ou keep
your eye gazin' in that direction and you'll--there she is again! See
her, sir?"

"Ay, I do," said I, as I caught a momentary glimpse of a small dark
object which appeared for a moment, hovering on the crest of a sea, and
then sank out of sight again. And, as Murdock had said, it certainly
presented very much the appearance of a small boat drifting slowly away
toward the south-west before the freshening Trade wind. Moreover,
although the glimpse I had caught had been but momentary, I thought I
had detected the appearance of what might very well be a crouching human
figure sitting in her. Presently I got another sight of the thing, and
my impression that it was indeed a boat--or possibly a canoe--with one
or more persons in her was so greatly strengthened that I determined
there and then to investigate.

"I really believe you are right, Murdock," said I. "At all events it
looks so much like a boat--with people in her--that we certainly ought
to satisfy ourselves. So, come along, one of you; we'll take the
catamaran and go off to her. If it really is a boat, and there are
people in her, it is very evident that they are too utterly exhausted to
make the island, and if they miss it they will inevitably perish. Come
along; we have not a moment to waste if we are to save the daylight."

With one accord each of my companions stepped forward, eager to
accompany me the moment that there was a question of saving life; but I
needed only one man, and I chose Murdock, as being the smartest seaman
and the strongest man among them: and without further ado we took to our
heels and raced to the beach, I shouting over my shoulder to Cunningham
to stay where he was and guide us by signalling with his hands the
direction in which we should steer.

As I had said, we had not a moment to waste, for the sun's disk was even
then within a finger's breadth of the horizon, and darkness followed
sunset with amazing swiftness in that latitude. Murdock and I therefore
ran at our utmost speed to the beach, cast adrift the catamaran, sprang
aboard her, thrust her head offshore, and then threw ourselves upon the
halyards and mast-headed the yard, when I seized the steering paddle and
headed the craft for an opening between the breakers on the reef, while
Murdock stationed himself beside me, with his hand shielding his eyes as
he stared seaward, anxiously watching for the first glimpse of the
object of which we were in pursuit.

Fo