Owen accordingly complied, and found that the spar would support them all.
“What has been and happened?” asked Nat, still not recovered from the terror.
“The frigate has blown up by accident, or through treachery, of that there is no doubt,” answered Owen. “It is dreadful, most dreadful, and I fear that the greater number of our shipmates have been lost; still a few may have escaped, and we must try to help them. Hark! I heard some one cry out not far off. If we cut away the rigging from this spar, we may be able to move it through the water.” They got out their knives and worked away. Again the voice was heard. “Help! help!”
“I’ll swim off and see if I can render any assistance,” said Owen. He swam towards a mass of wreck. On getting near it he saw that a person was hanging on with his body in the water, without apparently strength enough to climb up and secure himself. Owen immediately clambered on to the wreck, and was then able to drag up the other person.
“Ashurst, is it you?” he asked, recognising his messmate.
“Yes, but I am fearfully hurt in the side and leg, and have no strength left to help myself.”
Ashurst continued to groan. He had not yet discovered that it was Owen who had assisted him.
The first impulse of Owen was to stand up and try and ascertain whether any other persons were floating near whom he and Mike might help. He listened. A few faint cries, apparently from a distance, reached his ear, but he could not tell from which direction they proceeded; he could only hope that others had succeeded in getting on portions of the wreck.
In a short time Mike and Nat managed to get up to him. Owen proposed that they should form a raft with the spars and smaller pieces of timber floating about, on which they might be able to make their way to the land. The large piece of wreck on to which Mike and Nat had now climbed seemed to be stationary. They were therefore able to move about it, and began to form the proposed raft from the spars which they secured alongside.
Scarcely had they commenced the work, when a voice was heard at no great distance.