to the skin when they were finally safe in
place.

Fortunately the wreck on the reef has been thoroughly explored and
there is very little material there now that could be of use to us,
unless it may be the timbers themselves, to help us in building a
seaworthy boat should it be necessary to do so in a final effort to
get away. The idea of sending a boat to the Sandwich Islands for
relief has been already revolving in our minds, and to-day was
revealed by an order from the captain to the senior officers. After a
consultation singly with us, he has directed each one to file with him
an opinion on the feasibility and necessity of doing so--each written
opinion to be without knowledge of the others.

It is probable that the hulk will be considerably broken up before the
wind and sea go down, for one can see it rise and fall with the
breakers, and occasionally a piece is detached and floated across the
reef into the lagoon. As soon as it is safe to launch the boats, the
work of securing these pieces will be started.

The boats are now resting at the highest part of the island in the
centre of the camp, for even with the protecting reef the sea in the
lagoon has been so rough that combers have reached within a few feet
of our tents. As I write my journal we are a wet and sad party of
unfortunates.

Our captain and his boat's crew must be having an experience worse
than ours, however. They left this morning in the cutter for the sand
spit near and to the west of us, to collect driftwood, and are
"marooned" there in the storm. They can be seen, with the glasses,
huddled together beneath the upturned boat. They do not, however, seem
to be in imminent danger, and have made no signals of distress; so we
expect them to return as soon as the sea abates.

_Thursday, November 3._ It has been still too rough to-day to launch
the boats for work in the lagoon. We have, however, busied ourselves
in erecting a storehouse for the better preservation of our food
supplies, and to-night have them safely under cover. Last night the
rats robbed us of a box of macaroni, and, therefore, we have put our
storehouse on posts and two feet above the ground with inverted pans
upon the posts.

We made the acquaintance of the rats last night in our tent when a
noisy fight over a piece of candle disturbed our sleep. We had seen a
few of them before, but did not suppose them to be so very
numerous--as on first thought there seemed to be so very li