l. "You carry yourself.
That's enough for you to do. Ready, sir."

"Come along, then," said the captain; and he led the way out into the
delicious early morning with the light growing rapidly now and showing
the trees laden with moisture, whose only effect upon the sand had been
to beat it down into a firm path, so that they would have been able to
go rapidly had it not been for the weakness of the stowaway.

"Better when I've had some breakfast," he said feebly. "Been a bit bad,
sir. Soon get well, though, now."

He did not look as if he would, but there was plenty of the spirit of
determination in him, and he plodded on till they came in sight of the
grove where the huts had been set up, and there in the first beams of
the morning sun the ladies could be seen anxiously on the look-out for
the lost ones, while, to mingle matter-of-fact with sentiment, there,
from among the rocks rose up in the glorious morning the thin blue smoke
of the so-called kitchen fire, telling of what was to follow after the
welcome--to wit, a good breakfast of fruit and freshly-caught fish, with
other delicacies, perhaps, by way of a surprise.

Safely back, and the night's anxieties soon forgotten in the light of
the sun, the storm having made everything seem bright, and by comparison
peaceful and calm.

"Now, Mark," said the captain after the refreshing sensation consequent
upon a good bathe and a hearty meal, "you will be too tired to go in
search of the ship to-day."

To which Mark gave a most emphatic "No," and declared himself quite
ready for the start.

CHAPTER THIRTY.

HOW MARK SAW THE SEA-SERPENT.

"He's about the most misfortnatest chap as ever was born, Jimpny is,"
said Billy Widgeon. "He do get it bad and no mistake, allus."

For the stowaway had been at once taken up to the hospital, as the shady
spot under the cocoa-nut trees had to find him lying there looking
already quite another man. Kindly hands had been busy with water and
bandages; he was decently clothed, and the feverish haunted look had
gone out of his eyes, as he lay chatting with the sailors under a
capital shedding of palm leaves and bamboos, which had been rigged up
just in time for the storm, and which, like the other huts, had proved
fairly water-tight.

"Oh yes, Mr Mark, sir, I'm a-getting on splendid now," he said. "This
is a deal better than being aboard."

It was an understood thing that the party should start at once so as to
have a