lation. He took off his cap and saluted his
island. He made little speeches of glowing compliment to it, he called
it the pearl of its kind, the choicest gem of the Gulf or the Caribbean,
and, if pirates came again while he was there, he would drive them away
once more with the aid of the good spirits.

He rowed back, hid his boat in the old covert among the bushes at the
edge of the creek, and, rifle on shoulder, started through the forest
toward his peak of observation. On the way, he passed the lake and saw
the herd of wild cattle grazing there, the old bull at its head. The big
fellow, assured now by use and long immunity, cocked his head on one
side and regarded him with a friendly eye. But the bull had a terrible
surprise. He heard the sharp ping of a rifle and a fearful yell. Then he
saw a figure capering in wild gyrations, and thinking that this human
being whom he had learned to trust must have gone mad, he forgot to be
angry, but was very much frightened. Enemies he could fight, but mad
creatures he dreaded, and, bellowing hoarsely to his convoy, as a
signal, he took flight, all of them following him, their tails streaming
straight out behind them, so fast they ran.

Robert leaped and danced as long as one of them was in sight. When the
last streaming tail had disappeared in the bushes he sobered down. He
realized that he had given his friend, the bull, a great shock. In a
way, he had been guilty of a breach of faith, and he resolved to
apologize to him in some fashion the next time they met. Yet he had been
so exultant that it was impossible not to show it, and he was only a lad
in years.

When he reached the crest of his peak he scanned the sea on all sides.
Eagerly as he had looked before for a sail he now looked to see that
there was none. Around and around the circle of the horizon his eyes
traveled, and when he assured himself that no blur broke the bright line
of sea and sky his heart swelled with relief.

In a day or so, his mind became calm and his thoughts grew sober. Then
he settled down to his studies. The battle of life occupied only a small
portion of his time, and he resolved to put the hours to the best use.
He pored much over Shakespeare, the other Elizabethans and the King
James Bible, a copy of which was among the books. It was his intention
to become a lawyer, an orator, and if possible a statesman. He knew that
he had the gift of speech. His mind was full of thoughts and words
always c