THOMAS NED FINDS A PEARL OF PRICE. 239 



I assured him that it was, and bestowed upon him 

 the praise that was his due, at the same time trying to 

 prevent him from going into the water again. But 

 he was not to be restrained. "Why, me massa, ef 

 dey's one big puhl down dar, dey mus' toe be 'nudder, 

 ob co'se. Um don' wan' um mase'f, but dey's fine 

 t'ings fo' buckra lak you is, so me git um." So over 

 he went, and the next moment was groping again 

 among the coral gardens for their most precious pro- 

 ductions. 



I lost sight of him for a second as he plunged into 

 a deep grove of sea plants, and as I was peering over 

 the rail I suddenly felt a tug at the line. It was a 

 quick jerk, and undoubtedly meant something, so I 

 began to pull in with all my might. But after a few 

 fathoms had been drawn in I found it impossible to 

 haul another foot, for it seemed as though a ton 

 weight was attached to the lower end. And still 

 Thomas Ned was not half clear of the seaweed gar- 

 den ; his head only was in sight, his hands and limbs 

 evidently held down by some invisible weight or at- 

 tachment, 



I felt then that something terrible had happened, 

 and that the life of my faithful servant depended 

 upon my instant action. There was but one thing 

 I could do, and that was to pull him out of the water 

 before he should be suffocated and drowned. And 

 so bracing a foot against the gunwale I took a bight 

 around both hands and pulled with all my strength. 

 Then the strain relaxed a bit, and gradually I lifted 

 him toward the surface ; but it was a dead weight I 



