rocks, they must take out a line. Bold fellows!'

'Where are the boats?' asked Mr. Ashford.

'I can tell that,' said Ledbury; 'they must have got under the lee of
the lesser Shag. There's a ring there that Sir Guy had put in to moor
his boat to. They'll be made fast there, and those two must be taking
the rope along that ledge, so as for the poor fellows on the rock to
have a hold of, as they creep along to where the boats are.'

'Those broken rocks!' said Mr. Ashford. 'Can there be a footing, and in
such a sea?'

'Can you give a guess who they be, sir?' asked Robinson, earnestly. 'If
you'd only let Jem have a look, maybe he could guess.'

Markham's glass was at his service.

'Hullo! what a sea! I see them now. That's Ben going last--I know his
red cap. And the first--why, 'tis Sir Guy himself!'

'Don't be such a fool, Jem' cried Markham, angrily. 'Sir Guy knows
better. Give me the glass.'

But when it was restored, Markham went on spying in silence, while
Brown, keeping fast possession of his own telescope, communicated his
observations.

'Ay, I see them. Where are they? He's climbing now. There's a breaker
just there, will wash them off, as sure as they're alive! I don't see
'em. Yes, I do--there's Redcap! There's something stirring on the rock!'

So they watched till, after an interval, in which the boats
disappeared behind the rocks, they were seen advancing over the waters
again--one--yes--both, and loaded. They came fast, they were in sight
of all, growing larger each moment, mounting on the crest of the huge
rolling waves, then plunged in the trough so long as to seem as if
they were lost, then rising--rising high as mountains. Over the roaring
waters came at length the sound of voices, a cheer, pitched in a
different key from the thunder of wind and wave; they almost fancied
they knew the voice that led the shout. Such a cheer as rose in answer,
from all the Redclyffe villagers, densely crowded on quay, and beach,
and every corner of standing ground!

The sun was just up, his beams gilded the crests of the leaping waves,
and the spray danced up, white and gay, round the tall rocks, whose
shadow was reflected in deep green, broken by the ever-moving swell. The
Shag and its attendant rocks, and the broken vessel, were bathed in the
clear morning light; the sky was of a beautiful blue, with magnificent
masses of dark cloud, the edges, where touched by the sunbeams, of a
pearly white; and across the b