replied Jack. "As I said before, she struck on the tail of the
island and stove in her bow, but the next breaker swung her clear,
and she floated away to leeward. The poor fellows in the boat made
a hard struggle to reach her, but long before they came near her
she filled and went down. It was after she foundered that I saw
them trying to pull to the island."

There wan a long silence after Jack ceased speaking, and I have no
doubt that each was revolving in his mind our extraordinary
position. For my part I cannot say that my reflections were very
agreeable. I knew that we were on an island, for Jack had said so,
but whether it was inhabited or not I did not know. If it should
be inhabited, I felt certain, from all I had heard of South Sea
Islanders, that we should be roasted alive and eaten. If it should
turn out to be uninhabited, I fancied that we should be starved to
death. "Oh!" thought I, "if the ship had only stuck on the rocks
we might have done pretty well, for we could have obtained
provisions from her, and tools to enable us to build a shelter, but
now - alas! alas! we are lost!" These last words I uttered aloud
in my distress.

"Lost! Ralph?" exclaimed Jack, while a smile overspread his hearty
countenance. "Saved, you should have said. Your cogitations seem
to have taken a wrong road, and led you to a wrong conclusion."

"Do you know what conclusion I have come to?" said Peterkin. "I
have made up my mind that it's capital, - first rate, - the best
thing that ever happened to us, and the most splendid prospect that
ever lay before three jolly young tars. We've got an island all to
ourselves. We'll take possession in the name of the king; we'll go