"Matter! What do you mean?"
"You're so quiet."
"He doesn't feel well," put In Cora.
"Oh, I'm all right!" insisted Jack, with brotherly brusqueness. "Let me alone!"
"Well, this place seems nice and cozy," commented Belle, as they reached the Tartar, and stepped into the cabin, which Joe had illuminated from the incandescents, operated by a storage battery when the motor was not whirling the magneto.
"Yes, it is almost like home," said Bess, softly.
Jack and Walter looked carefully to the anchor rope, for though the harbor was a safe one, there were muddy flats in places, and while there was no wind at present to drag them, it might spring up in the night.
"Might as well turn in, I guess," suggested Jack, with a weary yawn.
"Why—yes—old man—if you—feel that way about it!" mocked Walter, pretending to gape.
"Oh, cut it out!" and Jack's voice was almost snarling. Cora looked at him in some surprise, and, catching Walter's eye, made him a signal not to take any notice.