it was no longer smoothly rounded. On the contrary it was irregular, the
northern end being still a sort of hillock, but the middle and southern
end was flat on the surface and dark in color. From the distance at
which he stood it looked like a rock, around which the sand had
accumulated, but which had been uncovered by the violent storm of the
preceding night.

At that distance it appeared like a rock, but there was something in its
shape and in its position which made it look like a ship which had been
cast ashore. The idea was a startling one, and he at once dismissed it
as absurd. But the more he looked the closer the resemblance grew until
at last, unable to endure this suspense, he hurried off in that
direction.

During all the time that he had been on the island he had never been
close to the mound. He had remained for the most part in the
neighborhood of the rock, and had never thought that a barren sand
hillock was worthy of a visit. But now it appeared a very different
object in his eyes.

He walked on over half the intervening distance, and now the resemblance
instead of fading out, as he anticipated, grew more close. It was still
too far to be seen very distinctly: but there, even from that distance,
he saw the unmistakable outline of a ship's hull.

There was now scarcely any doubt about this. There it lay. Every step
only made it more visible. He walked more quickly onward, filled with
wonder, and marveling by what strange chance this vessel could have
reached its present position.