e the previous morning but, looking forward,
he saw that the bowsprit was gone, and the fore-topmast had been
carried away. The sea was as high as ever, but patches of blue sky
showed overhead between the clouds, and the wind was blowing
somewhat less violently.

"We have been in the wars, you see, youngster," the captain said,
when Bob made his way aft; "but we may thank God it was no worse.
We have had a pretty close squeak of it, but the worst is over,
now. The wind is going down, and the gale will have blown itself
out by this evening. It was touch-and-go several times during the
night and, if she had had a few more tons of cargo in her, she
would never have risen from some of those waves; but I think, now,
we shall see Oporto safely--which was more than I expected, about
midnight."

For some hours Bob, himself, had considerable doubts as to this, so
deeply did the brig bury herself in the waves; but after twelve
o'clock the wind fell rapidly and, although the waves showed no
signs of decreasing in height, their surface was smoother, and they
seemed to strike the vessel with less force and violence.

"Now, Mr. Probert," said the captain, "do you and Joe turn in, till
first watch. I will take charge of the deck. After that, you can
set regular watches again."

The main-topsail was already on her and, at six o'clock, the
captain had two of its reefs shaken out; and the other reef was
also loosed, when Mr. Probert came up and took charge of the first
watch, at eight bells. That night Bob lay on the floor, for the
motion was more violent than before--the vessel rolling, gunwale
under--for the wind no longer pressed upon her sails, and kept her
steady, and he would have found it impossible to maintain his
position in his berth.

In the morning, he went up. The sun was rising in an unclouded sky.
There was scarce a breath of wind. The waves came along in high,
glassy rollers--smooth mounds of water which extended, right and
left, in deep valleys and high ridges. The vessel was rolling
tremendously, the lower yards sometimes touching the water. Bob had
to wait some time before he could make a rush across to the bulwark
and, when he did so, found it almost impossible to keep his feet.
He could see that the men forward were no longer crouching for
shelter under the break of the fo'castle, but were holding on by
the shrouds or stays, smoking their pipes, and laughing and joking
together. Until the motion abated somewh