“That’s the last of that vessel!”
“I wonder if any of the folks on board got off safely.”
“I couldn’t see—the spray almost blinds a fellow.”
Such were some of the remarks passed around as the ship on the shoal slipped slowly from view.
The girls clung to each other in an agony of suspense. Never had they dreamed that they would witness such a dreadful catastrophe as was now unfolding before them.
“Oh, Billie, this is dreadful!” groaned Laura, her face white with terror.
“I can hardly bear to look at it,” whimpered Vi. “Just think of those poor people! I am sure every one of them will be drowned.”
“Some of them must have gotten away in the small boats,” answered Billie.
“I didn’t see any of the boats,” protested Connie. “But, of course, you can’t see much of anything in such a storm as this.”
“All we can do is to hope for the best,” said Billie soberly.