glad to be speeding at last toward her new home in the wilderness.
Surely there she would find refuge from the man who had been dogging
her steps ever since she landed at Portland Point. He had not spoken
to her after his defeat by Dane Norwood, but she knew that he had ever
been near, following and watching her wherever she went. She thought,
too, of him who had rescued her that night, and her eyes brightened.
He had seldom been out of her mind since then, and she recalled again
his pleasing presence and the words he had spoken. She wondered if she
should ever see him again, or whether he had forgotten her altogether.

She was aroused by her father's voice, and glancing quickly around she
saw him coming toward her, and with him the captain of the schooner,
Jonathan Leavitt.

"Been indulging in day-dreams?" her father asked.

"I believe I have," she smilingly replied, while a conscious blush
stole into her cheeks. "And why shouldn't I?" she hastily added. "Who
could help having daydreams in such a wonderful place as this?"

"I am glad to see you so bright and happy, dear. Poor Old Mammy is
indulging in night-dreams, and moaning about our terrible lot."

"Night-mares, I should say," the captain laughingly corrected. "To
hear her wail and lament one would think that we are all going to be
scalped alive before morning."

"And there are others who have the same idea," the Colonel replied.
"They can see nothing but misery and death right ahead."

"But is there any real danger, captain?" Jean asked.

"There is always more or less danger in a country such as this," was
the quiet reply. "This river has witnessed stirring scenes. Look at
those little clearings over yonder, for instance," and he pointed to
the western shore. "A few settlers had their homes there, but the
Indians drove them out, and burned their houses. It has been the same
in other places, and it may happen again. But I have made many trips
on this river, and the natives have never troubled me yet. It may be
because I sail on the _Polly_," he added with a twinkle in his eyes.

"What has the _Polly_ to do with it, captain?"

"Oh, she leads a charmed life. She has got into no end of difficult
places, but has always come out on top. I have driven her through
storms between here and the West Indies that would have swamped a much
larger vessel. At one time she was forced by a wild gale on the top of
the wharf at Newburyport. But she was pull