him to a good
position.

"Hold on a bit, sir, and we'll try and right her."

"Yes," panted Mark. "Where's Mr Russell?"

"Here," came rather faintly from the other side of the boat, accompanied
by a fit of gasping and coughing. "All right now; I got under the boat.
All here, my lads?"

"Ay, ay, sir."

"Then you one and all deserve a flogging," cried the second lieutenant,
angrily. "What were you about to capsize the boat?"

"Dunno, sir," said Tom Fillot, gruffly. "She went over all of her own
sen."

"Don't be an idiot, man."

"Where's the black?" panted Mark, who had not yet got back to his
regular breathing.

"I have him, sir," said the coxswain, "but I don't think he's--"

"Oh, don't say he's dead!" cried Mark.

"Course not, sir, if you says I'm not," muttered the man; "but it
strikes me as he was dead before he reached the sea. Some one seems to
have hit him on the head."

The lieutenant changed his position, so as to place himself alongside
the coxswain, and then moved away again.

"Dead?" whispered Mark, as he drew himself a little more on the bottom
of the boat, and craned his neck towards his brother officer.

Russell did not answer for the moment, but gravely bent his head.

"The brutes!" he then said, softly; "and all this risk for nothing."

Then aloud--"Now, my lads, quick. Swimmers. The oars."

These words roused the little crew, which had been clinging to the keel,
half lying on either side of the boat, as if there was nothing more to
be done but wait for help but now three of the men at once quitted their
hold, and began to swim about in search of the oars and other objects
floating about in the glistening moonlight.

"Never mind the hats, man," shouted the lieutenant. "The oars--the
oars."

This was to one of the sailors who had reached a straw hat and clapped
it upon his head as he swam, but the same man recovered one of the oars
and brought it alongside.

"Any one seen my hitcher?" shouted the coxswain from where he hung on,
supporting the black.

"No."

"Yes," came from Mark, who pointed; "there it is, standing up like a
great quill float. See it?"

"Yes, sir, I see it," cried a sailor; and he swam off towards the
white-looking pole, while others sought for and recovered the whole of
the oars, which floated a short distance away, the men having gained a
little more confidence, and freely quitting their hold of the boat, as
it slowly rose and fell in the midst of