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diff --git a/40605-8.txt b/40605-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 2bc4675..0000000 --- a/40605-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,7115 +0,0 @@ - THE MOTOR BOAT CLUB AT NANTUCKET - - - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost -no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it -under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this -eBook or online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license. - - -Title: The Motor Boat Club at Nantucket - The Mystery of the Dunstan Heir - -Author: H. Irving Hancock - -Release Date: August 28, 2012 [EBook #40605] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MOTOR BOAT CLUB AT -NANTUCKET *** - - - - -Produced by Roger Frank and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net. - - - - - - THE MOTOR BOAT CLUB AT NANTUCKET - - - OR - - - The Mystery of the Dunstan Heir - - - By - - - H. IRVING HANCOCK - - - Author of The Motor Boat Club of the Kennebec, - The Motor Boat Club Off Long Island, Etc. - - - Illustrated - - - Philadelphia - Henry Altemus Company - - - - - Copyright, 1909, by Howard E. Altemus - - - - -[Illustration: "Help! I Drown!" Came in a Muffled Voice.] - - - - -Contents - - - CHAPTER I--THE PAIR IN THE SEAT AHEAD - CHAPTER II--BOUNCER WAKES UP - CHAPTER III--THE LUCKIEST BOY IN THE WORLD - CHAPTER IV--SIGHTING THE "PIRATE" - CHAPTER V--A JOKE ON THE ENEMY - CHAPTER VI--TOM HAS A BAD QUARTER OF AN HOUR - CHAPTER VII--"THE QUICKEST WAY OF WALKING THE PLANK" - CHAPTER VIII--TOM DISCOVERS THE HEIR - CHAPTER IX--TED HURLS A THUNDERBOLT - CHAPTER X--OVERHAULING THE MYSTERY - CHAPTER XI--WHERE THE WATER TRAIL ENDED - CHAPTER XII--JOB HAS HIS COURAGE TESTED - CHAPTER XIII--A CAPTURE IN RECORD TIME - CHAPTER XIV--HEADED FOR THE SUNKEN REEF - CHAPTER XV--IN THE TEETH OF DEATH - CHAPTER XVI--FOLLOWING UP THE CLUE - CHAPTER XVII--JOE PLAYS JUSTICE A SCURVY TRICK - CHAPTER XVIII--THE MESSAGE UNDER THE ROCK - CHAPTER XIX--THE SIGHT BEHIND THE ATTIC LIGHT - CHAPTER XX--BLIND MAN'S BUFF IN FEARFUL EARNEST - CHAPTER XXI--THE LAST DASH TO WIN - CHAPTER XXII--JED RUNS A NAVAL BOMBARDMENT - CHAPTER XXIII--SPYING ON THE FILIBUSTERS - CHAPTER XXIV--CONCLUSION - - - - -CHAPTER I--THE PAIR IN THE SEAT AHEAD - - -"Is the 'Meteor' a fast boat?" - -"Very fast, indeed." - -"But can she beat anything along this coast? That's what I want to -know." - -"Judge for yourself. On her trial trip she made within a small fraction -of twenty-eight miles an hour." - -"Whew! That's tremendous speed, even for a fast and costly boat such as -the rich build to-day. But how long has she been in the water?" - -"Since last March." - -"She may have fouled a good deal since then, or her machinery may be a -good deal below the mark by this time." - -"Humph! For that matter, something could be made to happen to the boat, -I suppose." - -Of the two men carrying on this conversation in a day-coach seat on a -railway train, one was five-foot-seven, florid and somewhat stout, with -a bull neck and keen, twinkling eyes. His whole appearance hinted that -he had spent most of his forty years of life on the open sea. The other -man, who was short, slim and swarthy, with narrow, piercing black eyes, -might have been a few years older. His every motion betokened great -activity. One might have guessed him to be a Spaniard. His general -attire, though it was somewhat careless, would place him in the -business-man class. - -At the first mention of the name "Meteor" two American boys, seated -immediately behind the men, started slightly and immediately were all -attention. Each boy was about sixteen years of age. Tom Halstead was -fair, brown-haired and blue-eyed with a naturally merry look. Joe Dawson -was darker, somewhat more reserved in manner and was Tom's fast chum and -great admirer. - -Yes; readers of the preceding volume in this series will recognize Tom -and Joe at once as the young Americans who became the original members -of the Motor Boat Club of the Kennebec. It was they who put Broker -Prescott's fast motor boat, the "Sunbeam," once more in commission; they -who went through some most lively adventures along the coast near the -mouth of the Kennebec and who rendered tremendously important services -to Revenue Officer Evans, a cousin of the broker, in penetrating the -secret of Smugglers' Island. - -Now these same two members of the Motor Boat Club were traveling on -business that they believed to be wholly commonplace. They were headed -for the island of Nantucket, south of Cape Cod. The experiences ahead of -them, they imagined, were to be of the most ordinary kind. They had no -glimpse, as yet, of the new excitements that Fate had in store for them. -They had no hint of the startling adventures into which they were soon -to be plunged. - -But that mention of the name "Meteor" had aroused their instant -attention. That was the name of the motor boat that they were to join -and take charge of at Wood's Hole. The craft was the property of Mr. -Horace Dunstan, one of the wealthy residents of the island of Nantucket. - -An ordinary boy might not have heard the low-toned conversation of the -pair in the seat ahead. But Tom and Joe, attuned to the life of the sea -and with ears trained to note the slightest irregularity of the sound of -machinery, possessed acute hearing indeed. - -At the first words of that conversation between the unknown pair Tom -gave Joe a slight nudge in the side. Dawson's eyes promptly closed, his -lips parting, his head sinking slightly forward. He appeared to be sound -asleep. Halstead seemed to be wholly interested in the newspaper at -which he was glancing. Not even when the possibility of foul play to the -"Meteor" was mentioned did either youngster betray any further sign. -Indeed, the men in the seat ahead were evidently confident that the boys -could not hear their low-pitched talk. None of the other seats near by -was occupied. - -The accommodation train from Boston, rolling slowly along late in this -July afternoon, had just left Falmouth for its run of a few miles to -Wood's Hole, the last stop, as this would be the end of the mainland -route. Across the meadows the hot breath of July came through the open -car windows. The brightness of the sunshine inclined one to close his -eyes, so that Joe Dawson's slumber seemed the most natural thing in the -world. Indeed, Tom Halstead's eyes were narrowing; he seemed the next -candidate for a doze. Yet, depend upon it, neither boy had been more -awake in his life. The slightest hint of possible mischief to the boat -that was soon to be intrusted to their care was enough to set their -nerves a-tingle. - -"That was a queer rumpus on Boston Common the other day," began the -florid-faced man. The subject had been changed. No further mention was -made of the "Meteor." Tom Halstead felt tremendously disappointed. He -had hoped to hear more that would be of interest to himself. But the -pair in the seat ahead did not again refer to the "Meteor." So Tom, -after stealthily making a few pin pricks in his newspaper, settled far -down in his seat, holding the paper before his face as though reading. -In reality he was studying what he could see of the faces of the men who -had so suddenly aroused his interest. With the paper close enough to his -face the pin holes were almost as good as windows. - -Over those last few miles droned the train. Tom felt cheated in not -hearing more, but to all appearances the strangers had forgotten the -existence of the "Meteor." When the train was yet a mile out from Wood's -Hole the two men arose, going to the forward end of the car. The train -slackened in speed, the two men dropping off on the further side of the -car from where the boys sat. By the time that Halstead deemed it prudent -to slip across to a window opposite, the two men were out of sight. - -"Now what on earth can be the reason for those two fellows desiring any -injury to a gentleman's private yacht?" muttered Tom, rejoining his -chum. - -"At all events, it's handy to be well warned in advance," returned Joe -with a quiet grin. - -"Yes, if we run across that pair within twenty cable lengths of the boat -we'll know 'em and be on our watch," answered Halstead with a meaning -flash in his eyes. - -They had little more time for puzzling their heads, for the train was -now rolling in at the little station at Wood's Hole. There were less -than a dozen people to disembark. Out of such a small crowd anyone -looking for two young motor boat experts would have little difficulty in -selecting the two boys with weather-tinted faces, who wore suits of -strong, serviceable navy blue, soft brown canvas shoes and straw hats. -So a tall, slender man of forty-five, dressed in outing gray and wearing -an expensive fine-straw hat, came at once toward them. - -"Captain Tom Halstead?" he inquired, looking from one boy to the other. - -"That's my name, sir," Tom answered. "You are Mr. Horace Dunstan?" - -"Yes. And heartily glad that you did not disappoint me." - -"There was no good reason why we should, sir," Halstead rejoined, then -presented his chum. Mr. Dunstan shook hands with both very cordially, -although he was not able to conceal entirely his astonishment at their -youthfulness. - -"I--er--really expected to find you a little older," Mr. Dunstan -admitted with an easy laugh. "However, it's all right. My friend, -Prescott, told me he had found, among the seacoast boys of Maine, some -of the best material for motor boat handlers in the world. I asked him -to send me the best pair he knew, so, of course, it's all right, for -Prescott never goes back on a friend." - -"We've handled Mr. Prescott's boat in some rather tight places," said -Tom quietly. - -"You have your suit cases, I see. There's no need to carry them down to -the water front. Come over here and hand them to the driver." - -Mr. Dunstan led the way to the solitary hack at the station, though -neither sturdy boy would have thought anything of walking and carrying -his baggage. - -"Now we'll drive down at once and you'll see the 'Meteor'" proposed -their host. "Perhaps you will be able to tell, very soon, what ails the -craft. I have had one or two local machinists look her over and the -owner of one small motor boat who thought he knew all about such craft. -Yet the engine doesn't work well enough for me to be satisfied to try to -use the boat." - -In a few minutes the three alighted near a pier that jutted some hundred -feet out over the water. At the further end lay as jaunty a fifty-foot -craft as either boy had ever laid eyes on. - -"So that's the 'Meteor'? Oh, she's a dandy!" cried Tom in a burst of -enthusiasm. - -"Say, look at the beauty of her lines! What speed she ought to be good -for, with a strong, well-behaving engine!" came from quiet Joe. - -Horace Dunstan smiled with pardonable pride as he led the way down the -pier. As far as first impressions went the boat was worthy of extended -praise. Though only five feet longer than the "Sunbeam," she had the -look of being a much larger craft. There was more forecastle. The space -of the bridge deck seemed better arranged. There was an awning over the -bridge deck and another over the cockpit aft. The cabin looked roomier. -From davits at the starboard side swung a natty-looking small boat. - -"Gr-r-r-r!" came a warning sound from the closed forecastle as the trio -stepped aboard. - -"In the absence of crew I've kept my bull pup down in the engine room," -explained Mr. Dunstan. - -"A mighty good idea," muttered Tom with a swift recollection of the -fragments of conversation he and Joe had overheard on the train. - -"Stand back a moment, until I let him out and present you to him," -requested the owner. "Don't be afraid of him. Bouncer is a very -intelligent dog. Hell understand an introduction as quickly as a human -being would." - -One of the forecastle windows was open, to give air to the dog, though -it was not large enough to let him out. - -"It's all right, Bouncer," called Mr. Dunstan reassuringly, as he fitted -a key at the forecastle door. "Now come out like a four-footed gentleman -and meet some friends of ours." - -Bouncer came nimbly out, a low-built, thickset bulldog of the finest -fighting type. He had a square-set pair of jaws that looked capable of -taking a tremendous grip. His look, however, under the prompt petting of -his owner, was kindly and curious. - -"These young gentlemen are all right, Bouncer," spoke Mr. Dunstan. "Go -over and get acquainted with them. Let them pet you." - -Bouncer contented himself with a brief sniffing at each boy in turn. -Then he submitted to caresses, wagging his short stump of a tail. - -"He understands. You'll never need to be afraid of this dog, unless you -do some such extreme thing as to attack me or a member of my family," -Mr. Dunstan assured them. "Now come down into the engine room." - -"Say, this is something like!" uttered Joe enthusiastically, as he -stepped below and stood looking about him. Here there was an abundance -of room, for much of the engine was housed back under the bridge deck. -The engineer had plenty of space in which to move about. Forward of the -engine room, shut off by a curtain, was the galley. Here were stove, -sink, ice box, dishrack and room for a goodly supply of foods. - -Through a passageway Mr. Dunstan led them under the bridge deck. -Curtained off from the passage was a wide berth. - -"We generally call this the captain's berth," explained the owner. - -"I guess my berth will be on one of the engine room lockers with Joe," -smiled Halstead. - -The cabin proved to be spacious and handsome. The four locker seats -could be fitted into berths when cruising. The cockpit aft was large and -contained, besides side seats, half a dozen comfortable armchairs. - -"Now suppose we go back to the engine," desired Mr. Dunstan, turning -about. "I'm anxious, indeed, to know whether you can locate the trouble -that has tied this craft up here." - -Returning to the engine room, the boys opened their suit cases, taking -out overalls and jumpers. Clad in these they were soon armed with -wrenches and other tools, exploring the mysteries of that engine. - -"This machine hasn't had very good care," spoke Joe after a while. -"She's fouled with dirt and thick oil at a good many points." - -"Has the motor been overheated?" asked the owner. - -"I don't believe so, sir; at least, not to any serious extent," Joe -stated as his opinion. - -"Any repairs to parts going to be necessary?" - -"A few, but simple ones, I guess. We ought to be able to make 'em from -the materials at hand." - -"You--er--couldn't run out to-night, I suppose?" - -"We shall be very fortunate, sir," Joe answered, "if we can take this -boat out to-morrow forenoon." - -"We'll stay aboard to-night and work as late as we can," Tom explained. -"Joe can't really tell, until we get started, just how much will have to -be done. But the motor is not hurt past ordinary repair." - -"I was going to ask you over to the hotel for dinner to-night," hinted -the owner. - -"There seems to be plenty of everything to eat in the galley," Tom -answered seriously. "So, if you don't mind, sir, we'll stay right by our -work and help ourselves to food as we can." - -"Make yourselves at home, then. Do you mean to sleep aboard to-night?" -inquired Mr. Dunstan, as he started up the steps to the bridge deck. - -"I think we'd better, for more reasons than one, perhaps," Halstead made -answer as he, too, stepped to the bridge deck. "Mr. Dunstan," he went on -in a lower voice, "do you know of anyone who could have a good reason -for wanting to injure your boat?" - -"Why, no," replied the owner, though nevertheless he gave a slight -start. "Why?" - -Tom described the men and the conversation aboard the train. Mr. Dunstan -listened with interest, though he shook his head when the two men were -described. - -"There might be a shadow of reason for their talk in one direction," he -admitted, slowly and reluctantly. "But, pshaw, no; I'm dreaming. No, -there can't be any reason for wanting to ruin my boat. Very likely you -didn't hear quite right." - -"At any rate," Halstead went on, "Joe and I will be aboard to-night, and -probably every night as long as we're in your employ." - -"You seem to take this thing seriously, Halstead." - -"I don't believe, sir, in throwing away what seems like a very valuable -hint. It won't do any harm for us to be watchful, anyway. By the way, -sir, do you mind letting the dog stay aboard, too?" - -"Certainly you may have him," nodded the owner. "He won't interfere with -you and he'll sleep with one eye and both ears open. Well, make -yourselves at home here, boys. Do whatever you please in the galley and -feed and water Bouncer. I'll be at the hotel this evening in case you -should want me for anything." - -After impressing upon Bouncer that he was still to remain aboard, Mr. -Dunstan strolled leisurely down the pier. Both boys went hard at work. - -"What do you make of our new employer?" asked Joe after a while. - -"He seems like an ordinary, easy-going man," Tom replied. "I don't -believe he ever startled anyone by doing anything very original, but -he's a gentleman, and we're going to find him considerate and just. -That's all we can ask in any man." - -After that there wasn't much talk, except the few words now and then -that related to taking the motor to pieces, and repairing and replacing -its parts. At the close of day they helped themselves to a bountiful -meal and made a fast friend of Bouncer by catering to his healthy -appetite. Then, by the light of lanterns, they went to work again. It -was after eleven o'clock when they found themselves too drowsy to do -further justice to their work. - -"Let's go up on deck and get some air. After that we'll turn in," -proposed Halstead. - -"I wonder if we're going to have visitors or any trouble?" mused Joe. -"Somehow I can't empty my head of that talk in the car this afternoon." - -"If we _do_ have any trouble," laughed Tom nodding down at the dog -dozing on the deck at their feet, "I've a private notion that we're -going to be able to pass some back--to someone." - -Twenty minutes later the motor boat chums had made up berths on the -engine-room lockers and had undressed and gone to bed. Both were soon -sound asleep. They relied on Bouncer, who lay on the deck just outside -the open hatchway, to let them know if anything threatening happened. - - - - -CHAPTER II--BOUNCER WAKES UP - - -While our two young motor boat enthusiasts lie wrapped in the first -sound slumber of the summer night, lulled into unconsciousness by the -soft lapping of the salt water against the sides of the "Meteor," let us -take a brief glimpse at the events which had brought them here. - -Readers of the preceding volume in this series are aware of how the -Motor Boat Club came to be organized. It now numbered fourteen members, -any one of whom was fully qualified to handle a motor boat expertly -under any ordinary circumstances. - -Every member was a boy born and brought up along the seacoast. Such -boys, both by inheritance and experience, are usually well qualified for -salt-water work. They are aboard of boats almost from the first days of -life that they can recollect. Seamanship and the work required about -marine machinery are in the air that surrounds their daily lives. It is -from among such boys that our merchant marine and our Navy find their -best recruit material. It was among such boys that broker George -Prescott had conceived the idea of finding material for making young -experts to serve the owners of motor cruisers and racers along the New -England coast. - -Tom and Joe were undoubtedly the pick of the club for skill and -experience. More than that, they were such fast friends that they could -work together without the least danger of friction. Though Halstead was -looked upon as the captain, he never attempted to lord it over his chum; -they worked together as equals in everything. - -Mr. Dunstan had long known Mr. Prescott in Boston, where both had -offices. So, when trouble happened in the "Meteor's" engine room, Mr. -Dunstan had sent the broker a long telegram asking that gentleman to -send by the next train the two most capable experts of the Club. He had -added that he wanted the boys principally for running the boat on fast -time between Nantucket and Wood's Hole, for the owner had a handsome -residence on the island, but came over to the mainland nearly every day -in order to run in by train to his offices in Boston. The "Meteor," -therefore, was generally required to justify her name in the way of -speed, for Mr. Dunstan's landing place at Nantucket was some thirty-five -miles from Wood's Hole. - -Further, Mr. Dunstan's telegram had intimated that he was likely to want -the young men for the balance of the season, though his message had not -committed him absolutely on that point. The pay he had offered was more -than satisfactory. - -Wood's Hole is a quaint, sleepy little seaport village. The main life, -in summer, comes from the passing through of steamboat passengers for -Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. The night air is so quiet and the sea -scent so strong that even the city visitors at the little hotel find it -difficult to stay up as late as eleven o'clock. - -On this night, or rather morning, at one o'clock, there were but two -honest people in the whole place awake. Over at the Marine Biological -Laboratory, Curator Gray and an assistant were still up, bending -drowsily over a microscope in one of the laboratory rooms. But that -building was too far from the "Meteor's" pier for the scientists to have -any hint of what might be happening near the motor boat. - -It was the night before the new moon. The stars twinkled, but it was -rather dark when the figures of two men appeared at the land end of the -pier. On their feet these men wore rubber-soled canvas shoes. Not a -sound did they make as they started to glide out on the pier. - -But Bouncer woke up. - -"Gr-r-r-r!" the bull pup observed, thrusting his head up, his hair -bristling. All this required but a few seconds. In another instant -Bouncer was at the rail, his nostrils swelling as he took a keen look -down the length of the pier. Then an angrier growl left his throat. It -ended in a bound and Bouncer landed on the pier. His short legs moving -rapidly under him Bouncer rushed to meet the soft-shoed gentlemen. - -That last, angrier note from the bull pup roused Tom Halstead as a bugle -call might have done. He leaped to his feet, snatching at his trousers. -Joe stirred, half alertly. When he heard his chum's feet strike the -engine-room floor Dawson, too, sprang up. - -"Mischief, just as we thought!" breathed Tom. - -Down at the land end of the pier there was a sudden mingling of startled -human voices. - -"_Por la gracia de Dios!_" sounded an excited, appealing wail. - -"Get away, you beast, or I'll kill you!" roared another voice in -English. - -Bang! That was the noise from the throat of a big-calibered pistol. It -was followed, just as Tom bounded to the deck, pursued by Joe, by the -rapid pounding of a horse's hoofs and the rattle of wheels. - -"There they go!" cried Tom, leaping to the pier in his bare feet and -racing shoreward over the boards. But it was too late for the boys to -overtake the prowlers, who were now behind a fast horse. - -"Did they shoot that fine dog?" growled Joe, his voice rumbling with -indignation. Bouncer answered the question for himself by running to -meet them, his tail a-wag, guttural grunts of satisfaction coming from -his throat, while a signal flag of information fluttered from his mouth. - -"He took hold of one of 'em," chuckled Tom. "Good old fellow, you've -brought us a sample of their cloth. Good boy! May I have it?" - -Tom bent down to stroke the dog, who submitted very willingly. When -Halstead took hold of the large, irregular fragment of cloth the bull -pup grunted once or twice, then let go. - -Back all three went to the boat. Tom lighted a lantern, then held the -cloth forward. - -"Brown, striped trouser goods," he chuckled. "Joe, whom have we seen -with trousers of this pattern?" - -"That Spanish-looking chap in the seat ahead on the train," muttered -Dawson grimly. - -"_Now_ if Mr. Dunstan doubts that some one wants to put his boat out of -commission we'll have something definite to call to his attention," -uttered Tom excitedly. "Bouncer, you stocky little darling!" - -Joe looked the dog over carefully to make sure that a bullet had not -even grazed that reliable, business-like animal. - -"If they had touched you, old splendid," growled Joe, "we'd have had a -good clew or two for avenging you. But those rascals didn't even hurt -your grit. You're ready for 'em again--if they come!" - -For some time the boys were too excited to lie down again. When at last -they did, they kept their trousers on, ready for any further surprise. -Bouncer took up his old post on the deck above, seemingly free from any -trace of excitement. - -It was nearly half-past six in the morning when Joe next opened his -eyes. In a hurry he roused his chum. Donning bathing trunks and shirts -both dropped over the side for a refreshing swim. Then after drying and -dressing, Halstead went forward into the galley, while Joe snatched a -few minutes at the work left over from the night. - -Breakfast was a hurried affair, for there was still much to do about the -motor. It was after nine o'clock when Tom stood back, looking on -inquiringly while Joe put on the finishing touches. - -"Now I'll turn on the gasoline and see if we can get any news," proposed -Joe. A few moments later he started the ignition apparatus and gave the -drive wheel a few turns. - -Chug! chug! the engine began slowly. Joe, oil can in hand, looked on -with the attention of a scientist making an experiment. Bit by bit he -increased the speed of the engine, smoothing the work with oil. - -"Give us a little time and the old motor'll mote," observed Dawson -quietly. - -"Yes," nodded Tom equally observant. - -Had they been more of amateurs at the work they would have felt elated, -for the engine responded to all increased speeds that were tried. But -these two had worked enough about motors to know that such an engine may -come to a creaking stop when everything appears to be running at the -best. - -Chug! chug! It was a cheery sound as the minutes went by and the motor -did better and better. - -"I'm almost hopeful that everything is in shape," declared Dawson at -last. - -"Good morning, boys!" came a pleasant hail from the pier. "I see -everything is in fine trim." - -"It looks that way, Mr. Dunstan," answered Tom, stepping up above and, -by way of salute, bringing his hand to the visor of the Club's uniform -cap that he had donned this morning. "But motors are sometimes cranky. -We don't dare begin to brag just yet." - -"This morning's mail brought me a letter from Mr. Prescott," went on the -owner, holding up an envelope. "He has written me seven pages about you. -It seems that you are great pets of my friend's. He tells me that I can -place every confidence in you." - -"Why, that's mighty nice of Mr. Prescott," replied Tom quietly. He was -greatly pleased, nevertheless, for he could now see that Mr. Dunstan's -opinion of them had gone up several notches. - -"Well, well," continued the owner, as he glanced smilingly down into the -engine room; "are you going to cast off now and take me over to -Nantucket? It's four days since I've seen my home and that lucky little -rascal, Ted." - -Tom didn't know or inquire who Ted was or why that "rascal" was so very -fortunate. Instead he replied: - -"We were thinking of a little trial trip first, sir, just to see how the -craft will behave under way." - -"Good enough," nodded the owner. "But I'm aboard, so why can't I go with -you?" - -"Of course you can, sir." - -Tom ran ashore to cast off while Joe did some last fussing over the -motor. Having cast the stern-line aboard and coiled it, Tom now came -forward, throwing off the bowline, boarding with it. - -"Start her up at very slow speed ahead, Joe," called down the young -captain, taking his place at the wheel and throwing it over a little. - -With the first throbs of the propeller the "Meteor" began to glide away -from the pier. Mr. Dunstan had taken his post at Halstead's right. The -water being deep enough, the young captain moved out confidently. - -"Just a little more speed, Joe," Tom called, when the pier end was some -two hundred yards astern. - -A little faster and still a little faster the propeller shaft turned, -until it settled down to good work. The "Meteor" was moving at about -twelve miles an hour. - -"Fine!" cried Mr. Dunstan joyously. "We're all right now." - -"We're not yet quite out of the--well, I won't say woods, but sea -woods," smiled Tom quietly. - -"I'm forgetting my duty," cried Mr. Dunstan in sudden self-reproach. "I -must act a bit as pilot until you know these waters better." - -"Why, I studied the chart, sir, nearly all the way from Portland," -replied Tom. "I think I am picking up the marks of the course all -right." - -"You can't see Nantucket from here, but can you point straight to it?" -inquired Mr. Dunstan. - -"I'm heading straight along the usual course now," Tom replied. - -"Right! You are. I guess you know your way from the chart, though you've -never seen these waters before. Keep on. I won't interfere unless I see -you going wrong." - -"Shall I head straight on for the island?" asked Halstead. "Or would you -rather keep close to the mainland until we see how the engine behaves?" - -"Keep right on, captain, unless your judgment forbids." - -Tom, therefore, after a brief talk with his chum through the open -hatchway, held to his course, to the south of which lay the big island -of Martha's Vineyard, now well populated by summer pleasure seekers. - -Notch by notch Joe let out the speed, though he was too careful to be in -a hurry about that. He wanted to study his machine until he knew it as -he did the alphabet. Every fresh spurt pleased the owner greatly. - -"Your Club has some great fellows in it if you two are specimens," said -Mr. Dunstan delightedly. "Prescott knew what he was writing when he told -me to stand by anything you wanted to do." - -By the time when they had the Vineyard fairly south of them and the -craft was going at more than a twenty-mile gait, Tom judged that he -should inform the owner of the happening of the night before. He -therefore called Joe up from the motor to take the wheel. Then Halstead -told Mr. Dunstan what had taken place, exhibiting the fragment of cloth -secured by Bouncer and connecting this, in theory, with the swarthy man -they had seen aboard the train. - -Bouncer, looking up in his master's face and whining, seemed anxious to -confirm Tom Halstead's narration. - -"Why, there's something about all this that will make it well for us all -to keep our eyes open," said Mr. Dunstan. - -Tom, watching the owner's face, felt that that gentleman had first -looked somewhat alarmed, then much more annoyed. - -"There's something that doesn't please him and I shouldn't think it -would," the young captain reflected. "Yet, whatever it is he doesn't -intend to tell me, just yet, at all events. I hope it's nothing in the -way of big mischief that threatens." - -"Of course I'd suggest, sir," Tom observed finally, "that Dawson and -myself sleep aboard nights." - -"You may as well," nodded the owner, and again Tom thought he saw a -shadow of worriment in the other's eyes. - -"Are you going to let Bouncer stay aboard, too, sir?" Tom asked. - -"Ordinarily I think I'll let the dog sleep at the house nights," replied -Mr. Dunstan, immediately after looking as though he were trying to -dismiss some matter from his mind. - -Joe, too, had been keen enough to scent the fact that, though Mr. -Dunstan tried to appear wholly at his ease, yet something was giving -that gentleman a good deal of cause for thought. Mr. Dunstan even went -aft, presently, seating himself in one of the armchairs and smoking two -cigars in succession rather rapidly. - -"We've put something into his mind that doesn't lie there easily," -hinted Joe. - -"But, of course, it's none of our business unless he chooses to tell -us," replied Halstead. - -A little later Joe Dawson went down into the engine room to get the best -reasonable work out of the motor. Even at racing speed the "Meteor's" -bow wave was not a big one. There was almost an absence of spray dashing -over the helmsman. Tom did not need to put on oilskins, as he had often -done on the "Sunbeam." The "Meteor's" bow lines were so beautiful and -graceful, so well adapted to an ideal racing craft, that the bridge deck -in ordinary weather was not a wet place. - -As they neared cool, wind-swept Nantucket, Mr. Dunstan came forward once -more, to point out the direction of his own place. This lay on the west -side of the island. As they ran in closer the owner pointed out the -mouth of a cove. - -"We've come over in two hours," announced Mr. Dunstan, consulting his -watch as they neared the cove. - -"Now that we understand the boat and the engine," answered Tom, "we -ought to go over the course in less than an hour and a half." - -"Fine!" pronounced the owner. "That's what the boat was built for. Do -that and I can make the trip to my Boston offices every week day--if I -decide that it's best to do so." - -Tom noted a certain hesitancy about those last few words. Again he felt -sure that some mystery threatened the owner's peace of mind. - -Into the cove and up alongside the pier the "Meteor" was run. From here -large and handsome grounds and a huge white house, the latter well back -from the water, were visible. - -"We'll leave Bouncer on board for the present," said Mr. Dunstan. "I'll -take you up to the house so you can get used to the place. By and by -we'll have lunch. And I want to show you my boy, Ted." - - - - -CHAPTER III--THE LUCKIEST BOY IN THE WORLD - - -Hardly had Mr. Dunstan's new boat crew followed him ashore when a -whooping yell sounded from up the road that led to the house. Then into -sight dashed a boy mounted on a pony. On they came at a full gallop, the -boy reining up with a jerk when barely six feet from his father. - -"Careful, Ted!" warned Mr. Dunstan laughingly. "Don't ride me down. -You're not yet through with your use for a father, you know." - -"I was trying to show you, dad, how Sheridan and I are learning our -paces together," replied the youngster. He was a rather slightly built -boy, with clustering yellow hair and gray eyes. He wore a khaki suit and -a sombrero modeled after the Army campaign hat. Even his saddle was of -the Army type, being a miniature McClellan in model. - -Tom liked this lad after the first look. There was something -whole-souled about this little fellow with the laughing eyes. And, -though he had been reared in a home of wealth, there was nothing in the -least snobbish in the way he suddenly turned to regard the Motor Boat -Club boys. - -"Ted, Captain Halstead and his friend, Dawson," said Mr. Dunstan. -"You'll be glad to know that they've got the 'Meteor' in running order -again." - -Ted was careful to dismount before he offered his hand, with graceful -friendliness, to each of the boys. - -"You've made dad happy if you've got his boat to running again," laughed -Master Ted. - -"And you? Aren't you fond of motor boating?" queried Tom. - -"Oh, yes; after a fashion, I suppose," replied the Dunstan hopeful -deliberately. "But then, you see, I'm cut out for a soldier. I'm to go -into the Army, you know, and anything to do with salt water smacks a bit -too much of the Navy." - -All of which remarkable declaration Master Ted made as though he -imagined these new acquaintances understood all about his future