And now the water came in more rapidly.  It seemed to Tom as though it had been delayed at first, for a little time, in finding an entrance, but that now, after the entrance was found, it came pouring in with ever-accelerated speed.  Tom struggled on, hoping against hope, and keeping up his efforts long after they were proved to be useless.  But the water came in faster and faster, until at length Tom began to see that he must seek his safety in another way.  Flinging down his dipper, then, with a cry of vexation, he started up, and, seizing his bit of board, he looked around for the shore.

He had been caught by some side current, and had been carried along in such a way that he was about a hundred yards from the island, and seemed to be drifting up the bay.  The dark, shadowy shores were much farther away than he had suspected.  While struggling to bale out the boat, he had forgotten how necessary it was to keep near to the shore.  He now saw his mistake, and strove to paddle the boat back again.  With such a clumsy oar it is not likely that he could have achieved his desire at all, had the flood tide been stronger; but now it was about at its height, and would soon turn, if it was not turning already.  The current, therefore, was but a weak one, and Tom found himself able to move slowly back; but his progress was very slow, and working at such a disadvantage was excessively fatiguing.  At last he saw that if he trusted to paddling he could never reach the shore.  In a moment another idea suggested itself; there was no time to lose, and he at once acted on it.  Darting forward, he loosed the sail.  The wind was still blowing from the north; at once the sail was filled, and, yielding to this new power, the boat began to move more rapidly.  Tom tied the sheet astern, and, seizing his paddle, tried to scull the boat.  For some minutes he kept up this work, and the boat moved steadily forward, nearer and still nearer, until the land was at length not more than thirty or forty yards off.

But by this time the danger had come nearer, and the boat was already half full of water.  Tom began to see that it could not float as far as the shore.  What was he to do?  He waited a little longer.  He looked around.  The boat was drawing nearer, yet soon it must go down.  To ease it, it would be necessary to relieve it of his own weight.  He did not lose his presence of mind for a moment, but determined at once to jump overboard.  In his perfect coolness he thought of one or two things which were of importance to him, and performed them swiftly and promptly.  First he took the box of biscuit, and placed it on the heap of boards and canvas in the bows, so that it might remain as long as possible out of reach of the water.  Then he took the card of matches out of his waistcoat pocket, and put them in his hat, which he replaced on his head.  To secure thus from damage the two necessaries of food and fire was but the work of a few seconds.