Part 37 (1/2)

He shoved the slide part way back and rested his arms on it, his body still in the co forward the length of the schooner, or staring, rather, for his eyes were fixed and unblinking I was only five feet away and directly in what should have been his line of vision It was uncanny I felt host, what of my invisibility I waved my hand back and forth, of course without effect; but when theshadow fell across his face I saw at once that he was susceptible to the impression His face became more expectant and tense as he tried to analyze and identify the i fro so in his environ my hand, so that the shadow remained stationary He slowly moved his head back and forth under it and turned from side to side, now in the sunshi+ne, now in the shade, feeling the shadow, as it were, testing it by sensation

I, too, was busy, trying to reason out hoare of the existence of so intangible a thing as a shadow If it were his eyeballs only that were affected, or if his optic nerve were not wholly destroyed, the explanation was simple If otherwise, then the only conclusion I could reach was that the sensitive skin recognized the difference of temperature between shade and sunshi+ne Or, perhaps,-who can tell?-it was that fabled sixth sense which conveyed to hi over his attempt to determine the shadow, he stepped on deck and started forward, walking with a swiftness and confidence which surprised me And still there was that hint of the feebleness of the blind in his walk I knew it now for what it was

To rin, he discovered ht thealley I watched hi food for himself; then I stole into the cabin for alley, and climbed down to the beach to deliver my barefoot report

CHAPTER xxxIV

”It's too bad the Ghost has lost her masts Why we could sail away in her Don't you think we could, Hu excitedly toup and down

Maud's eyes were shi+ning with anticipation as they followed ht of it was so much added power I remembered Michelet's ”To endary son; he has but to fall down and kiss her breast and he is strong again” For the first ti theth and courage I had but to look at her, or think of her, and be strong again

”It can be done, it can be done,” I was thinking and asserting aloud ”What men have done, I can do; and if they have never done this before, still I can do it”

”What? for goodness' sake,” Maud demanded ”Do be merciful What is it you can do?”

”We can do it,” I a else than put the masts back into the Ghost and sail away”

”Humphrey!” she exclaimed

And I felt as proud of my conception as if it were already a fact accomplished

”But how is it possible to be done?” she asked

”I don't knoasthese days”

I smiled proudly at her-too proudly, for she dropped her eyes and was for the moment silent

”But there is Captain Larsen,” she objected

”Blind and helpless,” I answered pro him aside as a straw

”But those terrible hands of his! You kno he leaped across the opening of the lazarette”

”And you know also how I crept about and avoided hiaily

”And lost your shoes”