a of interfering; then paused, gazing
uncertainly from one to the other, evidently undecided as to what
action, if any, they ought to take. They looked at the mate; and the
mate looked at Leslie.

"You had better take him below, and let him lie down for a while, Mr
Purchas," said Leslie, assuming quite naturally the direction of
affairs. "And when you have done so," he continued, "I shall be obliged
if you will kindly afford me the opportunity for a few minutes'
conversation."

"All right," answered the mate, "I will. Yes, that'll be best; let's
take him below into my cabin. Lay hold here, Bill, and give me a hand
to get the skipper down the companion ladder."

With some difficulty they got Potter below and into the mate's cabin,
where they laid him in the bunk and, making him as comfortable as they
could, left him to recover his scattered faculties. Meanwhile, Leslie,
catching sight of the ship's telescope hanging in beckets in the
companion-way, took possession of it and, slipping the revolver into his
jacket pocket, again ascended to the main-top; from which elevation, and
with the aid of the telescope, he quickly satisfied himself that there
certainly _was_ at least one living person clinging to the wreckage and
intermittently waving what looked like a strip of canvas, with the
evident design of attracting the brig's attention.

By the time that he had assured himself of this fact, Purchas had
returned to the deck; seeing which, Leslie beckoned him up into the top.

"Look here, Purchas," he said, as the mate scrambled over the rim and
stood beside him, "I was right in my surmise, there _is_ some living
person, or persons, on that wreckage. Take the glass and satisfy
yourself of the truth of my statement."

The mate took the glass, and presently, removing the instrument from his
eye, turned to Leslie.

"You are right, Mr Leslie," he said, "there _is_ somebody there, I can
see him wavin' something. Now, the question is, what's to be done? The
sun's pretty near settin', and it'll be dark in half an hour or
thereabouts."

"The more need that you should arrive at a prompt decision," interrupted
Leslie. "Now, if I may advise, what I would suggest is this. Let me
have the quarter-boat and four hands. I will go down to the wreck and
bring off anybody who may be upon it, and if it falls dark before we
return, hoist a lantern to the peak, as a guide to us, and we shall then
have no difficulty in finding t