14 Adventures of Jack Pomeroy.

gerous to keep near the burning vessel, and we
had not been half an hour out of the ship,
before she blew up with a terrible explosion.

As soon as the smoke had cleared away, we
pulled back to the spot where the remains of
the wreck were burning on the waves. One
man and one only was to be seen, and he was
almost insensible. We picked him up; but
although we pulled over and about the spot for
more than an hour, we saw no une else. ‘They
had all gone down into the devouring sea—
summoned into eternity in a moment.

The event sobered, for the time, even such
rough, thoughtless sailors as we were, and for
a little there was silence amongst us.

Happily the second mate had had the sense
to bring a pocket compass with him, and most
of us had our bundles with us, with a few
clothes. Strange to say, though I had grown
so careless and profane, I had brought the little
Bible away. You see God had not forsaken
the prodigal, nor forgotten the mother’s prayers ;
my. belief is that He never does.

For three or four days we sailed before the
wind, going south by west, for as we had lost
our reckoning, we really did not know how to
steer. We must have got a good deal out of
our course before the fire broke out, for the
weather became exceedingly cold, and we suf-
fered from it a good deal.

At last we sighted land, and ran the boat