t is to put
up some kind of a signal in case a boat should come down into the bay
here. Of course Uncle Dick will be looking for us, and there might be a
boat in here almost any day."

"That's a capital idea!" exclaimed Rob. "Now, Jesse, if you'll get a
long pole and tie this handkerchief to it, I'll meet you over at the
dory with the other things which we'll need on our trip this morning."

Rob left the Aleut's gun on the deck of the bidarka, but carried along
his hide fishing-line and both the bidarka paddles. His own rifle and
that of Jesse he put in one end of the dory, opposite the seat where he
intended the Aleut to sit. Telling Jesse to watch the latter, he once
more ascended to the top of the sea-wall, and here erected his
signal-flag, piling up a heap of stones at the foot of the staff. Long
and anxiously he gazed out toward the mouth of the bay, but only the
long green billows of the sea came rolling in, unbroken by any sail or
cloud of smoke. Across the bay, a half-dozen miles or so, the great
mountains stood grim and silent, the tops of many of them wreathed in
fog. It was a wild and desolate scene, and one to try the courage of any
young adventurer. But Rob, seeing how homesick Jesse was becoming, did
his best to cheer him as he joined him at the dory.

"Plenty to do to-day!" he said. "And now for a good boat ride. It's
lucky we've so good a sea-boat along as this dory--it's far safer than
Jimmy's bidarka over there."

Rob seated himself at the stern and put Jesse in the bow. He motioned to
the Aleut to take up the oars and row, and the latter, without
objection, skilfully got the dory out through the surf, and at once
proved himself master of the white man's oars as well as the native
paddle. The wind was coming astern, and their run of something like a
mile down to the mouth of the creek was made rapidly. Just around the
point from the mouth of the stream Rob motioned to the Aleut to stop
rowing.

"It looks deep here," said he to Jesse. "Maybe we could get a codfish.
Here, Jimmy, take a try with your own fishing-line."

The Aleut grinned as Rob tossed him his rough-looking line of hide, and
at once set to work. Nor did he prove inefficient, even with this rough
tackle of hide and bone. He baited the crude hook with a piece of meat
which he took from his pocket, and dropped it overboard in twenty
fathoms of water. Motioning to Rob to keep the boat steady, he began to
pull the line up and down in lon