FUR FACTS 295 



Henderley still lay senseless in the bottom of the boat; and as 

 there was imminent danger of his drowning (the water in the boat 

 now being almost a foot deep) I contrived to raise him partially up 

 and keep him in a sitting position, by passing a rope around his 

 waist and tying it to a ringbolt in the deck. At this point I seated 

 myself as comfortably as possible and determined to resign myself 

 to whatever fate might befall me. 



Hardly had I reached this resolution, when suddenly, a loud and 

 terrifying scream or yell rent the atmosphere around and above our 

 boat. As long as I live I can never forget the extreme horror I ex- 

 perienced at, that moment. My hair stood erect on my head — I 

 felt the blood congealing in my veins — ^my heart ceased utterly, and 

 before turning my head to ascertain the cause of my alarm, some- 

 thing hit me and I evidently fell headlong and insensible upon the 

 body of my fallen companion. 



I found myself, upon reviving, in the cabin of a large whaling 

 ship just oflE the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. Several eager faces 

 were bending over me, and two of the men were busily engaged in 

 chafing my hands. I finally came back to life and seeing nothing of 

 Henderley, I made inquiry concerning his whereabouts, whereupon, 

 a fellow by the name of Wilson, (whom I later learned was largely 

 responsible for my rescue) said that he had not been found. I was 

 sorry to hear this, for although his conduct toward me had been 

 anything but friendly, I did not know how the news of his death 

 would be received by Alice, or what affect it might have on her afiFairs. 



As soon as I was able to pull myself together I asked Wilson to 

 tell me just what had happened. He said that our boat had been 

 run down by their ship, which was pulling into the Gulf with every 

 sail on board set, and consequently, running almost at right angles 

 to our own course. Several men were on the look-out forward but 

 did not see our boat until it was too near to avoid collision — their 

 shouts of warning upon seeing us were what so terribly alarmed me. 

 The huge ship, he said, rode immediately over us, as though our boat 

 had been but a feather. 



It was some time before the vessel could be gotten under control, 

 but there was no delay in lowering the rescue boat, with Wilson in 

 charge, as he described it. They had just left the lee of the vessel 

 (the moon still shining brightly) when she made a heavy roll to the 

 windward and Wilson, at the same moment, starting up in his seat, 

 bawled out to the crew to back water. The men on board put back 

 as speedily as possible, but by this time the ship had gone round and 



