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218 portune moment," Chester said reflectively. "That chap Steel was perfectly willing to come into partnership with me, at least so far as the pearling was concerned. Anyway he was willing to make me a decent cash offer for all the pearls I had."

"It's no use my making apologies," said Keith. "I'd do a lot at this minute if I could restore the things to you, though even then it would be too late for you to fix up the partnership. I'm sorry, terribly sorry, Trent. My only excuse is that I hadn't the faintest notion of what I was doing."

Chester's feelings had passed through a variety of stages on the subject. First anger and disappointment, then suspicion, natural enough in the circumstances.

He walked over to the sailor and gave him a friendly pat on the back.

"Keith, think no more about it," he said; and the subject was dropped.

During the last week or so operations on the plantation had been carried out as a mere form of routine. The blacks had dozed and idled over their work, with no driving force behind them, especially while Keith was ill, and Chester appeared to be losing interest in the place altogether, though that was largely because his mind was fully occupied with the problem of how he was to carry on at all. Joan tried gently to stir up renewed enthusiasm in him, but was not very successful.