rds are probably all taking a rest. Probably just before
dawn or at sunset you would hear them making noise enough."

"It is a thick wood all right, just the place to get lost in. If the
African jungle is any worse than this I don't care to enter it."

"The trouble is you can't see far ahead and then there are briars and
brambles and a lot of spiky plants, prickly pears and Spanish bayonets and
cactus to run against and get scratched and cut with. Our own woods are
good enough for me, or bad enough, I might say."

"I wonder if we could find anything if we did go in there?" said Percival
musingly as they rowed along shore, fascinated by the bright glare of the
sands, the dense green of the woods and the dear blue of the skies. "We
might have a try at it, Jack."

"Yes, I suppose we might if we did not go too----" And then Jack suddenly
paused and a look of alarm came across his face.

A harsh voice from the wood suddenly interrupted him and he glanced here
and there to see whence it came.

The words he heard were in Spanish, as far as he could judge, but he could
see no one.

Other voices quickly joined the first and the boys rowed out somewhat from
shore and looked closely at the woods, expecting to see some one.

"There are people on the island after all, Jack."

"Yes, Spaniards, I think. Sailors, I guess. At any rate they are not using
the choicest language from what little I know of the language; Jack. I do
not see any one. Do you?"

There were loud and angry voices in the woods, but the boys could see no
one and went on slowly, farther out from shore so as to be out of danger
in case any one appeared.

"A lot of drunken sailors would not be good company," declared Jack. "I
would rather be alone."

"It can't be any one from the yacht, can it?"

"No, I don't think so. We have no Spaniards and Captain Storms brings his
men up better than that. Besides, if it were some of our men we would see
a boat, and there is nothing."

They still heard the voices at intervals as they rowed on and had no
desire to enter the woods as long as the men were there.

"That's a nuisance," said Percival with a half-growl as they rowed on. "I
would have liked to go ashore there, but of course if there are a lot of
swearing Spaniards hanging about it wouldn't do."

"I'd like to know what brought them here," remarked Jack. "We got in by
the sheerest good luck and it does not seem possible that another vessel
could have done t