plans. - -"The Army is fond of the Navy, of course," the lad added by way of -explanation. "Yet, to a soldier, the Army is the whole thing." - -"Oh, I see," smiled Captain Tom, though in truth he didn't "see" in the -least. - -"Yes, Ted's to be a soldier. He's doomed--or destined--to that career," -nodded Mr. Dunstan good-humoredly. "There's a whole long story to that, -Halstead. Perhaps you and Dawson shall hear the story later. But for now -we'd better get up to the house." - -Master Ted evidently took this as a hint that the subject was to be -pursued no further for the present, for he merely said in a very -gracious way: - -"Of course, I shall see you again. So now I'll take myself off--with -Sheridan." - -Resting his left hand through the bridle and gripping the pony's mane, -Master Ted used his right hand to strike the pony a smart blow over the -rump. As the pony bounded forward the lad made a flying leap into the -saddle. It was such a flying start as almost to startle Tom and Joe. - -"He rides like a cowboy," declared Tom admiringly, watching the mounted -youngster out of sight. - -"He has need to, I fancy," replied Mr. Dunstan gravely. "That is, since -he's going into the Army, for Ted wouldn't be satisfied with being -anything less than a cavalryman." - -As Mr. Dunstan's last words or the tone in which they were uttered -seemed to dismiss the subject, Halstead and his chum knew that they were -not to be further enlightened for the present. They followed their -employer up to the house. - -He took them into a roomy, old-fashioned looking library, with heavy -furniture, and, excusing himself, left them. He soon returned to say: - -"The family are now at luncheon, all except Master Ted, so I have given -instructions to have luncheon served to us in here presently." - -In half an hour the meal was before Mr. Dunstan and the boys. It tasted -rarely good after their hasty snatches of food aboard the boat. When it -was over Mr. Dunstan took a chair on the porch, lighted a cigar and -said: - -"I'm going to take it easy for a while. Would you like to look about the -grounds?" - -Tom and his chum strolled about. They found it a delightful country -place, covering some forty acres. There was a large stable, a carriage -house and a garage which contained a big touring car. There were -greenhouses, a poultry place and a small power house that supplied -electric light to the buildings and grounds. - -"It looks like the place of a man who has enough money, but who doesn't -care about making a big splurge," commented Joe. - -"It also looks like the place of an easy-going man," replied Halstead. -"I wonder how a man like Mr. Dunstan came to get the motor-boat craze?" - -"Oh, I imagine he likes to live out on this beautiful old island, and -merely keeps the boat as a means of reaching business," suggested -Dawson. - -After an hour or more they returned to the house to find Mr. Dunstan -placidly asleep in the same porch chair. So the boys helped themselves -to seats, kept quiet and waited. They were still in doubt as to whether -their employer wanted to use the boat later in the day. Theirs was a -long wait, but at last Mr. Dunstan awoke, glanced at his watch and -looked at the boys. - -"Becoming bored?" he smiled. - -"Oh, no," Tom assured him, "but I've had hard work to keep from falling -sound asleep." - -"Have you seen Master Ted lately?" - -"Not since we first met him down by the pier." - -"That's a youngster with quite a picturesque future ahead of him, I -imagine," continued Mr. Dunstan. "I call him the luckiest boy alive. -Perhaps he is not quite that, but he is going to be a very rich man if -he follows a certain career." - -"It must be an Army career, then," hinted Halstead. - -"It is, just that. And I suppose I might as well tell you the story, if -it would interest you any. A lot of people know the story now, so -there's no harm in repeating it." - -Their host paused to light a cigar before he resumed: - -"Ours used to be a good deal of a military family. In fact, every -generation supplied two or three good soldiers. There were five -Dunstans, all officers, serving in the War of the Revolution. There were -four in the War of 1812, two in the War with Mexico and two in the Civil -War. We gradually fell off a bit, you see, in the numbers we supplied to -the Army. The two who served in the Civil War were uncles of mine. My -father didn't go--wasn't physically fit. There were three of us -brothers, Gregory, Aaron and myself. Both were older than I. Aaron would -have made a fine soldier, but he was always weakly. The fact that he -couldn't wear the uniform almost broke his heart. Yet Aaron had one fine -talent. He knew how to make money almost without trying. In fact, he -died a very rich man. - -"Greg, on the other hand, was what I expect you would call the black -sheep of the family. He went to Honduras years ago. He's a planter, -doing fairly well there, I suppose. He's pretty wild, just as he used to -be. He's always getting mixed up in the many revolutions that they have -down in that little republic of Honduras. One of these days I'm afraid -he'll be shot by a file of government soldiers for being mixed up in -some new revolutionary plot. - -"My brother Aaron never married. Greg has two daughters, but no sons. -Ted is my only son and Aaron just worshiped the lad as the last of the -race. Aaron wanted Ted to become a soldier and keep the family in the -Army. The youngster was willing enough, but I didn't wholly fancy it. -However, my brother Aaron died a little while ago and I found he had -fixed the matter so that Ted will have to be a soldier." - -"How could your brother do that?" asked Tom. - -"Why, you see, under the will, brother Greg is let off with one hundred -thousand dollars and I get the same. But there's a proviso in the will -that if, within ninety days from Aaron's death, Ted appears in probate -court with me or other guardian, and there both Ted and myself promise -that he shall be reared for the United States Army, then half a million -dollars is to be paid over to myself or other guardian, in trust for the -boy. The income from that half million is to be used to rear and educate -him. But Ted, as a part of his promise, must make every effort to get -himself appointed a cadet at West Point." - -"Some other boy might get the cadetship away from him," suggested Joe -Dawson. - -"In case Ted simply can't win a West Point cadetship," replied Mr. -Dunstan, "then, at the age of twenty-one, his promise will oblige him to -enlist in the Army as a private soldier and do all in his power to win -an officer's commission from the ranks." - -"Even then, there's a chance to fail," hinted Tom. - -"If the lad fails absolutely to get a commission in the Army," responded -Mr. Dunstan, "he will lose a lot of money--that's all. There is another -fund, amounting to two and a half million dollars, that is to be kept at -interest until the young man is thirty. By that time the money, through -compound interest, will be much more than doubled. On Ted's thirtieth -birthday all that huge sum of money is to be turned over to him if he -has won, somehow, a commission as an officer of the Army. If he has -tried, but failed, then the money is to be devoted to various public -purposes. - -"But if Ted fails to go into probate court on time, with myself or other -guardian, and have the promise made a matter of record, then he loses -everything. In that case I get the same hundred thousand dollars as -otherwise, but Greg, instead of receiving only a hundred thousand is to -get a cool million dollars." - -"Isn't your brother Gregory likely to contest such a will?" asked Tom -thoughtfully. - -"The will provides that, if he does contest, he shall lose even his -hundred thousand dollars," Mr. Dunstan replied. "I have had great -lawyers go all over the will, but they can't find a single flaw through -which it can be broken. You see, the will is right in line with what -lawyers call 'public policy.' It's altogether to the public interest to -have the boys of our best old families, as of the best new ones, brought -up with the idea that, they're to give their lives to the service of -their country. So the will is bound to stand against any contest, and if -Greg or myself tried to break it we'd only cheat ourselves out of goodly -sums of money." - -"Then Master Ted, of course," pursued Tom, "has been or is going before -the probate court to have the promise recorded." - -"To-day is Tuesday," answered Mr. Dunstan. "The ninety days are up next -Monday. On that day there will be a short session of probate court and -Ted and I are going to be on hand." - -"Is this the first time probate court has been in session since the will -was read, sir?" asked Halstead. - -"Oh, no," replied their employer in his most easy-going tone. "But there -was no hurry and I wanted to give the lawyers plenty of time to consider -the matter. Next Monday, being within the required ninety days, will do -as well as any other time." - -"Well, of all the easy-going men!" gasped Tom inwardly. "To think, with -such a big fortune at stake, of dilly-dallying until the very last day -of all!" - -"So, you see, Ted really _is_ a very lucky boy," finished Mr. Dunstan. - -"I should say he is!" breathed Halstead, his face flushing at the -thought. _He_ would have been happy over a West Point cadetship without -any enormous reward. - -"The luckiest boy I ever heard of!" vented Joe, his nerves a-thrill over -this story of one of Fortune's greatest favorites. "No wonder your son, -sir, is so eager about being a soldier." - -"Is your brother Gregory in this country now?" asked Tom slowly. - -"Not to the best of my knowledge," almost drawled their employer. "The -last I heard of him he was still on his plantation in Honduras, probably -hatching more revolutionary plots and giving the government a good -excuse for sending its soldiers to shoot him one of these days. But I -_do_ know that, for a while, Greg had American lawyers hard at work -trying to find some way to smash Aaron's will. They gave it up, though, -and so did Greg, after hearing from me that Master Ted was wild to -follow a soldier's career." - -Both boys were silent for some time. Yet, if they did no talking, their -thoughts very nearly ran riot. To them it seemed that Ted Dunstan's lot -in life lay in all the bright places of glory and fortune. How they -would have relished such a grand chance! - -"By the way," said Mr. Dunstan, rising slowly and stretching, "I haven't -seen the youngster in hours. I think I'll locate him and bring him -around here." - -He went into the house. Within the next ten minutes two of the men -servants left the house, running hurriedly out of sight in different -directions. At the end of twenty minutes Mr. Dunstan himself appeared, -looking actually worried. - -"We can't seem to find Ted anywhere," he confessed uneasily. "The young -man hasn't been seen since he stabled his pony at half-past twelve. I -thought he would lunch with Mrs. Dunstan; she thought he was lunching -with us. We've sent all about the grounds, we've telephoned the -neighbors and the town, and all without avail. The pony is in the stable -and the young man seems to have disappeared." - -"Disappeared?" repeated Tom Halstead, springing to his feet, electrified -by the news. "Don't you think it more likely, sir, he's been _helped_ to -disappear?" - -"You think he may have been spirited away?" demanded Mr. Dunstan. "But -why?" - -"Haven't you yourself told us, sir, that it would be worth some one's -trouble, to the extent of nine hundred thousand dollars, to have the boy -vanish?" asked Tom breathlessly. - -"You suspect my brother?" - -"Pardon me, sir, for forgetting that Gregory Dunstan is your brother," -Tom went on whitening. "Yet that talk about disabling the 'Meteor'! The -man who looked like a Spaniard--but the people of Honduras are of -Spanish descent. Why should anyone want to disable the 'Meteor,' unless -to stop a pursuit by water? You yourself have told us that your brother -has a weakness for mixing up in revolutions down in Honduras." - -All this Halstead had shot out jerkily, thinking even faster than he -spoke. - -"But at this very moment Greg is down in Honduras," objected Mr. -Dunstan. - -"Even if he is, wouldn't friends of his, who may want funds for a new -revolution, see how easy it was to get the money through getting Ted out -of the way?" asked Tom quickly. "Grant that your brother is wholly -innocent of any plot about your son. Wouldn't supposed friends of his -perhaps be willing to spirit the boy away, knowing that if the big money -prize went to your brother, Gregory Dunstan could afterwards be -persuaded to throw his fortune into some new revolutionary cause?" - -"Yes, yes, it's all possible--horribly possible," admitted Mr. Dunstan, -covering his face with his hands. "And Greg, who is a citizen of -Honduras now, has even had aspirations in the way of becoming president -of Honduras. Halstead, I will admit that I had even thought of the -possibility of some just such attempt as this, and yet in broad daylight -I dismissed it all as idle dreaming. And now Ted's gone--heaven only -knows what has become of him!" - -"Of course," put in Joe coolly, "it may turn out that the youngster just -went fishing. He may walk in any moment for his supper." - -"But he went without his lunch," retorted Mr. Dunstan. "That was wholly -unlike Ted." - -"The 'Meteor' may be disabled now," broke in Tom. "If she isn't, won't -it be more than well worth while to get the craft out and go scouting -through these waters?" - -"Yes, yes!" cried Mr. Dunstan. "Come on, boys." - -As they raced down through the grounds they espied the coachman -returning. - -"Come along, Michael!" shouted Mr. Dunstan. Then, to the boys he -explained: - -"If the 'Meteor' is fit to go out, Michael can go along with you. If -there's any fighting he's a heavy-fisted, bull-necked fellow who'd face -a regiment of thieves." - -Joe had the key of the engine-room hatchway out in his hand before they -reached the pier. In a jiffy he had the sliding door unlocked, almost -leaping down into the engine room. With swift hands he set the engine in -motion. - -"All right here," he reported, while Bouncer, just liberated, frisked -about his master's legs and then whined. - -"Keep the bulldog aboard, too, Michael," called Mr. Dunstan, as he -stepped ashore. "Start at once, Captain Halstead. Go as far and wide as -you can and hail any craft you think may have news. Michael, I rely upon -you to use your fists if there's need." - -"If there's the chanst!" grinned the Irishman readily. - -"I'll run back to the house and get in touch with the police," Mr. -Dunstan shouted back over his shoulder. - -Tom sprinted aft along the pier, throwing the stern-line aboard. He -leaped aboard forward with the bowline, not stopping then to coil it. - -Not even calling to Joe, whose head was barely six feet away, young -Captain Tom Halstead gave the bridge bellpull a single jerk. As the -response sounded in the engine room alert Joe gave the engine slow speed -ahead. Tom threw the wheel over and the fine boat glided out from her -berth. - -Two bells! Full speed ahead! The "Meteor" forged forward, gaining -headway every moment. The hunt for missing Ted Dunstan was started in -earnest. - - - - -CHAPTER IV--SIGHTING THE "PIRATE" - - -"How much speed do you want for this trip?" asked Joe, poking his head -up through the hatchway as soon as the "Meteor" was running smoothly -northward. - -"On a hunt like this I think Mr. Dunstan will want us to burn gasoline," -Tom answered. "Give her about all the speed she can make." - -"That means twenty-five miles--or more?" insisted Dawson. - -"Twenty-five will be close enough to going fast," Tom replied. - -Almost immediately the fast motor boat began to leap through the water. -Though the boat minded her helm sensitively, Halstead rested both hands -upon the wheel, watching intently ahead. - -"Hey! What you trying to do? Swamp us, with your wake?" demanded an -irate fisherman in a dory, as they raced past him. - -But they had gone only close enough to enable big Michael, standing on -the deck house, to peer at the inside of the dory. - -Several other small craft without cabins they ran close to in the same -manner, making sure that no stolen boy was on any of them. - -Up near Great Point they encountered a cabin sloop. Michael, however, -recognized a clergyman friend as one of this party, so Halstead passed -them with only a friendly toot from the auto whistle. - -Then down around the east coast of Nantucket they sped, further out to -sea now, since inshore no craft were observed. They kept on until the -south coast, too, had been passed, but there was no sign to gladden -their eyes nor arouse their suspicions. Next along the south shore of -the island the "Meteor" raced, and on out to Muskeget Island. From this -point they had only to round the latter island and steer straight back -for the inlet where Mr. Dunstan's pier lay. - -"Sure, I don't like to go back stumped like this," growled Michael. - -"No more do I," rejoined Tom. "Say, we've got daylight enough; I'm going -to retrace our whole course and keep in closer to shore." - -Joe, who for some time had been on deck, nodded his approval. Cutting a -wide sweep, Tom headed back, going now within a quarter of a mile of the -shore. - -"It begins to look," hinted Joe, "as though whoever is leading the young -Dunstan heir astray hasn't taken him off the island of Nantucket at -all." - -"There are plenty of hiding places on Nantucket, aren't there?" inquired -Tom, turning to the big coachman. - -"Plenty," nodded Michael, "if the rapscallions knew their way about the -old island. But, by the same token, the rascals would be in plenty of -danger of being found by the constables." - -"Of course Mr. Dunstan is having the local officers search," pondered -Tom aloud. "He said he would. He can telegraph the mainland from the -island, too, can't he, Michael?" - -"Sure," nodded the coachman. - -"Then Mr. Dunstan must have waked up some pretty big searching parties -by this time, both on the island and on the mainland," Halstead -concluded. "But see here, Michael, why wouldn't it be a good plan to put -you ashore? You can telephone Mr. Dunstan and see if there's any news." - -"And if there ain't any," suggested the Irishman, "I might as well be -going home across the island on foot, and keeping me eyes open. I can -ask questions as I go along, and maybe be the first of all to find out -any rale news." - -"That'll be the best plan of any," approved Halstead. "It begins to look -more sure, every minute, that we're not going to need your fine lot of -muscle." - -At the lower end of the east coast of the island Tom remembered having -seen a pier that would serve them for landing the Irishman. They made -for that pier accordingly and Michael leaped ashore. - -"I'll telephone and then come back within sight," the coachman called -back to them, as he started. "If 'tis good news I'm hearing, I'll throw -up me hat two or three times. If 'tis no news, I'll wave a hand." - -The "Meteor" then fell off, but kept to her bearings while ten minutes -passed. Then Michael appeared in sight from the shore. He waved one hand -and signed to the boys to keep on their course. - -"Too bad!" sighed Tom. "But it makes it more certain than ever now, -doesn't it, Joe, that some real disaster has happened to young Ted -Dunstan? It's past the lad's dinner time now. No healthy boy goes -without either luncheon or dinner, unless there's a big reason for it." - -"Unless Ted has merely gone to some friend's home and has forgotten to -notify his parents," suggested Dawson. - -"But Ted doesn't strike me as the boy who's likely to do that. He's a -fine little fellow, and I don't believe he'd be guilty of being so -inconsiderate as to leave home for hours without telling some one." - -They had the "Meteor" under full headway now. Tom, with one hand on the -wheel, kept a keen lookout. They had run along some miles when Halstead -gave a sudden gasp, made a dive for the rack beside the wheel that held -the binoculars and called sharply: - -"Take the wheel, Joe!" - -With that Tom Halstead bounded down into the engine room. Over at one of -the open portholes he raised the marine glasses to his eyes. - -"What's the matter?" called down Joe, filled with the liveliest -curiosity. - -"Matter enough!" came his chum's excited rejoinder. "Don't look when I -tell you. Keep your eyes on your course ahead. But you saw that little -pier over at port?" - -"Yes." - -"Maybe you noticed a man sitting there?" - -"I did," Joe admitted. - -"When I first saw him," Tom went on, showing his animated face at the -hatchway, "I didn't think much about him. But the second time I looked I -thought I saw something that brought back recollections. That was why I -came down here for a near-sighted peep through the glasses. The fellow -couldn't see me down here and so ought not to suspect that we have -noticed him particularly." - -"But who is he?" cried Joe eagerly. - -"Oh, he's the right man, all right," Tom retorted perhaps vaguely. "He's -got on either the same pair or another pair just like 'em." - -"Pair? Of what?" demanded Joe. - -"Trousers, of course, you dull old simpleton!" whipped out Halstead. -"Joe, it's the same old pattern of brown, striped----" - -"The Span----" - -"The pirate, I call him," growled Halstead, stepping up on deck and -replacing the binoculars in their rack without another look ashore. They -were rapidly leaving astern the solitary one seated against the pier -rail. - -"Do you think----" began Joe, but Tom gave him no chance to finish. - -"I don't think anything," broke in Halstead, alive with energy. "I am -going to know--that's what." - -Tom took the wheel himself, swinging the craft around a point of land -just ahead. - -"Look back, Joe. This shuts us out from the sight of that striped -pirate, doesn't it?" - -"Yes," nodded Dawson. - -Tom shut off the speed, adding: - -"Stand ready, Joe, to use speed or wheel, and keep her about so-so. I'm -going to lower the dingey into the water and row ashore. I'll rig a line -to her stern, so you can haul her back. Don't bother to get the small -boat up at the davits. Just make her fast astern. And then----" - -"Wait here for you," guessed Joe. - -"No, as soon as you get the dingey made fast, put on headway and run the -boat back to Mr. Dunstan's pier. Report to him, telling him just what -I'm doing and assure him I won't be afraid to telephone if I learn -anything worth while. I'll get over to his place as soon as I can, later -in the evening." - -Tom got the small boat into the water, left one end of a small rope in -Joe's hands and rowed somewhat more than a hundred feet to the beach. -From there he waved his hand. Joe began to haul in on the line. Within -thirty feet of the beach the woods began; Halstead was quickly lost to -his chum's sight. - -Full darkness came on while Tom was still in the woods heading -cautiously south. As he hastened along, making little or no noise, -Halstead wondered what he would do with the man in case he discovered -him to be really one of the pair who had sat in the seat ahead on the -train. - -"I suppose I'd better wait and make up my mind after I'm sure it _is_ -the same fellow," Tom concluded. - -The young skipper did not, at any time on this swift walk, move far from -the shore line. At last he came to the edge of the woods, a very short -distance from the pier he was seeking. There was still a man there, -seated on the rail of the pier. There were some bushes, too, to aid in -shielding the boy's forward progress if he used care. Tom went down, -almost flat, then crept forward, moving swiftly, silently, between -bushes. - -At last he was near enough to be sure of his man, trousers and all. It -was the same man Halstead had seen on the train. The "pirate" was at -this moment engaged in rolling a cigarette. - - - - -CHAPTER V--A JOKE ON THE ENEMY - - -The slight, swarthy stranger rolled his cigarette up nicely, moistening -the edge of the paper, stuck the thing between his lips, lighted the -tobacco and began to smoke in evident enjoyment. - -"That's my party, all right," quivered Tom. "And now I've found him what -on earth am I going to do with him?" - -That was a new poser. Halstead had been so intent on identifying his -suspect that, now he recognized him, he must figure out what was to be -done. - -"If the fellow is all right he ought to have no objections to going -along with me and answering questions. If he won't do that"--here Tom's -eyes began to flash--"I believe I'll make him. This is a business that -calls for stern measures. This fellow belongs to the crowd that must -know all about Ted Dunstan's disappearance." - -Yet, to look at him, one would hardly suspect the swarthy man leaning -against the pier rail of being a conspirator. As he smoked he appeared -to be wholly at peace with himself and with the world. He did not seem -to have a care on earth. - -As he still crouched behind a bush, watching the nearby fellow in the -dark, an impulse of mischief came to Tom Halstead. He remembered that -night prowling about the "Meteor" over at Wood's Hole, and he remembered -how Bouncer had frightened this same man. - -"Gr-r-r-r!" sounded Tom suddenly from behind the bush. "Gr-r-r-r! Woof! -Woof!" - -It was a splendid imitation of the growl and bark of a bulldog. At the -same instant Tom made a semi-spring through the bush. - -The "pirate" uttered a wordless howl of fright. He lurched, attempted to -recover himself and leap at the same instant, and---- - -Splash! There was another howl of terror as the man slipped over -backward, then, head-first, struck the water at the side of the pier. - -"Help! I drown!" came in a muffled voice, and a new note of terror -sounded on the night. - -Now drowning anyone was as far from Tom Halstead's mind as could be. -With an upward bound he sprinted out onto the pier, bending under the -rail close to where the frightened one was making huge rings on the -water in his struggle to keep up. - -In his efforts the fellow reached one of the piles of the pier, hanging -to it in mortal terror. - -"Help, help, kind sir!" he pleaded hoarsely. "Not a stroke do I swim. -Pull me out before I drown." - -Throwing himself upon the pier, Tom bent down with both hands. - -"Here, catch hold," he hailed. "You're in no danger. I'll pull you out -all right." - -It was some moments before Tom could persuade his "pirate" to let go -that frantic clutch at the pile. But at length Halstead drew his -dripping suspect up onto the boards of the pier. - -"Where is that terrible, that miser-r-rable dog!" panted the swarthy -one, glaring about him. - -"That's all right," Tom answered composedly. "There isn't any dog." - -"But--but I heard him," protested the other, still nervous, as he stared -suspiciously around him. "The wr-r-retched animal sprang for me. His -teeth almost grazed my leg." - -Such was the power of imagination--a fine tribute to Tom's skill as a -mimic. - -"Aren't you thinking of the other night, over at Wood's Hole, when you -tried to get aboard the 'Meteor' to wreck the engine?" - -Halstead shot this question out with disconcerting suddenness. The young -skipper looked straight, keenly, into the other's eyes, standing so that -he could prevent the stranger's sudden bolt from the pier. - -"I? What do you talk about?" demanded the foreigner, pretending -astonishment. - -"Oh, I know all about you," nodded Tom. "You're the party." - -"Be careful, boy! You insult me!" cried the other angrily. - -"That's all right, then," Tom went on coolly. "Now maybe I'm going to -insult you a little more. The trouble is, I need information, and you're -the best one to give it to me. Where's Ted Dunstan?" - -"I--I--you----" stammered the foreigner. "What do I know about Ted -Dunstan? No, no, no! You are wrong. I have not seen the boy--do not know -him." - -"Yet you appear to know that he is a boy," insisted Tom sternly. "Come, -now, if you won't talk with me you'd better walk along with me, and -we'll find some one you'll be more willing to answer." - -"How? I walk with you? Boy, do not be a fool," retorted the swarthy one -angrily. "I shall not walk with you. I do not like your company." - -"I'm not sure that I like yours, either," retorted the boy. "But there -are times when I cannot afford to be particular. Come, why should you -object to walking along with me? All I propose is that we find the -nearest constable and that you answer his questions. The constable will -decide whether to hold you or not." - -"Step aside," commanded the swarthy man imperiously. Full of outraged -dignity he attempted to brush past the young skipper. But Tom Halstead, -both firm and cool, now that his mind was made up, took a grip on the -fellow's left arm. - -"Take your hand off! Let me go!" screamed the fellow, his eyes ablaze -with passion. "Out of my way, idiot, and take yourself off!" - -As the swarthy one struggled to free himself Tom only tightened his -grip, much as the bull pup would have done. - -"Don't be disagreeable," urged Tom. "Come, my request is a very proper -one. I'm only asking you to go before one of the officers of the law. No -honest man can really object to that." - -"You----" screamed the foreigner. - -He shot his right hand suddenly into a jacket pocket. But Tom, watching -every movement alertly, let go of the fellow's left arm, making a bound -and seizing his right arm with both strong hands. There was a fierce -struggle, but Halstead's muscles had been toughened by exercise and by -many days of hard work at a steering wheel in rough weather. This slight -man from another country was no match for the American boy. - -Down they went to the flooring of the pier with a crash, but young -Halstead was uppermost. In another twinkling he was bending the swarthy -one's right arm until that fellow was ready to sue for a truce. - -Tom now held him helpless, kneeling on him. - -"What were you trying to fish out of that jacket pocket?" demanded the -young motor boat captain, thrusting his own hand in. He drew out -something and held it up briefly--a clasp knife. - -"A coward's tool!" uttered Tom, his voice ringing scornfully. Then he -threw the clasp knife far out so that it splashed in the water. "Why -don't you cultivate a man's muscle and fight like a man, instead of -toting around things like that? Come, get up on your feet." - -Bounding up, Halstead yanked the other upright. In a twinkling the -swarthy man broke from him, sprinting off the pier. - -"You haven't learned to run right, either," grinned Halstead, dashing -after the "pirate" and gripping a hand in his collar. - -That brought them facing each other again. How the swarthy one glared at -his resolute young captor! They were about of a height, these two, and -might have weighed about the same. But the man possessed nowhere near -the strength of this sea-toughened boy. - -"Now see here," spoke Tom more pleasantly, "I'm doing what I think is -right or I wouldn't venture to be so rough. Walk along with me sensibly, -until we can find out where a constable lives. I've got the best of you -and you realize I can do it again. But I don't want to be rough with -you. It goes against the grain." - -The swarthy one's only answer was to glare at the young skipper with a -look full of hate. - -Tom suddenly changed his tone. - -"I know what you're thinking of, my man," he cried tauntingly. "You are -just thinking to yourself what a fine time you'd have with me if you had -me down in Honduras--where your friends do things in a different way!" - -The taunt told, for the stranger's eyes gleamed with malice. - -"Ah, in good Honduras!" he hissed. "Yes, if I had you there, and----" - -He stopped as suddenly as he had begun. - -"That's just what I wanted to know," mocked Halstead. "Honduras is your -country, and now I know to a dot why you're interested in having Ted -Dunstan vanish and stay vanished for a while. Come along, now. We'll -keep right on until we find that constable!" - -Tom seized the stranger's right arm in earnest now. The other held back, -as though he would resist, but suddenly changed his mind. - -"You are somewhat the stronger--with hands," he said in an ugly tone. -"So I shall go with you. But perhaps you will much regret what you are -doing to-night." - -"Oh, I hope not," Tom jeered cheerily. "At all events I'm doing the best -I know how. And I'm glad you're not going to make any fuss. I hate to be -cranky with anyone." - -The place to which the pier belonged looked, from what Tom had been able -to see of it, like a run-down coast farm. Away up on a hill to the left -were a dilapidated old farm house and other buildings. Halstead feared, -though, that the stranger might have friends up at that house and so -decided to keep on through the woods at the right. - -Before long they struck a fairly well defined road through the forest, a -road that looked as though it might lead to somewhere in particular. - -"We'll keep right on along this road, if you don't mind," said the boy. -He kept now only a fair hold of the other's wrist. As the swarthy one -offered no opposition, they made passably good speed over the road. But -Tom, though he looked unconcerned, was wholly on the alert for any -sudden move on the part of his captive. - -"If I find I'm wholly in the wrong," said Tom pleasantly, after they had -gone at least a quarter of a mile in this fashion, "there isn't anyone -in the whole United States who'd be more glad to make a complete -apology." - -"But that will not save you from trouble," breathed the swarthy one -angrily. "The laws of your country do not allow such high-handed deeds -as you have been guilty of." - -"Down in Honduras the laws are a bit different, aren't they?" asked -Halstead very pleasantly. - -"Down in Honduras, they----" - -The swarthy one checked himself suddenly. - -"That is the second time you have asked me about Honduras," he went on -presently. "Why do you say so much about Honduras?" - -"I've trapped you into admitting that it's your country," laughed -Halstead. "And that tells me, too, why you are so interested in having -Ted Dunstan kept out of sight for the next few days." - -"What's all this talk about Honduras?" demanded a gruff voice. The -challenge made both jump. A stocky figure stepped alertly out from -behind a tree. It was the solidly built, florid-faced man--the other of -the pair Tom had first seen in the seat ahead. - -"Oh, you, you, you!" cried the swarthy one delightedly, as he wrenched -his captive wrist free from Halstead's weakening clutch. "You have -appeared in time, my friend!" - -"So?" roared the florid-faced one, taking a business-like grip of Tom -Halstead's collar. "What was this young cub doing?" - -"Doing?" cried the swarthy one, dancing in his wrath, his eyes gleaming -like coals. "He had the impudence, this boy, to say he would take me to -a constable. He insists that I know all about one Ted Dunstan." - -"Does, eh?" growled the powerful, florid-faced one, giving Tom a mighty -shake. "Then we'll take care of this young man! Oh, we'll give him a -pleasant time!" - -"Yes, yes! Just as we would in Honduras!" laughed the swarthy one -gleefully. "He has been asking much, just now, about the way they do -things in Honduras." - -"Then he'll be sure to be just the lad who'll appreciate a little -information at first hand!" jeered Tom's captor. - - - - -CHAPTER VI--TOM HAS A BAD QUARTER OF AN HOUR - - -"So the youngster was going to be high-handed with ye, was he?" demanded -the florid-faced one, and despite the intense darkness there in the -woods, Tom Halstead could see the ugly gleam in his strong-handed -captor's eyes. - -The swarthy one stepped to the other side of his friend and whispered -something in that worthy's ear. It was a rather long communication. -Though he tried with all his might to overhear some of it, Halstead -could not distinguish a single word. Yet, as the narration proceeded, -Tom felt that powerful grip on his coat collar increase in intensity. - -"Well, we'll take care of you, youngster," declared the florid-faced one -at last. "You're too big a nuisance to have at large! And as you've been -giving your time to other folks' business, we'll take good care of your -time after this! Come along now!" - -Tom had not tried to resist and for a most excellent reason. He well -knew that his present captor could fell him like a log. Here no contest -of muscles was to be thought of. Craft must be substituted for strength. - -In the boy's brain revolved swiftly many plans for escape. Just as the -florid-faced one started to force him over the path lately taken the -right idea came to the young captive. He puckered his lips, emitting a -shrill whistle. - -Nor had he guessed wrongly. There _was_ an echo here. Back on the air -came almost the exact duplicate of the whistle Halstead had let loose. - -In a jiffy both of his captors halted. Perhaps they suspected it to be -only an echo, but they wanted to make sure. - -Quicker than a flash, though, before they could make any tests for -themselves, Halstead shouted: - -"Fine! Rush 'em quick, fellows! Jump on 'em and hold 'em down. Don't let -either rascal get away!" - -His voice was so joyous, so exultant, that it completely fooled the pair -for an instant. Though the florid-faced one did not release the -tightness of his grip on the young skipper's coat collar, he, like the -swarthy one, used his eyes to look about in all directions. - -That moment was enough for Tom Halstead, doubly quick-witted in his -peril. His hands flew up the front of his uniform coat, ripping buttons -out of button holes at one swift move. Wrench! Tom slipped out of his -coat, springing ahead under the trees. - -"Here, you! Come back here!" roared the florid-faced one absurdly, as he -plunged after the young fugitive. The swarthy one, too, joined in the -chase, freeing himself of a torrent of Spanish words. - -Tom Halstead had just a few seconds' start, aided by the darkness that -enveloped them all. A hundred yards or so Tom dashed, rather noisily. -Then, off at right angles to his former course he sped on tip-toe, nor -did he go much more than fifty yards ere he landed up against a straight -tree whose low-hanging limbs bore an abundant foliage. - -Up this tree-trunk, without hesitation, shinned the young skipper, -drawing himself well up among the leaves in what he felt must be record -time for such a feat. - -For a few moments more he could hear his pursuers stumbling along the -wrong course. Then he knew, by the sounds, that they had turned back and -were keeping well apart in the hope of covering more ground. But the -uncertainty of their steps, however, told the boy up the tree that his -pursuers were wholly off the trail and giving up the chase. Then, -veering, the florid-faced man and the swarthy one came toward each -other. They halted almost squarely under the tree that held young -Halstead. - -Tom's first, throbbing thought was that they had tracked him here. He -did not stir, but the grim lines around his mouth deepened. Let them try -to get him then. They would have to climb the tree to get at him and he -meant to make use of his hands and feet in defending himself. - -"I can give them all they want for a while," he told himself between his -teeth. In fact, in his excitement he all but made his remark half aloud. - -"Well, he's got away from us, all right," growled the florid-faced one -in a tone of mingled disappointment and rage. - -"We shall at least know him well after this," sighed the swarthy one in -a sinister tone. - -"And I hope you'll have your wish," flared listening Tom indignantly, -"though I'll try to control the time and place of meeting." - -"I'd rather have lost a thousand dollars than that boy," went on the -larger man gruffly. - -"A thousand?" sneered the other. "_Diablo!