ir hands and well attended to, the couple
returned to the deck.

They found that the wind was lessening every moment, and the clouds were
disappearing fast, permitting the moon to shine out fitfully; but the
sea, no longer kept down by the pressure of the wind, was rising
rapidly.

"I think the squall is past its worst, Harry," said Roger. "What we
have to fear now is the sea, which will get worse, I am afraid, ere it
goes down--but look there! Merciful Heaven! what is that?" he
continued, pointing away over their port quarter with his finger.

The inky blackness had lifted somewhat, and they could plainly perceive
the hull of one of their own ships, presumably; but her ports were open,
and her interior appeared as a glowing furnace, while, even as they
looked, tongues of fire spurted up from her deck and began to lick round
her masts, and from the hapless vessel a long wail of anguish and
despair came floating down the wind.

Every eye in the ship was at once turned to the burning vessel, which
they presently made out to be, by her rig, the _Salvador_, one of the
two captured Spanish vessels.

What seemed to have happened was that the Spanish prisoners confined
below had fired the ship before the squall came down, in the hope of
being able to overpower their captors in the ensuing confusion, trusting
to luck for the opportunity to extinguish the conflagration afterwards.
The storm arising after they had set fire to the vessel, however, the
wind had fanned the flames until she had become a raging fiery furnace
fore-and-aft. And there was no means of affording succour to the
miserable men on board her, for the sea was running tremendously high
and rising every minute.

She was an awful but gorgeous spectacle, presenting the appearance of a
floating volcano, vomiting flame and smoke as she rushed along before
the wind; but still more awful were the cries and shrieks of agony that
were borne to them across the intervening water.

Cavendish at once gave orders that his ship should be run as close as
possible, compatible with her safety, and this was done; but it was
impossible to save her wretched crew, and the rest of the fleet endured
the misery of beholding their comrades burn, together with the
panic-stricken Spaniards, the authors of the calamity, as many of whom
as possible had been released as soon as the fire was discovered.

A speedy end, however, came to the appalling tragedy which was taking
place be