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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..5cb68dc --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #53695 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/53695) diff --git a/old/53695-0.txt b/old/53695-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 461304b..0000000 --- a/old/53695-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,5338 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Among the River Pirates, by Hugh Lloyd - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Among the River Pirates - A Skippy Dare Mystery Story - -Author: Hugh Lloyd - -Illustrator: Seymour Fogel - -Release Date: December 8, 2016 [EBook #53695] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES *** - - - - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, MFR and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - _A SKIPPY DARE MYSTERY STORY_ - - - - - AMONG THE - RIVER PIRATES - - - BY - HUGH LLOYD - _Author of_ - The Hal Keen Mystery Stories - - - ILLUSTRATED BY - SEYMOUR FOGEL - - - GROSSET & DUNLAP - PUBLISHERS NEW YORK - - Copyright, 1934, by - GROSSET & DUNLAP, Inc. - _All Rights Reserved_ - _Printed in the United States of America_ - - - - - CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER PAGE - I Upstream 7 - II Condemned 14 - III The Basin 22 - IV Compromise 28 - V The Apollyon 35 - VI A Strange Story 44 - VII For Skippy 51 - VIII Alone 56 - IX A Visitor 61 - X A Suggestion 66 - XI All of a Kind 73 - XII Drifting 76 - XIII Lights 80 - XIV The Bell Buoy 84 - XV Rescued 91 - XVI River People 96 - XVII Mugs 103 - XVIII Bad News 110 - XIX Danger 115 - XX A Job 120 - XXI What Next? 124 - XXII Big Joe’s Idea 129 - XXIII Another Job 134 - XXIV Another Rescue 139 - XXV Davy Jones 148 - XXVI The Rocks 153 - XXVII Suspense 157 - XXVIII The Duffys 162 - XXIX Good News 168 - XXX Beasell 172 - XXXI Moonlight 176 - XXXII The Last of the Basin 180 - XXXIII Skippy’s Wisdom 186 - XXXIV The Great Adventure 195 - - - - - AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES - - - - - CHAPTER I - UPSTREAM - - -The shabby old motor boat moved slowly up the river towing an equally -shabby old barge. Dilapidated and unpainted as the hull was, the engine -was well muffled—suspiciously well muffled—and the disreputable looking -craft moved through the water with all the noiseless dignity of a yacht. - -A ferry-boat paused midway of the long tow rope and its commuters, -crowded on the forward deck, watched this slow-moving procession with -some show of annoyance. Not a few impatient remarks rose loud and clear -above the hum of the restless crowd, directed at the head of a man -seated in the stern of the boat, calmly puffing on a pipe. Aft on the -barge, a young boy was wrestling heroically with the tiller, trying to -keep the lumbering hulk head on. - -Slowly they crawled upstream. On their left was the precipitous Jersey -shore, and on their right the towering buildings of the great city. Over -the water the late afternoon sun spread a warm, mellow glow and touched -with gold the myriad windows of the clustering skyscrapers across the -river. - -The man knocked out his pipe with calm deliberation and turned his wide, -gray eyes to the lofty Palisades, now bathed in a dazzling crimson. Then -slowly his glance wandered back to where the shimmering light fell -across the little shanty on the barge and picked out in hold relief the -incongruously new and shining letters, _Minnie M. Baxter_. - -A smile lighted up his lined, weary features, a smile of pride in -ownership. - -“She ain’t so bad fer the old battle-axe that she is, hey Skippy?” he -called to the boy. - -The boy’s tousled head appeared from around the battered cabin. - -“I’ll say she ain’t, Pop,” he answered. “An’ she’s _ours_! Gee, I can’t -believe my pop really an’ truly owns a _whole_ barge!” - -The man laughed, then listened for a moment to a significant sound -emanating from the muffled engine. - -“That there front cylinder’s missin’ agin, Skippy,” he shouted. “Loop -’er in that there ring; the tide’s runnin’ out now so she’ll stand -upstream. Set ’er even ’n’ come aboard here.” - -The boy nodded obediently and with an end of rope fastened the old -tiller to a rusty ring. Then, hurrying forward, he jumped into the water -and grasping the taut tow line, pulled himself hand over hand and -scrambled over the stern of the launch. - -The father put out a large, work-worn hand and helped him in with a -tenderness that was surprising in one so rough and uncouth looking. - -“Gimme that there shirt and them shoes while I hang ’em near the -engine,” he said, his voice soft with affection. “Ye’ll be gettin’ a bad -throat agin.” He made no demand for the boy’s trousers, which were the -only other article of apparel that the little fellow wore. - -Having spread the clothing to dry and adjusted the rebellious motor, the -man returned to the stern. He relighted his pipe and sat down with an -arm about his son. - -“I’ll steer her fer a while, Pop,” said Skippy. - -For a few minutes there was silence. - -“Yer glad we’re goin’ straight?” the man asked with a sudden move of his -arm on the boy’s shoulder. - -Skippy’s eyes widened and he looked up at his parent, hesitantly. - -“I mean yer glad we’re goin’ straight—in a straight racket, I mean? Now -there ain’t goin’ to be no more worry about coppers. I won’t care if -they’re floatin’ all over the harbor an’ I won’t be worryin’ about no -pinches. A man don’t ever think uv bein’ pinched when his racket’s on -the up and up. An’ that’s me from now on. I said when I got three -hunderd saved I’d buy a barge an’ not touch no more shady rackets. _An’ -I have!_ Three hunderd—every penny we had in the world, sonny, I paid -Josiah Flint fer the _Minnie M. Baxter_. She’s worth every dime uv it.” - -Skippy nodded gravely. - -“An’ll that help me t’ be honest when I grow up, too,” he asked eagerly, -“an’ be like—like a gentleman even?” - -“Sure, Skippy. Ain’t that just why I saves up an’ buys the _Minnie M. -Baxter_? So’s yer kin grow up clean an’ honest like—that’s why I done -Josiah Flint’s dirty work fer his dirty money! So’s I could save an’ buy -this ol’ battle-axe an’ give yer a good an’ a clean start.” - -“But we’re gonna carry garbage an’ ashes on her,” said Skippy. “That -ain’t so clean exactly, is it, Pop?” - -“Garbage an’ ashes’ll bring in clean money, Skippy—that’s what I’m -talkin’ about—clean money. Since yer ma died I ain’t had many real -honest like jobs. It’s been hard ter git ’em with yer needin’ me with -yer so much counta yer bad throat. Anyways the money come easier an’ -quicker on my jobs even if it was dirty an’ now I’m all through with -gettin’ it shady like.” - -“An’ my throat’s lots better’n it usta be, Pop,” said Skippy eagerly. “I -ain’t had a bad one for three months’n over.” - -“Sure, I know. Everthin’ll be jake now with us goin’ straight. Ol’ -Flint, let him have his dirty money an’ his fine yacht. It’s a wonder he -gets so generous an’ sells me such a good scow fer three hunderd -smackers. Everybody says he’s such a money-pincher he’d even try makin’ -money on a rusty nail.” - -“A regular miser, huh, Pop?” said Skippy. “Maybe he felt sorry about you -savin’ all that money so’s you could get a clean business. Did he say -the _Minnie M. Baxter’s_ a good barge for haulin’ garbage an’ ashes?” - -“Sure. He boosted her hisself when I tells him I wants a good scow. An’ -he oughta know, him that owns more scows’n he can count.” - -“Gee, three hunnerd dollars—real money,” mused the boy. - -“Sure, but not for no scow like this one. Brand new ones cost four times -that. Big Joe Tully paid Ol’ Flint five hunderd fer his an’ Joe cleaned -up two thousand bucks on the first year. He tole me that fer a fact.” - -“But ain’t Big Joe Tully doin’ sumpin’ for Mr. Flint now?” Skippy asked. - -“Big Joe can’t keep away from dirty money,” replied the man. “He wants -to get rich quick. Not me, though. I can keep away from Ol’ Flint from -now on, an’ what’s more, _I will_!” - -“Gee, I know you will, Pop,” said the boy, with shining eyes. “You’re -not like—well, you’re different from old Mr. Flint an’ that Big Joe.” - -The father ran his hand over his son’s tousled head and gripped a -handful of the straight brown hair affectionately. - -“That cabin ain’t goin’ ter make us no bad little shack, hey Skippy?” he -said nodding toward the little square shelter aft. - -“She’s swell inside—for a barge, I mean. Three bunks an’ a nice oil -stove an’ a table an’ chairs. Gee, that’s a regular home, huh Pop? Even -there’s a kerosene lamp.” - -“Sure. Yer can read books an’ be nice and comfortable in there nights. -That paint job,” he said, scrutinizing it thoughtfully; “I ain’t so fond -uv that there red, rusty color. It’s kinda gloomy. Well, we can repaint -her sometime when we’re makin’ money. Blamed if that launch across -stream ain’t headin’ straight this way.” - -“It’s the harbor inspectors, Pop. Whadja s’pose....” - -“Well, I got my license all ready, if that’s what they’re after. -Anyways, we ain’t got no stuff[1] aboard, so we should worry.” - -Skippy wondered and shivered a little. His father’s services in the -employ of the rich, unscrupulous Josiah Flint had brought a certain -instinctive fear of all uniformed officials and the harbor inspectors -were no exception. It was difficult for him to believe even now that -these uniformed men meant no harm to his father. - -Skippy had lived in the shadow of the law a little too long. - - - - - CHAPTER II - CONDEMNED - - -Skippy watched as the green, shining launch swept alongside and stopped. -He was instantly reassured, however, when its occupants smiled genially -at him and then at his father. - -“Well, if it ain’t Toby Dare himself,” said one of the men, heartily. -“Buy her lately, Dare?” - -“Jes’ yesterday, Inspector Jones,” said Skippy’s father, proudly. “An’ I -ain’t a-goin’ ter put nothin’ on her but what I’ll be glad ter show ter -anybody what asks.” - -Inspector Jones’ bland face became serious. - -“Big Joe Tully said the same thing when he bought his scow, Dare,” he -said. “I wouldn’t make promises too soon.” - -Toby Dare’s eyes turned fondly on his son. - -“Big Joe Tully ain’t got no boy like my Skippy ter fetch up,” he said -with firm resolve. - -“Good for you, Dare,” the inspector smiled. “Skippy’s worth keeping out -of trouble for. But see that you keep him in mind when you’re tempted. -Most o’ you birds that start a new leaf stub your toes.” - -“Not me,” said Toby vehemently. “I ain’t carin’ ter make no quick -fortune. A couple grand a year’ll start Skippy an’ git him educated. -That’s all I’m carin’ about, Inspector. _Me_, I don’t need nothin’.” - -Inspector Jones beamed upon the smiling Skippy, then casually glanced -toward the barge. - -“_Minnie M. Baxter_, eh?” he mused. - -“Yere,” said Toby exultantly. “That was my wife’s name when she was a -girl. She died when Skippy was born. I thought mebbe the name’d bring me -luck.” - -The inspector nodded sympathetically. - -“Got any contracts lined up?” he asked. - -“Two,” said Toby proudly. “An’ it ain’t bad fer a start. I’m ter haul -garbage an’ ashes from the island.” - -“Good for you, Dare. Well, we’ll look her over and pass on her, then let -you beat it.” - -Toby Dare looked exultantly at his son as the trim green launch chugged -off to circle the barge. It was a look of triumph and of high hopes for -the future. - -“All we need’s his O.K., Skippy,” he said in soft tones. “It’s somethin’ -ter be able ter face guys like the inspector, specially when I been -dodgin’ him so long.” - -“Then he knows you usta——” Skippy’s tongue seemed not to be able to say -the word. - -“Sure,” said Toby, a little abashed. “There ain’t many reg’lars in this -harbor that the inspector ain’t got spotted some time or other. But I -should worry now.” - -Skippy nodded happily and a silence ensued between them. They listened -together and watched while the harbor launch paused midway of the -_Minnie M. Baxter_ and Inspector Jones and his two subordinates held an -inaudible conference. Then for a time they made soundings after which -the inspector boarded the barge and spent another five minutes -inspecting it fore and aft. - -“There’s more ter this here inspectin’ business than what a guy thinks,” -said Toby simply. “All I know uv boats is this here kicker. I never did -more’n load an’ unload aboard Ol’ Flint’s scows.” - -“The inspector’s gettin’ back in the launch,” said Skippy eagerly. “Now -they’ll come back an’ say it’s all right an’ then we can go, huh?” - -Toby Dare nodded and smilingly waited as the launch chugged back -alongside of his kicker. - -“What yer think uv my ol’ battle-axe, hey, Inspector?” he asked, -chuckling. - -“Battle-axe is a good word for her, Dare,” said the inspector solemnly. -“Nothing describes her better.” - -Toby Dare’s generous mouth seemed to tighten at the corners. - -“What yer mean, Inspector?” - -“How much did you pay for her?” - -“Three hunderd—why?” Toby’s lips trembled a little and he searched the -inspector’s face anxiously. - -“Who’d you buy her from?” the inspector persisted. - -“Ol’ Flint! Josiah Flint,” Toby answered suspiciously. “_Why?_” - -“I thought it must be somebody like him. I hate to spring it on you, -Dare, but you’ve paid three hundred dollars too much. She’s not worth a -dime.” - -Toby Dare cleared his throat and a strange look came into his kindly -gray eyes. - -“Inspector ——, yer mean this here barge ain’t....” he began. - -“She’s not seaworthy,” the inspector interposed as kindly as he could. -“It’s not safe to keep her afloat, Dare. Flint gypped you. You should -have had somebody look her over before you bought her—somebody that knew -an up-and-coming barge from driftwood. That’s all you got on your hands, -I’m sorry to say—_driftwood_. Her keel’s as rotten as a keel can -possibly be.” - -Toby Dare’s tanned, weather-beaten face went suddenly white and he made -a funny little clicking noise with his tongue. - -“The keel,” he muttered hoarsely, “can’t I have ’er fixed, -Inspector—_can’t I_?” - -Inspector Jones shook his head. - -“It’d take more money than what you paid for the old hulk, Dare; more -money than you’ve got, I guess.” - -“I ain’t got a cent, Inspector, that’s the truth,” Toby said, choking on -his words. “Every cent I had I paid Ol’ Flint an’—an’....” - -Inspector Jones leaned toward the miserable man. - -“Don’t take on so, Dare. Maybe the thing’s not as hopeless as it seems. -If Josiah Flint’s got a spark of human feeling he’ll make good. Perhaps -he didn’t realize what shape the barge was in when he sold her. He owns -so many....” - -“That’s jest it, Inspector,” said Toby, clenching his calloused hands. -“Ol’ Flint _ain’t_ got human feelin’. I worked fer him an’ I know. An’ -fer a big ship-owner like him, he knows every craft he owns like a book. -Now that I think uv it, I know he knew what he was sellin’ me! He knew I -was dumb about them things an’ he took advantage uv it.” Dare looked -down the harbor, glowing in the sunset, and his jaw was set -determinedly. “He smiled, Ol’ Flint did, when I forked over my jack. He -knew all the time!” - -Skippy’s eyes were misty and he looked appealingly at Inspector Jones. - -“Does that mean Pop can’t use the _Minnie M. Baxter_?” he faltered. - -The inspector averted his face from the boy’s pleading eyes. - -“If you think you can’t appeal to Flint personally, Dare,” said he, “sue -him. A lawyer’ll make him kick in.” - -“Not from Ol’ Flint,” said Toby Dare hoarsely and looking straight -across the river. “He’s too rich ter be sued. But there’s one way uv -fixin’ him—_one way_!” - -Inspector Jones motioned his men to start their craft on its way. - -“Cheer up,” he said, glancing quickly from father to son. “You’ll get a -break yet. The safest way to get after Flint, Toby, is to sue him. You’d -certainly not get anywhere with him the way you feel now. Meanwhile, the -safest place for the scow is up at the Basin. She’s just not safe even -to be towed around the harbor.” - -Skippy watched the long line of foam that the launch left in its wake. -For a long time his misty eyes were fastened on the glistening bubbles -dancing atop the water until he could no longer stand his father’s -silence. - -“Pop, Pop,” he stammered, “can’t we go—go somewhere now?” - -“Sure—sure,” said Toby brokenly. “We’re goin’ somewheres a’right. We’re -goin’ ter the Basin where Jones told us to go with the _Minnie M. -Baxter_.” He laughed sardonically. “We’re goin’ ter put the ol’ -battle-axe in dry-dock _forever_!” - -“What’s that mean, Pop?” Skippy asked pathetically. “It sounds like you -mean something terrible will happen to the _Minnie M. Baxter_.” - -“It _is_ terrible ter me—an’ ter you, Skippy boy,” mumbled Toby. “It -means that the pore scow’s so rotten she ain’t fit fer nothin’ but ter -be put high an’ dry in Brown’s Basin along with half a hunderd other -rotten scows. It’s way in the inlet an’ folks live in them scows like I -guess you an’ me’ll have ter till I kin think what next.” - -“Then all those other barges like ours can never sail the harbor again, -huh?” Skippy asked sadly. “They just sorta stay there till they rot an’ -fall apart, is that it? Like as if they’re condemned.” - -“That’s the word, Skippy,” said Toby Dare bitterly. “The _Minnie M. -Baxter’s_ been condemned an’ you an’ me are condemned along with her.” - - - - - CHAPTER III - THE BASIN - - -Brown’s Basin was off the beaten track, even nautically speaking. One -could never have found it except by the merest chance, unless one were -fortunate enough to have a companion who was familiar with it. The -rivermen knew, perhaps knew too well, as did the police who preferred to -get no closer to the colony than the shadowy inlet which sulks silently -in the daylight hours and strangely springs to life under cover of the -blackest nights. - -The Basin, as it is more familiarly known, thrives under the protection -of the lofty Palisades. In summer the foliage all but hides it from the -shore, and in winter the grim, gray rocks give it ample security from -the prying eyes of the world. And the Basin wishes that security, for -the character of the residents is such that secrecy and isolation -provide the means for their livelihood and their existence. - -Perhaps half a hundred derelict barges dot the slimy mud banks of the -Basin, some of them occupied and some not. But on the whole the combined -population of this sordid looking place represents a fair number and on -bright, sunlit mornings one can get an occasional glimpse from the steep -river road of poorly clad children scrambling from one to the other of -the closely packed barges, much the same as they would scramble across -city streets. - -Large planks connect the sprawling hulks in a sort of interminable chain -and the denizens can traverse the entire settlement by this means. More -often than not the family laundry waving in the damp river breeze on the -forward deck must be dodged by this strolling citizenry, but they are -quite used to all forms of adroit evasion, particularly where the law is -concerned. - -It was into this little lawless colony that the _Minnie M. Baxter_ was -towed. Sunset had long since gone, leaving but a hint of vermilion -colored sky at the horizon as the kicker chugged silently farther and -farther into the muddy waters of the inlet. Skippy steered the -motor-boat and Toby Dare struggled at the tiller of the barge while most -of the colonists looked on indifferently. They sprawled about on the -various decks, men, women and children. - -Criticism, both friendly and otherwise, reached Toby Dare’s sensitive -ears, but he paid little heed, using his own judgment as to a suitable -spot in which to rest the ill-fated barge. It was a spot at the very -edge of the Basin that he chose and so manifest was its isolation from -the rest of the colony that but one inference could be drawn: Toby Dare -did not intend his son or himself to be drawn into that maelstrom of -dubious citizenry. His grief over the recent misfortune in no way -blunted his keen senses and, as always, Skippy’s future welfare was -uppermost in his mind. - -“They’re people what ain’t partic’lar ’bout things, Sonny,” he explained -while the _Minnie M. Baxter_ was settling in the mud. “They—well, they -can’t help it, but they’re folks what ain’t carin’ whether their boys is -fetched up right or not. They jest let their kids live day after day -sorta an’ they don’t think uv next year. Me, I’m always a-thinkin’ ’bout -you a year ahead—see? So it ain’t no use botherin’ with folks what -thinks different.” - -“I see, Pop,” said Skippy looking musingly into the rust-colored water. -“You know all about ’em, huh?” - -“More’n they know themselves, Sonny. Ain’t they slaves fer Ol’ Flint -same as I was? Only I did more uv his high class dirty work. I overseed -’em load an’ unload the stuff fer Ol’ Flint an’ it paid enough ter keep -my sonny in a shack ashore where he didn’t see his Pop helpin’ ter beat -the law. Now when I thought I was through with that an’ ready ter give -yer a clean, honest start—_where am I?