, 1911-02-09

n manner of the words, no less
than the sense of them startled her,
and she checked a movement to turn
and look into his face. Instead, she
tried to recall 1t as 1t had looked
when she had first stood confronting
him, before the twilight had faded.
1t was a strange face, as she re-
membered 1t, but this. she reflected,
was probably due to the incongruous
effect of his deeply tanned skin with
his very light sun-bleached hair. A
sensitive face, finely chiseled, almost
beautiful-and young. but with an in
applicable stamp of premature age
upon 1t. 1t had not struck her at all
as a tragic face. And yet the mean.
ing Of those last words of his, uttered
as thu were, had been tragic enough
AT least you have a magnificent re-
venge," was all she said. And then
there was another silence. She her.
self was trying to think of something
to say, for she realized that his con-
fession had beer Involuntary. and that
the silence must be distressing him.
But 1t was he himself who broke
the silence with q natural. m%atterof.
fact question. You say a searching
party has set out from the yachti
Have they been long ashore?"
They set out only a little after sun
rise, We came into the bay with the
last of yesterdays twilight, and the
sight of those huts, at the edge OF the
shore" her voice faltered a little,
nearly made us hope that the impos-
sible might prove true. We fired our
signal cannon two or three times and
then e n up some rockets, without
getting any answer. 1t vas too late
TO go ashore in the dark; SO we had
TO wait a few hours for another un-
rise. The few of us who were left
on the yacht expected them back to-
day before dark fell. But l suppose
there's nothing to worry about in
their not coming. They went equipped
10 pass a night ashore, II necessary.
You don't advise mi to begin worry
ing about them, do your"
He did not answer her question. He
was recalling something which his
amazing meeting with the girl out
here on the ice-foe had. for a little
while, put quite out of his mind-the
weird. silent tragedy he had seen en-
acted a few hours before upon the
glacier behind the headland. The
victim, the man in the leather coat.
must have been one Of the party from
the yacht; but 1. was impossible that
the little band of his murderers could
be. No one freshly landed from the
yacht would have been dressed as
they we're, or would nave been armed
with darts.
With no better look at them than
had been possible to him as he hung
above their heads, he had been con
yinced that they were white; certain
ly, the leather.coated man a been
talking to them, freely enough, in
English. And yet, II white. they must
have been refugees-survivors, II not
OF Captain F%felding's Inflated expedi-
ton, then of some other. tragic. unre-
ported ship wreck,
But If they were white men-refu-
gees, why had they fed from their
nut at sight of the yacht which came
bringing a rescue? Why a they
driven hat one luckless member OF
the rescuing party who fell in with
them. into that carefully prepared am
bush, n then murdered him, silent
iy? Even Eskimos would not have
done a thing like that.
His long silence had alarmed the
girl, and presently. ~perceiving that
this was SO. he drew himself up with
an affected start. ~ beg your par
don. l drifted of, thinking OF some
ming else. Living In the sky doesn't
e--n aandnaiva to good No.