quietly at anchor about two miles from the pier where the picnic party
had landed. The boat was uninjured, and Madge's hat, coat and skirt
lay on the deck, where she had thrown them when she dived into the bay.
But the wild lad who had caused the mischief had vanished completely.
No one near had seen or heard of him. His identity was a mystery. If
any one of the fisher folk knew his name, or where he had gone, they
did not betray that knowledge. Mrs. Curtis wished to offer a reward
for the fellow's capture. Tom would not consent. He intended to find
his enemy himself, and to settle his own score. At night Tom used to
lie awake for hours to plan how he would track the stranger and at last
run him down. But in the day time he was much too fully occupied with
entertaining his mother's young guest to plan revenge.

Madge had been the guest of Mrs. Curtis at the Belleview Hotel for five
days. It had taken but a day for her to recover from the effect of her
narrow escape from drowning. She possessed far too happy a disposition
to dwell long on an uncomfortable memory, and her recent mishap soon
became like a dream to her. But her feeling of affection for Mrs.
Curtis was not in the least like a dream, and grew stronger with every
hour she spent in her new friend's company. It was a red letter time
for Madge.

Mrs. Curtis tried in every possible way to manifest her gratitude. Had
not Madge saved her son's life? She felt that she could make no
adequate return for the heroic service the young girl had rendered her.

She insisted that the most attractive apartment in the hotel should be
Madge's and surrounded her with all sorts of luxuries. The young
girl's suite consisted of a cosy little sitting room and a wonderful
bedroom with white, rose-bordered walls and Circassian walnut