to have been
returning to his native land, having been on a trip to Scotland
with his young wife and their child.

"On the morning after the wreck some bodies were washed ashore,
and, if you will remember, amongst these was the body of a
beautiful young woman, in whose arms was still clasped the
shattered body of a little child. You see, Mr. Duke, there were two
children on board the vessel, both of them girls, of about the same
age. The drowned woman was recognized by Quendale as his wife, and
she was afterwards buried with the child in the old burying ground
of Yeskenaby.

"Two days afterwards--that is to say on the fifth day after the
wreck--Ephraim Quendale and the Danish sailor left Orkney."

Here Andrew Drever put his hand in his breast pocket and drew out a
paper.

"I have here," he said, "a letter that I got yesterday from widow
Ericson. It is a letter addressed to her husband, Sandy Ericson,
and it was written by Ephraim Quendale on the eve of his departure
from Kirkwall to Copenhagen. I will read it:

"'Pilot Ericson--

"'I have been fortunate enough to find a ship in this port bound
for my own land. We sail this morning for Copenhagen, and I shall
not be able to see you to thank you personally for what you have
done for me in my hour of misfortune. But I shall be back again in
your island, please God, in a few weeks' time. I beg that you will
do me the goodness to have my beloved wife's name, Thora Quendale,
inscribed on the tombstone, and also that you will take charge of
all wreckage that may be gathered from the remains of my poor ship.
I grieve sorely that you were unable to find the body of the other
child; for I still have my doubts, notwithstanding that the woman
Kinlay was so positive that the child we buried was not her own. It
was sad that the little head was so disfigured. The eyes would have
proved all to me. My own darling's eyes were heavenly blue, like
her mother's. Should you discover the other body, I beg you will
write me a full description of its appearance and forward it by the
first ship to me, at Copenhagen, in Denmark.

"'Ephraim Quendale'"

The schoolmaster handed the letter to Bailie Duke, who read it over
to himself and asked a few questions regarding its contents.

"Mr. Quendale never returned to Orkney?" said he.

"No," replied the dominie.

"Strange. And did Pilot Ericson never hear from him?"

"Never."

"And what about the wreckage?"

"There was none of speci