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The Secret of the Caves

more than a month of steady sailing before I finally reached land off the coast of South America. By jing, I was glad when I saw the Andes Mountains again. I landed at a port where there was a ship, and I'm swizzled if it wasn't my own boat."

"Your own boat!"

"Yes sir. I could hardly believe my eyes. So I come on board, and they were going to throw me off."

"Why?" asked Chet, in surprise.

"They didn't know me. You see, I hadn't been able to shave when I was on the island, and I'd grown a beard. So nobody knew me and they wouldn't believe me when I said I was their captain. But I told them to lend me a pair of scissors and a razor and I took off that beard and stepped out on deck, and by jing they all saluted me then, I can tell you. I made the quartermaster walk the plank and we all sailed back to San Francisco."

"That was quite an adventure," said Frank politely.

"Oh, I've had many things happen to me. I've been in a lot of battles, too. Of course, I've retired from the navy now, for there isn't the excitement nowadays."

"Were you in the Spanish-American war?" asked Chet.

"I was all through it from start to finish. I

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