his shrill voice being
heard above the dull roar of the ocean. "Hark! I hear two or three
voices replying," said Bill. "Let's give them a cheer, to keep up their
spirits; perhaps they will come and join us here. I do hope Mr
Collinson has escaped, and Jack Windy, and poor old Grim, and the other
fellows too. Yes, I am nearly certain that is Jack's voice."

"Is there room for anybody else where you are?"

"Yes!" shouted Bill and Tommy. "Plenty for you, if you will come to
us."

In a short time Jack managed to swim up to the raft. It was very
evident that it had been drifting still farther away from the reef.
They helped Jack up as he reached the raft, considerably exhausted by
his swim.

"We have got inside a lagoon," he observed when he was seated on deck.
"If it had not been for that, we should all have been dead by this time.
But I have some hopes that others may have escaped. Look away down
there to leeward. Can't you see something rising up against the sky?
They look to me like cocoa-nut trees, and I should not be surprised if
there's an island down there, and that, if we are in luck, we shall be
landed on it before the night is over."

Bill thought with Jack that he could see trees.

"Well," he said, "we at all events have to be thankful; but I do hope
Mr Collinson has escaped. What would that poor young lady do if he was
drowned? I should not like to go back to Jamaica to have to tell her.
Dear me! It makes my heart bleed to think of it."

"I can't help thinking that there are some other people down away there,
holding on to other pieces of the wreck," said Jack; "but, you see, the
breakers make such a roar that 'tis hard to hear a hail at any distance.
I only just heard your's and Tommy's squeaking voices, and I was not
half as far off as those pieces of the wreck are. Well, it's an awful
scene. I never saw a vessel go to pieces so quickly before; but then,
to be sure, it's not often a craft gets such tremendous blows as she
did. Nothing made of wood and iron could have held together, I am sure,
on that reef."

While Jack was making these remarks, he was looking out to try and get
some smaller pieces of timber to serve, he said, as paddles. At length
they came up with a floating spar--for it must be understood that they
were moving faster through the water than the other pieces of wreck,
owing to their bodies holding the wind and serving as sails. Jack
managed to secure this prize, and