whereas in the hold the atmosphere had been close and oppressive.
He was the more glad next morning when he found that the wind,
which had sprung up soon after midnight, was freshening fast, and
was, as one of the sailors said, likely to blow hard before long.
The cutter was already beginning to feel the effect of the rising
sea, and toward the afternoon was pitching in a lively way and
taking the sea over her bows.

"You seem to enjoy it, young un," the sergeant said as Jack, holding
on by a shroud, was facing the wind regardless of the showers of spray
which flew over him. "Half our company are down with seasickness,
and as for those chaps down in the fore hold they must be having
a bad time of it, for I can hear them groaning and cursing through
the bulkhead. The hatchway has been battened down for the last
three hours."

"I enjoy it," Jack said; "whenever I got a holiday at Southampton
I used to go out sailing. I knew most of the fishermen there; they
were always ready to take me with them as an extra hand. When do
you think we shall get to Dover?"

"She is walking along fast," the sergeant said; "we shall be there
tomorrow morning. We might be there before, but the sailors say that
the skipper is not likely to run in before daylight, and before it
gets dark he will shorten sail so as not to get there before."

The wind increased until it was blowing a gale; but the cutter was
a good sea boat, and being in light trim made good weather of it.
However, even Jack was pleased when he felt a sudden change in
the motion of the vessel, and knew that she was running into Dover