s telescope,
George, thinking he must surely have misinterpreted the message, dived
below to take a look at his barometer. A single glance at it was
sufficient to show him that he was not mistaken, the mercury having
fallen a full inch in little more than two hours.

When he returned to the deck again, which he did immediately, the
various ships were lying with their heads all round the compass, the
merchantmen showing no signs that they understood the signal; but on
board the men-o'-war the crews were seen to be very busy reefing
topsails; the topgallant and royal-masts and yards being already sent
down on deck.

Captain Leicester lost no time in following their example, as far as he
was able. To send down on deck any of his top-hamper, with his limited
crew, was of course quite out of the question, but he called all hands,
and, hurrying them aloft, set them to work, first to furl all the light
upper canvas, and then to close-reef both topsails. This done, he
ordered them to furl the main and fore courses, which were already
clewed up.

Part of the crew were already on the main-yard, and the remainder,
having completed the reefing of the fore-topsail, had descended from
aloft forward and were on their way up the main-rigging to assist in the
stowing of the main-sail, when a heavy black, threatening-looking
cloud-bank, which lay stretched along the western horizon, was seen to
suddenly burst open, revealing a broad copper-tinted rent, which widened
with alarming rapidity.

George's quick eye detected the change in an instant, and knowing what
it meant, and that there was no time to lose, hailed the crew with a
loud shout of--

"Now then, my lads, look alive aloft there, and toss up that main-sail
smartly. If you are quick about it, you may yet get the gaskets round
it before the gale strikes us; if you are not, we shall lose the sail,
and very probably some of you, too."

The men answered with a cheery "Ay, ay, sir," and set to work with a
will, Leicester and the chief mate springing aft to the wheel at the
same moment.

In the meantime the broad yellow rent in the clouds to the westward had
spread very considerably, the vapour overhead had gathered way, and was
scudding rapidly across the sky in an easterly direction, and already,
upon the western horizon, a long, rapidly advancing line of white
foaming water gave unmistakable indications of the close proximity of
the hurricane. The old _Tremendous_ now