Beneath it did pass,
and I felt it pressing upward, raising Drewett and myself to the
surface. As I got a glimpse of the light, and a delicious draught of
air, Drewett was drawn from my neck by Marble, whose encouraging voice
sounded like music in my ears. At the next instant my shark emerged,
puffing like a porpoise; and then I heard--
"Hole on, Masser Mile--here he nigger close by!"
I was dragged into the boat, I scarce knew how, and lay down
completely exhausted; while my late companion seemed to me to be a
lifeless corpse. In a moment, Neb, dripping like a black river god,
and glistening like a wet bottle, placed himself in the bottom of the
boat, took my head into his lap, and began to squeeze the water from
my hair, and to dry my face with some one's handkerchief--I trust it
was not his own.
"Pull away, lads, for the sloop," said Marble, as soon as everybody
was out of the river. "This gentleman seems to have put on the hatches
for the last time--as for Miles, _he_'ll never drown in fresh
water."
*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, AFLOAT AND ASHORE ***
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