After the coronation ceremony there was a great feast and when all the company were assembled Daimur told them of his plans for accompanying his guests to their respective kingdoms. His subjects were willing that he should go and promised to defend the kingdom against any possible enemies while he was away, and they agreed upon a very old and wise friend of Daimur's to act as Regent until his return. In a few days the preparations for his going were complete, and King Daimur's largest warship lay at anchor in the harbor in readiness to sail. The bands played and a great crowd stood on the wharf as Daimur and his royal guests drove down and boarded the ship, and they sailed out of the harbor amid many cheers and wishes for a safe and speedy voyage. CHAPTER XIX Their course was set for the Island of Shells, where King Cyril's brother was ruling in his stead. The wind was good, and they expected to reach port sometime the next day. Morning dawned bright and sunny, and after some hours of fast sailing Daimur was surprised to have a message brought to him that the Captain had sighted something from the bridge that he wished King Daimur to see. Daimur went up at once, accompanied by King Cyril, to whom he had been talking. On reaching the Captain's side they saw at once what the trouble was. In front of them, about six miles distant, lay the Island of Shells, and between them and it the only entrance to the harbor, a narrow winding passage between very dangerous reefs, which in places stood high out of the water. It was, however, not the reefs that drew their attention. Directly in front of them, and completely surrounding the passage through the reefs, lay a dark streak upon the water. It seemed to be at least half a mile in width and stretched away on either side as far as one could see. Although the water all around it was quite rough and choppy this streak lay perfectly calm, glistening in the sun with peculiar purple and gold colors. The Captain had ordered some of the sails reefed, but even so the ship was going at a good rate of speed and in a few seconds they had run into it. It was as though they had struck a bank of soft mud, and so indeed they thought it at first, though they could not understand how it could have got there, as the sea was known to be very deep outside the reefs. The sails, well filled, tried to carry the ship forward, but only succeeded in getting them a little further into the dark mass. "What can it be?" cried King Cyril, as everybody rushed to the ship's sides to see what had stopped their progress. "It looks and smells like tar," said the Captain, "and now how in the world are we to get out of it? I've never seen anything like it in my life, and I've been sailing for forty-seven years." By this time Daimur had adjusted his magic cap and spectacles and was surveying the dark sticky streak. He gave way to an exclamation of dismay.