164 Winkle: the Eel-Man 



for any of them myself, nor tell any one 

 what was now a secret between us. 



Winkle's countenance brightened at my 

 words. He seemed like an excited child 

 over a new toy, and commenced, I fancied, 

 to build castles in the air. I tried to draw 

 from him further details as to the day, but 

 he would not say more, and at last, rather 

 reluctantly, I left him sitting in his cabin 

 door- way. 



III. 



Winkle soon became, in more ways than 

 one, a changed man. He was less about the 

 creek and more frequently seen at the tavern. 

 It was evident that he had found more than 

 the single half-dollar he had shown me, or 

 did he make constant visits to the wreck and 

 gather a coin or two each time ? There was 

 evidently something back of the little that I 

 knew, and I could learn nothing, of late, from 

 questioning him. " Yes, he had been to 

 the wrack since that day," but beyond this 

 he would not go. To solve the mystery, 

 if possible, I went to the wreck one morn- 

 ing, and, approaching it very quietly, I no- 

 ticed a slight but constant agitation of the 



