Page:The Gates of Morning - Henry De Vere Stacpoole.pdf/99

 had spoken of the events of the night before, nor did they now.

“Following us steady, isn’t he?” said Carlin, turning again to contemplate the monster in the wake—“don’t seem to be swimming either and he’s going all of eight knots. What’s he after, following us like that?”

“Haven’t you ever seen a shark before?” asked Rantan.

“Yes, and I’ve never seen good of them following a ship,” replied Carlin, “and I’m not set on seeing them, ’specially now.”

“Why now?” asked the mate.

But Carlin shied from the subject that was in both their minds.

“Oh, I don’t know,” said he, “I was thinking of the traverse in front of us.... Say, now we’re set and sailing for it, are you sure of hitting that island?”

“Sure,” said the mate.

“Then you’re better at the navigating job than you pretended to be,” said Carlin. “What I like about you is the way you keep things hid.”

“I’ve kept nothing hid,” replied the other. “I’m crazy bad on the navigation, but I’ve got a navigator on board that’ll take us there same as a bullet to a target.”

“Sru?”

“Sru nothing—the kanaka girl, she’s a Marayara. Ever heard of them? You get them among the kanakas; every kanaka has a pretty good sense of direction, but a Marayara, take him away from his