It was just nine o’clock when they took off the following morning after bidding farewell to their new friends and exacting another promise that they would come to see them the following summer if it were at all possible. “Nice people,” Rogers declared, as the Albatross rose in the air. “And then some,” Bill added as he headed her nose toward Molokai. “Father, mother and——ahem——daughter, all of them,” Gordon agreed. “You said it,” Bill told him. “She’s a fine girl and I don’t care who knows it.” “She’d be prettier if she had a bit more nose,” Gordon suggested. “What’s the matter with her nose?” Bill demanded. “Nothing, what there is of it,” Gordon laughed. “Well, I guess it suits her all right.” “And somebody else as well,” Gordon again laughed. “Looks to me as though it was going to rain,” Rogers changed the conversation. He did not realize how dear the two boys were to each other and sometimes feared lest real offense might be given when they were kidding. “Does look a bit thick off there,” Bill agreed. “Hope it holds off till we land.” “It’s going to take more than rain to keep me away from that hole,” Gordon told them. “Believe me, I’m anxious to find out if my hunch is in good working order.” “You didn’t say you had a hunch. I thought it was just an idea,” Bill told him. “Is there any difference?” Rogers wanted to know. “Sure there is,” Gordon told him. “A hunch is an idea with a college education.” “Then I hope this one of yours went to a good college,” Rogers laughed. “You’ll have to wait a bit after we get there, rain or no rain,” Bill said a few minutes later. “It’ll be just about high tide when we land.” “That old tide again,” Gordon groaned. “Which waits for no man,” Rogers reminded him. “It’s going to rain all right,” Bill declared just then as a drop of water struck the wind shield in front of him. “Just a shower, I reckon,” Rogers told him. But a few minutes later the rain was coming down in torrents and the visibility was so poor that they could see but a short distance ahead. “Better slow her down or we’ll be going past without seeing it,” Gordon cautioned. “We’re only making a bit over thirty now,” Bill told him. “Then the wind must be pretty strong,” Rogers suggested. “It seems to me as though we were going pretty fast.” “We aren’t nearly there yet,” Bill declared. “Some shower, if you ask me,” Gordon declared. But it turned out that Rogers was right. It was only a shower, and a few minutes later the sun burst through the clouds and the rain stopped so suddenly that Gordon declared someone must have turned off the spigot. “Is that our island?” Gordon asked pointing straight ahead. “Unless I got lost in the rain it is,” Bill told him. “Well, I guess you didn’t because those are our cliffs all right.” “And right over there is where our hopes are,” Rogers smiled pointing a bit to the right. “Tide’s in all right but I reckon it’s on the turn,” Gordon told them.