repeated it for
greater effect.

"You want to look out for him, Miss Davis," said Captain Eri. "He's the
most fascinatin' youngster of his age I ever see. Me and Jerry's been
thinkin' we'd have to build a fence 'round the house to keep the girls
away when he's home. Why, M'lissy Busteed fairly--"

"Oh, give us a rest, Eri!" exclaimed Perez, with even more indignation
than was necessary. "M'lissy Busteed!"

Just then Ralph and Elsie came up, and Captain Eri explained that he had
hailed them because it was time to be going if they wanted to get across
to the mainland without swimming. They walked around to the back door of
the station and there found Mrs. Snow and Captain Davis by the hen-yard.
The lady from Nantucket had discovered a sick chicken in the collection,
and she was holding it in her lap and at the same time discoursing
learnedly on the relative value of Plymouth Rocks and Rhode Island Reds,
as layers.

"See there!" exclaimed Captain Eri delightedly, pointing to the
suffering pullet, "what did I tell you? D'you wonder we picked her out
for nuss for John, Luther? Even a sick hen knows enough to go to her."

They harnessed Daniel to the carryall, and stowed the living freight
aboard somehow, although Captain Perez protested that he had eaten so
much dinner he didn't know's he'd be able to hang on the way he did
coming down. Then they said farewell to Captain Davis and his sister and
started for home. The members of the crew, such of them as were about
the station, waved good-by to them as they passed.

"Things kind of average up in this world, don't they?" said Captain Eri
reflectively, as he steered Daniel along the soft beach toward the ford.
"We're all the time readin' 'bout fellers that work for the Gov'ment
gittin' high sal'ries and doin' next to nothin'. Now there's a gang--the
life-savin' crew, I mean--that does what you and me would call almighty
hard work and git next to nothin' for it. Uncle Sam gits square there,
it seems to me. A few dollars a month and find yourself ain't gilt-edged
wages for bein' froze and drownded and blown to pieces ten months out of
the year, is it?"

The tide was higher when they came to the crossing than it had been when
they drove over before, but they made the passage all right, although
there was some nervousness displayed by the feminine portion of the
party. When they reached home they found Captain Jerry contentedly
smoking his pipe, the sick man was asleep, and