CHAPTER X
MYSTERIOUS PASSENGERS
Ned and Tom did not escape the usual commotion that always attendsthe sailing of a large steamer. The people on the dock were wavingfarewells to those on the boat, and those on the deck of the Maderiashook their handkerchiefs, their steamer rugs, their hands,umbrellas--in short anything to indicate their feelings. It wasgetting dark, but big electric lights made the dock and thesteamer's deck brilliantly aglow.
The big whistle was blowing at intervals to warn other craft thatthe steamer was coming out of her slip. Fussy little tugs werepushing their blunt noses against the sides of the Maderia to helpher and, in brief, there was not a little excitement.
"Bless my steamer chair!" exclaimed Mr. Damon. "We're really off atlast! And now for the land of--"
"Hush!" exclaimed Tom, who stood near the odd gentleman. "You'reforgetting. Some one might hear you."
"That's so, Tom. Bless my soul! I'll keep quiet after this."
"Mah golly!" gasped Eradicate as he saw the open water between theship and the deck, "I can't git back now if I wanter--but I doan'twanter. I hope yo' father takes good care ob Boomerang, Massa Tom."
"Oh, I guess he will. But come on, Ned, we'll go to the purser'soffice now."
"What for? Is something wrong?" asked Mr. Damon.
"No, we just want to see if--er--if some friends of ours are onboard," replied the young inventor, with a quick glance at hischum.
"Very well," assented Mr. Damon. "I'll wait for you on deck here.It's quite interesting to watch the sights of the harbor."
As for these same sights they possessed no attractions for the twolads at present. They were too intent on learning whether or nottheir suspicions regarding the Fogers were correct.
"Now if they are on board," said Tom, as they made their way to thepurser's office, "it only means one thing--that they're following usto get at the secret of the city of gold," and Tom whispered thislast, even though there seemed to be no one within hearing, fornearly all the passengers were up on deck.
"That's right," agreed Ned. "Of course there's a bare chance, ifthose two were the Fogers, that Mr. Foger is going off to try andmake another fortune. But more than likely they're on our trail,Tom."
"If it's them--yes."
"Hum, Foger--no, I don't think I have any passengers of that name,"said the purser slowly, when Tom had put the question. "Let's see,Farday, Fenton, Figaro, Flannigan, Ford, Foraham, Fredericks--thoseare all the names in the 'Fs'. No Fogers among them. Why, are youlooking for some friends of yours, boys?"
"Not exactly friends," replied Tom slowly, "but we know them, and wethought we saw them come aboard, so we wanted to make sure."
"They might be under some other name," suggested Ned.
"Yes, that is sometimes done," admitted the purser with a quickglance at the two lads, "It's done when a criminal wants to throwthe police off his track, or, occasionally, when a celebrated personwants to avoid the newspaper reporters. But I hardly think that--"
"Oh, I don't believe they'd do it," said Tom quickly. He saw at oncethat the suspicions of the purser had been aroused, and the officialmight set on foot inquiries that would be distasteful to the twolads and Mr. Damon. Then, too, if the Fogers were on board undersome other name, they would hear of the questions that had been putregarding them, and if they were on a legitimate errand they couldmake it unpleasant for Tom.
"I don't believe they'd do anything like that," the young inventorrepeated.
"Well, you can look over the passenger list soon," said the purser."I'm going to post it in the main saloon. But perhaps if youdescribed the persons you are looking for I could help you out. Ihave met nearly all the passengers already."
"Mr. Foger is a big man, with a florid complexion and he has a heavybrown moustache," said Ned.
"And Andy has red hair, and he squints," added Tom.
"No such persons on board," declared the official positively. "It'strue we have several persons who squint, but no one with red hair--I'msure of it."
"Then they're not here," declared Ned. "No, we must have beenmistaken," agreed Tom, and there was relief in his tone. It was badenough to have to search for a hidden city of gold, and perhaps haveto deal with the head-hunters, without having to fight off anotherenemy from their trail.
"Much obliged," said the young inventor to the purser, and then thetwo lads went back on deck.
A little later supper was served in the big dining saloon, and theboys and Mr. Damon were glad of it, for they were hungry. Eradicateate with a party of colored persons whose acquaintance he hadquickly made. It was a gay gathering in which Tom and Ned foundthemselves, for though they had traveled much, generally it had beenin one of Tom's airships, or big autos, and this dining on a bigship was rather a novelty to them.
The food was good, the service prompt, and Tom found himselfpossessed of a very good appetite. He glanced across the table andnoted that opposite him and Ned, and a little way down the board,were two vacant chairs.
"Can't be that anyone is seasick already." he remarked to his chum.
