n the water and his leg struggling vainly to get
free. But he might as well have struggled against the grip of Hercules.
In another moment Charlie had him hauled aboard again, his eyes full of
tears of boyish rage and humiliation.

"You young fool!" exclaimed Charlie. "The water round here is thick with
sharks; you wouldn't have gone fifty yards without one of them getting
you." ...

"Sharks!" gasped out the boy, contemptuously. "I know more about sharks
than you do."

"You seem to know a good many things I don't," said Charlie, whose
grimness had evidently relaxed a little at the lad's display of mettle.
Meanwhile, my temper was beginning to rise on behalf of our young
passenger.

"I tell you what, Charlie," I interposed; "if you are going to keep this
up, you'd better count me out on this trip and set us both ashore at
West End. You're making a fool of yourself. The lad's all right. Any one
can see with half an eye there's no harm in him."

The boy shot me a warm glance of gratitude.

"All right," agreed Charlie, beginning to lose his temper too, "I'm
damned if I don't." And, his hand on the tiller, he made as if to turn
the boat about and tack for the shore.

"No! no!" cried the boy, springing between us, and appealingly laying
one hand on Charlie's shoulder, the other on mine. "You mustn't let me
spoil your trip. I'll compromise. And, skipper, I'll tell your friend
here all there is to tell--everything--I swear--if you will leave it to
his judgment."

Charlie gloomed for a moment or two, thinking it over, while I stood
aloof with an injured air.

"Right-O," agreed Charlie at last; so our passenger and I thereupon
withdrew for our conference.

It was soon over, and I couldn't help laughing aloud at the simplicity
of it all.

"Just as I told you, Charlie," I exclaimed; "it's innocence itself."
Turning to the lad, I said: "Dear boy, there is really no need to keep
such a small secret as that from the skipper here. You'll really have to
let me tell him."

The boy nodded acquiescence.

"All the same, I gave my word," he said

When I told Charlie the innocent secret, he laughed as I had done, and
his usual good humour instantly returned.

"But to think, you young scapegrace," he exclaimed, "that you might
either have been eaten by a shark, or have broken up an old friendship,
for such nonsense as that." And, turning to me, and stretching out his
huge paw, "My hand, old man; forgive my bad temper."