eplied Mr. Bunker. "Go down
and go to sleep, Son, and I will do my best for this young deserter."

When Mr. Bunker entered the stateroom an hour later Mother Bunker wanted
to know all about it, of course. And if Russ had known just what they
both said of him he would certainly have been proud.

"He's a manly boy," said Daddy Bunker in conclusion. "I am glad he is
our son."

The trouble about it all was, in Rose's opinion, that she never quite
understood it. If Russ had done anything to be punished for, he
certainly didn't seem to mind the punishment! And Daddy and Mother
seemed to have a little secret between them, as well as Russ.

"I don't like secrets," she complained the next day, on thinking it all
over.

"Oh, I do!" cried Laddie. "'Specially now that Christmas is coming."

But Rose knew this was not a Christmas secret. She wondered where the
nice, pleasant-faced sailor boy came from who seemed to know Russ and
Daddy Bunker so well. She had not seen him before. And that was another
mystery that nobody seemed willing to explain to her.

They all had so many good times on the _Kammerboy_, however, that Rose
really could not be vexed for long. It proved, as had been announced in
Boston, that the ship sailed into summer seas. There was scarcely a
cloud in sight for the entire voyage, and certainly the steamship did
not roll.

At length, late one afternoon, the children were taken up on the
hurricane deck to see the islands of Charleston Harbor ahead. Many
warships, and of all sizes, lay in the roadstead, but they did not see
much of these vessels save their lights that evening.

The _Kammerboy_ was docked to discharge freight and some of her
passengers. Daddy Bunker arranged for the boy lost from the destroyer to
be put aboard his ship. Russ hoped that he would not be punished very
sorely for being left behind.

CHAPTER XI

THE MEIGGS PLANTATION

The Bunker children watched the lights of the fleet until quite late in
the evening and thought the sight very pretty indeed. They would have
liked to have gone aboard at least one of the Government vessels
preferably, of course, the one to which their sailor friend belonged,
but there was no opportunity for such a visit. For early the next
morning the _Kammerboy_ steamed out of the harbor of Charleston again on
the last lap of her voyage to Savannah.

"You can't do it, Russ--ever!" declared Rose, with confidence.

"Well," said the oldest of the six l