A NIGHT'S PERIL. 147 



on board ; but to our utter horror they held on 

 their way, taking no notice of us except by some 

 unintelligible cries. The chasse maree passed on, as 

 if she thought it matter of little heed that two 

 human beings were left to perish in the elemental 

 strife of that dark night. 



To this moment I cannot iinderstand this adven- 

 ture. It is scarcely possible to believe that any 

 ship's crew of men could have the horrid barbarity 

 to leave unsuccoured a boat perishing in that wild 

 night. And yet it is, perhaps, quite impossible to 

 believe that they could have thought us seaworthy 

 and safe. Our signal, our cries, the dismantled con- 

 dition of our boat, all spoke for themselves. Bitter, 

 surely, must be the recollections of that vessel's com- 

 pany dark must be the character of that life, in 

 which such an act of barbarism was an unobserved 

 passage ! That skipper's worst enemy might wish 

 for him that he might have the knowledge of our 

 escape, that so the pillow of his death may be spared 

 the visitation of that terrible reminiscence. 



We looked a moment at each other aghast. We 

 could not believe that the promised succour had 

 eluded us ; that we were deserted by brother man on 

 the wide ocean. But wind and water raging around 

 us howled into our very souls the fact. From that 

 time I may say that I gave up hope, that I became 

 as dead ; and when at last safety sprang up, it was 

 as from the grave that I rose to grasp it. 



