1830.] The Demon Ship. 651 



body who has suddenly extinguished his candle, even on a bright, starry 

 night, knows that the sudden transition from a greater to a lesser degree 

 of light, produces, for a second or two, the effect of absolute darkness. 

 And thus our concealment lay enveloped in utter darkness to our cap- 

 tain's eyes, dazzled by the morning's first flood of light. But it was 

 difficult for the half-breathless beings, so entirely in his power, to 

 realize this fact, when they saw him advancing toward them, his eye 

 fixed on the spot where they stood, though he saw them not ; it was 

 difficult to see, and yet retain a conviction that we were not seen. The 

 captain replaced the sacks instantly, and we felt half- doubtful, as he 

 pushed them with violence against the beams where we stood, whether 

 he had not actually discovered our persons, and taken this method of at 

 once destroying them by bruises and suffocation. His work was, how- 

 ever, only accompanied by an imprecatory running comment on Girod's 

 careless manner of stowage. We were now again buried in our con- 

 cealment, but another danger awaited us. Jacqueminot descended to 

 the cabin. An involuntary, though half-stifled. shriek escaped him when 

 he saw the trap-door open. He sprang into the hold, and when he 

 beheld the captain, his ghastly smile of inquiry, for he spoke not, de- 

 manded if his ruin were sealed. " I have been seeing all your pretty 

 work here, Monsieur," said the gruff captain, pointing to the de- 

 ranged sacks, behind which we were concealed. I caught a glimpse 

 through them of Girod's despairing countenance. It was a fearful 

 moment, for it seemed as if we were about to be involuntarily betrayed 

 by our ally, at the very instant when we had escaped our enemy. 

 Girod's teeth literally chattered, and he murmured something about 

 French gallantry and honour ; and the countess being a lady, and the 

 Captain Francillon an old acquaintance. ( ' And so because you cut the 

 throats of a couple of solan geese as your duty was, at your captain's 

 command you think he must not even see to the righting of his own 

 stern-hold?" said the captain, with a gruff and abortive effort at plea- 

 santry, for he felt Girod's importance in amusing and keeping in good 

 humour his motley crew. Jacqueminot's answer shewed that he was 

 now au faity and thus we had a fourth rescue from the very jaws of 

 death. 



Day after day passed away, and still we were the miserable, half- 

 starved, half-suffocated, though unknown prisoners of this Demon gang, 

 holding our lives, as it were, by a thread, hanging, with scarce the dis- 

 tance of a pace, between time and eternity, and counting every pro- 

 longed moment of our existence as a miracle. Girod at this period 

 rarely dared to visit us. He came only when the business of the ship 

 actually sent him. The cabin above was now occupied at night by the 

 captain and some of his most depraved associates, so that small allevia- 

 tion of our fears small relaxation from our comfortless position -small 

 occasion of addressing a few consolatory words to each other, was 

 afforded us either by day or by night. At length. I began to fear that 

 Margaret would sink under the confined air, and the constant excite- 

 ment. Her breath became short and difficult. The blood passed 

 through her veins in feverish, yet feeble and intermittant pulsation. 

 It was agony indeed to feel her convulsed frame, and hear her faintly- 

 drawn and dying breath, and know that I could not carry her into the 

 reviving breezes of heaven, nor afford a single alleviation of her suffer- 

 ing, without at once snapping that thread of life which was now wearing 



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