e enough!"

"Away to the nor'-east, I suppose?"

"Aye, aye, sir," said Mr Fosset. "The breeze, what there was, has been
from the sou'-east and the current trends in the same direction."

"Then if we steer east-nor'-east we ought to pick her up soon?"

"Not a doubt of it, sir. We have four good hours of daylight left yet!"

"Precisely my opinion," cried the skipper. "Mr Stokes, will the
engines stand full speed now, do you think?"

"Oh, yes, sir," replied the old chief, who with the rest of us was all
agog to be after the strange ship again, now that he had heard the
colonel's explanation of her true character, "if you'll send some one
below to tell Stoddart what you want. I would go myself, but I'm rather
shaky in getting down the hatchway as yet. I twisted my arm just now
when I went down."

"That's all right. Stoddart, I am sure, will excuse you," said the
skipper kindly, and turning to me he added: "You, Haldane, run down and
tell Stoddart we want all the steam we can get. He won't spare the
engines, I know, when he knows the circumstances of the case, and you
will explain matters!"

So saying, the skipper started off forwards in the direction of the
bridge, while I dived down the engine-room hatchway, reaching the
machinery-flat just as the "old man" sounded the gong to put on full
speed ahead, the telegraph working quick as if he were in a great hurry!

Ere I could tell my story Stoddart sent an answering blast up the steam
pipe to let the skipper know his signal was being attended to; and then,
pulling back the lever of the throttle valve, the piston began to go up
and down, the cylinder oscillated from side to side and the crank shaft
revolved at first slowly, but presently faster and faster until we were
now going to the utmost of our pace.

All this while I was yarning away, though I had to shout to the top of
my voice in order to overcome the noise of the machinery, as I described
all that had occurred.

I did not speak to unheeding ears.

"By Jove, Haldane!" cried Stoddart, who was a man of action if ever
there was one. "The cylinder is all right again and will bear any
pressure now, and I tell you what it is, the old barquey shall steam
along in pursuit of those demons faster than she ever went in her life
since she was launched and engined!"

"I am with you there, old fellow," said Grummet, our third engineer,
hastening towards the stoke-hold. "I'll go down and see the firemen and
s