"I shouldn't think so, for we haven't any more motion than aferryboat. But some persons are very soon made ill on the water."
"If they're beginning this early, what will happen when we get outwhere it's real rough?" Tom wanted to know.
"They'll sure be in for it," agreed Ned, and a glance around thedining saloon showed that those two vacant chairs were the onlyones.
Somehow Tom felt a vague sense of uneasiness--as if something wasabout to happen. In a way he connected it with the suspicion thatthe Fogers were aboard, and with his subsequent discovery that theirnames were not on the passenger list. Then, with another thought inmind, he looked about to see if he could pick out the man and youthwho, on coming up the gang plank, had been taken by both Tom and Nedto be their enemies. No one looking like either was to be seen, andTom's mind at once went back to the vacant seats at the table.
"By Jove, Ned!" he exclaimed. "I believe I have it!"
"Have what--a fit of seasickness?"
"No, but these empty seats--the persons we saw you know--they belongthere and they're afraid to come out and be seen."
"Why should they be--if they're not the Fogers. I guess you've gotanother think coming."
"Well, I'm sure there's something mysterious about those two--theway they hid their faces as they came on board--not appearing atsupper--I'm going to keep my eyes open."
"All right, go as far as you like and I'm with you. Just now you maypass me the powdered sugar. I want some on this pie."
Tom laughed at Ned's matter-of-fact indifference, but when the younginventor turned in to his berth that night he could not stopthinking of the empty seats--the two mysterious passengers--and thetwo Fogers. They got all jumbled in his head and made his sleeprestless.
Morning saw the Maderia well out to sea, and, as there was quite aswell on, the vessel rolled and pitched to an uncomfortable degree.This did not bother Tom and Ned, who were used to sudden changes ofequilibrium from their voyages in the air. Nor did Mr. Damon suffer.In fact he was feeling fine and went about on deck like an old salt,blessing so many new things that he had many of the passengersamused.
Poor Eradicate did suffer though. He was very seasick, and kept tohis berth most of the time, while some of his new friends did whatthey could for him.
Tom had in mind a plan whereby he might solve the identity of themysterious passengers. He was going to do it by a process ofelimination--that is he would carefully note all on board until hehad fixed on the two who had aroused his suspicions. And he had todo this because so many of the passengers looked very different, nowthat they had on their ship "togs," than when first coming on board.
But the rough weather of the first day prevented the lad fromcarrying out his plan, as many of the travelers kept to theirstaterooms, and there were a score of vacant places at the tables.
The next day, however, was fine, and with the sea like theproverbial mill pond, it seem
ed that everyone was out on deck. Yetwhen meal time came there were these same two vacant seats.
"What do you think of it, Ned?" asked Tom, with a puzzled air.
"I don't know what to think, Tom. It sure is queer that thesetwo--whoever they are--don't ever come to meals. They can't be seasickon a day like this, and they certainly weren't the first night."
"That's right. I'm going to ask one of the stewards where theirstateroom is, and why they don't come out."
"You may get into trouble."
"Oh, I guess not. If I do I can stand it. I want to solve thismystery." Tom did put his question to one of the dining saloonstewards and it created no suspicions.
"Ah, yes, I guess you must mean Mr. Wilson and his son." spoke thesteward when he had referred to a list that corresponded with thenumbers of the vacant places at the table. "They have their mealsserved in their stateroom."
"Why?" asked Tom, "are they ill?"
"I really couldn't say, sir. They prefer it that way, and thecaptain consented to it from the first."
"But I should think they'd want to get out for a breath of air," putin Ned. "I can't stay below decks very long."
"They may come out at night," suggested the steward. "Some of ourtravelers think they are less likely to be seasick if they come outat night. They don't see the motion of the waves then."
"Guess that's it," agreed Tom with a wink at Ned. "Much obliged.Glad we're not seasick," and he linked his arm in that of his chum'sand marched him off.
"Why the wink?" asked Ned, when they were out of earshot of thesteward.
"That was to tip you off to say nothing more. I've got a plan I'mgoing to work."
"What is it?"
"Well, we know who the mysterious ones are, anyhow--at least we knowtheir names--Wilson."
"It may not be the right one."
"That doesn't make any difference. I can find out their stateroom bylooking at the passenger list."
"What good will that do."
"Lots. I'm going to keep a watch on that stateroom until I get agood look at the people in it. And if they only come out at night,which it begins to look like, I'm going to do some night watching.This thing has got to be settled, Ned. Our trip to the city of goldis too important to risk having a mysterious couple on our trail--whenthat same couple may be the Fogers. I'm going to do some detectivework, Ned!"
Tom Swift in the City of Gold; Or, Marvelous Adventures Underground Page 10
