else he had never come to it in this life; for the next moment the
moving brown mass beneath the boat shot out a great tentacle and the oar
was torn out of Job's hands with such power as to throw him right over
on to the starboard gunnel of the boat. The oar itself was drawn down
out of sight, and for the minute the boat was left untouched. Now the
bo'sun cried out to the boy to take another oar, and get ashore while
still he had chance, and at that we all called out various things, one
advising one thing, and another recommending some other; yet our advice
was vain, for the boy moved not, at which some cried out that he was
stunned. I looked now to where the brown thing had been, for the boat
had moved a few fathoms from the spot, having got some way upon her
before the oar was snatched, and thus I discovered that the monster had
disappeared, having, I conceived, sunk again into the depths from which
it had risen; yet it might re-appear at any moment, and in that case the
boy would be taken before our eyes.

At this juncture, the bo'sun called to us to follow him, and led the way
to the great fissure up which we had climbed, and so, in a minute, we
were, each of us, scrambling down with what haste we could make towards
the valley. And all the while as I dropped from ledge to ledge, I was
full of torment to know whether the monster had returned.

The bo'sun was the first man to reach the bottom of the cleft, and he set
off immediately round the base of the rock to the beach, the rest of us
following him as we made safe our footing in the valley. I was the third
man down; but, being light and fleet of foot, I passed the second man and
caught up with the bo'sun just as he came upon the sand. Here, I found
that the boat was within some five fathoms of the beach, and I could see
Job still lying insensible; but of the monster there was no sign.