Page:Barbour--Joan of the ilsand.djvu/89

Rh "They are still there, I see," Joan said as he entered the bungalow for supper. "You look awfully pleased about something. What is it?"

"For the first time in my life I envy a nigger the colour of his skin," Keith said.

The girl looked at him, puzzled.

"Why?"

Keith briefly outlined his project.

"If the sentries on the schooner weren't half asleep they'd be sure to see me in the water, and they could drill holes in me as they liked."

"I have it—Peter Pan!" Joan exclaimed.

"Would he do it?"

"He would do anything in the wide world for either Chester or me," the girl declared. "The only question is whether I ought to put him to the risk. Peter wouldn't mind, but I should never forgive myself if I sent him out there and he got killed."

"What sort of a swimmer is he?"

"He's like a shark in the water."

"Then you needn't have any fear for him, if only it keeps dark enough. They wouldn't see him in a month of Sundays, and if necessary he can dive underneath to do the cutting."

The girl's eyes sparkled. The idea appealed to her immensely.

"I only stipulate one thing," she said.

"What is it?"