rippled, and the waves
rolled in as if they were made of glass. Not a word was heard until the
captain spoke.

"It is the least we can do, men, to thank God for this miraculous escape.
I trust that there is not a man on board this ship who will not offer his
fervent thanks to Him who has so wonderfully brought us out of the jaws of
death."

Every head was bared, and for two or three minutes no sound was heard on
board the ship. Then the captain replaced his hat, and the men went
quietly off to their duties.

CHAPTER VI

A NARROW ESCAPE

They were hardly anchored before the gale showed signs of breaking, and in
a few hours the sun shone out and the wind subsided. The destruction of
the timber on the hillsides had been prodigious, and large spaces were
entirely cleared.

The captain and first lieutenant had an anxious consultation. Every boat
had gone, and all the masts and rigging. They were in what was practically
a hostile country, for although Spain had not declared war against us, she
gave every assistance to the French and left her ports open to them. In a
few weeks probably she would openly throw herself into the scale against
us.

"It is clear that we must communicate with Port Royal somehow," the
captain said, "but it certainly isn't clear how we are to do it. Between
this and the nearest port there may be miles and miles of mountain all
encumbered by fallen trees, which it would be almost impossible to get
through. Then again we have heard that there are always bands of fugitive
slaves in the mountains, who would be sure to attack us. As to the sea, we
might possibly make shift to build a boat. There is certainly no lack of
timber lying round, and we have plenty of sail-cloth for sails, so we
could fit her out fairly well. It would be a journey of fully a thousand
miles, but that seems the most feasible plan. A small craft of, say, forty
feet long might be built and got ready for sea in the course of a week."

"I should say so certainly, sir. With the amount of labour we have at our
disposal it might be built even sooner than that. We have plenty of handy
men on board who could give efficient help to the carpenter's gang."

"I suppose you would build it rather as a ship than as a boat?"

"Yes, I think so. We could build her of one-and-a-half-inch planks, fill
the seams well with oakum, and give her a couple of coats of paint. Le