ovocation on his part, levelled at me personally,
shall be allowed to move me in the slightest degree. But if ever the
young monkey again dares to lift his hand against you in my presence,
I'll--I'll--"

"Yes, yes, I know; you needn't say it," she interrupted in turn, and
once more her eyes sparkled with merriment; "it will be something too
awful for words. Well, I'll tell Julius what you say, and perhaps the
information may have a good effect upon him. And now let us to
breakfast, for I see Lizette is in a perfect terror lest the coffee
should be allowed to go cold."

We sat down to breakfast opposite each other and chatted more merrily
and intimately together than we had ever done before. But when the meal
was over we put merriment aside, for there was the approaching junk to
be thought of and provided for. When we rose from the table I requested
Anthea to procure from her mother the keys of the magazine and bring
them to me, as I proposed to make every possible provision for the
defence of the wreck, should such unhappily prove to be necessary. And
while she went to her mother for the required keys, I made my way up on
to the poop and took another look at the junk.

There she was, close-hauled on the port tack, and evidently working up
for the reef. But she was a slow tub, and the breeze was still so light
that her sails barely remained "asleep" as she heaved and rolled
ponderously upon the long, low, Pacific swell. I plainly saw that I
should have ample time for such preparations as it would be possible to
make for her reception.

I flung a look round the horizon and searched the sky for weather signs.
The sky was clear as a bell, of a deep, rich, ultramarine tint in the
zenith; shading off by imperceptible gradations to a soft, warm
colourlessness at the horizon. There was not the slightest hint of haze
or cloud in the whole of the visible vault, and the breeze was a mere
warm breathing, with nothing to indicate that it might possibly freshen.
Would that it would fall calm before the junk could enter the lagoon!
In that case we should be able to judge of her friendliness or otherwise
by the number of boats which she would dispatch to us. I went to the
flag locker, drew forth our Club ensign, and ran it up, reversed, to the
head of the ensign staff--which, for a wonder, had escaped the general
destruction--in the hope that this would evoke some sort of response
from the crew of the junk, to serve in so