_” He buried his face in his -hands. - -Skippy touched his father on the shoulder with a trembling hand. - -“Aw, Pop—forget it, huh? I can help soon too, can’t I? When I get my -workin’ papers I can. I’ll even go to night school an’ I’ll be honest -an’ like a gentleman just the same as if the _Minnie M. Baxter_ wasn’t -condemned an’ we could haul garbage an’ ashes an’ make plenty.” He was -quite exhausted by this lengthy declaration but his eyes were full of -shining hope. - -Toby Dare raised his head. - -“Yer a-meanin’ well, Sonny, but yer ain’t got no idea how hard it is ter -do anythin’ without a little money. Besides, it sort uv taints a man’s -own fam’ly even, when he’s worked fer Ol’ Flint. Decent, honest -shipowners give a man the go-by when they find out yer been a Flint man. -Yer blackballed, in other words, Sonny—see? Yer ain’t given no chance -ter work at an honest job no matter how bad yer want to. An’ I can’t do -nothin’ but river work an’ the like—I ain’t never done nothin’ else! The -only thing fer a man like me ter do was ter try an’ go on his own hook -like I meant ter do with the _Minnie M. Baxter_. Now I can’t do that -unless—unless....” His large, yellow teeth seemed to close over the word -hopefully. - -“Unless what, Pop?” Skippy asked eagerly. - -“Unless I kin make him give me back my money an’ I kin buy another -_Minnie M. Baxter_.” He choked a little and shook his disheveled head. -“But that’s too much ter hope fer, Skippy. Ol’ Flint’s never been known -ter give anythin’ back—it’s me that oughta know that. I was a fool ter -think he could be honest with me—_me_, a poor workman uv his. Why, Ol’ -Flint’s bragged he’d skin anybody what was fool enough ter _be_ -skinned.” - -Skippy shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. - -“So then will you go to a lawyer like Inspector Jones told you? To -please me, Pop, will you?” - -“I’m a-goin’ nowheres but ter see Ol’ Flint,” answered Toby hoarsely. -“That swell yacht uv his is anchored in the bay an’ he’s livin’ aboard -it durin’ this hot spell so I know where ter find him after workin’ -hours. He ain’t only ten years older ’n me an’ he’s in good condition -an’ jest my size so....” - -“Pop—Pop, you got fight on your mind an’ it’s just the way Inspector -Jones warned you not to go to see Mr. Flint! Besides, it ain’t gonna be -half bad here till we can think up sumpin’ else to do. Forget about Mr. -Flint if you’re jus’ thinkin’ of him on accounta me. I’ll be all -right——” - -“I’ll forget anythin’ ’ceptin’ that Ol’ Flint’s cheated me with a grin -on his slick face,” said Toby Dare with an ominous softness in his -voice. “So I’m a-goin’ ter teach him a lesson, Skippy—I’m a-goin’ ter -teach him that Toby Dare can’t be cheated outa everythin’ he’s hoped -fer, fer years, without hittin’ back. Yessir, Ol’ Flint’s gotta learn -what it means ter cheat me!” - -“Pop—Pop! You ain’t goin’—honest?” - -“I am. I’m a-goin’ sure as guns.” - -“When—when you goin’, Pop?” - -“_Tonight!_” - - - - - CHAPTER IV - COMPROMISE - - -Skippy got the first meal aboard the _Minnie M. Baxter_. His heart and -soul were certainly not in the task for he burned four of the flapjacks -that he was cooking. The coffee had twice boiled over and the narrow -little cabin was filled with a blue, acrid smoke and though the sight of -his father’s lugubrious face, as he paced up and down outside the little -windows, disturbed him, he was not particularly unhappy. - -His mind, during the preparation of that meal, was not on his father’s -misfortunes nor on the threatened and ominous visit to the Flint yacht -that very evening. Instead he was visualizing what benefits were to be -derived from residing in the Basin, chief among these being an -uninterrupted summer season of fishing and swimming. That to the heart -of a boy of his age compensated fully for the loss of the garbage and -ashes contract, yes, even for the loss of the barge’s promise of a -remunerative future. - -It is not to be thought that Skippy did not deeply feel his father’s -grief, for indeed he had brooded over it for hours. But after they had -settled and arranged their few belongings in the meagerly furnished -cabin of the barge, he had achieved that blessed miracle of youth and -accepted the inevitable without a question. Life stretched out ahead of -him as the inlet lay spread under this starlit night, broken now and -then by a quiet ripple until it reached the river. What would happen -beyond that point he knew he could find out when he came to it. - -And so, more contented than his brooding and troubled parent, Skippy -piled up the flapjacks until they resembled the leaning tower of Pisa, -and he whistled to the accompaniment of the sputtering coffee pot. All -the world seemed delightful and generous with these savory dishes ready -to be eaten, and he asked himself if his father wasn’t making much of -little. After all, they had the _Minnie M. Baxter_ for a home, didn’t -they? And wasn’t living on a barge just the kind of life that he and his -pals had often wished for when they had lain about their dusty dooryards -on hot summer nights? - -The boy ran to the door, his tanned face flushed and expectant. He would -tell his father how much better he was going to feel out on the river -all summer than back in dusty, hot Riverboro where he had spent all his -life. He would fish and swim and take lots of deep, lung-developing -breaths. He’d probably never have another bad throat.... - -He inhaled deeply on the strength of this thought and though his lungs -filled with a queerly mixed odor of mud, decayed fish and salt, he -noticed it not at all. Moreover, the inlet might have been a clear, -wind-swept ocean waste, so far above the Basin had his imagination -carried him. - -A figure stirred in the shadows forward and then he heard the familiar -tread of his father. Suddenly on the damp salt breeze they heard the -distant sound of chimes and waited silently while the faint notes struck -off the hour of ten. - -“Pretty late to eat, huh Pop? Everythin’s ready, so you better come -while it’s hot.” - -“Yer know where them chimes come from?” Toby asked in a tone of voice -that was strange to his son. “They come from River Heights on that swell -Town Hall what Ol’ Flint give to the borough. Now I s’pose he’ll give -the three hunderd dollars he cheated me outa, fer somethin’ else what’ll -give him a big name, hey? That’s what some uv them scoundrels like Ol’ -Flint do—give their dirty money ter things what’ll give ’em a fine big -name. Well, he won’t git the chanct ter give my three hunderd—not while -I live!” - -Josiah Flint again! Skippy’s heart lost all its merry hopes in a -fleeting second. He turned back into the cabin and his father followed -him in gloomy silence. Mechanically, he carried the steaming plate from -the oil stove to the rickety little oil-cloth covered table and without -a word they pulled up their chairs and sat down. - -“I never tole yer before,” said Toby after a few moments, “but if it -wasn’t fer Ol’ Flint there wouldn’ never ’a’ been no squatter colony -like this in Brown’s Basin. It’s him what’s made it, that’s what. -They’re all blackballed men, Sonny; men what’s got in Ol’ Flint’s -clutches an’ ain’t never got the chance nor the brains ter git out. Not -like me that had a little more brains ter earn bigger money so’s I could -save fer the _Minnie M. Baxter_. _Save!_” He brought his fist down upon -the table with such force that a flapjack bounced from his plate to the -floor. “Ha, ha—what for did I save, hey?” - -He laughed so sardonically that Skippy hurried for the coffee to hide -his concern. - -“Aw, please don’t take on so, Pop!” His eyes were directed at Toby’s -back. “Gee, that old miser, he ain’t worth you actin’ so queer an’ all. -It ain’t so bad here. It’s a nice little house we got in this cabin; -chairs an’ the stove an’ a table an’ our trunk.” His glance wandered to -the tiny windows opened to the damp salt breeze. “Even I bet I could put -up some cretonne stuff as good as a girl an’ then won’t this be one -nice-lookin’ little place!” - -Toby’s chair scraped over the rough, clean boards and he stood up, -straight and powerful and ominous. - -“Never mind the coffee now,” he said hoarsely. “We kin heat it up an’ -drink it when we come back.” He laughed. “We’ll drink it as a toast ter -Ol’ Flint’s health!” - -Skippy put down the coffee pot and wiped his grimy hands on his khaki -knickers. Then with a swift movement he shook back his straight, -rebellious hair and glanced up at his father. - -“You—you mean you want me with you, Pop?” he asked tremulously. - -“_Jest_ what I mean, Skippy. I want yer along so’s I kin remember Ol’ -Flint ain’t worth ... well, what I mean is, if I have yer to talk ter on -the way I ain’t so like ter lose my head when I git there an’ talk ter -him. If he gits sneerin’ at me like his habit is mostly, it’ll be good -fer me ter know my Sonny’s right outside a-waitin’ in the kicker. -Waitin’ fer his Pop, hey?” - -“Sure, sure,” Skippy gulped. “Sure, I’ll go with you if it’s gonna make -you feel that way, Pop. Gee, I’ll go anywheres with you if you only -promise not to lose your head.” - -“Jest the sight uv that man’ll make me lose my head, Skippy—I know it. -But so long as yer make me promise—I won’t give him the worst uv it, if -I kin help it.” - -Skippy knew his father well enough to accept just that much and hope for -the best. He went to the old battered trunk, took out a worn sweater and -while still drawing it on followed Toby outside. - -They descended the rope ladder in silence and got into the shabby boat. -Toby turned over the motor and Skippy took his place at the bow to watch -for drifting logs for the little kicker had not a light. Toby’s former -nocturnal occupations had made it necessary for him to dispense with -this appurtenance and now, as he explained to his inquiring son, it had -become a habit to roam the river without illumination, knowing as he did -every square foot of it. Besides, he had come to love the solitude of -darkness. - -Skippy looked all about him, not exactly at his ease. The inlet was -black and at times the starlit sky seemed so far away as to be but a -mirage. Perhaps there wasn’t a star in all the heavens, he would try to -tell himself. All was black night and the muffled motor purred with a -hushed monotony that affected him strangely. He fervently hoped that -they would not be long in reaching the river where he could breathe -without feeling that he was going to choke. - -He knew he was afraid and he knew it really had nothing to do with the -inlet or the black, silent night. It was a nameless dread that had -seized him and, try as he would, he could not shake it off. - -Instinctively, he felt that they shouldn’t go on to Josiah Flint’s yacht -that night. - - - - - CHAPTER V - THE APOLLYON - - -Skippy felt better when the boat nosed out into the river. He raised his -worried face to the clear salt breeze and let it blow over his hot -cheeks. Lights blinked here and there on the dark water and a tug -chortled by noisily. Then on the far shore he saw a cable light, and a -ship ran clear of it before she dropped her mooring anchor. - -Toby said nothing but sat in a lugubrious silence as he steered the -little craft downstream. Skippy stared hard at the spray foaming against -the bow; his mind was not on drifting logs. He turned to his father, -scanned his face anxiously, then peered downstream again. - -“Is Mr. Flint’s yacht much further, Pop?” he asked after a few minutes. - -“No, we oughta soon be on top uv her,” came the hoarse reply. “Yer can’t -miss her—she’s got her name sprawled fore an’ aft in great big gold -letters. It’s some fancy name called A—Apollyon. That’s it. Kindo -highfalutin name, hey? Like all them there Flints.” - -“How many Flints are there, Pop?” - -“Jest two now, like me an’ you. Ol’ Flint an’ his son, Buck. His real -name’s Harry. Anyway folks call him Buck. But he’s got it better’n you, -Sonny. Much better. Besides he’s old enough ter take his father’s place -in the dirty business, though I heerd not so long ago that Buck ain’t uv -a mind with the old man an’ lets Marty Skinner help run the works. They -say Buck’s terrible honest an’ all fer the law but Skinner’s nothin’ but -a rat.” - -“Well, maybe Buck’ll take over his father’s business some day and make -it pay without havin’ smugglin’ an’ things like that, huh Pop?” - -“Mebbe, but not if that crook Skinner keeps his ball in the game. Still, -I heerd it said that Ol’ Flint’s business has always paid good enough -without him doin’ dirty work fer easy money. But that’s what a miser he -is—he’s gotta have a crooked side line so’s ter pile up his millions in -a coupla years. He ain’t willin’ like the rest uv these shipowners -’round here ter wait an’ let a honest fortune pile up, say, in twenty -years or so. He can’t be honest, Ol’ Flint can’t, not even with a poor -man like me, an’ Skinner’s the same breed uv cats.” - -They were approaching a wide bend in the river. Anchored launches and -trim sailboats dotted the shadowy water like immaculate sentinels. -Skippy’s restless eyes roved over the silent scene until he espied the -graceful sweep of a yacht’s bow projecting out of the shadows into the -line of its anchor light. Simultaneously he saw great gold letters -spelling out the name _Apollyon_ and it occurred to him how modest and -neat was the brass lettering of the _Minnie M. Baxter_ in contrast. - -The white, dainty craft swayed ever so gently on the slight swell and -Skippy was lost in envy. He bethought himself of the sprawling uncouth -barge and for a moment wondered why things were like this; why a man of -Josiah Flint’s sort could own this dainty, spotless yacht while his -father who wanted so much to be honest had not even the worth of the -hard-earned barge. - -For the first time, he understood how bitter and revengeful his father -must feel. He too felt bitter and revengeful as they got closer to the -_Apollyon_. Something began to smolder in his boy’s heart; something -wholly alien to his cheerful, wholesome nature. But he was aware of -nothing of this, save that he felt like sneering aloud at this proud, -complacent craft swaying before his eyes. In a wild fancy he imagined -her to be mocking his father and himself for daring to hope that Josiah -Flint would make restitution. - -A dim light shone amidships and save for the anchor lights the rest of -the yacht was in darkness. Skippy stared hard at her and suddenly saw -something skimming away from her port side. - -He leaned far over the prow of the little motor boat until he saw that -the object was a kicker like their own with its engine muffled. In -whispered words he drew Toby’s attention to it. - -“Wonder where she’s been and where she’s goin’ to, huh Pop?” he queried. - -“That ain’t none uv our business, Skippy,” his father answered staring -up at the _Apollyon_. “Folks on the river don’t think uv them things -this time uv night. They know a muffled engine’s one that ain’t carin’ -ter be heard, same as I got one fer mine.” - -“We could have ours taken off now, huh Pop? It ain’t any more use now, -is it?” - -“That all depends, Sonny. It all depends on Ol’ Flint,” Toby said -softly. “Now here we are an’ the less said, the better.” - -“Ahoy!” called a voice in deep, soft tones from above. “Who’s below?” - -Father and son glanced up to see the head and shoulders of a burly man -leaning over the glistening rail. Skippy saw Toby stiffen determinedly. - -“Ol’ Flint aboard?” he asked. - -“Yeah,” the man answered suppressing a yawn. “He’s in his cabin -amidships. Lookin’ for him?” - -“Yeah.” - -“Move the kicker aft an’ come aboard. Old man was talkin’ with Mr. -Skinner when I come on duty two hours ago. His light’s still on so he’s -readin’ likely.” - -The little boat moved aft with hardly a splash and the next moment Toby -was scrambling up the ladder. Skippy listened intently as his father set -foot on the _Apollyon’s_ deck. - -“Want me to tell him he’s got a caller?” the man suddenly asked. - -“Nope. Thanks jest the same,” Toby was saying. “I even got half an idee -that mebbe he expects me.” - -“Awright, buddy,” said the man heartily. “You’ll find him ’midships like -I told you. There where the little light is.” - -Skippy heard the soft tread of his father’s step along the deck. A door -closed and after an interval of silence he looked up to see that the man -was still there, bending over the rail and apparently staring at him. - -“Your Dad, hey kid?” he asked, catching Skippy’s upturned eyes. - -“My Pop,” Skippy corrected, chuckling. He liked the man’s hearty voice. -“You work aboard this yacht, Mister?” - -“Second mate, that’s what. Easy job summers when the old man’s busy. All -we do is to sleep and keep the old girl ship-shape.” - -“Old girl?” - -“Yeah, this scow.” - -“Some scow!” Skippy laughed. “She’s pretty swell, I’ll say. Not much -trouble keepin’ _her_ ship-shape, huh?” - -“Naw. There ain’t enough to keep us busy an’ it makes a swab lazy. -Same’s me tonight. Here I am the only one on duty (there ain’t no need -for more’n one, anchored here like we are) and things are so quiet what -do I do but fall sound asleep! I’d sat me down and I hear the old man -bawlin’ Mr. Skinner out fierce. Then I guess I was dozin’ a spell ’fore -I heard the sound of a muffled motor aft. Dreamed it, I guess, and I -dreamed I heard somebody comin’ out from the boss’s quarters ’midships. -Anyways, I finally woke up and when I come to the rail I see you folks. -Guess that’s what I was hearin’ in my dreams all the time, hey?” - -“Maybe,” said Skippy. “Our motor’s muffled, I guess you noticed already, -but you might ’a’ heard another kicker like ours too because one was aft -when we came along.” - -“Guess maybe that’s what it was then,” said the second mate pleasantly. -“Just somebody bein’ a little cautious, like. Still I got to quit bein’ -so lazy nights and do my duty by _Polly_ like the old man pays me for.” - -“_Polly?