o, course you ain't. It's dum foolishness. Besides, I ain't got the
say; the government hires its own keepers."

"But you can square the government. That will be easy. Why," with a
modest gesture, "look what the government is getting. It will jump at
the chance. Atkins, you must say yes."

"I sha'n't, neither. Let go of my arm. It's blame foolishness, I tell
you. Why," impatiently, "course it's foolishness! I don't know the first
thing about you."

"What of it? I don't know anything about you, either."

Again the lightkeeper seemed unaccountably agitated. He stopped in his
stride and whirled to face his companion.

"What do you mean by that?" he demanded fiercely. Before the young man
could reply, he turned again, strode to the door of the light, flung
it open, and disappeared within. The door closed behind him with a
thunderous bang.

John Brown gazed after him in bewilderment. Then he shrugged his
shoulders and returned to the bench.

The surf at the foot of the bluff grumbled and chuckled wickedly, as if
it knew all of poor humanity's secrets and found a cynic's enjoyment in
the knowledge.

CHAPTER IV

THE COMING OF JOB

The next morning Seth was gloomy and uncommunicative. At the breakfast
table, when Brown glanced up from his plate, he several times caught
the lightkeeper looking intently at him with the distrustful,
half-suspicious gaze of the night before. Though quite aware of this
scrutiny, he made no comment upon it until the meal was nearly over;
then he observed suddenly:

"It's all right; you needn't."

"Needn't what?" demanded Atkins, in astonishment.

"Look at me as if you expected me to explode at any minute. I sha'n't.
I'm not loaded."

Seth colored, under his coat of sunburn, and seemed embarrassed.

"I don't know what you're talkin' about," he stammered. "Have the
moskeeters affected YOUR brains?"

"No. My brains, such as they are, are all right, and I want to keep them
so. That's why I request you not to look at me in that way."

"How was I lookin' at you? I don't know what you mean."

"Yes, you do. You are wondering how much I know. I don't know anything
and I'm not curious. That's the truth. Now why not let it go at that?"

"See here, young feller, I--"

"No; you see here. I'm not an Old Sleuth; I haven't any ambitions that
way. I don't know anything about you--what you've been, what you've
done--"

"Done!" Seth leaned across the table so suddenly that he upset h