guidly, seemed amused, looked me up and down, and bowed negligently. After a few more words he left us.

66

"Why, John,' cried Waif, as soon as he was gone, 'what is the matter with you?-you seem cross. Have I offended you?'

hood long. It was about six months after my return to work that the letters began to come more rarely from the coast, until at length they entirely ceased. I waited and waited and wrote and wrote, and so four more months passed, when one morning I received a letter

"Directly we reached the house, I called mother aside and asked her if she knew Captain Ogilvie.

directed in my mother's poor hand-writing. Tearing it open, I read:

"MY DEAR SON:-Come home at once.'

"That was all. Without stopping to pack an article, I fled to the coast. I arrived at the nearest station to Seacomb at dusk, and, hiring a horse, rode madly for home. When I reached our cottage it was night, but there was a light

"Ah, John-jealous, eh!' she retorted, laughing, and then added, more seriously: 'Is this what your learning has taught you, my son, to doubt the woman you love?'

"Vexed at the view she took of the matter, I answered not a word. I purposely kept by myself during the rest of the day, and in the evening took a brief farewell of Waif and departed. Fool! fool that I was; why did I not stay to shield her! Why did I restrain the passion that would have slain him as he stood there languid and insolent, with 'Waif,' 'Waif' upon his lips, only to let a woman's reproach drive me away from my darling in anger!"

Here my host bowed his head upon his hands, and sat for some minutes trembling and silent. At length he proceeded:

"Gloomy and sad enough I was after getting back to my labors, but the letters came at the usual intervals, and by degrees I regained my spirits and settled down to work, so that before long I had almost forgotten the 'chance visitor' at Seacomb, for it never occurred to me that he would stay in the neighbor

ed, but the room was empty. I stepped out again and met my mother; her face, clearly shown by the light from the open door, as white as death. I opened my mouth to speak, but she caught me by the arm.

666

"She heard your horse's gallop, and she has fled,' she shrieked, pointing wildly to the beach. Follow her, follow her, for God's sake, or—'

"I heard no more, but rushed forward through the darkness, over the rough bowlders down to the smooth sand; then to the right of me I saw faintly a white figure gliding with incredible speed along the edge of the incoming waves toward the great black rock down there which slopes up from the shore and projects far over the breakers beneath. Fast as I ran, the figure outstripped me; it reached the foot of the rock, glided rapidly up, ran out to the end, paused just long enough to bow its head over a bundle which it clutched to its breast, and then shot like a meteor through the black air into the boiling water below."

Again John Wilde stopped in his narration, and his emotion was terrible to witness. When he looked up again, I

aged man.

"There is little more to tell," he went on, after a long pause. "For six weeks after that fearful night I lay raving at the gates of death. It was feared that even if I did not die I should never recover my reason. I would to God I had passed away then, and been at rest. But my mother watched by me day and night, and I slowly recovered. When I grew strong enough to bear it, she told me how the serpent had staid about the place without her suspecting that anything was wrong, until one day when she had spoken of me, saying that the time was drawing near for our marriage, Waif had suddenly burst into a violent fit of weeping. Then it all came out, and she told my mother how she loved the stranger, and was going to marry him. Then my mother saw the evil and determined to send for me at once, but just then the stranger disappeared, and she thought that she would wait and let Waif forget him. But she soon saw that hope was gone, and that the destroyer had done his work; still she had not the heart to write and tell me this. So the months went on, and Waif wait

return. But he did not come, and in course of time the child became a mother. Then less than ever would she have sent for me; but Waif sunk lower and lower, and at length when she felt death near she asked for me. But when she heard my horse's furious gallop she seemed suddenly seized with a supernatural strength, and, leaping from her bed, fled into the darkness with her babe. You know the rest.

"Soon after my recovery my mother sickened and died, leaving me alone in my misery. Then I went forth to set my foot upon the serpent, but he was already dead, having been killed in a duel. I came back here, a crushed and broken man, determined to live where she had lived, in the simple manner of my fathers."

Such was John Wilde's story, and if it seems improbable and strange, I can only say it is true in every particular.

Two years after this I went to see him again, but found his cottage empty. Upon inquiry, I learned that he had put out to sea in his boat one stormy night, and had never been seen or heard of since.

THE

HE group of islands off our southern coast, of which San Miguel is the northernmost and San Clemente the farthest south, are reported by our oldest navigators as having been inhabited. In fact, Cabrillo, who discovered California and some of the islands in 1542, makes the statement that he found them thickly populated by an ingenious people. Some collections of the remains of a former race have been found on these islands at different times, and have

reached the rooms of the Smithsonian Institution. Another quite large collection, made by myself on the adjacent main - land, was sent on; also, facts and conclusions reported, which induced Professor Spencer F. Baird to arrange an archæological exploring expedition to these islands, which commenced operations in May of this year under my direction, and lasted nearly three months. On our way down, our party was accommodated by the revenue cutter Rush,

Captain Baker, then on her southern cruise, which gave us easy access to San Miguel Island.

