The sky was covered with thick clouds, which had gathered with the evening, under the influence of the cold air.  It was then very dark, and it was impossible to distinguish the high sails lost in the darkness.  Hercules and Acteon were on watch on the forecastle.

Aft, the light from the binnacle only gave a faint gleam, which the metallic apparatus of the wheel reflected softly.  The ship’s lanterns throwing their lights laterally, left the deck of the vessel in profound darkness.

Toward three o’clock in the morning, a kind of hypnotic phenomenon took place, of which old Tom was not even conscious.  His eves, which were fixed too long on a luminous point of the binnacle, suddenly lost the power of vision, and he fell into a true anaesthetic sleep.

Not only was he incapable of seeing, but if one had touched or pinched him hard he would probably have felt nothing.

So he did not see a shadow which glided over the deck.

It was Negoro.

Arrived aft, the head cook placed under the binnacle a pretty heavy object which he held in hand.

Then, after observing for an instant the luminous index of the compass, he retired without having been seen.

If, the next day, Dick Sand had perceived that object placed by Negoro under the binnacle, he might have hastened to take it away.

In fact, it was a piece of iron, whose influence had just altered the indications of the compass.  The magnetic needle had been deviated, and instead of marking the magnetic north, which differs a little from the north of the world, it marked the northeast.  It was then, a deviation of four points; in other words, of half a right angle.

Tom soon recovered from his drowsiness.  His eyes were fixed on the compass.  He believed, he had reason to believe, that the “Pilgrim” was not in the right direction.  He then moved the helm so as to head the ship to the east—­at least, he thought so.

But, with the deviation of the needle, which he could not suspect, that point, changed by four points, was the southeast.

And thus, while under the action of a favorable wind, the “Pilgrim” was supposed to follow the direction wished for, she sailed with an error of forty-five degrees in her route!

CHAPTER XI.

TEMPEST.

During the week which followed that event, from the 14th of February to the 21st, no incident took place on board.  The wind from the northwest freshened gradually, and the “Pilgrim” sailed rapidly, making on an average one hundred and sixty miles in twenty-four hours.  It was nearly all that could be asked of a vessel of that size.

Dick Sand thought the schooner must be approaching those parts more frequented by the merchant vessels which seek to pass from one hemisphere to the other.  The novice was always hoping to encounter one of those ships, and he clearly intended either to transfer his passengers, or to borrow some additional sailors, and perhaps an officer.  But, though he watched vigilantly, no ship could be signaled, and the sea was always deserted.