“I must have run her pretty nigh dead off the wind in my sleep, for I could see her almost straight to leeward of me, still standin’ on, but comin’ slowly to the wind.
“She was a good quarter of a mile away from me, and I thinks as how I might still have a chance of fetching her ag’in, if she gets to luffing into the wind, and losing her way, so I strikes out a’ter her.
“But, Lord bless ye! Harry, you’ve no idea how the little hussy slips along, until you comes to be overboard, swimming in her wake.
“It seemed to me as though she’d never come to, and all the while she was walking away to the tune of a good seven knots.
“At last, when I rose on the top of a sea, I sees as she was in stays; and ‘All right,’ thinks I, ‘Harry’s come on deck and missed me, and he’s comin’ back a’ter me.’ But I soon saw as she’d run into the wind, and hove herself to, and that most likely you was still fast asleep in your hammock.
“I next tried to cut her off by swimming in the direction that she was heading, but after about half an hour’s hard tusslin’ I knowed it was no use; she fore-reached upon me as if I was at anchor. So I give the job up, and lay-to in the buoy for a rest, for I’d put out all my strength in chase, and was pretty nigh done up.
“I knowed you’d miss me some time in the morning, and that you’d miss the buoy too, and I felt sartain that you’d come back to look me up, so I sets to work to get my signal-pole on end and the flag flyin’, all ready for daylight.
“I watched the little barkie fairly out of sight, and then I began to feel lonesome like, and I’ll own that most oncomfortable thoughts came into my head about the sea-sarpent; but, strange as you may think it, I never give a thought to the sharks.
“I thought as day were never going to break ag’in; but at last I sees it light up a bit away to the east’ard, and it got grad’ally brighter and brighter; and presently I sees the sun just showin’ above the horizon.
“Then I felt a little bit more cheerful and satisfied like, for I knowed you’d soon be stirring, and I should have you back on the look-out for me.