For a moment all was confusion, indecision, and dismay.
“Quick! round with her head, and let her go right before the wind!” shouted Max hurriedly.
“That would be running directly into the danger,” cried Morton, “they are both moving north, and approaching each other.”
“Then let’s pull down the sail, until they are at a safe distance.”
“I would rather keep her under headway,” said Arthur, “or how could we escape, if one of them should move down upon us!”
“What can we do, then?” exclaimed Max; “we can’t sail in the teeth of the wind.”
“I am for going about to the left again, and steering as near the wind as possible,” said Arthur; “the one on that side is farthest north.”
This was the course which the natives had already adopted, and they were now steering nearly south-west. We immediately followed their example, and the fore and aft rig of the yawl enabled us to sail nearer the wind than they could do.
In a few moments the funnel-shaped water-spout, which we had first seen, had passed off northward, and was at such a distance as to remove all apprehensions on account of it. Not so, however, with the second; for hardly had we tacked again, when, notwithstanding that we were to windward of it, it began to move rapidly towards us.
Its course was not direct and uniform, but it veered now to the right and now to the left, rendering it difficult for us to decide which way to steer in order to avoid it.