Year: 1866

what those savage fires in their hollow eyes
indicated.


at must come to the casting of lots for
one of u.s." he heard them whisper. GIVE
ry hour we can pull on gets us more chance
of a ship"


The next day the purser shot two pen
gums, and ate greedily of the nauseous
| flesh. The fourth day the provisions were
exhausted at the first meal. Then Captain
Ritson stood up, his musket in his hand, for
he had all this time kept watch at night
| like the other men, and shared every labor
and privation. The quartermaster was Ia
menting his fate.


"If this voyage had only turned out well"
he said, 81 might have got ship again
for the firm promised me a ship again if |
only kept from drink and did my duty ; and
this time l have done it by them, and |
should have saved the vessel if it hadn't
been for this mutiny"


Captain Ritson hegan,--


"Mr. Quartermaster, silence This is no
| time for crying over split milk. don't wish
to hurt your feelings, for you're an honest
man, though you sometimes rather overdid
the grog Pm a plain man, and | mean
what | say, and what say is this,-here
we are, and we don't know whether it is
! berg or mainland, and no food left, NOT
crumb. Now what is to be done! We
hear the bear growl, and the fox yelp; but
if we can't shoot them, that won't help us
much. We must spend all to-day in trying
| for the mainland if we find the sea to the
eastward we must then turn back, commit
ourselves to God, who directs all things in
the heavens above and the earth beneath
| (you all heard me read that on Sunday and
| needn't repeat it), and take to the raft,
whatever happens. But there's one thing |
have to say, as plain man, and that is
| if any coward here dares even whisper the
word "cannibalish, ,"Pll shoot him dead with
this gun hold in my hand, and mean to
hold day and night We are Christien men,
mind and no misery shall make wild
beasts of US, while am live captain-so
mind that"


| The exploration destroyed the mems last
hope The miles painful march only served
! to prove that wild tracts of sea, tull of
shaking ice, lay between the pack and the
shore


~ see something ahead like mans bod
dy," said the pursuer, who had volunteered
| to climb an eminence, and report ii any
vessel could be dscerned


ut is partly covered with snow, and it
lies on the edge of a deep hole in the ice "


The party instantly made for it. Harri-
son, being light of foot was the first to
reach it, and to shout
40 captain captain come here it's
Philips, the carpenter that went away with
the mate"


And so it was. They all recognized the
hard bad face. An empty bottle lay by the
body.


Il see it ALL" said the captain. "Iie got
drunk, he Jagged behind, and they lost him
in the fog. Some vessel has taken them
off,"


II wish it had been the mate" said the
purser


As he spoke, huge black head emerged
for a moment from the water, and all the
men fell back and cried it was the Devil
come for the carpenter.
Nonsense, you flock of geese" said the
captain it was only black seal | only
wish he'd show again, and we'd have shot
at him he'd keep us for two days. Now
| then, push on, for we must get on the raft
and into the open sea before dark, and the
Lord guide and help u.s."
| Slowly and silently the melancholy band,
with only two sound-hearted men left among
them, the captain and the purser, ascen-
ded the last snow hill leading to the shore,
where the raft and the tents had been left
six hours before The sun, globe of Grim
som fire, was setting behind banks of gray
and ominous mist Two of the men were
now frostbitten in the cheeks and lay down
to be rubbed with snow by their compan-
| ions.


The captain strode forward alone to the
top of the hill to reconnoitre. He was seen
by them all striding forward till he reached
the summit, but slowly now, for that giant
of man was faint with hunger and fatigue
The men sat down waiting for him to re-
turn, and rubbing themselves with snow
| He returned slower than he had ascended.
feeble and silent He did not look his con-
panions straight in the face, but wrung his
hands, pulled his souwester over his eyes,
and sat down by the tired men, Then he
rose gravely, with his old impregnable
courage, and said,-


"Men l bring you bad news but bear it
| like Christians It's all sent for a good
purpose. Our raft has been carried off by
flow of drift ice. We have only few
hours to live. Pm plain man, and mean
what say. Let US die with good heart.
and without repining. 1t is not our own
fault as to this"


! Two Of the men uttered yells Of despair,
and threw themselves on the ground the
rest seemed to actually grow smaller, and
shrink together in their hopeless despair
The purser rocked TO and fro, holding his
hands. The quartermaster shook with the
cold, and turned purple with fear The
boy burst into an agony of tears.


"Come, men, let us light a fire." and Cap
| tain Ritson. "We are not women Let us
collect any remaining wood, and, having
prayed together and committed ourselves
into his hands (the captain took off his hat
and looked upwards), let US sleep and in
that sleep, if it is His will, death will take
| us"


But nothing could rouse them now. The
purser, and the purser only, had strength
enough left to collect the few pieces Of
driftwood outside the tents 1t was like
digging ones own grave, as the night be-
| gan to fall and shut out the white cliffs and
desoate tracts of ice


Light it, Pennant," said the captain,
"while we kneel round and commit our
selves to Him who never leaves the helm,