This island is a barren lump of sand, rising boldly from the sparkling ocean as we go south, and facing the sun in its descent from the meridian. There are some brown hills on the island-one forming the main ridge and the highest; but their dry and dusty appearance imprésses the traveler with a dreariness not more comforting than the many light dunes and sandy slopes, over which the north-west winds whirl the sand in foglike clouds that strike the practical eye with awe while roaming over these shifting hills. Cuyler Harbor, which makes in on the eastern side of the island, of fers good shelter in north-west winds, and is well protected against a southwester by a reef stretching from the shore to the islet which lies in the entrance of the small harbor, leaving the main channel on its north-eastern side. High dunes rise from the bay at an angle of forty-five degrees, formed actually by the weight of the shifting sand, which rolls down the incline as if liquid. On landing, we found it necessary to wade through a mass of this steep loose sand to at least a height of eighty feet, where alone we could find a base on the top of a shell-heap to erect the tents for our small party.

We found large shell deposits all over the island, especially on the rocky northern end, about a mile from the harbor, near a spring. Another and larger spring is near the house. We found the kitchen refuse of a former population, covering a very large space. In traveling from here along the shore toward the north-western end, we passed many shell-mounds of greater or less extent, of which the surface findings are pretty well picked up by collectors and amateur curio-hunters, leaving only the heavy rude stone implements we occasionally met, as nobody cared particularly to be

heavily loaded in traveling over these seemingly bottomless hills. We found on one of these shell deposits-thanks to their weight and insignificant appearance-very interesting and rare specimens of mortars, which showed the different stages of the manufacture of this utensil. At the north-west end, which is the farthest point of the island from Cuyler Harbor, are undoubtedly found the largest shell- mounds on the island, but located on ever-shifting sand. We selected a wrong season, as the sand, driven by fierce north-west winds, had covered most of these deposits, and had made the two coves, which make in on both sides of the point, inaccessible for a boat-landing. Our findings, which we gathered in a week, were best procured, as we had learned during our previous explorations, in the graves. They corresponded in the main with the style of burial on the main-land, where the gravetrench is partitioned into smaller rooms, although the materials used for this purpose are not slabs of sandstone as found in San Luis Obispo County, but mainly whalebones and split redwood; the skeletons lying closely packed from two to six feet underground, in an irregular state, with knees drawn up and arms stretched out on the sides of the body or resting over the chest. The implements we found buried in the common way about the skull.

Sick and scaled by the exposure to the grinding sand, and under constant fear of losing our tents in the brisk blows that lasted day and night during our stay, we were glad to be able to charter a schooner which we found in port, owned by the Stock-raising Company (who were engaged shearing their starving sheep), to take us to Santa Cruz Island.

Santa Cruz is probably the prettiest island of the group; in picturesqueness it equals and in vegetation excels Santa Catalina. It is mountainous, with large

stretches of mesa-land, especially at the eastern and western ends, where fine valleys and picturesque bluffs and ravines occur. Timber is found in many places on the island, and quite extensive groves of conifers north of Prisoner's Harbor, while stunted oak-trees grow on the high rocky hills and sides of the steep gulches, and low willows in the cañons. It is the largest island of the group, and has a fair shelter in Prisoner's Harbor, and in several places upon the west side, such as Smuggler's Cove, Coche Prietos, and Forney's Cove. There is good water in different springs and creeks found all over the island the year round. It is owned by the Santa Cruz Island Wool-growing Company, which seems to be a profitable concern. Near a good wharf at Prisoner's Harbor stands a substantial adobe building, and back of it extends a beautiful valley which afforded us good camping-ground. Our party spent about a month on this island, during which time we were active in making explorations all along its shores of fifty-eight miles in extent. Here we met the courteous officers of the steamer Hassler engaged in making soundings round the island. The captain and all the officers offered their assistance in the most friendly manner to convey our party to such places as lay in their route of sailing and would not interfere with their own duty. The Superintendent of the United States Coast Survey, Captain C. P. Patterson, in view of the fact that the exploration was made at the expense of the Government, and for the national display at the coming Centennial Exposition, having requested Captain Taylor, the commander of the Hassler, to extend such help as he might deem proper, it gave us a great advantage in prosecuting our work, and saved much expense.

