He finally changed the course due east, and it was more by luck than exact calculation that they made out the northern end of the island which was passed the first night out. In one night they had traveled a distance coming back that required two days and nights to traverse in the other direction. As it was they were headed for the cliffs at the point of land, and it must be avoided.
Harry saw the danger, and went back to consult the Professor. He had the tiller firmly in his grasp, and his body bent over it to keep it steady; but when Harry reached him, and touched him, there was no response. Almost frantic, he cried to George: "Come here, quickly; something is the matter!"
George was there in an instant, and caught up the Professor, while Harry grasped the tiller, as it was released, and turned it to starboard. The little boat responded, but Harry knew that if turned too far, the wind might catch it on the beam and crush it to atoms.
The Professor had fainted, and when George finally revived him, he looked about, and seeing Harry at the tiller, told him that he must turn to the left to avoid the cliffs, and when he was advised of what had bean done, he grasped Harry's hand, and commended him for the knowledge and foresight which had been exhibited in that trying moment.
The cliffs were ahead and to the right. The crucial time must come within the next half hour. The point must not only be cleared, but they must pass it at a distance beyond the influence of the powerful swells and waves, which are always present at points situated like this. The storm was from the west, and the promontory pointed to the north. Under the circumstances, the sea at the end of the land was a raging maelstrom, and the counter influence of the raging waves, beyond the point, offered as great a danger as at its extremity.
And now the leaks appeared at every side. Despair almost overtook Harry, and he moved from one point to the next with the oakum and the caulking tool. The Professor had insisted on again taking the helm. He had been refreshed by the few moments' relaxation. Slowly he moved over to the tiller. Would he ever make it? The boys stopped their work, fascinated with the nerve-racking intensity of it. They knew the point had been passed. The Professor smiled, and held up his hand as a signal, and the boys rushed to him and actually cried, as he put his arms about them.
It must not be imagined that they were out of their peril now. Nearly a foot of water was in the bottom. The storm was, in a measure, blanketed by the cliffs, and there was now no alternative but to reach the shore. It was fortunate that they were on the lee side of the land, but even there the waves rolled up on the shore, and the Professor knew that any landing which might be made would be hazardous in the extreme.
The vessel was approaching a shelving beach. Fortunately, from what could be distinguished of its character, it was not a broken or rocky shore.
"Boys, can you put up the mainsail?" The Professor's voice had a wonderful ring to it, for one so nearly exhausted. Without waiting to question they sprang to the halliards and drew it up, while the boat in the meantime was turned to port to ease the operation.
The boys looked on in wonder as the tiller was turned and, when the boat had gained headway, was pointed to the shore. It fairly darted through the surf and the billows which marked the shore line, but before the boat touched the beach, the Professor motioned them to come back. "Now hold fast, when we strike."