He let his eyee rove oyer the ship in
'desperation. Then a happy thought
jcame to him.
"The wireless!" he siaid aloud! "Bone
head! Why didn't you think of that
Jong ago?" A glance. at the rigging
^showed bim that
vt£e
Santa Crus was
•equipped with a plant, and a moment
|ater ,he was hammering: at the oper
ator's'door. ....
want to send a message right
iii way!" he cried excitedly. But the
•^•wireless" shook bis, head, with a
smile,
1 "We're installing a new. system. The
old apparatus wasn't satisfactory, and
it's being changed throughout"
"Then you—you can't send a message
os
"Nothing doing until the next trip."
Kirk strode forward and stared dis
'jconsolately down upon the freight deck
tin a vain- endeavor to collect his
tbongbts. He recalled the. incidents
tpf that wild,: night and began to have
a -disquieting doubt. Did that chance
jineeting with the chap from St Louis
Ijbave anything to do with his presence
here, ,.or.had--he really decided in some
foolish, drunken whim' to take a. trip to
Central America? He-recolledt^d that
Jefferson Locke had not impressed
j,him1 very favorably at tho start
The sound/ of- a bugle, which Bdrt
interpreted as an invitation to break-,
'•-fast. reinjufTp^l.- Iifm'tlnt he wns fpm-
ished. and he lost no tiraeTn going be
low. .. Upon, his appearance the stew
ard made it' plain to him in some
subtle manner that the occupant of
suit A needed nothing beyond the
mere possession of those magnificent
quarters to insure the most considerate
treatment. Kirk was placed at the
captain's table, where his hunger was
soon appeased, and his outlook grew
more cheerful with the complete res
toration of lw»dily comfort.
"Gettingyour sea legs. Mr. Locke?"
inquired the man at bis right.
