kward news indeed; for, as Gurney had remarked in his
communication, it meant that we must act--that is to say, must make our
escape--that same night, although the hatches were off, and all the
boats were ashore. Of course the fact that the hatches were off was the
merest trifle, for Gurney and I could soon clap them on and batten them
down; but I did not at all like the idea of going to sea without even so
much as a single boat on board; while, of all the boats belonging to the
ship, I should most have preferred the longboat, because she was a fine,
wholesome boat, and in the event of anything untoward happening we
should stand a far better chance in her than in any of the others.
However, there was no help for it; it would be better for us to escape
without boats than not at all. And yet, when I came to think of it,
there was no reason why we should go to sea entirely without boats; we
should require one in which to make the passage from the shore to the
ship, and surely it ought not to be beyond the power of two men--and a
girl--to hoist one of the quarter boats to the davits, for, as Gurney
had said, a good deal of work can be done with the aid of a tackle or
two. And if we could hoist one quarter boat, why not both? Ay, and it
might even be possible to get in the longboat as well, if time and
opportunity permitted--but perhaps that was almost too much good luck to
expect. Still, I had the germ of a plan in my mind, and I determined to
talk to Gurney about it.

Supper, the last meal of the day, was served at seven o'clock, and was
over and done with before eight, by which time it was quite dark, save
for such light as the stars afforded. While this light was quite
sufficient to enable one to see one's way about the island, it was not
powerful enough to reveal objects at any great distance. The conditions
were, therefore, quite favourable for our purpose, and when I left the
building in which supper had been served I sauntered off in an aimless
sort of way, as though going for a stroll toward the peak before turning
in for the night. But when I had gone about a quarter of a mile, and
had satisfied myself that no one was about--for the settlers were, as a
rule, early birds, and usually turned in almost immediately after
supper--I made a detour which took me, by way of a slight hollow, down
to the inner beach, along which I passed towards the rendezvous
mentioned by Gurney. This spot was situated beneath the cl