Three porpoise appeared off Short Beach and proved very companionable, for they stayed with the _Adventurer_ for quite ten minutes.

One placed himself directly in front of the boat and the others took up positions about six feet apart on the starboard bow, and for two miles or more they maintained their stations, their dusky, gleaming backs arching from the water with the regularity of clock-work.
Most of the boys had never seen the fish before and were much interested.

Joe called them "puffing pigs" and Perry insisted that they were dolphins, and a fervid argument followed.

They finally agreed, at Phil's suggestion, to compromise and call them "porphins." Possibly the discussion bored the subjects, or maybe they were insulted by the title applied to them, for about the time Joe and Perry reached an agreement the porpoise disappeared as suddenly as they had arrived on the scene and it was minutes later before the puzzled mariners descried them heading shoreward some distance away.
They missed Ossie after that and when he was found he was stretched out on a seat in the main cabin sound asleep and snoring.

Neil came back with the news that one of the "puffing pigs" had flopped aboard and was asleep below.