_” - -The second mate laughed softly and Skippy fancied that his mischievous -wink penetrated the darkness. - -“_Apollyon_—_Polly_ for short, kid! _Apollyon_ is too highfalutin for -able seamen, hey?” - -“That’s what I thought, Mister. I never heard it before. Gee whiz, -what’s it mean anyway?” - -The second mate paused a moment. - -“From what I could make out from the Cap’n it was the name of a Greek -story or somethin’. You know—one of them real old Greeks thousands of -years back. And this _Apollyon_ was a evil spirit or somethin’ like -that, and folks called ’im the Destroyer! Ain’t that a name for you?” - -Skippy nodded and looked at the graceful ship with a new interest. Evil -spirit? Destroyer? A queer name indeed for such a dainty craft. Why -should Josiah Flint give that beautiful hull such an evil name? The -sound of a dull thump interrupted his thoughts. - -“I couldn’t work on a ship with a name like that,” he said to the second -mate at length. - -“Why?” the man laughed. “Superstitious?” - -“I wouldn’t say that,” Skippy answered seriously. “At least I never -thought I was sup-super-superstitious more’n most kids. But it don’t -seem exactly fair callin’ a nice ship like that the destroyer or an evil -spirit or whatever _Apollyon_ really means. Gee, I’ve heard my Pop say -that a ship kinda gets lookin’ like its name an’ actin’ like its name -after a while. That’s why he named the barge he bought from Mr. Flint -after my mother; the _Minnie M. Baxter_ she’s called. He said she’d be -the nicest barge on the river if she took after my mother. But so far it -ain’t worked out,” he added wistfully. - -“No?” the second mate inquired sympathetically. - -Skippy summed up the whole story of his father’s misfortune in a few -words. Particularly did he stress Toby’s grief over Josiah Flint’s -wilful deception in the transaction. - -“And so your Pop’s come to make the old man come across, hey? Well, I -don’t blame him.” The man lowered his voice to a mere whisper. “I only -hope he don’t get the boss in a nasty temper ’cause he’s not one to give -in and he sounded like he was good and sore when he was bawlin’ out Mr. -Skinner. Besides, he ain’t the one to admit he cheated your pop either. -Still....” - -A low moan startled them both and suddenly a door slammed, followed by -the sound of someone running along the deck. Skippy stood straight up in -the motor boat and listened intently. - -He knew those footsteps and he knew what was in the mind that directed -them with such force. His father never hurried, much less ran, unless he -was terribly angered or pained or.... - -He dared not complete that thought, nor did he have need to, for his -father’s drawn, white face was already looking down at him from above -the rail and Skippy read there all that he needed to know. - -Something terrible had happened. - - - - - CHAPTER VI - A STRANGE STORY - - -The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring -shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense -silence. - -“Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened between you and Mr. -Flint anyway, huh? Because you didn’t even say goodnight to the mate an’ -you got in the boat an’ told me so cranky an’ all to push off before I -got a chance to say goodnight to him, either—gee whiz! I never seen you -act so funny before in my life. What’s the matter, huh?” - -Toby Dare groaned and buried his face between his hands. Then, for what -seemed to Skippy an interminable time, he rocked to and fro and the -groans that escaped him were distressing to the waiting boy. - -Finally Skippy could stand it no longer. - -“Pop, you gotta tell me what’s the matter! Gee, it’s somethin’ terrible -the way....” - -“Sonny,” Toby interposed brokenly, “git back ter the _Minnie M. Baxter_ -jest as quick as yer kin! I got ter put as much water between me—me -an’—an’ _him_ as it’s possible ter put.” - -“Pop?” - -“It’s like a dream, Sonny—a bad dream—a terrible dream. I can’t make -head or tail uv it yet. I went ter his cabin ’midships like that mate -told me....” - -“Yes?” Skippy encouraged. - -“I knocked on the door an’ I could uv sworn I heard a kinda grunt like -Ol’ Flint does. He’s a man uv few words. Anyways, I goes in an’ there -he’s sittin’ in a big chair with a funny grin on his face.” - -“Grinnin’ at _you_, Pop?” Skippy asked clenching his straight white -teeth. - -“That’s what I thought an’ right away I got wild,” Toby answered running -his hands nervously through his disheveled hair. “I forgot what I -promised—I forgot everythin’ ’ceptin’ the way he’d cheated me an’ I got -tellin’ him so but he didn’t say nothin’, but jest kep’ sittin’ there -a-grinnin’ that funny way. Well, I knowed as how he always was a man uv -few words but I thought he could stop grinnin’ an’ at least say -_somethin’_. But he didn’ an’ that’s what made me see red—I thought he -was a-makin’ fun uv me, sorta, an’——” - -“You didn’t go for him?” Skippy interposed fearfully. - -“Sonny, I jest sorta lost my head,” answered Toby brokenly. “I kin -hardly remember what happened ’ceptin’ I realized all uv a sudden that I -had my hands ’round his throat an’ I was chokin’ him.” - -“And didn’t he make any noise or anythin’?” Skippy was horrified. - -“That’s what made me let go. I got wise right then that somethin’ was -funny ’cause he didn’t let a sound outa him all the time. His eyes -seemed ter git funnier lookin’ though, but he kep’ on grinnin’ jest the -same. Then I let go quick an’ _plop_—over he fell, head first he fell -an’ that’s when I saw it——” - -“_What?_” - -“That he’d been shot in the back,” Toby whispered looking about -uneasily. - -“_Pop!_” - -“Sure as guns, Skippy,” Toby moaned pitifully. “Then I knew he musta -been dead all the time—even before I got in the room.” - -Skippy too groaned. - -“How—how could he sit up like that then, if he really was _dead_?” he -asked with an audible gulp. - -“That’s what I’ve been wonderin’ an’ all I kin think is that whoever did -it, sat him up that way after it happened. I could see in his bedroom -off uv the room he was sittin’ in an’ papers was lyin’ all ’round like -as if there’d been a scrap.” - -“With somebody else,” Skippy murmured as if to himself. Then, in a -frightened whisper: “What then, Pop?” - -“All I could do was stand there like a crazy man,” Toby groaned. “I -don’t even remember how long I stood there. It’s all like part uv that -nightmare so I can’t remember.” - -“I know, Pop.” Skippy tried to sound comforting. “Who—what groaned that -time? The second mate and me heard it plain’s anythin’.” - -“Me. That was when I knew he was dead! It jest sorta come ter me full in -the face an’ I was so full uv fright that I had ter let it out some -way.” - -Skippy turned around and for a few moments searched the face of his -unhappy father. - -“Pop—Pop,” he faltered, “just one thing I can’t understand—why—why -didn’t you tell the second mate, an’ me, right then? Why—why didn’t you -spurt it right out an’ not run away when you know you didn’t do it?” - -“Who’d believe it?” Toby answered hopelessly. “There was the mark uv my -fingers on his throat—_there they was_! I’d even have ter admit ter that -mate that I was mad enough ter choke Ol’ Flint ter death—he could see my -fingers there ter prove it, couldn’t he? Well, why wouldn’t he think I -give him an automatic in the back afterwards, hey? Why wouldn’t he?” - -“_But, Pop!_ If you only had said _sumpin_!” - -“I wanted ter git away from that awful grinnin’ face. As far away as I -c’d get. I—I couldn’t stay there ter tell nobody _nothin’_, Skippy. -Besides, do I know I didn’t choke him ter—ter...” He sobbed a moment, -then looked up. “Mebbe ’twasn’t the automatic what really got him, -Skippy—mebbe ’twas _me_, hey?” - -Skippy reached out and grasped Toby’s damp flannel shirt sleeve in -agony. - -“Pop, it wasn’t you—I know it—_I just feel it_!” he cried. “I can tell -from all you told me about him grinnin’ like from the time you got -inside the room.” He hesitated a moment, then: “You don’t remember him -makin’ a sound at all?” he asked, anxiously peering into his father’s -face. - -“Not one sol’tary sound, Sonny—I didn’t hear a one!” - -Skippy sighed and again took up the task of steering the little motor -boat upstream. His tired young face, however, had taken on a new look of -resolution. - -“You’re tired, Pop, an’ I’m gonna take you back to the _Minnie M. -Baxter_. Then I’m gonna turn this kicker straight back and head her -downstream again an’ I’m goin’ aboard that _Apollyon_ an’ explain the -whole thing. I’ll tell ’em everythin’ like you told me an’ I bet they’ll -believe it all right ’cause they’ll see that my Pop couldn’t kill -anybody.” - -Toby said nothing but continued to rock back and forth with his head in -his hands. - -“Maybe—maybe you’re not so tired an’ you’d turn ’round with me an’ go -back an’ tell ’em, huh Pop?” Skippy returned anxiously. - -“Skippy,” Toby cried hoarsely, “jest now I wanta go back ter the _Minnie -M. Baxter_ an’ think. Like a good boy don’t talk about it no more till -we get there, hey?” - -Skippy, bewildered, promised that he wouldn’t, and let the little kicker -out to the best of her ability. From time to time he heard the miserable -sighs of his father, and over and over again he told himself the story -of Josiah Flint’s strange death just as Toby had told it. But with each -recurring thought, a strange suspicion asserted itself and clamored so -hard in the boy’s conscious mind that he was forced to recognize that it -was a doubt, a small one, but nevertheless a doubt of his father’s -story. - -And by the time they were once more on board the _Minnie M. Baxter_, -Skippy was fearful that possibly, after all, his father might be the -actual murderer of Josiah Flint! - - - - - CHAPTER VII - FOR SKIPPY - - -Skippy washed the dishes and cleaned up the cabin, then made some fresh -coffee. He put the two cups on a little tin tray and carried it out on -deck where his father sat disconsolately puffing a pipe. - -“I made this good an’ careful, Pop,” he said, handing Toby a cup of the -steaming beverage. “Maybe it’ll make you feel better, it’s so hot.” - -Toby took the proffered cup and smiled wanly. - -“Yer think your Pop’s a coward, takin’ on this way?” he asked anxiously. - -Skippy flushed and, to cover his embarrassment, sat down on a stool a -little distance away. - -“Nah, I don’t think that, Pop,” he said at length. “I guess I know how -kinda crazy an’ different you’d act after seem’ that. Gee, it musta been -pretty awful to make you act so different.” - -“I know how yer mean by different, Sonny, but I ain’t blamin’ yer. I -know it must look funny, but it ain’t. Besides I ain’t a coward ’bout -it. If I’d told the mate right on the spot, he’d had ter keep me till -the police come. Then what would happened ter _you_? Even if I give -myself up now they’ll hold me on charges an’ the law’s that slow, it’ll -be months mebbe ’fore I kin clear myself.” - -“But that’d be better’n lettin’ ’em think you was the one that killed -Mr. Flint, wouldn’t it?” - -“I thought mebbe we could run somewheres out west or the like, hey -Skippy? Yer don’t know what the law is once yer git in its fist. If they -can’t find nobody else they’ll pin it on me no matter what we say—I know -it! So we might’s well take our duds an’ beat it now.” - -“Pop, you’re not talkin’ like yourself. You got sorta crazy on accounta -thinkin’ how all this’ll hurt me. Gee whiz, forget about me, because you -can’t have the cops thinkin’ you did it, when you didn’t! Gee, I’ll get -along somehow, honest I will, Pop. I’ll get along better to know you did -what was right an’ told the truth. An’ even the law I bet can see when a -man’s tellin’ the truth an’ they’ll let you out quick—so will you go for -my sake, Pop?” - -Toby brought a hairy fist down on his bony knees. - -“It’s fer yer sake that I didn’t want ter go near ’em, Skippy,” he said -vehemently. “But if yer promise yer Pop ter stay good an’ all till they -let me out, I don’t care. Fer my sake I _wanta_ go!” - -“Gee, Pop, I’m glad!” - -Toby drank his coffee with a determined gulp, then got up and stalked -into the cabin with the empty cup. When he came out, he held out his -hands to Skippy. - -“C’mon, then, Sonny,” he said gripping the boy by the shoulders, “we’ll -be a-gittin’ back ter the _Apollyon_ ’fore too much water slips inter -the bay, hey?” - -“Just what I was thinkin’ of, Pop,” Skippy answered and averted his head -so that his father should not see the tears swimming in his eyes. “And, -Pop, you’re kinda calm now, ain’t you? Calm enough to remember better’n -when we were comin’ down?” - -Toby Dare nodded wearily. - -“What yer wanta know, Skippy?” - -“Just that you’re good an’ sure that you didn’t hear him make a noise -from the time you first seen him till you ran outa the room?” - -“Sure, I’m sure, Sonny. And like I told you, the grin was the same too.” - -“Then he _was_ dead, Pop—dead all the time, an’ somebody with an -automatic did it because the second mate said he dreamed he heard -somebody runnin’ an’ then he heard a muffled kicker shoving off aft like -I saw when we come along. Whoever had that automatic was in that kicker, -Pop. I got a hunch about it.” - -“I hope the coppers believe you, Sonny. But c’mon, we’ll take the -chance. Anyways, I’ll tell what I know.” - -They walked forward together and were just about to descend when they -saw a long, dark painted launch shoot alongside of the _Minnie M. -Baxter_. As Skippy and his father leaned over to get a better view they -were blinded with the glaring rays of a searchlight. - -“_Coppers, Pop!_” Skippy hissed. “It’s the coppers!” - -[Illustration: “COPPERS, POP!” SKIPPY HISSED. “IT’S THE COPPERS!” -_Frontispiece_] - -Toby gripped his son’s trembling fingers in his own. - -“Don’t move, Dare!” a deep voice commanded from the police launch. - -“I’m not,” Toby answered hoarsely. - -“We’ll be right up. Stay right where you are.” - -“Pop an’ I were just comin’,” Skippy cried to them, “that is, we were -just goin’ back to the yacht—the _A—Apollyon_ an’ tell them how it all -really happened. Pop ran away on accounta me, but after we talked about -it he decided to go back an’ tell.... Mr. Flint was dead before Pop got -there—_he was; honest!