The Pinta brought up with a sudden jerk. They had run on a shoal. “Wrecked!” shouted Mark joyfully. “But there are no waves. It’s no good with these ripples.” Bevis pushed the Pinta off with a scull, and so feeling the bottom, told Mark to ease the tiller and sail more to the right. Two minutes afterwards they grounded again, and again pushed off. On the left, or eastern side, they saw a broad channel leading up through the weeds. Bevis told Mark to tack up there. Mark did so, and they slowly advanced with the weeds each side. The tacks were short, and as the wind was so light they made little progress. Presently the channel turned south; then they ran faster; next it turned sharp to the east, and came back. In trying to tack here Mark ran into the weeds. “Stupe!” said Bevis. “That I’m not,” said Mark. “You can’t do it.” “Can’t I?” said Bevis contemptuously. “Try then,” said Mark, and he left the tiller. Bevis took it and managed two tacks very well. At the third he too ran into the weeds, for in fact the channel was so narrow there was no time to get weigh on the ship. “Stupe yourself,” said Mark. He tried to row out, but every time he got a pull the wind blew them back, and they had to let the mainsail down. “It wants a canoe,” said Bevis. “Of course it does. It’s no use going on unless you’re going to row.” “No; but look!” Bevis pointed to a small branch which was floating very slowly past them. “There’s a current,” said Mark. “River,” said Bevis. “In the sedges somewhere.” “What is it? I know; it’s the Orinoco.” “No, I don’t think so.” “Amazon?” “No.” “Hoang-Ho?” “How can we tell, till we get the astrolabe and take an observation? Most likely it’s a new river, the biggest ever found.” “It must be a new river,” said Mark. “This is the New Sea. We’re drifting back a little.” “We’ll come again in a canoe, or something,” said Bevis. They rowed out of the channel, set the mainsail, and sailed back, past Pearl Island, Grey Crow Island, the Coral Isles, and approached New Formosa. Mark looked over the side, and watched to see the sunken punt. “It’s a wreck,” said he presently, as they passed above the punt. “She foundered.” “It’s a Spanish galley,” said Bevis. “She’s full of bullion, gold and silver--” “Millions of broad gold pieces.” “Doubloons.” “Pistoles.” “Ingots.” “You can see the skeletons chained at the oar-benches.” “Yes--just as they went down.” “There are strange sounds here at night.” “Bubbles come up, and shouts, and awful shrieks.” “Hope we shan’t hear them when we’re in our hut.” “No; it’s too far.” They sailed between New Formosa and Serendib, and homewards through Mozambique to the harbour. The east wind, like the west, was a there-and-back wind, and they could reach their island, or return from it, in two or three tacks, sometimes in one stretch. Volume Two, Chapter XII. PROVISIONING THE CAVE.