"I had a boy such as you, who
was lost out there and the devils of the straits will get you."
The appeal of the old man was interpreted to Paul and was the only
occurrence of the day that had a tendency to upset his nerves.
The expert spearsman had arranged a place on his boat where he could
stand and harpoon any sharks that might attack the adventurer, while
the guests on the other craft thought they were pretty well fixed to
keep the monsters off. Everything being ready, the felucca backed in
from her cable to get the guests aboard. All were safely on except the
bold editor. He was pale and his knees were knocking together. His
courage was gone and he persisted in remaining on shore, until one of
the sailors lifted him bodily aboard.
The sea was very rough when Boyton stepped into it. He struck away as
fast as he could and both feluccas kept a sharp lookout. He reached mid-
channel without encountering any danger, and stopped to look about and
take his bearings. He perceived that he was nearing Charybdis. On
looking around, just as the foremost boat rose on a huge wave, he saw
what he thought to be a shark directly under it. He pulled his knife and
prepared for an attack. He was rather nervous, and the feluccas seemed
an awful distance away.
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