_ I'd give five thousand to -have him in our hands this moment." - -"And I believe I'd give more," echoed Tom silently, "to keep out of your -clutches--if I had the money." - -Then, drawing closely together, the pair conversed in whispers. Again -Tom groaned over his hearing which, keen as it was, could get nothing -connected from the low tones of the pair on the ground. Whatever they -were saying, these plotters must be terribly in earnest over something. -In his eagerness Tom bent too far forward. His foot slipped. Frantically -he clutched at a branch overhead to save himself from plunging to the -ground. Of course the move made some noise. - -"_Diablo!_ What was that? And so close, too!" demanded the smaller man. - -"What?" demanded the larger man. - -"That noise! Some one must be prowling about here," continued the -swarthy one in a whisper just loud enough to reach Tom's ears. - -As he spoke the Spaniard's head turned in such a way as to show that he -was looking up into the tree in which Tom stood. It was becoming a truly -bad quarter of an hour for the boy. - -"I heard nothing," said the other one gruffly. "Leastways, nothing more -than some night animal stirring, maybe." - -"Let's make a search of these trees," proposed the Spaniard. - -Tom shivered. Danger was again coming much too close to please him. - -"Come along," rejoined the florid-faced one impatiently. "We're wasting -too much time, listening to the whisperings of the wind. Come along, -Alvarez." - -After a brief objection the one addressed as Alvarez turned and stepped -off with his friend. They had not gone far when Tom Halstead slipped -down the tree trunk. Alarmed as he had been when danger threatened most, -he now knew that he must follow them. - -"For they may lead me straight to Ted Dunstan," he thought eagerly. - -Naturally he did not think it wise to get too close to the pair. -Captured again, Tom Halstead knew that he was not likely to be able to -be of any further service to his employer. Besides, in escaping and -leaving his coat in the hands of the enemy he now remembered how his -white shirt might betray him if he got too close to them. - -"It's a wonder they didn't see all this white when I was up in the -tree," he muttered, as he stole along in pursuit. "The leaves must have -covered me mighty well." - -For perhaps five minutes Halstead kept steadily behind the pair, guiding -himself by the distant sound of their steps, for they did not keep to -any path. Then suddenly the boy halted. The noise of footsteps ahead had -died out. Tom stood, silent, expectant, but no sound came to his ears in -the next two or three minutes. Then a disagreeable conclusion forced -itself on the young skipper's mind. - -"Gracious! They've slipped away from me or else they're at the end of -their tramp." - -Again Halstead stole forward on tiptoe. But, though he spent nearly the -next half-hour in exploring, he found nothing to reward his search. He -came at last to a road which he judged to be the same one along which he -had started with the Spaniard. Taking his course from the stars, seaman -fashion, Halstead kept along. Within ten minutes he was upon a road that -looked like a highway. - -"Say, but how good that sounds!" he thrilled, suddenly halting. He had -the presence of mind next to slip behind the trunk of a big tree. - -A horse was moving lazily along the road. There was the sound of wheels, -too, though above all rose a cheery whistling, as though the owner of -that pair of lips were the happiest mortal alive. It was a good, -contented whistling. It had about it, too, the ring of honesty. The -cheery sound made Tom Halstead feel faith at once in the owner of that -whistle. - -Then there came into sight a plain, much-worn open buggy, drawn by a -sleek-looking gray horse. Seated in the vehicle was a youngster of about -Tom's own age, who looked much like a farmer's boy. He had no coat on, -his suspenders being much in evidence. On his head he wore a -nondescript, broad-brimmed straw hat of the kind used by haymakers. At -least it looked as though it might once have been that sort of a hat, -but its shape was gone. From where Halstead stood not much of a glimpse -could be had of the boy's face. - -"Good evening, friend," Tom hailed, stepping out from behind the tree. - -"Evening! Who-o-oa!" The other boy reined up, peering down through the -semidarkness. "Want a lift?" - -"Just what, if it happens that you're headed toward the town of -Nantucket," Tom replied. - -"That's just where I'm headed. But hold on--gracious! I came within an -ace of forgetting. I've got to turn back and drive to Sanderson's for a -basket of eggs. Won't take me long, though. Pile in." - -Tom gladly accepted the invitation. After his late experiences it seemed -good to be again with some one who appeared to be wholesome and -friendly. The other boy turned about, laying the whip lightly over the -horse. - -"Look as if you were off of some yacht," commented the other boy, noting -Halstead's blue trousers and cap. - -"I'm the skipper at present on Mr. Dunstan's 'Meteor,'" Tom explained. - -"Say, that's the man whose son disappeared to-day," exclaimed the other -boy. - -"Then you've heard about it?" - -"Yep; it's all over the island now, I guess. Constables been going -everywhere and asking a heap of questions. Have they found young Ted?" - -"I'm afraid not," sighed Tom. - -"Too bad. But who could have wanted him to disappear?" - -"That's a long story," Tom answered discreetly. "But say, where are you -going?" - -For the young driver was turning off the road to go to the very -farmhouse to which the pier seemed to belong. - -"To Sanderson's, as I told you," replied the other boy. - -"Does that pier down at the water front belong to him?" - -"Yep, though I guess he don't have much use for it." - -"What sort of man is Sanderson?" - -"Good enough sort, I guess." - -"What does he do for a living?" - -"He farms some, but I guess that don't amount to a lot," replied the -young driver. "I hear he's going into some new kind of business this -fall. Some kind of a factory he's going to build on the place. I know -he's been having a lot of cases of machinery come over on the boat from -Wood's Hole lately." - -"Machinery?" echoed Halstead. Somehow, from the first, that word struck -a strange note within him. - -"There's Sanderson, now," continued the young driver, pointing toward -the house with his whip. - -Then the buggy drew up alongside the back porch. Halstead had plenty of -chance to study this farmer as he greeted the young driver: - -"Hullo, Jed Prentiss. After them eggs?" - -"Yes; and nearly forgot 'em." - -"I reckoned you'd be along about now. Well, I'll get 'em." - -Farmer Sanderson appeared to be about fifty years of age. He would have -been rather tall if so much of his lanky height had not been turned over -in a decided stoop of the shoulders. He had a rough, weather-beaten skin -that seemed to match his rough jean overalls and flannel shirt. The most -noticeable thing about this man was the keenness of his eyes. As the -farmer came out again to put the basket of eggs in the back of the buggy -Tom Halstead asked suddenly: - -"Do you know a man who looks like a Spaniard and wears brown striped -trousers and a black coat?" - -Farmer Sanderson, so the young captain thought, gave a slight start. -Then he unconcernedly placed the basket in the buggy before he answered: - -"Can't say as I _know_ such a party. But I've seen a fellow that -answered that description." - -"When, if I may ask, and where?" - -"Why, late this afternoon I saw such a party hanging around my pier. I -s'posed he was fishing, but I didn't go down to ask any questions." - -Tom put a few more queries, though without betraying too deep an -interest. Farmer Sanderson answered with an appearance of utter -frankness, but Tom learned nothing from the replies. - -"I wonder," ventured Jed Prentiss, after they had driven some distance -along the road, "whether you think your Spanish-looking party had -anything to do with Ted Dunstan's being missing?" - -Tom laughed good-naturedly, but made no reply, thinking that the easiest -way of turning off the question. - -"Say," broke in Jed again after a while, "I wish you could get me a job -aboard the 'Meteor.'" - -"What kind of a job?" inquired the young captain. - -"Why, I'm generally handy aboard a boat. Been out on fishing craft a -good deal. The job I struck Mr. Dunstan for, some weeks ago, was that of -steward. You see, I'm a pretty fair sea cook, too. But Mr. Dunstan said -he didn't need a steward or a cook aboard. I wonder if he'd change his -mind." - -"He might," replied Tom. - -"Do you think you'd like to have me aboard?" - -"From what I've seen of you, Jed, I think I would," replied Tom Halstead -heartily. "At any rate, I'll speak to Mr. Dunstan about you." - -"Will you, though?" cried Jed delightedly. "Say, I'd give my head--no, -but the hair off the top of my head--to go cruising about on the -'Meteor.' It must be a king's life." - -"It is," Tom assented. - -Then, for some time, the two boys were silent But at last Tom Halstead, -after some intense thinking, burst out almost explosively: - -"Machinery? Great Scott!" - -"Er--eh?" queried Jed, looking at him in surprise. - -"Oh, nothing," returned the young skipper evasively. "Just forget that -you heard me say anything, will you?" - -"Sure," nodded Jed obligingly. Soon after, they drove into the quaint -little old seaport, summer-resort town, Nantucket. Tom's glance alighted -on a bicycle shop, still open. Thanking Jed heartily for the lift, -Halstead hurried into the shop. He succeeded in renting a bicycle, -agreeing that it should be returned in the morning. Then, after some -inquiries as to the road, Tom set out, pedaling swiftly. - -He got off the road once, but in the end found the Dunstan place all -right. At the gateway to the grounds Halstead dismounted. For a few -moments he stood looking up at the house, only a part of which was -lighted. - -"Machinery?" repeated the young skipper to himself, for the twentieth -time. "Machinery? Eh? Oh, but we want to know all about that, and, -what's more, we've got to know. Machinery! It pieces in with some other -facts that have come out to-day." - -Then mindful of the fact that the news he bore was, or should be, of -great importance to the distracted master of the house beyond, Tom -Halstead, instead of remounting, pushed his wheel along as he walked -briskly up the driveway. - -"Machinery!" he muttered once more under his breath. He could not rid -himself of the magic of that word. - -Yet it was a huge pity that the young motor boat captain could not have -possessed sharp enough vision to see into the heart of a dense clump of -lilac bushes that bordered the driveway. Had his vision been that keen -he would have seen his very Spaniard crouched low in the clump. - -That worthy saw the boy and watched him with baleful, gleaming eyes. It -was a look that boded no good to the young skipper. - -"You are too wise, young _gringo_, and, besides, you have struck me -down," growled Alvarez. "But we shall take care of you. You shall do no -more harm!" - - - - -CHAPTER VII--"THE QUICKEST WAY OF WALKING THE PLANK" - - -It was Tuesday when Ted Dunstan disappeared. Now, Saturday had arrived. - -On Monday the heir must appear, with his father, in the probate court, -or the great fortune would be forever lost to the young man. - -The days from Tuesday to Saturday had been full of suspense and torment -to those most interested. Horace Dunstan had lost his easy-going air. He -started at the slightest sound; he hurried up whenever he heard others -talking. Every new sound gave him hope that his son was about to appear -in the flesh. - -Far from slow had the search been. Mr. Dunstan's messages had brought a -score of detectives to the scene. Some of these, aided by the local -constables, had scoured the island of Nantucket unavailingly. The -greater number of the detectives, however, had operated on the mainland, -their operations extending even to Boston and New York. - -Yet not a sign of the missing boy had been found. There was not a single -clew to his fate, beyond the little that Tom Halstead and Joe Dawson had -been able to tell concerning Alvarez and the florid-faced American. - -Halstead's notion about Farmer Sanderson's "machinery" had crystallized -into the belief that the cases of "machinery" received by the farmer -were in reality cases of arms and ammunition, intended to be shipped to -aid some new revolution in Honduras. Alvarez and the florid-faced man, -the latter undoubtedly a seafaring man, might justly be suspected of -being employed in some scheme to smuggle military supplies to Honduras. -Tom had read in the newspapers, more than once, that filibusters sending -military supplies to Central American republics label their cases of -goods "machinery" in order to get past vigilant eyes unsuspected. -Gregory Dunstan was known to be interested in revolutionary movements, -and Farmer Sanderson might be suspected of helping Alvarez and other -filibusters by having arms and ammunition shipped to him as machinery, -and afterwards slipped out of the country from the end of the farmer's -pier on some dark, stormy night. Moreover, Gregory Dunstan and his -friends were the sole ones who could be interested in having Master Ted -vanish at such a time. All parts of the theory fitted nicely together, -Tom thought, and Horace Dunstan agreed with him. - -Yet anything relating to attempts by filibusters to ship arms secretly -to another country should be brought to the notice of the United States -Government. So Mr. Dunstan wrote fully to the authorities at Washington, -who, so far, had not taken the pains to reply to his communication. - -During these days the "Meteor" had been almost constantly in service. -Tom and Joe felt nearly used up, so incessant had been their work. Jed -Prentiss was now aboard, for, with detectives arriving and departing at -all hours, there was frequently need of serving a visitor with a meal -while the "Meteor" dashed over the waves to or from Nantucket. Jed was -enjoying himself despite his long hours and hard work. He even found -time to hang about Joe and learn much about the running of the motor. - -By Saturday noon Horace Dunstan, who seemed to have aged much, gave up -the notion that his detectives could aid him at Nantucket. The last -three on the island were sent over to Wood's Hole on the "Meteor," with -instructions to help the men at work on the case on the mainland. - -"Thank goodness, we're through with 'em," grunted Jed, leaving the -galley and coming up through the engine room hatchway. "I hope we'll get -a breathing spell to-morrow." - -"We've had a brisk four days of it," nodded Tom. "I wouldn't mind that -at all, if only we had gotten any nearer to finding Ted. But all this -work and nothing gained is enough to wear a fellow out." - -It was a part of Tom's nature that he felt keenly all of his employer's -worries over the missing Ted, It worried Halstead, too, to think of any -boy hopelessly losing such a huge fortune as was at stake. - -"If only we could find Alvarez, and get a good grip on him," growled -Halstead, as Joe came up on deck, "I'd feel almost warranted in -torturing him until he told all he knew." - -Joe nodded gravely, then suddenly grinned. - -"I can imagine anyone as big-hearted as you are, Tom, putting any human -being to the torture." - -"I said I'd _almost_ be willing to" insisted Tom. - -"Well, you won't find Alvarez, so what's the use of arguing?" asked -Dawson, slowly. "He and his red-faced friend have skipped away from this -part of the country, I believe." - -"And Mr. Dunstan has only until Monday," sighed Halstead. "And Ted to -lose millions! Did you ever hear of a case of such tough luck before?" - -Jed began to whistle sympathetically. He, too, would have given worlds -to be able to pounce upon the vanished Ted. For young Prentiss was all -loyalty. Having entered the Dunstan employ, he felt all the sorrows of -the family. The more he thought about the affair the more restless the -whistling boy became. - -"How long are we tied up here for?" demanded Jed, at last. - -"Until the late afternoon train gets in from Boston," Tom answered, -listlessly. "Mr. Dunstan is expecting Mr. Crane, his lawyer, along. If -Mr. Crane doesn't arrive we've got to come over again to-morrow -morning." - -Jed glanced at the clock before the steering wheel. - -"Hours to wait," he went on, dismally. "Well, I'm going ashore to -stretch my legs, if there's no objection." - -"None at all," Halstead replied, "if you're back on time." - -Jed was over the rail in no time, whistling as he went. A few minutes -later Tom Halstead found himself bored by this inactive waiting, and so, -as Joe had some cleaning to do on the engine, the young skipper decided -to take a stroll ashore. - -In the village all looked so decidedly dull, this hot July afternoon, -that Tom walked on through and beyond the little place. After he had -gone the better part of a mile he seated himself on a tumble-down bit of -stone wall between two big trees. It was cool here, and shady. The drone -of insects soon made the boy feel drowsy. - -"Here, there mustn't be any of this," muttered Halstead, shaking himself -awake. "I mustn't fail to get back to the boat on time." - -After that he was wide awake. But the green, the quiet and the cool air -made the young captain feel that he did not care to leave this spot -until it was necessary. For perhaps fifteen minutes more he sat chewing -at a wisp of grass and thinking--always of the missing heir. - -Then the sound of a short little cough made him look up. Some one was -coming along the road. That some one came in sight. Almost choking with -astonishment, Halstead went backward over the wall. It looked as though -he had fallen, but it was all part of his frantic wish to get out of -sight. - -"Alvarez, by all that's unbelievable!" he gasped, as he lay utterly -still behind that wall. "It doesn't look like him, but it's his size, -his carriage, his walk, his little tickling cough as he inhales his -cigarette!" - -The man was coming nearer, walking at a steady though not rapid gait. -Tom hugged himself as close to the ground as he could, peering between -two stones in the wall. For an instant, as the other went by, Halstead -had a good glimpse of the fellow. Where Alvarez had but a moustache, -this man had a full black beard. Gone were the brown striped trousers, -for this man wore a blue serge suit. But the face was swarthy; there was -the same gleam in the dark eyes. Even the way of holding the fuming -little cigarette was the same. - -"It's Alvarez, or his double, disguised," breathed Halstead, frantic -with joy. "I'll jump on him, and pin him to the earth!" - -On swift second thought the excited boy changed his mind. It might serve -a far bigger purpose to follow this swarthy little rascal, if he could -do so undetected. - -Alvarez, apparently, wasn't suspicions of being trailed, for he kept -steadily on. Halstead followed on the other side of the wall, ready to -drop out of sight at the first sign of the other's turning. When the -wall ended the boy found other shelter, and followed on. It was but a -short chase. A quarter of a mile further on the Spaniard left the road, -pushing his way through the bushes and undergrowth of a patch of woods -until he came to a small, almost hidden cove. And in this cove, her -stern within stepping distance of the land, lay a yellow-hulled steam -launch. - -Tom sank low behind the bushes, and peered through. He could see all -that followed. - -"Pedro!" called Alvarez, softly. - -A man who had been dozing up in a seat by the bow of the boat now awoke -and turned, displaying the face of a negro. He was a big and strong -built fellow. And Tom, the instant he heard that low call from the -bearded stranger, knew it to be Alvarez's voice. - -Pedro hurried to the stern. Some talk between the two followed, but in -tones so low that Halstead could understand not a word of it, until the -Spaniard, half turning away, finished by saying: - -"I'll be back soon. Be ready--and be watchful." - -The negro nodded heavily as the Spaniard started away. But this time Tom -Halstead made no effort to follow the swarthy one. If the Spaniard was -to return, that would not be necessary. - -"I wonder how fast I can return to Nantucket, and then be ready to chase -this craft when she shows her nose outside?" wondered the boy. "For it's -five to one this launch will make for Alvarez's hiding-place, and that -is where Ted Dunstan is to be found. Yet--confound it all!--if I give -chase in the 'Meteor,' Alvarez certainly won't lead us to the place." - -It was a puzzling, an immense problem. And whatever was to be done must -be decided upon instantly. While Halstead still pondered, a cheering -sound came to his ears. "Whirr-ugh! Whirr-ugh!" The negro, in his former -seat at the bow of the launch had proved his watchfulness by going sound -asleep and snoring! - -"Oh! If I could only get through to Alvarez's hiding-place on _this_ -boat!" thought Tom wildly, his breath coming hard and fast. No time was -to be wasted in doing nothing. Assuring himself that the negro was still -soundly asleep, Halstead stepped forward, cat-footed. - -Still the black guardian of the boat slumbered. Tom, as he reached the -water's edge, prayed that nothing would disturb the fellow's sleep. The -launch was not a cabin affair, but there was a covered deck at the bow, -and, under it, a hatchway leading into a little cubby. As the negro sat -sleeping, his legs crossed squarely before the entrance to that cubby. -Then Halstead edged around until he made sure that there was another -little cubby under the stern-sheets of the launch. - -"If I could only get in there and hide!" breathed the young skipper, -fervently. Hardly had he formed the wish when he stepped stealthily to -the boat. His eyes watchfully on the negro, Tom gained the stern hatch. -He bent down before it to inspect the space beyond. The space in there -was small, and much of it taken up by the propeller shaft boxing. It -looked like taking a desperate chance to try to fold himself up in that -tiny space. - -"But this is a time to take desperate chances!" gritted the young motor -boat captain. "And it's the only chance I see that looks good!" - -Another glance at the snoring negro, and Tom Halstead stealthily worked -his feet in through the hatchway. His body followed. He twisted and -wriggled until he had got himself as far back into the limited space as -was possible. His head was where he could gaze out into the cockpit of -the launch. - -"I know just what a sardine feels like, anyway, after the packer gets -through with it," reflected the boy, dryly. He stretched a little, to -avoid as much as possible the cramping of his body. - -Then he had a wait of many minutes, though at last the hail of Alvarez -was heard from the shore. It took a second call to rouse the sleeping -Pedro. - -"Now, quick out of this," ordered the Spaniard. "Get up the anchor. Then -take your place by the engine." - -Alvarez himself went forward to the wheel at the bow. The launch was -soon under way, moving at what appeared to be its usual speed, about six -miles an hour. - -"Neither one has seen me in here," thought Tom, tensely. "Oh, what huge -luck if they go through the trip without seeing me!" - -Though Halstead could not even guess it, from where he lay, the launch -took a north-easterly course along the coast, and was presently about -two miles from shore. - -"Pedro," chuckled the Spaniard, at last, looking back at the negro who -squatted by the engine, "if my own father saw me now would he know me -for Emilio Alvarez? Would he?" - -"He'd be a wondahful smart man if he did, fo' shuah," grinned the negro. - -"In this disguise I would hardly be afraid to walk about in Nantucket," -continued Señor Alvarez. "I doubt if any of my enemies would recognize -me. They----" - -Alvarez's lips shut suddenly with a snap. While he was speaking he had -been looking astern. Tom Halstead now squirmed as he saw the Spaniard's -startled gaze fixed directly on him. - -"Pedro!" shouted the swarthy one. "Look sharp, man. There's some one in -that cubby astern!" - -Alvarez had started himself to leave the wheel. Then, realizing that the -boat would run wild without some one at the helm, he pointed -dramatically. - -Though Halstead had trusted to the darkness and the shadow in that -cubby, the discovery that he dreaded had happened. Not willing to be -caught in there, like a fox in a trap, he made a lively scramble to get -out. He was on his feet in the cockpit by the time that Pedro, staring -as though at a ghost, leaped up and faced him. - -"Grab the boy!" shouted Alvarez in glee. "Nab him and hold him fast. -Pedro, you shall have a present for this!" - -As Halstead scrambled out he had looked for some object with which to -defend himself. There was nothing at hand. He was obliged to face his -bigger assailant with nothing but his fists. - -"Keep off!" warned Halstead, throwing up his guard. - -As the negro leaped for him Tom shot out his left fist, landing on the -side of the black man's head. The blow had no effect, save that it -angered Pedro, who struck out with his own right. It was a powerful -blow. Halstead dodged so that he received it only glancingly, but the -act of dodging threw him off his balance. He toppled, then plunged -swiftly overboard, sinking from sight. - -"Stop the engine! I want him alive!" screamed Alvarez, leaping away from -the wheel. - -Pedro responded swiftly, stopping the speed, then reversing the engine -briefly. The launch was brought to, almost stationary, close to the -place where Tom Halstead had fallen overboard. - -"Get the boat hook," commanded Alvarez. "Jump in after him if necessary. -I want that meddling boy. I've a score to settle with him." - -But, though both remained at the rail for some time, peering down into -the water, Tom Halstead did not reappear. - -"Fo' goodness' sake," chattered the black man soberly, "dat boy done -sink, fo' shuah. He ain't gwine come back, boss." - -"The propeller must have struck him on the head," declared Alvarez -thoughtfully. Then, with a white face and an attempt at a light laugh, -he added: - -"After all, what does it matter, Pedro? That's the quickest way of -walking the plank. We didn't mean to drown him--but we're rid of his -meddling!" - - - - -CHAPTER VIII--TOM DISCOVERS THE HEIR - - -Tom Halstead wasn't drowned--not quite. The wicked seldom find safety in -believing that their evil work has come out in the way that will most -benefit them. We shall presently see what _did_ happen to Tom. - -Although he tried to pretend that he was not affected by the tragedy -that he believed had just been enacted, Señor Alvarez, when he returned -to his seat by the wheel, did not at once call for speed ahead. Instead -he rolled a fresh cigarette with trembling fingers, spilling so much of -the tobacco that he had to make a fresh start. When, at last, he had the -thing lighted and had taken a couple of whiffs, he turned to the black -man to ask: - -"After all, Pedro, what difference can it make if the meddling boy chose -the ocean to our company? Am I not a gentleman of Honduras, Don Emilio -Alvarez? Am I not descended from Spanish grandees? Why should I bother -my head because one of the American riff-raff has gone overboard!" - -"Dat's a fac', boss. Why should yo' bother yo' haid?" responded Pedro, -though he did not say it very heartily. - -Don Emilio smoked for some moments in silence. Then the sight of a cabin -sloop rounding a point of land to the northeast of them claimed his -attention. - -"Pedro," he called, pointing, "that sloop carries the red jack -fluttering from her bowsprit tip. That, then, is our boat." - -"Fo' shuah, boss. An' I done hope dat Cap'n Jonas French done got some -good news ob de kind dat we wanter heah." - -"Give us some speed and we'll soon be alongside the sloop." - -The launch was soon going along at her usual speed of some six miles an -hour, veering in shore somewhat to cross the course of the sloop. As -they came to close quarters a voice from the other boat called: - -"The news is all right, Alvarez." - -It was the voice of the florid-faced one, yet he, too, had changed -almost as much as had the gentleman from Honduras. Captain French's -cheeks were no longer deep red in color. His skin had more of a bronze -hue. As such changes do not occur naturally within a few days, it was -evident that the captain must have employed some dye with much skill. -Even the tint of his hair was changed. - -"I have something to discuss with you, my friend," replied Don Emilio. -"I will come aboard for a while. Throw off your mainsheet and lie to, so -that I can come alongside." - -Pedro slowed down the speed considerably. Don Emilio, with a skill that -spoke of some practice, ran the launch around to leeward and up under -the sloop's quarter. The two craft touched lightly and at that instant -Alvarez stepped aboard the sloop. Pedro, with his hand on the starboard -wheel rope, eased gently away from the sailing sloop. - -"Now run into the cove, Pedro," called back Don Emilio. "Wait there -until I come to you, unless danger threatens. If you see signs of -trouble, act in whatever way you may need to act." - -"I'se understand yo', boss," replied the black man. - -As Captain Jonas French hauled in his mainsheet and the sloop's sail -filled, Pedro made obliquely for shore. Having no need of speed, he made -less demand on the engine than he had been doing. - -Some time later Pedro ran halfway into a little cove that dented the -mainland of Massachusetts. Stopping the speed he stepped forward and -cast over an anchor, reeling in the slack and making fast. This done, -the darky drew out an old pipe, filled it and lighted it, settling back -for a lazy smoke. - -And Tom Halstead? He was doing his best not to pant and betray himself, -but his had been a rough experience. None but a boy as much at home in -the water as on land could have stood the strain of this performance. - -When Tom went overboard, striking the water, the cold shock had aroused -all his faculties. He went over the starboard gunwale and, finding -himself going, had had the sense to dive as deeply as he could. He -passed under the hull, coming out at port. Then he turned, keeping still -under water until one of his hands touched the port side of the hull. - -Just as this happened Halstead's other hand struck a line trailing in -the water. Then the boy was forced to come up for air. As he did so he -heard the voices of the pair aboard over at the starboard gunwale. That -gave Tom a safe chance to give the trailing rope a pull. It held, -showing that it was made fast on board. - -Necessity makes one think fast. To Tom the discovery of this rope was a -most unexpected bit of good fortune. As soon as he had time to get his -breath, he tied a loop in it securely. Through this he could thrust one -or both arms, at need. - -The trailing overboard of a line in this fashion was a piece of -disorderly ship's housekeeping of which an American skipper would hardly -be guilty. But the sailors of the Latin races are less particular. That -line might have been over the gunwale for hours or even days, but a man -like Alvarez would give little heed to it. - -When the launch went on her way again Tom had his right arm hooked well -through the loop. He floated, his feet astern along the side, though in -no danger from rudder or propeller. His head, out of water, was hidden -by the bulging lines of the launch's side hull. He was not likely to be -discovered unless one of the occupants of the launch leaned well out and -looked down. - -"If only they'd