"We may thank heaven that the storm had abated a little, in its force, before the vessel struck; for had it been blowing as it was yesterday, we could not have swum five minutes.

It was just the lowering of the wind that enabled us to swim without being drowned by the spray.

It was bad enough, as it was, on the top of the waves; but, yesterday, it would have been impossible." One of the first thoughts of the boys, upon fairly recovering themselves, was to kneel down and thank God for having preserved their lives; and then, having rested for upwards of an hour, to recover themselves, they made their way inland.
"Our dangers are by no means over, Gerald," Ned said.

"If this island is, as I believe, a thickly cultivated one, and in the hands of the Spaniards, it will go hard with us, if they find us, after all the damage to their commerce which we have been inflicting, for the last year." Upon getting to some rising ground, they saw, to their surprise, a large town lying on a bay in front of them.

Instinctively they paused at the sight, and both sat down, so as to be out of view of any casual lookers on.
"What are we to do, Ned ?" Gerald said.