at's all there is to
tell you about us. Tell us about you."

Mark's eyes twinkled. "Ah, now, what's the use? That will come later.
Besides--some chapters are not for gentle ears." He nodded toward Joel.
"So you love the boy, yonder?"

Priss bobbed her head, red lips pursed, eyes dancing.

"Why?" Mark demanded. "What do you discover in him?"

She looked at Joel, and they laughed together as though at some
delightful secret, mutually shared. Mark wagged his head dolorously. "And
I suppose he's wild about you?" he asked.

She nodded more vigorously than ever.

Mark rubbed his hands together. He looked at Joel, with a faintly
malicious twinkle in his eyes. "Well, now!" he exclaimed. "That is
certainly the best of news...." Joel saw the mocking and malignant little
devil in his eye. "I've never had a kid sister," said Mark gayly. "And
it's been the great sorrow of my life, Priss. So, Joel, you must expect
Priss and myself to turn out the very best of friends."

And Priscilla, on the seat beside him, nodded her lovely head once more.
"I should say so," she exclaimed.

VII

Mark Shore held something like a reception, on the _Nathan Ross_, all
that first day. He went forward among the men to greet old friends and
meet new ones, and came back and complimented Joel on the quality of his
crew. "You've made good men of them," he said. "Those that weren't good
men before."

He listened, with a smile half contemptuous, to Jim Finch's somewhat
slavish phrases of welcome and admiration; and he talked with Varde, the
morose second mate, so gayly that even Varde was cozened at last into a
grin. Old Hooper was pathetically glad to see him. Hooper had been mate
of the ship on which Mark started out as a boy; and he liked to hark back
to those days. Young Dick Morrell, on his trips from the shore, gave Mark
frank worship.

Joel saw all this. He could not help seeing it. And he told himself,
again and again, that it was only to be expected. Mark had captained this
ship, had captained these men, on their last cruise; they had thought him
dead. It was only natural that they should welcome him back to life
again....

But even while he gave himself this reassurance, he knew that it was
untrue. There was more than mere welcome in the attitude of the men;
there was more than admiration. There was a quality of awe that was akin
to worship; and there was, beneath this awe, a lively curiosity as to
what Mark would do.... They