noon
When breakfast had been dispatched in the morning , for the last time the four outdoor chums took down the dear old khaki tent and folded it away reverently . They looked upon it as a friend and comforter indeed . Then they went aboard the _ Jessamine _ , and started for the city , which could be seen upon the key , over the gleaming , sun-kissed water of the gulf . They arrived long before noon , and leaving the boat in the hands of the party to whom Frank bore a letter from his cousin , the four chums accompanied little Joe to his modest home . Here the delightful news was broken to the widow of Mr. Langdon 's old boyhood friend . Words would be useless to describe her joy . The clouds had rolled away as if by magic , and at last she could see a happy future for herself and her family , marred by only one keen regret , and that the absence of the brave man who had died at his post years before .