Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1925-01-07

from her face. She remembered his
errand. Being an eminently sensible
young woman she made no protest,
even forcing herself to tie the strings
beneath her chin.
When they reached the sands she
caught sight of the pile of clothes and
| the broken woodwork, with the small
heaps of valuables methodically ar
ranged. The harmless subterfuge did
not deceive her. She darted quick
look of gratitude at her companion.
How thoughtful he was After a fear
! full glance around she was treasured,
/ though she wondered what had be-
come of-them.
"I see you have been busy" she said,
nodding towards the clothes and boots.
1t was his turn to steal look of
sharp inquiry. 'Twere an easier task
to read the records of time in the solid
| rock than to CLEAN knowledge from
the girls face.
YES" he replied simply. Lucky
find, wasn't it?"
"Most fortunate When they are
quite dry I will replenish my ward
robe What is the first thing to be
done?"
"Well, Miss Deane, I think our pro-
gramme is, in the first place, to eX-
anime the articles thrown ashore and
see if any of the cases contain food.
| Secondly, we should haul high and
dry everything that may be of use
to us, lest the weather should break
/ again and the next tide sweep away
the spoil Thirdly, we should eat and
irest, and finally, we must explore this
island before the light fails. l am
convinced we are alone here 1t is a
small place at best, and if any China
men were ashore they would have put
in an appearance long since"
EDO you think, then, that we may
remain here 1ong?"
"It is impossible to form an opinion
on that point Help may come in
i day. On the other hand
| ''Yes?"
at is wise thing, Miss Deane, to
prepare for other contingencies.
She stood still, and swept the hor-
lion with comprehensive eyes. The
storm had vanished. Masses of cloud
were passing away to the west, leav-
ing a glorious expanse of blue sky.
Already the sea was calming. Huge
/ breakers
vond it the waves were subsiding into
a heavy unbroken swell.
The sailor watched her closely In
the quaint oilskin hat and her tattered
muslin dress she looked bewitch1ngly
pretty. She reminded him of a we'll
bred and beautiful society lady whom
he once saw figuring as Grace Darling
at a fashionable bazaar.
But Miss ITis's thoughts were serl-
Gus.
sDo you mean" she said slowly
without moving her gaze from the dis
! tant meeting-place of sky and water
s'that we may be imprisoned here for
weeks, perhaps months?''
eff YOU cast your mind back few
hours you will perhaps admit that we
are very fortunate to be here at all.
| She whisked round upon him. do
not fence with my question, Mr.. jerks.
Answer mel"
! He bowed. There was a perceptible
return of his stubborn cynicism when
he spoke.
"The facts are obvious, Miss Deane.
The loss of the Sirdar will not be
definitely known for many days. Ii
will be assumed that she has broken
down. The agents in Singapore Will
await cabled tidings of her where
abouts. She might have drifted any
where in that typhoon. Ultimately
they will send out vessel 70 search
impelled to that course a little earlier
by your fathers anxiety. Pardon me.
I did not intend to pain you. l am
speaking my mind.
"Go IN said Iris bravely.
"The relief ship must search the en-
tire China Sea. The gale might nave
driven a disabled steamer north, soutn'
east or west. A typhoon travels IN a
whirling spiral, you see, and the al
rection of a drifting ship depends
wholly upon the locality where she
sustained damage. The coasts of China,
lava. Borneo, and the Philippines are
not equipped with lighthouses on ev-
ery headland and cordoned with tel
eeraph wires. There are river pirates
and savage races to be reckoned with.
Casting aside all other possibilities,
and assuming that a prompt search IS
made to the south of our course, this
mart of the ocean is full of reefs and
small islands, some inhabited per-
manently. others visited occasionally
Dv nSnGrm6n. ne was oUoae "
something, but checked himself
ITO sum up" he continued hurried
". eve may have to remain here Tor
many days, even months. There IS al
ways a chance of speedy help. we
must act, however, on the basis OF de-
tention for an indefinite period l am
discussing appearances as they are;
A survey of the island may change all
these views"
I'm what way?"
He turned and pointed to the sum-
NIT of the tree-covered hill behind
them.
"From that point" he said. Eve may
see other and larger islands. II So
they will certainly be inhabited. am
surprised this one is not.
He ended abruptly. They were los
inc time. Before Iris could join nm
he was already hauling a large undam-
aged case out of the water.
He laughed unmirthfully. Cham =,
pagne." he said. "A good brand. too
This man was certainly an enlg1na
Iris wrinkled her pretty forehead IA
the effort to Mace him in fitting cat