“Dere’s rocks dere—lots of dem!” announced von Kluck. “Dot wessel looks like she’s lost her rutter, und if she gets off dem rocks dot captain needs a medal. I tink he’s a goner, sure!”
It did, indeed, appear as if von Kluck was right. A big cargo steamer, now dimly discernible to the boys, was rolling in the trough of a heavy sea, urged on by a vicious wind from the northwest. Her range lights showed clearly at the mast heads. A gleam of red indicated that the vessel was showing her port side. With every roll great masses of water boarded the weather rail, sweeping the decks of every movable object.
“Look!” cried the mate, excitedly pointing toward the steamer.
There was no need of explanation. A great mass of rock directly in the path upon which the steamer was drifting sent gigantic columns of water into the air with every wave. Although the eastern sky showed a tinge of gray the blackness upon the water was intense. It was lightened momentarily by the white smother of spray and foam cast upward as wave after wave broke upon the black and threatening menace lying immediately before the apparently doomed vessel.
“Py golly, he’s all right!” yelled von Kluck in a moment. “He’s lost dot rutter und he’s backing on his enchines! He’ll make id!”
Surely enough the steamer’s captain was executing the very maneuver at which von Kluck had guessed. By backing on his engines he succeeded in drawing the vessel so far to one side of the dangerous rock that it was passed. Only a margin extremely narrow intervened.
But the danger had not passed. Another rock threatened to tear to pieces the all but helpless vessel. With straining eyes and beating hearts the lads watched anxiously as this danger was also cleared.
They clung to the weather shrouds in spite of the whip-like sting of sleet and spray, watching the struggle against wind, wave and rock.
At length the vessel won through the dangerous places. It was now so close that the boys could make out the details of the rigging. Ned procured a pair of binoculars and spelled out the name.
“That steamer is the Anne of Melbourne,” he announced. “I wonder if it isn’t an Australian vessel. They have had a hard time of it.”