90 DICK SANDS, THE BOY CAPTAIN. sake of making good a déficient cargo. It was an event almost unknown in the annals of whale-fishing that not a single man in the whale-boat should escape alive ; never- theless, it was ail too true ; and now, of ail those left on board, Dick Sands, the apprentice-boy of fifteen years of âge, was the sole indivîdual who had the slightest know- ledge of the management of a shîp ; the negroes, brave and willing as they were, were perfectly ignorant of sea- men's duties ; and, to crown ail, hère was a lady with her child on board, for whose safety the commander of the vessel would be held responsible. Such were the facts which presented themselves to the mind of Dick as, with folded arms, he stood gazîng gloomily at the spot where Captain HuU, his esteemed benefactor, had sunk to rise no more. The lad raised his eyes sadly; he scanned the horizon with the vain hope that he might perchance descry some passing vessel to which he could confide Mrs. Weldon and her son ; for himself, his mind was made up ; he had already resolved that nothing should induce him to quit the "Pilgrim" until he had exhausted every energy in trying to carry her into port The océan was ail deserted. Since the disappearance of the whale nothing had broken the monotonous surface either of sea or sky. The apprentice, short as his expéri- ence was, knew enough to be aware that he was far out of the common track alike of merchantmen or whalers ; he would not buoy himself up with false expectations ; he would look his situation full and faîrly in the face; he would do his best, and trust hopefuUy in guidance from the Power above. Thus absorbed in his méditations he did not observe that he was not alone. Negoro, who had gone below immediately after the catastrophe, had again corne back upon deck. What this mysterious character had felt upon witnessing the awful calamity it would be impossible to say. Althoiigh with his eye he had keenly taken in eyery détail of the melancholy spectacle, every muscle of bis face had remained unmoved ; not a ge&ture, not a word
