The old tyrant was evidently; exhausted with the mad rioting in which he had recently been indulging, and the thrashing which the gale had given him! There was no sleep for us, however, excepting such hasty little droppings off into brief forgetfulness that our worn-out bodies gave way to for an instant; for we were constantly being roused up, almost as soon as our wearied eyelids had closed, by the sudden rush of the spent wash of some broken wave wetting our already wet garments.

This banished all thoughts of repose; and, when the darkness of night came on, it was cold and dreary in the extreme, the hours seeming to drag out to the length of a lifetime.
Poor faithful Jake lay close to me so as to protect me as much as possible from the wash of the sea; and I found out, when morning light came once more to cheer us, that he had actually stripped off a guernsey vest, which Captain Miles had given him to save him from exposure on the night of the thunder-storm, and had fastened this round my shoulders in order to keep me warm! I shall never forget Jake's thoughtful action, I believe, as long as I live, for it made a great impression on me when I discovered such a striking proof of his devotion; and, as I now retrace the incidents of the past, the incident stands out prominently in evidence of a negro's brotherly love.
Why, his black skin always seemed white to me ever after.

Aye, although born an African, his heart was truer than that of many a European, whose complexion is only a trick of colour! During the night we were all silent; but, when the sun rose in the east, flooding the sea with the rosy tint of dawn, hope came back to us and our tongues were unloosed--the more especially as the force of the waves had considerably lessened, hardly a scrap of spray being now washed over us, while the blows of the billows against the side of the ship were no longer heard.
The sea really was calming down at last.
God was watching over us! "Say, captain," said Mr Marline, who was the first to bestir himself, "do you think there's any prospect of our righting the ship ?" The captain was asleep, I believe, for the first mate had to repeat his question twice before he could get an answer.
"I'm sure I hope so," at last sleepily muttered Captain Miles, with a portentous yawn--"only wait till the swell calms down and we'll see about it." "But it is calm now," rejoined the other.
"Then wake me again when it is calmer," replied Captain Miles; and then, he turned on his side and proceeded with his nap as coolly as if he were comfortably tucked up in his nice swinging cot in the cabin.
"Well!" exclaimed Mr Marline, "of all the cool, self-possessed men I ever met in my life, you beat the lot!" He was talking to himself, but the hands heard him, and there was a general snigger all round, the captain's very composure having given confidence to all.

The men believed that he would not have taken things so quietly unless he had some sure hope of our speedy release from such a precarious position.
"He is a rare brave un," put in Moggridge.

"I've sailed with him man and boy for many a v'y'ge afore this, and I allers found him the same, calm and plucky in danger, and keeping a stiff upper lip when in perils that frighten other folk.