"You mean Scotland--the mainland of Scotland?" said the captain,
not seeming to understand the meaning of the "Mainland," which I
may here explain is our local name for Pomona island--the largest
of the Orkneys.

"No, I didna mean Scotland, skipper--though, to be sure, I hae been
over there many a time. We call this the Mainland, where we are
just now. Many folks make the same mistake about that. I mind of a
skipper named Jock Abernethy. Jock had a brig o' his ain, though he
kent naething aboot navigation, whatever. Weel, a lang while past
it is noo, he was takin' his brig frae Portree, in Skye, across to
the West Indies. His crew was nae better nor himsel'. Weel, when
they had been at sea twa or three months, Jock cam on deck ae
mornin', and, 'Donald,' says he to his mate, 'd'ye not see land
yonder to starboard?'

"'Ay, sir,' says Donald; 'I'm just thinkin' it will be the West
Indies.'

"'You're right there, Donald, the West Indies it is,' says Jock.
'See, yonder's the black folk sittin' waitin' for us!' and he
pointed to the cormorants perched on the rocks.

"So the brig was hauled round, and when she was near inshore a
pilot boat cam oot to them. Jock hailed the pilot: 'What land is
that?' he cried.

"'It's the Mainland!' sings out the pilot.

"'What! the mainland o' America?' asks Jock, thinkin' he had missed
the Indies.

"'No, ye duffer, the Mainland o' Orkney, to be sure,' says the
pilot. 'What other Mainland is there?'"

As I sat on my low stool by the fire, my mother and Jessie being in
the inner room, I took the viking's charm from my pocket and
examined it. Captain Gordon had lighted his pipe, and when my
father's anecdote was finished he said:

"Now, Halcro, my lad, lay aft here and let us have another look at
that magic stone of yours."

And then, as I handed it to him, he proceeded to tell my father of
our discovery of the treasure.

The two men discussed the probable value of what we had found, and
I felt some disappointment in their estimate of what the dominie
might be able to sell the relics for.

"It is very good to find these things," said my father, blowing a
mist of tobacco smoke from amidst his beard. "But what use are
they, whatever? Nae use ava! The dominie might send them to the
museum folk at Edinburgh, and he would get mebbe a pickle pounds
for them--hardly enough for the lads to buy an auld boat wi'. I
wouldna be bothered wi' the things."

"What was it the old woman was sa