earlier voyage, they did not hesitate to stack jars and
baskets against the curved prow in such a manner that the eatables
would not become soaked with salt water. Then, after a hasty farewell,
during which Iris showed her gratitude to those kindly peasants by a
hug and a kiss, Hozier pushed off and tried to guide the catamaran as
Marcel had done.

Oddly enough, he and Iris now saw the majestic outlines of the
Grand-pere for the first time. The great rock rose above the water
like some immense Gothic cathedral. The illusion was heightened by a
giant spire that towered grandly from the center of the islet. It
looked a shrine built by nature in honor of its Creator, a true temple
of the infinite, and the semblance was no illusion to these three
castaways, since they regarded it as a sanctuary to which alone, under
Heaven, they might owe their lives. Hozier, of course, realized that
there was a certain element of risk in returning there. The island
authorities would surely endeavor to find out where the party of
desperadoes had lain _perdu_ between the sinking of the ship and the
attack on the picket. But the ill-starred Marcel had been confident
that none could land on the rock who was not acquainted with the
intricacies of the approach, and Philip was content to trust to the
reef-guarded passage rather than seek shelter on the mainland.

Once embarked in the fairway, the management of the catamaran occupied
his mind to the complete exclusion of all other problems. He was
puzzled by the discovery that the awkward craft was traveling too far
to the westward, until he remembered that the tide had turned, and that
the current was either slack or running in the opposite direction.
Changing the paddle to the starboard side, he soon corrected this
deviation in the route. But he had been carried already a hundred
yards or more out of the straight line. To reach the two pointed rocks
that marked the entrance to the secret channel, he was obliged to creep
back along the whole shoreward face of the Grand-pere; and to this
accident was due a surprise that ranked high in a day replete with
marvels.

When the catamaran rounded the last outlying crag, and they were all
straining their eyes to find the sentinel pillars, they became aware
that a small boat was being pulled cautiously toward them from the
opposite side of the rock.

Iris gasped. She heard Hozier mutter under his breath, while San
Benavides revealed his di