of him," admitted Ruth. "Poor, crazy old
fellow--"

The machine began its whirring note and they fell silent. Upon the silver
sheet there took shape and actuality the moving barge with its banners
and streamers and costumed actors. Then a flash was given of the Indians
gathering on the wild shore--wondering, excited, not a little fearful of
the strange appearance of the white men. The pageant moved forward to its
conclusion--the landing of the strangers and the setting up of the
banners and the cross.

But suddenly Ruth shrieked aloud, and Mr. Hammond shouted to the operator
to "repeat." The dense underbrush had parted behind the upper tier of
Indians and in the aperture thus made appeared a face and part of the
figure of a man--a wild face with straggling hair and beard, and the
upper part of his body clad in the rags of a shirt.

"What in thunder was that, Hooley?" cried Mr. Hammond. "Somebody butted
in. It's spoiled the whole thing. I thought your men warned everybody off
that island?"

"I never saw that scarecrow before," declared the director, quite as
angrily.

But Ruth squeezed Helen's hand hard.

"The King of the Pipes," she whispered.

CHAPTER X

A SMELL OF SMOKE

The discovery of the face and figure of the old man whom Ruth had once
met and spoken with on the island thrust out of the undergrowth and
showing through a good part of the length of film that had been made that
first day, caused a good deal of disturbance. The King of the Pipes, as
he had called himself, was entirely "out of the picture." His
representation on the celluloid could not be removed. And he had been in
focus for so many feet of the film that it was utterly impossible to cut
it, and thus save the picture.

"It is a wretched piece of business," Mr. Hammond said to Ruth, as they
came from the projection room after seeing the reel run off again and
again. "The entire scene will have to be made over. And, aside from that
irremediable fault, I consider the work remarkably good. Mr. Hooley may
never again be able to get it so good."

Ruth and Helen had told him about the old crazy man--a hermit,
perhaps--and Mr. Hammond had given instructions that before the retaking
of the scene was tried the island should be searched for the King of the
Pipes.

"Whoever, or whatever, he is," the producer said, "he's got to be looked
after while we are making this picture. He is likely to burst most
unexpectedly into any of the outdoor