A、He couldn’t see the steamer clearly. B、He failed to attract the attention of the steamer. C、The steamer refused to help him. D

I knew it wouldn’t be long before they discovered my escape from the boat house where they had locked me up, but now I had no choice except to go on. I stumbled up the path which rose steeply to the top of the cliff. Once there, I stopped for a moment to get my breath back, looking out as I did so across the sea. I could see the steamer which came across once a week from the mainland making its way towards the harbour. From where I stood, it looked like a toy or model someone had built. I began waving my arms in the air, then I removed my jacket and used that too to attract attention. But it all seemed hopeless as the steamer sailed steadily on towards the mouth of the harbour. I began to shout, in a last desperate attempt to stop her, and when my throat was quite dry, and my arms aching from the effort I had made, then at the last moment the miracle happened. The steamer began to slow up, and then to move in, away from the harbour and what awaited her there.