run a little slower this would be about as easy as lying -in a soft bed," chuckled the young motor boat captain gleefully. He had -grinned broadly at Don Emilio's seeming unconcern over his fate. - -"I reckon where they go I'm going too," Halstead told himself with great -satisfaction. His clothing, filled with water, would have been -uncomfortable, even dangerous, had he attempted to swim far, but as it -was the launch's engine was doing all the work. Tom simply allowed his -rather buoyant body to be towed. None the less the speed of the towing, -so greatly in excess of a swimmer's speed, began to tell upon his -endurance. Later that cabin sloop was briefly in the boy's sight. -Halstead was forced to lower his head all he could in the water, but -Captain French, having no reason to scan the launch's water line, did -not happen to detect the strange "tow." As the two boats went alongside -it was the launch's starboard bow that touched, so that Tom, at port, -was in no danger of being seen from the other craft. - -Nor was the young motor boat captain again in sight after the two craft -parted. Pedro's slower speed, making for the cove, came as a huge relief -to the "boy overboard." - -While the anchor was being dropped, Halstead had opportunity to see how -wild and deserted a bit of nature the surroundings were. There was not a -house or other sign of human habitation anywhere in sight. - -While Pedro sat up forward, smoking, a voice sounded that thrilled -Captain Tom Halstead with instant wonder. - -"Hullo, Pedro! What a nap I must have had." - -"Yo' shuahly did sleep fast, chile." - -"I'm coming out, now." - -"Ef yo' do, young boss, be kyahful," warned the black man. - -"Oh, there's no one around here to see me," contended that other voice, -and now it sounded as though the owner were in the bow of the craft. - -"Ef Ah done thought Ah could trust yo' Ah'd tuhn in in dat forrad cubby -mahself," declared the negro. "Ah's powahful drowsy." - -"Go ahead, Pedro," agreed the other speaker. "You needn't be afraid of -me. I'll keep a bright lookout." - -There was the sound of the negro stowing himself away in the forward -cubby, much roomier than the one Tom had tried at the stern. - -Halstead had heard the conversation with a feeling at first as though -his brain were whirling inside his head. The long dousing in the water -was beginning to make itself felt in a chill, but it was not wholly this -that made the young skipper shake. - -"That's Ted Dunstan's voice," he told himself, trembling. "He's on board -this very craft. I've found the missing Dunstan heir." - -Soon Pedro's snores could be heard. Then Tom Halstead hauled himself up -along the rope until he could just peer over the gunwale. His last doubt -vanished; he could no longer question his ears, for now his glance -fastened upon the living heir of the Dunstans! - - - - -CHAPTER IX--TED HURLS A THUNDERBOLT - - -The youngest of the Dunstans was sitting where Pedro had been seated -only a short time before. Ted held a book in his hands, his gaze fixed -on one of the pages. - -"He's playing crafty," thought Tom. "He's waiting until he's sure that -black man is sound, sound asleep. Then he'll make his dash for freedom. -Oh, if he only knew how close a friend is!" - -"Whirr-ugh!" Pedro's snore smote heavily on the air. - -"He'll sleep now, as only a colored man can sleep," thought Tom -jubilantly. "There's only just one time to do this thing, and that's -now! Here goes to let Ted Dunstan know that help is right at hand." - -Yet Tom's teeth were threatening so persistently to chatter that he had -to hold his jaws firmly together for a moment before he dared attempt a -slight signal. - -"Pss-sst!" It was a low signal indeed. Ted Dunstan half raised his gaze -from the printed page, then glanced down again. - -"Whirr-rr-ugh!" came the noisy safety-signal from Pedro. - -Tom ventured to raise his head a trifle higher above the port gunwale. - -"Pss-sst! pss-sst!" he hissed desperately. - -Ted Dunstan looked up now, his glance traveling swiftly astern. Then he -caught sight of the eager face of the "Meteor's" young skipper. At sight -of the peeper's face the Dunstan heir's face was a study in amazement. -At first he just stared, as though suddenly in a daze. - -"Come here!" whispered Tom ever so softly. - -Ted laid his book down, shot a swift, uncertain glance at the cubby in -which Pedro lay, then rose uncertainly. Tom hauled himself up, perching -himself on the gunwale. - -"Be quick and silent about it," whispered Tom, as Ted reached him and -stood staring with all his might. "Can you swim?" - -"Why?" demanded Ted curtly, and not exactly in a whisper, either. - -"If you can we'll be ashore in a jiffy," Halstead responded eagerly. - -"Ashore?" demanded Ted. - -"Why, of course. I've come to rescue you. There's nothing to fear if -you're quick about it. But be lively. If you can't swim, then just slip -down into the water and trust yourself to me. I'll manage it for both of -us. Be quick about it, though, for every minute counts." - -"There's some mistake, somewhere," pronounced Ted, a decided coldness in -his tone. - -"Mistake?" echoed Halstead, as though the other had struck him. "What do -you mean, Ted? Don't you remember me? I'm in charge of your father's -motor boat. I've been looking for you for days, and now you can escape." - -"But I don't want to escape," declared Master Ted coolly, almost -sneeringly. "Besides, there's nothing to escape from." - -"Nothing to escape from?" echoed Tom aghast. "Why, Ted Dunstan, you -simply can't know what you're saying. Look how this crowd have used -you." - -"Well, then, how have they used me?" Ted challenged coolly. "I am having -the time of my life." - -"The time of your----Say, Ted Dunstan, have you any idea how nearly -crazy your father is over your absence?" - -"That's strange," mocked the Dunstan heir. "My father knows perfectly -well where I am, and just why, too." - -This was uttered so candidly that Halstead wondered if he had taken -leave of his own senses. There could be no doubt at all that young -Dunstan believed every word he was uttering. - -"Your father knows you're here?" Tom insisted questioningly. - -"Of course he does. It's by his orders that I am here and that I am -keeping quiet. And now, clear out. I've talked to you more than is -right. I know what you and your chum are--a pair of slippery eels!" - -"You say your father knows----You say he ordered you----" Tom went on -vaguely. "Ted Dunstan, do you think you're telling the truth or anything -like it? And who on earth should you----" - -"Clear out of this," ordered the Dunstan heir firmly. "I don't like to -see you get into any trouble, but I'm not going to listen to you any -longer. My father can tell you about this, if he has a mind to. I've no -right to talk about it and I won't. Now if you can swim as well as you -say you can, prove it and reach shore on the double-quick. Pedro! Pedro! -Wake up! Now you git, Halstead!" - -[Illustration: "Clear Out of This!" Ordered the Dunstan Heir.] - -"But Ted----" persisted the dumfounded young skipper. - -"Well, stay, then, and let Pedro get his hands on you," defied the -Dunstan heir. "Pedro! Aren't you going to wake up?" - -"Coming, chile," sounded a drowsy voice, followed by the noise of heavy -movements. - -Dazed, thunderstruck, his mind wholly befuddled by this astounding turn -to the mystery, Tom Halstead did not linger. He knew too well what was -likely to happen to him if he fell into Pedro's hands. - -Slipping over the side, Tom cast off from the rope, striking out -strongly, swiftly for the shore which was distant not more than one -hundred and fifty feet. - -"That's him!" cried Ted Dunstan, pointing, and forgetting his grammar in -his excitement. "That's one of those slippery boys. He had the cheek to -say he had come to rescue me." - -"He did, hey? Huh! I'se gwine fix him!" uttered the black man savagely. -"Jest yo' wait, chile, twell I'se bring out dat shotgun." - -"Oh, no, no, Pedro! Not that!" pleaded Ted in sudden dismay and terror. - -But Pedro dived back into the forward cubby. All this conversation the -young motor boat captain had heard, for it passed in no low tones. Just -as Pedro reached the cubby Tom scrambled up on the beach. Before him -were the deep woods. In among the trees he plunged. The instant he was -satisfied that he was out of sight of the launch, he turned at right -angles, speeding swiftly for some hundred and fifty yards. Then he -halted to listen. - -"Where he done gone?" demanded Pedro, reappearing on deck, gripping a -double-barreled shotgun. - -"I'm not going to tell you," retorted Ted sulkily. "Shooting is not in -the game." - -Tom heard the murmur of the voices--nothing more. A minute later he -heard the steady chug! chug! of the launch's steam engine as that craft -started. Then the noise ceased as the craft got smoothly under way. But -Halstead was up a tree, now, where he could watch. - -"Heading out to sea, are you?" he chuckled, despite his great anxiety. -"And in a six-mile boat. Hm! I think the 'Meteor' can overtake you and -at least keep you in sight. For that matter, three boys can fight better -than one!" - -Tom didn't linger up the tree to think all that. Ere he had finished -speaking to himself he was down on the ground, making speedily for where -he judged the road to be. As he came in sight of the road he heard -another chug! chug! that made his heart bound with delighted hope. - -"Hi, there! Stop there, please!" shouted the young motor boat captain, -waving his arms as he sighted a touring car headed toward the village. - -There was only the chauffeur on the front seat and an elderly man in the -tonneau. The chauffeur glanced back at this other man, then slowed down -the auto. - -"If you're going into Wood's Hole, take me with you?" begged Tom so -earnestly that the older man swung open the door, saying crisply: "Jump -in!" - -Nor did Halstead lose a second. He plumped down into the seat by the -door and the car was off again, going at some twenty miles an hour. - -"I hope you won't mind my wet clothes in your car," hinted Tom -apologetically. "I got a big drenching in the ocean and there was -neither chance nor time to make a change." - -"You're in a hurry to get to the village, eh?" smiled the elderly man. - -"In as big a hurry as I ever was to get anywhere," breathed Halstead -fervently. The elderly man smiled, though he evidently was not curious, -for he asked no further questions. Halstead sat there delightedly -watching the distance fade. Even to his anxious mind the trip seemed a -brief, speedy one. As the car ran in by the railway station Halstead saw -the late afternoon train slowly backing down the track. It had been in, -then, for three or four minutes. - -"Thank you, thank you!" breathed Tom fervently, as he threw open the -door to leap out, then closing it behind him. "You haven't any idea what -a huge favor you've done me." - -"I'm glad I've been able to be of some use in the world to-day," laughed -the old gentleman pleasantly. - -But Tom, bounding across the tracks and over the ground, hardly heard -him. The young skipper had but one thought at this moment--to get aboard -and have his craft under way at the earliest possible second. - -As Halstead neared the pier he saw Joe and Jed seated on the deckhouse, -while Mr. Crane, the Dunstan lawyer, arrived on the train, was walking -along over the boards. - -"Joe, get the engine started on a hustle!" bellowed Tom, using both -hands to form a trumpet. "Jed, on the pier with you and stand by the -stern-line, ready to cast off!" - -Both boys leaped to obey such crisp commands. Lawyer Crane, having -reached the boat, turned on the pier to look inquiringly at the racing -young skipper. - -"Get aboard, sir, as quickly as you can, if you please," requested the -young skipper all but breathlessly. - -"May I inquire----" began the lawyer slowly. - -"Yes, sir; when we're under way. But we haven't a second to lose in -starting. Get aboard, sir, if you please." - -In his eagerness Tom almost shoved the legal gentleman over the side. -Mr. Crane, not a little astonished at the hasty procedure, looked as -though about to resent such treatment, but fortunately changed his mind. - -Tom himself seized the bowline and threw off. He and Jed sprang aboard, -fore and aft, at about the same instant. The "Meteor's" engine was -already chugging merrily. - -"Slow speed ahead, Joe," bellowed down Captain Tom, and the "Meteor" -swung gracefully out. "Now work her up to good speed," he called, a few -moments later. "We're on the grand old chase!" - - - - -CHAPTER X--OVERHAULING THE MYSTERY - - -"And now," demanded Lawyer Crane, in his calm, heavy voice, "may I ask -what all this chaos and confusion is about?" - -"In just a minute or two, sir, I'll be hugely delighted to have you -listen," Halstead answered. "But I want to get out of this cove and -clear of coast shoals and ledges first." - -Joe had already begun to make the engine "kick" somewhat, and the boat -was moving fast, leaving behind her a graceful swirl of water. Jed, -after coiling the stern-line, had come forward, and, though he asked no -questions, that youth was whistling a ditty of fast movement, the surest -sign of all that he shared in the unknown excitement. - -"There she is!" cried Halstead, suddenly, taking his right hand from the -wheel to point out over the water. - -"She?" repeated Mr. Crane. "Who?" - -"That boat! Don't you see the steam launch with the yellow hull?" - -The launch was some two or more miles away, heading over the waters in a -direction that would carry her past the northern end of Martha's -Vineyard. Mr. Crane adjusted his glasses, staring hard. At last he made -out the low-lying hull. - -"I see some sort of a craft out there," he replied slowly. "But I must -congratulate you on having very good eyes, Captain Halstead, if you can -make out the fact that she is painted yellow. However, what have we to -do with that boat?" - -"We're going after her," responded Tom, briefly. He was wondering just -how to begin the wonderful story of his late adventure. - -"Going after her?" repeated Mr. Crane, in slow astonishment. "Why, I was -under the impression that your present task related to carrying me over -to Mr. Dunstan's home." - -"That comes next," replied Tom. "Mr. Crane, hardly twenty minutes ago I -was aboard yonder boat, and was talking with Master Ted Dunstan." - -The lawyer gasped, then rejoined, slowly: - -"That's a most remarkable statement, to say the least." - -But Joe Dawson and Jed Prentiss, who knew Halstead better, were staring -at him with eyes wide open and mouths almost agape. - -"I saw Ted Dunstan," repeated Tom, firmly. "Moreover, he gave me the -jolt of my life." - -"Did he incidentally throw you overboard?" asked the lawyer, eyeing -Tom's wet garments. The sun and wind had dried the first great surplus -of water out of them, but they were still undeniably more than damp. - -"That was all part of the experience," Halstead answered, annoyed by the -impression that the lawyer thought him trying to spin a mere sailor's -yarn. "Do you care to hear what happened, sir?" - -"Why, yes, assuredly, captain." - -Tom reeled the story off rapidly. The lawyer gasped once or twice, but -certainly the young skipper's wet clothing gave much of an appearance of -truth to the "yarn." - -"And now, sir, what do you think of Master Ted's claim that he was -having the time of his life, and was hiding by his father's orders?" Tom -wound up, inquiringly. - -"Really, I shall have to think it all over," replied the lawyer -cautiously. "And I shall be much interested in hearing what Mr. Dunstan -has to say about it all." - -"Say, that's queer," broke in Joe, suddenly, staring hard at the launch, -now not much more than half a mile distant. - -"What is?" asked Halstead, who had kept his mind on what he was telling -the lawyer. - -"That launch is following an almost straight course. Yet I don't see a -soul at the wheel, nor a sign of a human being aboard," Joe replied. - -"Say, there isn't anyone in sight, is there?" demanded Jed, stopping his -whistling and staring the harder. - -"It will certainly complicate the adventure," commented Lawyer Crane, -"if we overhaul a craft navigated by unseen hands." - -Halstead didn't say any more. He didn't like the half-skepticism of the -legal gentleman. The young skipper held straight on until they were -astern of the yellow-hulled launch and coming up on the windward -quarter. - -"Get out on the deck forward, Jed," directed, Halstead. "Stand up as -straight as you can, and get the best look possible as I run up close. -See if you can spot anyone hiding in the boat." - -"Look out," cautioned Joe Dawson, dryly, as Jed Prentiss started to -obey. "Someone on the other craft may open fire." - -Jed halted, rather uneasily, at that sinister suggestion. Then, meeting -Tom's firm glance, the boy got well forward and stood up, while Joe -dropped down into the engine room to meet any order that might come -about stopping speed. - -"I hardly fancy anyone aboard that boat would dare threaten us with -firearms," said the lawyer, slowly. "There are too many witnesses here -to risk such a serious breach of the law." - -"Mm!" chuckled Captain Tom grimly, to himself. "I wonder if this learned -gentleman imagines that everyone has the wholesome respect for the law -that possesses him?" - -He leaned forward, to reach the bell-grip, steering, after the -"Meteor's" headway had been all but stopped, so that they would pass -within a dozen feet of this mysterious craft. - -"Say," hailed back Jed, "I don't believe there's a soul on board that -craft. I can see the bottom of the inside of the boat." - -"Get the boat-hook, then," ordered Halstead. "We'll lay alongside and -make sure that she's deserted." - -Jed jumped down nimbly. Apparently he was glad to provide himself with -so handy a weapon as the boat-hook. With this he stepped out forward -again. Tom ran the Meteor in until the two craft almost bumped. - -"Ugh!" grunted Jed. "It looks almost uncanny to see that engine pumping -right along with no sign of human care." - -Gradually he drew the bow of the moving launch closer. - -"Go aboard," directed Tom. - -Jed stood up high on his toes, to take a last careful look. Then he -leaped to the other craft, bounding down into her cockpit. There he -stood still for a few moments, tightly gripping the boat-hook in an -exaggerated attitude of defence. - -"Are you afraid?" hailed Halstead. - -"Well," admitted Jed, candidly, "I've no notion for being pounced on or -shot from ambush." - -"That would have happened already, if it was going to," Tom rejoined -with a smile. "Stop the engine, and then we'll make fast and all come on -board." - -That Jed accomplished with one hand, while Joe did the same with the -"Meteor's" engine. Then Prentiss reached over with the boat-hook, -gradually hauling the smaller craft up to the "Meteor." - -Leaving Joe behind on deck, the young skipper followed into the launch. -A quick search made it plain that there was no human being in either the -forward or after cubby. - -"The wheel was spiked," discovered Tom. "You see, the boat was started -on her course and then her spiked wheel held her rather close to it. -Whoever was aboard, after having fixed wheel and engine, got off. This -was done to fool us, and we've had a fine old chase." - -Lawyer Crane, on the deck of the "Meteor," opened his mouth. He was -about to offer an opinion, but thought better of it and closed his lips. - -"Mr. Crane," asked Tom, after a few moments, "what are our rights? We -can take this abandoned boat in tow, can't we, and take her over to Mr. -Dunstan's pier?" - -"Clearly," assented the lawyer, slowly. "And there's a right to salvage -if the owner of this derelict appears and claims the boat." - -Tom clambered back aboard the "Meteor," and, going aft, threw a line to -Jed, who made fast around a butt at the bow of the launch. Then Jed came -back. - -"Now, Mr. Crane," smiled Captain Tom, "we are again at your orders. -Unless you think of something better, we can keep on to Nantucket." - -"Decidedly," replied the lawyer. "We must acquaint Mr. Dunstan with this -whole prepos--unaccountable story." - -As soon as the "Meteor" was well under way, on her homeward course, -Halstead called down: - -"Joe, I've stood this drenched clothing as long as I think is good for -me in this sea wind. Take the wheel, please, and I'll go below and get a -rub and some dry clothing." - -"I'm going down with you," broke in Jed. "There's hot water, and you -ought to have some coffee." - -Jed even helped vigorously in the rub-down. Tom's teeth were chattering -at the outset, but the friction warmed his blood. He put on dry -clothing, of which he had enough aboard. And now Jed came out of the -galley with a cup of steaming coffee. - -"Say, Jed, what made you look so skittish when you boarded that other -boat?" asked the young skipper, smiling. "Were you really afraid?" - -"Afraid?" repeated Jed, looking sheepish. "Well, Tom, I'll tell you how -it is. When there's no danger near, and I'm thinking over brave deeds, -I'm a regular hero, and no mistake. But when I get right down where I -think some one may be a going to open on me with both barrels of a -shotgun, then I get--well, I won't say afraid, but tormentingly -nervous!" - -Halstead laughed heartily. - -"I guess that's the way with the whole human race, Jed. The man who lugs -off the reputation for being brave is the man who won't run, because he -is ashamed to let anyone see how mortally afraid he is." - -"But what do you make of Ted Dunstan's queer talk?" asked Jed Prentiss. -"Do you believe his father really did give him orders to go off with -that crowd?" - -"I don't want to talk about it," Halstead answered. "Mr. Dunstan is our -employer." - -"But young Ted always has been a mighty truthful boy," pursued Jed, -wonderingly. "Oh, it's all mighty queer, whatever's the truth." - -"I guess we'd better let it go at that last statement," proposed Tom; -"at least, until we've heard what Mr. Dunstan has to say." - -With three or four caps of coffee down, Halstead felt so much warmer -that he returned to deck to take the wheel. The "Meteor" was necessarily -going much more slowly than usual, with her tow astern. The trip was -bound to be such a long one that Jed started things in the galley, then -went back through the passageway to the cabin, where he set the folding -table with a white cloth. When Lawyer Crane seated himself at supper he -was astonished to find how excellent a meal could be prepared in short -time aboard this craft. - -It was nearing dark when Captain Halstead guided the "Meteor" in toward -the Dunstan pier. - -While the boat was being made fast by Joe and Jed, Mr. Crane stepped -hurriedly ashore. - -"Come along, Captain Halstead," said the man of law. "Mr. Dunstan must -hear your remarkable story without a moment's delay." - - - - -CHAPTER XI--WHERE THE WATER TRAIL ENDED - - -Horace Dunstan, pausing in his excited walk in his library, stopped and -stared in amazement when Tom came to one point of his strange recital. - -"Ted said I gave him instructions to go with that crowd?" he demanded. - -"He made that point extremely plain to me, sir," Halstead insisted. - -"But I--I never gave him any such instructions," cried Mr. Dunstan, -rumpling his hair. - -"It seemed unbelievable, sir. And yet your son struck me as a truthful -boy." - -"He is; he always was," retorted the father. "Ted hated a lie or a liar, -and yet this statement is wholly outside of the truth. I assure you----" - -"If you'll permit me, sir," broke in the lawyer, who had been listening -silently up to this point, "I'll indicate one or two points at which -young Halstead's most remarkable----" - -"Crane," broke in the master of the house, with unlooked-for sternness, -"if you're about to throw any doubt around Tom Halstead's story, I may -as well tell you plainly that you're going a little too far. Halstead -has been most thoroughly vouched for to me. If you have any notion in -your mind that he has been yarning to us, I beg you to let the idea -remain in your mind. I don't want to hear it." - -"Hm!" said the lawyer, and subsided. - -"Captain Halstead," went on Ted's father, "my son's statement is so -extraordinary that I don't pretend to fathom it. But I give you my word, -as a man of honor, that I am as much at sea in this matter as anyone -could be. But I must get in touch with Wood's Hole at once." - -There was a telephone instrument in the room that speedily put the -distracted father in communication with one of his detectives over on -the mainland. A long talk followed, the upshot of it being that the -detective in charge of the search asked that the "Meteor" be sent over -to Wood's Hole at once, that she might be ready for any sea-going -following-up of clues that might be necessary. - -"For, of course, we've got to find that cabin sloop," finished Detective -Musgrave. "If the sloop isn't at sea, then the chase undoubtedly must be -followed on the mainland. If we have the 'Meteor' here we can do quickly -anything that may appear necessary." - -So Tom received his instant sailing orders. As he hurried from the -house, down through the grounds, the young skipper felt relieved at one -point. With his belief in Ted's honesty he had been inclined to suspect -that Horace Dunstan, for some unknown reasons of his own, such, for -instance, as a distaste for having his son go into the Army, might have -brought about a pretended disappearance. - -"But now I know," muttered Tom, "that Mr. Dunstan is just as honest in -his declarations as Ted appeared to be in saying the opposite. If Horace -Dunstan has been lying to me just now, I'd have very little further -faith in human honesty." - -The "Meteor" was speedily on her way. First Joe, and then Tom, was -served in the little galley, Jed getting in his mouthfuls as best he -could before the motor boat was tied up at Wood's Hole. - -Before Tom had time to land a keen-eyed, smooth-faced man of -thirty-five, broad-shouldered and a little above medium height, stepped -forward out of the darkness and over the rail. - -"Do you know me, Captain Halstead?" he asked, in a low voice. - -"Yes, I think so," Tom answered. "You're Mr. Musgrave, one of the -detectives sent down from New York at Mr. Dunstan's request." - -"I am in charge of the case at this point," said Musgrave. "Lead me -below." - -Tom conducted his caller down into the engine-room, thence through the -passageway into the cabin. - -"Now, tell me all you can of this affair, and talk as quickly as you -can," directed the detective. - -Tom told his brief but potent narrative without pausing for breath. - -"I have telegraphed or telephoned men from our agency, so that many -points are covered for some distance north along the coast," murmured -Mr. Musgrave. "We are also having the islands watched as far around as -Block Island. But, since the launch was found running wild and the cabin -sloop was not sighted, I am inclined to believe that the trail runs -somewhere on the mainland. If you'll take your friend, Joe Dawson, along -with you, I'll send also one of the Wood's Hole constables, a man named -Jennison. If you run into any of that crew, Jennison has power to make -arrests, and he's the sort of man who wouldn't back down before a -cannon. I have an automobile ready, and Jennison knows what's expected -of him. You're to search up along the coast, to see if you can find any -trace of that cabin sloop." - -"Do you think Jed Prentiss will be sufficient guard to leave with the -boat?" questioned Halstead. "The Alvarez crowd would like nothing better -than to disable this fine craft if they got a chance to sneak aboard." - -"I'll send down one of the hotel employés to keep Prentiss company, -then. Now come along, Halstead. Jennison and the automobile are -waiting." - -Two minutes later Tom and Joe found themselves speeding along a road -that led up along the coast. - -"There's no use stopping the first mile or so," explained Constable -Jennison, a slight but wiry-looking man of rustic type. "We've been over -the near ground already. But we'll go forty miles or more before we give -up the search for the home berth of that sloop." - -Just below Falmouth the auto-car turned from the road to run down to a -cove where several sailing craft and two launches were at anchor. The -owner was found. He did not own or know of any such sloop as Halstead -described. - -On again they went. There was a chauffeur on the front seat The -constable and the boys were in the tonneau. Two more boat-letting -resorts were visited, but without success. The constable, however, far -from being depressed, became jovial. - -"Are you armed, Halstead?" he inquired, a twinkle in his eyes. - -"No; I have no use for boys that carry guns," replied Tom. - -"You're sensible enough," responded the constable seriously. Then, -resuming his bantering tone, he went on: - -"But you ought to be ready for anything to-night. Here, put this in your -pocket." - -"What's this thing supposed to be good for?" Tom demanded dryly, as he -took from the officer a cheap little bronze toy pistol. It was modeled -after a business-like revolver, but a glance showed that it was meant -only to explode paper caps. - -"It belongs to my five-year-old boy," laughed Jennison. "He knows that I -often carry a pistol and he doesn't know the difference between a real -one and his Fourth of July toy. So to-night, when I was leaving the -house, he insisted on my taking his pistol and I had to in order to keep -him quiet." - -"It looks dangerous enough in the dark," remarked Joe, bending over and -taking the "weapon" with a laugh. He looked it over, then returned it to -Tom, who, in turn, offered it to the officer. - -"Drop it in your pocket," said the latter. "It ought to make you feel -braver to feel such a thing next to your body." - -With a laugh Tom did as urged. The automobile soon made another stop at -a boatyard. Here, again, the search was useless, so they kept on. A -fourth was visited with no better result. They were now ten miles from -Wood's Hole, but they kept on. A mile further on the car descended a low -hill, toward the water, then turned almost at right angles. Just as they -rounded this bend in the road Halstead leaned suddenly forward. - -"Stop!" he called to the chauffeur. - -"What's the matter?" asked Jennison, as the car halted. - -"As we came around the bend the searchlight threw a ray between the -trees, and I'm sure I saw a cabin sloop down in the offing," Tom -explained. - -"_I_ didn't see it." - -"And I got only a brief glimpse," Halstead rejoined. "But don't you -think it's worth our while to get out and go down to the water's edge?" - -"Of course," nodded the constable. The three piled out of the tonneau, -leaving the chauffeur alone. Tom led the way, going straight between the -trees down to the water. - -"That's the very sloop, I'd almost swear," whispered Tom, pointing to a -craft at anchor a hundred yards or so from shore. A small boat lay -hauled up on the beach. Not far from where the three stood was a -ramshackle little shanty from which no light shone. - -"We'll give our attention to the house, first," declared the constable. -Accordingly they stepped up to the door, Jennison knocking loudly. From -inside came a snore. The summons had to be repeated before a voice -inside demanded: - -"Who's there? What's wanted?" - -"A traveler who wants to speak with you," replied the officer. - -There were sounds inside. Then the door opened. They were confronted by -a white-haired old man, partly dressed and holding a lighted lantern. He -made a venerable picture as he stood there in the doorway. - -"Well?" he asked. - -"That's your sloop out in the offing?" Jennison asked. - -"Yes." - -"Did you use her to-day?" - -"No; I rented her to a stranger, who wanted to go fishing. I didn't know -he had returned. Said he might be out most of the night, and the sloop -wasn't back when I turned in at dark." - -"Wasn't, eh?" asked the constable, with quick interest. "Now will you -tell me what the stranger looked like?" - -"Why, he was about forty-five, I guess. Rather heavily built. His skin -was well-bronzed----" - -"That's the man, French," whispered Tom, nudging the officer. "His face -had been stained a good bronze color." - -"Did the stranger give any word about coming back at some other time?" -asked Jennison. - -"No; he paid me for the afternoon and the evening," replied the old man. -It was plain that he had told all he knew about the stranger. The old -man stated that he himself was a fisherman, but that in summer he often -made more money taking out parties of summer boarders. - -Joe, in the meantime, had gone down to the beach to watch the sloop. -There appeared to be no one stirring aboard the craft, but, as a -precaution, Jennison and the boys rowed out, thus making sure that the -sloop was deserted. They hurriedly returned to shore. Jennison now -displayed his badge, asking permission to look into the shanty. The old -man readily gave the permission, adding, somewhat shakily: - -"I'm not used to having my house suspected, but I'm glad to give the -law's officer any privileges he may want here." - -The search was unavailing. Jennison and his young companions hastened -back to the automobile where they stood deliberating. - -"That sloop has come in since dark," observed Halstead. "That old man -looks as though he could be thoroughly believed. Yet that's the very -sloop. I'm positive about that. So the rascals can't have had much the -start of us." - -"They're a needle in the haystack, now, anyway," sighed Constable -Jennison. "We're at the end of the water trail and we know where they -landed." - -"But we also know that they're on the mainland; at least it looks mighty -certain," suggested Tom Halstead. - -"That's true," nodded the officer. "Well, Mr. Musgrave must know of this -at once. The next village is less than three miles away. I'm going there -in the auto as fast as I can and telephone him." - -"You'll come back this way?" hinted Tom. - -"Yes, without a doubt." - -"Then leave us here. We'll hunt for any signs we can find of them while -you're gone." - -"But how'll I find you on my return?" - -"Why, if you stop here, and honk your horn twice, we'll come running to -you." - -"You might run into the rascals," mused Jennison. - -"I hope we do," muttered Tom. - -"See here," demanded the officer curiously, "aren't you boys afraid to -take a chance like this?" His glance fell on Joe Dawson. - -"No," returned Joe very quietly. - -"Well, it may not be a bad idea to leave you here until I return," said -Jennison briskly. "You may pick up some sign. Anyway, I hope you don't -get into any trouble. Good-by for a few minutes." - -The car sped out of sight, but neither boy waited to watch it. - -"It's a pretty fair guess, Joe," said Tom, "that Alvarez and French came -up this way from the shore. Now, that way, the road leads to Wood's -Hole. And there's the opposite direction. Alvarez has a little foot like -a woman's; French has a very large foot. Now if we can find two such -foot marks together, it would look as though we could find the direction -our men have taken. Have you any matches?" - -"Plenty," Dawson replied. - -"So have I. Then suppose you go that way," pointing toward Wood's Hole. -"And I'll go the other way. We can light matches every two or three -hundred feet and examine the ground. One of us may pick up the trail we -want to find." - -"Good enough," was all that came from quiet Joe, as he started at once. - -For a few minutes the boys could see each other's lights when matches -were struck. Then the winding of the road hid them from each other. - -Twice the young skipper had found imperfect footprints in the sandy -road, but they were not clear enough for him to be sure that these were -the tracks he sought. Now Tom stopped again, striking a match and -walking slowly along as he shielded the flame from the light breeze with -his hands. Then suddenly he came to a brief halt, as his gaze traveled -across the road. He saw an object on the ground in front of a bush, an -object that caused him to bound across the road. - -"Great! Fine!" breathed the boy jubilantly. "I'd know this little -article anywhere. It's the tobacco pouch of----" - -"Ah, good evening, my friend," broke in a taunting voice. "It's the -meddling boy himself!" - -Halstead, even before he could straighten up, found himself staring -between the branches of the bush into a pair of gleaming, mocking eyes. - -"Señor Alvarez!" cried the young skipper. - -Then something struck Tom heavily from behind, felling him to the -ground, unconscious. - - - - -CHAPTER XII--JOB HAS HIS COURAGE TESTED - - -When young Halstead next knew anything his mind was hazy at first. He -realized dimly, and then more clearly, that he was upon some one's -shoulder, being carried. There was a buzzing, too, over his right ear, -where his head throbbed dully and ached. - -As he opened his eyes wider he saw that he was being carried along under -trees and over rising ground. - -Then his thoughts became clearer and he felt certain it was none other -than Captain Jonas French who was carrying him. Some one else, probably -Alvarez, was treading the ground behind him. - -Halstead gave a sigh, then murmured: - -"Put me down!" - -They were luckless words, for French vented but the one syllable, -"Right," then dropped him to the ground and sat on him. - -"Don't make the mistake of trying to make any noise, either," growled -the once florid-faced one. "No one could hear you here except us, but -we'll take noise as an evidence of unkind disposition on your part." - -"Tie him," murmured Don Emilio, standing over the boy. - -Without making any response in words, French rolled the boy over on his -face. Tom didn't attempt to resist. He was too weak; his strength was -just beginning to come back. French knotted a rope around his wrists, -held behind him, then quickly lashed the young skipper's ankles -together. - -"And this!" insisted Alvarez. A gag composed of two handkerchiefs was -forced between Halstead's lips and made fast there. - -"Now, my meddling boy, you may be as unpleasant as you please," mocked -Don Emilio Alvarez, bending over and smiling into Halstead's face. "Ah, -you have been troublesome to us--very. And you have inquired what I -would do to you if I had you down in Honduras, where they do things -differently. Ah, well! Perhaps, my meddling boy, you shall discover what -I would do to you! Will you, my large friend, lift him and carry him on -again? We are not far from the place where we can keep him securely -enough." - -With a grunt French once more shouldered his burden, tramping on through -the forest, Alvarez still bringing up the rear. Then, from the crest of -a rise they pressed between a fringe of bushes and next began to descend -a narrow, rocky path. They stopped in a ravine, densely grown with -trees. - -"Even in the daytime this place is hardly likely to be found by prying -eyes," laughed Alvarez confidently. "And now, my captain, you might rid -yourself of the meddling boy." - -French dropped Tom at the base of a young spruce tree, knotting another -cord to his feet and passing it around the trunk of the tree. - -"He won't get away--can't, even though we were to leave him here through -the night," muttered French gruffly. - -"And I, since my meddling boy found for me the tobacco pouch that I -dropped in his path for bait, will enjoy a smoke once more," laughed -Señor Alvarez. He rolled a cigarette, which he soon was puffing. French, -having filled a pipe, lighted that and stretched himself at full length. -Thus several minutes went by. Tom Halstead, unable to talk, spent his -energies in wondering whether Ted Dunstan was anywhere in the near -neighborhood. - -After many minutes had passed the deep silence of this wild spot was -broken by an owl hoot. Alvarez, raising his head, answered by a similar -hoot. Then from the distance came two hoots. - -"Come, we will go forward to meet our friends," proposed the swarthy -little man eagerly, as he sprang to his feet. French got up more -lumberingly, though almost as quickly. Together they trod up to the head -of the ravine. Out of the darkness ahead came Pedro and a little brown -man who looked as much like a Spaniard as Alvarez did. - -"We'se done brought yo' dis," stated Pedro with a grin that showed his -big, white teeth. - -"This" was Joe Dawson, his hands tied behind him, his face as sullen as -a storm cloud in a summer shower. Joe was walking, led by Pedro, and -pushed at times by the brown man. - -"Ho, ho!" laughed Alvarez, in keen relish. "You have not done badly. You -bring me the other meddling boy. Halt him here--so. Tie him against this -tree that he may have a chance to lean." Alvarez watched until Joe had -been moored fast, then asked: - -"How many did you come out with to-night?" - -"Guess!" proposed Joe pleasantly. - -"Don't dare to be impertinent, boy!" warned Don Emilio, his eyes -flashing. "Answer me straight, and--what do you call it?