CHAPTER IX
THE HYDROPLANE QUEERLY RECOVERED
Seldom had the Flying Fish been urged to greater speed than she was ashort time after the discovery of the looting of the scouts' armory.She fairly flew across the smooth waters of the inlet and out on to theAtlantic swells, leaving a clean, sweeping bow-wave as she cut her wayalong. Her four young occupants, for Tubby had been called on andnotified of the occurrences of the night, were, however, wrapped inslickers borrowed from the yacht club, so that the showers of spraywhich fell about them had little effect on them.
The run to Topsail Island was made in record time, and as they drewnear the little hummock of tree and shrub-covered land the boys couldperceive that something unusual had happened. A figure which even at adistance they recognized as that of Captain job Hudgins was down on thelittle wharf, and had apparently been on the lookout there for sometime. A closer view revealed the captain waving frantically.
"Something's up, all right," remarked Tubby, above the roar of themotor-boat's engine.
The others said nothing, but kept their gaze riveted on the captain'sfigure. With the skill of a veteran boatman, Rob brought the FlyingFish round in a graceful curve and ran her cleanly up to the wharfwithout the slightest jolt or jar.
"Ahoy, lads, I'm glad yer've come!" exclaimed the captain, as he caughtthe painter line thrown out to him by Merritt, and skillfully made theboat fast.
"Why, what has happened?" demanded Rob, as he sprang on to the wharf,followed by the others.
"Happened?" repeated the captain. "Well, in a manner of speakin',about twenty things has happened at once. Lads, my spirits andemotions are in a fair Chinese tornado--every which way at once. Inthe first place, I'm seventy-five dollars poorer than I was last night;in the second, poor old Skipper's been given some kind av poison that'smade him so sick I doubt he'll get over it."
"You've been robbed?" gasped Merritt.
"That's it, my lad. That's the word. My poor old safe's been scuttledand her hold overhauled. But I don't mind that so much--it's poor oldSkipper I'm worried about. But come on up ter the house, lads, and seefer yerselves."
Followed by the sympathetic four, the old man hobbled up from hislittle wharf to a small eminence on which stood his neatly whitewashedhut. He opened the door and invited them in. A first glancediscovered nothing much the matter, but a second look showed the boyspoor old Skipper lying on the floor in front of the open fireplacewhich was filled with fresh green boughs--and evidently a very sick dogindeed. He gave the boys a pathetic glance of recognition as they camein, and with a feeble wag or two of his tail tried to show them he wasglad to see them; but this done, he seemed to be completely exhausted,and once more laid his head between his forepaws and seemed to doze.
"Poor old dog," said the captain, shaking his head. "I doubt if he'llever get about again."
The safe now engaged the boys' attention. It is true that it was arickety old contrivance which might well have been forced open with anordinary poker, but to the captain, up to this day, it had been arepository as safe and secure as a big Wall Street trust company'svaults.
"Look at that, boys!" cried the captain, with tragic emphasis, pointingto the door, which had been forced clear off its rusty hinges. "Justbusted open like yer'd taken the crust off'n a pie! Ah, if I could laymy hands on the fellers that done this, I'd run 'em tip ter the yardarmafore a foc'sle hand could say 'Hard tack'!"
"Why, we think that--" began Tubby, when Rob checked him. The captain,who had been bending over his dog, didn't hear the remark, and Robhastily whispered to Tubby:
"Don't breathe a word to anyone of our suspicions. Our only chance toget hold of the real culprits is to not give them any idea that wesuspect them."
After a little more time spent on the island, the boys took theirleave, promising to come back soon again. First, however, Rob and hiscorporal made a brief expedition to see if they could make out thetracks of the marauders of the previous evening. Whoever they had been,however--and the boys, as we know, had a shrewd guess at theiridentity--they had been too cunning to take the path, but hadapparently, judging from the absence of all footmarks, made their wayto the house through the coarse grass that grew on each side of the way.
"Well, what are we going to do about it?" Tubby inquired, as theyspeeded back toward home.
"Just what I said," rejoined Rob. "Keep quiet and not let Jack or hischums know that we suspect a thing. Give them enough rope, and we'llget them in time. I'm certain of it."
How true his words were to prove, Rob at that time little imagined,although he felt the wisdom of the course he had advised.
