Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-04-06
CHAPTER XXVI.
AM TROUBLED BY THOUGHTS OF THK
 TREASURE.

I AM TROUBLED BY THOUGHTS OF THE
 TREASURE.
 The weight of the wind in the rigging steadied the schooner somewhat, and pre- vented her from rolling too heavily to star board, while her list corrected her larboard rolls. So as I sat below she seemed to me to be making tolerably good weather Of it. Not much water came aboard; now and again I would hear the chatter of fall forward, but at comfortably long intervals.
 I sat against the dresser with my back upon it, and being dead tired must have dropped asleep on sudden-indeed, before had half smoked my pipe out-and do not believe l gave thought to my situation before slunl- bered, so wearied was l. The cold awoke nu,. The fire was out, and so was the candle in the lantern, and I was in coffin darkness. This the finder box speedily remedied. l looked at my watch-7 o'clock, as I was a sinner so that my sleep had lasted between three and four hours.
 I went on deck and found the night still black upon the sea, the wind the same brisk gale tHat was blowing when quit the helm, the sea no heavier, and the schooner tumbling ih true Dutch fashion upon it. I looked very earnestly around, but could see no signs of ice There would be daylight presently; so I went below, lit the fire, and got my break fast, and when I returned the sun was up, and the sea visible to its farthest reaches.
 It was a fine wintry piece; the sea green and running in ridges with frothing heads, the sky very pale among the dark snow laden clouds, the sun darting a ray now and again, which was swung into the north by the shad- ows of the clouds until they extinguished it. Remote in the northwest hung the gleam of an iceberg-there was nothing else in sight Yes something that comforted me exceed ingly, though it was not very many days ago that a like object had heavily scared mean albatross, noble bird, sailing on the wind- ward close enough to be shot. The sight of this living thing was inexpressibly cheering it put into my head fancy of ships being at hand, thoughts of help and of human compan- ions In truth, my imagination was willing to accept it as the same bird that had fright ened away when in the boat, now returned to silently reproach me for my treatment of it. Nay, my lonely eye, my subdued and suf- fering heart, might even have witnessed the good angel of my life in that solitary shape of ocean beauty, and have deemed that, though unseen, it had been with me through l out, and now made visible to my gaze 1 by the light of hope that had broken into the | darkness of my adventure.
 We'll, supposing it so, I should not have l been the only man who ever scared his good angel away and found it faithful afterward i unlashed the tiller and got the schooner before the wind, and steered until a little be- fore noon, letting her drive dead before the sea, which carried her northeast. Then, se- curing the helm amidships, I ran for the quadrant, and while waiting for the sun to show himself observed that the vessel held herself very steadily before the wind, which | might have been owing to her high stern and l the great swell of her sides and her round bottom; but be the cause what it might, she ran as fairly with her helm amidships as if ] had been at the tiller to check her-a most fortunate condition of my navigation, for ii privileged me to get about other work while at the same time every hour was conveying me nearer to the tracks of ships and farther from the bitter regions of the south.
 I got an observation, and made out that the vessel had driven about fifteen leagues dur ing the night. She must do better than that thought I; and when had eaten some din ner took chopper, and going on to the forecastle lay out upon the bowsprit, and after beating the spritsail yard block clear o1 the ice, cut away the gaskets that confined the sail to the yard, heartily beating the can vas, that was like iron, till clew of it fell then came in and braced the yard square and the wind, presently catching the exposed part of the sail, blew more of it out, and ye1 more, until there was good surface show ing; then to sudden hard blast of wind the whole sail flew open with a mighty crack ling, as though indeed it was formed of ice but to render it useful I had to haul tn, sheets aft, which could not manage without the help of the tackles we had used in sling ing the powder over the side; so that, wha, with one hindrance and another, the setting of that sail took me an hour and a half.
 Finding that the ship continued to steer herself very well, and the better for the spirit