the sailors has
either by word or gesture acted towards her in a way that she could deem
offensive.

The 12th, 13th, and 14th of December passed away without any change in
our condition. The wind continued to blow in irregular gusts, but always
in the same direction, and the helm, or rather the paddle at the back of
the raft has never once required shifting; and the watch, who are posted
on the fore, under orders to examine the sea with the most scrupulous
attention, have had no change of any kind to report.

At the end of a week we found ourselves growing accustomed to our
limited diet, and as we had no manual exertion, and no wear and tear
of our physical constitution, we managed very well. Our greatest
deprivation was the short supply of water, for, as I said before, the
unmitigated heat made our thirst at times very painful.

On the 15th we held high festival. A shoal of fish, of the sparus tribe,
swarmed round the raft, and although our tackle consisted merely of long
cords baited with morsels of dried meat stuck upon bent nails, the fish
were so voracious that in the course of a couple of days we had caught
as many as weighed almost 200lbs., some of which were grilled, and
others boiled in sea-water over a fire made on the fore part of the
raft. This marvelous haul was doubly welcome, inasmuch as it not only
afforded us a change of diet, but enabled us to economize our stores; if
only some rain had fallen at the same time we should have been more than
satisfied.

Unfortunately the shoal of fish did not remain long in our vicinity. On
the 17th they all disappeared, and some sharks, not less than twelve or
fifteen feet long, belonging to the species of spotted dog-fish, took
their place. These horrible creatures have black backs and fins, covered
with white spots and stripes. Here, on our low raft, we seem almost on
a level with them, and more than once their tails have struck the spars
with terrible violence. The sailors manage to keep them at a distance
by means of handspikes, but I shall not be surprised if they persist in
following us, instinctively intelligent that we are destined to become
their prey. For myself, I confess that they give me a feeling of
uneasiness; they seem to me like monsters of ill-omen.

CHAPTER XXXIII.

DECEMBER 18th to 20th.--On the 18th the wind freshened a little, but as
it blew from the same favourable quarter we did not complain, and only
took the precaution of putting an