As they neared the inlet, Rob, who was at the wheel and scanning thechannel pretty closely, for the tide was now running out, gave a suddenshout and pointed ahead. As the others raised their eyes and gazed inthe direction their leader indicated they, too, uttered a cry ofastonishment. From the mouth of the inlet there had stolen a long,low, black craft, gliding through the water at tremendous speed.
In the strange craft the boy scouts had little difficulty inrecognizing Sam Redding's hydroplane.
"So he's got her back," exclaimed Merritt, recovering from his firstastonishment.
"Yes, and she seems little the worse for her experience," remarkedTubby. "It doesn't appear, though, that they are going to profit bytheir lesson of the other day, for there they go out to sea again."
"Probably consulted the glass this time," remarked Rob. "It read 'setfair' when we started out."
"Well, that's the only kind of weather for them," commented Merritt;"though as both Jack and Bill can swim, I wouldn't mind seeing them geta good ducking."
"I suppose the coincidence has struck you fellows, too?" remarked Robsuddenly, as he skillfully twisted and turned the dancing Flying Fishthrough the devious ways of the channel at low water.
"What on earth are you talking about?" demanded Merritt.
"Why, that it seems rather queer that Sam, who was round towndesperately trying to raise money with which to get his boat out ofpawn suddenly manages to redeem her, and that on the very day after therobbery of Captain Hudgins hut."
"By hookey, that's right!" shouted Tubby. "I'll bet your guess wascorrect, Rob--that gang of Jack's robbed the old captain."
"And stole our uniforms," put in Merritt.
"Yes; but how are we going to prove it?" was Rob's "cold water" commentwhich silenced further speculation for the time being. Each boy,however, determined then and there to do his share in running down thepersons responsible for the vandalism.
By the time they got back to Hampton the news had spread among theentire Eagle Patrol, and an indignation meeting was called in thedevastated armory. Mr. Blake entered in the midst of it, and offered,in conjunction with the rest of the local council, to furnish newuniforms. On the matter being put to a vote, however, the lads allagreed that it would be better not to accept such an offer till theyhad made a determined effort to run down the plunderers.
"Very well," said Mr. Blake; "your spirit does you great credit, and ifyou need any help, don't fail to call upon me at any time."
"Three cheers for Mr. Blake and the members of the council!" shoutedMerritt, jumping on a chair.
They were given with such roof-raising effect, that people outside inthe street, many of whom knew of the robbery, began to think that theuniforms must have been recovered.
As the lads surged out of the armory, all talking at once about therobbery and its likely results, whom should they encounter on thestreet but Jack Curtiss and his two chums, evidently, from the factthat they carried waterproof garments over their arms, just back fromtheir trip in Sam's newly-recovered hydroplane.
It might have been fancy, but as the eyes of the Boy Scouts met thoseof the three lads who would have so much liked to belong to theorganization, Rob thought that a look of embarrassment spread over JackCurtiss' heavy features, and that even Bill Bender's brazen face tookon a shade of pallor. If this were so, however, it co
uld have beenonly momentary, for the next minute Jack, with what seemed very muchoverdone cordiality, came forward with:
"Why, hullo, boys. I just heard about your loss. Any news?"
"No, not a word," chirped little Joe Digby, one of the few lads in theEagle Patrol who had never run afoul of the bully.
"Well," went on Jack, affecting not to notice the silence with whichhis advances had been greeted, "I hope you find the fellows who did it,whoever they were."
"Same here," chimed in Bill Bender, now quite at his ease, "although,at that, I guess it was only a joke, and you'll get 'em back againbefore long."
"Do you think so, Bill?" asked Merritt, looking the bully's cronysteadily in the eye. "I hope so, I'm sure. By the way, Hiram Nelsonhere says that he saw you hurrying up Main Street at just about thetime the robbery must have taken place. You didn't hear any unusualsounds or see anything out of the way, did you?"
"I--why, no--I--you see, I was on my way home from my aunt's home,"stuttered Bill, seemingly taken off his guard.
"Yes; your aunt, who left home yesterday afternoon to be gone a week,"shot out Merritt.
"Queer that she should have changed her mind and come home in such ahurry."
"Oh, come on, Bill," stuck in Sam, seeing that things were getting veryunpleasant. "We've got to hurry up if we're to get out to Jack's intime."
Without another word, the three hurried off, seemingly not at allunrelieved to escape from what Merritt was pretty sure wereembarrassing questions.
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