dded, winking at Ellery.

"She's a brigantine, Zeb," observed the keeper, handing up the spyglass.
"And flyin' the British colors. Look's if she might be one of them salt
boats from Turk's Islands. But what she's doin' out there, anchored,
with canvas lowered and showin' distress signals in fair weather like
this, is more'n any of us can make out. She wa'n't there last evenin',
though, and she is there now."

"She ain't the only funny thing along shore this mornin', nuther,"
announced Theophilus Black, one of the fishermen. "Charlie Burgess just
come down along and he says there's a ship's longboat hauled up on the
beach, 'bout a mile 'n a half t'other side the mouth of the herrin'
crick yonder. Oars in her and all. And she ain't no boat that b'longs
round here, is she, Charlie?"

"No, Thoph, she ain't," was the reply. "Make anything out of her,
cap'n?"

Captain Zeb, who had been inspecting the anchored vessel through
the spyglass, lowered the latter and seemed puzzled. "Not much," he
answered. "Blessed if she don't look abandoned to me. Can't see a sign
of life aboard her."

"We couldn't neither," said Thoph. "We was just cal'latin' to go off to
her when Charlie come and told us about the longboat. I guess likely we
can go now; it's pretty nigh smooth as a pond. You'll take an oar, won't
you, Noah?"

"I can't leave the light very well. My wife went over to the village
last night. You and Charlie and Bill go. Want to go, too, Zeb?"

"No, I'll stay here, I guess. The old lady made me promise to keep my
feet dry afore I left the house."

"You want to go, Mr. Ellery? Lots of room."

The minister was tempted. The sea always had a fascination for him and
the mystery of the strange ship was appealing.

"Sure I won't be in the way?"

"No, no! 'course you won't," said Burgess. "Come right along. You set in
the bow, if you don't mind gettin' sprinkled once in a while. I'll steer
and Thoph and Bill'll row. That'll be enough for one dory. If we need
more, we'll signal. Heave ahead."

The surf, though low for that season of the year, looked dangerous to
Ellery, but his companions launched the dory with the ease which comes
of experience. Burgess took the steering oar and Thoph and "Bill," the
latter a lobsterman from Wellmouth Neck, bent their broad backs for the
long pull. The statement concerning the pondlike smoothness of the sea
was something of an exaggeration. The dory climbed wave after wave, long
and green a