“Blest if the very next night we wasn’t run down by something or other—I never knowed what ’twas, for they hadn’t the good manners to stop and pick us up.
“The mainmast of the junk was knocked out of her in the smash, and I managed to get hold of it and lash myself to it, just in the eyes of the rigging. The yard happened to be undermost, and so I had a pretty good berth.
“I floated about on that — spar for four days and nights without a bit or drop of anything, and then my senses broke adrift, and I knew nothing more of what happened to me for some time.
“When I came to myself I found I was on board a Dutch ship, homeward-bound. It turned out that they passed close to my spar, and seein’ me lashed to it they picked me up.
“At least so I made it out; but I knew no Dutch, and there was only one chap aboard that thought he knowed English; but Lord bless ye, gentlemen, I couldn’t make top nor tail of what he said. I managed to make out hows’ever that I’d had a narrow squeak of it, and that’s about all.
“By the time I was able to get about on deck again, we was well out in the Indian Ocean, and everything seemed going on all right; but, as it turned out, it was all wrong, for early one morning we makes land ahead, the wind bein’ light and dead on shore.
“The skipper hauled sharp up on the port tack to try and claw off; but a current had got hold of us, and away we sagged to leeward, do what we would, and at last we had to anchor.
“By-and-by the breeze freshened; but we was in a very ugly berth, and the skipper didn’t like to make a move.
“However, we didn’t have a chance to settle the matter for ourselves, for just about sunset the old barkie struck adrift, and, before we could get the canvas on her, she was in among the rocks and bilged.
“We all got ashore, there bein’ no great matter of a sea running, and, to make a long story short, was made prisoners by the natives. What become of the rest of the hands I never knowed—they may be there yet for all I can say. An old chap picked me out, and made a sort of servant of me, and, on the whole, I had pretty easy times of it I got to find out, at last, that I was somewhere on the island of Madagascar.