate came aft.

"Is that hawser nearly ready?" demanded the skipper.

"All but, sir," answered the mate. "Another five minutes will do it."

"Then," said the skipper, "your next job, sir, will be to muster all the
light line you can lay your hands upon, and range it along the larboard
rail--which will be our weather rail, presently, when we have got the
ship round--and station half a dozen men, or more, all along the weather
rail, each with a coil, and let them stand by to heave as we cross the
barque's stern. My object is to get a line aboard her as quickly as
possible, by means of which we may send the hawser to them. For they
appear to be a pretty helpless lot aboard there, and, if they are to be
saved, there is very little time to lose."

"Ay, ay, sir," responded Murgatroyd; and away he went to perform this
additional duty.

Captain Dacre now showed the stuff of which he was made, handling his
ship with the most consummate skill and judgment, wearing her round upon
the port tack the moment that he could do so with the certainty of again
fetching the barque, and ranging up under her stern as closely as he
dared approach. Eight of the strongest and most skilful seamen in the
ship were ranged along the weather rail, and as we drew up on the
barque's starboard quarter--with our main-topsail once more thrown
aback--man after man hurled his coil of light, pliant line with all his
strength, in the endeavour to get the end of it aboard the barque. But
such was the strength of the gale that line after line fell short--
checked as effectually in its career as though it had been dashed
against a solid wall--and although, after his first failure, each man
hauled in his line and, re-coiling it with the utmost rapidity,
attempted another cast, all were unsuccessful, and we had the
mortification of feeling that at least twenty minutes of priceless time
had been expended to no purpose. And what made it all the worse was
that during that twenty minutes absolutely nothing had been done by the
Frenchmen toward the preparation of a line to veer down to us. Within
three minutes of the moment when the first line had been hove we were
once more out of hailing distance, and the main yards were again being
swung.

"We will have another try," said the skipper; "but if we fail again it
will be all up with them--if, indeed, it is not already too late. That
barque cannot possibly live another half-hour!"

There seemed t