'Giovanni,' he replied as he vanished, leaving me to follow him on deck
as quickly as possible. Now, Fred, picture to yourself a grey morning,
the damp deck of our vessel being rapidly crowded with everybody on
board, and all eyes strained towards a heavy sea, with big blue-black
mountains of water running at us, and under us, and away from us all
along; every wave had a white crest: but there were some other patches
of snowy white hovering over the dark sea, on which all the experienced
eyes were soon fixed!"
"What were they?" whispered Fred.
"Albatross," said Cousin Peregrine. "They had been following us for
days, hovering, swooping, and whirling those great white wings of
theirs, which sometimes measure nine feet from tip to tip."
"What did they follow you for?"
"They came to pick up anything that may be thrown overboard, and they
came now, as we knew, after poor Giovanni, whose curly black head kept
ducking out of their way as he swam with desperate courage in our wake."
"Oh, Cousin Peregrine! Didn't the captain stop the ship?"
"Certainly, Maggie, though, quickly as it was done, it left the poor
fellow far away behind. And heavy as the sea was, they were lowering a
boat when I got on deck, and the captain had called for volunteers among
the sailors to man it.
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