nd trying job, but he accomplished it
without having exhausted his eloquence. Indeed, his terms of endearment
had been cautiously selected throughout, out of a heroic respect for the
lady passenger. The boatswain's idea of language becoming in the presence
of the gentler sex was rather liberal, perhaps; but in any case his nice
consideration was wasted upon the girl, who heard never a word. She lay
as if in the grip of fever, her distorted mind pursuing quaint visions
and trifling and irrelevant ideas. As they drew near, the rescue-party
sent out a breathless cheer, which was answered from the ship with a wild
yell of exultation, and then a broadside of questions burst from the deck
of the Francis Cadman, where every creature on board excitedly awaited
the boat's return. The sonorous and masterful voice enforced silence
again with a sentence.

'How is it, bo's'n?' called the same voice a moment later.

'Got 'em both, sir,' answered Coleman.

'Both!'

'Ay, ay, sir!'

A tumult of voices surged over the ship again; the heads piled themselves
afresh, craning one above the other. Two had gone overboard! Only one had
been reported, and one only was missed. Interest was doubled. For four
weeks the Francis Cadman had been pottering about the Indian Ocean
without discovering a single adventure to break the stupid monotony of
sky and sea, and restore the faith of the passengers in their favourite
maritime authors; but here, at last, was a sensation and a mystery.

Perhaps, after all, it was no mere accident, but a tragedy. Men and women
thronged the deck, thrilling with sympathy, and yet secretly hoping for a
complete drama, even though someone must suffer.

The girl was first passed up. When the young man followed she had been
carried below. He was barefooted, and clad only in singlet and trousers;
his coat and shirt had been discarded in the sea.

Ryan's expression sprang from every tongue.

'The Hermit!'

The young man stood with his shoulders to the gunwale, facing the crowd.
There was something resentful in his attitude. His face was that of a man
about twenty-two, beardless and boyish, but the firm, straight mouth,
with its compressed, slightly protuberant lips, and the thick line of
dark brows, throwing the eyes into shadows, imparted an appearance of
sullen reserve that belonged to an older face. His scrutiny condemned men
and repelled them. His figure, about three inches above middle height,
was that of a lab