Sometimes we would stop altogether while the officers talked over the possibility of any one climbing up at some place where the water trickling down from the top had eaten away the face a little; but not a goat in the world could have climbed up them, not to say men.

So we kept on till we got to the other end of the island, which must have been five miles long.

Not a place could we see.
"'Unless we are going to do as the captain said--blast steps up the face of that rock--I don't believe it's to be done,' Lieutenant Earnshaw said to Mr.Escombe.

'Well, there's nothing to do, lads, but to row in and drop your grapnels again and wait till we see the ship's lights tonight.' "Although we rowed in to within an oar's length of the cliff, there was eight fathoms of water when we dropped the grapnels.

We had been lying there an hour when the third lieutenant said: "'I should think, Mr.Earnshaw, that if we were to bring the pinnace with that four pounder gun in the bow and up end it, and with a small charge fire a ball with a rope fastened to it up into that clump of trees we saw just about the middle of the island, it might get caught.' "'So it might, Escombe, and the idea is a good one; but I doubt whether there's a man on board ship could climb a rope swinging like that against the face of those cliffs.' "'He might if we used a knotted rope,' Mr.Escombe said.
"'I wouldn't mind making a try, yer honor,' one of the sailors said, and half a dozen others volunteered their readiness to make the attempt.
"'I will put it to the captain,' Mr.Earnshaw said; 'if he agrees, as you were the first to volunteer, Jones, you shall have the chance.' "The day was dead calm, so was the night that followed it; and although we rowed back to the end of the island from which we had come, no lights were to be seen that night.
"The next day passed slowly.