ning to the side we saw a
boat with five men in her pulling towards us. An oldish man of portly
figure, who looked like a sea captain, was steering.

"Are ye the only people aboard?" he sang out as he saw us.

"The only live ones, sir," answered Jim.

There was no time to exchange more words before the boat was alongside,
and the old gentleman and his men stepped on board. He gave a look of
surprise as he saw the captain's body, and he then, turning to us,
appeared more surprised still.

"Why, my laddies, what has happened? How did this craft come here?" he
asked, in a kind tone.

I briefly told him how the masts had been carried away and the people
washed overboard, and how the captain had been struck down and
afterwards had died, and how we had kept him to bury him decently on
shore, adding--

"He told us to steer west, sir, and so we did, but we don't know what
country we've come to."

"Why, surely, to Shetland, laddies," he answered. "But if ye had kept a
little farther to the north ye would have passed our islands and run
into the Atlantic, and it's weel for ye that ye didna do that. And now
my men and I will take your craft up the voe and anchor her in safety.
We might carry her to Lerwick, but the weather is unsettled, and she's
na weel fitted to encounter another gale, no discredit to ye, laddies."

Our new friend evidently compassionated our forlorn condition; indeed,
now that the necessity for exerting ourselves was over, we both sank
down utterly exhausted on the deck.

The Shetlanders would have carried us below, but we begged to remain
where we were, that we might see what was going forward. They therefore
left us, and having placed the captain's body on the main hatch, covered
by a flag, they proceeded to pull our raft to pieces and to hoist the
spars composing it on board. This done, the four men jumped into the
boat, and going ahead began to tow the brig, while the old gentleman
went to the helm to steer.

Before long, however, a breeze from the eastward springing up, the boat
returned alongside, the men hoisted the canvas, and we stood in towards
the voe, as the gulf, we found, was called. I could just distinguish
the high green hills, with here and there grey cliffs and rocks jutting
out from these on either side, as we sailed up the voe, but my eyes grew
dimmer and dimmer till the brig's anchor was dropped, and I was just
aware that we were being placed in the boat to be carried on