It was a regular little hurricane, and my old Bugis steersman began shouting out to "Allah! il Allah!" to preserve us.

We could only keep up our jib, which was almost blown to rags, but by careful handling it kept us before the wind, and the prau behaved very well.

Our small boat (purchased at Gani) was towing astern, and soon got full of water, so that it broke away and we saw no more of it.

In about an hour the fury of the wind abated a little, and in two more we were able to hoist our mainsail, reefed and half-mast high.

Towards evening it cleared up and fell calm, and the sea, which had been rather high, soon went down.
Not being much of a seaman myself I had been considerably alarmed, and even the old steersman assured me he had never been in a worse squall all his life.