_” - -“Oh yeah?” laughed the first officer to reach the deck. “Now that’s -interestin’. But I’d wait till the rest of the gang gets up, kid, -because they all got ears too.” - -Skippy watched them troop up until the last man set foot on the barge’s -worn deck. Six men, he thought, with not a little fear. How weak would -his father’s story seem to these frowning cops? Would they believe him -as he had believed him? - -His fingers were entwined in his father’s in a tight grip and yet he had -the feeling that Toby was already snatched away from him. Now that the -police confronted them he was terribly afraid and in that instant his -hopes fled as quickly as the stars in the face of gathering storm clouds -overhead. - -Then Toby spoke in his hoarse, broken voice.... - - - - - CHAPTER VIII - ALONE - - -Skippy’s hopes were somewhat rekindled during Toby’s recital of his -visit to the yacht. The story sounded so straightforward as he told it, -that it did not seem possible that these representatives of the law -could find a single flaw in it. And yet to his utter dismay they found -more than a flaw in it; they found it sufficiently damning to threaten -his unhappy father with certain conviction. - -They had already seen Inspector Jones and had had his word for it that -Toby Dare had threatened to “fix Josiah Flint,” and there was also the -corroboration of the inspector’s men. There was also the strongly -incriminating statement of the second mate of the _Apollyon_ and the -charge that Toby refused to stop when called to from the yacht by -Skinner. - -“My Pop never carried a gun!” Skippy cried in protest. “You can’t say -that he did!” - -“There’s a robbery charge too,” said one of the officers sternly. “You -went to Flint’s yacht because you were sore and Inspector Jones heard -you crack that it would be bad for Flint if he didn’t kick in for the -loss of the barge. It adds up swell for a jury.” - -“Yeah,” said another, “and when Flint give you the razz like you’re -trying to tell us, you burn up, shoot him, then you choke him and frisk -him to get that three hundred with plenty interest back. Your -fingerprints on his throat are the only fingerprints we found. What did -you do with the gun—throw it in the river?” - -Toby denied it all with a groan, and Skippy sidled up to his father and -held on to his arm with a gesture of protection. The officers frowned -for there is neither time nor place for sentiment in the progress of the -law. They had come to arrest Toby Dare for the murder and robbery of -Josiah Flint and all Skippy’s pleading would not thwart them. - -The faint boom of thunder sounded as Toby was led into the police launch -and a flash of lightning streaked the black sky just above the _Minnie -M. Baxter_. But Skippy was indifferent to everything save the hopeless, -staring look that his father gave him as their eyes met. - -He fought back the tears bravely and smiled his bravest. - -“Now, Pop, stop thinking about me again, huh!” he cried desperately. -“Gee whiz, I’ll be swell—I promise I will so will you cheer up an’ -everythin’, huh? Because you gotta prove you’re tellin’ the truth an’ -never had a gun so how could you do what they say you did? So will you -cheer up if I tell you I’ll be all right, no matter what?” - -Toby Dare’s troubled face lighted with a smile. - -“Skippy, boy,” he gulped, “I kin do anythin’ when I hear yer talk like -that. Jest hearin’ yer say yer’ll be a good boy’s enough fer me.” - -“All right, then, Pop,” Skippy said, forcing a laugh. “So we won’t even -say so long ’cause they’ll let you come back in a day or so, I bet.” - -“Sure,” Toby assured him. “They’re bound ter let me.” - -And that was all, for the launch chugged off leaving Skippy strangely -numb and bewildered. He watched the snakelike movements of the trim -craft as she darted through the inlet but soon the darkness enfolded her -from view. After a few moments they switched on their running lights but -there was too much distance between them for the boy to see his father -and so he turned his back to the inlet and slowly walked toward the -little cabin. - -Not a light had appeared the length or breadth of the whole barge colony -since the police launch slipped up to the _Minnie M. Baxter_ yet Skippy -knew that every man and woman in Brown’s Basin was awake and watching -all that had transpired. His father had told him that these strange, -lawless people had a surprising faculty for learning of the law’s -arrival in the inlet. And hating the law as they did, they kept silently -out of its sight, nor did they want to be drawn into it through -another’s troubles. - -Notwithstanding this knowledge, Skippy had the feeling that he had only -to call out and ask for help for himself and his father, and his lawless -neighbors would immediately respond. Yet that is just what Toby had -warned him against. Moreover, his promise to avoid dubious company was -not ten minutes old. - -And so he resolved to bear his troubles manfully and alone, though never -in his life had he so wanted the warmth and sympathy of human -companionship. He was young enough to be afraid, yet old enough to feel -ashamed of it. But the events of the day and his father’s unhappy plight -finally proved too much for him and with trembling under lip he sought -the shelter of the cabin. - -A few minutes later a terrific storm broke over the river and swept -through the Basin relentlessly. Rain lashed against the tiny windows of -the cabin on the _Minnie M. Baxter_ and the wind moaned eerily in and -out of the inlet. - -Skippy buried his tousled head under a pillow in his bunk and tried to -stifle the sobs that would not stop. His heart raced madly in his breast -every time he thought of his father and his fears increased with every -crash of thunder. Could it possibly be that his father wouldn’t come -back? - -He squirmed farther under the bedclothes. He would have shut out his -thoughts if that had been possible. Presently he heard a muffled -knocking at the cabin door. - - - - - CHAPTER IX - A VISITOR - - -Skippy sat up instantly, threw off the bedclothes and slid to the floor. -Then he hurried to the little table and lighted the lamp, meanwhile -glancing toward the door uneasily. The knock sounded again; this time -insistently. - -He rushed to the door and swung it open. A man stood before him in the -pelting rain, the tallest, broadest man he had ever seen in his life. He -could not have been out of his twenties and had a large, rather amiable -looking face; so large, indeed, that it made his blue eyes seem small -and insignificant. - -[Illustration: A MAN STOOD BEFORE HIM IN THE PELTING RAIN.] - -As Skippy waited questioningly, he moved his ponderous neck above his -upturned coat collar and smiled, a slow, secretive smile. Then he half -turned and glanced quickly toward the inlet, before he spoke. - -“Sure and be ye Toby’s kid?” he asked with a slight brogue. “Can I come -in? And where’s Toby bein’ at this hour?” He walked into the cabin -quickly. - -The ghost of a smile flitted across Skippy’s tear-stained cheeks as he -closed the door. - -“Sure, sure, come in!” he said hospitably. “Pop ain’t here. He’s....” - -“’Tis all right, so ’tis,” the stranger interposed pleasantly, and -calmly divested himself of his wet clothing. “I got nothin’ but time. -Your ould man told me I’d always be welcome in his diggins so here I be. -’Tis too bad ’bout this scow, though. I only got wise tonight that the -inspectors told Toby the _Minnie M. Baxter_ was junk. Bad cess to ’em. -So Flint gypped Toby on it, did he?” - -“An’ how!” Skippy answered dismally. “Gee, gee....” - -The man got up and waving his hands deprecatingly, made a quick movement -toward one of the windows on the inlet side. He bent his huge frame in a -stooping posture and after rubbing the steam from the diminutive pane, -he peered out intently. - -Suddenly he turned back and smiled his slow, secretive smile. - -“I ain’t exactly aisy in me mind, kid,” he explained with a low chuckle. -“I be keepin’ a weather eye on thim coppers. They’re curious like ’bout -some stuff and I ain’t in the spirit to answer thim. They got me barge -and that’s enough, so ’tis.” - -“You ain’t Big Joe Tully?” Skippy asked. - -“That be callin’ the turn, kid. S’pose your Pop give ye an earful ’bout -me. Well, I started out shootin’ straight like he did, but whilst -Flint’s got the monop’ly on shippin’ and the like on this river, a guy’s -a million to one, so he is.” - -“Mr. Flint won’t have it no more,” Skippy gulped. “I guess you ain’t -heard....” - -“_What?_” asked Big Joe Tully reaching in his pocket for a cigarette. - -“He’s dead—he was killed tonight.” Tears rushed to Skippy’s eyes again. -“An’ my Pop’s been sorta accused, Mr. Tully,” he added, and blurted out -the whole story. - -Tully was puffing energetically on his cigarette when Skippy finished. - -“Now don’t ye be worryin’ kid,” he said sympathetically. “If that ol’ -rat was dead when Toby got there they can’t do nothin’ to him. Toby’ll -be home tomorrow, so he will, I bet.” - -Skippy felt instantly cheered. He was beginning to feel glad of Big -Joe’s comforting presence when he bethought himself of the man’s dubious -activities on the river. Wasn’t it this man and his ilk that his father -had warned him against? Men who weren’t honest? The boy sat down on his -bunk to think it over. - -To his surprise, Tully had got up and was putting on his coat and hat. -Immediately, Skippy forgot that he was considering the moral aspect of -an invitation to the man to stay; he forgot all his father’s warnings -against association with the river gentry, and thought only of the void -that Tully’s sudden departure would make in the long night. - -“I thought you said you were gonna stay, Mr. Tully?” he said with -evident disappointment. “Gee, now you ain’t, huh?” - -“’Tis sorry I be, kid,” said Big Joe with a friendly wink. “I did think -along thim lines when I come in, but since the coppers been nosin’ -’round here tonight, I’ll be mosyin’ along. They might come back and -spot me here so I’d better be takin’ the air.” - -“Did they catch you carryin’ _stuff_?” Skippy asked, interested. “Is -that why?” - -“Sure and they did that. Somewan tipped off the police—somewan what was -jealous I wasn’t carryin’ _their_ stuff.” He laughed lightly. “The -coppers hook ye either way, so they do. Look how quick they come after -Toby and they knew he was on the up and up! So I says, does it pay?” -Then, seeing the shadow on Skippy’s face, he added: “But sure you’ll be -seein’ Toby back tomorrow, kid. They can’t be keepin’ him when he didn’t -do it.” - -“He didn’t do it, so they can’t!” Skippy echoed. - -“’Tis a cinch, so ’tis,” said Big Joe Tully with an awkward attempt to -sympathize. “Be hittin’ the hay now, kid, an’ ye’ll be seein’ Toby -tomorrow or me name ain’t Joe Tully. Now I’ll be swingin’ into me kicker -and chug her up the river till daylight. I’ll be layin’ low a while and -some day I’ll be seein’ ye and Toby. Be watchin’ the old step. S’long.” - -He went out like a breeze and Skippy soon heard the chug of his engine. -Another craft muffled so that the ears of the law would not hear its -approach! The boy made a mental grimace at the thought of all this -muffled life on the river, Big Joe Tully included. His inherent love of -clean living and honesty had come to the fore as his father had wanted -it to. And honesty and clean living _did_ pay despite what Tully had -said. Certainly it would pay his father tomorrow! He lay back on his -bunk and closed his burning eyes. - -Tomorrow was almost here ... almost.... - - - - - CHAPTER X - A SUGGESTION - - -Many tomorrows had come and gone before Skippy saw his father again and -then it was under circumstances that the lonely boy had not -contemplated. The shadow of prison walls already threatened Toby Dare -for the rest of his natural life; conviction was certain. - -Skippy returned to the _Minnie M. Baxter_ toward noon. It threatened to -be a sultry day; the air was heavy and still, and a sickening blue haze -hung over the inlet. Brown’s Basin, always more or less apathetic under -the glare of noonday, was unusually silent and Skippy listened in vain -for the cheering sound of a human voice. - -He set about preparing lunch, but it was a half-hearted, pathetic -attempt, for the Dare larder was getting dangerously bare. He had been -living on an almost exclusive diet of pancakes for more than a week past -and Nature was beginning to retaliate for Skippy was far from being a -robust boy. - -He pushed back his plate after a time, hurried out of the cabin and got -into his motor boat. It was his only consolation during the interminable -days and nights of his father’s continued absence and on this particular -day his heart warmed toward it with a new, affectionate thought. - -His fishing tackle was assembled at his feet and he set the nose of the -little boat downstream as soon as he reached the river. Fog horns -pierced the still, hazy air with their dismal warnings and the screams -of steam winches and tooting whistles echoed and reechoed about the -boy’s tousled head. - -He watched the passing river traffic abstractedly, particularly the -lumbering and heavily-laden barges moving along in the wake of chortling -tugs. The sight of them always made him think of his father and of what -might have been, and the more he saw of them the more did the feeling -grow within him that it was a strange and unjust law that could take his -father away from him. Moreover, he could not understand why a jury would -not believe his father’s straightforward story, which proved so clearly -to him that another hand had taken Josiah Flint’s life. - -Hadn’t the police found that the rich man had been robbed of a -considerable sum of money and hadn’t they admitted that it was neither -on Toby’s person nor on the barge? Skippy remembered only too well the -day when the police ransacked the _Minnie M. Baxter_ fore and aft for -Josiah Flint’s money. But their search was futile, as he knew it would -be, and although they now had ample proof that poverty threatened him, -they still insisted that the stolen money had been hidden by his unhappy -father. - -But Skippy did not consider the testimony of Marty Skinner that he, on -returning to his employer’s stateroom, saw Toby Dare with his arm out -the porthole (from which a clever and venomous prosecuting attorney drew -the inference for the jury that Toby was disposing of the pistol from -which the fatal shot was fired). Skinner did not swear he saw any -weapon, but his testimony, linked with the other evidence, made for a -strong circumstantial case. - -Skinner also testified that he had rushed to his employer’s side as Toby -raced from the room; that upon discovering that Josiah Flint had been -shot he chased after the squatter and shouted to him, as he made off in -his kicker, to no avail. The second mate corroborated the testimony that -Toby failed to heed the cries for him to halt. - -While the pistol had not been found, Inspector Jones and his men -testified that Toby had threatened to fix Josiah Flint because he felt -he had been cheated of his life savings of $300 in buying a rotten barge -from Flint. That, the prosecutor insisted to the jury, furnished the -motive for the crime. Altogether he made a case which convinced the -twelve men, but it did not convince Skippy for he could not be convinced -that his father was guilty. - -Skippy was deep in his bitter reflections and did not see the familiar -launch of the harbor inspectors until it was almost upon him. Inspector -Jones’ bright and smiling face came alongside of him with startling -suddenness. - -“Well, Skippy!” he said pleasantly. “How’s the boy?” - -Skippy winced and a frown darkened his face. He could not forget that -Inspector Jones’ testimony had helped to take his father from him. - -“I feel sick on accounta my Pop, that’s what,” said he bitterly. “You -helped make things worse for him too, Mr. Jones, on account of the -things you told about what he said that day after you inspected the -_Minnie M. Baxter_.” - -Inspector Jones’ bland countenance looked immediately troubled. - -“I told the truth, Skippy,” he said kindly. “I told only what your -father had said and my men were there to prove it.” - -“You needn’t have said that Pop said he was gonna _fix_ Mr. Flint ’cause -you mighta known he really didn’t mean it. Pop was mad then, but he -promised me before we left for the _Apollyon_ that night that he -wouldn’t lose his head. Gee, he’s even sworn since he didn’t take Mr. -Flint’s life an’ don’t you suppose I know when my Pop’s tellin’ the -truth?” - -“I guess so,” Inspector Jones answered with real feeling in his voice; -“I guess you know your Pop better than anybody, Skippy. I’m sorry, the -law required me to testify against him. But it was my duty—can’t you -see?” - -“Then you believe they’ll be keepin’ my Pop in jail when he’s innocent, -too, huh?” Skippy asked excitedly. - -“I’m rather inclined to believe that your father didn’t shoot Flint,” -answered the inspector. “But I can’t do anything about it, Skippy, and I -doubt if my testimony alone would convict him. It’s that -District-Attorney and Marty Skinner that’s made it so tough for your -father. You know Skinner swore he saw Toby at the porthole and the D. A. -put it over to the jury that he was dropping the gun which did the job.” - -“Yeah, but that diver didn’t find no gun,” Skippy replied, “an’ my Pop -swore he wasn’t near no porthole an’ besides nobody tried findin’ out -about that kicker that was around when we come up. I’ll betcha the -feller what did the killin’ got away in it.” - -“You’re right about not finding the gun, Skippy,” Inspector Jones nodded -thoughtfully. “I’ll look into the kicker angle some more.” - -“Say, thanks, Mr. Jones, me’n Pop we’d be so thankful, we would. Maybe -if I went to see Mr. Skinner he’d help us ’cause I guess hard as he is -he’ll see I don’t tell lies even to get my Pop free. Maybe I oughta go -right away to see him, huh?” - -Inspector Jones nodded thinking how futile the boy’s errand would be. -But he had boys of his own and he did not want to jolt the lad out of -his pleasant dream. So all he said was: “The sooner the better, because -I hear he’s going on the _Apollyon_ for a week’s cruise. You know Buck -Flint has gone to Europe and now Skinner, who was only Josiah Flint’s -yes-man for years, is ruling the roost and living high on a -millionaire’s yacht. Buck says he won’t ever board her so it’s pretty -soft for Skinner. He’s got the boat anchored just outside in the bay, -ready to nose her out to sea after nightfall. If you get right on down -there, you’ll catch him aboard, sure.” - -Skippy smiled his thanks and turned his little motor over. The inspector -waved his hand. - -“From the sound of that kicker,” he shouted, “I take it you’ve lost -Toby’s muffler?” - -“Sure,” Skippy answered laughing, “what do I need with a muffler, huh? -’Cepting it might be better for fishin’ with. But gee, I should worry -about livin’ on fish if I can see Mr. Skinner, huh? Pop ought to be out -by—by....” - -“Tomorrow, eh?” Inspector Jones interposed turning his head aside and -blowing his nose hard. - -“Nope,” Skippy answered wistfully, “I won’t say tomorrow ’cause then—oh -well, it’s too quick. But anyway, if I see Mr. Skinner it won’t be long -after tomorrow, I bet.” - -He had yet to learn from his bitter experience that tomorrow never -comes. - - - - - CHAPTER XI - ALL OF A KIND - - -Skippy’s little boat chugged out of the bay and around toward the Hook. -It was late afternoon and the haze had deepened into an ominous -sultriness. White caps danced atop the waves and off on the horizon -black clouds and black sea met in dismal union. A flock of gulls swarmed -about, flapping their huge wings between sky and sea with monotonous -precision. - -A miscellaneous collection of craft was anchored just outside the bay; -sailboats, fishing smacks, dories and yachts of every size, and not the -least of these was the shining hull of the lovely _Apollyon_. Skippy -caught sight of her immediately and slowed his own little boat that he -might have a better view of her in the light of day. - -Her superstructure