And now through waters so brightly blue and transparent that they aroused the girls'wonder and admiration，the good ship plowed her way toward the port of Naples，passing to the east of Sardinia and Corsica，which they viewed with eager interest because these places had always seemed so far away to them，and had now suddenly appeared as if by magic directly before their eyes.
Patsy and the big whiskeredb captain had become such good friends that he always welcomed the girl on his own exclusive deck，and this afternoon she sat beside him and watched the rugged panorama slip by.
"When will we get to Naples？"she asked.
"To—morrow evening，probably，"answered the captain."See，it is over in that direction，where the gray cloud appears in the sky.""And what is the gray cloud，Captain ？""I do not know，"said he，gravely."Perhaps smoke fromVesuvius.At Gibraltar we heard that the volcano is in an ugly mood，I hope it will cause you no inconvenience.""Wouldn't it be fine if we could see an eruption ！"exclaimed the girl.
The captain shook his head.
"Interesting，perhaps，"he admitted；"but no great calamity that causes thousands of people to suffer can be called '?ne.'""Ah，that is true！"she said，quickly."I had forgotten thesuffering."Next morning all the sky was thick with smoke，and the sun was hidden.The waters turned gray，too，and as they approached the Italian coast the gloom perceptiblya increased.A feeling of uneasiness seemed to pervade the ship，and even the captain had so many things to consider that he had no time to converse with his little friend.
Signor Valdi forsookb his deck chair for the ?rst time and stood at the rail which overlooked the steerage with his eyes glued to the grim skies ahead.When Uncle John asked him what he saw he answered，eagerly：
"Death and destruction，and a loss of millions of lirac tothe bankrupt government.I know；for I have studied Etna for years，and Vesuvio is a second cousin to Etna.""Hm，"said Uncle John."You seem pleased with the ideaof an eruption."The thin faced man threw a shrewd look from his dark eyes and smiled.Uncle John frowned at the look and stumped away.He was not at all easy in his own mind.He had brought three nieces for a holiday to this foreign shore，and here at the outset they were confronted by an intangible danger that was more fearful because it was not understood.It was enough to make his round face serious，although he had so strong an objection to unnecessary worry.
Afternoon tea was served on deck amidst an unusual quiet.People soberly canvassed the situation and remarked upon the fact that the darkness increased visibly as they neared the Bay of Naples.Beth couldn't drink her tea，for tiny black atoms fell through the air and ?oated upon the surface of the liquid.Louise retired to her stateroom with a headache，and found her white serge gown peppered with particles of lava dust which had fallen from the skies.
The pilot guided the ship cautiously past Capri and into the bay.The air was now black with volcanic drossa and a gloom as of midnight surrounded them on every side.The shore，the mountain and the water of the bay itself were alike invisible.