Of course the whole story had to be told over again for the benefit of
Jimmie. The Irish lad found some little difficulty in swallowing Nick's
bold assertion that he might have been setting up a little game for the
amusement of his companions. He even went so far as to poke the defunct
fish in the side with his finger and pretend to ask the captive if it
were really so.
"But look here, Jack and Herb and George, let's have some lunch!"
finally remarked Josh, naming the three who had remained at home, with
malice in his manner.
Nick fell into the trap, sprawling.
"Now, I like that!" he observed with a deeply injured expression on his
red and fat face. "Just listen to him, would you? He cuts poor old
Jimmie and me out of the call. Say, don't you think we ever eat?"
Josh pretended to be astonished, and threw up his hands to indicate as
much.
"Eat?" he cried. "Well, what's to hinder you from getting out that big
lunch you took away with you? We can spare you a cup of coffee to wash
it down, I guess, hey, fellows?"
Then the two returned fishermen stared at each other.
"What are you talking about, Josh?" said Nick. "That little snack we
carried off with us, is it? Oh! say, you don't count that, do you? Why,
Jimmie and me, we got nippy about nine o'clock and punished that off.
Why, I'm just about starved right now, if you want to know it. Bring on
your grub, unless you want to see me faint dead away."
Josh had had his little fun, and knew that it would do no good to draw
it out any longer; so grumbling about the "rise in the cost of living,"
he proceeded to comply with the demand.
Of course there was enough; Josh had seen to that in the beginning.
Indeed, it would have been a highly dangerous proceeding for any one
entrusted with the cooking arrangements of the party not to consider the
enormous capacity of Nick and Jimmie, when laying out provisions for a
meal.
Naturally enough the conversation soon took on an interesting color.
"How long are we going to stick right here in this cove?" Josh asked, as
he sat curled up on a seat, enjoying a platter of Boston baked beans,
with which some frizzled dried beef had been heated up.
"Yes," added Herb, "that's a subject we ought to consider. It's all very
fine to be enjoying the fishing and the wonderful stunts of Buster at
harnessing the finny tribes as horses; but you know, fellows, we came
here to the St. Lawrence to cruise, not squat on our haunches. Jack,
it's up to you. Tell us."
"I've been thinking right along that it must be getting rather
monotonous to some of you," said Jack, slowly. "Only for the fact that
we've been badgered by some unknown parties who want to chase us off,
we'd have gone before now. But it does seem a shame to lose so much time
in this way. Tell you what I propose, boys."
"Glad to hear it. Let's know!" several of the others cried in unison;
for somehow what Jack thought right usually appealed to the rest;
because in the past as a leader he had often been tried and never found
wanting.
"All right," the other went on. "Suppose we put in just one more night
here in this anchorage. Then some time tomorrow, no matter what happens,
we'll pull out. How does that suit you, fellows?"
"I'm agreeable," George immediately replied.
"Suits me from the ground up," Herb put in.
Three others added their voices after the same fashion, so that in this
amiable way the question was settled without the least friction.
"That means another night of guard duty," mused Nick; whereupon Josh
burst out into a harsh laugh.
"Hear him, comrades all!" he remarked. "The poor fellow is worn out with
his arduous work. No wonder he drops off into slumber-land when on duty.
He is so near a living skeleton that even a poor lone little minnow can
pull him and his boat along by the mile. Some of us ought to volunteer
to take Buster's place, and let him get about fifteen hours of sleep. He
needs it."
Nick only grinned, not at all abashed.
"Fine!" he exclaimed. "Suppose you start the ball rolling then, Josh.
How long will you carry me on your stretch--half an hour? That would
count for something. I think I might gain an ounce of flesh on the
strength of that extra sleep."
"I think you would, all of it," said Josh. "The trouble with you,
Buster, is that you take life too easy. That's why you get so fat. Just
keep on and see where you land pretty soon. Remember Mr. Amos Spofford,
will you, and take warning."
"Now, that's what I call a mean dig on your part, Josh," complained
Nick. "Talk to me about the strenuous life; did you ever know anybody
have a bigger job than I did today, landing that giant muskalunge? When
I go in for anything I do it with my whole heart, don't I boys?"
"You sure do, Pudding," assented George, "and with your whole stomach,
too."
