LAUNCHING THE MUD TURTLE
eye rested for a second on something far away where the starlit sky seemed to dip down into the ocean. He stood still as a statue and tried to find it again. Surely it was imagination—or was it? He could have been positive that just for a fraction of a second a greenish light twinkled in the distance. Perhaps it was a star. At any rate he could not pick it out again with the naked eye, so he walked down for his binoculars. Five minutes later he was back on the hill, peering through the glasses.
Suddenly his heart gave a thump. That was no star. The greenish hue was unmistakable. Like a hare, he leaped down to the camp, shouting to awaken Tempest.
"Matches, quick!" he yelled excitedly, fumbling in Tempest's pocket. "There's a ship away off, fifteen or twenty miles to the south'ard."
"And I was just getting off to sleep so beautifully!" expostulated Tempest, who, however, did not allow any grass to grow under his feet. He
245
