THE MOTHER SHIP
When Jack went over to the home of the affable Mr. Herriott the
following night he had much to tell that gentleman, such as had a
bearing on his own campaign. The other heard what he had to say, and
then asked a number of pertinent questions that in their way were more
or less helpful.
"From all you saw and heard, my friend," the other observed later on; "I
am absolutely certain you have found a bonanza, and discovered the
landing place used mostly by the planes that are carrying such vast
quantities of contraband from mother ships to certain central depots,
where doubtless motor trucks are able to come over unknown country shell
roads, and convey the same to shore cities, possibly even as far north
as Baltimore and Washington. You are getting close to your objective, I
have no hesitation in saying; I only hope it all turns out as well and
profitably as your daring and skill would warrant."
Such words from one whom he had come to admire as a "clean shooter," as
Perk designated their official friend, gave Jack much satisfaction.
"Still, there's no reason for undue haste, you know, sir," he told the
other in his calm way. "While I do not want to loaf on the job, at the
same time I am against trying to push things to a decision, if by so
doing I must take unnecessary chances."
"Quite right, too, Mr. er, Warrington," he was told. "It would have been
much better for several of your fellows who worked on this affair if
they had possessed a share of your caution; two in particular showed
signs of getting somewhere but in seeking to make a swoop before the
time was fully ripe they queered the whole game, and fell down on the
job. I would be willing to prophesy that such will not be the result of
your planning."
"There was one subject about which I'd be glad to hear something
further, Mr. Herriott," Jack went on to mention.
"You have only to let me know what it is, and any knowledge I happen to
possess in regard to the matter is at your service. Now tell me how I
can give you any further assistance,--Jack."
"It's about that cracker guide who's agreed to take us to the secret
landing-place of the mob--Jethro Hicks. Do you feel the utmost
confidence in his honesty, sir? You can easily understand why I ask,
since if it turned out that he himself was in the hire of this gang of
law-breakers, things would turn out badly for myself and my friend."
"Let me reassure you on that score then," came the immediate answer; "I
am positively certain Jethro will be found as true as steel. I know this
from a number of reasons. First of all, I've been acquainted with the
man for some years now, and I think I'm safe in saying that he thinks
considerable of me as a staunch friend. I had an opportunity once upon a
time, to do him a favor, when it seemed as though the whole world had
turned against him, and kept him a fugitive from the law, hiding in the
swamps and backwoods for some years; and he will never forget the little
I was able to do for his family then. That is one reason why he has so
greedily taken me up when I asked him to work hand in glove with you."
"Yet you say he had broken the law--was hiding from arrest
apparently--hardly a fact to commend him as an honest man, sir, I'd
think."
"But Jethro was entirely innocent in that nasty affair, as was later on
proven without a doubt; he is now walking openly, and without a fear of
arrest. On that same fact hangs his chief desire to help you break up
this powerful gang of smugglers infesting the seaboard of our State."
"How come, Mr. Herriott?" questioned the surprised as well as deeply
interested Jack.
"Listen, and you will, I am sure, understand what I mean," continued the
other. "Some years ago there was a sort of mountain vendetta existing
between the Hicks family and two other households in the same
neighborhood. It had gone on for a good many years, with occasional
outbursts, and some shooting. Later on it came about that one particular
man named Haddock made considerable money since prohibition came in; and
still hating the name of Hicks found an opportunity to accuse Jethro of
certain things, building up false evidence on which the young head of a
family would undoubtedly have been sent to the pen if he had not hidden
out in the swamps. While there this rich man also persecuted his family,
and protected by his money could do this without hindrance.
"Jethro has never forgotten or forgiven those wrongs; and yet unlike
many of his class, he does not wish to shoot his hated enemy down in
cold blood. But it is more than suspected that John Haddock is one of
the rich men backing up this big syndicate, for it would come directly
in line with the way he managed to accumulate his own fortune in a less
extensive way, merely with mountain dew as his stock in trade.
"Jethro swore to me he knew this to be a _fact_, although he could
hardly hope to prove the same unless given an opportunity to raid their
headquarters and find positive evidence there.
"Now you will understand just why he can be depended on--Jethro is no
law-breaker, and his fierce hatred for John Haddock--all the Haddock
tribe in fact--will make him a faithful assistant for such as you. Are
you satisfied now, Jack?"
"Unquestionably so, sir; and I thank you very much for telling me this.
I'll have a better opinion of Jethro, and feel a sympathy for him in his
desire to get even with this rich schemer through whom he has suffered
so much."
More of this confidential talk was indulged in, with Jack fortifying
such conclusions as he had already reached.
And when he got back to the hotel room, to find Perk sitting up,
reading, but eager to know if anything worth while had happened, he
proceeded to further astonish his best pal by giving a verbatim
rendering of every item spoken by the United States representative.
"So you see, brother, how well we are progressing," he concluded by
saying; "and with such an eager helper as this same Jethro promises to
prove, it looks as if something unexpected was going to strike that
powerful illegal combine of smugglers at an early date--don't you feel
that way too?"
"Shore I do, partner, an' here's hopin' it aint agoin' to be so very
long naow 'fore we get in aour fust crack. I'm near wild to knock one o'
them smugglers' first aid ships to smithereens, with a nice baby bomb I
got hid away aboard aour dandy amphibian cruiser."
"Your hour will strike in due time, Wally, boy," said the amused Jack,
with a fond look at the excited face of his chum. "You've never
completely gotten over your boyish ways, brother--anything in the line
of excitement, and you fairly itch to be up and doing. I am free to
confess, however, that when you _do_ get into a ruction you know how to
give a good account of yourself."
"Thanks, ole hoss, comin' from sech as yeou that's the highest kind o'
praise I could ever expect. I sometimes reckon I must abeen in at least
one squabble 'fore I was hardly able to toddle 'raound, it comes so
nat'ral to me."
On the following morning their regular routine was again taken up. They
flew up the coast, and turned out to sea, Jack wishing to learn whether
there was a mother ship lying off the coast, from which all manner of
prohibited articles, from aliens, precious stones, narcotics and in
great quantity the finest of foreign strong drink, down to the smallest
things that had an intrinsic value, were secretly imported into the
States minus the heavy duty imposed on their coming.
Once again his hunch proved a true one, for they discovered a squat
steamer hovering about twenty-five miles from the coast, with several
fast smuggling power-boats alongside; and as Perk reported, a number of
men passing weighty sacks over the side of the larger craft.
"No need of our going any closer, partner," Jack announced, as he banked
sharply, and turned the nose of their boat toward the north. "We'll just
knock around for a spell, to experience the sensation of slipping along
above the great salty sea, something neither of us have had much
experience in doing; and in good time we can pass on down again, so as
to cover the ground where we expect to get in our heavy work."
Which same they did, to their own satisfaction; and much to Jack's
surprise to also discover a second large foreign ship apparently also
laden to the gunwales with piles of goods in suspicious looking gunny
sacks.
"It seems as though it might be high time something was being done to
cut this traffic into ribbons, don't you think, Wally, boy?" Jack asked,
as again he made a steep bank, this time heading into the west, toward
the distant streak of land which told of the coast of Virginia.
They struck out for shore, passed as far inland as Jack considered
tactful, and through his clever work in piloting the airship actually
passed directly over Black Water Bayou.