be necessary to express himself
by signs--for he could not speak the language; and though signs
seemed very inadequate, yet he had to resort to them. He had heard,
however, of the skill of the Italians in expressing ideas by means
of gestures, and he hoped that this man might gain some meaning
from his unskilled efforts.

So, first of all, he tried to tell the brigand that he was from.
America. He laid one hand on his heart, and waved the other towards
what he supposed to be the west.

The brigand nodded solemnly, and seemed to comprehend what he wished
to state. It gratified David to see this, and to notice also that
the brigand was very attentive, and fixed his dark, stern eyes upon
him with closest scrutiny.

The next thing that David tried to tell him was, that he had friends
with him.

This he did by patting his breast, waving his arms around him,
smiling, and touching four of his fingers.

The brigand nodded. He had apparently got idea.

David was very much encouraged.

The next thing to be told was, that he and his friends had gone on
an excursion into the country.

This he did by prancing along the sand, and snapping an imaginary
whip; after which he pointed to the opposite shore, waving his hand
along the country.

The brigand nodded again, and appeared deeply interested.

The next thing to be told was, that he had put off in this boat.

He waved his hand towards Vesuvius. Then he lay down on the
sand, and pretended to be asleep. He then rose, yawned, and
rubbed his eyes. Then he went to the boat, pretended to push
off and hoist sail.

The brigand now nodded very vigorously, and it began to be evident
to David that his story was making some impression.

He now wished to explain that the boat had got beyond his control,
on account of his ignorance of navigation, and that he had drifted
or been blown upon this shore.

To do this, he pointed to the boat, then to himself; after which
he sighed and looked down in a melancholy way. Then he got into
the boat and shook the sail. Then he jumped out and rocked it as
violently as he could. Then he sank back on one knee with folded
arms and upturned face, intending by that to indicate despair. Then
he waved his hands all about, and pointed to the boat and to the
sea; and then, pointing alternately to the boat and to the sea, he
waved his hands, trying to indicate the track over which he had
passed while approaching the island. After this he paused, and