It was very glorious, Rodd thought, as he perched himself up aloft on the cross-trees, after finding the heavy glass very much in his way as he climbed.
“It’s beautiful up here; but—”
He did not finish his remark to himself, but got his left arm well round the mast, adjusted the glass, and began slowly to sweep the horizon.
He felt in a state of doubt and suspicion, fully expecting that at any moment the tapering masts of the sloop might slowly creep into the field ready to damp his hopes, for his feelings were completely on the side of the men. But as slowly and carefully he ran the glass along what seemed to be the very edge of the world, his spirits rose.
“Nothing—nothing,” he kept on muttering to himself. “Oh, how big the world is, after all! Here we are, just like a speck on the ocean, quite alone, and though there must be thousands of ships and boats sailing about, not one in sight, and in about another ten minutes all will be bright starlight again—and let’s see, I began here, and I’ve swept the sea right round, and just in time, for before I could go round again or half-way it will be quite dark—and— What’s that?” he cried excitedly.
He started violently, and his hands trembled so that he had great difficulty in steadying the glass to fix it upon that which had suddenly caught his eye.
“Nothing!” he muttered impatiently. “It was my fancy. I made as sure as possible, just as I was going to lower the glass, that I could see the three masts of the sloop standing right out yonder towards the west. All rubbish and imagination,” he muttered. “I pictured that because it was what I was afraid of seeing when— Oh–h–h! It wasn’t fancy! There she is! Oh, there she is, after all!”
He looked sharply down at the deck, which was occupied only by four of the men, the skipper and Uncle Paul being in the cabin. But one of these men was Joe Cross, and Rodd chirruped faintly to attract’s the sailor’s attention.
“Make out anything, sir?”
“Come up here, Joe,” replied Rodd, in a low tone, and the man sprang to the ratlines and began rapidly to ascend till he was nearly on a level with the occupant of the cross-trees.