times each hour without ceasing, he rose to his feet and retraced his
steps to the boat in order that he might fill his water-skins and
procure a further supply of food.

With a complicated emotion, in which was present every abandoned and
disagreeable thought to which a person becomes a prey in moments of
exceptional mental and bodily anguish, he perceived as soon as he
reached the edge of the water that the boat, upon which he was
confidently relying to carry him back when all else failed, had
disappeared as entirely as the smoke from an extinguished opium pipe.
At this sight Yin clearly understood the meaning of Li-Kao's
unregarded warning, and recognized that nothing could now save him
from adding his incorruptible parts to those of the unfortunate ones
whose unhappy fate had, seven days ago, engaged his refined pity.
Unaccountably strengthened in body by the indignation which possessed
him, and inspired with a virtuous repulsion at the treacherous manner
of behaving on the part of those who guided his destinies, he hastened
back to his place of obeisance, and perceiving that the habitually
placid and introspective expression on the dragon face had
imperceptibly changed into one of offensive cunning and unconcealed
contempt, he snatched up his spear and, without the consideration of a
moment, hurled it at a score of paces distance full into the sacred
but nevertheless very unprepossessing face before him.

At the instant when the presumptuous weapon touched the holy stone the
entire intervening space between the earth and the sky was filled with
innumerable flashes of forked and many-tongued lightning, so that the
island had the appearance of being the scene of a very extensive but
somewhat badly-arranged display of costly fireworks. At the same time
the thunder rolled among the clouds and beneath the sea in an