The Rover Boys on the Great Lakes; Or, The Secret of the Island Cave

by Edward Stratemeyer

  CHAPTER XIV.

  DICK MAKES HIS ESCAPE.

  There are times when a movement made on the spur of the moment is moresuccessful than one which is premeditated. The enemy is takencompletely off guard and does not realize what is happening until it isover.

  It was so in the present instance. The mate of the _Peacock_ was atough customer and a heavy-built man, and the men behind him were alsolarge, and none of the three had imagined that the boys would reallyundertake to combat them.

  As the mate went down Tom leaped directly on top of him, thus holdinghim to the floor for the moment, and then struck out for the nearestman, hitting him in the chin. Then Dick came to his brother's aid witha blow that reached the sailor's ear, and he too fell back.

  But the third man had a second to think, and he retaliated by a blowwhich nearly lifted poor Tom off his feet. But before he could strikeout a second time, Sam, with the nimbleness of a monkey, darted in andcaught him by one leg. Dick saw the movement, gave the sailor a shove,and the tar pitched headlong in the passageway.

  The opening was now tolerably clear, and away went the three boys forthe cabin, gaining the compartment before any of the men could follow.The door to the companion way was open, and up the steps they flew withall the speed at their command. They heard the sailors yell at them anduse language unfit to print, but paid no heed. Their one thought was toput distance between themselves and those who wished to keep themprisoners.

  "Stop! stop!" roared the mate. "Stop, or it will be the worse for you!"

  "I guess we know what we are doing!" panted Tom. "Come on!" And hecaught Sam by the arm.

  The deck gained, they gave a hasty look around. The schooner was lyingat anchor about a hundred yards from shore, at a short distance abovethe busy portion of the city.

  "There ought to be a small boat handy," said Dick, leading the way tothe stern.

  "We can't wait for a boat," answered Sam. "Let us swim for it. Perhapssomebody will come and pick us up." And without further ado he leapedoverboard. Seeing this, his brothers did likewise, and all three struckout boldly for the nearest dock.

  It was a risky thing to do, with all their clothing on, but each was agood swimmer and the weather had made the water very warm. On theywent, keeping as closely together as possible.

  "Are you coming back?" furiously yelled the mate, as he reached therail and shook his fist at them.

  To this none of the boys made reply.

  "If you don't come back I'll shoot at you," went on the man.

  "Do you think he will shoot?" asked Sam, in alarm.

  "No," answered Dick. "We are too close to the city, and there are toomany people who would hear the shot."

  "A boat is putting off from the shore," said Tom, a second later. "Itcontains three persons."

  "Captain Langless and the Baxters!" burst out Dick. "Dive, and swim ashard as you can down the stream."

  All promptly dove, and the weight of their clothing kept them under aslong as they pleased to remain. When they came up they heard the mateyelling frantically to those in the boat, who did not at oncecomprehend the turn affairs had taken.

  CAPTAIN LANGLESS CAUGHT HIM BY THE HAIR]

  But when they saw the boys they began to row toward them with allswiftness.

  "We must recapture them," cried Arnold Baxter. "If they get away, ourcake will be dough."

  "Then row as hard as you can," replied Captain Langless. He was at onepair of oars while Arnold Baxter was at another. Dan sat in the bow.

  Slowly, but surely, the craft drew closer to the Rover boys, until itwas less than a hundred feet off. Then it was seen that the lads hadseparated and were moving in three directions. Dick had ordered this.

  "If we separate, they won't catch all of us," were his words. "Andwhoever escapes can inform the authorities."

  On pushed the boys, striving as never before to gain the shore beforethe rowboat should come up to them.

  The small craft headed first for Tom, and presently it glided close tohim. He promptly dove, but when he came up Captain Langless caught himby the hair.

  "It's no use, lad," said the captain firmly, and despite his struggleshauled him on board.

  "Let me go!" roared Tom and kicked out lively. But the captaincontinued to hold him down, while Arnold Baxter now headed the boattoward Sam.

