"I remember only one part of the service," I said, "and that is, `And the body shall be cast into the sea.'"Maud looked at me, surprised and shocked; but the spirit of something I had seen before was strong upon me, impelling me to give service to Wolf Larsen as Wolf Larsen had once given service to another man.I lifted the end of the hatch cover, and the canvas-shrouded body slipped feet first into the sea.The weight of iron dragged it down.It was gone.
"Good-by, Lucifer, proud spirit," Maud whispered, so low that it was drowned by the shouting of the wind; but I saw the movement of her lips and knew.
As we clung to the lee rail and worked our way aft, I happened to glance to leeward.The Ghost , at the moment, was uptossed on a sea, and I caught a clear view of a small steamship two or three miles away, rolling and pitching, head on to the sea, as it steamed toward us.It was painted black, and from the talk of the hunters of their poaching exploits I recognized it as a United States revenue cutter.I pointed it out to Maud and hurriedly led her aft to the safety of the poop.