to ourselves. I could not believe that my imagination had
been playing me a trick, yet it required no very great penetration on my
part to see that my superior thought but little of my assertion in
comparison with the reports of the lookout men. We both returned to the
spot from which we had started, and stood intently gazing to windward,
until, for my part, I was almost ready to declare upon oath that the
atmosphere was full of faint twinkling lights. The impression was
beginning to force itself upon me that I had been making a fool of
myself, and I was about to say so, when a faint and almost imperceptible
sound seemed to float down to us out of the thick folds of impenetrable
mist to windward.

"There, sir!" I exclaimed; "did you hear nothing then?"

"Why, to tell you the truth, Mr Chester, I half thought I did," replied
Sennitt; "but after all I believe it is only fancy; your imagination has
infected my own, and if we stand here much longer we shall fancy a whole
French fleet there to windward. Luckily it is eight bells," he
continued, consulting his watch by the light of the binnacle, "so we
will turn the ship over to the care of a fresh set of eyes and ears.
Let the watch be called as quietly as possible."

This was done, and so completely had I already acquired that confidence
which is conveyed in the expression "Let those look out who have the
watch," that, notwithstanding all my previous apprehensions, in another
ten minutes I was fast asleep.

CHAPTER FIVE.

WE FLY FROM THE FRENCHMAN.

When I went on deck again at the change of the watches, it was still
very thick, but the breeze was freshening, and it and the sun together
promised soon to disperse the vapour. It was still so thick, however,
that it was impossible to see more than three or four lengths away from
the vessel, and the "Scourge" was consequently kept hove-to.

The skipper had made his appearance on deck for a few minutes before
sitting down to breakfast, and about nine o'clock he came up again, just
as the fog had begun to clear away in earnest, opening up like a curtain
every now and then, and showing clear spaces of about half a mile or so
in extent, then settling down again as thick as ever, but each time
clearing away more thoroughly, and revealing larger and still larger
open spaces. At length the mist lifted for a moment to such an extent
that it became possible to see to a distance of perhaps a couple of
miles, and as it