"
"And what may that be?" asked the other.
"Captain Horn," said Edna.
Mrs. Cliff laughed a little scornfully. "If you are ever going to get any
color out of your possession of him," she said, "he's got to very much
change the style of his letter-writing. He has given you his name and
some of his money, and may give you more, but I must say I am very much
disappointed in Captain Horn."
Edna turned suddenly upon her companion. "Color!" she exclaimed, but she
did not finish her remark, for Ralph came running aft.
"A queer thing has happened," said he: "a sailor is missing, and he is
one of the men who went on shore for us. They don't know what's become of
him, for the mate is sure he brought all his men back with him, and so am
I, for I counted them to see that there were no stragglers left, and all
the people who were in that boat came on board. They think he may have
fallen overboard after the ship sailed, but nobody heard a splash."
"Poor fellow!" exclaimed Mrs. Cliff, "and he was one of those who came
to save us!"
At this moment a wet and bedraggled sailor, almost exhausted with a swim
of nearly a mile, staggered upon the beach, and fell down upon the sand
near the spot from which the Mary Bartlett's boat had recently been
pushed off. When, an hour before, he had slipped down the side of the
ship, he had swum under water as long as his breath held out, and had
dived again as soon as he had filled his lungs.
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