and
a cloudy, black sky was above, and the black sea beneath him. He had
not seen the light fade, and had perhaps fallen asleep and seen and
talked with that old sea monster in a dream. But now he could not
escape from his position down in the gap, just above the roaring
waves. There he had to stay, sheltered in a cavity in the rock, and
lying there, half sleeping and half waking, he had that great voice
of the sea in his ears all night.

CHAPTER XVIII

MARTIN PLAYS WITH THE WAVES

After a night spent in the roar of the sea, a drenched and bruised
prisoner among the rocks, it was nice to see the dawn again. No
sooner was it light than Martin set about trying to make his escape.
He had been washed by that big wave into a deep cleft among the
rocks and masses of hard clay, and shut in there he could not see the
water nor anything excepting a patch of sky above him. Now he began
climbing over the stones and crawling and forcing himself through
crevices and other small openings, making a little progress, for he
was sore from his bruises and very weak from his long fast, and at
intervals, tired and beaten, he would drop down crying with pain and
misery. But Martin was by nature a very resolute little boy, and
after two or three minutes' rest his tears would cease, and he would
be up struggling on determinedly as before. He was like some little
wild animal when it finds itself captive in a cage or box or room,
who tries without ceasing to find a way out. There may be no way,
but it will not give up trying to find one. And at last, after so
much trying, Martin's efforts were rewarded: he succeeded in getting
into the steep passage by which he had come down to the sea on the
previous day, and in the end got to the top of the cliff once more.
It was a great relief, and after resting a little while he began to
feel glad and happy at the sight before him: there was the glorious
sea again, not as he had seen it before, its wide surface roughened
by the wind and flecked with foam; for now the water was smooth, but
not still; it rose and fell in vast rollers, or long waves that were
like ridges, wave following wave in a very grand and ordered manner.
And as he gazed, the clouds broke and floated away, and the sky grew
clear and bright, and then all at once the great red sun came up out
of the waters!

But it was impossible for him to stay there longer when there was
nothing to eat; his extreme hunger compelled him to g