' Ti
Canotié.
305
dark as purple ink—a token of tremendous depth. . . . Still a dead calm, and no sail in sight. —"Ça c'est la Dominique," said M a x i m i l i e n , — " E n n o u pou
ouivage-à
!"
They had lost their little palettes during the night ; — they used their naked hands, and moved swiftly. But D o minica was many and many a mile away. Which was the nearer island, it was yet difficult to say ;—in the morning sea-haze, both were vapory,—difference of color was largely due to position. . . . Sough !—sough !—sough !—A bird with a white breast passed overhead ; and they stopped paddling to look at it,—a gull. Sign of fair weather!—it was making for Dominica. —"Moin ni ben faim," murmured Maximilien. Neither had eaten since the morning of the previous day,— most of which they had passed sitting in their canoe. —"Moin ni antii soif" said Stéphane. And besides his thirst he complained of a burning pain in his head, always growing worse. H e still coughed, and spat out pink threads after each burst of coughing. T h e heightening sun flamed whiter and whiter : the flashing of waters before his face began to dazzle like a play of lightning. . . . Now the islands began to show sharper lines, stronger colors ; and Dominica was evidently the nearer ;—for bright streaks of green were breaking at various angles through its vapor-colored silhouette, and Martinique still remained all blue. . . . Hotter and hotter the sun burned ; more and more blinding became his reverberation. Maximilien's black skin suffered least; but both lads, accustomed as they were to remaining naked in the sun, found the heat difficult to bear. They would gladly have plunged into the deep water to cool themselves, but for fear of sharks ;—all they could do was to moisten their heads, and rinse their mouths with sea-water. 24