reaking out on the backs of his sturdy
legs. He had a haunting sensation that not only had he crawled
into a hole, but he had pulled the entire aperture in after him.
For the first time he began to fear that he had been too
precipitate, and with the thought it occurred to the gallant
commodore that he would be much safer back on the decks of the
_Maggie II_. Always crafty and imaginative, however, Mr. Gibney
came quickly to the front with an excuse for getting back to the
ship. He stepped quickly toward the little group around the
outraged royal ambassador and inquired the cause of the
disturbance. Quivering with rage, Tabu-Tabu informed him of what
had occurred.

Mr. Gibney's rage, of course, knew no bounds. Nevertheless, he
did not have to simulate his rage, for he was truly furious. When
he could control his emotions, he requested Tabu-Tabu to inform
the king that he, Gibney, accompanied by Captain Scraggs, would
forthwith repair to the schooner and then and there flay the
offending McGuffey within an inch of his life. Suiting the action
to the word, Mr. Gibney called to Captain Scraggs to follow him,
and started for the beach.

As Captain Scraggs arose, a trifle unsteadily, from his seat, a
black hand reached around him from the rear and closed over his
mouth. Now, Captain Scraggs was well versed in the rough-and-tumble
tactics of the San Francisco waterfront; hence, when he felt a long
pair of arms crossing over his neck from the rear, he merely stooped
and whirled his opponent over his head. In that instant his mouth
was free, and clear above the shouting and the tumult rose his
frenzied shriek for help. Mr. Gibney whirled with the speed and
agility of a panther just in time to dodge a blow from a war club.
His fist collided with the jaw of Tabu-Tabu, and down went that
savage as if pole-axed.

[Illustration: "_Captain Scraggs ... broke from the circle of
savages ... and fled for the beach_"]

Pandemonium broke loose at once. Captain Scraggs, after his
single shriek for help, broke from the circle of savages and fled
like a frightened rabbit for the beach. One of the natives hurled
a rock at him. The missile took Scraggs in the back of the head,
and he instantly curled up in a heap.

"Scraggsy's dead," thought the horrified Gibney, and sprang at
the king. In that moment it came to Mr. Gibney to sell out
dearly, and if he could dispose of the king, he felt that
Scraggs's death would be avenged. In an insta