.

Returning from the shore together, laden with various rescued articles,
Paul and Oliver halted and sat down on a rock to rest for a few minutes.

"Olly," said the former, "what was that I saw you wrapping up in a bit
of tarred canvas, and stuffing so carefully under the breast of your
coat, soon after the ship struck?"

"Mother's last letter to me," said the boy, with a flush of pleasure as
he tapped his breast. "I have it safe here, and scarcely damaged at
all."

"Strange," remarked Paul, as he pulled a well-covered packet from his
own breast-pocket; "strange that your mind and mine should have been
running on the same subject. See here, this is _my_ mother's last gift
to me before she died--a letter, too, but it is God's letter to fallen
man."

With great care the young man unrolled the packet and displayed a
well-worn manuscript copy of a portion of the Gospel of John.

"This is copied," he said, "from the translation of God's Word by the
great Wycliffe. It was given to my mother by an old friend, and was, as
I have said, her parting gift to me."

The friends were interrupted in their examination of this interesting
M.S. by the arrival of one of the sailors, with whom they returned to
the encampment in the bush.

CHAPTER THREE.

FIRST EXPERIENCES ON THE ISLAND.

A wonderfully picturesque appearance did these shipwrecked mariners
present that night when, under the shelter of the shrubbery that crowned
their small island, they kindled several camp-fires, and busied
themselves in preparing supper.

As there was no law in the island--and our skipper, having lost his
ship, forbore to assert any right to command--every one naturally did
what seemed right in his own eyes.

As yet there had arisen no bone of contention among them. Of food they
had secured enough for at least a few days. Fire they had procured by
means of flint, steel, and tinder. A clear spring furnished them with
water, and ships' buckets washed ashore enabled them to convey the same
to their encampment. Fortunately, no rum-kegs had been found, so that
evil passions were not stirred up, and, on the whole, the first night on
the island was spent in a fair degree of harmony--considering the
character of the men.

Those who had been kindred souls on board ship naturally drew together
on shore, and kindled their several fires apart. Thus it came to pass
that the skipper and his son, the two mates, and Paul Burns found
themselves