But to himself he added:
"May I be forgiven for uttering what seems to me to be a possibly helpful lie!"
Though they were now safely afloat for some time to come, their situation rapidly became worse, owing to the increasing cold. Especially was this noticeable in the case of the Englishwoman.
From time to time her eyes closed. When spoken to she had to exert considerable effort to shake off her languor before she could reply. She became still more drowsy; evidently she was on the verge of freezing to death. From speaking kindly her husband dropped into sharp tones for the sole purpose of keeping her awake. Presently he was forced to resort to light blows in order to bully her into wakefulness. Once she fell soundly asleep she would not again awake.
As for Captain Kennor, he held on almost dumbly. He seldom spoke, his eyes mournfully regarding the woman whose battle for life was slowly being lost.
"This is awful!" cried the Englishman, hoarsely, after another effort to rouse his wife from slumber.
"For all of us," Darrin admitted, "though there is still hope."
"Where?" inquired Captain Kennor.
"I do not know," Dave confessed. "Yes, I do, too, though! Look yonder! No, in that direction!"
At first the others could not make it out. Captain Kennor was the first to see what Dave had found. It was only a low, dark cloud on the horizon, and it looked as though smaller clouds detached themselves and sailed away on the low-hanging sky.