, and raising it
a little from the raft, doubled it over the struggling captive. A stiff
squeeze brought its struggles to a termination; and when the canvas was
lifted aloft, it was seen lying underneath, slightly flattened out
beyond its natural dimensions, and it is scarcely necessary to say, as
dead as a herring.

Whether right or no, the simple-minded seaman recognised in this
seasonable supply of provision the hand of an overruling Providence; and
without further question, attributed it to the potency of that prayer
twice repeated.

"Yes, Will'm, you see it, my lad, 'tis the answer to that wonderful
prayer. Let's go over it once more, by way o' givin' thanks. He who
has sent meat can also gie us drink, even here, in the middle o' the
briny ocean. Come, boy! as the parson used to say in church,--let us
pray!"

And with this serio-comic admonition--meant, however, in all due
solemnity--the sailor dropped upon his knees, and, as before, echoed the
prayer once more pronounced by his youthful companion.

CHAPTER SIX.

FLYING-FISH.

The flying-fish takes rank as one of the most conspicuous "wonders of
the sea," and in a tale essentially devoted to the great deep, it is a
subject deserving of more than a passing notice.

From the earliest periods of ocean travel, men have looked with
astonishment upon a phenomenon not only singular at first sight, but
which still remains unexplained, namely, a fish and a creature believed
to be formed only for dwelling under water, springing suddenly above the
surface, to the height of a two-storey house, and passing through the
air to the distance of a furlong, before falling back into its own
proper element!

It is no wonder that the sight should cause surprise to the most
indifferent observer, nor that it should have been long a theme of
speculation with the curious, and an interesting subject of
investigation to the naturalist.

As flying-fish but rarely make their appearance except in warm
latitudes, few people who have not voyaged to the tropics have had an
opportunity of seeing them in their flight. Very naturally, therefore,
it will be asked what kind of fish, that is, to what _species_ and what
_genus_ the flying-fish belong. Were there only one kind of these
curious creatures the answer would be easier. But not only are there
different species, but also different "genera" of fish endowed with the
faculty of flying, and which from the earliest times and in