and uncomplaining, he came and sat down
quietly by the side of Arthur in the stern.

As the day advanced, the heat became dreadful. We had not suffered much
from it the day before, on account of the fresh breeze which had
prevailed; but now, not a breath of air was stirring, and the glassy sea
reflected back upon us the scorching rays of the sun, with increased
intensity. Towards noon, it exceeded any thing I had ever experienced.
The whole arch of the heavens glowed with a hot and coppery glare. It
seemed as though instead of one sun, there were ten thousand, covering
all the sky, and blending their rays into a broad canopy of fire. The
air was like that of an oven: the water had no coolness, no refreshing
quality; it was tepid and stagnant: no living thing was to be seen near
the surface, for life could not be sustained there; and the fishes,
great and small, kept themselves in the cooler depths, far below.
Almost stifled by the heat, we began to experience the first real and
extreme suffering that most of us had ever known. At Arthur's
suggestion, we disengaged the now useless sail from the mast, and
contrived a kind of awning, by fastening two of the oars upright in the
boat, with the mast extending between them, throwing the sail over the
latter, and securing the ends to the gunwales. This, although it could
not protect us from the sultry and suffocating air, warded off the
blistering beams of the sun, and during the greater part of the day, we
lay crouched beneath it, a miserable company; one or another of us
crawling out occasionally, to take a survey. Towards the close of the
afternoon, my sufferings from thirst grew absolutely intolerable, and
amounted to torment. My blood became fevered; my brain seemed on fire;
my shrunk and shrivelled tongue, was like a dry stick in my mouth. The
countenances of my companions, their bloodshot eyes, and cracked and
swollen lips, shewed what they were undergoing. Johnny lay in the
bottom of the boat with his eyes shut enduring all, with as much
fortitude as the rest of us, except that now and then a half suppressed
moan escaped him.

It was quite clear that relief, in order to be of any avail, must be
speedy.

CHAPTER SEVEN.

A CHANGE.

A WELCOME PERIL--THE ALBATROSS AND THEIR PREY--A TROPICAL THUNDER-STORM.

"Eternal Providence, exceeding thought,
Where none appears, can make itself a way."

While lying crouched under the sail, almost gasping for br