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"There's not much more to tell," he said, with an involuntary

shudder. "It was too much for the old girl with that load in her.

She began to wallow and drive toward the Wolves that I had caught

a glimpse of through the scud. She hadn't got halfway there when

the mainmast came down (bringing nearly everything with it) and

hung over the starboard quarter, dragging the vessel down like a

stoat hanging to a duck's leg.

"After that it was easy to see she was doomed. We chopped away at

the tangle of wreckage whenever we got a chance, but that wasn't

often, because, in her present position, the waves raked her

every second and we had to hang on for dear life.

"And then she began to go to pieces--which was the beginning of

the end. All hands knew it was to be every man for himself. We

had no life preservers, and our one big dory had been smashed

when the wreckage came down."

Code's face was working with suppressed emotion, and Elsa reached

out her hand and touched his.