was painted a most delicate shade of green and Skippy -understood then why he had imagined her to be of that ghostly whiteness -below her anchor lights which shone like stars against that dark, -memorable night. Too, the large gilt letters spelling out her queer name -seemed not so ornate now as when he had first seen them. - -His first reaction to the lovely yacht had been one of envy and -admiration; it was so now and he tried hard not to think of the unhappy -sequel that his first visit to the _Apollyon_ had brought. Yet somehow -he could not shake off the fear-inspiring memory of what the name really -meant and he wondered if anything but evil could tread those spotless -decks. - -He chuckled a little and turned his motor boat toward the yacht. There -were signs of a near-departure aboard and he caught sight of the second -mate resplendent in his spotless uniform and cap. Leaning over the -forward rail, he recognized Skippy at once, and waved his hand. - -“If it ain’t the kid!” he called cheerfully. “Young Dare, hey? Well, -you’ve come a ways.” - -“Sure,” Skippy smiled. “I come down to see Mr. Skinner. It’s awful -particular what I gotta see him about.” - -“You look’s if it might be a case of life or death at that,” the second -mate mused. - -“It is a case of life, Mister—my Pop’s whole life,” said Skippy -anxiously. “That’s why I wanta see Mr. Skinner.” - -The second mate was all contrition. “Kid, I clean forgot about your Pop, -’deed I did. C’mon aboard. Sure Mr. Skinner’ll be seein’ you. ’Course I -ain’t promisin’ you’ll find him easy talkin’ to ’cause he ain’t. He’s -right set in his notions ’bout you Basin and river folks; he thinks -you’re all rascals.” - -“But his boss, ol’ Flint——” Skippy began protesting. - -“He knowed like you’n me and plenty others that the old boss was a tough -egg—and between you’n me Skinner ain’t no angel hisself—but that don’t -change his mind none.” - -Skippy realized this full well a little later when Marty Skinner refused -to hear him, ordered him off the boat, and shouted that his father was a -rogue and so was he. - -Skippy rushed blindly out of the cabin. The door slammed behind him, the -same door that had slammed behind his father on that tragic night. He -had accomplished just nothing at all in that cabin of past horrors, -nothing except to hear from a gentleman’s lips what his kind really -thought of river people. - -And he, Skippy Dare, was one of the river people—himself, the son of a -rogue! - - - - - CHAPTER XII - DRIFTING - - -Skippy nosed the motor boat toward the Hook. He had no thought of -anything save that he was angry and hurt and wanted to feel the fresh, -salt breeze blow over his burning face. He felt that he must think over -this new and humiliating status in which Marty Skinner had so cruelly -placed him, and he wanted to think of it where no one could see the -unhappiness that it caused him. - -He hadn’t the heart to turn back toward the Basin and home. Home! He -frowned at the word, for it seemed that the _Minnie M. Baxter_ and all -that it represented could bring him nothing now but recurring thoughts -of the hated Skinner. All that the man had said had left its mark on the -sensitive boy’s mind and for the first time in his life he felt a bitter -hatred toward a fellow being. - -That Marty Skinner, old Josiah Flint’s right-hand man, should call his -father a rogue, was hardly to be endured. But if it were so, he reasoned -in a calmer moment, then all the more reason for the blame to fall on -the dead Josiah. Hadn’t Old Flint himself been the worst rogue of all? - -He was tempted to return and shout these thoughts so that all aboard the -_Apollyon_ might hear. He wanted to tell them what Toby had said about -Josiah Flint making the despised Brown’s Basin possible because of his -selfish, unscrupulous dealings. - -But, boy-like, Skippy’s anger was soon reduced to a smoldering memory -and his father’s imminent incarceration was a thing that had to be -faced. Just now he was forced to think of his own present situation, for -a significant sputtering from the motor gave warning that he was about -to have trouble. - -He had not his father’s knack for adjusting the rebellious motor, and so -he decided to turn the boat about and make for the quieter waters of the -bay. But just then the motor stalled and despite his earnest efforts, it -refused to respond. - -Skippy looked about him anxiously and saw that he had already been -carried an alarming distance. Dusk was rapidly settling, hastened by the -deepening haze and in a few moments the tide and undertow had swept him -out of sight of all the anchored craft clustered about the _Apollyon_. - -He looked hopefully toward the Hook but saw that it was useless to try -and reach it even with the one oar that the little boat had in reserve. -The tide was against him. - -After a quick glance about, he hunted around among some neglected tools -lying at his feet and picked out the searchlight. But that, too, refused -to respond; the battery was dead. Then he looked for some matches only -to meet with disheartening disappointment. - -He got to his knees after that and worked furiously at the cold motor, -squinting at his hopeless task in the near-darkness. The boom of thunder -could be heard from out at sea, and with the swiftly passing minutes the -storm came nearer and nearer until it broke directly overhead. - -Lightning flashed across the drifting boat and Skippy dodged under the -bow. There was something terrifying about the elements when one was -alone and drifting steadily toward the sea in an open boat. - -After a momentary lull, he crept out, not a little ashamed of his -cowardice. He looked about, trying hard not to look or feel panicky -despite the fact that he could see nothing of the Hook or anything else. -Darkness and high, shadowy waves upon which the little boat bobbed were -all that met his frightened gaze. Then a damp, cold wind began to blow. - -He crouched down in the bottom of the boat with a feeling of dull -despair. Rain pattered into an old rusty bait can that lay at his feet -and he edged his shivering body closer under the bow. Curiously enough, -he was quite calm now and the thought that his situation was dangerous -did not enter his mind. - -Skippy-like, he was thinking only that he was terribly hungry and more -than anything else he wanted to eat. - - - - - CHAPTER XIII - LIGHTS - - -The thunder and lightning died away after a time but the rain continued. -The constant boom of the sea gradually wore away some of Skippy’s calm -and he raised his head from time to time to gaze apprehensively at the -dark sea rising all about him in mountainous waves. - -The sky seemed a black void and at times as the little boat tossed about -in the waves, he had the breath-taking sensation that he had turned -turtle. Once, he mused about what probability there was of his being -carried clear across the sea to some European port. He had heard of men -being able to live without food or water from ten to fourteen days. -Well, he had his fishing outfit, he reasoned hopefully; he needn’t -starve, but how to get water puzzled him. - -After a few more minutes of tossing wildly about, he decided that the -little boat could probably never stand an ocean voyage. With each -succeeding wave it came perilously near to upsetting and he doubted that -the craft could triumph over the angry sea much longer. - -That contingency awoke a strong determination in him, for he got to his -feet, reached for the oar and struggled valiantly to balance the boat -against the oncoming foe. The rain soaked him through to the skin but he -was not cold for he was kept in constant action trying to make one oar -do the work of two. - -He had lost all sense of time and direction; he thought only of keeping -the boat balanced. That he could not keep it up very long did not occur -to him, for he already felt the effects of the past week’s malnutrition -and his long journey from the Basin had fatigued him. - -After what seemed an interminable time he caught a glimpse of a light, a -faint gleam, but nevertheless a light. He gasped with joy and looked -hard into the darkness to get a definite idea of its location. In point -of fact he looked so hard he all but swamped the boat. - -Great beads of perspiration stood out on his forehead when he righted -the boat, but he came up triumphant on the crest of a wave. The exertion -was too much for him, however; he felt inexpressibly weak and tired. His -muscles ached and a giddiness in his head made him feel as if he must -lie down. - -But there was the light just ahead and he bent his frail body in a -supreme effort to reach it. He was cheered because it did not seem to -move and he ventured to hope that it might be on the shore. The main -thing—it was a light, and light might reasonably be expected to mean -rescue by all the rules of the game. - -Suddenly a great arc of faint yellow light swept from behind and circled -his head. He had come to no decision about its origin before it came -again, a little brighter than before. Then after some minutes had passed -and it had grown still brighter, it occurred to him that it was from the -lighthouse at the Hook and the great light had gradually penetrated the -fast dissolving haze. - -He took heart at this because he knew he could not be so very far away -from land. But he knew it was futile to even hope to get back there in -his boat. It might be ten miles and it might be twenty. The great light -at the Hook boasted a range of thirty miles on a clear night, he had -heard his father say. - -The light that gave him real hope was the heartening glimmer just ahead. -He knew that it was not just because he wished it so fervently, but he -could plainly see that it became brighter as the boat advanced. - -Then suddenly he heard the faint ringing of a bell, which echoed eerily -on the shifting wind. - - - - - CHAPTER XIV - THE BELL BUOY - - -He listened intently and thought that it came from the direction of the -light. It rang again and again, each time a little louder. Suddenly, -however, he was aware that the light seemed no longer stationary. He had -the disheartening experience of realizing that his beacon of hope was a -running light on a fishing smack. He felt like crying as he watched the -shadowy hull gaining speed for he realized that she must have just -started ahead, having waited for the wind to change. - -Every wave carried her farther and farther away from the watching boy. -If he had only got there just a little sooner, he thought dismally. But -he had done the best he could. There was nothing left now but to sit and -watch her swallowed up by the darkness and the mountainous seas and that -had happened in a few minutes’ time. - -He was glad he had not been foolish enough to hope that he could reach -her and overtake her, only to be disappointed and use up what little -strength he had left. That at least was some satisfaction and it helped -him bear his desperate plight a little more patiently. - -The constant booming of the sea had a queer effect on his sensitive -ears. He imagined himself to be hearing all sorts of noises, -particularly the ringing of the bell. At times he could have sworn he -heard it right at hand and at other times it seemed but a mocking echo. - -The air was quite clear now, though the rain continued, and Skippy saw -to his dismay that the boat was getting a little too full of water for -his safety. He put down the oar for a while and bailed her out with his -rusty bait can. - -The little boat tossed against each rising wave like a feather; but he -worked feverishly and trusted to luck that it would not upset. Then -after a few minutes he was startled by the sound of the bell ringing -right over his head. Before he had time to look up he felt the boat bump -hard against something. - -He was on his feet in a second and saw to his great surprise that the -boat was alongside of a bell buoy. - -It has been truly said that time and tide wait for no man and certainly -Skippy was aware of this instantly, for in the next second a giant wave -had washed him out of reach of the buoy. This realization made him -desperate and he got into action to get back to it, for he well knew now -that to drift on through the night would mean certain death. - -With a swift movement he pushed his wet hair back from his high -forehead. Then he bent over, got the oar and grabbed a rope, holding it -tightly in his hand. And for fully five minutes he battled and struggled -against the undertow. - -His eyes were wide and staring from the strain and little streams of -water ran down either cheek. His clothes from head to foot were weighted -against him with water but he never stopped until he had brought the -boat back against the buoy and in a second he had thrown the painter -around it and pulled it taut. - -That done he sank down in the bottom of the boat, exhausted. - -For some time his mind was an utter blank. He was too tired and weak to -think or even to care. But the rain beating steadily down on his -unprotected body soon chilled him back into action and he got up and -exercised his arms and legs. - -As the buoy swayed upon each succeeding swell, the bell tolled -mournfully. Its eerie echoes were faint and quickly lost in the noise of -the pounding sea, and Skippy decided that no mariner ten minutes’ sail -from the bell was likely to look that way. Also, the quick wash of the -sea prevented the bell from tolling its loudest and longest. Nothing but -his own two hands could do that. - -And so he did it. - -For the next hour he bent his frail body over the swaying buoy and swung -the cold, wet bell back and forth, back and forth. Peal after peal -tolled forth dismally and though his eyes became blurred with weariness -he knew that he had missed nothing, for nothing had passed for him to -miss. - -So it went on through the long, dark hours. He would take an interval of -rest and then jump up to his vigil at the bell for fear he would fall -asleep and miss some passing ship. - -The night seemed interminable. Indeed, he began to believe that he had -fallen asleep and that a day had passed and another night had come -without his being aware of it, for never had he thought the dark hours -were so long. - -Morning came at last and with the first streak of light on the eastern -horizon, hope came back anew. The rain gradually ceased and during -Skippy’s intervals of rest he watched, with not a little awe, the wonder -of dawn at sea. Little by little the night fled before the roseate morn -and soon the entire sky was flooded with soft light. And as the sun -crept up out of the sea he stretched himself across the wet seats and -relaxed. - -Two hours later, he woke with the sun shining full in his face. He sat -up, startled, and realized that his head was aching and that he felt -stiff and chilled. Moreover, he felt sick with despair to think that he -had slept away the hours of daylight, hours when a ship might have -passed near enough for him to signal. - -He stood up and scanned the sunlit water in all directions but there was -not a sign of a sail, not a sign of a ship. In the distance, a gull -soared high above the water and after a moment another one seemed to -leap out of space and join it. - -The tide was going out and the whole surface of the blue-green water -seemed to roll on toward the horizon in a series of undulating hills. A -gentle murmur filled the warm, sunlit air and Skippy could not believe -that the booming surf of the past night had been anything but a bad -dream. - -He rang the bell for a time but had to give it up because of a terrible -giddiness in his head. And so for hours, he sat anxiously scanning the -illimitable sea and sky, hoping, hoping, hoping.... - -Noon came and passed and the sun scorched him cruelly. The boat, too, -had become a constant source of anxiety for she developed a leak and had -to be continually bailed out, and he was thankful that he had not obeyed -a former impulse and tried to row her east in the hope that he would -strike the Hook. - -Toward mid-afternoon he was conscious of pains in his chest, and his -hunger and thirst were becoming unbearable, particularly the thirst, for -the heat of the sun was intense. He wished fervently for the cooling -rain of the night before. - -Sunset came, however, and with it a soft, cool wind. Skippy welcomed it, -but hated the gray light of approaching twilight that obliterated the -deep blue clouds. It seemed to spell doom to him and he cried out in -despair. If daylight had not brought rescue what hope was there left for -another long night? - -His hopes sprang up afresh, however, and he conceived the idea of tying -to the bell a long length of rope which he found in the bottom of the -boat. In this manner, he could ring it constantly just by pulling the -rope which required little exertion on his part. By dusk he was feeling -too sick to either stand or sit up. - -He entered his second night at sea both hopeful and despairing. Every -doleful clang from the bell brought him hope but in the following -silence it would quickly vanish and he would sink in depths of despair. -Then with his fast-ebbing strength he would pull hopefully at the rope -again. - -[Illustration: EVERY DOLEFUL CLANG FROM THE BELL BROUGHT SKIPPY HOPE.] - -And so the bell tolled on through the long night hours. - - - - - CHAPTER XV - RESCUED - - -A few hours before dawn a long, trim, high-powered motor boat cut -through the placidly rolling waves. Its motor was so muffled that it -emitted no more than a low droning sound and could be heard for only a -short distance, despite the fact that it had been let out to full speed. - -Besides the man at the wheel the boat carried six men, three standing -fore and three aft. One of the men aft half lounged over the coaming and -his broad shoulders and large, amiable face all but filled the stern of -the boat. The spray constantly swept over his big, dangling hands and -the salt moisture struck at his tanned cheeks but he seemed not to -notice. His entire attention, like that of his comrades, was centered on -the grayish black horizon; his eyes seemed to miss nothing, yet there -was an abstracted look in them that the man at the wheel did not fail to -notice. - -“Whadja hear, Big Joe?” he asked quietly. - -The big man nodded his head without moving his body. - -“’Tis that buoy,” he