veral large
maps, and one of these was the most interesting study I could find as I
watched the Florina.

I saw from this map that there was no large town near the lagoon, and
no means of reaching a railroad. I concluded, therefore, that Mr.
Whippleton did not intend to abandon his yacht at this point. I was
ready to make any movement as soon as he showed his purpose, and he
could not take the Florina out of the lagoon without passing very near
the Marian. He had anchored at a considerable distance from the shore,
but he had a tender.

"What are you going to do here, Philip?" asked Marian, after I had
studied the map to my satisfaction.

"I am going to see what Mr. Whippleton does. He knows that I am on his
track, I suppose."

"If he has as much money as you say, he will be likely to run away."

"Not to-night; he will not like the idea of tramping through the woods
in the dark."

"There! he's hauling in his small boat," added Marian, pointing to the
yacht.

"So he is," I replied, pulling in the tender of the Marian.

"What will you do?"

"If he attempts to land, I shall follow him. I don't intend to lose
sight of him. I haven't come so far to be balked now."

"What shall I do?" asked my fair cousin, with an anxious look.

"You will be perfectly safe here."

"What, alone?"

"I shall be sorry to leave you; but I must follow Mr. Whippleton, for
your father's sake as well as my own."

"I will go with you then. I should not dare to stay here alone."

"But I don't believe Mr. Whippleton intends to leave the yacht. If he
had meant to do so, he would have run into St. Joseph's River, instead
of this lagoon, where there seems to be no good landing-place. We will
wait and see what he is about."

"There are two of them," said Marian.

"So I perceive. I was not aware before that he had any one with him."

I observed the movements of the two persons on board of the Florina for
some time. One of them jumped into the tender, at last, and shoved off.

"He's coming this way," said Marian.

"I see he is; it don't look like Mr. Whippleton," I replied, closely
scrutinizing the person in the small boat. "I think you had better stay
in the cabin, Marian."

"Why?"

"If it should be Mr. Whippleton, there may be some trouble."

"What trouble?"

"The moment he sees me he will understand my business with him; and to
be entirely candid with you, I am afraid I shall have a worse battle
with him than I had with Mr. W