before he doubled on himself, snakelike, and shot himself through the narrow door. Tom was on the point of following; but his fear of his comrades' laughter was greater even than his dread of the unknown. Sam's comical appearance brought a shout of laughter from Cliff and Nicky; even Mr. Neale was compelled to chuckle. Tom, therefore, mastered his impulse and remained on the cabin roof. "Now what do you suppose that was?" Cliff wondered, after they relieved the tension of the momentary start of instinctive terror by a good laugh at Sam. "I must give it up," answered Mr. Neale, "but I am inclined to look for some human agency before I admit any supernatural cause." "It—it didn't sound like—anything human!" Tom said with a shiver. "Have you heard so many ghosts that you know what they sound like?" asked Nicky with a chuckle. Tom shook his head. "I don't feel much like investigating in the dark," Cliff went on. "I don't see what there is to investigate," Nicky added. "I'll take the dinghy in the morning and look for some evidences of human causes," declared Mr. Neale. "Perhaps a Seminole Indian may be around here, fishing—or something. Or some white resident of the mainland, with a sense of humor, is playing a joke on us." "This message doesn't seem like a joke," Nicky defended. "It looks real to me. See how rusted the old can is—why, it's almost like paper—and the parchment is awfully old." He indicated, by the dim lantern, how frail the edge of the sheet was by tearing it. "I think it's real," Cliff agreed. "Don't you, Mr. Neale?" Their captain and mentor hesitated. "There are several strange points to consider by daylight," he commented. "If we had found it by chance I should consider it genuine; but the light—and the ghostly voice—those make me suspicious."“But—look!” argued Nicky, “it gives a definite place, and tells about a landmark to show where to dig for treasure. Our map wasn’t even clear about the channel or where the treasure was hidden.”

“However,” Mr. Neale said, “it came to you in a logical way. The new one did not. I cannot account for that bluish light but it is surely not supernatural.”

“I’ve heard of very old things, decomposing, giving off light,” Cliff declared. Mr. Neale nodded and since there was really nothing to be gained by any long argument, they finally became calm enough to lie down again, Mr. Neale agreeing to stay awake and watch until dawn.

Not much sleep was possible; nevertheless they all dozed some, and their dreams were, to say the least, thrilling.

However, as is usual with any form of terror of supernatural things, the 

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