"The Fata Morgana is a sort of mirage seen in the Strait of Messina. A person standing on the shore sees the images of men, houses, ships, and other objects, sometimes in the air, sometimes in the water, the originals frequently magnified, passing like a panorama before the beholder. The vapory masses above the strait may cause the pictures to be surrounded by a colored line. When the peasants see it, they shout 'Morgana! Morgana!'"
"What does that word mean?" inquired Miss Blanche.
"The French from which it is derived is '_Morgaine la Fee_,' from a sister of King Arthur of the Round Table, who had the reputation of being a fairy, which is _fata_ in Italian."
"But what is that round table?" asked Mrs. Blossom very innocently.
"You must excuse me, my dear woman," replied the commander, looking at his watch. "The Suez Canal is the subject before us, and I am talking all the morning about other things."
"But it is collateral information, called out by the mirage; and the illustrations you mentioned are quite new to me, for one," added Dr. Hawkes.
"I like this kind of a conference, where the side matters are all explained," said Mrs. Belgrave. "But it is a pity the boys are not here, for they are not getting any of the cream of this conference so early in the morning."
This was enough for the commander, coming from her; and he immediately hastened to the stern of the ship, where he hailed the Maud, and ordered her to come alongside. The four sailors who had attended the party in the excursion to Cairo and up the Nile were directed to go on board of the tender, and take the places of the "Big Four." The Guardian-Mother had to go into a "siding" to permit a steamer to pass her at this point, and the transfer was easily made.
However it may have been with the others, Louis Belgrave was glad to get back to the ship, where he could sit by the side of Miss Blanche, and answer the many questions she was continually asking; for she had an inquiring mind. As she often remarked, Louis always seemed to know all about everything. Perhaps if he had been with the party all the time, he might have lost some portion of his reputation as a walking encyclopædia; for when he was to be with her on any excursion, he took extraordinary pains to post himself upon the topics likely to be considered.