336 MOEE CRUISING AFTER PIRATES. 



"I never saw it blow like this before, sir, in the 

 thirty years I have been at sea." 



" What are you doing on deck ?" I asked. 



" Steaming ahead as hard as we can, sir, to ease the 

 anchors and cables, which are veered to the clinch." 



" Very well," I replied ; " you had better turn the 

 hands up ; I shall be on deck in a moment." 



On reaching the gangway, I could just see through 

 the thick vapour and driving sea the black rocks about 

 thirty yards astern ; and going to the engine-room, I 

 gave orders to go ahead as fast as possible, and again 

 returned to the gun-boat's side, and, holding on, sat 

 down to watch the poor little craft drifting quietly but 

 surely to the angry-looking shore. I knew that, the 

 water being smooth, all hands were perfectly safe, as far 

 as their lives went, and that the only thing that could 

 happen would be the gun-boat's driving against the 

 rocks, and probably knocking a hole in her bottom. It 

 certainly did blow ; and I thought if the weather-beaten 

 old boatswain had ever seen much more wind, he would 

 probably have been taken clean off the face of the 

 earth. I had been about half-an-hour thus musing and 

 watching the rocks getting gradually more distinct. 

 I could see the clefts, and almost trace their jagged 

 outline, and was wondering what the result would be, 



