Then going on board , the mariners trimmed the vessel 's black sails to the wind , which blew faintly off the shore , being pretty much made up of the sighs that everybody kept pouring forth on this melancholy occasion . But by and by , when they had got fairly out to sea , there came a stiff breeze from the north-west , and drove them along as merrily over the white-capped waves as if they had been going on the most delightful errand imaginable . And though it was a sad business enough , I rather question whether fourteen young people , without any old persons to keep them in order , could continue to spend the whole time of the voyage in being miserable . There had been some few dances upon the undulating deck , I suspect , and some hearty bursts of laughter , and other such unseasonable merriment among the victims , before the high blue mountains of Crete began to show themselves among the far-off clouds . That sight , to be sure , made them all very grave again . Theseus stood among the sailors , gazing eagerly towards the land ; although , as yet , it seemed hardly more substantial than the clouds , amidst which the mountains were looming up . Once or twice , he fancied that he saw a glare of some bright object , a long way off , flinging a gleam across the waves . `` Did you see that flash of light ? '' he inquired of the master of the vessel . `` No , prince ; but I have seen it before , '' answered the master . `` It came from Talus , I suppose . '' As the breeze came fresher just then , the master was busy with trimming his sails , and had no more time to answer questions . But while the vessel flew faster and faster towards Crete , Theseus was astonished to behold a human figure , gigantic in size , which appeared to be striding , with a measured movement , along the margin of the island . It stepped from cliff to cliff , and sometimes from one headland to another , while the sea foamed and thundered on the shore beneath , and dashed its jets of spray over the giant 's feet . What was still more remarkable , whenever the sun shone on this huge figure , it flickered and glimmered ; its vast countenance , too , had a metallic lustre , and threw great flashes of splendor through the air . The folds of its garments , moreover , instead of waving in the wind , fell heavily over its limbs , as if woven of some kind of metal . The nigher the vessel came , the more Theseus wondered what this immense giant could be , and whether it actually had life or no . For , though it walked , and made other lifelike motions , there yet was a kind of jerk in its gait , which , together with its brazen aspect , caused the young prince to suspect that it was no true giant , but only a wonderful piece of machinery . The figure looked all the more terrible because it carried an enormous brass club on its shoulder . `` What is this wonder ? ''
XXXXX asked of the master of the vessel , who was now at leisure to answer him .
Crete Talus Theseus glare mariners nigher sea sighs sight wonder