The St. Johns herald., 1922-04-13

fusion.
 As I passed Cookie at his dishpan, after dinner, sudden thought struck me.
 Cookie" I remarked, "you had frightfully queer look just now when Captain Magnus told about having taken the wrong cartridges. What was the matterT
 Cookie took his hands out of the wa ter and wiped off the studs, casting about stealthy and mysterious gIances. Then he rolled dubious eye at me.
 "What was 1t, CoOkie?" I urged.
 'War am Cap'n now2"
 Down on the beach; he can't possi- ply hear you"
 "You won't say nothln' to git Cookie in a rumpus?"
 Gross my heart to die, Cookie"
 Well, den"-COokie spoke in a hoarse whisper-"Cap'n say he forgit to take his gun cartridges. Miss Jimmy, when he come back, I see him empty his gun cartridges out'n his belt and put back his pistol cartridges. So dere nowI"
 turned from CookieI too surprised to speak. Why had Captain Magnus been at pains to invent a lie about so trivial matter? I recalled, too, that Mir. Shaw's question had confused him, that he had hesitated and stammered before answering 1t. Why2 Was he a bad shot and ashamed of it7 Had he preferred to. say that he had taken the wrong ammunition rather than ad- init that he could get no bag? That must be the explanation, because there was no other, Certainly no imagina- ble errand but the one assigned could have taken the captain to the other side of the Island. ,a
 Several, days went by. and still the treasure was unfound. Of course, as the unexplored space in the cave con- tracted, so daily the probability grew stronger that Fortune would shed her golden smile upon us before night. Nevertheless, it seemed to me that the optimistic spirits of most were begin AAh6 GO A06 O lAbkCs SAAJ GAAs h9AAfAPHp though banned as a confirmed doubter and pesslmist, now by the exercise of will kept the others to their task. As for Captain Magnus, his restlessness was manifest Several times he had suggested blowing the lid off the island with dynamite as the shortest method of getting at the gold. He was always vanishing on solitary excursions in- land.
 Mir. Tubbs remarked, scornfully, that a man with a nose for money ought to have smelled out the chest before this, but if his own nasal pow CTS were of that character he did not offer to employ them in the service of the expedition. Miss Higglesby- Browne, however, had taken to retir- ing to the hut for long private sessions with herself. My aunt reyerentially explained their purpose. The hiding place of the chest being of course known to the Universal Wisdom, all Violet had to do was to put herself in harmony and the knowledge would be hers. The difficulty was that you had first to overcome your Mundane Consciousness. To accomplish this Violet was struggling in the hut.
 After my meeting with Captain Mag nus in the forest, Lookout ridge was barred to me. CruSoe and must do our rambling in other directions. This being so, bethought me again of the wrecked sloOp lying under the cliffs on the north shore of the cove. 1 remembered that there had seemed to be way down the cliffs. l re- solved to visit the sloop again. The terrible practicabillty of the beautiful youth made it difficult to indulge in TO- mantle musings in his presence, And to me a derelict brings a keener tang of romance than any other relic of mans multitudinous and futile 'striv- ings.
 The descent of the gully proved an easy matter, and soon I was on the sand beside the derelict. Sand had heaped up around her hull, and filled her cockpit level with the rail- and drifted down the companion, stufing the little cabin nearly to the roof. Only the bow rose free from the white smother of sand. Whatever wounds there were in her buried sides were hidden. You felt that some wild caprice of the storm had lifted her and set her down here, not too rough ly, then whirIed away and left her to the sand.
 Crusoe slipped into the narrow space under the roof of the cabin, and l leaned idly down to watch him through warped saam between the blanks.