the painful eye had become less intelligent. I thought she was as I had
seen her in my dream when she changed from her own likeness to that of
the poor drowned girl we buried in the guano.

I turned away my gaze--the sight was too painful to look upon. I felt
assured that she was dying, and that in a very short space of time, that
faithful and affectionate nature I must part from for ever.

I thought I would make a last effort--though faint and trembling,
burning with fever, and feeling deadly sick, I managed by the support of
the awning to crawl to the mast, and embracing it with one arm, I raised
the glass with the other hand, and looked carefully about. My hand was
very unsteady and my eyes seemed dim. I could discern nothing but
water.

I should have sunk in despair to the bottom of the boat, had I not been
attracted at the moment by a singular appearance in the sky. A cloud
was approaching, of a shape and appearance I had never observed before.
I raised the glass again, and after observing this cloud for some time
with great attention, I felt assured that what I considered to be long
lines of vapour was an immense flock of birds.

This discovery interested me--I forgot the intensity of my sufferings in
observing the motions of this apparently endless flock. As the first
file approached, I looked again, to see if I could make out what they
were. God of Heaven! They were gannets.

I crawled back to my companion as rapidly as my feeble limbs would
allow, to inform her of the discovery I had made. Alas! I found that I
was unheeded. I could not believe that her fine spirit had fled: no,
she moved her hand; but the dull spiritless gaze seemed to warn me that
her dissolution was fast approaching. I looked for the spirit-flask,
and found a few drops were still left there; I poured these into her
mouth, and watched the result with the deepest anxiety I had ever known
since the day of my birth.

In a few minutes I found that she breathed more regularly and
distinctly--presently her eyes lost that fixedness which had made them
so painful to look upon. Then she recognised me, and took hold of my
hand, regarding me with the sweet smile with which I was so familiar.

As soon as I found that consciousness had returned, I told her of the
great flock of gannets that were evidently wending their way to their
customary resting-place, and the hope I entertained that if they could
be kept in sight, and the wind rema