said absently. “Sure and she’s goin’ a great rate -for such a calm, me lad. Even in pretty bad storms I niver knowed -Flint’s buoy to be ringin’ like that.” - -“Flint’s?” queried another of the men, interested. - -Big Joe Tully smiled reminiscently. - -“And why not? ’Tis what most o’ Flint’s men called it. ’Tis a buoy at -the intrance to Kennedy’s Channel and ’tis a bad spot, if iver there was -wan. Ye niver know how the tide’s goin’ to act. ’Tis like a colleen what -can’t make up her mind, and she’s not to be trusted, so nobody goes by -that way. Besides, ’tis a long way round past the Hook. Anyways, the -ould boss took advantage o’ that place and we used to meet some o’ his -best customers there and unload the stuff to thim.” - -“Not a bad idea takin’ us by there for an eyeful, hey, Tully?” suggested -the man at the wheel. “Long’s you’ve decided on playin’ ball with us, -since we squared that case ’gainst you, we might as well take your tips. -Seems like a wise mug like ol’ Flint never made no mistakes. He got rich -an’ the law never got him so if _he_ picked out a spot like this buoy, -he must ’a’ known what he was doin’. Mebbe it’ll be a pretty good spot -for our customers too?” - -They all laughed at this, but Big Joe Tully merely smiled and glanced -down at the compass. - -“Sure and ould Flint made his mistakes and plenty,” he said in his soft, -deep voice. “He made mistakes whin he didn’t watch out that the coppers -didn’t take the scows o’ men what was workin’ for his racket. And he -made a mistake whin he stuck Toby Dare with a piece o’ junk. I guess he -thought he’d be puttin’ me on me uppers where I’d be goin’ back and beg -him for work.” - -“He got knocked off fust, didn’t he, Big Joe?” laughed the man at the -wheel. - -“That he did. ’Tis too bad he couldn’t ’a’ lived to see how quick I -connected with you guys.” - -“It’s too bad he couldn’ lived anyways,” said another of the men, -“’cause that poor guy Dare wouldn’t be in the can then. Anyhow I don’t -think he knocked him off. I think he’d liked to ’cause Flint give him a -lousy break, but I believe what he said in court that some other guy -beat him to it.” - -“I know lots o’ guys what were layin’ for ould Flint,” said Big Joe. -“Sure he’d been dead a dozen times if iverywan what had it in for him, -did what they said they’d like to. That’s why they won’t be holdin’ poor -Toby.” - -“All the same, they _are_ holdin’ poor Toby,” said the man at the wheel. -“He was sentenced late yesterday afternoon for twenty years to life an’ -by this time he’s hittin’ the hay in the big house, that’s what.” - -“And didn’t ye hear!” said another. “His kid, Skippy, ain’t been seen -since he had a talk with Marty Skinner aboard the _Apollyon_. Poor kid, -he went there to plead for his old man, the paper says, and that -hardshell Skinner wouldn’t give him a break, I guess. The second mate -told a reporter that the kid left the yacht in a rush, hopped in his -kicker and beat it for the Hook. Guess he thought as long as he couldn’t -do nothin’ for Toby, he’d get away somewhere and try an’ fergit. Well, -that’s life.” - -Big Joe Tully clenched his knotted, hairy fists. - -“Sufferin’ swordfish!” he said. “Poor Toby! And that poor kid! ’Tis a -howlin’ shame, so ’tis.” - -“Know ’em?” asked the man at the wheel. - -“I oughta—I worked ’longside o’ Toby doin’ Flint’s jobs night after -night, so I did. A whiter guy than Toby niver lived. He ain’t -old—thirty-four or so. Got married whin he was a kid and his wife died. -He’s crazy ’bout that kid o’ his, Skippy. ’Tis what makes me feel bad.” -Big Joe looked down at the compass once more. “North, northeast,” he -said to the man at the wheel. “We oughta be at Flint’s buoy in twinty -minutes. There’s the light from the Hook.” - -They watched intently the great sweeping arc of light swinging over the -smoothly rolling water. The motor boat plunged north, then northeast and -in Big Joe Tully’s eyes was a thoughtful, puzzled expression, the closer -they got to the buoy. - -“D’ye say there ain’t somethin’ spooky ’bout the way that bell’s -ringin’?” he asked his comrades. “Did ye iver hear a bell on a buoy ring -like that without stoppin’? ’Tain’t natural, ’cause....” - -Just then he caught a glimpse of the little kicker bobbing merrily -alongside the buoy. - - - - - CHAPTER XVI - RIVER PEOPLE - - -“An’ when I sees ye layin’ in the bottom o’ that kicker, I’d swore I was -seein’ things so I would,” Big Joe Tully was saying. “Lucky I gets it in -me noodle that somethin’s wrong the way that bell keeps ringin’.” - -The shanty of the _Minnie M. Baxter_ was bright with the light of -mid-morning. The floor had been scrubbed almost to whiteness, the table -was laid with a soft Turkey red cloth and the lamp looked shiny and -clean. Skippy’s feverish eyes took it all in before he turned on his -pillow. - -“I felt so sick, I didn’t exactly know it was you,” he said weakly. “I -heard voices, but I couldn’t think what it was all about. All I’d -thought all night was that I hadda keep on ringin’ the bell.” - -“Sure, kid, and ye rang it!” said Big Joe with a light laugh. - -“An’ you sure saved me,” Skippy smiled in return. “Gee, it was lucky you -came that way, huh? Where’d you been?” - -Big Joe lighted a cigarette and puffed on it before answering. - -“Sure an’ just puttin’ the big eye on some new location for a new -racket,” he said softly. “I got six men with me.” - -“Is it—is it gonna be straight?” Skippy asked. - -“Nah,” Big Joe laughed. “Who’ll be straight in the Basin and live like a -human bein’? As ’tis, what they got? They’re all doin’ the higher-up’s -dirty work; but _me_, I ain’t so foolish even if ould Flint tipped off -the coppers and they grab me scow. I got a little money and I’ll work -this new racket and make lots more. The doctor says ye’ve got a pretty -weak lung so ye need a month in bed and the best o’ food. Well, -sufferin’ swordfish, we’ll dig up the dough so’s ye’ll be fat an’ sassy -’fore Toby comes out.” - -Skippy’s eyes lighted up. - -“Gee, Mr. Tully, it must be costin’ an awful lotta money for a lawyer to -appeal the case, huh?” - -Big Joe waved a large hand deprecatingly. - -“Forget it, Skippy. Ain’t I doin’ it for a good friend and ain’t I doin’ -it so’s ye won’t see Toby in the can for twinty years or more? Don’t ye -be worryin’ ’bout the dough, me lad. I made it with the scow easy. Now -it’ll do you and Toby some good, so ’twill.” - -“Gee whiz,” breathed the boy gratefully. “It’s too much for you to do -for Pop and me ’cause we can’t pay it back—_never_!” - -“That’s why ye gotta be forgettin’ it!” Tully protested. “I ain’t got -nobody to spend it on, kid, so I might’s well spend it on you and Toby. -I’d only leave it to ye in me will whin I died!” He laughed loudly. -“Now’ll we be good friends, kid?” - -Skippy had to fight back the tears before he smiled. - -“Gee, _sure_! Gee, I like you an awful lot, Mis——” - -“Cut out the _Mister_, kid! Big Joe’s me monicker, and nothin’ else. Now -anythin’ more on that big mind o’ yourn?” - -Skippy nodded hesitantly. - -“Gee—gee whiz,” he stammered, “I just was thinkin’ wouldn’t it be nice -if you had enough money so you didn’t have to go into any crooked -rackets for a while, huh? Gee, I’d like to think you didn’t have to do -it, honest I would, Big Joe! Maybe I’ll be able to go to work when I get -strong and I’ll be able to help then, huh? Maybe we can live on clean, -honest money like Pop wanted me to, huh? Besides, the money you’re -helpin’ Pop and me with is kind of from when you were runnin’ your barge -straight, isn’t it?” - -Big Joe got up from his chair, went over to the table and ground out his -cigarette stub in an ash tray. Then he came back and leaning over -Skippy’s bunk, he rumpled the boy’s hair playfully. - -“’Tis a funny lad ye be, Skippy. But I s’pose ye be gettin’ it from -Toby. He was always agin doin’ Flint’s work. Said he wouldn’t ’a’ -started it if he hadn’t been takin’ care o’ ye so much daytimes whin ye -was sick with that throat business.” - -“Pop was always honest inside, that shows it,” said Skippy proudly. - -Big Joe smiled. - -“Anyways ye’re right about me runnin’ me barge straight the first year,” -he said vehemently. “I did.” Then: “So ye want me on the level? Well, -we’ll be seein’ about that but we ain’t goin’ to starve I’ll be tellin’ -ye, so I will.” - -Skippy’s eyes were shining. - -“You’ll get along if people can see you’re tryin’ to be honest, that’s -what Pop said.” - -“Sufferin’ swordfish, kid,” said Big Joe. “Be quittin’ thinkin’ ’bout -anythin’ now ’ceptin’ gettin’ better. And no more talk about work when -ye’re better. Sufferin’ swordfish, ye ain’t nothin’ but skin and bones, -the doctor said! Ye’re as pale as a ghost, too. Eggs, milk and chicken -soup is what ye need and what ye’ll be gettin’.” - -“Who’ll fix ’em?” Skippy asked, chuckling weakly. - -“Our nixt door neighbor on the _Dinky O. Cross_,” Big Joe said. “She’s a -right nice woman, kid—Mrs. Duffy, and as soon as she sees us carryin’ ye -in she said it milted her heart. So we put a plank across to her scow -and she come in here and did ’bout iverythin’ ’fore the doctor come. I -give her the dough for the things and she’s cookin’ thim now.” - -“She’s a—she’s one of the river people, huh? Like _you_, Big Joe?” -Skippy asked wondering. - -“Like you and me, Skippy me boy,” answered Big Joe, nodding his head. -“She’s one o’ our people, the kind what helps their own whin there’s -trouble.” - -Skippy shut his eyes to visualize the stern, cold visage of Marty -Skinner. Hadn’t he talked of river people as if they were all of a kind? -Hadn’t he said they were all crooks and criminals? - -Big Joe had put him in that category of river people, he who had never -disobeyed a law in his young life! He resented it and wanted to say so, -but his better judgment prevailed against it and he decided to wait and -see what kind of people these river people of Brown’s Basin really were. -Certainly if they were all like Big Joe Tully, Skinner had much to -learn. - -It was the buxom Mrs. Duffy who decided it, some moments later. She came -in like the fresh morning breeze from the inlet, clean-aproned and -smiling, laden with soup and eggnog and a wealth of bright cretonne -tucked under her generous arm. - -“Cretonne curtains for thim little windows, bhoy,” she said -breathlessly. “Mr. Tully give me the money for ’em an’ I made ’em up -’fore I come over. It’ll seem more like home to ye in Brown’s Basin whin -ye see ’em from the outside. The inlet’s dismal enough, so ’tis, without -starin’ at it through bare, dirty winders; ain’t I right, Mr. Tully?” - -“Guess so,” Big Joe answered a little abashed. “Women folks know more -about thim things, but even me, I be likin’ that bright stuff flutterin’ -around a winder. Ye got the soup an’ everythin’?” - -Mrs. Duffy’s smile was vast and it swept from Big Joe to the wan-looking -Skippy. - -“Ye’ll pick up, so ye will, or me and Mr. Tully’ll be to blame, Skippy,” -she said heartily. - -Skippy almost choked with gratitude. He tried to speak, but could only -think that these were river people—his people! Big Joe, who was spending -a lot of money so that his father might have another chance for freedom -and who would spare no expense to nurse him back to health. And Mrs. -Duffy, who was bringing cheer into the shanty of the _Minnie M. Baxter_ -and who seemed to care so much that he get well! - -_River people?_ Skinner didn’t know what he was talking about! He, -Skippy Dare, was proud to be one of the river people. - - - - - CHAPTER XVII - MUGS - - -Many delightful weeks Skippy spent after he was up and around. Day after -day, he and Big Joe roamed the length and breadth of the river, and -often they went down the bay and across to some unfrequented beach where -they swam and fished to their hearts’ content. - -Skippy soon showed the effects of his healthful life and Mrs. Duffy’s -fine cooking. He was browned from head to foot and his flat chest had -expanded two inches. And what was more, he had learned to triumph over -tears. - -That in itself was a great achievement, for he had great need to -practice self-control during the fall and the winter following. The gods -themselves seemed to have cast sorrowful glances over the _Minnie M. -Baxter_ and Skippy’s mettle was tried to the breaking point sometimes, -yet always he came up smiling. Very often it was a poignant smile, the -kind that pierced Big Joe Tully’s almost invulnerable heart and set him -to doing all sorts of extravagant things so that he might see the pain -effaced from the boy’s face and hear him laugh happily. - -That was why on the evening of Toby’s retrial, Big Joe left the shanty -of the _Minnie M. Baxter_ in awkward haste. He had left Skippy smiling a -smile so poignant that he could bear it no longer. - -“Big Joe,” the boy said when they were dawdling over the most luxurious -meal that Tully’s money could buy, “it was most like throwin’ money -away, huh? They don’t wanta let Pop get out, I guess. They can’t find -the man that really did it and they’ve gotta have somebody so I s’pose -they think it might’s well be my Pop. Now he _will_ be in for life on -account of the way they tripped him up in his answers. Gee, how could he -remember word for word what he said at his first trial? People don’t -remember word for word ’bout things like that. Poor Pop was so nervous I -got chills down my back.” - -“Don’t ye be gettin’ down, kid,” Tully protested; “’tis not sayin’ we’re -licked till they turn down an appeal. We got some more dough.” - -“So much money,” said Skippy with a note of wonder in his high-pitched -voice. “Gee, Big Joe, you’ve spent so much on Pop an’ me already. Now -you wanta spend the last you got! Gee whiz, I can’t let you—_I can’t_! -Much as I wanta see Pop free. It ain’t fair lettin’ you spend all your -hard-earned money....” - -Tully had long since learned that he could not lie to Skippy. - -“Sure an’ this last coin ain’t hard-earned, kid,” he said not a little -abashed. “So ye see ’cause it ain’t, it might’s well be used for -springin’ your old man.” - -“All right, if you say it like that,” said Skippy with a slightly -reproving smile. Suddenly he squared his shoulders; then: “Anyway, next -to Pop, Big Joe, I like you best. Gee, ain’t you been just like Pop -even! So I don’t care if that money’s not so straight, but d’ye think -it’ll be lucky for Pop? Sometimes I wonder if crooked money ain’t hard -luck in the end. Maybe when you’re broke you can start over clean?” - -“We’ll see what the breaks’ll be bringin’ this winter, kid,” Big Joe had -mumbled. “We’ll see, so we will.” - -And it was Skippy’s answering smile that drove Big Joe off the barge for -a few hours. When he returned late in the evening, he had a fluffy sort -of bundle in his big arms and an expansive smile on his face. - -“Three guesses what’s in me arms,” he said with a mischievous wink, -standing half in and half out of the doorway. - -“Is it dead or alive?” Skippy asked chuckling. - -“’Tis the liveliest little guy ye ever see.” Big Joe stooped over and -released the fluffy bundle from his arms and presently an Airedale pup -put its four young and rather unsteady legs on the shanty floor. - -Skippy laughed out loud. He twisted his hands together in a gesture of -delight, then got to his knees and coaxed the puppy to him. - -“It’s got brown eyes like a reg’lar angel,” he said. - -“An’ brown legs like the divil,” Big Joe laughed; “the divil for runnin’ -into mischief. The man what I bought him from said he was a -son-of-a-sufferin’ swordfish for runnin’ an’ chewin’. But he’ll be -gettin’ better as he gets older, so he will. Ain’t he got the cute -little mug though, kid!” - -Skippy looked up with shining eyes, then drew the puppy up to him. - -“Big Joe, that’s his name—it’s a swell name for him! Mug—_Mugs_, huh? -With that funny little face he couldn’t be called anything else.” - -“Sure, sure, kid. Anythin’ ye say. Mugs it’ll be, so ’twill.” He -coughed. “And will he be makin’ ye happy now, kid?” - -“_Happy!