and if his boat touches the quay, he shall not succeed in
avoiding me."

I returned to the Green Cormorant, and took up my post behind the
window panes, which were dimmed by the hissing rain. There I waited,
nervous, impatient, and in a state of growing irritation. Two hours
wore away thus. Then, with the instability of the winds in the
Kerguelens, the weather became calm before I did. I opened my
window, and at the same moment a sailor stepped into one of the
boats of the _Halbrane_ and laid hold of a pair of oars, while a
second man seated himself in the back, but without taking the tiller
ropes. The boat touched the landing, place and Captain Len Guy
stepped on shore.

In a few seconds I was out of the inn, and confronted him.

"Sir," said I in a cold hard tone.

Captain Len Guy looked at me steadily, and I was struck by the
sadness of his eyes, which were as black as ink. Then in a very low
voice he asked:

"You are a stranger?"

"A stranger at the Kerguelens? Yes."

"Of English nationality?"

"No. American."

He saluted me, and I returned the curt gesture.

"Sir," I resumed, "I believe Mr. Atkins of the Green Cormorant
has spoken to you respecting a proposal of mine. That proposal, it
seems to me, deserved a favourable reception on the part of a--"

"The proposal to take passage on my ship?" interposed Captain
Len Guy.

"Precisely."

"I regret, sir, I regret that I could not agree to your request."

"Will you tell me why?"

"Because I am not in the habit of taking passengers. That is the
first reason."

"And the second, captain?"

"Because the route of the _Halbrane_ is never settled beforehand.
She starts for one port and goes to another, just as I find it to my
advantage. You must know that I am not in the service of a
shipowner. My share in the schooner is considerable, and I have no
one but myself to consult in respect to her."

"Then it entirely depends on you to give me a passage?"

"That is so, but I can only answer you by a refusal--to my
extreme regret."

"Perhaps you will change your mind, captain, when you know that I
care very little what the destination of your schooner may be. It is
not unreasonable to suppose that she will go somewhere--"

"Somewhere indeed." I fancied that Captain Len Guy threw a long
look towards the southern horizon.

"To go here or to go there is almost a matter of indifference to
me. What I desired above all was to get away from Kerguelen at the