DAYS OF HOPELESSNESS The captain's announcement struck terror to every heart.

Even Bob, with the little knowledge of the sea he possessed, realized what that meant.

They would have to "go it blind" now, and the chances of finding a comparatively small island in that vast ocean were little indeed.
"Did I knock the compass overboard ?" asked Mr.Tarbill.
"You certainly did," spoke the captain grimly.
"I--I didn't mean to." "No, I don't suppose you did.

Still, it's on the bottom of the ocean by this time." "Oh, dear! What shall we do ?" "The best we can.

Fortunately, I have a general idea of the direction of our course, and at night I can make a shift to steer by the stars, but it's going to be pretty much guesswork." "If we can't find the big island, can't we go back to the small one where we were ?" asked Bob hopefully.
"It would be about as hard to find that as it's going to be to locate the other now.