The longest night must have an end, although I began to fear this particular one would not do so, till I was past caring whether the sun ever rose again or not.  But by-and-bye the dawn began to break, and quickly spread itself over the sky, and with the light the fog dispersed slowly, and showed me a barrel upon the top of a pole perched on the highest rock of the group I was a prisoner upon, by which I knew I was on the Ferriers, which lie about a short mile south-west of Jethou.  I climbed to the pole and took a survey, and could just make out Jethou’s back above the haze which still rolled silently above the still waters.

Down I scrambled to my boat, eager to push off and reach home, but alas, my craft was high and dry four feet above the sea, on a ledge which just held her comfortably cradled, in derision to my anxiety.  “Begum” lay calmly sleeping in the stern sheets.  How I envied him his power of passing the dull hours away, oblivious to wet or cold.

Half an hour—­an hour—­two hours passed, and then the kindly sea had compassion on my lonely, forlorn condition, and rose and toyed with my boat, and finally lifted her and bore her safely back to my home.

Home! what a word after such a night!  I almost fell ashore, so great was my anxiety, and so desperately hungry did I feel.

My surroundings had now changed from what they were three hours since; for now I was on my island home, with the birds singing and the sun shining brightly and warmly upon me, so that I threw off my wet clothes and worked in a state of nature to get my tackle ashore, while “Begum” fetched “Eddy” to help me to get my craft above tide mark.

Good old “Eddy.”  I felt he was indeed a friend as he came trotting down the rocky path with a regular royal salute of braying.  He tugged, and I tugged, till when the boat was safely beached I felt as nearly exhausted as ever I have been in my life.  I scarcely had strength to get up the path which usually I took at a run.  However, I did get up, and took a good nip of brandy, following it with some solid refreshment, eating as I lit the copper fire and filled the copper with water.  While I waited for the water to become hot, I became so drowsy that I could scarcely keep awake, and yawned till an observer might have seen the roots of my hair, such an open countenance did I present.  The water (although I watched it) boiled at last, and this I poured into a big tub partly filled with cold water, and had a bath for ten minutes as hot as I could bear it, after which I hopped into bed and slept, and slept, and slept.

It was eight a.m. when I went to bed, and I did not wake for fourteen hours—­that is till ten p.m.; and knowing that I had slept the entire day away without a thought for my poor live stock, I turned over, resolving to be up and feed the said live stock at dawn.  But when I again woke the sun was high above the horizon, and up I jumped, or tried to, but found that I was very stiff and sore all over from my night adventure.  As I walked about and worked, feeding my animals, I gradually felt better, especially after a hearty breakfast, of which I stood much in need, after twenty-four hours’ fast.