Saved at Sea | Page 3

we would do the next
day, when the door suddenly opened and Mr. Millar put his head in.
'Sandy, quick!' he said. 'Look here!' My grandfather and I ran to the
door, and looked out over the sea. There, about three miles to the north
of us, we saw a bright flare of light. It blazed up for a moment or two,
lighting up the wild and stormy sky, and then it went out, and all was
darkness again.
'What is it, grandfather?' I asked. But he did not answer me.
'There's no time to lose, Jem,' he said; "out with the boat, my man!"
'It's an awful sea,' said Millar, looking at the waves beating fiercely
against the rocks.
'Never mind, Jem,' said my grandfather; 'we must do our best.' So the
two men went down to the shore, and I followed them.
'What is it, grandfather?' I asked again.
'There's something wrong out there,' said he, pointing to the place
where we had seen the light. 'That's the flare they always make when
they're in danger and want help at once.'

'Are you going to them, grandfather?' I said.
'Yes, if we can get the boat out,' he said. 'Now, Jem, are you ready?'
'Let me go with you, grandfather,' I said; 'I might be able to help.'
'All right, my lad,' he said; 'we'll try if we can get her off.'
I can see that scene with my mind's eye as though it were but yesterday.
My grandfather and Mr. Millar straining every nerve to row the boat
from land, whilst I clung on to one of the seats, and tried in vain to
steer her. I can see poor Mrs. Millar standing on the pier, with her
shawl over her head, watching us, and two of her little girls clinging to
her dress. I can see the waves, which seemed to be rising higher every
moment, and ready to beat our little boat to pieces. And I can see my
grandfather's disappointed face, as, after many a fruitless attempt, he
was obliged to give it up.
'It's no use, I'm afraid, Jem,' he said at last; 'we haven't hands enough to
manage her.'
So we got to shore as best we could, and paced up and down the little
pier. We could see nothing more. It was a very dark night, and all was
perfect blackness over the sea.
The lighthouse lamps were burning brightly; they had been lighted
more than two hours before. It was Millar's turn to watch, so he went
up to the tower, and my grandfather and I remained on the pier.
'Can nothing be done, grandfather?'
'I'm afraid not, my lad. We can't make any way against such a sea as
this; if it goes down a bit, we'll have another try at it.'
But the sea did not go down. We walked up and down the pier almost
in silence.
Presently a rocket shot up into the sky, evidently from the same place
where we had seen the flare.

'There she is again, Alick! Poor things! I wonder how many of them
there is.'
'Can we do nothing at all?' I asked again.
'No, my lad,' he said; 'the sea's too much for us. It's a terrible night. It
puts me in mind of the day you were born.'
So the night wore away. We never thought of going to bed, but walked
up and down the pier, with our eyes fixed on the place where we had
seen the lights. Every now and then, for some hours, rockets were sent
up; and then they ceased, and we saw nothing.
'They've got no more with them,' said my grandfather. 'Poor things! it's
a terrible bad job.'
'What's wrong with them, grandfather?' I asked. 'Are there rocks over
there?'
'Yes, there's the Ainslie Crag just there; it's a nasty place that--a very
nasty place. Many a fine ship has been lost there!'
At last the day began to dawn; a faint grey light spread over the sea.
We could distinguish now the masts of a ship in the far distance. 'There
she is, poor thing!' said my grandfather, pointing in the direction of the
ship. 'She's close on Ainslie Crag--I thought so!'
'The wind's gone down a bit now, hasn't it?' I asked.
'Yes, and the sea's a bit stiller just now,' he said. 'Give Jem a call,
Alick.'
Jem Millar hastened down to the pier with his arms full of rope.
'All right, Jem, my lad,' said my grandfather. 'Let's be off; I think we
may manage it now.'
So we jumped into the boat, and put off from the pier. It was a fearful
struggle with the wind and waves, and for a long time we seemed to

make no way against