With this refreshment came new hope
and new courage for the final struggle, if safety could be gained that
way. I reviewed the situation and considered one by one the possible
courses we might take. We seemed to be shut in to three things. The
first possibility was to row to land; but the nearest land, the
Newfoundland coast, was nearly three hundred miles away, and I decided
that we did not have the time or the strength to reach it. The second
possibility was to be picked up by a passing vessel; but this did not
look encouraging, for two had already passed us. The third and last hope
was to find a fishing vessel at anchor, and within a reasonable
distance. This last possibility seemed almost probable. But _how_
probable? Possibly within ten miles, probably within twenty-five,
certainly within _fifty_, some fishermen were plying their trade,
but _where_? There are thirty-two points of the compass, and by
deviating one point at the center, a distance of fifty miles would bring
us ten miles out of the way at the circumference. We could row fifty
miles, but we cannot take chances.
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