Nick only gave him a reproachful look, as though it pained him to
receive this unexpected blow in the house of his friends.
"Then it's settled we leave here tomorrow?" remarked Herb, meaning to
cast oil on the troubled waters; for Herb was by nature a peacemaker.
"Unless something unexpected crops up that might hold us back," said
Jack.
"What could do that?" asked Josh, uneasily, for he wanted to get away
from the vicinity of the haunted island as speedily as possible.
"Oh! one of the engines might break down, for instance," laughed the
other.
"Now I know that was meant for me," retorted George; "but, thank you,
the bully old _Wireless_ seems to be on her best behavior this trip.
Haven't had the least trouble up to now, and don't expect to. Wish I
could only get a chance to race that _Flash_ of Clarence's, though.
Never will be happy till I do, and find out whether his boat or mine is
the faster."
"Look out yonder, fellows," said Josh just then.
"A rowboat, and holding two men," remarked Jack. "Seems to me we've seen
those fellows before, eh, boys?"
"We certainly have," George spoke up. "They are some of the ones who
passed here the other day and scowled to beat the band. They're doing
the same right now, as if they'd like to order us away, but don't dare.
Guess they've come around to see if we show any signs of leaving. Look
at 'em talking together, and shaking their heads. Perhaps it means more
trouble for us tonight, boys."
"Mebbe the ould ghost has been patched up again for a sicond show!"
suggested Jimmie, grinning at Josh, who had turned a bit pale, and moved
uneasily.
"Well, there they go off without saying a single word to us. Talk about
your good manners, these fishermen along the St. Lawrence are a lot of
soreheads," and George mockingly waved his hand after the retreating
boat, though Jack considered his act as bordering on the reckless.
"George, suppose you and I go ashore after a while, and shoot at a mark
a few times with that rifle of yours?" Jack suggested later on.
"Now you've got some notion in your head, or you wouldn't say that,"
remarked George. "Tell us what it is, Jack."
"Only this," replied the other, without hesitation. "Some of those men
may be hanging about within earshot. We don't know but what they have a
camp on the island here or some other close by. It might be as well to
let them know we've got a gun and can shoot if necessary. Is that
straight?"
"It's what you would call good and sufficient warning, in law," George
replied. "And I call it a bright thought, Jack. Let's start now. I
challenge you to a trial of skill with my rifle. And Josh here can go
along to keep tally."
"Please excuse me," retorted the party mentioned. "But I've got plenty
to attend to right here. Try Nick; the exercise will do him good."
"All right!" exclaimed the fat boy, promptly. "I'm on deck every time.
You never knew me to shirk; even if some of you did allow terrible
suspicions to creep into your minds about my entire trustworthiness. But
in good time I expect to clear up that dark mystery of the past. I can
afford to wait my time; the triumph will be all the sweeter. Shall I
tumble into your dinky, Jack?"
So the three went ashore, and for some time the rivalry was keen, the
sharp reports of the rifle sounding at intervals, accompanied by more or
less shouting and merriment. As Jack said, they might as well notify
everybody within earshot of the fact that even the appearance of a ghost
had not frosted their spirits to any appreciable extent.
So the afternoon gradually passed away.
Josh often cast apprehensive glances toward the silent shore of the
nearby island as the shadows grew longer, with night coming on.
Sometimes he fancied he saw something moving amid the thick brush, and
was almost inclined to tell his comrades; only he feared their shouts of
derision, and the accusation that he allowed memories of that silly
ghost to haunt him.
And after all, it usually turned out that the moving object was some
innocent little denizen of the woods, a prowling 'coon perhaps, out
ahead of time in search of a supper; or possibly only a chipmunk
searching for tempting roots to satisfy its desire for food, while
waiting for the new crop of nuts to come along.
Night settled down at last, and this time the boys were pleased to note
that the heavens were almost clear, so that the moon would have a fair
chance to play hide and seek with the few floating white banks of
clouds.
Most of the boys seemed in high spirits. They laughed and joked as they
went about the usual duties of the evening hour. If Jack had anything
serious on his mind he failed to take his comrades into his confidence.
And yet, now and then he would smile, as though certain thoughts that
pushed themselves to the front amused him; and this seemed to be the
case more especially when he heard the others talking about the pleasant
professor from Ann Arbor.