Oh, it is something mysterious!" cried the younger girl. "I knew it! I
knew it! We are getting into the region of mystery at last! Oh, Mr.
Verslun, you are a perfect treasure! It has been a nasty, dull, old trip
from the moment we left Sydney Harbour, and you are the first person to
bring a little colour into the voyage."

She was so worked up at the thought of hearing something wonderfully
mysterious and romantic that I started to make a long yarn out of that
incident on the wharf just for her benefit. Miss Edith was interested
too, but I was convinced, as I polished up the points of the little tale
and endeavoured to pull in a thrill, that the elder sister was deriving
her pleasure from watching the face of the younger one, and not from my
story.

"It pleases Barbara," she cried, when I had told how Toni had denied all
knowledge of his friend, and how the Maori had sent the farewell chant
after the boat. "She thinks she will see and hear wonderful things
before we get back to civilization."

"I hope she will," I said, and little did I dream that the wish I
expressed at that moment should come true in such a remarkable manner
before we had returned.

"And you don't know what they meant by their song about the white
waterfall and Black Fernando's hell?" murmured Barbara.

"No, I don't," I replied. "The Maori ran away when I attempted to
cross-examine him, and Toni denies all knowledge of the duet on the
wharf."

"Oh, we must ask him again!" she cried. "There he is near the wheel.
I'll go and bring him!"

She raced madly after the Fijian and hauled him before us in triumph. I
was more convinced than ever that it was Toni who had blundered over
his lesson on the wharf, but Toni denied the charge more vehemently than
he did on the boat. He asserted in reply to Barbara Herndon's questions,
that he could not sing a note, that he was absolutely ignorant of white
waterfalls, and the only hell he knew was the one spoken of by the
missionary in Lower George Street, Sydney; and the girl sighed as she
gave up the effort.

"It seemed such a nice mystery to unravel," she murmured, "but if Toni
persists in saying that he knows nothing of the white waterfall the
investigation falls to the ground."

The Fijian was backing away with renewed protestations when a head came
round the corner of the galley, and a voice that was deeper than the
caves of Atiu fired a question at us.

"What about the white waterfall?"

"Oh, Mr. L