to
administer it.

The two men entered the cabin together, and stepped to the side of the
bunk. The figure of Potter still lay exactly as they had left him; but
as Leslie stood for a moment gazing, he gradually became aware that a
subtle change in the man's appearance had taken place; through the
swarthy tints of the sunburnt complexion an ashen grey hue seemed to
have spread. He bent closer, and laid his hand upon the wrist, feeling
for the pulse. There was no beat perceptible. He moistened the back of
his hand and laid it close to the lips, waiting anxiously to feel the
breath playing upon the moistened skin. He could detect nothing. Then
he laid his hand upon the man's chest, over his heart. The chest had
ceased to heave; and there was not the faintest throb of the heart, so
far as he could feel. Finally, he snatched a small mirror from the nail
on which it was hanging, and laid it gently, face downward, on Potter's
mouth. He left it there for fully two minutes; and when at length he
lifted it again its surface was still bright and undimmed as before. He
carefully hung the mirror upon its nail again, and, turning to the mate,
said--

"Mr Purchas, I regret to inform you that Captain Potter is dead!"

"Dead!" ejaculated Purchas. "No, no; he can't _be_! there must be some
mistake."

"I very greatly fear that there is _no_ mistake about it," returned
Leslie. "I have seen death, in my time, too often not to recognise it.
You will observe that breathing has ceased; neither can I find any trace
of a pulse, or the slightest flutter of the heart-beat. All these
symptoms are, I believe, quite consistent with a state of trance; and,
remembering that, we must of course be careful to do nothing
precipitately. But I am convinced that the man is really dead--a very
short time will suffice, in this climate, to demonstrate whether or not
that is the case--and I would advise you to give immediate instructions
to have the necessary preparations made for his burial. Should my
surmise prove correct, you are now the master of this brig; and as such
you will of course adopt such measures with regard to me, as the
immediate cause of this misfortune, as you may deem fit. But there is
no necessity to put me in irons; I cannot very well escape."

"Put you in irons!" ejaculated Purchas; "I should think not. No, Mr
Leslie, you had no intention of killin' the skipper; I'll swear to that.
It was an accident; neither more nor