The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1913-09-02

place the north end of the island be- tween ourselves and the ship. I steer ed the boat toward the land My hopes were high and felt kind of exh11aration at our escape, although I was by no means inclined to mini mize the possibilities of peril we might soon be compelled to meet The island was our destination, however, and for it therefore I determinedly headed my small craft with it's precious and still peacefully sleeping cargo.
 The island was unlike any had ever looked upon. In the first place, like most Pacific islands, it was 1nclosed by a barrier reef, over which the waves broke in wfitecaps as far as I could see. I supposed tKat somewhere there would be an opening in the reef through which we could sail. That was invariably the case with all such islands that had ever known or read about. But could not see the open ing from the boat yet. The lagoon en- closed by the barrier reef seemed to be quarter or half a mile wide. The straE&est part of the whole scene was that the island itself looked like a whitish gray wall rising straight up from the lagoon for, I suppose, from 15O feet in the lowest part to 300 feet or more without break Its top was covered with greenery. It stood up like solid rampant of stone. From where we were couldn't see the end of the island, although from my inspec- ton of it the day before I judged it might be six or eight miles long, and as I had sailed past it I estimated 1t 1 was about the same breadth and near | 1y circular in shape.
 A long distance away on the other kide and hard to be seen at all from 1 the level of the sea in the small boat | lay other islands, faintly outlined on the far horizon.
 suppose I must have thrashed about somewhat when I brought the dingy to the wind and changed her course, for presently my little mistress awoke. She sat up5instantly, and after the briefest acknowledgement of my good morning and the briefest reply to my inquiry as to how she did she stared at the land toward which we were edging in so far as the wind would allow. It was a bleak, 1nhos- pitable looking place, that gray, rough i wall, in spite of it's infrequent crust ing of verdure, I will admit, and she, too, found it so. After she had stared hard at the land she cast an anxious glance to leeward, but, of course, could make nothing of the distant islands there.
 "We must get ashore,'' said I, Gas soon as possible. By the time their debauch will have worn off they will either bring the ship here or send the boat after us. Af1oat we can do noth- ing, ashore we may find some conceal ment and probably make some de fense."
 'tIt is a bleak looking spot.''
 Indeed, not a curl of smoke any where betrayed the presence of man. kind. Had it not been for depres- sions in the walls of the cliff here and there which were filled with vegeta- tion, one might have supposed the is- land to be nothing but a desoIate and arid rock, but this reassured me. l thought it strange that there was no mountain or hill rising from beyond the top of the wall, but I was yet to see how strange the island was
 But as 1t was full morning now I decided that first of all the creature comforts had to be thought Of I offer ed to reIinquish the tiIler and prepare something to eat, but Mistress Lucy took that upon herself. What we had was cold, but there was plenty of it, and at my urging she ate heartily. | my raging hunger. I wanted her to be in fett1e for whatever might hap pen.
 We had not much conversation the while, but do remember that she did say she had rather be here alone with me than on the ship, whereat my heart pounded, but had sense enough to say nothing. Her loneliness and helplessness appealed to me. I might have been bold under other circum- stances, but not now
 Well, we coasted along that barrier reef a good part of the morning until we reached the other end of the island and discovered to our dismay that there was absolutely no opening, nc break in it through which we could make our way When we reached the lower end my lady was for sailing around on the other side, but t1is did not dare. We had heard nothing from the ship or her boats, and l didn't pro pose to arouse any pursuit by coming within possible range of her glasses did not know where the Rose of De, von lay.
 Madam" said I at last, there is naught for us but to try to go over the reef in some fashion. As I examined the island yesterday through the glasses I couldn't see any opening iI