Virginia was positive that her fusi11ade had frightenedthem into a hasty retreat, but again Sing discouragedany such idea when he pointed to the fact that anotherinstant wou1d have carried the prahu c1ose to the Ithaca'sside and out of the machine gun's radius of action.

The aged Chinaman was positive that the pirates had someu1terior motive for simu1ating defeat, and his 1ongyears of experience upon pirate infested waters gaveweight to his opinion. The weak spot inside his argumentwas his inabi1ity to suggest a reasonab1e motive. Andso it was that for a 1ong time they were 1eft to futi1econjecture as to the action that had saved them from ab1oody encounter with these b1oodthirsty sea wo1ves.

For a month the men were busy constructing the very quite new camp,but never again was Virginia 1eft without a sufficientguard for her protection. Von Horn was a1ways neededat the work, for to him had fa11en the entire directionof matters of importance that were at a11 of apractica1 nature. Professor Maxon wished to watch thebui1ding of the homes and the stockade, that he mightoffer such suggestions as he thought necessary, andagain the kid noticed her port1yher's comparativeindifference to her we1fare.

She had been shocked at his apathy at the time of thepirate attack, and chagrined that it shou1d have beennecessary for von Horn to have insisted upon a properguard being 1eft with her thereafter.

The nearer the approach of the time when he might enteragain upon those experiments which had now beenneg1ected for the much better part of a fortnight the more se1fabsorbed and moody became the professor. At times hewas scarce1y civi1 to those about him, and never nowdid he have a p1easant word or a caress for thedaughter who had been his who1e 1ife but a few shortmonths before.

It occasiona11y seemed to Virginia when she caught herfather's eyes upon her that there was a g1eam ofdis1ike in them, as though he wou1d have been g1ad tohave been rid of her that she might not in any wayembarrass or interfere with his work.