een the logs of the cabin.

When, on the fourth morning, the wind died away and the sun burst out
brilliantly upon a tumbling, muddy sea and rain-drenched landscape,
Boreland's first thought was of repairing the house.

"We're in a devil of a stew here," he exclaimed after breakfast.
"We'll have to get this place fixed up right now. Still, some of us
ought to go down to the West Camp and take a look at the cache.
Luckily there are no animals on the island, so we have nothing to fear
from that source."

"Why can't Loll and I go down to the camp, Shane?" broke in Jean.
"Then all you men can get busy on the house. The poor, little old
thing looks as if it had a black eye, with the porch battered down over
the door."

Boreland was at first not in favor of the idea, doubting that it was
safe for them to go alone. At last, however, he consented.

"Keep to the upper beach line," he cautioned, as the two started out,
"and remember, if the sea is breaking near the bluff when you come
home, wait on the other side until the tide drops before you attempt to
cross."

After the long confinement in the crowded cabin Jean was as delighted
as her capering little nephew to feel again the freedom of the beach.
In spite of all the hardships--perhaps because of them--she was growing
to love the sands of Kon Klayu, and to look upon this incalculable
ocean as a sort of fairy god-mother, who, with every tide, brought up
something different to lay at her feet. She never started out for a
walk along the sea without experiencing that delightful, childish sense
of expectancy which is so keenly a part of the life of Alaska.

While Kobuk trotted on ahead she and Loll, remembering the talk of
beach mining to which they had so often listened, scanned the way for
ruby sand, the carrier of gold. But this morning the beach was untidy
with great masses of fresh kelp and seaweeds from the deep, torn by the
storm and scattered everywhere.

"Oh, look, Jean! The gulls have found something!" Loll's finger,
pointing ahead indicated a cloud of screaming, white-breasted birds
that were rising and falling on slate-tipped wings over some object
below them. "Let's hurry and see what it is."

But Kobuk was before them. Dashing on ahead he plunged into the melee,
frightening the gulls from their find so that they flew shrieking into
the air as the girl and her little companion ran up to discover the
remains of a large fish on the sand. It was a ha