to make Mr Jones listen to her complaints; but, though the notes of her
voice were distinguishable, that much-enduring lady could but seldom
catch the meaning of her words. "Terrible!" then the ship rolled and
the bulk-heads creaked. "Deceitful!" and a blow on the quarter from the
sea prevented the remainder of the sentence being heard. "Ought to have
come another way,"--the increasing uproar drowned even her voice.
"Complain to authorities," showed that Mrs Clagget entertained strong
doubts of the captain's seamanship. Now and then, when he made his
appearance in the cabin, though he was but seldom off the deck, she
attacked him vigorously. He, however, only smiled at her complaints,
and assured her that, had he the management of the weather, he would
have arranged smooth seas and steady breezes for her sake, and for that
of the other fair ladies on board. "But you see, madam," he observed,
"though the wind blows pretty strong, it is carrying us at a good rate
on our course. In a few days we shall be at no great distance from the
southern end of New Zealand; and, once under the lee of the land, we
shall have, I hope, smooth water and a fair breeze to carry us into
port."

The gale, however, continued longer than the captain expected; but he
hoped soon to make the land which he had spoken of. This news raised
the spirits of all, and many who, during the continuance of the
hurricane, had shut themselves up in their cabins, now once more
appeared on deck.

"Do you really tell me that the sea has greatly gone down?" said Emily,
as she watched the still mountainous billows amid which the ship
laboured.

"Oh, they are mere mole-hills to what they have been," answered Bill
Windy, who was standing by. "The stout ship makes nothing of them.
See, we have our three topsails set again, and shall soon be shaking out
the topgallant sails and letting fall the courses." The mate, however,
was wrong in his prognostications. During the middle watch, while the
second mate had charge of the deck, the wind suddenly chopped round.
The ship heeled to the fearful blast. In an instant her lee-yardarms
were dipping in the foaming seas. Before he had time to issue any
orders the main topgallant mast was carried away, dragging the
fore-topmast, and with it the jibboom. Still the ship did not rise--she
was on her beam-ends. Captain Westerway and Bill Windy were on deck in
an instant. The watch below came hurrying up without bein