"It sounds like water washing on rocks, sir, as much as anything I
ever heard in my life!"
"Ready about!" shouted the mate. "Run down and call the captain,
Miles--hard a-lee--start everybody up, forward."
A scene of confusion followed, in the midst of which the captain,
second-mate, and the watch below, appeared on deck. Captain Robbins
took command, of course, and was in time to haul the after-yards, the
ship coming round slowly in so light a wind. Come round she did,
however, and, when her head was fairly to the southward and eastward,
the captain demanded an explanation. Mr. Marble did not feel disposed
to trust his nose any longer, but he invited the captain to use his
ears. This all hands did, and, if sounds could be trusted, we had a
pretty lot of breakers seemingly all around us.
"We surely can go out the way we came in, Mr. Marble?" said the
captain, anxiously.
"Yes, sir, if there were no _current_; but one never knows where
a bloody current will carry him in the dark."
"Stand by to let go the anchor!" cried the captain. "Let run and clew
up, forward and aft. Let go as soon as you're ready, Mr. Kite."
Luckily, we had kept a cable bent as we came through the Straits, and,
not knowing but we might touch at the Isle of France, it was still
bent, with the anchor fished.
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