



Produced by Dianne Bean





THE EBB-TIDE

A TRIO AND QUARTETTE


By Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyde Osbourne



          'There is a tide in the affairs of men.'




Part I.



Chapter 1. NIGHT ON THE BEACH

Throughout the island world of the Pacific, scattered men of many
European races and from almost every grade of society carry activity and
disseminate disease. Some prosper, some vegetate. Some have mounted the
steps of thrones and owned islands and navies. Others again must marry
for a livelihood; a strapping, merry, chocolate- dame supports
them in sheer idleness; and, dressed like natives,