ave him more, until his dress nearly burst, and then, not having the
breast-valve, he was obliged to unscrew his front-glass to prevent an
explosion! At last the perplexed man resolved to make his wife do duty
as attender to signals, and was fortunate in this arrangement at first,
for Molly was quick of apprehension. She soon understood all about it,
and, receiving her husband's signals, directed the Chinamen what to do.
In order to test his assistants better, he then went out on the verandah
of the pagoda, where the pumpers could not see him nor he them. He was,
of course, fully dressed, only the bull's-eye was not fixed.

"_Now_, Molly, dear," said he, "go to work just as if I was goin' under
water."

Molly dimpled her cheeks with a smile as she held up the glass, and
said, "Are ye ready?"

"Not yet; putt your lips here first."

He stooped; Molly inserted part of her face into the circular hole, and
a smack resounded in the helmet.

"Now, cushla, I'm ready."

"Pump away, boys," shouted the energetic little woman.

As soon as she heard the hiss of the air in the helmet, she screwed on
the bull's-eye, and our diver was as much shut off from surrounding
atmosphere as if he had been twenty fathoms under the sea. Then she
went to where the pumpers were at work, and taking the air-pipe in one
hand and the life-line in the other, awaited signals. These were soon
sent from the verandah. More air was demanded and given; less was asked
and the pumpers wrought gently. Molly gave one pull at the life-line,
"All right?" Rooney replied, "All right." This was repeated several
times. Then came four sharp pulls at the line. Molly was on the alert;
she bid Ram-stam continue to pump while Chok-foo helped her to pull the
diver forcibly out of the verandah into the interior of the pagoda amid
shouts of laughter, in which Rooney plainly joined though his voice
could not be heard.

"Capital, Molly," exclaimed the delighted husband when his glass was
off; "I always belaved--an' I belave it now more than iver--that a purty
woman is fit for anything. After a few more experiments like that I'll
go down in shallow wather wid an aisy mind."

Rooney kept his word. When he deemed his assistants perfect at their
work, he went one morning to the river with all his gear, hired a boat,
pushed off till he had got into two fathoms water, and then, dressing
himself with the aid of the Chinamen, prepared to descend.

"Are you ready