make of it."

"I know nothing about a sail-boat," said I. "If we had seen one leave
here, we should have gone home in her. Why did you take our boat?"

Mr. Chipperton had now landed.

"I came over here," he said, "with my wife and daughter. We were in a
sail-boat, with a man to manage it. My wife would not come otherwise. We
came to see the light-house, but I do not care for light-houses,--I have
seen a great many of them. I am passionately fond of the water. Seeing a
small boat here which no one was using, I let the man conduct my wife
and Corny--my daughter--up to the light-house, while I took a little
row. I know the man. He is very trustworthy. He would let no harm come
to them. There was a pair of oars in the sail-boat, and I took them, and
rowed down the creek, and then went along the river, below the town;
and, I assure you, sir, I went a great deal farther than I intended, for
the tide was with me. But it wasn't with me coming back, of course, and
I had a very hard time of it. I thought I never should get back. This
boat of yours, sir, seems to be an uncommonly hard boat to row."

"Against a strong tide, I suppose it is," said I; "but I wish you hadn't
taken it. Here I have been waiting ever so long, and my friend----"

"Oh! I'm sorry, too," interrupted Mr. Chipperton, who had been looking
about, as if he expected to see his sail-boat somewhere under the trees.
"I can't imagine what could have become of my boat, my wife, and my
child. If I had staid here, they could not have sailed away without my
knowing it. It would even have been better to go with them, although, as
I said before, I don't care for light-houses."

"Well," said I, not quite as civilly as I generally speak to people
older than myself, "your boat has gone, that is plain enough. I suppose,
when your family came from the light-house, they thought you had gone
home, and so went themselves."

"That's very likely," said he,--"very likely indeed. Or, it may be that
Corny wouldn't wait. She is not good at waiting. She persuaded her
mother to sail away, no doubt. But now I suppose you will take me home
in your boat, and the sooner we get off the better, for it is growing
late."

"You needn't be in a hurry," said I, "for I am not going off until my
friend comes back. You gave him a good long walk to the other end of the
island."

"Indeed!" said Mr. Chipperton. "How was that?"

Then I told him all about it.

"Do you think that the flat-boat is