arked, the wind was falling
light; it had dropped quite perceptibly since sunrise, and the state of
the ocean was reflecting this change; the sea was going down; it no
longer broke anywhere, and the conditions for swimming were improving
every moment. The pair of strange voyagers were making excellent
progress, as was evidenced by the rapidity with which they drew away
from the raft; within half an hour, indeed, they had left it so far
astern that it was with the utmost difficulty Leslie was able to locate
it again when he paused for a moment to rest. And when a further
quarter of an hour had elapsed it had vanished altogether; thus
vindicating Leslie's previous doubts as to the wisdom of swimming out
alone to intercept the ship, leaving Miss Trevor upon the raft, to be
sought for and picked up later on.

As to the craft for which they were aiming, it was clear that she was
but a slow tub, for she came drifting down toward them at a very
deliberate pace. The wind had softened away to about a four-knot
breeze; but Leslie was of opinion that, although she showed all plain
sail, up to her royals, she was scarcely doing three knots. This was
all in their favour, for while the smoothening of the sea's surface
enabled Leslie to attain a much more satisfactory rate of speed with the
same moderate amount of exertion, the low rate of sailing of the
on-coming vessel rendered it certain that, apart from accident, they
would now assuredly be able to reach her. And by the time that this had
become an undoubted fact, Leslie had made out that the stranger was a
small brig, of some two hundred and thirty tons, or thereabout. He
would greatly have preferred that she had been a bigger craft, because
the probability would then have been greater of her proving a passenger
ship, and a passenger ship was what Leslie was now particularly anxious
to fall in with, for Miss Trevor's sake--a change of clothing being an
almost indispensable requirement on the part of the young lady, so soon
as she should once more find herself on a ship's deck. That there were
no passengers--or, at least, no women passengers--aboard the brig,
however, was practically certain--she was much too small for that--and
unless the skipper happened to be a married man, with his wife aboard,
Miss Trevor would have to fall back upon her own resources and ingenuity
for a change of clothing. He discussed this matter with his companion
as he swam onward; but the young w