r and out to sea.

"Now, sir, come a strange providence, which the very thoughts of it
might convert a heathen! We had been to sea about five days when a
dreadful storm riz. Oh, marster! the inky blackness of the sky, the
roaring of the wind, the raging of the sea, the leaping of the waves and
the rocking of that wessel--and every once in a while sea and ship all
ablaze with the blinding lightning--was a thing to see, not to hear tell
of! I tell you, marster, that looked like the wrath of God! And then the
cursing and swearing and bawling of the captain and the crew, as they
were a-takin' in of sail, was enough to raise one's hair on their head!
I hugged the baby to my breast, and went to praying as hard as ever I
could pray.

"Presently I felt an awful shock, as if heaven an' earth had come
together, and then everybody screaming, 'She's struck! She's struck!' I
felt the wessel trembling like a live creetur, and the water a-pouring
in everywhere. I hugged the babe and scrambled up the companionway to
the deck. It was pitch dark, and I heard every man rushing toward one
side of the wessel.

"A flash of lightning that made everything as bright as day again showed
me that they were all taking to the boat. I rushed after, calling to
them to save me and the baby. But no one seemed to hear me; they were
all too busy trying to save themselves and keep others out of the boat,
and cursing and swearing and hollering that there was no more room, that
the boat would be swamped, and so on. The end was, that all who could
crowd into the boat did so. And me and the baby and a poor sailor lad
and the black cook were left behind to perish.

"But, marster, as it turned out, we as was left to die were the only
ones saved. We watched after that boat with longing eyes, though we
could only see it when the lightning flashed. And every time we saw it
it was farther off. At last, marster, a flash of lightning showed us the
boat as far off as ever we could see her, capsized and beaten hither and
thither by the wild waves--its crew had perished.

"Marster, as soon as the sea had swallowed up that wicked captain and
crew the wind died away, the waves fell and the storm lulled--just as if
it had done what it was sent to do and was satisfied. The wreck--where
we poor forlorn ones stood--the wreck that had shivered and trembled
with every wave that struck it,--until we had feared it would break up
every minute, became still and firm on its sand