onder and admiration, he was surprised to
hear Dominick give vent to a sigh, and shake his head.

"Dom!" he said, remonstratively, "what do you mean by that?"

"I mean that the place is such a paradise that the emigrants won't want
to leave it, and that will interfere with a little plan which had begun
to form itself in my brain of late. I had been thinking that among so
many tradesmen I should find men to help me to break up the wreck, and,
out of the materials, to build a small vessel, with which to leave the
island--for, to tell you the truth, Otto, I have begun to fear that this
place lies so far out of the track of ships that we may be left on it
for many years like the mutineers of Pitcairn Island."

"Humph! I'm sorry you're growing tired of it already," said Otto; "I
thought you had more o' the spirit of Robinson Crusoe in you, Dom, and I
never heard of the mutineers of Pitcairn Island; but if--"

"What! did you never hear of the mutineers of the _Bounty_?"

"Never. My education, you know, has been neglected."

"Then I'll tell you the story some time or other. It's too long to
begin just now, but it beats that of your favourite Robinson out of
sight in my opinion."

Otto shook his head in grave unbelief. "That," he said, "is impossible.
But as to this island proving so attractive, don't you think that such
fellows as Hugh Morris and Malines will take care to prevent it becoming
too much of a paradise?"

Dominick laughingly admitted that there was something in that--and he
was right. There was even more in that than he had imagined, for the
party had not been a week in their new home when they began to differ as
to the division of the island. That old, old story of mighty men
desiring to take possession of the land and push their weaker brethren
to the wall soon began to be re-enacted on this gem of the ocean, and
bade fair to convert the paradise--like the celebrated Monte Carlo--into
a magnificent pandemonium.

At one of their stormy meetings, of which the settlers had many, the
brothers Binney and Dominick were present. It was held on the shores of
Silver Bay, where the first boat-loads had been discharged, and around
which quite a village of rude huts had sprung up like mushrooms. From
those disputatious assemblies most of the women absented themselves, but
the widow Lynch always remained, holding herself in reserve for any
emergency, for she was well aware that her opinion carried much weigh