Well, they were all there! O'Brien--dear old Fred, and Martin Johnson, just in from the Solomons with miles of fresh film; McFee, stopping over night on his way to the West Indies; Bill Beebe, with his pocket full of ants; Safroni, "Mac" MacQuarrie, Freeman, "Cap" Bligh--thinner than when I last saw him in Penang--and, greatest surprise of all, a bluff, harris-tweeded person who peered over the footboard of my bed and roared in rough sea-tones: "Well, as I live and breathe, Walter Traprock!" It was Joe Conrad. I told my story that night in the dining-room of the Tiare, or, at least, I told just enough of it to completely knock my audience off their seats. For many good reasons I avoided exact details of latitude, longitude, and the like. No island is sacred among explorers. "Gentlemen," I said, rather neatly, "I cannot give you the Filberts' latitude or longitude. But I will say that their pulchritude is 100!" The place was in an uproar. They plied me with questions, and Dr. Funk's! It was a night of rejoicing and triumph which I shall never forget, and which only Fred O'Brien can describe. The later results are too well known to need recital, Swank's success, Whinney's position in the Academy of Sciences, my own recognition by the Royal Geographic Society. The tight little Kawa still rides the seas, Triplett in command. She is kept fully stocked, ready to sail at a moment's notice. Soon, perhaps, the wanderlust will seize us again and, throwing down our lightly won honors, we will once more head for the trackless trail. But we will not make for the Filberts. Too tender are the memories which wreathe those opal isles, too irrevocable the changes which must have taken place. Rather let us preserve their undimmed beauty in our hearts. On our next trip we have agreed, all of us, that by far the best plan will be to leave the choice of our route, destination and return (if any) to the Kawa herself. OTHER BOOKS BY WALTER E. TRAPROCK Who's Hula in Hawaii 1899 Dances, Near-dances and No-dances of the Far East 1902 Through Borneo on a Bicycle 1904 Curry-Dishes for Moderate Incomes 1907 Sobs from the South Seas-Poems 1912 Around Russia on Roller Skates 1917 Crazy With Tahiti-Translations from Native Folklore 1918 How to Explore, and What 1919 NOTE:--Most of the above are out of print. The author still has a few copies of "Curry-Dishes for Moderate Incomes" which may be had at the publication price, $200. SEE THE SOUTH SEAS S. S. _Love-Nest_, sailing from San Francisco, June 1st, Sept. 3rd, Dec 2nd and March 7th. Three months' cruise. See the cute cannibals. Excursion rates for round trip with stops at all important islands. Everybody's doing it. Don't be a back number.