swing her inboard a few minutes before
it became imperatively necessary for us to wear round in order to avoid
going ashore upon the barrier reef. By this time, too, we were able to
see a great crowd of people gathered upon the south Head watching us;
and once or twice we even thought we caught the sound of hailing; but
their attempts to communicate with us ended with that, a fear which I
had entertained that a number of them might attempt to swim out and
scramble aboard while we were all busy with the longboat proving
groundless.

We contrived to get the ship round with her head to the northward again,
just in time to avoid nicely hitting the reef; and then, upon the
principle that it is useless to make two bites at a cherry, we
determined to complete our task fully before going outside; we therefore
got the yard and stay tackles down and stowed away, and the longboat
properly secured in gripes before attempting to pass out through the
reef. This kept us busy for nearly another hour, at the end of which we
tacked for the last time in the lagoon, and bore away for the passage
through the reef, which we successfully negotiated just as the sun's
upper rim flashed above the horizon, the jollyboat and the two gigs that
we intended to leave behind having been cast adrift a quarter of an hour
earlier.

We were all by this time beginning to feel the need of both food and
rest, we therefore decided to treat ourselves to a good, substantial
breakfast to start with; after which, the weather being fine, and the
glass high, three out of the four of us might safely venture to snatch a
few hours' sleep. Accordingly I went aft to relieve Grace Hartley at
the wheel, while she retired to the cabin which had been allotted to her
and made a hasty toilet prior to an incursion into the steward's pantry
with the view of arranging for breakfast. But Saunders was beforehand
with her; for while she was refreshing herself he entered the pantry and
gave it an overhaul, finding a smoked ham, a barrel of cabin bread,
coffee, cocoa, sugar, and a number of other articles already stowed
there by the steward who was to have accompanied the ship on her
projected voyage to China. The ham he promptly cut, carrying several
slices, together with the coffee, forward to the galley, where Gurney
was already busy starting a fire; after which he returned to the cabin
and produced a tablecloth, knives and forks, cups and saucers, plates
and dishes, and se