--to the point, -as you Americans say." - -"Lemon?" laughed Joe Dawson coolly. "No, thank you. I always take -vanilla." - -"Boy, if you get me any more angry," stormed Don Emilio, "you will -regret it." - -But Dawson merely looked at the swarthy, false-bearded little man with -an air of boredom. - -"Let me handle him," proposed Jonas French, stepping forward. - -"I'll be glad if you will wait on me," drawled Joe, looking at the -larger man. "I don't believe this little fellow knows his business or -his goods." - -With an angered cry Don Emilio darted in, striking his cool tormentor -across the face. - -"Hold on," objected Joe lazily, "I didn't ask to be called until nine -o'clock." - -"Are you going to stop this nonsense?" demanded Don Emilio, his voice -quavering with wrath. - -"Dawson," remarked French, "you don't appear to realize your fix." - -Joe stared at him haughtily, remarking: - -"My bill is not due until the end of the week. Go away and let me read -in peace." - -Pedro, in the background, was holding one hand over his broad mouth to -hide his expansive grin over this cool nonsense. But Don Emilio was fast -losing his not very certain temper. - -"Go and bring that other boy Halstead," ordered Alvarez. "When the two -of them see each other they'll know their game is up, and they'll come -to their senses. If not, nothing will make any difference to them after -a few minutes more." - -Without a word French turned, treading down the ravine. Just a little -later he reappeared, looking bewildered. - -"Alvarez," he gasped, "come here. That other boy isn't where we left -him. Hurry!" - -Uttering an exclamation of amazement, Alvarez darted after his friend. -Pedro and the little brown man, caught in the astonishment, bolted after -their leaders. - -Joe could not get away from the tree to which he was bound, but he stood -there grinning with cool enjoyment. In another moment he felt a lively -sound at his back. Then Halstead whispered in his ear: - -"I'm cutting you loose, old fellow! Bolt with me!" - -Dawson, straining at the cords while Tom slashed at them, was quickly -free. - -"Come along," begged Tom. "Never mind stopping to leave cards or writing -a note of regret. Hustle--this way!" - -Halstead led in the swift flight in the direction that he judged the -roads to lie. They tried to go noiselessly, but they had not gone far -when a shout behind showed them that their flight had been detected. - -"Sprint, old chum!" floated back over Halstead's shoulder. - -In looking back, the young skipper stumbled. Joe had to pause long -enough to drag his comrade to his feet. That lost them a few precious -seconds, but they dashed onward once more. As they ran they heard the -feet of the pursuers behind. From greater familiarity with the ground -some of those in chase were gaining on the fugitives. - -[Illustration: Tom Remembered the Toy Pistol, Just in Time.] - -Joe now led in the chase, with Tom at his heels. They, came to what -appeared to be the wooded slope leading down to the road. Joe ran up -against a wall almost sooner than he had expected. He nearly fell over -it, but recovered and jumped. Halstead landed in the road beside him. - -There was another flying figure in the air, and Pedro was beside them, -reaching out. Behind were French and Don Emilio. - -"Yo better stop, fo' shuah!" called Pedro, parting his lips in a grin of -huge enjoyment. "Dere ain't no use in tryin' to git away from me." - - - - -CHAPTER XIII--A CAPTURE IN RECORD TIME - - -"Look out! He's mine!" shouted Joe. - -But Tom Halstead had sprung in the same instant at Pedro. The result was -that the combined assault of the boys bore the fellow to the ground, and -Tom, remembering, just in the nick of time, the toy cap pistol that -Jennison had handed him, and which had escaped discovery a few minutes -before, hauled that ridiculous "weapon" out, pressing it against the -temple of the black man. - -"Don't you stir, if you know what's best for you," warned the young -skipper sternly. - -Joe, seeing the lay of the land, leaped up to meet Captain French, who -was just reaching that wall. - -At that moment the noise of a speeding auto was borne to them, while -around the bend whizzed the machine, sending its strong searchlight ray -ahead to illumine the scene. - -The yells of its occupants caused the other pursuers of the boys to halt -in confusion. Before they had time to think what to do the automobile -was racing up to the spot and stopping. Alvarez and his two companions -bore away up the wooded slope as fast as their alarm could spur them. - -"What's this going on here?" demanded Constable Jennison, as he leaped -out into the road. - -"You'll find some of the rascals up there among the trees," replied Tom, -coolly. "I have one of 'em here, but he's tame now." - -Pedro, in fact, in his dread lest he be shot, was lying on his stomach, -his face between his crossed arms, while Halstead stood over him, -holding that wholly useless "pistol." - -"Just move that car a few yards ahead, will you?" begged Tom of the -chauffeur, fearing that in the strong light, Pedro might steal a look -sideways and find out what a comical "weapon" had scared him. - -"There are three of the crowd up there," added Joe. "They were chasing -us, but your arrival scared them off." - -"I'll make sure of the one we have, first," returned the constable, -going toward the prostrate negro. "My man, put your hands behind you, -and be quick about it." - -Pedro obeyed without a murmur, the constable snapping handcuffs on him -without loss of an instant. "Now, help me lift him into the auto--front -seat," directed the officer. But Pedro, seemingly afraid of the -consequences of any stubbornness, aided his captors. - -"Can you keep him, Jack?" asked the constable of the man at the steering -wheel. - -"I can bring him down, if he tries to bolt," came the quick retort from -the chauffeur. - -"'Fore hebben, Ah won't try nothing funny," protested Pedro, solemnly. -He was seemingly still afraid that the slightest defiance would cost him -his life. - -"See that this fellow is locked up, Jack," commanded Jennison, in a low -voice. "Speed some, too, and get back here as fast as you can with some -more men. It may be that there's going to be a fight." - -Just as the car started two sharp reports rang out from the hillside -above. There were two flashes, and bullets whizzed ominously over the -road. One of them pierced Tom's uniform cap, carrying it from his head. - -There being nothing he could do, Dawson threw himself to the ground, out -of harm's way. Tom, crouching low, darted across the road after his hat. -But Jennison leaped forward, weapon in hand, letting three shots fly -back to answer the defiance from under the trees. - -"Come on! We'll close in on 'em and mow 'em down if they don't -surrender!" shouted the officer. - -His call to the boys was intended for the hearing of those above. He had -no notion that the boys, unarmed, would accompany him. Yet, as Jennison -bounded over the wall, the two young motor boat boys were behind him on -either side. - -"Now, then, you fellows up there, throw down your shooting irons and -prepare to give yourselves up," called the doughty constable. "If you -don't----" - -Four shots answered this demand, the bullets clipping off leaves so -close to the trio that the boys crouched lower almost instinctively. - -"All right, then, I'm coming up to get you!" shouted the constable -running forward, weapon in hand. But he halted at length, well away from -the road, uncertain which way to turn. - -"What are you boys doing here, unarmed?" he whispered, facing them in -surprise. - -"We're as safe here as we'd be anywhere else hereabouts," Tom whispered -back. - -"Yes, I don't know but that's so. But where can the scoundrels be? Do -you know anything about the lay of the land here?" - -"I think we can find the ravine where they took us," suggested Joe. - -"Try to, then." - -Both boys now went a bit in advance of the officer, but he kept close to -them, in order to be on hand if they ran into any danger. - -The ravine proved to be empty, however. Tom pointed out where he had -slashed Joe's bonds away. "And over yonder," he added, "I guess I can -show you the rope I worked my own wrists out of. Once I worked my hands -free it didn't take me long to cut away the rest of the tackle." - -Though they searched for upwards of an hour, they were unable to find -any further trace of the scoundrels. Nor did they come upon any place -that looked as though it had been used as a hiding place for the missing -Dunstan heir. - -Then a loud honking from the road recalled them. The chauffeur was there -with the machine, from which were alighting four deputies whom he had -brought out with him from Wood's Hole. - -"I'm going to leave you men here to carry on the search," explained Mr. -Jennison. "Keep it up all through the night, and through the daylight, -too, if you run across anything that looks like a trail. These young men -will describe to you the fellows you're expected to find. I'll be back -bye and bye, but don't wait for me." - -Tom and Joe quickly described the three fugitives from justice. Then -Jennison turned to the chauffeur to inquire: - -"Could you work any information out of that black man?" - -"Not a word," came the grumbling reply. "After a few minutes he got over -being so scared, but he couldn't be made to say a word about his crowd. -Just closed his mouth, and wouldn't talk. Musgrave has him in hand now, -at the station house, but not a word can the fellow be made to say." - -"I'm going back with you, now," proposed Jennison, "to see what I can -get out of him. You boys may as well come with me. It looks like a -losing chase here. If we can get something out of the chap, Pedro, we'll -have something real to come back with." - -So Tom and Joe piled in with their new friend. In less than half an hour -they had entered the little guard-room of the police station at Wood's -Hole. Pedro, still manacled, was seated in a hard wooden armchair -between two constables, while Detective Musgrave paced the floor before -him. - -"He's trying a crafty game," smiled Musgrave, as the newcomers entered. -"Once in a while the prisoner talks, but when he does it's to shake his -head and mutter a string in Spanish." - -"He understands English well enough," answered Tom. "He has talked a -whole lot of it to me." - -"Of course he understands English," laughed Mr. Musgrave. "I know his -type of colored man well. He's a Jamaica negro, born and brought up with -English spoken around him. Afterwards he went over to Central America -and picked up Spanish." - -"_No sabe_," broke in the negro, looking blankly at those who surrounded -him. - -"Oh, you savvy plenty well enough," Tom retorted tartly. "And see here, -Pedro, you're a pretty cheap sort of rascal anyway. You remember how Joe -and I caught you, and how I scared you cold? Do you know what it was -that scared your grit away from you? Just a plain, ordinary, every-day -joke of a cap pistol!" - -Pedro started, his lips opening in a gasp at that information. - -"Oh, of course you understand, just as well as anyone else in the room," -Halstead went on. "And here's the young cannon that made you lie so -still in the road." - -With a short laugh Tom produced the cap pistol, holding it before the -astonished black man's face. Pedro's disgusted expression was enough to -make them all laugh. - -"He can't even pretend he doesn't understand English now," snorted Mr. -Musgrave. "Come now, my man, open your mouth and talk to us. It may help -_you_ out a bit when you come to be tried." - -Still, however, the black man refused to say a word. Constable Jennison -tried his hand at making the fellow speak, but without success. At last -they gave it up. The negro was taken to a cell, left under watch, and -the others went outside. - -"I'm going back up the road," Jennison announced. "Want to come with me, -boys?" - -"I think they'd better stay by the boat, in case anything turns up that -we want the craft," Musgrave broke in. - -So Tom and Joe struck out for the pier, finding Jed mighty glad to have -them back once more. For an hour the three boys sat on the "Meteor's" -deckhouse and talked. After that the time began to hang heavily on their -hands. - -Broad daylight came with still no word from the seekers, nor from any -other point. At a little after four o'clock Mr. Musgrave came down to -tell them that they might as well return to Nantucket. - -It was six o'clock when the "Meteor" berthed at the island. Jed had -served a breakfast on the trip over. As soon as the boat was docked Jed -hurried into the broad bunk off the cabin passageway, while Tom and Joe, -yawning with weariness, lay down on the engine-room lockers. - -"This is Sunday morning and to-morrow morning Ted Dunstan must be in -court with his father or lose a tremendously big fortune," groaned Tom. -"Oh, when we've been so near to rescuing him, why can't we have him -safely home under his father's roof?" - -"Maybe I'll have the answer thought out by the time I wake up," gaped -Joe Dawson. "But just at this present moment I'm so tired I don't know -whether I'm an imitation engineer or a clambake." - -Then another sound came from his berth. Dawson was snoring. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV--HEADED FOR THE SUNKEN REEF - - -Szz-zz! Sputter! And the fragrance of it, too! - -"Say, you fellows; aren't you ever going to wake up?" - -Jed Prentiss had his hand on Joe, shaking him. - -"Have you any idea what time it is?" insisted Jed, as Dawson opened his -eyes halfway. - -"Time to go to bed again," muttered Joe, trying to shake off that -insistent hand and rolling over the other way. - -"It's after noon," pronounced Prentiss. "Say, you fellows could sleep a -week through!" And Jed gave Joe a hearty shake. "I told you breakfast is -ready." - -"No, you didn't," insisted Joe. - -"I've told you so three times in the last five minutes," asserted Jed, -"but you wouldn't wake up long enough to understand. Can't you get it -through your head? _Breakfast!_" - -"Whatcher got?" asked Joe drowsily. - -"Coffee!" - -"Had that yesterday," protested Joe, settling himself as though for -another doze. - -"And bacon and eggs!" - -"Had that three days ago," complained Joe. - -"And fried potatoes," went on Jed. - -"They'll keep." - -"Muffins!" proclaimed Jed solemnly. - -At that Dawson opened his eyes wide. - -"Are they sticky inside or your best kind, browned all over the top?" -Joe asked with a show of interest. - -"Browned?" echoed Jed. "Say, they're beauties--the best I ever baked. -And I've opened a tin of preserved pineapple to top off with." - -"I guess maybe I'll get up," admitted Joe. - -"You'd better, if you don't want to find everything cold and tasteless," -insisted Jed, who thereupon went over to shake Halstead. - -But Tom slipped up instantly, reaching for his swimming tights. Soon a -splash was heard over the side. Joe followed him. Both felt more awake -when they came back to towel down. As they dressed the savory smells of -Jed's best breakfast made them hurry. - -"I'd sooner have you wake me up, Jed, than some folks I know," announced -Joe Dawson, as he passed his plate for the second helping of bacon, eggs -and fried potatoes. - -"It _does_ taste good," Halstead admitted with a relish, chewing hard. -"But has there been any news from the house this morning?" - -"Haven't seen a soul, except you sleepers," Jed answered. - -"How did you wake up, anyway!" demanded Joe suspiciously. "Alarm clock -at your head?" - -"Yes," assented Prentiss. "But it really woke me up. That's more than it -could do for you fellows." - -By the time they had that famous breakfast down all felt better. Tom and -Joe adjourned to the deck, where Jed joined them as soon as he had -washed the dishes and cleaned up. - -"Here comes Mr. Dunstan now," announced Joe presently. - -All turned to look at the boat's owner. Mr. Dunstan appeared to have -aged greatly after his night's vigil. His face was furrowed by care; he -walked with a greater stoop than before. - -"Poor fellow," sighed Halstead. "And there are only twenty-four hours -left for finding the Dunstan heir." - -"No news, I take it, sir?" hailed Tom, as the owner stepped upon the -pier and came toward the boat. - -"None, since the word Mr. Musgrave sent me last night of your exploits," -murmured Horace Dunstan, shaking his head sadly. "And to think that my -boy has spent days aboard that ugly craft," he added, gazing wistfully -at the yellow-hulled launch at anchor a few rods away. Then he turned -once more to the young skipper. - -"How are you and your friends, Halstead? Very tired?" - -"I don't believe we're so weary that you'd notice it unless you looked -very hard," smiled Halstead. - -"If you're not too much used up by last night's work I have a favor to -ask of you. But it's not an order, understand?" - -"Why, what can it be, Mr. Dunstan?" - -"Well, you see," continued the owner apologetically, "before this -trouble happened we had invited Mrs. Lester and her two young daughters -to spend a fortnight with us. They had not heard of our misfortune, and -so they came over on this morning's boat. They heard in Nantucket and -telephoned us, proposing to turn about and go home again. But of course -we insisted that they should come to us. They are going to church, this -evening, but Mrs. Dunstan is so much upset over the mystery surrounding -our son that--that--well, we thought of proposing that they use the -'Meteor' for a little sail this afternoon. That is, in case you young -men are not too tired to----" - -"Why, of course we can take the boat out," replied Halstead, breaking in -upon the considerate owner. "It won't tire us any more than lolling -around the pier." - -"Mrs. Dunstan and I will both be greatly pleased if you will do it," -declared Horace Dunstan gratefully. - -"But do you think any developments from shore will make it necessary to -get the 'Meteor' on the jump over to Wood's Hole?" broke in Joe. - -"You might keep the boat within sight of our flagpole," replied Mr. -Dunstan. "That will allow you to sail some miles away if you use the -glass every few minutes. In case we want you to return here in haste -we'll hoist one red pennant. If we want you to make full speed for -Wood's Hole, without first returning here, we'll hoist two red pennants. -In the latter case you can land Mrs. Lester and her daughters and they -can go to the hotel at Wood's Hole until your work with the boat is -done. Then you can bring them back." - -"That'll all be clear and easy," nodded Tom. "Well, sir, we're ready -when you are." - -"I'll be right back with the ladies," promised Mr. Dunstan. Joe began to -oil the engine, while Jed made a dive for his cleanest white duck suit. -Tom carefully brushed his uniform; he had secured another coat, at the -owner's expense, since leaving that other behind in the tight grip of -Jonas French. It was a trim, natty-looking boat's crew that met the -ladies when Mr. Dunstan brought them aboard. Mrs. Lester was a woman of -forty, still young looking and handsome. The girls--Elsie, aged -seventeen, and Jessie, fifteen, looked extremely sweet and dainty in -their white dresses, blue reefers and yachting caps. - -Mr. Dunstan left them almost immediately. - -"Shall I take you aft to the deck chairs?" inquired Tom. - -Mrs. Lester assented, but the girls declared that, if they might, they -much preferred to remain on the bridge deck and watch the running of the -boat. To this Tom gladly assented. - -The "Meteor" slipped gracefully away from her pier, then turned and -headed over in the direction of Muskeget Island. This was a course that -would keep them easily in sight of the Dunstan flagpole. - -"You must look upon us as splendid nuisances?" suggested Elsie. - -"Yes, to that, if you'll leave out the word 'nuisances,'" smiled Captain -Tom gallantly. - -"But to be asked to take the boat out, after all your hard and daring -work last night," added Jessie. - -"Hard work comes naturally in a life on the sea," Tom replied. "And we -had our sleep, after the night's work." - -"But what fearful danger you went through. Mr. Dunstan was telling us -all about it, as he heard it from his man over at Wood's Hole," said -Elsie. "What fearful danger you were in!" - -"We didn't think much about it at the time," remarked Halstead modestly. -"When one has had to stand at the wheel of a motor boat, on the broad -ocean, in all sorts of weather, and when he has to win out and bring his -craft and passengers back safely, he doesn't meet much that he calls -dangerous." - -It was so quietly spoken that both girls glanced quickly, admiringly at -the young captain. Joe, standing at the hatchway, looked as though he -were thinking of nothing but the revolutions per minute that the -propeller shaft was making. - -"It must just be a splendid life!" declared Jessie impulsively. "I wish -I were a boy." - -"Some day," laughed Tom, "you may be pleased that you're not." - -"Yet it must be fine," pursued Elsie, "to look over this handsome boat -and feel that you're man enough to be absolute master of her and to feel -that you can handle and control her under any conditions." - -"I couldn't," Halstead declared seriously. "I can steer the boat as long -as the steering gear isn't damaged or broken, that is, if the boat is -under headway. But let there be an accident to the steering mechanism or -let the motor refuse to drive the propeller, and suppose the accident to -be of such a nature that we three boys couldn't make the necessary -repairs, how much control do you think I'd have over this craft? How -much of a master do you think I'd be? Miss Lester, certain men have used -their brains to design boat hulls. Other men have invented and perfected -the propeller mechanism. Then finally other men, out of their brains, -constructed the gasoline motor. We boys didn't have anything to do with -any of those triumphs of skill. All we've had to do is to learn how to -be handy with the handling of other people's discoveries." - -"That doesn't sound very impressive, does it?" laughed Jessie. - -"It isn't," declared Joe, taking part in the talk for the first time. -"Down at the mouth of the Kennebec River there's a whole club of boys -who have learned to do just what we do." - -"You may try to make out that you're not brave and manly," laughed -Elsie, "but I shall keep on believing that you are." - -"That's why I wish, sometimes, I could be a boy and grow up to be a -man," added Jessie. - -"I guess a woman can find enough chance to show bravery," Tom answered -thoughtfully. - -"Oh, how the boat is rolling," cried Elsie, lurching as the "Meteor" -rolled over to port. - -Jed, who had just lowered the glass after a look at the Dunstan -flagstaff, caught her lightly by one elbow, steadying her. - -"If you brace your feet, just this way," explained Jed, illustrating the -idea with his own feet, "the roll won't carry you off your balance." - -Both girls practiced it, laughing gayly over having learned a new trick -on shipboard. - -"Mr. Dunstan said something about your going only a certain distance -away from his place," observed Miss Elsie presently. - -"We must keep within sight of the flagstaff; that is, we mustn't go so -far that we'd fail to see a signal through the glass," Tom explained. - -"How much further can you go, then?" inquired Miss Jessie. - -"Do you see that point over on Muskeget Island?"--pointing. - -"Yes." - -"We can go a couple of miles beyond there and still be able to make out -signals." - -"My, it's getting windier and rougher, isn't it?" asked Elsie presently. - -"I think there's a good blow coming up before long," Halstead answered. -"If you wish, we can turn about and head back toward the pier." - -"Not unless you really want to," protested the girl. "I'm enjoying this -trip too much." - -"Then we'll pass Muskeget and cruise up and down, instead of going -further away from Nantucket," Tom proposed. "The wind is shifting around -to northeast, which promises a goodish kind of blow at this time of the -year. If we should get very rough weather I'd like to be where I can run -in with you quickly, instead of taking chances out here." - -"Can the 'Meteor' go faster than she's going now?" - -"Well, she's making about fourteen miles," smiled the young captain. -"Her best speed is about twice that." - -They ran out past Muskeget Island, then turned back on their course, -going nearer to Nantucket. They were now about north of Muskeget, but -gradually passing the island, when Tom began to notice that something -was wrong with the speed of the boat. - -"What's up with the engine, Joe?" Halstead called down to his now -invisible chum. - -"That's what I'm trying to find out," Joe retorted. "I don't like the -motor's behavior, and it's getting worse every minute." - -"I should say so," muttered Tom. - -"There isn't any danger of a serious accident, is there?" asked Miss -Elsie quickly. - -"Probably not," was the young skipper's reply. "But we don't know, and -can't, until we find out what's wrong." - -"Oh, we ought to hurry back," shivered Miss Elsie. "We ought to get in -before there's any accident." - -"Why, provided none of us were drowned, an accident would be something -worth remembering," laughed Jessie mischievously. - -"Jessie Lester, how dare you say so?" demanded her sister, looking -somewhat shocked. - -"Say," bawled up the now excited voice of Joe Dawson, "this is a tough -one!" - -He showed his worried face at the hatchway, adding: - -"The tank's empty! The last drops of gasoline are running into the -motor!" - -"What's that?" demanded Tom aghast. "How could that have happened?" - -"I don't know," was Joe's bewildered response. "The tank was half-full -when we got back from Wood's Hole early this morning. But now it's -empty. Look for yourself." - -The propeller shaft made a few faint turns, then stopped. Having little -headway by this time the "Meteor" soon began to drift aimlessly over the -rolling waters. - -"I don't need to look," Tom answered, dropping his hand from the wheel -"I can see enough to believe you, Joe. But how on earth could this have -happened, Joe?" - -"It didn't happen without some one tampering with the tank," Joe -exploded resentfully. "There's no leak in the tank. We should, by -rights, have oil enough to run to New York and back." - -There being nothing now that he could do in the engine room, Dawson -stepped moodily up on deck. The girls watched Captain Tom's face. Mrs. -Lester, her curiosity aroused by the stopping of speed, attempted to -come forward along the deck. The rolling of the craft made this so -dangerous for her that Jed sprang forward, piloting her safely forward. -There the situation was soon made plain to the frightened mother. - -"What are we going to do?" she asked. - -"I don't know," Tom asked, the glass to his eyes, as he looked over the -rolling waters. "Had our gasoline held out we could have made the pier -with time to spare." - -"Is there real danger, then?" demanded Mrs. Lester, her face betraying -her great alarm. - -"There's a northeast blow, and a big one, going to strike us within half -an hour," the young skipper replied. "And there's not a craft in sight I -can signal to. Our anchors wouldn't hold in the blow that's coming." - -"Can't you signal the Dunstan place?" asked the much-alarmed lady. - -"Yes, but I doubt if they could see our signals, our mast is so low and -the distance so great." - -"But they have that steam launch there. If you could make them -understand, captain, they could send the launch out to us." - -"The launch is too small a craft to face the blow that's coming," Tom -rejoined gravely. "Besides, Mr. Dunstan has no one who knows anything -about handling a marine steam engine. If you ladies will go into the -cabin----" - -"And feel like rats in a trap while there's danger!" remonstrated Mrs. -Lester. "Oh, please don't ask us to leave the deck. We'll feel safer -here. At least we shall be able to see what's happening." - -"Get the lifelines, Joe, and rig them quickly," spoke Tom gravely. "Jed, -help me to get the anchors overboard. We'll do everything we can." - -While the boys worked like beavers the wind came down upon them with -ever-increasing force. At first the anchors held, the "Meteor" straining -at her cables. - -"Here comes a squall!" shouted Tom, suddenly. "Catch hold! Hold fast! -We'll soon know about our anchors." - -As the squall struck, the "Meteor" heeled over. The ladies screamed with -fright. Even the motor boat boys felt the thrill of dread. The boat -rolled as though she were going to turn turtle. Then, slowly, she -righted herself. - -"One of the cables has parted!" shouted Jed, through the increasing -tempest. - -Another and heavier squall struck them, again heeling the motor boat -over. She righted herself, but the gale was becoming stronger, and, -despite the remaining anchor, the "Meteor" now began to drift toward the -lee shore of Muskeget. - -Miss Elsie, deathly white, and clutching desperately at the lifelines, -began to sob. - -"It's fearful, I know," spoke Captain Tom, quietly. "But we've got to -face it and hope for the best. You were admiring courage a while ago, -but now you can show as much as any man could." - -"You're right," Miss Elsie called back through the roar of the gale, as -she steadied herself. "Thank you; by pointing out the need of courage -you've given me much." - -Tom turned to stare, with grave, impassive face, to leeward. An eighth -of a mile off the beach at Muskeget lay a reef ordinarily sunken below -the surface in calm weather. But now the waves were dashing over this -ledge, showing the jagged points of the rough stone. - -"If a miracle doesn't happen," thought the young skipper, noting the -course of the boat's drift, "we'll wreck there soon, and then there's a -doubt if one of us gets out of it alive!" - - - - -CHAPTER XV--IN THE TEETH OF DEATH - - -"What's the worst, now, captain?" - -It was Miss Jessie who asked this, her lips close to the young skipper's -ear, for the gale's roar now drowned out all ordinary tones. - -"Do you see that line of spray?" asked Halstead, pointing to where the -water dashed over the reef. - -"Yes." - -"I'm wondering if it's possible for us not to be dashed on that." - -"Wrecked?" demanded Jessie, her face paling, but her lips steady. - -"That's one of our dangers." - -"And that will mean that we must be drowned?" - -"We'll hope not," replied Halstead, forcing a smile. "Joe! Jed!" - -Getting his friends where Mrs. Lester could not overhear, Halstead