down with a sense
of crime, tortured by thirst, and tormented by the voices imploring for
water, lay on their oars when the other boat tried to approach.

Now and then, suddenly, and as if moved by a common impulse, they would
all shout out together: "We have none." But the quarter-boat would not
believe. It was in vain to hold the breaker with the bung out to prove
its dryness, the half-delirious creatures had it fixed in their minds
that their comrades were withholding from them the water that was not.

Just as the sun touched the sea, Lestrange, rousing himself from a
torpor into which he had sunk, raised himself and looked over the
gunwale. He saw the quarter-boat drifting a cable's length away, lit by
the full light of sunset, and the spectres in it, seeing him, held out
in mute appeal their blackened tongues.

* * * * * *

Of the night that followed it is almost impossible to speak. Thirst
was nothing to what the scowbankers suffered from the torture of the
whimpering appeal for water that came to them at intervals during the
night.

* * * * * *

When at last the Arago, a French whale ship, sighted them, the crew of
the long-boat were still alive, but three of them were raving madmen.
Of the crew of the quarter-boat was saved not one.

PART II

CHAPTER XI

THE ISLAND

"Childer!" shouted Paddy. He was at the cross-trees in the full dawn,
whilst the children standing beneath on deck were craning their faces
up to him. "There's an island forenint us."

"Hurrah!" cried Dick. He was not quite sure what an island might be
like in the concrete, but it was something fresh, and Paddy's voice was
jubilant.

"Land ho! it is," said he, coming down to the deck. "Come for'ard to
the bows, and I'll show it you."

He stood on the timber in the bows and lifted Emmeline up in his arms;
and even at that humble elevation from the water she could see
something of an undecided colour--green for choice--on the horizon.

It was not directly ahead, but on the starboard bow--or, as she would
have expressed it, to the right. When Dick had looked and expressed his
disappointment at there being so little to see, Paddy began to make
preparations for leaving the ship.

It was only just now, with land in sight, that he recognised in some
fashion the horror of the position from which they were about to escape.

He fed the children hurriedly with some biscu