GOOD-BYE TO AN ANCHOR.
"Who's playing this trick on me?" demanded George, as he reached the
others.
"Look around and you'll see we're all here, with Jack running like mad
this way," observed Herb, indignantly.
"But what in the Sam Hill ails the bally old boat, then?" exclaimed
George, as he turned his eyes again on the fast receding _Wireless_,
that was heading out from the shore.
"It's some trick of a native cracker; he's swimming under water, and
pulling the boat after him. We've got to get in the other boats and
give chase," declared shrewd Josh.
"It's mighty queer, that's all!" gasped Nick; while Jimmy stood as if
turned into stone, his eyes round with fear and superstition, for Jimmy
had inherited the regular Irish belief in banshees and ghosts.
George made a dash for the nearest boat, which happened to be the
_Tramp_.
"Wait for me!" shouted the owner of that craft, who was putting on a
spurt in order to reach them quickly, having forgotten all about his
finny prizes in this new and overwhelming discovery.
He came up on the run, but already Herb was in the _Comfort_, about to
start the engine.
"No need, Herb," gasped Jack, "George and myself can overtake it with
the _Tramp_. The rest of you stay here."
"But glory be, what ails the ould thing?" demanded Jimmy, determined
not to let the commodore get away without some explanation of the
puzzle.
"Why, don't you understand?" said Jack, as he busied himself with the
motor. "A big fish, perhaps a wandering shark, has fouled the anchor
rope, and getting badly rattled, has put off at full speed, dragging
the boat after him. He's headed for the nearest inlet at this very
minute; but we'll beat him at that little game, won't we, George?"
Then the rattle of the motor sounded, and immediately the _Tramp_ set
off in the wake of the runaway motor boat.
A more surprised lot of boys it would have been difficult to find than
those thus left upon the little sandy beach on Cedar Island. They
stared after the two boats, and then turned to look at each other.
"Well, did you ever?" gasped Nick.
"Beats Bannigher, so it does," declared Jimmy, though it could be seen
that a humorous expression had taken the place of that look of fear on
his freckled face.
"A shark got mussed up in the anchor rope, and then set out to steal
the whole outfit!" remarked Herb. "Well, of all the funny things,
don't that take the cake, though?"
"That silly old boat of George's seems to me is always cutting up some
sort of capers. She's the toughest proposition ever," Josh declared.
"That's what I'm saying all the blessed time," grunted Nick,
unconsciously beginning to feel of his various joints, as though the
mere mention of the _Wireless_ made him remember his aches.
"But can they overtake the measly thing?" Josh asked, watching
nervously to see if he could determine how the race was progressing.
"Just because the _Wireless_ is the faster boat, don't think Jack isn't
going to run her down, hand over fist," declared Herb. "Already he's
gaining on the other. You see, the shark isn't used to towing a boat
like that at race-horse speed. And then the anchor bothers him some, I
bet you."
"Will George shoot the monster--for I take it a shark must be of pretty
good size to run away with a motor boat like that?" Josh inquired.
"Watch and see what happens. George has his gun in his hands, and
seems to be looking over, as if he'd just like to shoot; but pshaw! the
shark will stick to the bottom right along, and he can't be touched."
It was evident to them all that unless some other line of action was
brought into play the pursuers would have a pretty hard time of it
outwitting the thief that refused to show himself near the surface.
But they knew Jack would be equal to any occasion, and it was with more
or less curiosity rather than alarm that those ashore stood there,
watching, and waiting to see the close of the exciting little drama.
"There, George has put down his gun; and I reckon Jack told him it was
no good trying to cop the old pirate that way. Now what's he doing,
fellows?" Nick remarked.
"I saw the sunlight shine on something he's got in his hand," declared
Herb.
"That's roight," Jimmy observed, with conviction. "And it's a knife he
is howldin', so it is."
"Oh! my goodness gracious! I hope that foolish and rash George isn't
thinking of going overboard, and engaging the man-eater in a fight,
just like I've read those pearl divers do!" Nick gasped.
"Rats! what d'ye think George is made of to play such a foolish game?"
Jimmy cried. "It's to cut the anchor rope the laddy buck means to
thry!"
"That's right, Jimmy; and you can be sure it was Jack put him wise to
that," Herb broke in with.
