Part 72 (1/2)
Then they relapsed into silence, both watching the stars to convince the the circuit of so rocks, which hly convinced, the strain of thinking beca along in that horrible an to affect Mike as it had affected Vince, and, in spite of his energetic struggles to rouse hily than ever They were surrounded by dangers, the least of which was that of the pursuing boat with the exasperated captain; for so surely as the boat grazed upon a rock just below the surface she would capsize But all this was as nothing to the mentally and bodily exhausted lads Nature was all-powerful, and by degrees the head of first one then of the other drooped, and sleep, deep and sudden, fell upon them
But the sleep was not then profound Theof a candle in its socket, and urged them to start up wakeful and deterain, the sufferers telling theo to sleep
But, madness or no, Nature said theythemselves in the bottom of the boat, so as to prop thelided lower and lower, and at last lay prone in thebut the great need which would reneith fresh vigour their exhausted frames
CHAPTER THIRTY TWO
A STRANGE AWAKENING
The grey gulls heeling round and round, dipping down fro food or tiny fish fro here and there, and diving doift as the fish themselves, in chase of victim after victiether, were playing about the surface, and leaping out at tiain with a splash, while the sun made the water sparkle as it rippled and played and foa; and the heather, gorse and purple-hued lavender blossolistened and flashed, as the sun played and sent off rays of dazzling iridescent hues froht ht, save where a boat went gliding along upon a swift current stem first, stern first, or broadside on, as the various curves and jutting rocks at the foot of the huge cliffs affected the hurrying waters and made them react upon the boat
All at once there was a desperate quarrel and screa towards one of the cliff shelves to enjoy its ht fish, it was attacked by a huge pirate of a black-backed gull, which pounced down upon it with open beak, secured the fish, and as it flew off was followed and mobbed by a score of other birds, when such a wild clamour of sharp metallic screams arose, that it startled one of the occupants of the boat,up, rub his eyes, stare, and then bend down to rouse his companion
”Here! Hi! Mike! Ladle! Wake up!”
The other obeyed, sprang to his feet, and stared wildly at his companion, with that dull, heavy, dreah the y of the body ed in sleep
Then both rubbed their eyes, and Vince did more: he knelt down, leaned over the side of the boat, and plunging both hands in, scooped up the cool sparkling water, and bathed face and teain, dabbing his face with his handkerchief
”Do as I do Do you hear, Mike? I say, you're asleep!”
”Sleep?” said Mike, looking at him vacantly
”Yes, asleep Rouse up and look! It's wonderful! Here, if you won't, I must Kneel down”
He pressed upon the boy's shoulders; and Mike, without htest resistance, knelt in the bottom of the boat He yielded too as Vince pressed a hand upon the back of his head, and then splashed some water in his face
The effect was electrical The nextup the water with both hands; and as he felt the refreshi+ng coolness send an invigorating and cal hi whether he was yet awake, or this was part of soe, wild drea hiht, with unerring regularity; and there before the, dotted with sea-birds, while now, instead of theand forbidding, they were beautiful in the extreht and their deep ehest cliffs on his left, over the rapidly gliding water to his right, where the great ridge was dotted with sea-birds, and away to fore and aft, where the lofty overhanging rocks were repeated
”I say,” cried Mike at last, ”am I awake?”
”If you're not, I'et here?”
”I don't know Through soot in, weon round and round, and round and round, thinking that ere getting out to sea I say, no wonder it seemed so far!”
”Then it is true,” said Mike excitedly ”I don't know that cave, though”
”No, we never saw that before,” said Vince, as they were swept by a low archway, and then onward by a broad opening, which, seen froe
”Is that--” began Mike, in a dubious, hesitating way