e sea was somewhat broken by the island, the
waves soon began to rise and to roll their broken crests against our
small craft, so that she began to take in water, and we had much ado to
keep ourselves afloat. At last the wind and sea together became so
violent that we found it impossible to make the island; so Jack suddenly
put the head of the boat round, and ordered Peterkin and me to hoist a
corner of the sail, intending to run back to Penguin Island.

"We shall at least have the shelter of the bushes," he said as the boat
flew before the wind, "and the penguins will keep us company."

As Jack spoke, the wind suddenly shifted and blew so much against us
that we were forced to hoist more of the sail in order to beat up for
the island, being by this change thrown much to leeward of it. What
made matters worse was that the gale came in squalls, so that we were
more than once nearly upset.

"Stand by, both of you!" cried Jack in a quick, earnest tone. "Be ready
to deuce the sail. I very much fear we won't make the island after
all."

Peterkin and I were so much in the habit of trusting everything to Jack
that we had fallen into the way of not considering things, especially
such things as were under Jack's care. We had, therefore, never doubted
for a moment that all was going well, so that it was with no little
anxiety that we heard him make the above remark. However, we had no
time for question or surmise, for at the moment he spoke a heavy squall
was bearing down upon us, and as we were then flying with our lee
gunwale dipping occasionally under the waves, it was evident that we
should have to lower our sail altogether. In a few seconds the squall
struck the boat; but Peterkin and I had the sail down in a moment, so
that it did not upset us. But when it was past we were more than
half-full of water. This I soon bailed out, while Peterkin again
hoisted a corner of the sail. But the evil which Jack had feared came
upon us. We found it quite impossible to make Penguin Island. The gale
carried us quickly past it towards the open sea, and the terrible truth
flashed upon us that we should be swept out and left to perish miserably
in a small boat in the midst of the wide ocean.

This idea was forced very strongly upon us, because we saw nothing in
the direction whither the wind was blowing us save the raging billows of
the sea; and indeed we trembled as we gazed around us, for we were now
beyond the shelter of