ay or
not; a ship was just as likely to come along and find us where we then
were as anywhere else. And although we had resolved to take a night's
rest before resuming our struggle, we of course intended to keep an
anchor watch of one hand, who would look after the weather and the boat
and also otherwise maintain a sharp lookout, so that, in the event of a
sail heaving in sight, she should not be permitted to slip past us
without an effort on our part to intercept her.

The night passed uneventfully, wind and sea gradually moderating all
through the hours of darkness, until, by the dawn of the following day,
both had so far gone down that we could once more make sail upon the gig
with perfect safety. It is true that there was still a rather heavy
swell running, but even that was fast diminishing, and there was no sea
to speak of, the wind being of the strength known to sailors as a
"royal" breeze, that is to say, a wind of so moderate a force that a
ship of ordinary size could show her royals to it.

The sailmaker's watch ended a few minutes after sunrise, and when he
called the rest of us our first business was to wash the sleep out of
our eyes by dipping our heads into a bucket of clear, sparkling salt
water, dipped up from over the side; after which we proceeded to perform
our toilets as well as our very limited resources permitted, the next
thing in order being breakfast. And while this was being prepared--the
preparation consisting merely in the apportioning to each individual of
his just and proper allowance of food--Simpson shinned up to the
masthead to take a look round the horizon, and thus enable us to get the
earliest possible intimation of the approach of a ship, should one
chance to be in our neighbourhood.

The man had scarcely reached his perch--which, after all, was only about
six feet above our heads when we stood up--when he emitted a joyous yell
of:

"Sail ho! Hurrah, my bullies, here she comes, pretty nigh straight down
for us, if these eyes of mine ain't deceivin' of me!"

"What do you make her out to be, Sails?" I demanded.

"Can't tell yet, sir," answered Simpson. "All as I can see just at
present is the head of a--well, it may be a royal, or it may be the head
of the to'garns'l of a schooner. And I'm inclined to think it's a
schooner, because it looks sharp and clear like, as though it wasn't so
very far off. Yes, I reckon that there blessed bit of white ain't much
more'n ten mile