ican Museum of Natural History, N. Y._]

"In glass, you mean?" queried Colin. "I should like to see how that's
done."

"Come to my laboratory in New York some time and I'll show you," his
companion answered, "but I can't do that here. I have a specially
prepared black paper here and I'll copy some of the anemone forms so
that I can plan them in glass from my drawings. I'll go with you
to-morrow, but after that you'll have to go out alone."

Accordingly, Colin and the diver went out with Early Bird every day for
a week, Colin spending the entire day peering through the water glass
for perfect specimens, which, when sighted, the diver would descend to
get. He secured an especially fine example of a long-spined black and
white striped sea-urchin, with spines nearly seven inches in length, a
number of pale-blue starfish (an unusual color in that genus), and one
superb sea-fan of a glowing purple color nearly five feet across. Of
sea-anemones he found a large variety, and those he brought to the
aquarium, where Mr. Collier was working steadily; several kinds of
"sea-puddings," closely allied to the famous beche-de-mer--the table
delicacy of China--also were within his discoveries. The boy's eyesight
was keen, and the collecting fever found him an easy victim, but it was
back-breaking work to stoop over the water glass all day.

After about a week of this, however, a surprise awaited him. He noticed,
as they sailed into the bay, a very handsome steam yacht lying at
anchor, a sea-going craft flying the New York Yacht Club's burgee. On
his return to the hotel Colin found his chief waiting for him, a little
impatiently.

"We're going to dinner on the _Golden Falcon_," he said, as soon as he
saw the boy, "she belongs to a friend of mine. He is going down to
Florida and has offered to take us along. If I can arrange it, that will
save us at least a week's time."

"Bully, fine!" Colin exclaimed. "Is that the yacht down there?"

"Yes."

"She's a beauty. All right, Mr. Collier, I'll get ready just as fast as
I can. And you ought to see a feather star I got to-day. It wasn't so
awfully deep down either."

"I'll see it later," was the reply, "hurry and get ready now; I don't
want to be late going over there. Their launch is to come at half-past
six and it is twenty after now, so that you need to move as fast as you
know how."

"Right, sir," answered Colin, and off he sped.

The yacht was the finest of its kind that the bo