_ Big Joe, Mugs’ll make me happy ’cause you bought him to make -me laugh. Gee, gee....” Skippy swallowed his emotion. “What for do you -do so much, Big Joe?” he asked naïvely. “Gee—_why_?” - -“’Cause ye be such a nice kid, so ye be,” the man answered, rumpling -Skippy’s straight hair. “Ye kind o’ get under a guy’s skin—ye do that. -Ye seem to be needin’ somebody for to look after ye, so ye do, an’ with -Toby not about it might’s well be me.” He laughed nervously. “Besides I -ain’t got nobody else at all, at all, kid, an’ even a tough guy like me -does be needin’ company, so he does.” - -Skippy hugged the puppy gratefully and he was so overwhelmed by Tully’s -generosity that he could not speak. Never, he thought, did a boy have a -friend like Big Joe! - -His cup of happiness would have been filled to the brim and his father -been released that day. But here again, Big Joe, like an angel of mercy, -was making a last supreme effort to bring his father back to him. It -seemed impossible that such gigantic effort could fail to bring a joyous -result and he told Tully so. - -“An’ when Pop gets out,” he said in conclusion, “I bet he’ll never -forget what you’ve done an’ all, Big Joe. Even now he don’t forget it. -He said it’s so gloomy and strict in prison that he’s sad all the time, -’specially ’cause he was so used to roamin’ all over the river free. -Gee, he said the feller what really killed Mr. Flint was a coward ’cause -he must know how it’s keepin’ Pop an’ me away from each other an’ he -said he could almost kill him for doin’ that alone.” - -“There, now, the ould man’ll be gettin’ out!” said Tully vehemently. “My -last grand’ll do it, I be tellin’ ye! See if it don’t! Now ye ain’t -goin’ to start worryin’ all over ’bout Toby now, are ye? An’ me gettin’ -ye Mugs so’s to make it aisier like for ye.” - -Skippy looked at the puppy sliding over the floor on his gawky legs. He -laughed. - -“Mugs makes up for an awful lot, Big Joe, but nobody could make up for -Pop,” he said wistfully. “I never told Pop, ’cause he’d think it sounded -silly, but I love him. You know, like I guess girls feel only they show -it an’ talk about it, but I don’t. I couldn’t. But I’m just tellin’ you -like a secret—see? I get a funny pain in my heart when I’m not seein’ -Pop an’ it gets awful bad when I think maybe he won’t ever get out of -prison.” Then at the sight of Big Joe’s frowning countenance, he added: -“But it’s like I said, Big Joe, I like you almost as much as Pop. An’ -now you’ve bought me Mugs—gee, how much’d you pay for him, huh?” - -“’Tis nothin’,” said Big Joe smiling softly; “a coupla bucks. ’Course, -they cost a little more thin just muts, but the man at the dog place -said thim Airedales be great for protectin’ kids so I think maybe he’d -be good for ye nights when I might be out with the boys. He’ll be -comp’ny anyways.” - -A little later, when Big Joe was having a good-night smoke alone on the -deck, he took out of his pocket a piece of paper, and in the light -gleaming from the cabin windows he glanced at it curiously. It was a -receipt for one Airedale puppy; price, one hundred and fifty dollars. - -He smiled, shrugged his powerful shoulders and tearing the paper into -bits let it drop in the inlet. Then he turned his trousers’ pockets -outward and laughed ruefully. - -“Broke,” he said half aloud. “Sure and ’tis aisy come, aisy go. And now -for to be gettin’ some more dough. The kid’ll be needin’ it so——” He -shrugged as if getting money was the least of his troubles. - - - - - CHAPTER XVIII - BAD NEWS - - -Skippy had food and plenty of it during the next month. Big Joe saw to -that though it kept him away from the barge many hours at night, hours -when he lived in mortal fear that the boy would develop a “bad throat” -and be seriously sick before he could get back. - -Skippy’s “bad throat” had become a veritable bugaboo to Tully and though -he had no definite idea of what it was, the fear of its recurrence -stalked every hour that he spent away from the boy. And when he did -return he would tiptoe into the silent shanty and up to the boy’s bunk, -sighing with relief to find him sleeping quietly. Then, when he had made -sure there was no sign of the pinched look and feverish cheek, he would -climb into his own bunk with a light on his face that would have -surprised his rough comrades. - -Skippy saw this light on Tully’s face one early morning. He saw it from -under half-opened lids and it made him glad until he noticed the quick -look of concern that passed over the man’s tanned brow. - -“What’s up, Big Joe?” he asked anxiously. - -“So it’s awake ye be?” Big Joe returned nervously. “Well now I was just -lookin’ and seem’ if ye was all right. Sure an’ the weather’s gittin’ -cold and all and I got wonderin’ how the throat was. I bought a new -stove what’ll give ye lots o’ heat—it’s comin’ in the mornin’.” - -“Gee whiz!” Skippy said gratefully, then: “You sorta looked worried.” - -Big Joe turned his back and started to undress. - -“I’ve got to be tellin’ ye sometime, kid—I—listen....” - -“You’ve heard about Pop, huh?” Skippy sat up. - -“Yes—they....” - -“They what?” said Skippy anxiously. - -“They turned down the appeal. But don’t be takin’ on about it, Skippy. -Sure an’ next year we’ll be diggin’ up new evidence. Now....” - -“I ain’t gonna take on, Big Joe, honest I ain’t,” said Skippy bravely. -“On accounta you I ain’t. You been so good—all the money you spent -tryin’ to get Pop free. An’ now—well, maybe if I don’t hope about it -sumpin’ll happen, sometime.” - -“Sure now that’s bein’ a good kid, takin’ it so aisy like. We’ll be -tryin’ agin like I said. Some time Marty Skinner’ll get over his crazy -notion that iverybody in Brown’s Basin’s agin him and that Toby did the -job. Sure he hates iverybody here so much I hear he’s got Buck Flint to -agree to buy the whole inlet. And thin he’ll be drivin’ us squatters -out, so he will.” - -“But he can’t do that!” Skippy protested indignantly. “He can’t drive me -outa the _Minnie M. Baxter_ ’cause it’s Pop’s home—gee, the only home we -got. I gotta stay here till—well, when I leave it, I’ll know I ain’t got -any hope that he’ll come back.” - -“And don’t I be knowin’ how ye feel, kid? But if Skinner’s put it in -Buck Flint’s head that the inlet’s a good buy and the deal goes through, -he’ll be orderin’ us out and we’ll be likin’ it. Buck ain’t a bad egg, -but Skinner’s runnin’ the works and what he says goes, so it does. Now -if he tells us to beat it I’m wonderin’ who’ll be towin’ a barge out o’ -this mud whin she’s settled. Why, it’d take a derrick, so it would, an’ -even then it’d be a chance.” - -Skippy was deeply affected by this news. He could not sleep because of -it and long after Big Joe was snoring comfortably he rolled and tossed -in his bunk. Then, after a time, he thought of what Tully had said about -the barges being too deeply settled in the mud to get them out, and he -was so curious about it that he got up to see for himself. - -He bundled himself up and slipped out onto the deck in the cold, damp -air of an early fall morning. It was not yet dawn but the deep black of -night had gone and Brown’s Basin lay silent in a dark gray mist. - -Skippy leaned far over aft where the _Minnie M. Baxter_ was settled -deepest in the mud. Up forward, the slinking waters of the inlet gurgled -plaintively against the keel at high tide. Big Joe was right, he decided -with sinking heart; it would take a derrick and more to pull the barge -out of her muddy berth. - -As he started to step back he noticed a tarpaulin to his right which -seemed to be covering some bulky objects. Something that Big Joe had -brought aboard, he thought, and curiously he raised one end of it. One -glimpse told him enough. - -They were stolen ships’ supplies, things that his father had told him a -river pirate could easily dispose of to some unscrupulous ship captain. -Skippy knew instantly how they had come there and he turned on his heel -and had started back for the shanty when a searchlight suddenly fell -full upon him. - -He crouched out of its glare and needed but to look hastily up the inlet -to see that it was the police boat bearing down upon the _Minnie M. -Baxter_. - - - - - CHAPTER XIX - DANGER - - -Feverishly, Skippy set to work and pushed the stolen goods overboard -piece by piece. Most of them floated but a moment, then sank out of -sight, and the rest floated at a safe enough distance from the oncoming -launch to escape the eyes of the police. - -[Illustration: FEVERISHLY SKIPPY PUSHED THE STOLEN GOODS OVERBOARD.] - -When the last piece had been disposed of he rushed to the shanty, -awakened Big Joe and told him what he had done. - -“’Tis a good boy ye be, Skippy,” he praised. “Sure th’ bulls give me a -chase tonight so they did and I couldn’ unload the goods on me customer -so I brought thim here till tomorrow night. Ye’re a broth of a lad to be -droppin’ thim over, so ye be.” - -“Sh!” said Skippy, frightened. “Ain’t that them boardin’ us now?” He got -out of his clothes and back into his bunk. - -They listened in silence while the soft tramp of feet came along the -deck. Skippy had reason to remember another terrible occasion when the -police boat had come to take his father. He had thought then that it was -only for a day. - -He had only Big Joe now, his only friend in a singularly callous world. -Would the law take him too? He couldn’t bear it—he wouldn’t bear it! He -would like and protect Big Joe even if he was a murderer, the police -wouldn’t take the one thing he had left! - -They knocked insistently and Big Joe padded to the door, barefooted and -feigning complete surprise. He invited them in, hurried ponderously to -the rickety table and lighted the lamp. Mugs growled ominously. - -The officers told Tully that a certain warehouse had been broken into -that night. The watchman who had surprised the intruder thought he had -recognized Big Joe Tully. - -“Tonight?” Skippy piped up from his bunk. “It ain’t so ’cause Big Joe’s -been here takin’ care of me since noon. I got one of my bad throats -again an’ he wouldn’t go out ’cause I was feelin’ so bad.” - -Who of the river front police hadn’t heard of Skippy Dare’s bad throat? -None that had patrolled the harbor during the past four months. Hadn’t -it been because of his frail boy that Toby Dare had fought his prison -sentence so hard? The papers had been full of it too. - -“So the throat’s cutting up again, eh Skippy?” asked Inspector Jones. He -was the same man who had taken Toby away from his son. - -Skippy, always a bit wan looking when he lay in his bunk, looked more -wan than ever then. His pallor was not simulated; it was terribly real, -for he was not only frightened at the prospect of losing Big Joe; he was -frightened because of the barefaced lie he had just told—the first in -his life. - -“I always gotta be careful of my throat, Mister,” he said to the officer -when the worst of his emotion had passed. “’Specially when it gets cold. -Sometimes I get fever right away an’ the doctor told Big Joe the last -time that I gotta right away have attention.” - -“Sure and the lad’s right,” Big Joe interposed with genuine feeling in -his voice, “he’s got only me to be lookin’ after him now.” - -“What you doing for a living, Big Joe?” asked the officer a little -pointedly. - -Big Joe stifled a yawn and sat down on a chair. - -“Me?” he asked innocently. “Ye mean what’ll I do when the money I saved -from me barge gives out, is it? With the way Flint blackballed me ’fore -he died, I guess I’ll have to be workin’ out o’ the bay next summer, so -I do.” - -“Got enough for you and the kid till next summer?” the officer -persisted. - -“Sure and ’tis lucky I have, the way things be,” answered Big Joe. - -The officer leveled his eyes at Tully. - -“For the kid’s sake, watch your step, Big Joe,” he said with a warning -note. “For the kid’s sake....” - -Skippy couldn’t believe they had gone. It seemed too good to be true, -and in order to reassure him, Big Joe put something around him and went -out on deck to see that the launch had actually gone. - -“Sure she’s aisy out to the river by this time,” he assured Skippy when -he came back. He lighted a cigarette and sat down. “Now was that a close -shave I’ll be askin’,” he exclaimed. “And I can be thankin’ ye for it, -kid. I never expected thim to come stealin’ up on us here, no, I -didn’t.” - -“See it don’t pay, Big Joe!” Skippy said gently. He seemed spent with -the great strain. “People know a big guy like you anywheres an’ besides -like I say, it don’t pay anyhow. Gee, if you can’t get honest work -’cause Flint blackballed you then I gotta work myself. I can get a job -as office boy in a warehouse. I bet I can!” - -“Nix, kid, nix, ye ain’t well enough,” Big Joe protested hotly. “Besides -I don’t niver take things from folks what are hard up, Skippy. I——” - -“Lemme try it, Big Joe, huh? I’m better now’n I been in a long time, so -lemme try it! I’m not kickin’ ’bout you. Gee, I can see how it is now. -Even Pop once told me how hard it was for a blackballed man to get back -along the river. You spent all your money on Pop an’ me an’ we hadda eat -an’ live, so what was you gonna do! I shoulda known before that your -money couldn’t last forever—gee! All you’ve done for me, Big Joe—lemme -try!” - -Tully was still protesting at daylight, but Skippy, having made up his -mind, fell peacefully to sleep with the dog tucked snugly under his -outstretched arm. Big Joe sat watching them until long after the sun -came up. - -“Sure and the kid lied for me,” he said as he climbed back into his -bunk. “Sure and that nice kid lied for me—_me_!” - -And as his large features settled in slumber, they looked strangely -troubled. - - - - - CHAPTER XX - A JOB - - -Skippy left the barge noiselessly that morning and did not return until -six o’clock in the evening. Consequently, Big Joe spent a troubled day, -waiting and hoping and fearing. When he saw the boy crossing the plank -from the _Dinky O. Cross_, he hurried to the door. - -“And where have ye been, Skippy?” he called anxiously. “Here and ye been -havin’ me crazy wonderin’ if ye’d run away!” - -Skippy laughed and greeted Mugs who seemed to be growing by the minute. -Then he swung energetically into the shanty and sat down to a hot supper -that Mrs. Duffy had faithfully sent over. - -“Guess what, Big Joe?” - -“Sure and ye’ll not be for quittin’ me ’cause o’ what happened last -night?” Big Joe returned trying not to sound anxious. - -“I should say not. Whad’ye think I am? I ain’t yeller, Big Joe. Besides -I like you too much. What I wanta say is, I got a job.” - -Tully frowned. - -“It ain’t gonna be hard,” Skippy assured him. “I’m the new office boy at -the Central Warehouse an’ I’ll get ten bucks a week. So now you needn’t -be scareda cops.” - -Tully smiled in spite of himself. “My now, ain’t that just fine. Ain’t -that just fine, kid. But do ye be knowin’ who’s boss o’ the Central?” - -“No. Who?” - -“Marty Skinner, actin’ as Buck Flint’s agent, no less.” - -“Well, he can see then that my Pop brought me up honest an’ hard -workin’,” said Skippy after a moment’s surprise. - -“Sure, to be sure and he can that, but shiverin’ swordfish, don’t ye be -goin’ on expectin’ too much from him, kid. D’ye be thinkin’ he’s wise ye -be on the payroll?” - -“No.” - -“Well, now, just ye be waitin’ till he is. Just ye be....” - -Skippy did not have long to wait. He had completed his first week’s work -in the Central Warehouse when one day he heard a hushed voice pass -around the awesome news that “the boss” was coming. - -Skinner recognized Skippy as soon as he stepped into the room. There -were a few questions asked and Skippy trudged back to the _Minnie M. -Baxter_ that night with a heavy heart. - -Big Joe was all sympathy. - -“And what was he sayin’ to ye, kid?” - -“He wanted to know how I come to get a job there,” Skippy answered -dolefully. “Wanted to know how I had nerve enough an’ said I was there -as a spotter for my father’s gang probably. An’ before he finished he -said it was lucky there hadn’t been a robbery there or he’d handed me -right over to the police then an’ there. _Me_—me that ain’t done him a -bitta harm an’ that wouldn’t! Gee, Big Joe, ain’t it enough that he -helped put Pop where he is? Can’t he see how _I_ am?” - -“None o’ ’em can see anythin’, kid,” Big Joe answered, bitterly. “That’s -the trouble with me and Toby and every man in this Basin. Sure ’tis -’cause the likes o’ Skinner can’t see. They don’t even give us a chance, -they don’t ’cause we’re river folks. They tell us so much that we’re -crooked that we wind up that way whither we want to or not, so we do. -They make us be crooked. And now they be startin’ in on you, kid. ’Tis a -dirty shame, so ’tis.” - -“I’ll get some other place,” Skippy was defiant. “They’re not gonna make -me crooked when I don’t wanna be.” - -“Skippy, kid,” thought Tully from the depths of his river front wisdom, -“I ain’t so sure, I ain’t so sure.” But what he said was: “Sure and that -they’ll not, Skippy me boy, that they’ll not.” - - - - - CHAPTER XXI - WHAT NEXT? - - -Weary week after weary week passed for Skippy until the winter months -had come and gone. March arrived, cold, blustery and disappointing, for -he hadn’t yet been able to hold a job longer than it took his employers -to find out just who their office boy was. And as gossip spreads quickly -along the river front, the discouraged boy seldom drew more than a few -days’ pay at a time. - -He had learned upon being dismissed from his last job the reason why -employers had no use for his services. He demanded to know. - -“Is it ’cause my father’s in prison?” he asked wistfully. “’Cause if it -is nobody is fair in the world. You’ve heard, I bet, that lots of -innocent people are in jail so can’t you believe maybe my father could -be one of them? And anyway, does that prove that I’m....” - -The employer, thus confronted, protested. - -“No,” he said in that self-righteous tone that was beginning to wear on -Skippy’s nerves, “we think that you, yourself, mean to be honest but we -know that you can’t hold out long against such home conditions as the -Basin offers. A wage such as a boy like you with your limited education -can earn isn’t enough to provide you with all you want. And sooner or -later, your association with a person like Big Joe Tully will have its -effect on you.” - -“My Pop was gonna send me to school so’s I could get educated,” Skippy -protested, “but anyway I’m honest an’ I’m gonna stay honest, no matter -what you think. Besides, Big Joe’s tried to live straight all this -winter for my sake, but are you an’ everybody else I’ve tried to work -for tryin’ to help him? No, nobody won’t even give him a job so he can -stay straight. An’ now you won’t let me stay ’cause I live with him, -because you’re afraid....” - -“My dear boy,” the employer interposed patronizingly, “can you blame us? -Tully has served a jail sentence for robbing our warehouses. How can we -be certain that he won’t do it again? Or that he won’t use your position -of trust in our offices to learn more easily what goods we have in our -warehouses that he can steal? What assurance can you give us that he -don’t do that when he gets tired treading the straight and narrow path? -None. Absolutely none! No, we warehouse owners have been too long aware -that it is you thieving river people who are responsible for our -tremendous losses every year. And so we maintain that, once a thief, -always a thief!” - -Skippy was wounded and bitter. His full, generous lips curled -sardonically. - -“Then it ain’t any use to try to make you understand,” he said bravely. -“You warehouse people complain that we’re thieves an’ you make us -thieves just like you’re tryin’ to make me one by keepin’ me outa jobs -so’s I can’t make an honest livin’. An’ anyway, if the only way I could -hold a job is to quit Big Joe then I won’t do it! I’d rather _be_ a -thief, yes I would! He saved my life and he’s helped my Pop ... oh, -what’s the use!” - -He slammed the door behind him and rushed home to find Big Joe with his -faithful, smiling face. Plank after plank he hurried over, connecting -the barges, and at last he crossed the deck of the _Dinky O. Cross_, -waved a greeting to the smiling Mrs. Duffy and whistled for Mugs when he -reached the plank of the _Minnie M. Baxter_. - -“And have ye lost the job, kid?” Big Joe asked when he entered the -shanty. - -“My last job, Big Joe,” the boy answered smiling ruefully. “You were -right about ’em—there ain’t one that’ll gimme a chance. Even you who -ain’t always been honest yourself did more than that! You let me try at -least. They know more about you than I did—they know you served time.” - -“Sure and that’s why they’re blackballin’ ye, is it? ’Cause