250 THE CRUISE OF THE ROVER CARAVAN

Filey Brig; a strange arrangement of rocks that, they
tell us, the Evil One built. He was going to entrap
ships by means of this bridge, and many a sturdy
vessel has been wrecked there.

But some may not have been told the story of the
haddock. You know haddocks all have two black
“thumb-marks” on their shoulders. They were not
always so distinguished ; but the facts are, that, when
engaged building Filey Bridge, the enemy of mankind
dropped his hammer in the sea, and in trying to grasp
it he caught a haddock instead, and hence the black
marks. I don’t vouch for the truth of the story, nor
did I make it up. But there it is, and there is the
haddock.

Well, it needed but those three or four days of sea
air and bathing to make Douglas feel all right once
more, and on the evening before they again started for
the far north, he felt just as jolly and just as happy as
ever he had done in his life. And so did everybody
else. ,

To add to the general joy and jollity, all hands had
received letters that day. Everybody at Pine Lodge
was well; but already not only Carleton’s mother, but
even the sailor Uncle Ben, was beginning to wish the
“ Rover” safely home again.

And now I have to relate one of the most marvellous
things that ever happened during the memorable cruise
of the “ Rover.”

It was the afternoon, or rather evening, of the day
before the “Rover” got up anchor to continue her
voyage northwards ho! and the westering sun was