The Madman and the Pirate | Page 8

still bound, they shoved off, and Rosco, taking the tiller, steered
for the little creek.
The instant the keel touched the land two of the men jumped out and
hauled the boat ashore. The others assisted Zeppa to land. They led him
to a grassy bank, and bade him sit down. He obeyed meekly, and sat
there gazing at the ground as if unable to comprehend what was being

done. Rosco remained in the boat while a small box of biscuit was
conveyed to the spot and left at the side of Zeppa.
Then, removing his bonds, the men re-embarked and returned to the
schooner, which soon left that part of the island far astern. While it
receded, the pirate captain kept his glass fixed on the wretched man
whom he had thus forsaken. He saw that Zeppa never once turned his
head seaward, but, after gazing in a state of abstraction at the ground
for some time, rose and sauntered slowly inland. He did not appear to
observe the small supply of provision left for his use. With his chin
sunk upon his breast and his hands clasped behind him, he appeared to
wander aimlessly forward until his tall figure was lost to view among
the palm-groves that fringed the bottom of the mountain.
Leaving him there, we shall turn now to poor Orlando, who had been
tossed so unceremoniously into the sea. Probably the reader is aware
that the water of the southern seas is, in many parts, so much warmer
than that of our northern climes, that people may remain in it for hours
without being chilled. Hence natives of the coral islands are almost
amphibious, and our young hero, having spent much of his life among
these islands, could swim for the greater part of a day without
becoming exhausted.
When, therefore, he caught hold of the life-preserver, as stated in the
last chapter, he clung to it with some degree of confidence; but by
degrees the depressing influence of continued darkness began to tell
upon him, and he became less and less hopeful of deliverance. He
bethought him of the great distance they had sailed from Ratinga before
the mutiny broke out, and the utter impossibility of his being able to
swim back. Then he thought of sharks, and a nervous tendency to draw
up his legs and yell out affected him. But the thought of his father, and
of the probable fate that awaited him, at length overbore all other
considerations, and threw the poor boy into such a state of despair, that
he clung to the life-preserver for a long time in a state of semi-stupor.
At last the day dawned faintly in the east and the glorious sun arose,
and Orley's heart was cheered. From earliest infancy he had been taught
to pray, so you may be sure he did not fail at this crisis in his young life.

But no answer was returned to his prayer until a great part of the weary
day had passed, and he had begun to look forward with dread to the
approaching night.
As evening advanced, exhaustion began to creep over him, and more
than once he felt himself slipping from his support under the influence
of sleep. The struggle to retain consciousness now became terrible. He
fought the battle in many ways. Sometimes he tried to shake himself up
by shouting. Then he again had recourse to prayer, in a loud voice.
Once he even attempted to sing, but his heart failed him, and at last he
could do nothing but grasp the life-buoy and cling with all the tenacity
of despair. And, oh! what thoughts of his mother came over him then!
It seemed as if every loving act and look of hers was recalled to his
mind. How he longed to clasp her once more in his arms and kiss her
before he died!
While these thoughts were gradually taking the form of a hazy dream,
he was rudely aroused by something grasping his hair.
Sharks, of course, leaped to his mind, and he struggled round with a
wild gurgling shriek, for the grasp partially sank him. Then he felt
himself violently dragged upwards, and his eyes encountered the dark
face and glittering eye-balls of a savage.
Then was Orley's cry of fear turned into a shout of joy, for in that dark
countenance he recognised the face of a friend. A canoe full of Ratinga
natives had nearly run him down. They had been absent on an
expedition, and were alike ignorant of the visit of the Free Rover and
the departure of Antonio Zeppa.
Their astonishment at finding Orlando in such a plight was only
equalled by their curiosity to know how he had come there; but they
were compelled to exercise