fragments of his meagre fortune, the ambitious Swede purchased a
course in a local nautical school from which he duly managed to
emerge with sufficient courage to appear before the United
States Local Inspectors of Hulls and Boilers and take his
examination for a second mate's certificate. To his unutterable
surprise the license was granted; whereupon he shipped as
quartermaster on the steamer _Alameda_, running to Honolulu, and
what with the lesson taught him in the loss of the _Willie and
Annie_ and the exacting duties of his office aboard the liner, he
forgot that he had ever known Captain Scraggs.

Judge of Neils Halvorsen's surprise, therefore, upon the occasion
of his first trip to Honolulu, when he saw something which
brought the whole matter back to mind. They were standing in
toward Diamond Head and the _Alameda_ lay hove to taking on the
pilot. It was early morning and the purple mists hung over the
entrance to the harbour. Neils Halvorsen stood at the gangway
enjoying the sunrise over the Punch-bowl, and glancing longingly
toward the vivid green of the hills beyond the city, when he was
aware of a "put," "put," "put," to starboard of the _Alameda_.
Neils turned at the sound just in time to see a beautiful
gasoline schooner of about a hundred and thirty tons heading in
toward the bay. She was so close that Neils was enabled to make
out that her name was _Maggie II_.

"Vell, aye be dam," muttered Neils, and scratched his head, for
the name revived old memories. An hour later, when the _Alameda_
loafed into her berth at Brewer's dock, Neils noticed that the
schooner lay at anchor off the quarantine station.