  Sam was almost exhausted, for the weight of his wet garments wasbeginning to tell upon him. As the rowboat came closer he also thoughtto dive, but the effort almost cost him his life. He came up halfunconscious, and only realized in a dim, uncertain way what washappening.

  But the capture of Tom and his younger brother had taken time, and nowthose in the rowboat saw that Dick was almost to shore. To take him,therefore, was out of the question.

  "We'll have to let him go," said Captain Langless. "The quicker the_Peacock_ gets out of this the better."

  "Yes, but if he gets away he'll make the ship no end of trouble,"returned Arnold Baxter. "I've half a mind to fire at him," and he drewa pistol.

  "No! no! I won't have it," cried the captain sternly. "To the schooner,and the quicker the better."

  Holding Tom, he made the Baxters turn the boat about and row to the_Peacock_. The mate was waiting for him, and it did not take longto get on board. The mate wished to explain matters, but CaptainLawless would not listen.

  "Another time, Cadmus," he said sharply. "Into the hold with them, andsee they don't get away again. We must up sail and anchor without theloss of a minute. That boy who got away is going to make trouble forus."

  "Aye, aye, sir!" said Cadmus, and dragged the unfortunates away to thehatch. He dropped both down without ceremony, and then saw to it thathatch and door were tightly closed and made fast.

  In a few minutes the anchors were up and the sails hoisted, and the_Peacock_ was steering straight up Lake St. Clair toward the St.Clair River. To reach Lake Huron the schooner would have to cover adistance of seventy-five to eighty miles, and the captain wondered ifthis could be done ere the authorities got on their track.

  "Once on Lake Huron we will be safe enough," he observed to ArnoldBaxter. "I know the lake well, and know of half a dozen islands nearthe Canadian shore where we will be safe in hiding."

  "But that boy may telegraph to St. Clair or Port Huron, or some otherpoint, and have the _Peacock_ held up," answered Arnold Baxter.

  "We've got to run that risk," was the grim reply. "If we get caught,I'll have an account to settle with Cadmus."

  A while later the mate and the sailors who had been with him werecalled into the cabin, so that Captain Langless might hear what theyhad to say. The mate told a long story of how the boys had broken openthe door leading to the cabin, with a crowbar, obtained from he knewnot where, and had fought them with the bar and with a club and apistol. There had been a fierce struggle, but the lads had slipped awaylike eels. The sailors corroborated the mate's tale, and added that theboys had fought like demons.

  "I'll fix them for that," said Arnold Baxter, when he heard theaccount. "They'll find out who is master before I get through withthem."

  But this did not suit Captain Langless, who had not forgotten his talkwith the Rovers at the dinner table. If it looked as if he was going tobe cornered, he thought that a compromise with Tom and Sam would comein very handy.

  "You mustn't mistreat the boys," he said, when Cadmus and the othersailors were gone. "It won't help your plot any, and it will only causemore trouble."

  "You seem to be taking the affair out of my hands," growled ArnoldBaxter.

  "I know I am running a larger risk than you," answered the captain. "Iown this craft, and if she is confiscated I'll be the loser."

  "But see what I have offered you."

  "Yes, if we win out, as the saying goes. But things won't be so nice ifwe lose, will they?"

  "I don't intend to lose. I have a scheme on hand for getting to LakeHuron before to-morrow morning."

  "By what means?"

  "Hire a large and swift tug to haul the _P
eacock_. We can makesplendid time, considering that the schooner is without a cargo."

  "Who is going to pay the towing bill?"

  "How much will it be?"

  "The kind of tug you want will cost about fifty dollars."

  "All right then, I'll pay the bill."

  The idea pleased the captain, and the bargain was struck then andthere.

  Half an hour later a tug was sighted and hailed, and the captain told astory of a "rush job" waiting for him at Port Huron. A bargain wasstruck for the towing, and soon a hawser was cast over to the schoonerand the race for Lake Huron began.