ndian," she replied, "has seldom or never been known to lie.
And where a whole tribe testify alike the truth of what they assert can
not be questioned."

"How did you make them talk? They are a sullen, suspicious people,
haughty, uncommunicative, seldom even replying to an ordinary question
from a white man."

"They consider me one of them."

"Why?" he asked in surprise.

"I'll tell you why. It came about through a mere accident. I was waitress
at the hotel; it happened to be my afternoon off; so I went down to the
coquina dock to study. I study in my leisure moments, because I wish to
fit myself for a college examination."

Her charming face became serious; she picked up the hem of her apron and
continued to pleat it slowly and with precision as she talked:

"There was a Seminole named Tiger-tail sitting there, his feet dangling
above his moored canoe, evidently waiting for the tide to turn before he
went out to spear crayfish. I merely noticed he was sitting there in the
sunshine, that's all. And then I opened my mythology book and turned to
the story of Argus, on which I was reading up.

"And this is what happened: there was a picture of the death of Argus,
facing the printed page which I was reading--the well-known picture where
Juno is holding the head of the decapitated monster--and I had read
scarcely a dozen words in the book before the Seminole beside me leaned
over and placed his forefinger squarely upon the head of Argus.

"'Who?' he demanded.

"I looked around good-humoredly and was surprised at the evident
excitement of the Indian. They're not excitable, you know.

"'That,' said I, 'is a Greek gentleman named Argus.' I suppose he thought
I meant a Minorcan, for he nodded. Then, without further comment, he
placed his finger on Juno.

"'_Who?_' he inquired emphatically.

"I said flippantly: 'Oh, that's only my aunt, Juno.'

"'Aunty of you?'

"'Yes.'

"'She kill 'um Three-eye?'

"Argus had been depicted with three eyes.

"'Yes,' I said, 'my Aunt Juno had Argus killed.'

"'Why kill 'um?'

"'Well, Aunty needed his eyes to set in the tails of the peacocks which
drew her automobile. So when they cut off the head of Argus my aunt had
the eyes taken out; and that's a picture of how she set them into the
peacock.'

"'Aunty of _you_?' he repeated.

"'Certainly,' I said gravely; 'I am a direct descendant of the Goddess of
Wisdom. That's why I'm always studying when you see me down on the doc