went -on quickly: - -"If we go to smash on the reef, remember that I'm to take the mother -into the water. Joe, you take the elder daughter; Jed, you the younger -one. If we have to get into the water with women's lives to save, -remember the glory of American seamen!" - -"I'll get ashore double, or not at all," Joe promised, and he knew very -well how little likelihood there was of reaching safety on land. - -"I'll prove I'm one of you," promised Jed, though his face was ashen. -Tom grabbed his hand long enough to give it a mighty squeeze. Then the -young skipper moved to the starboard rail where he could watch best. His -calculations had proved correct. The "Meteor," drifting helplessly, was -bound to strike on the reef. With fascinated gaze Tom watched the angry -breakers. - -"We're pretty near the finish, aren't we?" asked Miss Jessie in his ear. -The girl's voice was icily calm. - -"I think we're going to strike within two or three minutes," Tom -responded, stonily. "If we do, trust to us in the water, and try not to -hamper us. I'll try to get your mother ashore, Jed takes you, and Joe -your sis----" - -Tom stopped short. Where on earth was Joe? That youth had vanished from -the deck. - -"Why, I thought Joe was here, right ready for his next duty," cried -Halstead, amazedly. "Where----" - -"He went below," bawled back Jed. "But he's not in the engine room." - -"Then he's doing something that's good, any way," spoke Tom, with whole -faith in his tried comrade. - -Once more the young captain turned to watch the line of breakers. The -"Meteor" was deadly close now, her staunch hull in imminent danger. - -"Here--quick!" roared Dawson's heaviest tones. - -His head showed in the hatchway. He was handing through a metal can. - -"And I've got another one," he shouted. "Thought there must be some -reserve aboard, so I explored the spare lockers aft. There--got it?" - -For Tom had snatched up a five-gallon can and was lifting it to the -covered deck forward. The "Meteor" was rolling and pitching under the -lashing of the gale. Waves broke and dashed over that forward deck, but -Joe, with a second five-gallon can, followed. Both boys had to crawl, -feeling as though they were holding on by their teeth. - -"You pour--I'll shield the inlet from water!" shouted Dawson, over all -the roar of the elements. "It's life or death in a minute, now, old -chum!" - -Well enough Tom knew that, but he saw also the one bare chance of -getting all hands out of their awful plight. Dawson crawled around to -windward of the inlet to the gasoline tank, shielding it as much as he -could with his body. He unscrewed the cap, while Tom removed the smaller -top of one of the gasoline cans. - -"Wait until the dash of the next wave is past," shouted Halstead. "Then -I'll pour." - -Though it took many precious moments, they contrived to empty the can -into the tank without getting any salt water mixed with it. - -"Now, another can!" breathed Joe tensely. - -But Tom, raising his eyes to glance at the spray-ridden reef, answered -quickly: - -"Later. There isn't a second to lose now. Hustle back!" - -The dragging anchor retarded the bow of the boat somewhat. It was the -stern that seemed about to strike the reef. While Joe worked like -lightning in the engine room Tom stood with both hands resting on the -wheel. He dreaded, every instant, to feel the bump and the jar that -should tell the news that the "Meteor" had struck. - -"What do you want? Speed ahead?" bawled up Joe. - -"As quickly as you can possibly give it," Tom answered. - -Still Halstead stared astern. It seemed as though the reef were rising -to meet the hull of the boat. - -Throb! Chug! The motor was working, slowly. With an inward gasp of -thanksgiving Halstead swung the bow around a bit to port. The engine, -weaker than the gale, must drag the anchor at least a short distance. -Any attempt to raise it too soon might hold the boat to the danger line. - -But Tom felt a sudden glow of happiness. The "Meteor" was forging slowly -ahead. She would soon be safe, if the engine remained staunch. There was -fearfully little oil in the tank, and he knew that the delivery of gas -to the ignition apparatus must be very slight. - -Out of the engine room came Joe in a hurry, signaling to Jed to follow -him. The two crawled out, over that wet, slippery forward deck of the -rolling, pitching boat, and managed to empty a second can into the tank. -The engine was working better by the time that the pair regained the -bridge deck. - -"That's enough to get us out of all trouble," shouted Joe briefly. "We -needn't bother about the third one aft until we're well out of this." - -Captain Tom, watching the reef that they were slowly leaving behind, -soon decided that it was time to haul in the anchor that had held. Joe -and Jed accomplished this. The instant that the drag was clear of the -bottom the "Meteor" shot ahead. - -"Hurrah!" yelled all three of the young seamen, when that new start -came. - -"We're safe, now, aren't we?" inquired Mrs. Lester, bending forward, her -eyes shining. - -"Unless there's some new trouble with the motor," Tom answered her, "we -ought to be back at the Dunstan place in twenty minutes." - -Now, Jed brought the third can of gasoline from the locker aft. He and -Joe succeeded in emptying it. If all went well, there was now enough oil -in the tank to carry the boat much further than she had to go. Even at -that, however, the boat was running with less gasoline than she had ever -carried in her tank before. - -"There are Mr. Dunstan and his wife down at the pier, watching us," -announced Miss Jessie, as they came within eye-range of the Dunstan -place. "They must have been dreadfully worried about us." - -"Now, I know what danger is, and just what courage and steadfastness men -may show," remarked Miss Elsie, as they passed south of a little -headland that formed one of the shelters of the Dunstan cove. - -"And you know how much grit women may show," rejoined Halstead, "for not -once did you give us any trouble." - -"Perhaps we were too badly frightened to make trouble," laughed Jessie -Lester. - -"Well, you didn't any of you faint or have hysterics after you realized -the danger was over, did you?" retorted Captain Tom, laughing. "You -can't get away from the charge that you all showed splendid courage as -soon as you realized that we were in real danger." - -"But you were planning to swim ashore with us from the reef," said Mrs. -Lester. - -"I'm very, very thankful we didn't have to try it," replied Halstead, -soberly. "It would have been one of those one-in-a-hundred chances that -I don't like to have to take." - -Jed was busy, now, putting out the heaviest fenders along the port side -of the hull. Even in the cove the waves were running at a troublesome -height. Yet Tom and Joe, by good team work at their respective posts, -ran the "Meteor" in alongside the pier, almost without a jar. - -"I'm thankful you're all back safe," called Mr. Dunstan, coming toward -them. "I would have been worried, Mrs. Lester, if I hadn't known all -about the captain and crew that had the boat out." - -But when he heard about the hairbreadth escape from going on the reef -off Muskeget Mr. Dunstan's face went deathly pale. He asked the ladies -to return to the house, while he boarded the "Meteor" and faced the boys -anxiously. - -"What on earth can it mean that the gasoline ran out?" he demanded. -"Dawson, are you absolutely sure that you had plenty of oil when you -returned at daylight this morning?" - -"Positive of it, sir," came emphatically from Engineer Joe. - -"Then that oil must have been pumped quietly out of the tank while you -three slept almost the sleep of the dead," exclaimed the owner. - -"It was pumped out very early in the day, too," Tom insisted. "Such a -big quantity couldn't have been pumped anywhere except overboard. It -would have taken several barrels to hold what was in the tank. Yet, by -the time we were on deck, at a little after noon, there wasn't a sign of -gasoline anywhere on the water about us. The tide had carried it away." - -"I suppose anyone could have operated a steam-engine over your heads and -you boys wouldn't have heard it this morning, you were so sound asleep," -mused Mr. Dunstan. "Yet it was in broad daylight that you berthed the -boat. It must have been a daring man who would have come down openly -through these grounds on such an errand." - -"Unless----" began Halstead thoughtfully. - -"Well, unless--what, captain?" - -"Mr. Dunstan, it's possible, isn't it, that one of your men about the -place may be disloyal to you? Such a man may have done this thing either -to help your enemies, or to satisfy some spite against you." - -"I can't think of a man in my employ I'd suspect of such a thing," -murmured the troubled man. - -Plainly the owner was not the man to discuss this suspicion with. Toward -dark, however, Tom and Joe went to one man on the place whom they -believed to be above all suspicion. That was big Michael, the coachman. -With Michael, they discussed the matter long and earnestly. - -Though the honest coachman could tell them nothing definite, Tom -Halstead went away from that talk on a new scent of danger ahead. - -Dawson, too, was thinking hard, and, as a consequence, was even more -quiet than usual. - -"I'm afraid it wouldn't be much use to go to Mr. Dunstan with this," -sighed the young captain. "We'll just keep our eyes open." - - - - -CHAPTER XVI--FOLLOWING UP THE CLUE - - -There was plenty to do by the time the boys got back to the pier. Jed, -lone-handed, was pumping gasoline into the tank through the strainer. -Several barrels of the oil had been sent down to the water front. -Stripping off their coats, Tom and Joe turned to and helped. - -Bouncer, the bull pup, was on hand also, chained in the engine room. In -view of the late near-tragedy Mr. Dunstan had decided to keep the dog -aboard, at the home pier, hereafter, and had brought Bouncer down -himself. - -"We'll finish this job Jed, if you'll turn to and cook up a quick -supper," proposed Halstead. - -"Anything on?" asked Jed, looking keenly at them. - -"I shouldn't wonder," nodded the young captain. - -Jed asked no more questions, but got a tempting supper ready in close to -record time. As they were eating Tom told Jed, in low tones, the little -they had discovered. - -Briefly, it was this: The Dunstan gardener and greenhouse man was a -Frenchman named Gambon. He was a quiet, even sulky fellow, who had made -no friends among the other employés of the place. Mr. Dunstan had once -rebuked the Frenchman for some carelessness. Michael had seen Gambon -shake his fist after the employer as the latter was going away. This had -happened four months ago. - -There was not very much in that alone. But Gambon, who lived in a little -two-room cottage all by himself, and who had no work to occupy him -evenings, had always been in the habit of smoking and reading, then -retiring early. For more than the last fortnight, however, Gambon had -left the place every evening. Sometimes he was gone an hour; sometimes -he had not returned until late. Two nights after Ted's disappearance -Michael, who had reported to Mr. Dunstan concerning the Frenchman's -actions, had been authorized to follow Gambon. The Frenchman, however, -merely went to the Park in Nantucket and sat for a couple of hours on -one of the benches, smoking and seemingly dreaming. Mr. Dunstan, when -this tame fact was reported to him, pooh-poohed Michael's suspicions and -forbade him to watch the Frenchman any longer. - -"For," said Mr. Dunstan, "watching any man long enough is likely to make -a half-rascal of him." - -"But, Captain Tom, when a very quiet man suddenly changes the fixed -habits av year-rs," said Michael earnestly, "then there's likely a -strong reason for it, and maybe a bad one." - -These were the facts that Tom and Joe now rehearsed, in undertones, to -Jed. - -"Does it look likely, from that," asked Prentiss, "that Gambon would -steal down here in early morning and pump our tank dry?" - -"Michael saw him standing on the wharf this morning, smoking," replied -Halstead. "Michael thought we must be up and about, though, so he didn't -pay any attention to the Frenchman." - -"Kind of a hazy clue, altogether, isn't it?" queried Jed. - -"It's enough to be worth looking into," Tom replied earnestly. "Do you -realize that to-morrow is the last day that Mr. Dunstan has to get Ted -before the probate court! That, if he doesn't do it to-morrow, the big -inheritance of millions goes by the board? So anything is big enough to -work on to-night. It's our last chance. Now Mr. Dunstan has assured me -that the 'Meteor' won't be ordered out to-night. Joe and I are going to -watch the Frenchman. Jed, you'll want to stay right here by the boat and -keep a sharp eye on it, for Gambon may not be the one who is trying to -put the 'Meteor' on the scrap heap. You'll have Bouncer to help you. -Even if it came to taking the boat over to Wood's Hole, on a changed -order, you're equal to it, aren't you?" - -"Just give me the chance!" cried Jed. "I'd welcome it." - -As soon as dark fell Joe stole across the grounds at the further end, -stationing himself by the road. Tom, on the other hand, hid himself not -far from Gambon's little cottage. This was the plan of the chums to -prevent the Frenchman from giving them the slip, in case he had any -suspicions. There was still a light in Gambon's cottage. After half an -hour, however, the light vanished. Then Gambon came out, carrying a -thick walking stick. - -Tom watched the Frenchman until he was out of sight. Then after him the -young skipper went on tip-toe. It was not difficult to keep quietly on -the trail, for the gardener appeared far from suspicious. - -Then, minutes later, Joe stepped out from behind a tree, touching Tom -lightly on the arm. They went along together. - -"It's easy so far," whispered Halstead. - -"May be a reason," answered Joe. "Our Frenchman may have nothing to -conceal. Perhaps he's only going courting." - -As Michael had reported, the gardener's route lay along the highway to -Nantucket. The lights of the little town were in sight when Halstead -suddenly gave Joe a nudge. Both dodged behind bushes. For the Frenchman -had stepped off the road under some trees. First looking around him, -Gambon next bent over, moving a stone twice the size of his head. He -picked up a piece of paper. Tom and Joe were breathing hard by this -time. - -Carefully replacing the stone, Gambon struck a match, scanning the piece -of paper he held in his hand. In another instant he touched the flaming -match to a corner of the paper, watching it burn up. - -"Confound him for that!" muttered Tom in his chum's ear. - -Gambon was coming back now. The two friends crouched lower behind the -bushes. By them walked the Frenchman, looking straight ahead. As soon as -it seemed wise to do so the chums started after him. They saw him, -however, return to his cottage, where he lighted his lamp, smoked and by -and by extinguished the light and went to bed. - -"We've found the spy," groaned Tom, as the two chums neared the pier. -"It's fearful luck, Joe, that we couldn't have known about him before. -But it's too late now for the knowledge to do us any good. To-morrow is -the last day for Ted Dunstan to show up. After we see that the boat and -Jed are safe I'll run up to the house for a moment and see Mr. Dunstan." - -When Tom told their employer, a little later, what they had discovered -that gentleman at first appeared considerably interested. - -"I'm afraid, though, Halstead," he commented, "that we're all of us -inclined to suspect anything and anyone. Gambon is a bachelor and has -saved a goodly bit of money. What more likely than that he may be -courting a sweetheart? That would be a likely enough place for her to -leave a note for him. Perhaps it was only a note as to an engagement -that had to be broken for this evening, for, as you say, Gambon came -right back. Whatever the note was about we'd probably feel rather -ashamed if we forced the Frenchman to tell us about it. By the way, I am -going to bed at once, now, for at at half-past five in the morning I -shall want to start for Wood's Hole. I've heard from Crane again, and -he's coming over with me at full speed, in order to be in court with me. -We're going to see if we can't get an adjournment for one day. Of -course, there seems little hope of it, as the terms of the will are so -exacting. Oh, Halstead, I made a huge mistake in letting the matter go -so long!" - -There were tears in Mr. Dunstan's eyes. Halstead, much touched, bade his -employer goodnight, returning to the boat. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII--JOE PLAYS JUSTICE A SCURVY TRICK - - -Over a sea "as smooth as glass," that fateful Monday morning, the -"Meteor" made a dashing run to Wood's Hole. It was just five minutes of -seven by the clock when the swift craft tied up at the village on the -mainland. - -All through the trip Horace Dunstan had remained seated in one of the -armchairs in the cockpit aft. His head had been bowed in sorrow. His -face was haggard and ashen, for he had not slept through the night. - -On the pier awaiting him stood Mr. Crane, his lawyer, and Musgrave, who -had been in charge of the force of detectives who had been vainly -seeking the young heir. - -"You have not a word of hope, of course, gentlemen?" asked Mr. Dunstan -in a weak voice. - -"There is no news whatever," replied Musgrave. - -"Our only hope," added Crane, "lies in the barest possibility that the -court may find some legal excuse for adjourning the matter for a few -days and giving us a chance for a longer hunt." - -"May I put in a word?" asked Tom, who had been standing close by. - -"Yes," assented Horace Dunstan. - -"Now I know, and we all know," Halstead went on, "that Ted Dunstan has -been illegally spirited away and that it is simply impossible for his -father to produce him in court. It is no guess-work, for I have seen Ted -Dunstan, alive, and with Mr. Dunstan's enemies. If you were to make the -claim, Mr. Crane, and use me as a witness, would that help matters any -in inducing the court to adjourn the matter? Could the court then -legally postpone the bringing of the Dunstan heir into view?" - -"I'm afraid not," replied the great lawyer thoughtfully. "In the first -place, the court would have only Mr. Dunstan's word for it that he is -really anxious to produce his son in court. There would be no evidence -that could corroborate Mr. Dunstan's statement. As to your testimony, -Captain Halstead, if it were admitted at all, it would work us the -greatest harm, for you would be obliged to say, under oath, that Ted -told you he was with those other people by his own choice as well as at -his father's command." - -Mr. Musgrave nodded. Horace Dunstan bowed his stricken head lower. - -"I understand the force of what you say, Mr. Crane," Tom nodded. - -"Hush! Here comes Judge Swan now," whispered the lawyer. "What can he be -doing here?" - -A portly, white-haired man, yet with a fresh, young-looking face, had -just stepped onto the pier and came toward them. He was judge of the -probate court over at Nantucket. - -"Good morning, gentlemen," he greeted pleasantly. Then, by a nod, he -drew Lawyer Crane toward him, though the judge spoke loudly enough for -the rest to hear. - -"Are you going to have a case to bring before me to-day, Mr. Crane?" - -"Provided we can find young Theodore Dunstan in time, your honor," -answered the lawyer. "Our search has been unceasing." - -"I wish you the utmost measure of good fortune, then," replied Judge -Swan. "Under the terms of the will, as I understand them, this is the -last day of grace that you have. But remember, court will be open up to -the minute of four this afternoon." - -Mr. Crane thanked his honor. Every hearer present, however, realized -that Judge Swan had answered, as far as his dignity and official -position permitted, how any appeal for postponement must be answered -from the bench. The motion would be denied. - -The justice turned to stroll apart from the rest, but the lawyer kept at -his side. - -"Judge," he asked in an undertone, "since you know the whole of our -painful predicament, can you offer me any suggestion?" - -"The most I can say, because it is the most I am able to say," murmured -the judge, "is that I sincerely trust that Mr. Dunstan and yourself will -be able to produce young Theodore in court before four o'clock this -afternoon." - -They soon turned, strolling back to the group. - -"I feel a good deal annoyed," said Judge Swan, presently. "I was in -Boston yesterday. My friend, Mr. Percival, was to start over to -Nantucket with me at six this morning, in order that I might open court -at nine o'clock. Mr. Percival wired me yesterday that his launch had -broken down, but the telegram must have reached Boston after I had gone -to the train. So I must go over on the forenoon passenger steamer, I -fear." - -"If we were going back sooner," explained Mr. Crane, "my client would be -most happy to give you a seat on his boat. But we feel that, if young -Theodore Dunstan is found, it will be on the mainland. So we are waiting -until the last moment." - -"Yet, if heaven favors us," broke in Horace Dunstan, "we could take my -son over on the regular forenoon passenger boat, and be in court this -afternoon. The 'Meteor' could be back here soon after the passenger boat -leaves. So, Judge, may I offer you the use of the 'Meteor?'" - -"Do you mean that?" asked Judge Swan, looking at the owner in delight. - -"Most assuredly," replied Mr. Dunstan. "I shall be glad, judge, if you -will make use of my boat." - -"Then I shall accept with great pleasure," replied his honor. "I know -how swift your boat is." - -"Then, captain," said Mr. Dunstan, turning to Halstead, "you understand -your instructions, which are to get Judge Swan in Nantucket before nine -o'clock this morning." - -"It's the only boat in these waters that could do it," Tom replied, with -pardonable pride, as he sprang aboard. - -"Come back, captain, as soon as you land his honor," was Mr. Dunstan's -parting word. "If you pass the passenger steamer, watch for me at her -rail. I may signal you." - -Before she had left the pier three hundred yards behind, the nimble -motor boat was going at better than twenty miles an hour. Gradually the -speed was increased. Judge Swan stood on the bridge deck beside Tom. - -"It is really exciting to travel on a boat like this," commented his -honor, presently. "You must enjoy it, captain." - -"I do sir, when the engine works all right, which it does usually," -Halstead answered. - -The sea as smooth as ever, and no hindering breeze blowing, the craft -behaved splendidly, making within a notch of her best speed. In time -they left Martha's Vineyard behind, and headed out toward the big, green -island of Nantucket. - -"The engine isn't likely to break down this morning, is she?" asked the -judge, who had just returned from a smoke aft. - -"I don't think so, sir. It would make a sad mix-up in your court work if -we got stuck out here on the open sea, wouldn't it, sir?" - -"I imagine it would annoy my clerk a good deal," replied Judge Swan, -reflectively. "He would have to sit in court all day without me, and -then, when four o'clock came, he would, in my absence, be obliged to -declare court adjourned until nine o'clock to-morrow morning." - -"And in that case there wouldn't be any legal session of the court -to-day, would there, sir?" - -"There couldn't be a legal session in my absence. However, we'll trust -that your engine won't meet with any mishap," replied Judge Swan, -smiling and turning away. - -Tom Halstead's hands began to tremble as he guided the wheel. There was -a queer look in his eyes; his head was whirling a bit. - -Had Judge Swan purposely given him a hint? It was a staggering thought. -Halstead, when in doubt, was likely to think and act quickly. - -"Come and relieve me at the wheel for a few moments, Jed," he called. -Then, in a twinkling, the young skipper was down in the engine room. - -"Joe," he whispered, breathlessly, to his chum, "the judge just informed -me that, if anything went wrong with the engine, and we couldn't make -Nantucket before four o'clock, there would be no legal session of -probate court." - -"Did he mean that for a hint?" queried Joe, his look becoming keen. - -"I'll leave that for you to figure out, chum." - -"Where are we, now?" was Dawson's next question. - -Halstead informed him. - -"Say," muttered Joe, "I wish you'd go up on deck and stay there a while. -I want to attend to my work for a while." - -Tom went back up on deck, lounging near Jed, at the wheel. It wasn't -long before the speed slackened. Then, the boat slowed down to mere -headway. Even this soon ceased. - -"I'll try not to hinder you long," called up Joe, showing his face in -the hatchway. "I think I can soon get the engine fixed." - -"Use all the speed you can, Joe, but do it well, whatever has to be -done," Tom answered. Then he made his way aft to report to Judge Swan -that the engineer had said he hoped the motor would soon be in order -again. - -"Are there any books aboard?" his honor wanted to know. - -"There's a book-shelf in the cabin, sir." - -Judge Swan disappeared into the cabin. The next time Halstead looked aft -he saw the judge snug in one of the armchairs, reading. - -The place was ideal for such a breakdown. The "Meteor" lay almost -motionless upon the smooth sea, miles from land, with no troublesome -reefs near. Under the awnings it was delightfully cool. - -For an hour Joe remained in the motor room, neither Tom nor Jed -bothering him with their presence. Then Tom went aft to see if their -guest was comfortable. Judge Swan looked up with a pleasant smile. - -"If I didn't have that session of court on hand, captain, I wouldn't -mind if this break lasted all day." - -"It wouldn't be bad," the young skipper assented. "We have a good larder -and a fine young cook aboard." - -"How serious is the break?" inquired his honor. - -"Why, Dawson reports that he hopes very soon to be under way again." - -"I hope he won't hurry enough to interfere with thorough repair," -pursued Judge Swan. - -When Tom went forward again it occurred to him to take a look down into -the engine room. The sight that met his gaze was a surprising one. Joe -was lying on his back on one of the lockers, the first time he had ever -been asleep at his post! - -The time dragged on slowly. His honor, being wholly comfortable and well -occupied where he was, didn't come forward to ask any questions. - -"There's the forenoon boat coming," whispered Jed, at last. - -"Confound it," muttered Tom. "I wish I had thought to keep better out of -her track." - -The passenger steamer soon signaled. Tom answered on the auto whistle. - -Then the passenger steamer ran in closer to the motor boat. The captain -of the steamer, standing before the pilot house, megaphone in hand, -called over the waters: - -"Are you in distress?" - -"Only a temporary break in the engine," Tom answered, through his -megaphone. - -"Do you need any assistance?" - -"No, thank you," Halstead responded. - -"Do you wish to transfer any passengers?" - -Judge Swan came forward to the young skipper. At the same time Tom saw -Mr. Dunstan and Mr. Crane at the rail, among the boat's passengers. - -"How soon before you'll be under way, Captain Halstead?" asked his -honor. - -Now, Joe being fast asleep, Halstead had to answer for his friend. - -"Judge, we ought to be under way soon." - -"Then tell the captain of the steamer you've no passengers to transfer," -directed his honor, next starting aft once more. - -"No passengers to transfer, captain, thank you," Tom answered. - -"All right, 'Meteor.' Wish you good luck!" A moment later, after both -craft had whistled, the passenger steamer continued on her way. - -Now, it was too bad, of course, but noon came and found the "Meteor" -still unable to proceed. Soon after that Jed appeared, setting up a -table in the cockpit. A cloth was laid, and a pleasing luncheon spread -before the delayed judge. Joe came to at the first mention of food, and -the three members of the crew ate forward. - -"It's a mean thing to have such a break out on the open," Joe -complained, as he finished eating. "However, I'll do the best I can for -you." - -The afternoon began to slip by. It was considerably after three o'clock -when Joe thrust his head up through the hatchway to say: - -"Captain, if you'll be satisfied to go at slow speed, I think we can -make a start now." - -"Then start her, and keep to whatever speed your judgment decides upon," -Tom replied. Making his way aft he informed Judge Swan. - -"I am delighted to hear it, of course," replied that gentleman. "I must, -however, give you credit for commanding a boat aboard which a very -pleasant day of idleness can be enjoyed." - -The "Meteor" was soon going at a speed that seemed lame and halting for -her. She made the harbor at Nantucket, however, at 4.20, and landed her -distinguished passenger. Judge Swan shook hands with all three boys, -thanking them for his pleasant day. - -Knowing that Mr. Dunstan was not at Wood's Hole, Tom decided to make the -run straight to the home pier. Leaving Jed at the wheel, after they were -out of the harbor, the young skipper went below. - -"Joe," he asked soon, "what was wrong with the engine?" - -"The vaporizer," Joe replied briefly. - -"What ailed it?" - -"Why, you see," Dawson replied calmly, "after the speed stopped I -disconnected the vaporizer and put it in one of the lockers. Then, -somehow, I forgot all about that vaporizer for some hours. When I -thought of it I got it out of the locker, wiped it off on some waste, -connected it again--and then the engine began to behave fairly well." - -Tom's lips puckered. Whistling, he turned his face away from his chum, -looking out through one of the portholes. - -"What's the matter?" inquired Dawson, looking up in some surprise. - -"Joe," retorted the young skipper, "don't you think that was rather a -scurvy trick to play on justice?" - -"Trick?" repeated Joe in an injured voice. "Well, if you call that a -'trick,' my captain, then all I have to say is that Judge Swan didn't -seem to be very much upset about it." - -"There having been no legal session of probate court to-day," Tom went -on, "that gives our friends one day of grace in which to find Ted -Dunstan." - -"I wish it were a year more, instead of a day," sighed Dawson. - -"I wonder," muttered Tom, as though talking to himself. "I wonder -whether Judge Swan hinted himself aboard the 'Meteor' just so Joe could -play that scurvy, unmannerly trick against the blind goddess of justice? -I wonder!" - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII--THE MESSAGE UNDER THE ROCK - - -"And so you've gained until another day, anyway, sir," Tom wound up his -account of the "accident" to the "Meteor's" motor. - -"I fear it will do us but little good," sighed Horace Dunstan. "I feel -that possibility in the way of search has been exhausted. It looks as -though we were doomed to defeat." - -"I don't like to think, Mr. Dunstan, that any such thing as defeat is -possible as long as there's more time left us," was Halstead's answer. - -"I trust, my young friend, that your faith will be justified." - -"Any instructions for to-night, sir?" - -"No; nothing remains to be done and you young men deserve your rest at -last." - -"Then Joe and I may stretch our legs on shore." - -"That will be all right, as long as Jed Prentiss and Bouncer remain -aboard to watch the boat." - -Joe started first that night, hurrying away before Gambon had left his -cottage. Tom remained behind, in hiding near the gate, to follow the -Frenchman. Gambon came out, half an hour after dark, armed with the same -heavy walking stick. As before, he turned straight in the direction of -Nantucket the young skipper following just out of sight. - -To-night there seemed to be more need of caution. Several times the -Frenchman turned or halted and listened, but each time the young skipper -was not to be seen. - -Just before Gambon reached the grove where the rock lay Joe stepped up -beside his chum. - -"There's a message there and I read it," whispered Joe. - -"What was it?" Tom eagerly demanded. - -"Simply this: 'Oceanside, 332.'" - -"What do you make of that, Joe?" - -"Telephone number is my guess." - -"It must be. You put the message back under the rock?" - -"Yes, indeed." - -"Then, see here, Joe. I'm going to slip into the woods and hurry on -ahead to Nantucket. I'll find out where 'Oceanside, 332,' is. You follow -Gambon, and see if he goes to a telephone. If he does, try to hear -what's said. Whatever you do to-night, though, Joe, don't let Gambon get -out of your sight. Remember, slim as it is, it's our last chance!" - -"And you?" - -"All I can say," Tom replied, "is that you'll see me again, old fellow, -whenever and wherever we happen to meet. Good-by, now, and be sharp -to-night." - -"Good luck to you, Tom." - -Moving through the woods, Halstead was quickly in Nantucket. In a drug -store he picked up the telephone directory, scanning the pages until he -located "Oceanside, 332." He could have jumped from sheer excitement. It -was the telephone number of the farmer, Sanderson, on the east side of -the island. Sanderson was the man who had been receiving so many cases -of "machinery" from the mainland. - -Slipping out of the drug store, Halstead went swiftly down one of the -side streets. He did not want to run any risk of encountering Gambon. - -"So the scene shifts back to Sanderson's?" thought the young skipper -excitedly. "Then if Don Emilio's crowd isn't there, there must at least -be some one there who has authority to telephone orders to Gambon. -Whatever those orders are Joe will have to find out--if he can." - -Down at the further end of this side street, as Captain Tom knew, was a -shop where a bicycle could be rented. Within two minutes the boy felt -the saddle of a wheel under him. He pedaled fast, yet he did not take -the principal highway that led past Sanderson's. - -"There's too much chance of being seen by the wrong folks if I go openly -on the main road," Tom told himself. - -From Jed he had learned the lay of the roads in that part of the island. -Well trained to sailing by chart, Halstead found that he could pick his -roads and paths, even at night, from the mental map of the east side of -the island that Jed had supplied him. - -When he dismounted it was on a side road, at a distance of a quarter of -a mile from Sanderson's house. Most of the land between was covered by -young woods. - -First of all, Halstead looked about for a thicket that offered a secure -hiding place for his rented wheel. When that had been stowed away the -young skipper secured his bearings once more. - -"And now to see what's going on at Sanderson's to-night, and who's -there," Halstead told himself, as he plunged through the woods in what -he knew must be the right direction. - -After a few minutes he came out in the open. Ahead the well-remembered -old farmhouse showed dimly in the darkness. - -The night was so dark that Tom could easily approach the house, though -he kept a keen lookout against running unexpectedly into anyone. -Cautiously he surveyed the house from all sides. The two lower floors -were in darkness and had a closed-up appearance. Through one of the rear -attic windows, however, a bright light shone and the sash was raised. - -"Sanderson, Don Emilio and some of the others may be meeting up there," -thought Halstead with a sudden thrill of wonder. "Oh, if I can only find -a way to get up there and listen!" - -As he stood, well in the shadow of a carriage shed, staring up at that -lighted window, a hum of low voices came to his ears. - -"Gracious!" muttered the young skipper, stepping further back into the -shadow. "There's crowd enough down here on the ground." - -On came a group of men, trudging like laborers going to their toil. Dark -as the night was, not one of them carried a lantern. From their course -it looked as though they came up from the shore. In his eagerness Tom -bent forward more, that he might scan them. His eyes were keen-sighted -in the dark. - -"There's Don Emilio," Halstead told himself. "I'd know him by his size -and his walk. And there's Jonas French. There's the little brown chap, I -think, who helped to capture Joe the other night. And that stooping -figure at the rear is Sanderson. But there are four others." - -"I am not used to this hard work, but I will do all I can," Tom heard -Don Emilio complain, as the group stopped before one of the larger -outbuildings, while Sanderson drew out a key and unfastened a padlock. - -"Whew!" Tom Halstead thrilled more intensely than before when he saw the -men come out of the other building, two and two, each pair carrying a -long box. "This must be one of their big nights. Yet what on earth is -up?" - -He was destined, soon, to be able to make a good guess. