The young partners on the following day talked over the adventure they
had had with the burglars, and decided to say nothing about the affair
to any one else for the present.
"Those fellows are up to some crime," Budd had declared, "and possibly,
if we say nothing about their visit here, but keep a careful watch up
and down the bay, we may discover what it is and bring them to justice.
"Once get Bagsley into jail charged with some crime, and he may be
willing to acknowledge his guilt respecting the one of which my father
has been convicted. Especially may this be so if he should be able to
lighten his sentence on the later charge by a confession of the first;
and if we are the means of his and his companions' arrest, we may have
the power to bring about such an arrangement. Then my father's release
is certain."
To all of which Judd agreed, and from that day the lads became a
self-appointed vigilance committee patrolling the bay.
On both the following Monday and Tuesday mornings, when the lads came to
haul their nets at the three pounds, they were delighted to find in each
the largest catches of fish they had yet made; and it was nearly dark on
Tuesday evening as they got into their sloop at the village wharf, after
shipping off the large excess of fish they had had over the demand of
the home trade.
As Budd cast off the last rope and stepped forward to hoist the sails of
the Sea Witch, preparatory to a departure for the island, a gentleman
came hurriedly to the dock and called out:
"Hello, there, boys; hold on a moment. I want to see you!"
Judd threw the man a rope, and the sloop was refastened to the wharf.
"Are you Boyd & Floyd of Fox Island?" the stranger asked.
"Yes, sir," replied the lads.
"And you sometimes take out sailing-parties, do you not?" was the next
inquiry; and again the young partners responded in the affirmative.
"I am Mr. Dane," continued the gentleman, "and am over here with a party
of friends, and we wish you to take us across the bay to Bristol
to-morrow. Can you do it?"
"Do you wish to be simply taken over, or over and back?" asked Budd, as
spokesman for the firm.
"Just landed there. We are from that side, and thought, instead of
going around by either Newport or Providence, we would get you to set us
over," explained Mr. Dane.
"What time do you wish to go, and how many are there in the party?"
asked Budd, with a prompt business air.
"Six, with myself; and we would prefer not to go until afternoon,
leaving here, say, about two o'clock."
Budd consulted with his partner; then he said:
"Yes, we can take you over."
"What are the charges?" inquired Mr. Dane, as though the proposed trip
depended greatly upon them.
"Three dollars for the party," answered Budd.
"That is fifty cents each, and is much less than it will cost us to go
around," Mr. Dane commented to himself.
Then he said to the boys:
"All right; we'll give it."
"One of us will be here at the appointed hour, if a suitable day for the
trip," said Budd, casting off the fastenings of the sloop for the second
time; and a moment later she was gliding down the harbor.
By half-past one o'clock the next day the lads had got their regular
work so well in hand that Judd could easily finish the balance by night,
and Budd entered the Sea Witch and sailed over to the village.
The weather was delightful, and the breeze a strong one, so he tied up
at the village wharf five minutes before the appointed hour. But the
party he was to take over the bay was as prompt as himself, and before
the town clock had struck two all were on board, and the sloop had begun
the passage.
The wind was a southerly one, and running out by the lighthouse, Budd
took his first tack directly for the lower end of Prudence Island. When
he reached that, and threw around his tiller for his second tack, it
brought the wind almost directly astern, and he ran straight for Bristol
harbor, where he safely landed his passengers in less than two hours.
The party were delighted with the trip, and promptly paid the amount
that had been agreed upon. As they turned away from the landing, Mr.
Dane handed Budd one of his business cards, saying:
"You see, I'm in the grocery business just up the street here. Whenever
over this way, give us a call."
Budd thanked the gentleman and put the card in his pocket, scarcely
realizing how soon it was to prove serviceable. Then he said,
laughingly:
"We are in want of some groceries at the island. I guess I'll go up to
your store, and see if I can trade better there than at our village. It
will enable me, also, to go directly home from here."
"Come on; I go by there on my way to the house, and will see that you
are fairly treated," said Mr. Dane, in reply.
A few rods up the street they came to the store, and Mr. Dane himself
waited upon Budd, and made a generous reduction, as the lad paid for the
things.
Returning to the boat as soon as his purchases were made, Budd cast off
the lines and began his return passage. The wind, blowing as it did
strongly from a southern quarter, compelled him to take quite a
different course from the one taken when he had come over.
Once out of Mount Hope Bay, he ran for the north of Prudence Island.
Passing that on his left, he tacked down by Patience Island toward the
mouth of the Potowomot River, on the main shore. His third tack, to the
southeast, brought him under the lee of Hope Island, and from there he
expected to make his last tack directly for home.
As he came up under Hope Island, however, he recalled the words of Tom
Bagsley on the previous Saturday evening about this island being Mr.
Johnson's summer residence; and remembering, also, that Tom and his
companions had left Fox Island intending to make Hope Island their
rendezvous for a few days, a strong desire took possession of him to
land on the island and see if the burglars were still there, or had
ransacked the house and left.
Like an inspiration the thought came to him that here might be his
chance to bring a charge against his enemy. If the house had indeed
been robbed, his own and Judd's testimony as to the declaration they had
heard from the robbers' lips surely ought to be sufficient to warrant
their arrest for the deed. He resolved, then, to land and make an
investigation; and if he found traces of the crime, as he felt sure he
would, then he would report to Mr. Johnson at once.
He knew he was running some danger of discovery by a man who would not
hesitate to take his life, but he believed the risk was very slight. If
the house had been robbed, he argued, then the men had already departed.
He believed this all the more strongly because it was quite time for Mr.
Johnson to come to the island for the summer; and the men, also knowing
this, would not be apt to make a long sojourn there. So he ran in as
close to the island as possible and anchored the sloop. Then, jumping
into the yawl, he went on shore, and climbing up the steep bank, started
boldly across the fields toward the house.
He would have hesitated long before doing this, however, had he been
aware that Mr. Johnson had only that morning come to the island,
bringing some men with him, to arrange for his summer sojourn; and
finding that the house had indeed been robbed, and believing, from
unmistakable evidences, that a gang of men were making the house a place
of rendezvous, he had left everything just as it had been found, and was
lying in wait with his men for the burglars' return.
Unconscious of all this, Budd went directly on to the house, and found
the shutters torn off from one window and the window open. Listening a
moment, and hearing no sound of anyone within the house, he leaped into
the window and began his search of the rooms.
On every side were the signs of the robbers' presence. The table was
covered with unwashed dishes, beds had been slept in, and drawers and
closets torn open. Budd of course could not tell what had been carried
off, but he felt sure that many things had been taken.
From down-stairs he went upstairs, and wandered through room after room
until convinced that the burglars had left no part of the house
unvisited; then he retraced his steps to the window by which he had
entered.
Exulting in his heart at the discovery he had made, for he believed it
was one link in the chain toward his father's freedom, and utterly
unconscious of any danger to himself, he put his feet out of the window
and lowered himself to the ground.
Then he heard hurried steps behind him, and a loud shout close at hand;
but before he could turn about and face the unseen danger strong hands
seized him and a stern voice said:
"So it is you, you young rascal, that has been robbing me, and this is
the place you have got, but cannot send me any money until fall! Not
until you sell the articles you have stolen, I suppose!"
Full of consternation, and wondering how he could explain the awkward
predicament in which he found himself, Budd turned and stood face to
face with Mr. Johnson.