338 VOYAGE FROM CEBAM [chap. xxxv. 



long way off, as they seemed to be hunting for shell-fish on 

 the beach. Very soon, however, they stared at us, and in a 

 few minutes seemed to comprehend their situation ; for 

 they rushed down into the water, as if to swim off, but 

 again returned on shore, as if afraid to make the attempt. 

 We had drawn up our anchors at first not to check our 

 rowing ; but now, finding we could do nothing, we let them 

 both hang down by the full length of the cables. This 

 stopped our way very much, and we drifted from shore 

 very slowly, and hoped the men would hastily form a raft, 

 or cut down a soft-wood tree, and paddle out to us, as we 

 were still not more than a third of a mile from shore. 

 They seemed, however, to have half lost their senses, 

 gesticulating wildly to us, running along the beach, then 

 going into the forest; and just when we thought they 

 had prepared some mode of making an attempt to reach 

 us, we saw the smoke of a fire they had made to cook 

 their shell-fish ! They had evidently given up all idea 

 of coming after us, and we were obliged to look to our 

 own position. 



We were now about a mile from shore, and midway be- 

 tween two of the islands, but we were slowly drifting out 

 to sea to the westward, and our only chance of yet saving 

 the men was to reach the opposite shore. We therefore set 

 our jib and rowed hard ; but the wind failed, and we drifted 

 out so rapidly that we had some difficulty in reaching the 



