e little brown house on the hill. So she said,
"We must go home, Amos."

"I wish you girls had stayed home," muttered Amos; "if some of the boys
had come we'd have had a good time here; but girls always want to go home.
Well, I'll get you to Long Point without swimming," and again Amos smiled,
for he had a secret of his own that he knew would greatly surprise Amanda
and Anne.

It was not long before he began scraping the hot embers from the sand
under which the fish was cooking. Then he poked the hot sand away, and
there lay the plaice, steaming and smoking, and sending out an appetizing
odor.

"There!" said Amos proudly, as he managed to cut off a piece with his
jack-knife for each of the girls, "that's as good fish as you ever
tasted."

"It's the best," said Anne, and Amanda ate hungrily. Indeed the children
were all so hungry that they devoured the entire fish.

"If you'll stay till to-morrow I'll cook the cod," said Amos, but both
Amanda and Anne said they wanted to go home. So Amos with their help
pushed and dragged the dory into the water, and then telling the girls to
stay right by the boat until he returned, started off up the beach to
where he had found the mussels. In a few minutes they saw him running
back.

"Look, Amanda!" exclaimed Anne, "he's found an oar!"

The little girls could hardly believe it possible; but Amos was smiling
and seemed to think it was a great joke.

"I found it yesterday morning, the very first thing, when you were off
after beach-plums," he explained, "and I hid it, because I knew if I told
you I'd found an oar you'd want to start for home right off; and as long
as we were here I wanted some fun out of it. Now jump in, and I'll scull
you over to Long Point in no time."

The girls were too glad at the idea of really starting for home to blame
Amos for keeping them on the island so long, but Anne thought to herself
that she was sure that none of the Starkweather boys would have hidden the
oar. "Amos is smart, but he's selfish," she decided, as the boy bent to
the big oar and sent the clumsy boat toward Long Point.

"'Tis a good oar, better than the one I lost," said Amos, "and I do think
'twas lost from one of the English ships. There's a big 'S' burned into
the handle. Mayhap it belonged to the 'Somerset.' If so I'm glad they lost
it."

"'twas the 'Somerset' ran down my father's boat and nigh drowned him,"
said Anne, "and the sailors lent him no help, but laughed to see h