d over. She still lay about a league a little north-of-west from
the residence of Andrea Barrofaldi, and in plain view of it; a deep bay
being south of her and abeam. No alterations had been made in her canvas
or her helm; most of the first being still in the brails and the latter
down. As the head of the frigate had been kept to the westward for the
last hour, she had forged some distance in that direction, and was now
quite as near the lugger as was the promontory, though nearly two miles
off the land. Her courses were hauled up, on account of the lightness of
the air; but all her upper sails stood, and were carefully watched and
trimmed, in order to make the most of the cats'-paws, or rather of the
breathings of the atmosphere, which occasionally caused the royals to
swell outward. On the whole, she might be drawing nearer to the lugger
at the rate of about a knot in an hour. La Divina Providenza was just
out of gun-shot from the frigate and about a mile from the lugger when
the boats shoved off from the former, though quite near the land, just
opening the bay so often named. The boats, of course, were pulling in a
straight line from the vessel they had just left toward that of which
they were in pursuit.

As to the time the day had advanced as far as eleven, which is a
portion of the twenty-four hours when the Mediterranean, in the summer
months, is apt to be as smooth as a mirror and as calm as if it never
knew a tempest. Throughout the morning there had been some irregularity
in the currents of air; the southerly breeze, generally light and
frequently fickle, having been even more light and baffling than common.
Still, as has been seen, there was sufficient air to force a vessel
through the water; and, had Raoul been as diligent as the people of the
two other craft, he might at that moment have been off the western end
of the island and far out of harm's way. As it was, he had continued
watching the result, but permitting all the other parties gradually to
approach him.

It must be allowed that the ruse of the felucca was well planned; and it
now seemed about to be admirably executed. Had it not been for Ithuel's
very positive knowledge of the ship--his entire certainty of her being
his old prison, as he bitterly called her--it is not improbable that the
lugger's crew might have been the dupe of so much well-acted ingenuity;
and as it was, opinions were greatly divided, Raoul himself being more
than half disposed