The Irish standard., 1911-08-05
his former tranquil manner. Have
you found anything? hope there's

Inc younger man looked up. He
saw his father, but not the girl.
Nothing wrong" he growled, except
this internal ankle of mine I've
sprained it again, and 1 did it just
when" He broke the sentence off
short there, his eye falling at that
moment upon Jeanne.
She paled little, for she had been
quick to perceive that something he
had been about to tell would not be
told now, or must be told differently.
But she waited until his father, to-
,gether with the two sailors, had got
the disabled man up onto the deck
and safely installed in an easy chair
Then gravely, but steadily, "Just az
what, Tom? What clue had they found
Just as you had to come away?'
1T was very wonderful" he said;
quite inexplicable. Just as we were
about breaking camp this morning we
saw man coming toward us across
the ice. We thought at first that it
was Hunter, and we were nightly
glad to see him, because he had stray
ed of somewhere and hadn't camped
with us. But We soon saw it wasn't
he, wasn't man anything like him.
He was queer, slouching shutting
creature, dressed in skins, and he
came up in hesitating way, as If he
was afraid Of US. He couldn't talk
English, nor understand it, apparent
guese, and I tried him in Spanish
good Filipino Spanish-on the chance.
thought it startled him little, and
he pricked up his ears at it, but he
couldn't understand that either He
Just kept beckoning and repeating two
words"
What words, Tom? Out with it,"
This from the old gentleman, who
had controlled his patience with diff
fculty during the little silence. But
the younger man hesitated and looked
into the girls face, mutely, half-ques-
toningly, before he spoke.
"The words" he said, seemed to be
your fathers name-'Captain Field
Ing 1t sounded like that"
She went quite white, and reeled
little. Then clutohed at the shrouds
for support The old gentleman was
at her side in an instant, his strong,
Bteadying arm across her shoulders.
Tom himself half rose from his chair,
only to drop back into it again with q
= Erimace Of pain and little dew Of
perspiration on his forehead He
looked rather white himself under the
tan.
II suppose"-the girl said almost
voicelessly, II suppose mustn't dare
-even let myself begin to hope yet,
must I, not-yet?'
II don't know" said Tom. 1.-THE fell
low seemed half-crazed; seemed, al
most, to have lost the power of speech
from long disuse Of it. But he meant
to take US somewhere, that was clear
Enough from his gestures. If could
only have seen you before 1 began to
blurt the thing out, I'd have spared
you the suspense until there was some
thing to tell. I'm sorry, Jeanne"
Its queer" she said. at the end Of
! rather long silence. I'm sure there
was no Portuguese in fathers expedi-
ton. Except for two or three Swedes
Ind Norwegians, they were all Amer
leans. l know the name of every man
who sailed in his ship"
"He might have taken some one on
It st. Michaels," suggested the elder
Fanshaw.
eyes," she said little obviously,
only he never thought much of south
ern Europeans as sea-faring men,
There was another silence after
that. She rose presently and began
weeping the shore line with a pris-
matte binocular which was slung
lcross across her shoulders. The two
hen exchanged glances behind her,
he elder, one of inquiry, his son, a
reluctant negative. No, it would
clearly be insane to build any hope on
the incident.
At last she let the glass fall from
her listless hand and turned to them,
her face haggard with the torture Of
impossible hope. II wish my sky
nan would come"-she said forlornly,
come whirling down out of the air,
with news of them"
"Your sky-man?" said Tom Fanshaw
auestioningly.
Here was something to talk about
1t last, aud tho old gentleman seized
the chance 1t afforded.
"Yes, we've another mystery" he
said. "see what you can do toward
solving it, With that for an introduce
ton, he plunged into humorous &C.
count of Jeanne's report of her ad-
venture of the night before, of the man
who had dropped down from the sky, in
the middle of the night, and talked to
her awhile, and then flown away again.
"she was really out on the ice floe."
he said; so much concede; but
when l assure her that she dreamed
the rest, she Is skeptical about my ex-
PLANTATION"
. "But even you can't explain" she
protested, "how could dream about
IN Eskimo throwingstick, and then
bring 1t back to the yacht with me