HEAT AND THIRST. 219 



from the boat into the air, but immediately alighted again, to our 

 astonishment, vulture like, with out-stretched wings, upon the head. 

 Under the shadow of this horrible plume, the face seemed on the 

 instant to alter like a hideous change in a dream. It appeared to 

 become of a death-like paleness, and anon streaked with blood. 

 Another stroke of the oar — the chin had fallen down, and the tongue 

 was hanging out. Another pull — the eyes were gone, and from 

 tlieir sockets brains and blood were fermenting, and flowing down 

 the cheeks. It was the face of a putrefying corpse. In this floating 

 coffin we found the body of another sailor, doubled across one of 

 the thwarts, with a long Spanish knife sticking between his ribs, as 

 if he had died in some mortal struggle, or, what was equally proba- 

 ble, had put an end to himself in his frenzy; whilst along the bottom 

 of the boat, arranged with some show of care, and covered by a piece 

 of canvass stretched across an oar above it, lay the remains of a 

 beautiful boy, about fourteen years of age, apparently but a few 

 hours dead. Some biscuit, a roll of jerked beef, and an earthen 

 water jar lay beside him, showing that hunger at least could have 

 had no share in his destruction; hut the pipkin was dry, and the small 

 water cask in the bow was staved and empty. 



We had no sooner cast our grappling over the bow, and begun to 

 tow the boat to the ship, than the abominable bird that we had scared 

 settled down into it again, notwithstanding our proximity, and began 

 to peck at the face of the dead body. At this moment we heard a 

 gibbering noise, and saw something like a bundle of old rags roll 

 out from beneath the stern sheet, and apparently make a fruitless 

 attempt to drive the gallinaso from its prey. Heaven and earth, 

 what an object met our eyes ! It was a full-grown man, but so 

 wasted, that one of the boys lifted him by his belt with one hand. 

 His knees were drawn up to his chin; his hands were like the talons 

 of a bird ; while the falling in of his chocolate-coloured and withered 

 features gave an unearthly relief to his forehead, over which the horny 

 and transparent skin was braced so tightly that it seemed ready to 

 crack. But, in the midst of this desolation, his deep-set coal-black 

 eyes sparkled like two diamonds with the fever of his sufferings ; 

 there was a fearful fascination in their flashing brightness, contrasted 

 •with the death-like aspect of the face, and rigidity of the frame. 

 When sensible of our presence he tried to speak, but could only 

 mutter a low moaning sound. At length — "Aqua, aqua?'' We 

 had not a drop of water in the boat. " El muchacho esta moriendo 

 de sed — Aqua.'' 



