The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1913-11-28

Wf3o Is John Mort1
 fOzAHE moonlight streamed through
 the palms of the Pacific island
 of Lotoalofas outlining on the
 beach a vivid tracery of fronds and stems. Across the lagoon, soften ed and me1lowed by the stretch of glassy water, came the sound of a mouth organ and the rhythmic beat of a wooden drum as the crew of the North Star raised the chorus of Good by My FeIeni-" At intervals there was a deeper note as some mighty comber flung it's might against the coral and burst with fury on the sea- ward reefs
 In all those lonely seas there is no -Ionelfer island than Lotoalofa. On some Pacific charts it is called the -four crowns of Quiros," with ques- ton mark after It. On others, when it is noticed at all, it figures variousiy as ''AEeIampus reef, D. d. "Winslow shoals, p. d. or merely Island, e. d. D. d. signifying position doubtful and e. d existence doubtful" In the ffties its handful of inhabitants was carried away bodily by Peruvian slav- CTS In later years it attracted the at tention of Bully Hayes, who had had the intention, never to be carried out, of making it into a sort of pirate stronghold, and to this day there stands his battery of six small, rusty iron can non. commanding the anchorage.
 Here, leaning against one of these venerable guns, were two men in close and earnest conversation. One of them was about forty-fve, tall and thin, with high Ncheek bones and narrow, ugly, zithered face, whose usual ex- pression was one of sardonic melan- choIy- But 1t was not commonplace face nor a weak one. The pale blue eyes were masterful, the nose pro nounced and the general air disttn- guished- Whatever else he had been in the past John Mort, as he called himself. was ineradicably a cavalry officer, with an underlying military harshness that on occasions could flame up like a volcano.
 His companion was Matthew Brough- ton. man of thirty-one, sobered, hard ened and somewhat worn by eleven years CD the outposts of civilization. He was an American, alone in the world He had had two years at An napoIis, from which he had been dis charged for hazing. Later he had drffted to the Pacific. He had thrown himself WhoIeheartedly into the life of danger, daring and romance of the south sea islands, and all he had to show for it were a few scars, a smat- tering of half dozen outlandish dia- tects and the memory of some desper- ate chances taken and lost. At thirty bne he had achieved nothing more tangible than $1OO a month and the command of John Mort's schooner, and even these he was now abandon fng, to begin again with nothing.
 ssBut, my friend, is there anything you complain of?'' Mort was asking, his slight foreign accent more marked than usual as the result of his concern.
 "Oh, no, strr"
 ssMoney7 Shall double your salary treble ft?- That is simple"
 Matt shook his head.
 'eIt is here,'' he said. laying his hand to his heart 'tI don't know what's the matter with me; but I'm tired of it all; h0mesick, perhaps, dissatisfied, de pressed
 And you are determined to leave me7"
 'zDo not reproach me, sir. I told you this before my last trip, not wishing to take you unawares.'
 'Tm sorry said John Mort with emotion. Sorry for myself at losing one liked and admire. who for six years has always been so faithful, so lQyal- Sorry, too, for you. my friend,