His Other Wife: A Novel — page 214: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

206 THE MADCAP TAKES A PRIZE. Madcap far to the south-east, and with the first breeze that filled her sails, after lying nearly two days on a sea like glass, she came in sight of the island referred to in.a former chapter. * ** ** A * x x Night, bodeful and gloomy as a vision of Hades, had fallen ere the Madcap touched at the island, to whose coast she had been guided by a bonfire that blazed. upon the tallest cliff of the headland. She had shown a signal of distress while still a good way from shore, and a boat, manned by four stout rowers, had come to meet her just off the sand-bar, over which it was impossible for even so small a sailing-vessel as the Spanish cruiser to pass at low tide unpiloted by a skillful guide. The captain held a colloquy with the wreckers. before deciding on approaching nearer to the island. He ascer- tained that it was a mere fishing village, whose inhabitants were mostly comprised of those who followed the preca- rious trade of wreckers, _ The Minorcan, who called himself Senor Valasco, pro- posed to send his passengers ashore, if they wished to land, but expressed his preference to keep on his route . southward the moment it should be safe to leave the small harbor that lay just ahead. In that case, he thought they had best remain aboard the cutter. : | | While the little vessel was cautiously making its way through the narrow channel under the direction of the pilot from the shore, Vernois went down into the cabin to EComicbooks.co 3