ad low
water), and thus made everything snug for her. At half-tide she floated,
so that for six hours out of every twelve we could go off just when we
liked, without any pushing or hard work of any kind; while to assist her
to her moorings, if we wished to bring her in at low tide, we rigged up
the windlass which we brought from the wreck, and thus we could at any
time haul her bodily out of the sea.

Now, having given up a whole chapter to hard work, we will proceed to
something a little more interesting and exciting.

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CHAPTER XV.

TRAWLING FOR FISH AND DREDGING FOR CURIOS--SOME REMARKABLE FINDS--A
GHASTLY RESURRECTION--THE MYSTERIOUS PAPER--THE HIEROGLYPHIC--A
DANGEROUS FALL--HORS DE COMBAT--ATTEMPTS TO UNRAVEL THE PAPER.

As there were now two of us we occasionally had a turn at trawling, and
usually caught some fine flat fish, turbot, soles, and plaice. Our net
was a very primitive one of our own manufacture, and had to be handled
very gingerly, as the netting was old and the ironwork very fragile, but
knowing this we did not put undue strain upon it.

The curious fish, marine plants, and odds and ends of all kinds that we
brought to the surface would have done a naturalist's heart good, for
there were frequently objects brought to light that were quite out of
the common.

It seemed to me that the set of the Gulf Stream had something to do with
this, as we found some rare shells that did not appear indigenous to
these waters; we also found two old swords and the steel portion of a
flint lock pistol, beside some curious old pottery, all of which finds I
have preserved, and with other curios have formed quite a museum.

Our plan of "Marine Exploration," as we called it, was this: We would
have a couple of hours trawling for fish in the usual manner, and then
if wind and tide were favourable, would run in and land our trawl, and
fish at the pier head, and bring out with us another implement, which
was a cross between a dredge and a trawl. It had an iron beam about six
feet wide, which kept the net on the bottom by reason of its weight;
from this rose an iron bow, forming a flattened half circle, and to this
was attached a piece of heavy double netting, the bottom of which was
protected from the rocks by a piece of old sail cloth a little larger
than the plan of the net. The poke of the net was only about seve