with his usual escort of girls, all talking at once about some very interesting affair.
"Only a sail-boat; no steamers to-day," answered Captain John, dropping the glass from his eye with a start.
"Can you see people on the Island with that thing? We want to know if Ruth is at home, because if she is n't we can't waste time going over," said Miss Ellery, with her sweetest smile.
"I think not. That boat is Sammy's, and as there is a speck of red aboard, I fancy Miss Ruth is with him. They are coming this way, so you can hail them if you like," answered the sailor, with "a speck of red" on his own sunburnt cheek if any one had cared to look.
"Then we'll wait here if we may. We ordered her to bring us a quantity of bulrushes and flowers for our tableaux to-night, and we want her to be Rebecca at the well. She is so dark, and with her hair down, and gold bangles and scarlet shawls, I think she would do nicely. It takes so long to arrange the 'Lily Maid of Astolat' we must have an easy one to come just before that, and the boys are wild to make a camel of themselves, so we planned this. Won't you be Jacob or Abraham or whoever the man with the bracelets was?" asked Miss Ellery, as they all settled on the steps in the free-and-easy way which prevailed at the Point.
"No, thank you, I don't act. Used to dance hornpipes in my young days, but gave up that sort of thing some time ago."
"How unfortunate! Every one acts; it's all the
