death with resignation. At last, to calm our despair, we wished to seek
some consolation in the arms of sleep; the day before we had been consumed
by the fire of a burning sun; this day, to avoid the fierceness of his
beams, we made a tent with the sails of the frigate: as soon as it was put
up, we all lay down under it, so that we could not perceive what was
passing around us. We then proposed to inscribe upon a board an account of
our adventures, to write all our names at the bottom of the narrative, and
to fasten it to the upper part of the mast, in the hope that it would reach
the government and our families.

After we had passed two hours, absorbed in the most cruel reflections, the
master gunner of the frigate wishing to go to the front of the raft, went
out of our tent; scarcely had he put his head out, when he turned towards
us, uttering a loud cry; joy was painted on his countenance, his hands were
stretched towards the sea, he scarcely breathed: all that he could say,
was, "_Saved! see the brig close upon us_." And in fact, it was, at the
most, half a league distant, carrying a press of sail, and steering so as
to come extremely close to us; we precipitately left the tent: even those
whom enormous wounds, in the lower extremities, had confined for some days
past, always to lie down, crawled to the back part of the raft, to enjoy
the sight of this vessel, which was coming to deliver us from certain
death. We all embraced each other with transports that looked like
delirium, and tears of joy rolled down our cheeks, shrunk by the most cruel
privations. Every one seized handkerchiefs, or pieces of linen to make
signals to the brig, which was approaching rapidly. Others prostrating
themselves, fervently thanked Providence for our miraculous preservation.
Our joy redoubled when we perceived a great white flag at the foremast
head, and we exclaimed "It is then to Frenchmen that we shall owe our
deliverance." We almost immediately recognised the brig to be the Argus: it
was then within two musket shot: we were extremely impatient to see her