At first the men bore this well, for there were no watches to keep, no sails to tend, and provisions of all kinds were plentiful. Calm weather was to be expected after the late series of heavy gales, and they were sure to be picked up. They must be rapidly nearing the shores of Madagascar, too, and the men amused themselves by spinning long yarns about the savage inhabitants of the island, between the intervals of smoking, eating, and drinking. The dawning of daylight was ever an anxious moment for all, and every eye eagerly scanned the limited horizon in quest of the coming ship. The light grew gradually stronger; the wing of a gull was taken for a sail. A feeling of delight, of hope, spread through the hearts of all. The delusion was exposed as the sun tipped the tops of the waves with its light, and, do what they would, despondency took the place of hope. At first none would acknowledge this feeling, each trying to cheer up the other; but the men became gradually restless and uneasy, the tale and the laugh were less frequent; the few orders which were given them were obeyed, it is true, but slowly and listlessly, and it became evident that the confinement to so limited a space was telling, and that the crew were becoming demoralised. The morning of the third day since the loss of the "Halcyon" had dawned, and the raft still rose and fell on the gentle swell of the ocean. The studding sail was brailed up, and Isabel was seated at the open entrance. Captain Hughes was lying on the spars at her feet, while close by Weber and his mate were endeavouring to prick off their position on a chart, which was spread on a barrel. The men were just finishing their twelve o'clock dinner, and the raft was slowly driving through the water before a gentle westerly breeze. On a box between the two at the entrance of the improvised cabin stood a chess-board. The pieces were ranged in position, but the interest of the game seemed languishing. "You might have checkmated me, last move, Enrico," said Isabel. "Either you did not care to do so, or you are thinking of something else." In fact Hughes had been gazing up into the speaker's face, and had forgotten all about the game. "A game at chess on a raft in the Indian Ocean is another thing to one in a lady's drawing-room," remarked the missionary, who had been looking on at the play, with a smile on his face; "and yet," he continued, "it has been much the same kind of game as usually takes place between a lady and gentleman thinking only of each other." "Oh, how I should like to have my foot once more on the carpet of that same drawing-room!" exclaimed Isabel. "This eternal hoping against hope is dreary work." "We have known worse moments together, Isabel," remarked Hughes, who had raised himself from his elbow to a sitting position, and was gazing intently over the waves.