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX--THE SIGHT BEHIND THE ATTIC LIGHT - - -"All right?" asked Farmer Sanderson questioningly. - -"All right," agreed Don Emilio. Click went the padlock. - -"All wrong, I'll bet a hundred cookies," mocked Tom Halstead under his -breath. - -"Come along, now," directed Don Emilio. He seemed to be the leader in -to-night's work. - -"I don't believe I'm included in that invitation to 'come along,' but -I'm going to cheek my way along," grinned the young skipper. - -He had no need to keep them exactly in sight, these industrious workers -in the dark. Laden as they were, it was enough to keep within sound of -the rather regular shuffle of their feet. - -As Tom had surmised, the four pairs of men, keeping together, proceeded -toward the shore. Once, on the way down the slope, they halted to give -the weaker ones an opportunity to rest their muscles. Then, picking up -their heavy cases once more, the men went on down the slope toward the -pier. - -"That is the stuff that was billed under 'machinery' labels!" muttered -the young skipper to himself. "I'll wager those boxes contain guns and -cartridges to start a new revolution with down in stormy Honduras. But -is their filibustering craft here? Are they getting ready to sail before -daylight? If that's the game, then I must get awfully busy." - -As Tom, taking advantage of the uneven ground and dodging behind bushes -and trees, followed unobserved and came within sight of the pier he made -out with certainty that no craft was tied there. - -"That doesn't prove a lot, though," he reflected, watching the -procession of toilers from behind a bush. "If they have a tug or some -other steam vessel it could slip in here two hours before daylight and -be away again in another hour. But what's that? Where are they going -now?" - -In the darkness it was not quite easy to see more than that the -procession had moved into the shadow of a depression in the ground near -the pier. Crawling that he might not be seen against the dim skyline, -Halstead secured another point of observation. He thought, now, he could -make out the outlines of a small building. - -"I'll wait until the crowd gets away from there before I try for a -closer look," thought the young motor boat skipper. - -Nor had he long to wait ere the same eight filed by not far from his -hiding place. Halstead watched until they were out of sight behind -Sanderson's house. - -Then the youthful investigator slipped down the slope and into the -shadow. He went cautiously, though, for fear that Don Emilio might have -posted a guard below. - -There was none, however. Tom found himself staring at what looked like a -new boathouse on shore, such as is used for the winter storing of yachts -or motor boats. There were no windows. The door, a strong affair, was -secured by a padlock. - -"If they're putting the stuff in there and locking it up, then they -don't intend to ship it to-night," Halstead wisely decided. - -He had learned, apparently, all that was to be learned at this point. To -keep his eyes upon the case-carrying toilers might mean only to witness -a repetition of the same monotonous work through all the night. - -"That one bright light up in the attic," Halstead wondered, the memory -of it coming back to him. "I wonder what's going on up there? And I mean -to know, too." - -Satisfied that he knew all about the waterfront business, Halstead took -such a wide, curving sweep in getting back to the farmhouse that he ran -no risk of running into the busy eight. - -Once more he sought the deep shadow of the wagon shed, from which point -he stared long and wonderingly. - -Beneath that attic window was a kitchen annex of one story. And Tom made -out, presently, that a lightning rod ran down the back of the main -building close to that brilliantly lighted window on the third floor. -The rod touched the roof of the kitchen annex, running thence down to -the ground. - -"It's a job for stocking feet, anyway," Halstead decided at last. Having -removed his shoes and feeling about in the dark, the young skipper ran -his hand against a coil of rope hanging on a peg. - -"Good enough!" he cried inwardly. "I don't believe there are many -climbing jobs where a rope won't come in handy." - -As he removed the coil of rope from the peg he discovered a few lengths -of cord. These he stuffed into one of his pockets. - -"For I can't tell what kind of a sling I may need to rig before I get -through," he thought. - -The busy eight were returning from still another trip to the water -front. Halstead stopped all movement, remaining utterly quiet until they -had started shoreward with the next load. - -"Now I've got to work fast," thought Captain Tom thrilling. "I reckon -it's about fifteen minutes between their arrivals here. That means fast -work, my boy." - -Shoes in hand, the coil of rope fast at his waist, Halstead stole out -toward the southern side of the kitchen annex. Leaving his shoes on the -ground Tom found it an easy task to climb up onto the roof of the annex. -Now he felt carefully of the lightning rod, next giving it harder and -harder pulls, to make sure that it was strong enough to hear his weight. -That point settled, Halstead began to ascend. It was not a difficult -task for a boy trained aboard seagoing craft. - -Up and up he went, making little if any sound. At last he was able to -lean outward from the rod, resting one elbow on the ledge of the lighted -window. Yet, on peering into the room the young skipper received a shock -that almost caused him to lose his hold on the lightning rod. - -At the further end of the bare-looking attic stood a plain pine table, -which held a reading lamp that gave a strong light. With his back to the -window, seated in a rocking chair and his feet on another chair, lounged -a boy, reading. - -Even with his back turned, the unseen face bent over a book, that boy -was known beyond the possibility of a doubt to Tom Halstead. - -"Ted Dunstan, himself!" the young skipper almost cried aloud. - -Not for one moment did Halstead even think of slipping down from the -window and running for help. If he did so Ted was as likely as not to be -gone upon his return. - -"I've got to get him out of here, and on the jump, too," puzzled the -young captain. "But how is the thing to be done?" - -An appeal to young Ted himself would be worse than useless. That young -heir, as the spy at the window knew, had altogether too complete a faith -in his present comrades. - -While Tom still hung on there another happening caused his heart to bump -against his ribs. The busy eight were returning. He could hear the light -tread on gravel under their feet. - -Not a second was to be lost. Inwardly breathing a prayer, Halstead -raised himself to the window sill with the utmost stealth. In another -moment he was over the sill and in the room on his stockinged tip-toes. -Ted did not turn. Plainly he was too absorbed in his book to suspect any -other presence. Not daring, of course, to remain near the window, which -would place him in sight of the busy eight in the yard, as soon as they -should reach the outbuildings, Halstead slid noiselessly along the wall, -pressing his hands against it. His strained, intense look was all the -time on the unsuspecting Dunstan heir. - -"Ho, ho, ho!" chuckled Master Ted, throwing his head back, but he did -not look around. Evidently something in the book on his lap amused him -immensely. - -Tom stood there, still praying under his breath, praying that the eight -might quickly take up their new burdens and hasten shoreward. - -At last there came the sound of crunching against gravel. Tom, trying to -stifle the sound of his own breathing, listened intently until the dying -out of sounds outside made him believe that the men were once more out -of the way. - -Now trembling in every muscle, Halstead stole forward toward the Dunstan -heir. The floor creaked; he stopped short in great alarm. For Halstead -felt certain that, somewhere near at hand, there must be some one -intrusted with the responsibility of watching over this young heir. - -Master Ted, however, did not turn. Taking heart Tom stole forward as -softly as ever Indian trod. Crouching, he was near enough now to reach -out and touch the back of young Dunstan. - -Of a sudden Halstead made the plunge. He leaped forward with the agility -of a panther, fairly yanking Ted Dunstan out of the rocking chair and -dropping him softly on the floor beside it. - -Taken in this fashion, Master Ted would have let out a lusty yell. Yet -the instant he opened his mouth Tom Halstead's fingers gripped at his -throat, shutting off the youngster's wind. - -"I don't want to hurt you," whispered Halstead sharply yet half -apologetically. "But I've got to keep you quiet no matter what I have to -do to you." - -Ted's face betrayed absolute fear as well as unmistakable loathing, as -that choking shut off his breath. His mouth opened, his tongue lolling -out. - -"Now you may breathe again, if you'll keep quiet," Tom informed him. -"But, remember--I _won't_ have any noise!" - -As soon as he could breathe again panting Ted's wits also began to -clear. He raised one of his feet, as he lay prostrate with Halstead -a-top of him, and brought that heel down against the floor. Halstead -promptly threw his own body so that Master Ted could not again raise -either foot. - -"I see that I've got to go to extreme measures with you; you don't -understand that I'm deadly in earnest," panted Tom, finding that this -wiry, out-of-door, agile boy of ten could be wonderfully slippery. "Now -listen, Ted Dunstan. If you don't want me to be ugly and to choke you -until your senses fade, then prepare to mind me. Now then roll over on -your face--and don't you _dare_ to make any noise doing it." - -A good deal cowed by the fierce glint in Tom's eyes, Ted almost -passively obeyed, though the young skipper was obliged to roll the young -man himself. - -"Keep those feet quiet now," whispered Tom in the little fellow's ear. -"We've got to the point where nonsense won't be safe for you. Now open -your mouth!" - -Ted firmly pressed his lips together, gritting his teeth. Yet Tom knew a -trick of wrestling that forced the young man to open his mouth. Plump -into that mouth went one of Halstead's wadded handkerchiefs, stopping -the youngster's tongue down and holding his jaws apart. - -Satisfied that Ted was gagged, Tom forced another handkerchief between -the teeth, knotting it behind the smaller boy's head. Then, with abrupt -suddenness, the young skipper bent the little fellow's hands behind him, -though not too roughly, and bound the wrists in the best sailorman's -fashion. Now Tom turned about, using more of the cord in his pockets to -lash the heels of the Dunstan heir securely together. This accomplished, -Captain Tom examined all his knots to make sure that none of them was so -poorly tied as to cause him regret later on. Then, on tip-toe, he stole -over to the door. There was a bolt on it unsecured. Tom softly slipped -the bolt into place. There was now no danger of unannounced interference -from that direction. - -Going back to the angry and astounded Dunstan heir, Halstead knelt -beside him. - -"Master Ted, I know you feel ugly about me and you hate me just at this -minute. You think I'm your enemy and your father's. The scoundrels -you've been running with have told you that. The truth is, your father, -though not an old man, is aging fast on account of the agony your -disappearance has caused him. The time isn't far away when you'll know -that we've all been doing our best, in the face of many dangers, to -serve a boy who was foolish enough not to want to be served." - -Captain Tom had raised young Dunstan's head and had looked into the -latter's eyes while telling him this. But Master Ted glared back only a -message of distrust and defiance. - -"I've got you now where you can't stand in the way of your own good -luck, if only I can once get you away from this house," Tom went on in a -whisper, his mouth close to one of the youngster's ears. "_You_ can't -hinder, anyway." - -Then, with one hand resting heavily on Ted, to prevent any slight -possibility of movement by that youngster, Halstead continued kneeling -and listening. - -At last there came to him the sound for which he had waited--the -crunching of feet on the gravel outside. Now Halstead became busy again. -Uncoiling the rope at his waist he rigged a secure slip-noose at one -end. This he made fast around Ted's body, under his bound arms. When the -sounds without indicated that the eight men were again leaving for the -shore, the young captain raised his light human burden, stealing toward -the window. - -[Illustration: Tom Pushed the Heir Through the Window.] - -There was not a sound outside. Tom Halstead pushed the Dunstan heir -through the window, lowering him swiftly to the kitchen annex. The young -motor boat captain then descended by the lightning rod. He carried Ted, -naturally unresisting, to the edge of the annex, lowering him to the -ground. Halstead went down himself at a bound, landing on his feet. In a -fever of anxiety he found his shoes, swiftly lacing them on. - -Now slipping off the noose, Tom loosely coiled the rope about one arm. -Lifting Ted Dunstan, Captain Halstead fled straight across the rear yard -and in among the trees. - -"There, I hope we've got you away from that crowd," panted Tom, putting -his unwilling companion down. "But we've got to hustle, so you'll have -to use your own feet a bit. Woe unto you, though, if you try any tricks -on the stranger who happens to be your best friend at this moment!" - -Hiding the rope in a thicket near by; Halstead quickly slashed away the -cord at Ted Dunstan's ankles. - -"Now you'll come along with me and you'll come mighty fast!" breathed -Captain Tom resolutely, as he seized one of the boy's arms. - -At first Ted acted as though he intended to drag, but the quality of -muscle in the young motor boat skipper's arms must have shown him the -folly of such tactics, for presently he trotted at the older boy's side. - -Yet they had not gone more than two hundred yards before something else -happened. Out from behind a tree shot a human figure. Its owner sprang -at Tom Halstead, locking him in a sturdy embrace. Down to the ground -went Halstead and his assailant, rolling over and over in fierce, -battling embrace. - -Ted Dunstan lost not an instant in seeing and seizing his opportunity. -His feet, at least, free and able, that youngster whirled and dashed -back toward the farmhouse. - - - - -CHAPTER XX--BLIND MAN'S BUFF IN FEARFUL EARNEST - - -For a few seconds the two combatants fought strenuously in the darkness. - -"Now, I've got you!" growled the assailant, wrapping his arms around -young Captain Halstead. - -But that astounded youth only gasped: - -"Joe!" - -"Tom! Pompey's ghost! Is this you?" - -Joe Dawson rolled swiftly from his point of vantage, and the chums -sprang instantly to their feet. - -"That was Ted Dunstan who got away," quivered Halstead. - -"I know it," admitted Joe. "I thought you were one of the other crowd. I -had eyes only for him, when I saw him." - -"Quick, then!" - -They could hear Master Ted running, somewhat uncertainly, in the woods, -with which he seemed to be unfamiliar. Yet he was nearing the opening -where the house stood. - -After him pelted both motor boat boys. Ted heard them coming, of course, -and increased his speed. Yet Ted must have gotten into the opening, but -for an accident. One of his feet tripped over something. Down he went, -and, with his hands tied behind him, it was not the simplest task in the -world for him to get on his feet again. Just as he did accomplish it, -Tom and Joe reached him, grasping him on either side. Ted made a slight, -useless struggle, but what he did succeed in doing was to kick a tree -rather resoundingly. - -The busy eight, unsuspicious until then, had just returned to the rear -yard. Some of them heard that kick against the tree. - -"What was that noise?" demanded Don Emilio. - -"Nothing," replied Jonas French. - -"Come on! I want to make sure, anyway. Hasten!" - -Tom, leading the way, and Joe, bringing up the rear with Ted Dunstan -gripped in his arms, were in motion, but Don Emilio and several of his -comrades pursued at lively speed. - -"There's some one running in these woods," called back Don Emilio. -"Spread out, and travel fast!" - -When they had gone some little distance Tom fell back, snatching Ted -from Joe's arms. They ran until they came to a low-hanging thicket. -Burdened as the motor boat boys were, the race must prove an unequal -one. Joe halted at the thicket, holding out his arm to stop Tom. The two -crept in under there with their burden, Joe holding the Dunstan heir's -feet. - -And just in time, too, for Don Emilio and Jonas French went by within -striking distance. - -"Whoever it was didn't get as far as the road," the boys heard Don -Emilio declare, not far away. "French, you stay here. If you see a -living figure in the road you'll know what to do. I'll send another man -to watch with you. These woods have got to be searched." - -Just at that moment some one else must have reached Don Emilio Alvarez -and must have reported, for the Honduran's voice screamed: - -"What do you say? The youngster's gone from the attic? Listen, men! Let -nothing stand in your way, now. We must have that boy back. We'll watch -the road and drag the woods. Waste no sympathy on any meddler you find!" - -It was at once made plain to the motor boat boys that Don Emilio and his -comrades were now frantic. Everywhere could be heard the steps, or the -low voices of the searchers. Tom and Joe dreaded capture at each -instant. Dawson had made it his task to secure Ted's feet again, and to -hold them doubly secure with his own hands. - -Once, as some of the searchers went by, Gambon's voice was heard. Joe -nudged his chum; the latter understood how the young engineer of the -"Meteor" had come so handily upon the scene through trailing the -Frenchman here. Not once, after they had hidden themselves, did the -motor boat boys dare to stir. Their covering, though dense enough in the -dark, was thin at best. Two or three times some of the searchers passed -by within a yard of those they sought. At such times Ted Dunstan's body -shook with suppressed emotion. But he was so tied and held that he could -not make a sign to betray himself. Whenever the seekers came close -Halstead reached out a hand holding the young heir's nostrils closed, so -that he could not even sniff. - -The conviction of Don Emilio that his longed-for prey was close at hand -was shown by the repeated searchings over an area of barely more than -five acres. The time even slipped into hours without the hunt being -abandoned. - -Half the time Tom and Joe felt as though their hearts were up in their -throats, so close did discovery seem. The first gray streaks of dawn -showed at last, but Don Emilio would not agree that the chase extend -beyond this strip of lonely woods. - -"It is more important than anything else could be that we should find -the boy," Tom heard the Honduran explain to Gambon. "And daylight will -show that they have not gotten away from here. It was here that the -sounds of flight stopped. Somewhere, within a stone's throw or two we -shall yet come upon the meddlers in hiding. I shall not give up." - -"Confound him," whispered Joe, a little later, in his chum's ear. -"Before this I always admired persistency." - -Following the first dawn the light came in more strongly. Now, the two -chums crouched more closely than ever, also seeing to it that Master Ted -was forced to lie as flat as possible. - -Joe Dawson, lying flat on his stomach, peering out beyond their retreat, -moved one of his feet restlessly. Something made him turn to glance -behind him. With that he began to slide slowly backward. His feet went -further and further into a narrow hole. Then, after nudging Halstead in -one leg, Dawson crept back until only his shoulders were exposed. Tom -watched his chum in overjoyed wonder. Joe's next performance was to -vanish from sight. Then, very soon, he wriggled silently out again, -until his lips were beside one of his comrade's ears. - -"There's a hole running into that hummock there," Dawson explained. "It -is a crampy little bit of a hole, but it will conceal all three of us. -Let's work Ted in there first." - -This they proceeded to do, though with intense stealth and no hurry. -They got Ted out of sight under the ground, at last, then more speedily -concealed themselves. - -"Fine, Joe, fine!" cheered Halstead, in a chuckling whisper. "Our -chances of not being found have improved a hundred times!" - -"If only Alvarez and his infernal crew will get away from this spot," -Joe whispered, in answer. "But the day that is beginning is absolutely -the last day to save Ted's fortune to him. If we trip up to-day there -isn't a chance of any kind left. He'll simply lose!" - -Tom kept his face close enough to the opening in the ground so that he -could see outside for some little distance, and yet was sure that he -himself was enough in the shadow not to be seen from outside. - -By the time that the sun was well up Don Emilio insisted on another keen -search. This time French and Gambon even trod through the edge of the -thicket that had concealed the boys during the darkness. But the mouth -of the hole under the hummock was still hidden from their eyes by other -bushes. - -By the time that the sun had been up for some time quiet had fallen in -these woods. Tom and Joe might have felt tempted to make a sudden break -for freedom, but the scratch of a match, not far away, warned them that -at least one watcher was still in hiding. - -"I wonder what time it is," thought tormented Halstead, his mind ever -upon that fateful session of probate court over at Nantucket. He got his -watch out, holding it before his face. Then he made an appalling -discovery. He had forgotten to wind up the time-piece, and it had run -down. - -"Your watch going, Joe?" the young skipper asked. - -"No," Dawson whispered back, after a moment spent in investigation. - -"This is a pretty fix. We can't even guess how much time we have left to -get out of here and over to Nantucket." - -It was not long after that a gentle sound attracted Halstead's notice to -his friend. Sleepless and worn out, Dawson had fallen into slumber. - -"That'll be all right," thought Tom, "if only he doesn't snore. If he -does, I'll have to hold his nose and pull him out of it." - -As for Ted, the idea of making a snoring sound didn't seem to have -occurred to him, or he would have tried it. Tom moved closer to the -little fellow, that he might be at hand to prevent any such attempt to -send warning outside their cramped retreat. - -Whizz-zz! It was an automobile going by at high speed. It passed and was -gone, almost at once, but the sound gave Tom a good idea how close they -lay to the road. Yet it was surely a lonely road, little traveled, for -time went dragging by without any other sound of travel. - -"I'd feel starving if I weren't so fearfully anxious," thought Tom. "Joe -is lucky that he can sleep. He'll forget how awfully hungry he is. As -for poor Ted, his mixture of feelings must be something wonderful!" - -In time, Halstead found himself fighting drowsiness. The very thought -that he might fall asleep so filled him with fright that he became -alertly awake. Slumber and a snore or two might be enough to break their -last slim chance of winning out for the Dunstans. - - - - -CHAPTER XXI--THE LAST DASH TO WIN - - -"What time is it, anyway?" breathed Joe. - -That youth had awakened at last. He and Tom were discussing in whispers -what it was best to do. While they were still deliberating, a scraping -as though of a knife in a pipe-bowl, not a hundred yards away, had told -them that watchers were still about. That had brought out Joe's -question. - -"I don't know. I'm going to see if I can make a guess," hazarded -Halstead. - -He crawled forward, thrusting his head a little beyond the mouth of the -hole, though still concealed by the thicket. - -He tried to get at the position of the sun in the sky, but at first the -limited view he could obtain was bewildering. At last, however, Halstead -guessed at the position of the sun with a result that made him feel -heartsick. - -"Joe," he faltered, after wriggling back into the hole, "I'm sure it -must be afternoon. At that rate, we're in our last minutes of chance. If -we reach Nantucket later than four o'clock we might about as well not -get there at all." - -"I'm with you for the dash, then," breathed Joe, hard. "I don't doubt -though, that the Alvarez crowd will go to any extreme, even shooting, if -they get sight of us. They're just as desperate as we feel. However, -when you're ready to lead the dash, pass the word, and I'll hand Ted -Dunstan out." - -An impatient snort came from that helpless young man. - -"Now, see here," whispered Joe, warningly, as he gripped tightly at the -heir's arm, "just leave any sign of noise out. If you don't--well, -you'll find me bad-tempered when I get roused." - -Tom once more stuck his head out into the thicket. He had no doubt that -it was already afternoon. Yes, surely, all must be risked on the one -last dash to win. - -As he looked about him, and listened, he heard a new sound. It made his -heart beat fast. The sound was such as would come from the slow-running -gear of an automobile. - -"Hear it, Joe?" he whispered, drawing his head in. - -"Yes!" - -"Stay here. Don't venture out, unless I call you, Joe. But I'm going to -try to get out and stop that machine. The Alvarez crew wouldn't, or -oughtn't, dare do anything too ugly with other folks at hand. I'm going -to risk it, anyway." - -An instant later Tom Halstead's body was half-way out of the hole, -though still concealed by the friendly thicket. He waited until he -judged that the approaching automobile was close at hand on the nearby -road. - -Just as he was about to spring forth Halstead realized that even the -auto might be a part of the Alvarez equipment. Yet, on the one last -breath of a chance nothing was to be wasted by hesitation. - -Judging the sound intently, Captain Tom suddenly leaped forth from the -hole, out of the thicket, and sprinted headlong for the road. Nor had he -misjudged his time. A touring car was coming along, less than fifty feet -away, as Halstead reached the low stone wall. There were, including the -man at the steering wheel, four men in the car. - -"Stop! stop!" shouted Tom, waving his cap. "It's fearfully important!" - -As the car rolled to a stop, and the men in it leaned forward, Captain -Tom experienced another great throb. One of the men in the rear seat he -recognized as an officer who had joined in the search on the first day -of Ted's disappearance. - -"Oh, Mr. Warren, get out here, quick!" appealed the young skipper. -"There's real and swift work in your line as deputy sheriff!" - -Halstead's excited manner and white face were enough, in themselves, to -carry conviction. Warren and another man leaped from the tonneau, each -reaching carelessly at a hip pocket as though to make sure that a weapon -was securely there. - -"Yes, yes!" cried, the delighted young motor boat skipper. "Get your -pistols out. You may need 'em." - -Then, wheeling, Tom shouted back: - -"Joe! Come here on the jump! It's all safe, now!" - -There was a sound of scrambling back at the thicket and hummock. Next, -Dawson almost flung Ted Dunstan ahead of him, then sprang out, snatching -up the slight body in his arms and running toward them. - -"Now, let us into your car, and let us get away from here," begged Tom, -while Warren, staring at Joe's burden, gasped: - -"You've got----" - -"The Dunstan heir!" Halstead finished for him. "And the Alvarez crew are -thick about here. Don't lose a moment." - -Joe leaped into the tonneau, passing up his burden ahead of him. The -rest crowded in. The man at the steering wheel let out a few notches of -speed, and the car shot ahead. For a few seconds nothing was heard from -any hostile watcher. Then a rifle report sounded, crisp and brisk, and a -bullet sang by close over their heads. - -"I'm not going to have the law made a target of in that fashion," -uttered Warren. "Stop the auto, and I'll go back to give them all the -fight they want." - -"But wait until we get the Dunstan lad safe in Nantucket," begged -Halstead. - -"I guess you're right about that," nodded the deputy sheriff. - -Instead of stopping, the man at the steering wheel had put on a burst of -speed. - -Ted, bound and gagged, just as he had been, was being held on the knee -of one of the men. - -"What time is it!" inquired Captain Tom. - -"Twenty-five minutes of four," replied Warren, hauling out his watch. - -"Less than half an hour to fix up everything!" gasped Tom his face -blanching. "Oh, we must do some tall hurrying!" - -"Why, we can be in the village in ten minutes," replied Deputy Sheriff -Warren, soothingly. - -"Yes, but this young man's father and lawyer must be in court, too, -before four o'clock. Stop at the very first house where you see a -telephone wire running in, will you?" - -Within two minutes the man at the steering wheel began to slow down. He -ran up before a cottage, stopping at the gate. - -Tom leaped out before the car came to a full stop. Running to the door, -he encountered a pleasant-faced young woman. - -"Let me use your telephone, in a hurry, will you?" panted Halstead. -"It's on the law's business." - -"Why, yes, of course," replied the woman, smiling at the youth's -flushed, excited face. - -She pointed to the instrument in the hall. - -"Give me Horace Dunstan's place, on the _west_ shore, like lightning, -will you, Central?" begged Tom, as soon as he had rung. - -He got the Dunstan place. The butler answered that Mr. Dunstan was not -at home, but at the Stillman House in Nantucket, with Mr. Crane. - -"Oh, it's you, is it, Captain Tom?" continued the butler. "You and -Dawson being away, the master imagined that you might be on the track of -the young gentleman. So, this afternoon, right after luncheon, Mr. -Dunstan and Mr. Crane went over to the Stillman House to wait for any -news that might come." - -"I've found Master Ted, and we're trying to rush him to the court house -in time. I'll call up Mr. Dunstan, thank you." - -With that he rung off, asking for the Stillman House. Nor did it need -more than a few seconds to get that anxious father to the telephone. He -had been waiting for such a call, hoping against hope. - -In the fewest words possible Halstead told his employer the bare news of -finding the Dunstan heir, adding that they were now on the way to the -court house with him. - -"Be over there, you and Mr. Crane," urged Halstead, feverishly. "We will -do our best to reach you in time. Now--we've got to hustle--good by, -sir!" - -Again ringing off, then uttering a breathless "Thank you," and leaving a -quarter of a dollar to pay tolls, Tom dashed out of the house. - -Just as he had disappeared into the house, Warren turned to Joe, asking -curiously: - -"Why have you got the lad bound and gagged in this fashion?" - -"Because he wouldn't come any other way," retorted Joe. - -"Can't we just as well remove the cords and the gag, now?" insisted the -deputy sheriff. - -"Yes; if you'll he responsible for his not getting away," agreed Dawson. - -"Oh, I won't let him get away, if he's foolish enough to want to," -promised Warren. He freed the young man. As soon as he could talk Ted -broke forth, angrily: - -"This is all a wicked shame! My father wanted me to keep out of the way -for the present. These boys have been meddling from the start. My father -will be awfully angry with them, and with you all." - -"He will, eh?" queried Warren, good-humoredly. "Young man, do you know -that your father is nearly distracted over your absence, and that he has -had a lot of police officers and a small army of detectives hunting for -you all these days?" - -"I don't believe it," retorted Ted, stubbornly. "Anyway, I haven't -broken any law, and you've no right to keep me here. I'm going to get -out of this car." - -"I'm very sorry to say that you're not, at least not until I've seen -your father," rejoined the deputy. "My boy, I believe you've been badly -imposed upon by rascals. In any case, you'll stay right here with me -until some one older than you are changes the orders." - -At this moment Tom came running down the path from the house. - -"There's the fellow who's been the worst of the lot," cried Ted -bitterly, tears of rage shining in his eyes. - -"Has he?" smiled Warren. "Then I believe Halstead will come in for a -pretty handsome reward from your father." - -"Maybe," hinted Joe, "if you folks can get us into Nantucket and up at -the door of the probate court before the minute of four." - -"Start her up, please," begged Halstead, as his feet struck the running -board and he squeezed in among the tightly-packed crowd. "What time is -it now--exactly?" - -"Twelve minutes to four," responded Warren. - -"Whew! What if we miss?" quivered Halstead, his face again paling. - -"We won't," Warren assured him, as the car lurched forward. - -Nor would there have been any danger, but about a mile out of Nantucket -something went wrong with the gasoline flow. The man driving the car had -to get out and crawl under. Two others got out and helped him. Halstead, -who had wound and set his watch by the deputy's, sat watching the -fateful minutes slip by. In a very short time the car was ready to go on -again. - -"I'll speed her now," promised the man at the steering wheel. "It's make -or break." - -It was barely one minute before four when the touring car raced in sight -of the court building. In Nantucket the news had spread like wildfire -and now a crowd of hundreds of residents and summer guests had collected -before the court building. But at the gate of the grounds, each with a -watch in his hand, stood Horace Dunstan and Lawyer Crane. - -"Here they come, Crane, thank heaven!" breathed Mr. Dunstan, tears of -joy springing up in his eyes. "Now rush, man--_rush!_" - -Inside the court room Judge Swan sat on the bench. Down below stood a -solitary clerk. Two court officers lounged listlessly. Judge Swan, -having no case before him, was sorting some papers. He looked up to say: - -"Mr. Clark, if there's no further business to come before the court -to-day, you may declare it adjour----" - -"_One moment, your honor!