s arranged, and Major
Dare liked his son's new friend immensely, quite a pleasant relationship
being established between the two men, so that Colin's departure for
Bermuda was under the happiest auspices. He soon learned that the
museum curator was not only an authority on his own subject of marine
invertebrates, but that he was interested to the utmost in all sorts of
affairs, and he admitted confidentially to the boy that he was an
inveterate baseball fan. Best of all, perhaps, Colin gained from him the
feeling that science and scholarship were two windows whereby one might
see how much good there is in the world.

"Enthusiasm," Mr. Collier said, "is one of the best forces I know. A boy
without enthusiasm is like a firecracker without a fuse. The powder may
be there all right, but it will never have a chance to make itself
heard."

The lesser-known life of the sea, in which the boy's interest was
centered for the especial purposes of this trip, seemed to Colin at
first even more interesting than that of fishes and the voyage to
Bermuda was practically a continuous revelation of wonders. The
scientist realized that he had not only an assistant, but a disciple,
and went to much trouble to teach the lad. This was one of Colin's great
characteristics, his interest was always so genuine and so thorough that
others would do everything they could to help him.

The Bermuda Islands were sighted for the first time under a cloudy sky,
and Colin thought he had never seen a more disappointing sight. Compared
to Santa Catalina, the islands lay low and without sharp contrast, no
cliffs rising bluff upon the shore, no mountains looming purple in the
distance. The land was parched--for it was late in the summer--and the
scattered foliage looked small and spindling after the gigantic forests
of California. The "beautiful Bermudas" seemed plain and uninviting as
the steamer passed St. David's Head. Moreover, as they steamed down
along the north shore, the same appearance was visible throughout, its
low undulating sea-front of black, honeycombed rock lacking character,
the rare patches of sandy beach and sparse sunburned vegetation seeming
bare and dreary.

Reaching Grassy Bay, however, past the navy yard and rounding Hog-fish
Beacon, the sun came out and swiftly the scene became transfigured. As
the steamer drew nearer and began to run between the islands in the
channel, the undulating shores showed themselves as hills and valleys i