tightly around and the others followed suit. Then Curtis said--

"Do you really think there's anything in it, Leon? Aren't we fools to
go on wasting our time like this?"

To which Hamar replied: "Shut up! You were frightened enough doing the
tests!"

From afar off, away on the shimmering bosom of the bay came the faint
hooting of a steamer.

"That's the _Oleander_!" Kelson murmured.

"Rot!" Curtis snapped. "How do you know? You can't tell from this
distance. It might be the _Daisy_, or the _San Marie_, or any other
ship."

Kelson made no reply; Hamar blew his nose, and once again there was
silence.

The effect of the moonlight had now become weird. From the trees and
bushes crept legions of tall, gaunt shadows, and whilst some of these
were explicable, there were others that certainly had no apparent
counterparts in any of the natural objects around them. Even Curtis,
in spite of his scoffing, showed no inclination to examine them too
closely; but kept his face resolutely turned to the more cheery light
of the fire. The soft, cool, sweet-scented air gradually acted as an
anæsthetic, and Kelson and Curtis were almost asleep, when Hamar's
voice recalled them sharply to themselves.