of delicate purple tones of shadow, through which,
with the aid of the glass, could be made out the several declivities,
gorges, precipices, and ravines that went to make up the contour of the
country. It was thickly wooded everywhere, seemingly from the water's
edge to within some eighty feet or so of the summit, the latter rising
naked into the clear air. But attractive as it looked under the soft,
subdued light of the early dawn, in the delicate monochrome of distance,
and the absence of direct sunlight, it looked even more beautiful when,
after sunrise, as we approached it more closely, the countless subtle
variations of tint in the foliage, from this in brightest sunlight, to
that in deepest, richest purple shadow, became manifest; and so powerful
an impression did it make upon the men that I overheard them freely
discussing the desirability of making a lengthened sojourn there.

"Yes," said I, when O'Gorman, carried away by his enthusiasm at the
beauty of the place, hinted at such a possibility, "that is all very
well, and sounds very attractive just now; but has it yet occurred to
you that yonder island may be peopled by a race of savages who, if we
give them the opportunity, will gladly make a barbecue of all hands?"

"Phew! begorra, but Oi nivver thought of that!" he ejaculated in sudden
dismay. "Oi'm obliged to ye for the hint, misther. We'll load the guns
and muskets, and make ready generally for the blagguards, if they have
the impidence to be there."

And forthwith he shambled away for'ard, unceremoniously cutting into the
holiday plans that the men were busily concocting, and instructing them
to load the guns and arm themselves in readiness for any emergency that
might arise.

As we stood in toward the land I kept a bright lookout for smoke, for
huts peeping from among the trees, for canoes hauled up on the beach, or
any other indications of the presence of human life on the island, but
could see nothing. At this, however, I was not very greatly surprised,
for although we were on the lee side of the island, the surf was
breaking so heavily all along the shore as to render it impracticable
for canoes. If the island happened to be inhabited, the inhabitants
would probably be found located on its weather side, which, according to
O'Gorman's document, was protected from the surf by a barrier reef, with
a passage through it.

As we stood on it became apparent that the island was nearer five than
fou