"Now, lads, let's have breakfast; get out the bread-can. Come, Larry,
look alive! You've no cooking to do this morning, but I doubt not that
your teeth are as sharp and your twist as strong as ever."
"Stronger than iver, sur, av ye plaze."
"I'm sorry to hear it, for you'll have to go on short allowance, I
fear."
"Ochone!" groaned the cook.
"Never mind, Larry," said Will Osten, assisting to spread the
sea-biscuit and salt junk on one of the thwarts; "there's a good time
coming."
"Sure, so's Christmas, doctor, but it's a long way off," said Larry.
"Fetch me the scales; now then, doctor, hold 'em," said the captain,
carefully weighing out a portion of biscuit and meat which he handed to
one of the men. This process was continued until all had been supplied,
after which a small quantity of water and lime-juice was also measured
out to each.
The breakfast was meagre, but it was much needed, and as the sea had
gone down during the night and the morning was beautiful, it was eaten
not only in comfort, but with some degree of cheerfulness. While they
were thus engaged, Goff looked up and exclaimed suddenly, "Hallo! look
here, boys!"
Every one started up and gazed in the direction indicated, where they
saw something black floating on the water. The captain, who had taken
the precaution before leaving the ship to sling his telescope over his
shoulder, applied it to his eye, and in a few seconds exclaimed, "It's
the jolly-boat capsized! Out with the oars, boys--be smart! There's
some of 'em clinging to the keel."
It need scarcely be said that the men seized the oars and plied them
with all their might. Under the influence of these and the sail
together they soon drew near, and then it was distinctly seen that three
men were clinging to the boat--it followed, of course, that all the rest
must have been drowned. Silently and swiftly they pulled alongside, and
in a few minutes had rescued Mr Cupples and the steward and one of the
sailors, all of whom were so much exhausted that they could not speak
for some time after being taken on board. When they could tell what had
happened, their tale was brief and sad. They had kept in sight of the
long-boat while light enabled them to do so. After that they had run
before the gale, until a heavy sea capsized them, from which time they
could remember nothing, except that they had managed to get on the
bottom of the upturned boat, to which they had clung for many hours in a
state of partial insensibility.