l crawled in, wet and cold, but with hearts grateful to
God for our wonderful preservation. As we were packed very close to each
other, the natural warmth of our bodies soon relieved us considerably
from the sensation of wetness and cold, and we passed the night as
comfortably as our varied miseries would allow.

Morning came, and we left our cave. The gale had much abated, and we
could see some distance. We found that we were on a small desolate
island, about a mile long, half a mile wide, and about ten miles from
the place we left the day before. It was covered mostly with huge rocks,
with here and there a small patch of soil, overrun with prickly pear,
and inhabited by no living animal excepting lizards and small poisonous
snakes. We had been now over twenty-four hours without food or water. Of
the latter article, on searching around, we found a little in the
hollows on the rocks, but it was about half salt, having been made so by
the spray which the gale had thrown from the ocean quite over the
island, and the more we drank of it the more thirsty we became. As to
food, we were soon convinced that this was out of the question. Toward
night, we found a cask near the beach, standing on one end, with one
head out, which held about two gallons of water, that had rained in.
This was not salt, but smelled badly. We, however, scooped out with our
hands about one half of it, and left what remained for the next day. We
got some relief from this, and then we returned to our former
resting-place for the night.

When we crawled out on the following morning we found that the weather
had become fine and clear. We could see vessels passing at a short
distance from us, but had no means of making any signal, nor any for
leaving the shore. This being the third day of our distress and
privation, some of us began to suffer much from hunger. Others suffered
more from thirst. We, however, cheered each other with the faint hope
that some thing would appear for our relief. We wandered about as we had
done the day before, seeking for water but found none. We had nothing to
dig with but our hands; these we used, but in vain; no water appeared.
Toward night we went to the cask, and drank what remained there. We then
returned again to our cave for the night, all much exhausted and
low-spirited. Despair began to shade every countenance. Very little was
said, and we passed the night well as we could, pressed by hunger and
parched by thirst. Morn