other wild bull."

"Get out!" said Billy, half laughing, half in disgust. "How much will you
take to keep quiet on that subject?"

"I could not think of making a bargain, Billy," chuckled Jack, "and then I
am afraid it would cost you too much. Remember, there are myself and Dick,
Jesse W. Smith, Bucephalus Johnson and Ben Bowline to be bought off, and
the prices might go up."

"All right," muttered Billy with a wry face, "but don't rub it in too
much, that's all."

"All right, I won't, but remember when you feel like playing jokes on the
boys that I may say something about it."

"All right, but I say, what about it, that calf is not wild?"

"Not a bit of it, she is just as tame as any barn-yard calf along the
Hudson valley. Calves are the same the world over."

"And Billy was one not to know it," said Percival with a grin. "Remember,
William, you have not bought me off yet. I have made no promises, and
neither has Jesse W. Smith."

"Oh, I don't care anything about it," said the smaller boy. "I won't say
anything about it no matter how much Billy jokes, I am interested in the
other matter. If there are tame calves here there must be more or less
civilized people living on the island."

"Well, we have made two or three very good discoveries on our island,"
observed Percival. "We have found treasure, and we have found calves, and
probably inhabitants."

"And the next thing is to find a way through the reefs," said Jack.

"If we found the others why should we not find that?" asked Percival. "We
did not expect to find anything, and we have found a lot."

"But we won't find our way home," said Billy, "if we don't start pretty
soon, for it will be dark in a little while."

"The funny fellow grows serious once in a while," chuckled Dick, "but I
think he is right for all that."

"I think we had better be going myself," said Jack. "Ben Bowline?"

"Sir to you, sir," said the seaman.

"Steer south, and go on a free wind at four miles."

"Aye-aye, sir!" said Ben, and they all set out for home, as they called
the yacht.

"Talkin' about calves," said Ben Bowline as they were walking on in a body
through the woods, "there was another adventure of mine which----"

"You're a liar!" suddenly interrupted a strident voice speaking in Spanish
and then some bad language in the same tongue followed.

"Mah goodness, dat am fightin' talk!" exclaimed Bucephalus. "Ah wouldn'
stan' dat, Sailorman."

"Jus' wait till I get m