The water kept rising higher.

Meanwhile, the sharks swam all round the rocks, and the raft, now and then leaping forth, as if to clutch at the party.

The sight of these ugly-looking creatures, with their long heads, sharp fins, teeth, and dull, bloodshot eyes, inspired Mary with the most disagreeable sensations.

"Come!" said she, "let us leave this fearful place!"

Turk shook his head.

"It is our only salvation, Miss, I'm afraid."

"Not much of a salvation, either," said Brand, pointing down at several of the ferocious creatures, which had begun to gnaw at the lashings of the raft.

Vainly the men endeavored to drive them away; they clung with steady tenacity to the lashings, biting with demon-like intelligence at the rope strands, as if aware that the severing of these would put the party in their power.

Finally the seamen were obliged to get off the raft on the rocks, and draw the planks after them, as the only means of pulling the lashings away from the teeth of the troublesome monsters.

The water, however, kept rising, so that it was necessary to get away as soon as possible.

The men did their best to strengthen the planks, then once more launched their raft, actually driven away by the sharks.

The tendency of the current and the wind now was to the westward.

"At such a rate," said Turk, "shouldn't wonder if we find ourselves, before two days, on the volcanic island."

For this island the party had looked every day, while they were afloat; but, for some reason or other, since the night of their first floating away from the island, they had seen nothing of the smoke or fire of the burning crater.

The seamen had attributed this fact to the murky atmosphere westward, shrouding the island from their view, while the raft had meanwhile been carried further and further from it by the tide.

When night came, after their leaving the rock, the bearings of which they endeavored to keep in mind, they again looked for the light of the volcano. The atmosphere, however, not having yet cleared, they could see no sign of it. Hoping that the current would continue in this direction and carry them to the island, they watched the west, keenly yet vainly for a sign of the shore.

Mary slept little that night. In the morning Harry pointed out to her, far away, the land, evidently that which they were anxious to reach, looming up, the mist having cleared.

That it was the wished-for shore was made evident by a column of smoke, rising up from the summit of one of the lofty island peaks.

"Do you think we will reach it?" the young girl inquired.

"I think so; if the set of the current does not change to the south," answered Harry.

He was right; before night the party were close upon the island shore.

Mary's eyes lighted up with joy. Worn though she was by hardship and suffering, she could yet feel a thrill of eager, pleasant expectation, as she gazed at the beautiful shores of this island.

Scarcely a mile in extent, and not more than half that in breadth, the shores teemed with the most luxuriant vegetation.

There were seen tall cocoanuts waving upon a bright, pebbly beach, rocks covered with flowers and vines, cascades flashing and gleaming as they glittered in the sunlight, and the broad waters of silver streams, gliding along through mossy grounds.

"Beautiful," said Mary, clapping her hands. "Papa! papa! are you there?"

She spoke half plaintively, half joyfully, clasping her hands like a little child.

Brand turned aside his head. Hardened as he was, the voice went straight to his ruffian heart, and he felt at that moment as if he would give worlds had he not committed the fearful crime which, after all, had been perpetrated for nothing.

Meanwhile Turk stood gazing steadily towards one of the island bays.

"If I ain't mistaken," said he, "there's an old wreck of some kind there!"

"Ay, ay," cried Harry; "I see it—the wreck of a schooner, if we may judge by the two stumps of her masts."

It was almost sundown before the raft touched upon the beach.

"We will commence our search for traces of your father," said Harry to Mary, after all had refreshed themselves with luxurious bananas and the remains of their fish, "by visiting that old wreck. If your parent be here, he probably has visited the hulk, and perhaps left some sign of his presence; a pipe, matches or something of that sort."

"Who knows," said Mary, "but he has taken up his quarters there."

"I'm afraid you are too hopeful, lass," said old Tom Turk, "'specially as it was believed by all aboard the Maxwell that the poor old man was drowned after he fell overboard."

"Yes," said Brand, shuddering; "I for one believe he was drowned."

"I will go with you to the wreck," said Mary.

"No," replied Harry, "it will be too much for you."

The young girl, however, insisting, the whole party started for the bay, which they could see from their position.

A short walk brought them to the wreck.

It was a schooner, and as had been supposed, with its two masts broken short off near the deck.

It lay almost upon its beam ends, firmly wedged in between two rocks.

By mounting a small, flat rock near the larboard gunwale, the party easily got aboard. Having done so, they entered the cabin. It was devoid of all articles of furniture, these probably having been taken away by some of the Indian visitors at the island.

A candle, however, with an old piece of a clay pipe, a few nails, and an empty box, were found.

Turk took the candle, and endeavored to light it. This was done with some difficulty, after which the party passed into the hold. Here, saturated with salt water, which had broken in through the bottom of the schooner, were seen several coils of old rope and a few empty barrels.

"All of which," philosophized Turk, "will come in good use, 'specially if we can find some nails."

After a long search, he came upon a bag of rusty nails, lying upon one of the beams.

"With these," said Turk, "we can manage to make a boat, leastways a good raft."

The flickering candle shed lurid light upon the old, creaking beams of the schooner, as the party vainly searched the hold for signs of Mary's father.

"Thought it would be of no use," said Turk; "Poor old man, he was drowned, you may be sartin."

"Oh, papa! papa! would that I could find him!" wailed Mary, mournfully.

Brand shuddered, as he always did, when the girl's father was mentioned.

Seating himself on a detached coil of rigging, with his back turned to the rest of the party, he suddenly fancied he felt a strange, creeping sensation stealing over his body; a feeling, as if a multitude of worms, were crawling up his back.

Instinctively he turned half round, to see his companions, already leaving the hold, passing into the cabin.

Some strange instinct prompted him to turn yet further round, when he beheld a sight which for some moments kept him motionless, unable to utter a word.

In the faint light of the candle, streaming into the hold, he saw a long, lean neck, surmounted by a face as bloodless and apparently almost transparent, with hollow cheeks and protruding eyes, lifted above a barrel at the other side of the hold.

A strange looking face it was; a face of unearthly transparency, apparently quivering like a vapor, while his eyes—those great, staring eyes, were fixed strangely upon the captain.

The latter, as mentioned, could not utter a word. To him the apparition was doubly terrible, as it was that of the man whom he had pushed overboard from the Maxwell.

Yes, there it was, sure enough, the face of the unfortunate passenger, William Manton.