‘Dear me, Jem!’ said my grandfather, ’I never heard you talk like that before.’

‘No,’ said Jem, ’I’ve forgot all about it since I came to the island.  I had a good mother years ago; I ought to have done better than I have done.’

He said no more, but he was very silent all the evening.  Grandfather read his newspaper aloud, and talked on all manner of subjects, but Jem Millar’s thoughts seemed far away.

The next day was his day for going on shore.  My grandfather and Jem took it in turns, the last Friday in every month; it was the only time they were allowed to leave the island.  When it was my grandfather’s turn, I generally went with him, and much enjoyed getting a little change.  But whichever of them went, it was a great day with us on the island, for they bought any little things that we might be needing for our houses or gardens, and did any business that had to be done on shore.

We all went down to the pier to see Jem Millar start; and as I was helping him to get on board some empty sacks and some other things he had to take with him, he said to me, in an undertone,—­

’Alick, my lad, keep that bit of paper; it’s all true what that old gentleman said.  I’ve been thinking of it ever since; and, Alick,’ he whispered, ‘I believe I am on the Rock now.’

He said no more, but arranged his oars, and in a minute more he was off.  But as he rowed away, I heard, him singing softly to himself: 

  ’On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand,
  All other ground is sinking sand.’

We watched the boat out of sight, and then went home, wishing that it was evening and that Jem was back again with all the things that we had asked him to get for us.

That was a very gloomy afternoon.  A thick fog came over the sea and gradually closed us in, so that we could hardly see a step before us on the beach.

Little Timpey began to cough, so I took her indoors, and amused her there with a picture-book.  It grew so dark that my grandfather lighted the lighthouse lamps soon after dinner.  There was a dull, yellow light over everything.

I never remember a more gloomy afternoon; and as evening came on, the fog grew denser, till at length we could see nothing outside the windows.

It was no use looking out for Jem’s return, for we could not see the sea, much less any boat upon it.  So we stayed indoors, and my grandfather sat by the fire smoking his pipe.

‘I thought Jem would have been here before now,’ he said at length, as I was putting out the cups and saucers for tea.

‘Oh, he’ll come before we’ve finished tea, I think, grandfather,’ I answered.  ‘I wonder what sort of a spade he’ll have got for us.’

When tea was over, the door opened suddenly, and we looked up, expecting to see Jem enter with our purchases.  But it was not Jem; it was his wife.

‘Sandy,’ she said, ‘what time do you make it?  My clock’s stopped!’