_" - -Lawyer Crane fairly ran into the court room breathless, waving a paper -above his head as though to attract attention. - -At that same instant a great, rousing, hoarse cheer began to well up -outside. - -"I will ask the court to remain on the bench one or two minutes more," -called the lawyer imploringly. "My clients, Mr. Horace Dunstan and his -son will appear before you instantly." - -Then father and son entered. The two court officers had already stirred -themselves into life to hold back the crowd of hundreds that attempted -to rush in also. Judge Swan nodded to the clerk, and the lawyer, finding -that his appeal was heard and granted, lost his excitement, becoming -once more the cool, methodical man of affairs. - -Tom and Joe, and the officers waited in the corridor in case they should -be asked to make oath to their adventures. But the court not having been -in session the day before, thanks to Joe's accident, all that was -necessary was for the judge to question the two Dunstans, to affix his -signature to certain papers and to order the will of Aaron Dunstan -entered for probate. - -It was all over in ten minutes and court was promptly adjourned, and -Master Ted's great inheritance was secured to him if he lived up to all -of the requirements of that remarkable document. - -As the two Dunstans came out again the crowd surged about them in a -craze of hoarse excitement. Tom and Joe were caught up by men and -carried on their shoulders. It was a wild turmoil of laughter, cheering -and shouting. - -Laughing good-naturedly both boys presently escaped from those who were -carrying them. Tom tried to push his way back to the Dunstans. The crowd -tried to make way for him, but it could not all be done in an instant. -While one of the young captain's hands was behind him he felt a piece of -paper thrust against the palm. - -As soon as he could, in that great crush, Halstead brought his hand -before him. On it, in scrawling letters, had been penned these words: - -"It is all over--except your reward." - -Reward? Tom Halstead understood that message in an instant. It was a -plain threat from the balked Alvarez crew. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII--JED RUNS A NAVAL BOMBARDMENT - - -"Get into my machine, all hands," urged Deputy Sheriff Warren. "It's the -only way ever to get out of this crush." - -Those who could not sit in the auto had to stand, wedged in, as Warren, -clearing a way as fast as he could, got the various members of the party -to the car. Then, with a toot of the horn, the machine started. - -"I want to get you all over to the hotel to see what is to be done in -the way of prosecution," the deputy explained to Mr. Dunstan. "Your -lawyer can help us, too, if he will." - -Horace Dunstan had as yet had time to have but a very few words with his -now astonished son. As soon, however, as the party got in a room by -themselves Master Ted stepped quickly over to Halstead, holding out his -hand. - -"I put up as good a fight against you as I could, captain," he said, -"but now I want to apologize and thank you." - -"I knew that time would come," Halstead laughed, as he took the younger -boy's hand. - -"Now we want to understand a few things," broke in Lawyer Crane. "Master -Theodore, you have told us that you went away with strangers in -obedience to what you considered written instructions from your father. -Who handed you that note?" - -"Gambon, dad's gardener." - -"What did the note say?" - -"The note said my inheritance was in great danger, and the two boys dad -had hired to run the 'Meteor' were in the plot against me. I was told to -go to the men to whom Gambon would take me and to follow their -instructions in everything for a few days." - -"And you believed all that?" demanded the lawyer. - -"Yes. Why not?" challenged Master Ted. "I thought the note was in dad's -own writing and he had always told me the truth about everything." - -"Did those men treat you roughly?" inquired the lawyer. - -"Never a bit of it," replied young Dunstan. "I thought I was having the -best time of my life. It was such fun to be in the woods, hiding from -the plotters, as they told me, and then scooting about from place to -place to get rid of our enemies, as I also thought. And we had a lot of -fine fishing. Oh, it was all a great good time--until Tom Halstead -pounced upon me and bore me away." - -"Where is that scoundrel, Gambon, now?" asked Lawyer Crane, looking -around at the others. - -"He ought to be out at the Sanderson farm or near there," replied Joe. -"I trailed him there and it was just after Gambon had slipped up to the -farmhouse that I ran against Tom in the dark." - -"We want that fellow, Gambon," shouted Mr. Dunstan angrily. "I'll pay a -good reward to have him caught and jailed." - -"Remember, we have only your son's evidence that Gambon handed him the -note," replied Mr. Crane. "There is no other witness on the point, -and----" - -Rap, rap, rap! sounded a brisk summons on the door. Warren admitted -three men, one of whom he seemed to know. - -"These gentlemen are United States officers," the deputy stated, coming -back with the visitors, after a few words exchanged in a low tone. "Mr. -Dunstan, this is Mr. Lawrence. The Government turned over to him the -letter you sent about Alvarez and that fellow's filibustering work." - -"I thought the Government intended to pay no attention to my letter," -said Mr. Dunstan. - -"At first our department couldn't take up the matter," replied Mr. -Lawrence. "All our men were busy. But Mr. Joyce," turning to indicate -one of his companions, "has been here on the island since yesterday -morning. His news, however, leads us to believe that the filibusters -will not attempt to get away from here with their unlawful cargo for a -few days yet." - -"Then perhaps Mr. Joyce does not know," put in Tom, "that Alvarez and -Sanderson have been moving that cargo from the farm buildings down to a -new shed near the pier." - -The United States officers looked at each other queerly at this -information. - -"I think," pursued young Captain Halstead, "that the Alvarez crew mean -to get their goods away to-night or to-morrow night." - -"This matter will have to have quick looking into," said Mr. Lawrence, -hastily. "But one thing we came here to learn is whether you intend to -prosecute any of that crowd under the state law?" - -"If you can get the Alvarez crowd under the federal law," said Lawyer -Crane, quickly, "I think you will be able to push the prisoners harder. -For one thing, we might be hampered by the fact that Alvarez and his -associates didn't actually steal young Dunstan, but lured him away. The -same thing, perhaps, but it might make a difference with a jury. What do -you say, Mr. Dunstan? Shall we forego prosecution in favor of giving the -national Government the best chance at the offenders?" - -"Why, after thinking it over a bit," rejoined Horace Dunstan, "I am -inclined to feel that I have won out over the rascals, and I can afford -to let it go by by laughing at them." - -"Good," nodded Inspector Lawrence. "Then, Mr. Dunstan, there are still -hundreds of people outside the hotel, talking over the whole wonderful -story. Why don't you go out, the local officers and your lawyer with -you? The crowd will be sure to yell for a speech. Make them a little -one, and in it state that you consider the joke is on your enemies. Add -that you have therefore forgiven that other crowd, and that you will -show it by attempting no prosecution." - -"I'll do that if it will help you," replied Mr. Dunstan, after looking -at his lawyer, who nodded. - -"Dad, after this, if you send me notes," said Ted, "you'll have to have -a private way of signing your name, so I'll know the note really comes -from you." - -Warren had been explaining the story of the mystery, aside, to Inspector -Joyce, who now broke in: - -"Alvarez, as you may not know, was formerly a Mexican. A series of -forgeries, committed by him and detected, forced him to flee to -Honduras. So it is easy to understand how the note to young Dunstan was -forged." - -Ted again thanked Tom and Joe, and for that matter, the others who had -aided him. Then the Dunstan party prepared to go. - -"Halstead, you and your friend will remain, I hope," proposed Mr. -Lawrence. - -"Certainly he may remain," said Mr. Dunstan. "I fancy he can be of much -assistance to you, gentlemen. So will Dawson." - -"And Mr. Dunstan," suggested Lawrence, going after Ted's father, "may -we, if it seems necessary, use your boat to-night?" - -"I would be a poor citizen to refuse that to the Government's officers," -smiled Mr. Dunstan. "Certainly you may have the 'Meteor.'" - -Warren and his friends remained, but went to another side of the room. -Tom and Joe were invited to seat themselves and go over the whole story -with the Government officers. - -When Lawrence saw the note that had been pressed into Halstead's hand, -out in the crowded square, the inspector looked rather grave. - -"Yes, that defiance comes from Alvarez," he declared. "Now, Captain -Halstead, until the rascals have been taken, or driven from the country, -you will do well to be wholly on your guard. Alvarez, when driven into a -corner, is as desperate and remorseless as is the proverbial fighting -rat." - -"You're going over to Sanderson's place to-night, are you?" asked Joe, -after some more of the tale had been told. - -"Assuredly," replied Mr. Lawrence. "We shall have to watch every night -until an attempt is made to get the unlawful cargo out onto the high -seas. But I am afraid Alvarez and his crowd will be in hiding to-night, -fearing the local officers on account of the Dunstan business." - -"Did you hear the cheers outside?" asked one of Warren's companions, -entering at this moment. "Mr. Dunstan just made the requested speech. -There was a dead hush when he declared to the crowd that he had no idea -of attempting to prosecute the men who had lured his boy away. The crowd -was plainly disappointed." - -"It will be a good thing for us, if that news reaches the -Sanderson-Alvarez crowd," mused Mr. Lawrence. - -"I haven't a doubt that the pleasing news will reach 'em," smiled Tom -Halstead. "If they had a man in the crowd to force that note into my -hand, the same man must still be there and will take back any news that -he can." - -"Then we'll stop talking of this matter until we've fortified ourselves -with something to eat," proposed Mr. Lawrence. "Are you young men of the -'Meteor' hungry?" - -"Hungry?" echoed Halstead, feelingly. - -"No, I'm not really hungry," stated Joe. "At the same time if a nice -little lamb, roasted whole, tried to walk by me just now, it would show -great want of judgment on the lamb's part." - -"Then we'll go to supper," declared the inspector rising. "But you young -men would do well to keep away from us in the dining room, in case there -should be any watchers about for the Alvarez party. We can meet up here -again after the meal is over." - -When the boys, Warren's party and the three United States officers came -together again Mr. Lawrence proposed that Warren take Joe in the auto -over to the Dunstan place. Joe and Jed could bring the "Meteor" around -to a wharf in Nantucket harbor, and all could embark. - -"The trip could be made by land, in autos, of course," Inspector -Lawrence explained to Halstead. "But there's a possibility that we may -need to pursue a filibustering steam craft." - -Later on the hotel party sauntered down, in three or four groups, to the -wharf in question. By the time they arrived at the water front they made -out the "Meteor" just gliding into the harbor, Jed Prentiss at the wheel -and Joe in the engine room. The entire party quickly embarked, Tom now -taking the wheel. Darkness was just coming down as the "Meteor" with no -lights showing by Mr. Lawrence's order, stole around Great Point. Now, -Halstead let out a few more notches of speed, the boat going swiftly -down the east coast of the island. - -"Joe," murmured Tom, his eyes shining as his chum came up from the -engine room, "do you remember the 'great night' we had off the mouth of -the Kennebec?" - -"Yes," nodded Dawson, "but this is going to be easier for us. Instead of -one, there are seven officers aboard to-night, and the sea is almost -glassy. This won't be anything but a business trip, so to speak." - -Whether Joe was right in his prediction yet remained to be seen. At -Halstead's suggestion, made to Inspector Lawrence, the "Meteor" was run -quietly into a small cove, just north of a bend that, in daylight, would -have shut them out of a view of Sanderson's pier. As the motor boat was -carrying no lights Mr. Lawrence felt confident that they had made the -cove without having been discovered from lower down the coast. - -"We'll want two guides who know every foot of the way," decided Mr. -Lawrence. "Dawson will know the way to the outbuildings behind the -farmhouse, and the lay of the ground about there. Halstead, you can -pilot some of us over the ground near the pier. Now that the anchor is -overboard the 'Meteor' will be safe here. Prentiss can remain aboard. -Even if he discovered trouble threatening, he could raise the anchor and -slip swiftly out into open water. The 'Meteor' can show a vanishing -stern to any other boat in these waters." - -"And if you _should_ want to signal us for help, Jed," said Tom, a -moment later, bringing up on deck a box from one of the lockers, "here -are the signal rockets and Roman candles. Wait a moment." - -Tom disappeared below once more, to return with a tin-lined trough -affair. By means of two hooks he made this device fast at the port rail. -This "trough" was intended to rest a rocket in before touching it off -and sending it skyward. - -"I'll be snug and safe as anything," declared Jed, smiling. He felt -brave enough, in fact, until the dingey, going ashore for the second -time, carried the last of his companions. Then all was still, absolutely -quiet, lonely and black. Jed, being highly imaginative, began to fancy -he saw figures darting from tree to tree on shore. The bushes had a -mysterious look, for it was so nearly dark that he could just make out -their outlines. - -Prentiss had said of himself that he was a hero, in theory, but that -when danger faced him he was likely to forget much of his courage. There -are many such boys. They are not cowards, but are imaginative, have -highly strung nervous systems, and are without real experience of -danger. When that experience does come they often find themselves -possessed of far more grit than they had believed. - -Time slipped by. Nothing happened to justify the state of Jed's nerves. -He was lonely, and wondering what the others were doing. At last, -however, he heard something real. Prentiss sprang up, stepping to the -port rail to listen. The sound was unmistakable, that of a marine -engine, though as yet the sound was far away. - -"Can that be the filibustering steamer?" Jed wondered, thrilling. - -Nearer and nearer came the sound. Prentiss was enough of a salt-water -boy to know that the craft must be a more than usually fast one. The -strange craft was evidently keeping in close to shore. At last, the -keen-eyed boy grimly made out a sea-going tug. Then she came nearer, and -Jed knew that she was going to pass within an eighth of a mile. - -"It must be the filibustering steamer," throbbed the boy. "She's not a -Government boat, yet she's showing no lights. That boat _must_ be making -for Sanderson's pier!" - -Then, all of a sudden, a single light _did_ show. An electric -searchlight blazed out, sweeping its ray along the coast. It was hardly -a moment before that ray of light fell across the "Meteor" and remained -there. - -"Wow!" ejaculated Jed, in his excitement. "Now, those fellows can get in -here before I can signal any of our crowd back to the 'Meteor.'" - -Prentiss immediately found himself trembling. He sprang down into the -engine room, intent on starting the motor. In his excitable state of -mind it seemed to him that the motor had at least a dozen drive wheels -and no end of other things that had to be handled. - -"And, oh, dear! I haven't got the anchor up!" he groaned. He rushed up -onto deck, only to find that the tug had started ahead again, and was -bearing down directly upon him. Three men could be dimly made out -forward of the pilot house. - -"They're going to bear down upon this craft and sink her!" guessed Jed. -"And, confound 'em, they can do it before I can get up anchor, get the -engine going, and get out of here!" - -That it was the intention of those aboard the tug to ram the "Meteor," -and thus put her out of commission, seemed decidedly plain. The tug was -steaming slow but straight for the motor boat. Jed paused in a frenzy of -uncertainty. - -Then, all in a flash, a luminous idea came to him. It looked almost -crazy, yet it was the only thing that it seemed possible to do. Bending -down the signal rocket box, Jed grasped a piece of slow-match. This he -lighted, his fingers trembling. Then, as swiftly, he unfastened the -lower hook of that rocket trough. He was able, thus, to swivel the -trough over the port rail. - -"Now, we'll see if the scheme's any good," quivered Jed, snatching up a -rocket and resting it in the trough. Groping for his slow-match, he -sighted along the stick of the rocket. Shaking, he applied the glowing -end of the slow-match to the rocket's fuse. There was a sputtering, then -a hiss. - -Out over the waters shot the rocket, leaving behind a fiery trail. It -flew about three feet above the top of the tug's pilot house, dropping -into the ocean beyond. - -"It was my trembling hand that spoiled my aim," gasped Jed. "Now, -another, and steady, old boy!" - -Jed fitted the second rocket, applying the match. Whizz! Smash! - -"Ho, ho!" roared Jed, for that rocket, going straight and true, had -smashed a light of glass in the tug's pilot house. Bang! Being an -explosive rocket, the thing blew into a thousand fragments inside that -pilot house. A yell came from the man at the helm. - -But Jed did not waste time looking or listening. He fitted another -rocket, touching it off after swift aim. That one whizzed between the -heads of two of the three men out forward, and Jed heard their rough -words of alarm and anger. - -"Wow!" ejaculated the boy. "I'm a whole Navy! What?" - -Another rocket he aimed at the three men. They scrambled in all -directions. Still another rocket Prentiss drove through the pilot house -windows. Jed heard the engine room bell jingle for the stop. - -"I'll give you plenty of it," gritted Prentiss, thrusting a hand into -the box and bringing forth this time a stout Roman candle--a -fourteen-ball affair. - -Lighting and waving it, Jed was ready, at the pop of the first ball, to -aim the affair at the tug boat. The missiles fell all about. Though Jed -did not know it, one of the hot, glowing balls struck Captain Jonas -French squarely on the end of his bulb-like nose. He let out an -Indian-like yell, dropping the wheel. Another man crawled in on his -knees to take the skipper's place, but he kept down below the wood-work -of the front of the pilot house, steering by the lower spokes of the -wheel. - -The tug's bell sounded for reversed speed, then for the go-ahead, as the -craft swung her bow around. They were retreating, but Jed, chuckling -aloud in his glee, sent three more rockets after the tug, just to show -her people that he had plenty of ammunition left. Then, when the tug was -out of range, Jed stood up, gazing after her dim lines. - -"Say, maybe there are a few Deweys left in America," he laughed aloud. -"I wonder what's the answer?" - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII--SPYING ON THE FILIBUSTERS - - -Meanwhile, at the Sanderson farm, business was proceeding at a rate that -entitled the word to be spelled with a very large capital "B." - -Mr. Lawrence and his comrades, under Captain Tom's pilotage, were hidden -where, despite the darkness, they could get a very fair idea of what was -going on at the pier. Joe had led Warren and the other local officers up -where they could know what was going on behind the farmhouse. Sanderson, -Alvarez and all hands except Captain Jonas French, were working like so -many industrious ants. Two of the men were moving cases out of the new -shed onto the pier. The rest were bringing cases down to the pier from -the farm outbuilding. All the cases were being piled at the end of the -pier. - -"That means they're going to ship everything to-night," whispered Mr. -Lawrence. - -"When are you going to jump on them?" Halstead asked. - -"Not until they get everything on their vessel, and get out on the -water. If we showed ourselves now, and tried to arrest the crowd, what -could we prove? Sanderson has a perfect right to stack any kinds of -merchandise on his pier. But when we overhaul a craft out on the water, -loaded down with filibuster's supplies, and the captain of that craft -can show no regular papers for such a cargo, then we have the crowd -where we want them." - -It was a dull time waiting, but Inspector Lawrence was right, as a man -of his experience was quite likely to be. The time slipped on, with no -open move on the part of the law's people. - -"I thought I saw a rocket up north, then," whispered Tom, at last. - -"Watch and see whether there's another," replied Lawrence, also in a -whisper. But the rocket Tom had seen was the last that Jed had -derisively shot after the retreating tug. It wasn't long, however, -before the young motor boat skipper and the United States officers heard -the sound of the tug approaching. They lay low, but watched, quietly -until the tug had docked at the end of Sanderson's pier. - -"We'll still have to use patience," smiled Mr. Lawrence, turning to Tom. -"This is going to be a watching game for some time yet." - -By now the gang that had been bringing cases down from the outbuilding -all filed out onto the pier. The sounds of brisk but regular loading -followed. An hour of this work, monotonous for the hidden watchers, -followed, and then another hour. Neither Tom Halstead nor Mr. Lawrence, -from their hiding place, could see the cargo piles on the pier very -distinctly. - -"Halstead," inquired the inspector, "do you suppose you can safely -wriggle nearer, and see how far the loading has gone?" - -"I know I can," Tom answered. "I'll go slowly about it, and make never a -sound, or show myself." - -After a few minutes, in fact, Tom got within seven or eight feet of the -pier. He had crawled over the ground, and now lay flat with his head -behind the roots of a tree. - -From where he lay he could make out Don Emilio Alvarez standing talking -with Captain Jonas French. The latter, with a swollen nose and a -powder-burned cheek, was telling the gentleman from Honduras all about -Prentiss's remarkable achievement. - -"Oh, say, but that was grand of old Jed!" breathed Tom, his sides -shaking with suppressed laughter. "If Jed doesn't get a Carnegie medal -I'll have my opinion of some folks!" - -Don Emilio tossed away a half-burned cigar. The butt fell close by the -tree roots that helped conceal the head of the young motor boat skipper. -Perhaps the little brown man started slightly from something that the -glowing tobacco showed him. At all events, he spoke in a whisper to -Jonas French. The next instant both leaped down from the shore end of -the pier, rushing at the tree. - -Tom Halstead sprang up, prepared to sprint for it, but hardly had he -started when he felt himself gripped savagely by French. One instant -more, and Tom Halstead found himself being borne, despite his yells and -furious, fighting struggles, out along the pier. - -"All aboard and cast off!" yelled Jonas French, as he sped on over the -boards. The last case of the cargo had just gone over the tug's rail, -and now two men sprang to cast off bow and stern hawsers. The engine -room bell jangled just as French and Alvarez, with their strenuous -prisoner, sprang aboard. - -Inspector Lawrence and his two comrades had lost no time. They now came -dashing from concealment, but they were too late. As they arrived at the -end of the pier the tug was a hundred yards on her way. - -At the starboard rail stood two seamen, holding Tom as in a vise. Behind -the young motor boat skipper stood Don Emilio Alvarez, waving a taunting -hand at the officers. Jonas French had gone forward to take command of -the tug. - -The seamen, powerful, swarthy fellows who looked like Portuguese, held -Tom at the rail until the tug was half a mile from shore. - -"Now, you can let go of him, my men," nodded Alvarez, "but watch the -young man." - -"Mr. Captain, how would you like to stroll aft and look at a nice -surprise we may serve out to your friends?" The Honduran's tone was -mocking, bantering, but Tom Halstead, filled with curiosity, accepted -the invitation. Alvarez led the way, the two seamen going behind the -boy. - -On the deck aft stood something of considerable size, covered by a -canvas tarpaulin. - -"Take off the covering," directed Don Emilio. The two seamen obeyed. - -"Fine, is it not?" chuckled Alvarez, pointing to a brightly polished -brass cannon. - -"Yes; fine--not!" spoke Tom, in a voice of mingled anger and disgust. - -"It is a signal gun, such as every vessel is allowed to carry," chuckled -Don Emilio. "But our signal gun will also carry a two-inch shell--and we -have plenty of ammunition. If your precious 'Meteor' attempts to follow -us to-night we shall send her to the bottom of the ocean! You see, our -cargo is needed by brave and patriotic men in Honduras, and we are -desperate enough to take it there in the face of everyone." - -Then, changing his tone, Alvarez, as he glared at the boy, went on: - -"Once you were good enough to ask me what I would do to you if I had you -in Honduras. Well, I shall show you, for you are bound for that fine -little country!" - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV--CONCLUSION - - -Young Halstead started and paled, as any one else would have done at -such awesome information. Then he forced a sneer to his lips. - -"Are you foolish enough to think, Don Emilio, that you are going to be -allowed to escape to-night? You will sink the 'Meteor?' Perhaps, but -what will you do with that United States cruiser over there off the port -bow?" - -As he pointed and spoke, Don Emilio and the two seamen rushed to the -port rail. Tom was quick to seize the chance that he had made. Sooner -than trust himself in Don Emilio's hands, he would risk the dangers of -the deep. - -When Don Emilio turned back Halstead was no longer on board. Leaping to -the starboard rail, Tom had sprung as far out as he could, and the -waters had closed over him. - -In taking this desperate leap Tom had calculated, as well as he could, -on avoiding the suction of the tug's propellers. As he struck the water -he fought against that suction, and soon felt himself beyond it. - -When he came to the surface the fast-going tug was so far ahead that -Alvarez could not make out so small an object as the boy's head through -the darkness and at the distance. - -"Oh, the young fool has preferred drowning to going to Honduras!" cried -Alvarez, turning to the seamen. "Very good; let him have his choice." - -Tom, however, had no immediate plan of drowning. He was an expert -swimmer, and with the sea as smooth as it was to-night not even his -clothing hampered him much. In fact, he did not waste much strength on -swimming, but soon allowed himself to float, treading water whenever it -became necessary. - -When the tug was leaving the wharf the young skipper was rather certain -he had heard revolver shots, which would quickly bring the law's whole -fighting force together. - -"They'll come hustling along in the 'Meteor,'" thought the boy. "If I -can only make myself seen it will be easier to be picked up than to swim -ashore." - -Nor was it long ere he beheld the rays of a searchlight flashing over -the water. The searchlight came nearer. Halstead felt certain that the -rays came from the boat that was usually under his command. - -"Lawrence knows I was lugged aboard the tug, and Joe knows me well -enough to know I'd jump sooner than stay with that crowd," was the -opinion with which Halstead comforted himself. - -Nor was he disappointed. After a little the rays of the searchlight -shone in his eyes, forcing him to close them. But he waved one hand -aloft. Nearer came the "Meteor," and nearer, until Halstead saw that the -boat was heading straight for him. Speed was shut off, while hails -sounded from the motor boat's deck. The trim little craft, moving under -headway only, came close alongside, while Jed tossed a line over. - -"Good old Tom!" cheered Jed. "Now, if you're fit, swim for it" - -So Tom Halstead, dripping, but triumphant and vengeful, returned to his -command. - -"Take charge, captain, if you feel like it," urged Lawrence, and Tom, -after casting aside his water-soaked coat, stepped to the wheel. "Keep -right on after that tug," added the inspector. "I'll swing the -searchlight for you." - -"I must caution you, though," spoke Captain Halstead, after he had given -Joe the go ahead word, "that the tug carries a two-inch gun and plenty -of shells. Alvarez assured me that they'd sink you." - -"I don't believe they'll dare," rejoined Mr. Lawrence, grimly -compressing his lips. "However, keep right on after them, and we shall -see." - -The tug was quickly picked up by the searchlight. - -"Whew! How she's cutting the water!" exclaimed Mr. Lawrence. "That tug -was surely built for fast work. She's easily an eighteen-knot boat." - -While the chase kept up, Tom detailed his brief adventure aboard the -filibustering craft. - -Though the tug was showing fine speed, the "Meteor" was so much faster -that at last the motor boat, dead astern, was within half a mile. - -Bang! came a sharp report over the water, following a sharp, red flash -from the tug's cannon. - -"Blank charge--no shell," commented Inspector Lawrence, coolly. - -Holding the searchlight to the tug's after deck, however, the inspector -and his friends saw two men again loading the brass cannon. - -There was another flash, a report, and a projectile whizzed by to the -starboard of the motor boat. - -"They seem to mean business, Joyce," muttered the inspector. "You know -what comes now." - -Joyce and his comrade disappeared into the cabin, swiftly returning with -repeating rifles that they had brought aboard. - -Tom, in the meantime, had slowed down the speed of the "Meteor." To -those aboard the tug it might have looked as though the officers were -giving up the pursuit. - -"Go ahead, now, captain," directed Mr. Lawrence. "Right after the -scoundrels at full speed." - -As the "Meteor" once more cut the water, showing that she could easily -overhaul the tug, Alvarez and two of his men were shown in the -searchlight rays to be returning to their cannon. - -"Open up on them, but just pester them," directed the inspector. "Don't -try to hit them unless they insist on loading their piece." - -Zip! zip! zip! Bullets struck the deck house and side rails of the tug -as the two United States officers fired rapidly. - -Alvarez, at the first fire, pulled off his hat, waving it defiantly. But -now the continuous fire from the motor boat drove all three from the -gun. They fled forward. - -"Close right in alongside," ordered Mr. Lawrence grinning. "Joyce and -the other man are experts at the rifle game." - -It took but a few minutes to close the gap between tug and motor boat. -As the "Meteor" ran up to port of the filibusters Captain Jonas French -was the only man showing beside the seaman in the pilot house. - -"We're going to run alongside and board you!" yelled the inspector. "We -won't have any nonsense, either. It will be worse for you if you try -it." - -"What are your orders?" asked Captain Jonas, resignedly. - -"Stop your speed and reverse. Then lie to and wait for us to board." - -"Aye, aye, sir," growled French, in the tone of a man who had played and -lost. The tug soon lay motionless on the water, while the "Meteor" -ranged in alongside. Lawrence and his two comrades stepped over the -tug's rail first. Then Deputy Warren and his three brother officers -followed. They represented only the county authorities, but had come -along to make the force stronger. - -As the two craft fell away again Tom waved his hand banteringly to -Alvarez, now out on deck and being searched for weapons. - -"Sorry, Don Emilio, that I couldn't spare the time to go to Honduras -with you," called the young skipper. "But stay with us here in America -for a while." - -Saluting with their whistles the two craft parted company, the "Meteor" -returning to the Dunstan place with only her regular crew aboard. - - -Few words are needed to complete this present narrative of the doings of -the Motor Boat Club boys. - -Master Ted Dunstan, of course, entered in upon the first portion of his -great inheritance, and is now earnestly proceeding to fit himself, in -every way possible, for a cadetship at West Point, preparatory to -becoming an officer in the Army. In time he will unquestionably qualify -to inherit the great fortune that was bequeathed him under such unusual -conditions. It was afterwards proven, and most satisfactorily, that -Ted's Uncle Gregory had no part in the plot against the boy. That -conspiracy was hatched in the fertile brain of Don Emilio Alvarez. -Further, it may be stated that Gregory Dunstan has sold his plantation -in Honduras, and that he is never likely to become again mixed up in a -revolution in Honduras, for he has become again a resident of -Massachusetts. Alvarez, probably, was all along the cause of Gregory -Dunstan's mixing in the politics of Honduras, and Don Emilio had hoped, -by throwing the great Dunstan fortune to Uncle Gregory, to put it where -the Honduran politicians could draw upon it. - -Farmer Sanderson did not leave on the tug, but was arrested at his own -home. He was afterwards sentenced, in a United States court, to serve -one year in prison for aiding the filibusters. Captain Jonas French and -Alvarez were each sentenced to serve two years, while the other -Hondurans received a year apiece. The mate and crew of the tug were -discharged from custody, as it was considered they had not been -plotters, but had merely signed for a cruise, as they might have done -aboard any other vessel. Gambon escaped, but was lately injured in a -railway wreck, and is now crippled for life. - -Horace Dunstan, as he promised, did not prosecute through the State -courts. He was well pleased at the happy ending of the whole affair, and -considered that Alvarez and the others had been sufficiently punished. -Pedro, a Jamaica negro who had afterwards gone to Honduras to live, and -thus spoke both English, and Spanish, was one of the Hondurans to -receive a year's sentence, as his connection with the Alvarez crowd was -fully established. - -The yellow launch that Tom was instrumental in seizing was afterwards -claimed by, and surrendered to, a boat-owner up the coast who had rented -the boat to Captain Jonas French. - -Tom and Joe? They are still the leading members of the Motor Boat Club. -Jed was also admitted, and is one of the most expert of the young -members. - -Horace Dunstan rewarded everyone who had anything to do with the -liberation and protection of his son. Tom, Joe and Jed were all offered -much larger rewards than any one of them could be induced to accept. Yet -each of the boys, in the end, accepted a sum that provided not only a -good time at once, but also for each a tidy little reserve fund in bank. - -Here we will take leave of the three boys amid Nantucket surroundings. -They will be heard from again, however, at a later date, in a further -volume, filled with their exciting adventures, under the title: "The -Motor Boat Club Off Long Island; Or, A Daring Marine Game at Racing -Speed." - - - THE END. - - - - - POPULAR BOOKS OF ADVENTURE FOR BOYS - - By H. 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