neral exclamation.
"Will it be a heavy one?"

The increasing tempest gave the response.

The naval captains thought of their ships, the residents of their
plantations. Not that there was much risk for the former, as they were
snugly moored; but still it was impossible to say what might happen.
Preparations were made by all the officers and several of the gentlemen
for instant departure; but, of course, the ladies could not face the
tempest. Most of them, however, had not much heart for dancing, when,
possibly, before morning their houses would be roofless and their
fathers' plantations laid low. A few persevered, in spite of the
whirlwind raging over their heads, but even they had at length to give
up. Their host insisted on all his female guests remaining. Cloaks and
shawls were collected, and sofas and chairs brought into the ball-room,
which was turned into a dormitory for those who could not be
accommodated in the other rooms. Stella wanted to accompany her father,
and was with difficulty persuaded to remain. Murray offered to ride
back as soon as the gale was over to escort her, and she smiled her
consent. The colonel declared that he must go to look after his friends
and their cottage, for he had no other excuse to offer. The officers
started on horseback, but they could with difficulty sit their steeds or
keep their naval cloaks around them as they faced the hurricane. Poor
Commander Babbicome had a hard task to perform, as his struggling steed
plunged forward in the darkness; and Jack and Adair, who in compassion
rode up to his assistance, found him clutching tightly by the animal's
mane, as he shouted out--

"Steady, now--steady, you brute! What is the wind about that it cannot
let a man sit his horse in quiet?"

It was no easy matter, however, for the best of horsemen to keep their
seats, and in the more exposed situations it seemed as if rider and
steed would be blown over together. Leaves, dust, stones, branches of
trees, and even heavier objects, came rushing through the air in dense
clouds, striking the travellers and obscuring their sight, so that it
was often impossible to see where they were going. The colonel seemed
to revel in the wild uproar of the elements, and led the way through the
darkness, shouting to his companions to follow. They were passing along
a part of the road with tall trees on either side. The dark branches
above their heads could be seen waving wildly to and fro,