THE LAND OP THE DANCING CRANE. 9 



wind gradually died away ; the booms creaked 

 and slashed to and fro as the schooner rolled 

 in the ground swell ; the reefing points beat a 

 merry tattoo on the listless sails, and at sun- 

 down the Gulf, as far as the boys could see, was 

 a sea of glass, the sun going down amid splen- 

 dors they had never dreamed of. 



Paublo took a belaying-pin and began tapping 

 on the foremast, advising the boys to whistle for 

 the wind ; and Captain Ellis assured them that 

 these two methods never failed in his experience 

 to raise the wind if kept up long enough — a 

 truism which was appreciated later on. 



But, despite the shrill calls and the tattoo 

 on the foremast, the surface of the Gulf re- 

 mained as smooth as a mirror ; and finally even 

 Paublo became discouraged and brought out his 

 violin, whiling away the time with song and 

 dance. Finally, with the stars and the South- 

 em Cross gleaming brightly, the party turned 

 in, to awake the next morning and see over the 

 rail a group of islands resting like gulls upon 

 the water. 



" We managed to reach here in the night," 



