“Oh, let us stay up just a little longer,” begged Bert. “I’ve never seen a storm at sea, and I want to.”
“Well, you and Nan may stay up on deck a little longer,” said Mrs. Bobbsey. “But you must not go far away from daddy. I don’t want any of you to fall overboard, especially when such big sharks may be in the ocean.”
“Oh, I’m not going to fall overboard!” exclaimed Bert. “Never!”
“Nor I,” added his sister. “I’ll keep tight hold of the rail, and when it gets too rough we’ll come down.”
Mr. Bobbsey and some of the men passengers were still on deck, watching the approach of the storm, and Bert and Nan moved over nearer their father, while Mrs. Bobbsey went below with Flossie and Freddie. The two smaller twins, when they found their older brother and sister were going to stay on deck, also wanted to do this, but their mother said to them:
“No, it is safer for you to be down below with me. It may come on to blow hard at any moment, and then it won’t be so easy to go down the stairs when the ship is standing on its head, or its ear, or whatever way ships stand in a storm.”
“But I want to see the storm!” complained Freddie.
“You’ll see all you want of it, and feel it, too, down in our stateroom, as well as up on deck, and you’ll be much safer,” his mother told him.
The storm came up more and more quickly, and, though it was not yet four o’clock, it was as dark as it usually is at seven, for so many clouds covered the sky. The waves, too, began to get larger and larger and, pretty soon, the steamer, which had been going along smoothly, or with not more than a gentle roll from side to side, began pitching and tossing.
“Oh, my! isn’t it getting dark?” cried Flossie.