urban villas. When the _Kansas_ lay on the
shoal Courtenay was certain that the ship was lost, or he would never
have dispatched some of his passengers and crew in the only boat
available. He acted to the best of his judgment then; he was acting
similarly now in abandoning the last resource of a raft in order to keep
the vessel on her present course. But, then or now, he paid no heed
whatever to the obvious fact that he and the second engineer, and at
least one of the male passengers, must be the last to quit the ship.
That was the code of all true sailor-men--the women first, then the male
passengers and crew followed by the officers, beginning at the junior in
rank. There could be room for no hesitancy or dispute--it was just a
sailor-like way of doing one's duty, in the simple faith that the
recording angel would enter up the log.

The long wait in the darkness would have broken many a man's nerve, but
Courtenay was not cast in a mold to be either bent or broken by fear.
When his cigar was not in his mouth he whistled, he hummed snatches of
songs, and delivered short lectures to Joey on the absurdity of things in
general, and the special ridiculousness of such a mighty combination of
circumstances centering on one poor ship as had fore-gathered to crush
the _Kansas_. Ever since he was aroused from sleep by the stopping of
the screw, his mind had dwelt on the unprecedented nature of the
break-down. Even before he discovered its cause he was wondering what
evil chance bad contrived to cripple the engine at such a moment--in the
worst possible place on the map.

"Joey!" he said suddenly, his thoughts reverting to a chance remark made
to him in Valparaiso by Isobel's father, "what did Mr. Baring mean by
saying there was a difficulty about the insurance?"

Joey gave it up, but he cocked his ears and looked towards the door.
Christobal entered.

"Boyle will recover," he said, when he had wiped the spray off his face.
"He had a narrow escape; the knife just grazed the spinal cord. The
shock to the dorsal nerves induced temporary paralysis, and that rather
misled me. He is much better now. Under ordinary conditions he would be
able to get about in a few days. As it is, he will probably live as long
as any of us."

Christobal waved a hand towards the external void. He was not sailor
enough to realize the change in the weather.

"That is good news," said Courtenay.

"I thought you would like to know. How ar