THE MYSTERY OP EAST KEY. 189 



" I believe it was," answered Long John, rub- 

 bing bis bead vigorously, " and I reckon I've had 

 a narrow escape." 



" But what were you doing up there ? " con- 

 tinued Tom. 



" I wasn't digging gold at four o'clock in the 

 morning," replied Long John, laughing, " but I 

 was gettin' water. You see there aint no water 

 on the key, so I keep a demijohn filled and 

 buried up there in case I ever git caught here in 

 a norther, and I was digging for that demijohn 

 when you came upon me. There it is," he added, 

 pointing to the innocent cause of all the ex- 

 citement. 



" Well, I suppose I'll never hear the last of 

 this," said Tom good-naturedly, and Dick and 

 Harry assured him that he never would. 



" The way I came to put the water here," said 

 Long John in further explanation, "I was off 

 the key fishing with Bob once, and a squall 

 came up and sent us ashore ; then it turned into 

 a norther and blew for three days before we 

 could get off, there was such a sea running. For 

 the last two days we had no water to speak of, 