"But," Nick went on, still half dazed, "he'll never see his blessed old
anchor any more, will he? The blooming old shark will run off with it."
"Let him," laughed Josh, in derision. "Better to lose a measly anchor
than have the boat go to smash. Looky, fellows, he's going to do it
right now!"
Every one of them stared as hard as he could. The two boats had not
gone so far off but what a pair of good eyes could observe what was
taking place, even though night was coming on apace, with some clouds
gathering overhead.
Jack had run the _Tramp_ alongside the erratic runaway, and George was
seen to clamber aboard his own boat. Of course, after that it would be
a simple job to press the keen edge of Jack's knife upon the strained
anchor rope.
"He did it!" shouted Jimmy, as the _Wireless_ was noticed to fall
suddenly behind the other craft, as though relieved from the unseen
force that had been towing her away at such a headlong pace.
And presently the speed boat was seen to move of her own accord, George
having turned his engine, and thrown on power.
They came back side by side, the skippers laughing heartily at the
harmless end of what had at one time threatened to prove a calamity.
"No harm done except that I must buy a new cable and anchor at
Beaufort," said George, as he once more drew up by the side of the
_Comfort_.
"I've got a spare rope I can lend you till then," spoke up Herb, who
liked to fish up all manner of contraptions from the depths of the
roomy craft, and see the surprise written on the faces of his chums.
So, after all, the excitement died out, though they would never forget
their amazement at seeing the boat rushing off without any visible
reason for its flight.
Jack went back and secured the finny prizes that he had taken, upon
which Josh set Jimmy to work, as the Irish boy was a master hand at
cleaning fish. George, it turned out, had knocked down a whole covey
of small birds, and several of them got busy plucking the feathers from
these.
Nick was willing to do what he could, but truth to tell, he proved so
clumsy at the task that it took him the whole time to get just one
little bird ready, while Jack and Herb did six apiece.
Of course, they feasted that night, and considerable of the talk around
the camp-fire concerned the late adventure.
"It might have been much more serious," George declared.
"That's a fact," added Josh, wagging his long head, solemnly, as was
his custom. "Suppose now that same thing had happened in the middle of
the night? Whew! we never would have known what had become of the
blessed old _Wireless_. Jimmy here would have said the ghosts had
carried her off."
"Even if that shark had had a better start he might have given us a
long chase before we caught him. And you fellows saw how quick it got
dark tonight, with the clouds hanging over us," George continued.
"What would you have done in that case, Jack?" asked Nick.
"Do you mean if we found ourselves far out on the dark sound?" laughed
the one addressed. "Why, I reckon we could have heard you shout; and
if that failed there was the fire. Oh, I don't doubt we'd have found
some way to get back here, all in good time!"
By ten o'clock the sky had cleared again, so that they concluded to
keep to the original plan, which included a night ashore. George was
seen to pay particular attention about fastening his boat to the others
with an extra cable.
"He's meaning to make things secure," chuckled Josh.
"Yes, one experience is quite enough for George, sometimes," commented
Herb. "If another shark gets the fever, and tries to run away with an
anchor, he's just got to take the entire bunch."
"Yes, and the whole island in the bargain, because they've fastened the
boats to that tree, you notice," Josh observed.
Their hopes of a good, quiet night suffered no blight, for nothing
happened to disturb their sleep, and morning found them eager to go on.
They fully expected reaching Beaufort before long now, when the
mysterious little packet could be delivered to the party to whom it was
addressed, if they were fortunate enough to find him. Young Spence did
not seem to be sure that this Van Arsdale Spence still lived near
Beaufort, as he evidently once had done; but still Jack had hopes of
succeeding, since they seemed to carry such luck along with them.
It was eight o'clock when they got started. As usual, George detained
them, finding occasion to do some more little necessary tinkering with
that miserable engine of his, that was forever getting out of order.
Cove Sound lay shimmering in the sunlight as the three little boats
left the friendly beach of Cedar Island, and once more cut a passage
through the water, with their prows turned southward.
It was a beautiful morning.
"I only hope," Jack had said at starting, "that it is a good omen, and
that we will be able to get on the track of the party without too much
delay."
And so they started on the last leg that was to take them to Beaufort.