d as I struck
out afresh I was cheered and encouraged by the assurance that day was
not far distant, for, looking ahead, I saw that the sky low down toward
the horizon wore the pallor that is the forerunner of dawn.

By imperceptible degrees the day crept up over the eastern horizon, cold
and white; and, as soon as there was light enough to enable me to see
from the crest of one swell to that of the next, I began to look about
me in the hope of finding flotsam of some sort that would be useful to
me; also it occurred to me that there might be some who had remembered
that cork jackets were to be found in every state-room, and might have
made use of them; in which case I might fall in with other survivors,
who might be useful to me, and I to them, if we joined forces.

For several minutes my search of the surface of the sea proved
fruitless, at which I was distinctly disconcerted, for I knew that there
were many articles of a buoyant nature which had been lying loose about
the decks, and which must have floated off when the ship sank; and I was
beginning to fear that somehow I had got out of my reckoning and had
missed the scene of the catastrophe. But a minute or two later, as I
topped the ridge of a swell, I caught a momentary glimpse of something
floating, some fifty or sixty fathoms away, and, striking out vigorously
in that direction, I presently arrived at the spot and found myself in
the midst of a small collection of brooms, scrubbing-brushes, squeegees,
buckets, deck-chairs, gratings, and--gigantic slice of luck!--one of the
ship's life-boats floating bottom up! But of human beings, living or
dead, not a sign; it was therefore evident that, of the five hundred and
thirty-five aboard the _Saturn_ at the moment of the disaster, I was the
sole survivor.

Naturally, I made straight for the upturned life-boat; but recognising
that a bucket might prove very useful I secured one and towed it along
with me. Reaching the boat I was greatly gratified to find that not
only was she quite undamaged but also that she was riding buoyantly,
with the whole of her keel and about a foot of her bottom above the
surface of the water. Of course the first thing to be done was to right
the boat, and then to bale her out; and, with the water as smooth as it
then was, I thought there ought not to be much difficulty in doing
either. The righting of the boat, however, proved to be very much more
difficult than I had imagined. She wa