ght. I don't like him, and I never will like him, and there isn't
any use in pretending about it!"

Everyone laughed at that.

"You're quite right, Dolly," said Margery. "When you dislike a person
anyone who can see you or hear you knows about it. I'll say that for
you--you don't pretend to be friends with people when you really hate
them."

"Why should I? Come on, Bessie, if we're going for a walk. If we stay
here much longer Margery'll get so dry from talking that we'll have to
go and get her some more water."

"Let's go up the path and get on the bluff again," said Bessie. "I like
it up there, because you seem to be able to see further out to sea than
you can here."

"All right. I don't care where we go, anyhow, and it is more interesting
up there than on the beach, I think."

The night was a beautiful one, and walking was really delightful. Below
them the beach stretched, white and smooth, as far as the cove itself.
At each end of the cove the bluff on which they were walking curved and
turned toward the sea, stretching out to form two points of land that
enclosed the cove.

"They say this would be a perfect harbor if there was a bigger channel
dredged in," said Dolly. "Of course it's very small, but I guess it was
used in the old days. There are all sorts of stories about buried
treasure being hidden around here."

"Do you believe those stories, Dolly?"

"Not I! If there was any treasure around here it would have been found
ever so long ago. They're just stories. I guess those pirates spent most
of the money they stole, and I guess they didn't get half as much as
people like to pretend, anyhow."

"It would be fun to find something like that, though, Dolly."

"Well, Bessie King, you're the last person I would ever have expected
even to think of anything so silly! You'd better get any nonsense of
that sort out of your head right away. There's nothing in those old
stories."

"I suppose not," said Bessie, and sighed. "But in a place like this it
doesn't seem half so hard to believe that it's possible, somehow. It
looks like just the sort of place for romance and adventure. But--oh,
well, I guess I'm just moonstruck. Dolly, look at that!"

Her eyes had wandered suddenly toward the yacht, and now, from their
higher elevation, they were able to see a small boat drawing away from
her, on the seaward side, and so out of sight of the girls on the beach.

"That's funny," said Dolly, puzzled. "I should think