Angel Island

Honey arose after a long interval, strolled over to the main group.

"I think they're coming to the conclusion that we're regular fellows,"

he declared cheerfully. "Lulu doesn't jump or shriek any more when I run

toward her."

"Oh, it's coming along all right," Frank said.

"It's surprising how quickly and how correctly they're getting the

language."

"I'm going to begin reading aloud to them next week," Pete announced.

"That'll be a picnic."

"It's been a long fight," Ralph said contentedly. "But we've won out.

We've got them going. I knew we would." His eyes went to Peachy's face,

but once there, their look of triumph melted to tenderness.

"What are we going to read them?" Honey asked idly. He did not really

listen to Pete's answer. His eyes, sparkling with amusement, had gone

back to Lulu, who still sat seriously practising her lesson. Red lips,

little white teeth, slender pink tongue seemed to get into an

inextricable tangle over the simple monosyllables.

"Leave that to me!" Pete was saying mysteriously. "I'll have them

reading and writing by the end of another two months."

"It's curious how long it's taken them to get over that terror of us,"

said Billy. "I cannot understand it."

"Oh, they'll explain why they've been so afraid," said Frank, "as soon

as they've got enough vocabulary. We cannot know, until they tell us how

many of their conventions we have broken, how brutal we may have

seemed."

"And yet," Billy went on, "I should think they'd see that we wouldn't do

anything that wasn't for their own good. Well, just as soon as I can put

it over with them, I'm going to give them a long spiel on the

gentleman's code. I don't believe they'll ever be frightened of us

again. Hello!"

Lulu had tottered over to their group, supporting herself by the ledge

of rock. She pulled herself upright, balancing precariously. She put her

sharp little teeth close, parted her lips and produced: "K-K-K-K-K-K-Kiss-S-S-S-S-S-S Me!"

The men burst into roars of laughter. Lulu looked from one face to the

other in perplexity. In perplexity, the other women looked from her to

them and at each other.

"Sounds like the Yale yell!" Pete commented.

"But what I can't understand," Billy said, reverting to his thesis, "is

that they don't realize instantly that we wouldn't hurt them for any

thing - that that's a thing a fellow couldn't do."