He found himself on the deck of a sloop of about seventy tons, JohnNisbet, master, with a crew of seven men. They had sailed from Killebegs(County Donegal), in Ireland, for the coast of France, laden with butter,tallow, and hides, and were now returning from France with French wines,and were befogged as Kirwan had been. The boy was at once taken on boardand rated as a seaman; and the later adventures of the trip are here givenas he reported them on his return with the ship some months later.The mist continued thicker and thicker for a time, and when it suddenlyfurled itself away, they found themselves on an unknown coast, with thewind driving them shoreward. There were men on board who were familiarwith the whole coast of Ireland and Scotland, but they remembered nothinglike this. Finding less than three fathoms of water, they came to anchorand sent four men ashore to find where they were; these being James Rossthe carpenter and two sailors, with the boy Kirwan. They took swords andpistols. Landing at the edge of a little wood, they walked for a milewithin a pleasant valley where cattle, horses, and sheep were feeding, andthen came in sight of a castle, small but strong, where they went to thedoor and knocked. No one answered, and they walked on, up a green hill,where there were multitudes of black rabbits; but when they had reachedthe top and looked around they could see no inhabitants, nor any house; onwhich they returned to the sloop and told their tale.
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