and such a death!

He proved to be a member of the crew, a Lascar, whose knowledge of the
English language was limited, and whose ignorance of the great national
game was fathomless.

But when he had recovered and had learned the name of his rescuer, he
sought Joe out and thanked him in accents that were none the less sincere
because broken and imperfect, and from that time on throughout the trip he
was almost doglike in his devotion.

A few days more and the ship reached Hawaii, that far-flung outpost of
Uncle Sam's dominions, which breaks the long ocean journey between America
and Japan.

The hearts of the tourists leaped as the ship drew near the harbor and
they caught sight of the Stars and Stripes, floating proudly in the
breeze.

"I never knew how I loved that flag before," cried Mabel
enthusiastically.

"The most beautiful flag that floats," chimed in Clara.

"The flag that stands for liberty everywhere," remarked Jim.

"Yes," was Joe's tribute. "The flag that when it has gone up anywhere has
never been pulled down."

As the ship drew near the shore the beauty of the island paradise brought
exclamations of delight from the passengers who thronged the steamer's
rails.

The harbor was a scene of busy life and animation. The instant the ship
dropped anchor she was surrounded by native boats, paddled by Hawaiian
youngsters, who indulged in exhibitions of diving and swimming that were a
revelation of skill.

"They've got it all over the fishes when it comes to swimming," remarked
Jim with a grin. "Cough up all your spare coin, Joe, and see these little
beggars dive for it."

They tossed coin after coin into the transparent waters and swiftly as
each piece sank, the young swimmer was swifter. Every one was caught
before it reached bottom, and came up clutched in some dusky hand or
shining between ivory teeth.

"I'll be bankrupt if this keeps up long," laughed Joe.

"Yes," said Jim. "You'll wish you'd joined the All-Star League and copped
that twenty thousand."

"How do they ever do it?" marveled Clara.

"In the blood I suppose," replied Joe. "Their folks throw them into the
water when they're babies, and like puppies, they have to swim or drown."

"They're more at home in the water than they are on land," remarked Jim.
"Those fellows will swim out in the ocean and stay there all day long."

"I should think they'd be afraid of sharks," remarked Mabel, with a
shudder, as she thought of the recent