sel was leaping and plunging most
furiously, and the compass-card was none too steady in the bowl; but at
length he stepped back from the binnacle with an air of triumph,
exclaiming:

"There, Mr Grenvile, what d'ye make of that, sir?"

Whereupon I, in turn, stepped up to the binnacle, and with equal care
took the bearing.

"I make it east and by south, half south," said I.

"And east and by south, half south it is!" answered Jones exultantly.
"Which means, sir, that we've head-reached on the brig to the extent of
half a p'int within this last hour, and that, too, in a breeze and a sea
so heavy that the brig ought to walk away from us hand over hand. Well,
I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself; but seein' is
believin', I have heard say. And more than that," he continued, taking
up the glass and levelling it at the _Dona Inez_, "I'm blest if I don't
believe as we're weatherin' on her too. Take this glass, Mr Grenvile,
and tell me whether you don't think as we've drawed up a bit closer to
the commodore since eight bells struck."

To humour the fellow I took the telescope, as requested, and certainly
when I got the brig focused in the lens her image appeared to be more
distinct and also perceptibly larger than it had been when I last looked
at her.

The hours sped on without change of any sort, except that when at length
midnight arrived there was no longer any room to doubt that, since we
had taken in our square canvas, and thus relieved the overdriven little
hooker, we had steadily, if somewhat slowly, head-reached and weathered
upon the commodore; and then, as there seemed to be no prospect of any
further news from our consort that night, I went below and turned in,
leaving instructions that I was to be called at once, without fail,
should anything occur to render necessary my presence on deck, or should
the commodore exhibit any further signals. In less than five minutes I
was fast asleep.

I was awakened next morning by the loud knocking of the steward at my
state-room door.

"Six bells, Mistah Grenvile, sah; and here is your coffee," announced
San Domingo, as he stood balancing the cup and saucer in his hand and
swaying to the still lively movements of the schooner, although it
struck me at once that she was not nearly so lively in her motions as
she had been when I turned in at midnight. I raised myself in my bunk
and peered through the closed scuttle that was let into the side of the