Burke that they
were all too late, and that the _Dunkery Beacon_ had sailed two days
before.

"And weren't you here to board her?" cried Burke.

"No," said Shirley; "our steamer didn't arrive until last night!"

Burke and Mrs. Cliff looked at each other in dismay. Tears began to come
into Willy Croup's eyes, as they nearly always did when anything unusual
suddenly happened, and all the members of the Synod, together with Mr.
Portman and Mr. Burdette, and even the two engineers, who had come up
from below, pressed close around Shirley, eager to hear what next should
be said.

Everybody on board had been informed during the trip from Nassau of the
errand of the yacht, for Mrs. Cliff thought she would be treating those
generous and kind-hearted clergymen very badly if she did not let them
know the nature of the good work in which they were engaged. And so it
had happened that everybody who had sailed from Nassau on the yacht had
hoped,--more than that, had even expected,--for the _Dunkery Beacon_ was
known to be a very slow steamer,--to find her in the harbor of Kingston
taking on goods or perhaps coaling, and now all knew that even Shirley
had been too late.

"This is dreadful!" exclaimed Mrs. Cliff, who was almost on the point of
imitating Willy in the matter of tears. "And they haven't any idea, of
course, of the dangers which await them."

"I don't see how they could know," said Shirley, "for of course if they
had known, they wouldn't have sailed!"

"Did you hear anything about her?" asked Burke. "Was she all right when
she arrived?"

"I have no doubt of that!" was the answer. "I made inquiries last night
about the people who would most likely be consignees here, and this
morning I went to a house on Harbor Street,--Beaver & Hughes. This
house, in a way, is the Jamaica agent of the owners. I got there before
the office was open, but I didn't find out much. She delivered some
cargo to them and had sailed on time!"

"By George!" cried Burke, "Captain Horn was right! They could hardly get
a chance to safely interfere with her until she had sailed from
Kingston, and now I bet they are waiting for her outside the Caribbees!"

"That's just what I thought," said Shirley; "but of course I didn't say
anything to these people, and I soon found out they didn't know much
except so far as their own business was concerned. It's pretty certain
from what I have heard that she didn't find any letters here that would
make