To
be awoke out of a profound sleep, and all of a sudden to find yourself
floundering out of your depth about half a mile from the nearest land,
is anything but agreeable; the transition is too rapid. Smallbones
descended a few feet before he could divest himself of the folds of the
Flustering coat which he had wrapped himself up in. It belonged to
Coble, he had purchased it at a sale-shop on the Point for seventeen
shillings and sixpence, and, moreover, it was as good as new. In
consequence of this delay below water-mark, Smallbones had very little
breath left in his body when he rose to the surface, and he could not
inflate his lungs so as to call loud until the cutter had walked away
from him at least one hundred yards, for she was slipping fast through
the water, and another minute plainly proved to Smallbones that he was
left to his own resources.
At first, the lad had imagined that it was an accident, and that the
rope had given way with his weight; but when he found that no attention
was paid to his cries, he then was convinced that it was the work of Mr
Vanslyperken.
"By _gum_, he's a done for me at last.
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