Most happily, also, with the sun the wind dropped, although for hours the sea remained dangerously high.
Now wet and cold were their enemies, worse than any that they had been called upon to face.

Long ago the driving spray had soaked them to the skin, and there upon the sea the winter night was very chill.
While the wind, fortunately for them, by comparison a warm one, still blew from the west, and the sea remained tempestuous, they found some shelter by wrapping themselves in a corner of the sail.

Towards midnight, however, it got round to the northeast, enough of it to moderate the sea considerably, and to enable them to put the boat about and go before it with a closely reefed sail.

Now, indeed, they were bitterly cold, and longed even for the shelter of the wet canvas.
Still Morris felt, and Stella was of the same mind, that before utter exhaustion overtook them their best chance for life lay in trying to make the shore, which was, they knew not how far away.
There, then, for hours they cowered in the stern of the boat, huddled together to protect themselves as best they might from the weather, and plunging forward beneath their little stretch of sail.

Sleep they could not, for that icy breath bit into their marrow, and of this Morris was glad, since he did not dare relax his watch for an instant.