or over, and things lyin'
frozen for a thousand years; and, besides, it's so cold!"

It seemed as if Sarah's words had struck the key-note to the feelings
of the whole company. In the heart of every one arose a strong desire to
sink out of this cold, bleak, terrifying open air into the comfortable
motherly arms of the encircling waters. For a few minutes Captain Jim
Hubbell had experienced a sense of satisfaction at finding himself once
more upon the deck of a vessel floating upon the open sea. He felt that
he was in his element, and that the time had come for him to assume
his proper position as a sailor; but this feeling soon passed, and he
declared that his spine was like a long icicle.

"Don't you think we had better go down again?" said Sammy. "I think we
have all seen enough of this, and it isn't anything that any use can be
made of."

"You are right," said Mr. Gibbs; "let everybody go below."

But it was not easy for everybody to obey this command. The wet decks
were now covered with a thin surface of ice, and those who had been
standing still for a few moments found it difficult to release their
shoes from the flooring of the deck, while several of the men slipped
down as they made their way to the forward hatch. As for Sarah Block,
she found it impossible to move at all. Her shoes were of a peculiar
kind, the soles being formed of thick felt, and these, having been
soaked with water, had frozen firmly to the deck. She tried to make a
step and almost fell over.

"Heavens and earth!" she screamed; "don't let this boat go down and
leave me standing outside!"

Her husband and two men tried to release her, but they could not
disengage her shoes from the deck; so Sammy was obliged to loosen her
shoe-strings, and then he and another man lifted her out of her shoes
and carried her to the hatchway, whence she very speedily hurried below.

Everybody was now inside the vessel, the hatches were tightly
closed, and the Dipsey began to sink. When she had descended to
the comparatively temperate depths of the sea, and her people found
themselves in her warm and well-lighted compartments, there was a
general disposition to go about and shake hands with each other. Some
of them even sang little snatches of songs, so relieved were they to get
down out of that horrible upper air.

"Of course I shall never see my shoes again," said Mrs. Block; "and they
were mighty comfortable ones, too. I suppose, when they have been dow