Our main attention was again directed to finding and examining graves. The mode of burial is similar to that on San

Miguel Island, in the shell-mounds, and not separated from the kitchen refuse as described by a writer in the OVERLAND of October, 1874, the adjacent ground being too rocky for the tools of the former population. Although each burying-ground we dug up yielded but poorly in comparison with such places on the neighboring main - land, our findings on this island were numerous, and many forms are new to science. We made here a collection of about thirty cases. The main articles we gathered were: Pots of magnesia-mica, worked in a wonderful manner out of solid pieces of this material, some specimens being thirty inches in diameter; mortars and pestles of sandstone; plates (tortillas) of magnesia-mica; bowls, cups, and spadeweights of serpentine; perforated sinkers; fish-hooks of shell and bone, very ingeniously made, especially those of bone; borers of all descriptions; a full set of tools for the manufacture of fishhooks, together with the hooks in different stages of finish; a wooden sword, richly inlaid with shells; bone whistles and bone flutes; paints; shell-money, and money of pebble-stones; all kinds of shell-beads and ornamental carvings; brushes of soap-wood, used as combs; wooden utensils; a stone canoe, well modeled and finished; several canoes of wood; spoons; stone knives; flint lances, spear-heads, and arrow-points; specimens of iron knives and lances; part of a cradle, showing yet plainly the mode of making it; a large painted wooden carving; pipes; drinking-cups of stone; lamps; sling-balls; all kinds of bone carvings; remains of baskets, mats, and net-work; and many stone implements, the use of which is not yet ascertained.

The burying grounds at Smuggler's Cove, Coche Prietos, Almos, Poso, Forney's Cove, and Secret Harbor gave the best results. There is a report that a cave exists on the island, showing re

mains of former habitation. We have been unable to ascertain anything proving the fact, and were assured by Stehman Forney, of the United States Coast Survey, then doing the last of the topography of Santa Cruz Island, that no such cave exists. This gentleman, and Captain Greenwell, of the United States Coast Survey, kindly rendered us their good services, and furnished information concerning the islands and main- land between Point Sal and San Buenaventura Valley.

While at this island we enjoyed the visits of Doctor Rothrock, Dr. Loew, and the zoologist Henshaw, all members of the scientific corps of Lieutenant Wheeler's Exploring Expedition. Being on their way to Los Angeles, the rendezvous for the members of that expedition, they made a close connection with the island by the Hassler, and, having a few days' spare time, joined us in our rough camp at Forney's Cove, to observe our excavations, and also do some work themselves in their respective branches.

At Santa Cruz we chartered the schooner Star of Freedom to convey us to San Nicolas. We reached that island on a dark night, with the wind blowing lively, which compelled the captain to select the south end of the island as an anchorage. We fancied a campaign worse, if possible, than that at San Miguel, as the island appeared to be a faint lump in a thick fog-like cloud of sand which was whirled densely over our neat craft, although we were a half-mile off shore. The captain, with a shrill-sounding voice, recited his usual spicy prayers with much vehemence; on the sand-spit, not far off, the breakers, which form a half-mile in length, rise to a great height, and cause a roaring like thunder; at intervals we heard the howling sea-lions in the kelpy water, if not at their rookery on the near shore; which, with the darkness, the annoying sand, and the furious

wind rattling the anchor-chain in madness, gave the impression that we had left rather than landed. With good prospects to lose our anchor and find ourselves the next morning probably at Santa Catalina, we awaited the coming dawn, trusting ourselves to the captain's care. The next morning was beautifully clear and almost calm; the sea was still rough, and as the swells, caused by a strong current that passes the south end, swept the shore in an angle, care had to be taken to prevent the boat going broadside on, which is equivalent to capsizing.

The island is a lump of soft coarse yellowish-gray sandstone, about 500 feet in height. The broad backbone, which seems almost level on its top, falls off on both sides in steep gulches and ravines, where the eye is met by innumerable cave-like carvings done by the grinding sand. The eastern end is sandy; dunes stretching there across the island, beginning with the depression at the end of which the house is located. The vegetation of the island is like that of San Miguel, ruined by overstocking it with sheep, which are here found in like starving condition. On the eastern end, near the house, we found some malva-bushes cleaned of their foliage to the reach of a sheep, which gave them the appearance of scrub oak - trees when seen from a distance. There are a few trees near the house, where a strong never-ceasing spring supplies the necessary water, which has a somewhat sweetish taste. The shifting sand has almost buried the adobe house, and its old inmate, the superintendent of the Stock-raising Company. Farther on to the north-eastward, at the so-called Chinese Harbor, is another spring with good water. It is at the eastern end, on the dunes, where we found the shell-mounds abundantly, although some are found at intervals all along the shore from the house toward the sand-spit on the south