Nobody was sure how long the Wanderer had been lost. When the darkness had descended, blotting out the sea and the sky, the Wanderer had been far from land with only the stars to guide it. With no sun nor moon nor stars, the schooner's crew had lost all sense of time and space. It was only the determination of Captain Miller that kept them from descending into chaos. Even then, the only reliable measure of the passage of time was the steady depletion of their stores. Food and drink - valuable commodities at sea - had become priceless. So, when one of the crew, a seaman called Baines, was caught pilfering the supplies, justice had to be done.

Captan Miller had ordered all the crew to assemble on the main deck for'ard of the helmsman's station. The crew gathered reluctantly under the pale light of the lanterns, muttering amongst themselves. Their voices grew louder as Baines was dragged through the crowd. Jeers and insults were hurled at him, and those closest struck Baines with feet and fists. Miller was having none of this.

"No!" the captain called out. The crew turned to face him. "No," he repeated. "I will not have anarchy on my vessel. This man will be tried according to the law."

The shouting and catcalls persisted, but Baines was brought before the captain without further injury.

In the dim light of the lanterns, Baines presented a pathetic figure. Like the others, he was thin, starved by the meagre rations they had all been placed on. His gums were swollen and bloody from scurvy, and his joints bruised from malnutrition. He trembled.

"We shall begin the trial," Captain Miller announced. "Will the witnesses please stand forth."

One by one, the witnesses to Baines' crime came to give their evidence, answering Miller's questions succinctly. The captain quashed any hint of rancour in their testimony. "Let the facts speak for themselves," he told them. Baines was not allowed to speak. He had to stand before the others in abject silence, listening to the evidence against him. Only when the last witness had spoken, was Baines allowed to testify.

"Well?" Miller asked.

Baines shook his head. He could not deny his crimes; only try to excuse them. "I was hungry ..."

Miller silenced the crew. "We all are! If that is all you have to say, then I pronounce you guilty. You will be flogged - fifty lashes!"

Baines was dragged to the foremast, bound to it with ropes and stripped to the waist. The bosun practiced with his cat-o-nine-tails. Baines closed his eyes and prayed he would pass out after only a few strokes.

There was a sudden hubbub, and Baines sensed the crowd moving. "What is it?" he called out in fear. The mast stopped him from seeing what had happened.

"A light!" a man cried.

"A star to guide us!" the captain shouted. "Give thanks to God!"

All fell to their knees in prayer - except for Baines.