drove me
almost wild with terror.

That was a horrible voyage! A fearful tempest came on before the vessel
readied the place of her destination, whatever that might be. The winds
whistled and raged, and the ship reeled and plunged like a restive
horse; and again and again torrents of salt water came sweeping down
into the hold! Then, as the furious storm continued, the very seams of
the ship seemed to open like pores, to let in the sea, which was
knocking and raging without for admittance, till at length the hold
became like a ditch, which we rats could not cross but by swimming!

Then the pumps were set to work-- I could hear the men toiling at them
day and night; yet the water gained on them notwithstanding their
efforts. There were tremendous noises on deck; I fancied once or twice
that I could distinguish human cries; and what with the constant
splashing of the water as the vessel rolled heavily from side to side,
and the bumping and thumping of some casks that had got loose, and were
smashing against one another, and the shouting, and the roaring of wind
and waves, there was enough to stun and terrify any creature, be he
quadruped or biped!

Such of the corn as remained in our sack was becoming so soft from salt
water that it had acquired the consistence of a pudding. But we had now
no heart even to eat!

We had so often heard the captain's voice raised to give loud orders,
that we had ceased to pay any particular attention to them, little
dreaming that any would concern us further than as they regarded the
safety of the vessel. But at length the result of an order to lighten
the ship was speedily felt in the hold! Our sack (for we still made it
our hiding-place) was suddenly lifted with others; and before we had
time even to guess what was intended, splash we went into the sea!

Ugh! how the water bubbled in our ears! What frantic efforts we made to
free ourselves from the sack! Nor were those efforts without success,
for we had long ago gnawed the string which fastened its mouth: it
opened with the motion of the waves, and corn, rats and all, floated
upon the surface of the raging billows!

Down in two seconds went the corn, swallowed up by the sea; still we
struggled, drowning rats that we were, to save ourselves by desperate
swimming. Of course our strength must soon have been exhausted, and the
mighty green waves must have swept us to destruction, had not a barrel,
thrown out from the ship, been happily