"for every mother's son
that can swim will be hugged by a half-dozen that can't, which would be
bad for me."

"Why so; can't you swim?"

"Not a bit of it."

"And nothing but this bench to keep us from sinking."

"And be the same towken isn't that good enough, if it only kaaps us
afloat? Can't ye be satisfied?"

"Look! how grand!"

It was indeed a fearful sight, the steamer being one pyramid of roaring,
blazing fire, sweeping upward in great fan-like rifts, then blowing
outward, horizontally across the deep, as if greedy for the poor beings
who had sprung in agony from its embrace. Millions of sparks were
floating and drifting overhead and falling all around. The shrieks of
the despairing passengers, as with their clothes all aflame they sprung
blindly into the ocean, could be heard by our friends, and must indeed
have extended a far greater distance.

For an hour the conflagration raged with apparently unabated violence,
the wreck drifting quite rapidly; but the fire soon tired of its work,
large pieces of burning timber could be seen floating in the water, and
finally the charred hull made a plunge downward into the sea, and our
friends were left alone upon their frail support.

"Now, it's time to decide what we are going to do," said Howard.

"You are right, and what shall it be? Shall we drift about here until
morning, when some vessel will pick us up? I have no doubt this fire has
drawn a half-dozen toward it."

"No; let's make for shore."

"That is the best plan," said Tim.

"But it is a good way off," remarked Howard; "and I have little hope of
reaching it."

"Never mind; it, will keep us busy, and that will make the time pass
faster than if we do nothing but float."

"We may need our strength; but it is the best plan."

"But do we know the direction?"

"I can tell you that," said Elwood; "for the moon was directly over the
shore; so all we've got to do is to aim for the moon."

"Begorrah! we can walk and talk, as the owld lady said when her husband
stopped on the way to the gallows to bid her good-by. So paddle away!"

It being a warm summer night, the water was quite pleasant, although our
friends were sure to get enough of it long before they could hope to
place their feet upon the earth. Having now an object, they began
working with a will, the boys swimming as lustily as possible straight
for the shore, while Tim assisted materially in pushing forward the
craft.

The intelligent New