ve!" he repeated. "I'm crazy
about the whole business."

I judged he considered me crazy, hopelessly so. I did not care. I agreed
with him in this--the whole business was insane and Hephzibah's going
was the only sensible thing about it, so far.

His next question was concerning our baggage. I told him I had left it
at the railway station because I was not sure where it should be sent.

"What time does the 'Princess Eulalie' sail?" I asked.

He looked at me oddly. "What?" he queried. "The 'Princess Eulalie'?
Twelve o'clock, I believe, I'm not sure."

"You're not sure! And it is after nine now. It strikes me that--"

"Never mind what strikes you. So long as it isn't lightning you
shouldn't complain. Have you the baggage checks? Give them to me."

I handed him the checks, obediently, and he stepped to the telephone
and gave a number. A short conversation followed. Then he hung up the
receiver.

"One of the men from the office will be here soon," he said. "He will
attend to all your baggage, get it aboard the ship and see that it is
put in your staterooms. Now, then, tell me all about it. What have you
been doing since I saw you? When did you arrive? How did you happen to
think of taking--er--Miss Cahoon with you? Tell me the whole."

I told him. Hephzy assisted, sitting on the edge of a rocking chair
and asking me what time it was at intervals of ten minutes. She was
decidedly fidgety. When she went to Boston she usually reached the
station half an hour before train time, and to sit calmly in a hotel
room, when the ship that was to take us to the ends of the earth was to
sail in two hours, was a reckless gamble with Fate, to her mind.

The man from the office came and the baggage checks were turned over to
him. So also were our bags and our umbrellas. Campbell stepped into
the hall and the pair held a whispered conversation. Hephzy seized the
opportunity to express to me her perturbation.

"My soul, Hosy!" she whispered. "Mr. Campbell's out of his head, ain't
he? Here we are a sittin' and sittin' and time's goin' by. We'll be too
late. Can't you make him hurry?"

I was almost as nervous as she was, but I would not have let our
guardian know it for the world. If we lost a dozen steamers I shouldn't
call his attention to the fact. I might be a "Babe in the Wood," but he
should not have the satisfaction of hearing me whimper.

He came back to the room a moment later and began asking more questions.
Our answers