portion about her neck. Other details must be left until a more
favorable opportunity.

She recalled the strange sight that first met her eyes when she
recovered consciousness.

"You hurt your finger," she said abruptly. "Let me see it."

They had reached the shelter of the trees, pleasantly grateful now, so
powerful are tropical sunbeams at even an early hour.

He held out his right hand without looking at her. Indeed, his eyes had
been studiously averted during the past few minutes. Her womanly
feelings were aroused by the condition of the ragged wound.

"Oh, you poor fellow," she said. "How awful it must be! How did it
happen? Let me tie it up."

"It is not so bad now," he said. "It has been well soaked in salt
water, you know. I think the nail was torn off when we--when a piece of
wreckage miraculously turned up beneath us."

Iris shredded a strip from her dress. She bound the finger with deft
tenderness.

"Thank you," he said simply. Then he gave a glad shout. "By Jove! Miss
Deane, we are in luck's way. There is a fine plantain tree."

The pangs of hunger could not be resisted. Although the fruit was
hardly ripe they tore at the great bunches and ate ravenously. Iris
made no pretence in the matter, and the sailor was in worse plight, for
he had been on duty continuously since four o'clock the previous
afternoon.

At last their appetite was somewhat appeased, though plantains might
not appeal to a gourmand as the solitary joint.

"Now," decided Jenks, "you must rest here a little while, Miss Deane. I
am going back to the beach. You need not be afraid. There are no
animals to harm you, and I will not be far away."

"What are you going to do on the beach?" she demanded.

"To rescue stores, for the most part."

"May I not come with you--I can be of some little service, surely?"

He answered slowly: "Please oblige me by remaining here at present. In
less than an hour I will return, and then, perhaps, you will find
plenty to do."

She read his meaning intuitively and shivered. "I could not do
_that_," she murmured. "I would faint. Whilst you are away I will
pray for them--my unfortunate friends."

As he passed from her side he heard her sobbing quietly.

When he reached the lagoon he halted suddenly. Something startled him.
He was quite certain that he had counted fourteen corpses. Now there
were only twelve. The two Lascars' bodies, which rested on the small
group of rocks on the verge of the la