, 1911-02-02

rrTUr rne prUnornceo Nor maine. nj
the sound OF It. he glanced at her curl
ously; but all he said Just then was,
THANK you" and busted himself m
mediately with completing the process
of furling his wings.
When he had finished. he tossed the
sheep-skin down in a little hollow in
the foe, and with a gesture invited
her t. be seated.
"Oh, I've a great pile of bear skins
out here" she said. quite a ridiculous
pile OF them, considering 1t is not q
cold night; and we can make our
selves comfortable here. or go aboard
the yacht. Just as you please"
They we're seated side by side in
the little nest she had made for her
self, before he reverted to the idea
which had sprung up in his mind
upon hearing her name. There was
a Captain Fielding once" he said
slowly, who set out from San Fran
cisco half a dozen years ago. In the
hope of discovering the pole by the
way OF Behring strait. His ship was
never seen again. nor was n word
received from him. Finding you here
and hearing your name, / wondered"
YES" she said gravely, "he was my
father. We got news of him last win
ter, II you could call 1t news. for 1t
was four years old before 1t reached
us. A whaler in the arctic feet
picked up a floating bottle with a mes
sage from him telling where he was.
So we have come here to find him
at least to find where he died, for ]
suppose there Is no hope-never so
much as a grain Of hope of anything
better"
Cayley could not contradict her,
and he saw there was little need OF
trying to do so. She had spoken sim
ply, and very gravely. but It was evf-
len the years had not taken the sting
out of her grief.
He told you whore he was?" he
asked.
"Oh, quite exactly" she told him;
"he gave us latitude and longitude,
and mapped the coast-line. So you
we're wrong, you see. in what you said
about photographers. And he gave us
the route by which with reasonable
fortune, we might find open water.
We had good fortune and we got here
safely, but, Of course, we were too
late. The hut on the shore there 10
deserted. We have seen no signs Of
life at all. The men have gone ashore
to search, and there is TO be a gun-fire
If they find anyone alive, But they
have been out all day and there has
been no sound. You will understand.
l think, though, why / did not want to
sleep tonight in my cabin in the
yacht; why the ice and the dome Of
stars seemed better"
Yes" he said, 81 understand"
Presently, after a moments musing,
he added. What seems strange to me.
incomprehensible altogether, is. that
men like your father. and SO many
others, should risk and lose their lives
trying to reach the pole"
You can't understand that" she
questioned surprised. you. a man
with wings?"
81 suppose it's because of the
wings he answered her. 81 slept
there once. early this summer-slept,
and rested, n ate a meal"
There" she echoed incredulously.
Where do you mean?"
AT the pole, or within a half degree
of tt won't guarantee my instru-
ments, nor my hit-and-miss observe
lions any more accurately than that
and It seemed a poor place to risk
ones life trying to reach. Just the
ice-pack-the eternal ice-pack; moth
ing but that" Then his eyes lighted
n little. But ] should like to go there
some time. in the winter-should like
to fly straight ahead. for hours and
hours. through the long dark. until ]