ye’re -stickin’ with me?” His bland face looked dark and ominous. Then as he -glanced at the boy’s wistful countenance, his expression softened: “I’m -tellin’ ye the truth, kid, whin I say that they railroaded me, so they -did—I was startin’ in honest like you. Office boy. Thin one night the -warehouse was robbed and next mornin’ they accused me o’ workin’ with -the gang—tippin’ ’em off. ’Cause I’d been seen ’round with one o’ the -guys what was caught. I got a year, I did, and didn’t have a chance. -When I come out I was blackballed and Ol’ Flint took me under. Sufferin’ -swordfish, sure and I’ve tried twice now to travel on the up and up. -When I first got my barge and now. And ’tis no use, ’tis no use.” - -“Seems that way,” Skippy murmured, disconsolate. “Now I ain’t gonna try. -I’m gonna live an’ eat like other fellers my age. I wanta go to the -movies an’ take things up to Pop when I go to see him. Gee, already he’s -startin’ to write to me that the food’s bad up at the big house. So I -gotta help him have a little sumpin’ to smile at if he’s gonna be there -the rest of his life! An’ I gotta have money to go to see him—I gotta -see him! If they won’t lemme earn it honest—_what else_? Like the man -said, I don’t know enough to work anywheres else.” - -“And ye’ll be wantin’ to quit me, kid? Ye’ll be wantin’ to go away and -start over where they don’t know ’bout river people and all?” Big Joe’s -anxiety was pathetic. - -“I’m afraid of places too far away from the river,” Skippy admitted. “I -guess I got the river in me like Pop, huh? I ain’t got nerve enough to -break away. Besides I sorta promised Pop I’d stay by the _Minnie M. -Baxter_. S’pose just by a lucky break the governor pardons Pop some day, -huh? He’s paid good money for this barge an’ it’s the only home he’s -got. Besides, I don’t wanta quit you, Big Joe—_I couldn’t_!” - -And Skippy’s decision stood until Brown’s Basin was no more.... - - - - - CHAPTER XXII - BIG JOE’S IDEA - - -In May, Big Joe conceived a brilliant idea for making a living. He came -into the shanty of the barge with it one balmy noon, for it was embodied -in a large canvas bag which he carried in his big outstretched hand. - -“Sure and now we be goin’ to eat, kid, and we be goin’ to live high, and -ye be goin’ to do all the things ye’ want for Toby,” he said chuckling. - -“Stealin’?” Skippy asked, looking worried and wan. “As hard up as we -been, Big Joe, I can’t stand for sneakin’ down the river at night an’ -climbin’ into warehouse windows. Gee, Pop’d feel fierce if we was caught -an’ I was put in reform school or sumpin’ like that!” - -“And d’ye be thinkin’ I ain’t carin’ no more for ye than seein’ ye -grabbed for somethin’ like that, me boy? Kid, I been thinkin’ and -thinkin’ o’ some way for us to be gettin’ by—some way that no copper -could catch us up on. And if they iver should ’twon’t be you what’d be -holdin’ the bag—’twill be me, ’cause I’m the one what’ll do the trick. -Do you catch on?” - -“What trick, Big Joe?” - -“’Tis the stuff I got in this bag, kid,” answered Tully softly. “’Tis -ground carbon and whin it’s poured in with oil it raises the divil with -thim nice engines in rich guys’ boats up at the Riverview Yacht Club. -From now on till the end o’ summer they’re takin’ trips—see? Well, sure -and Big Joe’s got a good pal what looks out for the boats up there ... -he’s told beforehand what rich guy’s goin’ out in his boat, he is ... my -pal tells me and I go up there—see? Him and me edge aisy like towards -the boat and whilst he’s lookin’ out the corners o’ his eye that no -one’s comin’, Big Joe uncovers the crank case and ’fore ye could say -_scat_, I’m pourin’ me little powder in the breather pipe and sure she’s -mixin’ with the oil.” - -“An’ what then?” Skippy asked, nervous, yet admiring Big Joe’s ingenious -idea. - -Big Joe winked, then laughed. - -“Sure, I pour the right amount o’ this powder, kid,” he said, “thin I -beats it off quick and watch the rich guy start, so I do. If ’tis -possible, me pal finds out where the guy’s goin’ so’s I can beat it on -ahead and circle his course so I come up on him by the time his ingine’s -dead—see?” - -“The powder mixes through the oil an’ up through the engine, huh?” -Skippy asked fearfully. “Makes the engine go dead, huh?” - -“Sure ’tis ground up like nobody’s business, kid,” Big Joe laughed. “An’ -I make sure o’ puttin’ in enough so’s I’ll be knowin’ about where the -ingine goes dead on thim. And thin I chug up to thim all innocent like -and asks do they want help. _Do_ they? Sure they must be towed back so I -says I don’t think I’m their man ’cause I’ll be losin’ business -somewheres or other—see? And they’re so anxious they’ll be willin’ to -pay me price, so they will. And I gotta be paid for the loss o’ me -time!” He laughed heartily. - -“I—I—gee, in a way that’s worse than pulling a warehouse, Big Joe? It -ain’t so dangerous, but....” - -“Kid, sure I thought ye’d be takin’ on, but I can tell ye it ain’t so -bad at all, at all. I’ll be pickin’ out only thim what’s payin’ tin and -twinty grand for their kickers! What’s the cost to thim what throws away -hundreds o’ bucks at a time? And what’s fifty or seventy-five bucks for -to be payin’ me for towin’ thim back? Sure ’tis a drop in the bucket, -says I. They’ll niver be missin’ it, kid. And we gotta live, you and me, -and Toby’s case’s gotta go before the governor some day and that takes -money too.” - -Skippy nodded and Big Joe noticed that the old pinched look had come -back to his thin cheeks. - -“Kid, ye can’t be goin’ on like this, you and me!” he pleaded. “Like I -said ’tis only the big guys—guys what have the heavy sugar. We’ll be -layin’ off the others and we’ll be workin’ the different clubs so nobody -gets wise. Thim boat tenders’ll go along for a little o’ the split. So -ye needn’t be worryin’ that we’re takin’ thim what can’t afford it! -Besides they’re mostly rich warehouse guys that won’t give you and me -the chance for honest work. Sure and now ye won’t be feelin’ so bad -about takin’ it, will ye?” - -That decided Skippy. Hunger and privation had dulled his conscience, -embittered him against the warehouse owners and he was at last ready to -strike back at his oppressors. - -And strange to say, in contemplating the results of this stealthy -enterprise, Skippy did not think of the food, nor the movies to which he -could go. He was thinking instead that he would at last have the money -to pay for his journey up to see his father. For a few golden moments -the walls of the prison would fade away and Toby would imagine himself a -free man. And all because of a breath of river air that his son would -bring him in his smile. - -And for that, Skippy was willing to forget that he hated dishonesty in -any form. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIII - ANOTHER JOB - - -It was early morning a few days later when Skippy and Tully set out on -the first stage of their enterprise. The inlet was dark and shadowy, and -the sweet soft breath of spring floated about their heads. In its wake, -however, came the smell of mud and fish at low tide and the boy was glad -to get out into the fresh salt air of the river. - -“It’s the only thing that makes me hate the inlet,” he said to Big Joe -as they turned up toward the yacht club. “I get feelin’ choked, -sorta—you know, sumpin’ like I imagine people feel when they go to -jail.” - -“Now don’t ye be feelin’ spooky,” Tully admonished. “’Tain’t the spirit -for a job like this. Sure, there’s somethin’ ’bout mentionin’ jail what -gives me the creeps. So don’t be thinkin’ we’ll be gettin’ in any -jams—’tis hard luck, so ’tis.” - -“I’m sorry, Big Joe,” said Skippy contritely. “I—I didn’t say it for -that, honest, because even Pop can tell you how the inlet always made me -feel like that. I’m all right when I’m up on the barge; it’s only the -inlet makes me feel that way. Just as soon as we strike the river I feel -better.” - -“That’s the talk, me boy. And I’m sorry for jumpin’ on ye so quick. I -thought ye was nervous ’bout this job, so I did.” - -“Aw, no,” Skippy protested, but his quivering lip belied his words. - -Tully did not see it, however, for he was intent on approaching the -yacht club unobtrusively. - -“Now if this ain’t a good break,” he said enthusiastically. “There’s a -party o’ three goin’ out on a two days’ fishing trip at Snug Island. -She’s called the _Minnehaha_, me pal tells me, and she’s a baby. -Twenty-six footer! Guy that owns her is Crosley.” - -“Crosley Warehouse where I worked last?” Skippy asked anxiously. - -“Sure, and now don’t that beat all! Little Old Lady Luck’s playin’ with -us, kid! Sure ’tis a break to make him hand over his bucks or sink in -Watson’s Channel!” - -“You wouldn’t let ’em do that, Big Joe?” Skippy asked fearfully. “_You -wouldn’t!_” - -“Nah, Big Joe ain’t that hard hearted, much as I got it in for thim rich -bugs. I’ll just be lettin’ thim think I’m doin’ thim a favor not lettin’ -Watson’s Channel close ’em in, so I will.” - -“Do you s’pose Mr. Crosley’ll get wise we’re doin’ it a-purpose?” Skippy -was beginning to weaken already. - -“And how’ll he be doin’ that, I’m askin’ ye? Me pal tipped me off they -be due at dawn. We’ll be there and gone a half hour afore they show up. -So don’t be startin’ worryin’, kid. Leave everythin’ to Big Joe, as if -ye didn’t know nothin’ ’bout the business at all, at all. You don’t say -nothin’. Be lookin’ dumb if anybody talks to ye.” - -“I will,” said Skippy, half-whimsically, and half-frightened. “I’ll be -_scared_ dumb so you needn’t worry that I’ll get nervous an’ give -anythin’ away—gee whiz!” - -Big Joe laughed, then he said, “Awright, kid, D’ye be knowin’ Skinner -and Crosley be pals?” - -“Gee!” said Skippy. “Now I know why I couldn’t get a job. Skinner put -’em all wise, huh? Gee!” - -They were silent after that and chugged steadily toward the yacht club. -A ferry-boat was crossing far up the river and her lights blinked out -over the dark water like a hundred evil eyes. Hundreds of boats anchored -near shore bobbed up and down on the tide like a ghostly river army, and -from the shore more lights winked down on them knowingly as if they knew -their secret. - -They crept into the slip alongside the yacht club; Big Joe had shut off -the motor. At a sign from him, Skippy dropped the anchor and without a -word, he got out and crept across the float and onto the club grounds. - -After the darkness hid him from view Skippy looked about, nervously. -There was a little light gleaming from under the vast clubhouse porch -and suddenly he saw Big Joe’s ponderous figure pass under it. Presently, -he halted and held out his hand to a man approaching him from the other -direction. - -Skippy sighed with relief and relaxed. At least Big Joe had met his -comrade without accident. Besides, no one seemed to be about. He heard -not a sound except the river lapping restlessly around the piling under -the slip and the swish of anchored craft as they swayed on the tide. - -It seemed to him that Big Joe was staying an interminable time, but as -an actual fact, it was just seven minutes before he saw the man’s bulky -figure coming stealthily toward him. - -Skippy weighed anchor without a sound and they pushed the kicker out of -the slip with oars. A little distance below the club, Big Joe turned -over his motor. - -“Shiverin’ swordfish, kid,” he murmured with a chuckle, “all we do now -is wait—wait so’s Crosley can get ’bout as far as Watson’s Channel. -He’ll be gettin’ no further’n that—so he won’t.” - -Skippy shivered a little and leaned over the coaming to watch for logs. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIV - ANOTHER RESCUE - - -As the moments wore on, Skippy felt meaner than ever. He tried to force -himself to accept Big Joe’s point of view, but it was difficult and more -than once he wished he had not encouraged his good friend in this -dubious enterprise. - -They chugged into the bay and out of the awakening river traffic. Dawn -had broken through and glimmerings of dancing light peeped over the -horizon. An hour more and they would be in sight of Watson’s Channel. - -“We’ll not be goin’ straight for the Channel, we’ll not,” called Big Joe -as if anticipating Skippy’s fears. “We’ll be layin’ quite like below -here a ways ’till the _Minnehaha_ gets in the Channel. ’Tis a funny -name, hey kid?” - -“Mm,” Skippy answered. “It’s a Indian name, Big Joe—I think it means -sumpin’ like Laughing—Laughing sumpin’.” - -Big Joe’s mirth knew no bounds. - -“Sure and just about now _Minnie_ ain’t laughin’, she ain’t,” he said. -“’Tis us.” - -“Not me,” Skippy said gloomily. “I won’t laugh ... not till after.” - -An hour later they were chugging noisily toward Watson’s Channel. The -sun was glorious and the water glistened under its warm spring rays. -Gulls frolicked about in the foaming spray and Skippy tried hard to -believe there was nothing but peace in his busy mind. - -After a time they heard a distant sound, faint at first but growing -louder within a few minutes. Tully grinned at Skippy’s questioning face -and nodded as the piercing note of a siren cut the silent sunlit air. - -“Sure, and I wonder what that might be?” he said with mock-seriousness. -“Sounds like distress I’d be sayin’, I would.” - -“Stop kiddin’, Big Joe,” Skippy pleaded. “You mean you think it’s -_them_?” - -“Well now I wouldn’ be s’prised,” the big fellow answered. Then -seriously, he said: “We’ll be gettin’ there, kid! Don’t be lookin’ as if -they was drownin’ or somethin’. Sure they could keep afloat for hours so -they could, and look at the tide besides.” - -Skippy glanced at the quietly rolling swell and felt somewhat reassured. -But the voice of the siren jarred him and he was glad to see that Big -Joe looked serious and determined. He hadn’t liked that note of raillery -in his friend’s voice. - -But despite Skippy’s fears Tully answered the siren call with all the -haste of a good Samaritan. One might have supposed that he gloried in -the duties of heroic service. And when he reached the Channel and they -sighted the distressed launch, he opened wide his throttle until the old -hull shook to the vibrations of the engine. - -Skippy clenched his slim, brown fingers and sat tense in his seat while -a spray rained into the boat. Big Joe coughed significantly and drove -his ramshackle craft straight for the disabled cruiser. - -“Now ain’t she the sweet lookin’ baby,” he observed as if he had never -seen the launch before. - -Skippy said nothing but grimly watched the three men who awaited their -coming. Crosley he recognized at once, but the man standing alongside of -him was a stranger. The third occupant of the _Minnehaha_ was Marty -Skinner. Skippy remembered him from his father’s trial and from the -night Skinner had ordered him off the _Apollyon_ without a hearing. - -“You see him?” he asked Big Joe between clenched teeth. - -“’Tis all the better,” Big Joe seemed to say in his bland smile. - -He brought the kicker up alongside the _Minnehaha_ and laid a life -preserver over the coaming of his boat to prevent its scratching the -gleaming hull of the launch. Skippy scrambled to the rescue and held the -kicker as the ill-assorted pair rocked and rubbed in the heavy swell. - -“Sure I don’t want to be scratchin’ her,” said Tully with a fine -assumption of humble respect for the launch. “I was tellin’ the kid -here, she’s some baby, hey? What’s bein’ the matter; power give out did -she? ’Tis too bad, so ’tis.” - -Skippy kept his eyes on space, but he had the feeling that Big Joe and -he were being scrutinized with unfriendly stares. - -Crosley sniffed the air contemptuously before he spoke. - -“She’s pumping oil to beat the band,” he said. “We don’t seem to be -getting any compression either. We can’t get a kick out of her. Been -flopping around for an hour.” - -“Sure maybe ye be needin’ new rings,” said Tully. “Guess ye been pushin’ -her too hard, hey?” - -He glanced into the cockpit and with a fine show of rueful astonishment, -beheld the disastrous results of his own handiwork. She was indeed -pumping oil. The engine head was covered with it, and it was streaming -down the side over the carburetor. Three or four spark plugs had been -taken out and lay on a locker in little puddles of oozy muck. - -“If ’t was only one cylinder now, I’d be sayin’ ye had a busted ring, or -even a cracked piston,” Tully said blandly. “But shiverin’ swordfish if -it don’t look like the whole six o’ thim, don’t it? Ye can’t do nothin’ -here. Looks like ye was racin’ her a lot.” His detestable device had -worked so well that he seemed moved to offer gratuitous suggestions. “I -knowed a guy was stuck on the bar over by Inland Beach and he kept -racin’ his motor, and somehow—I dunno just how—she sucked in a lot o’ -beach sand and it sanded down his cylinder wall good an’ plenty, so it -did.” - -Skinner’s lips were drawn in a thin line above his pointed chin. - -“Does that mean we’ll have to be towed back, Crosley?” he asked his host -petulantly. - -“Afraid so, Marty,” answered Crosley. “I can’t imagine how a fine engine -like mine could break down so soon.” - -“Sure and if that ain’t just like some guys,” said Tully glibly. -“They’re fine’s a fiddle one day and the next—they’re done for, ain’t it -so?” - -Crosley nodded indifferently. - -“Could you tow us in?” he asked as if the question were distasteful. His -aversion to the uncouth, but amiable river man was too obvious to escape -Skippy’s sensitive eyes. - -If Tully was aware of it too, he did not betray it. His face looked -grave and thoughtful. - -“Trouble is I’m due at the Hook,” he said hesitantly. “Have an all day’s -job towin’ a barge. I’m late as ’tis. And if I ain’t there in twinty -minutes I lose the job, so I do. ’Tis the first good payin’ job I’ve had -in a long....” - -Crosley waved his hand in entreaty. - -“We’ll see that you’re paid for the loss of your day’s job, man. How -much would you get for it, eh?” - -Tully moved his large head and shrugged his powerful shoulders. -“Seventy-five bucks is what they’re goin’ to pay me,” he said modestly. - -Crosley gasped audibly. - -“That’s a lot of money, but....” - -“It’s a hold up!” snapped Skinner between his tightly drawn lips. - -“Sure and it’s what they’re payin’ me, boss,” said Big Joe with a look -of hurt pride. “I ain’t askin’ ye’ for a cent, I’m not considerin’ I may -lose my customer for future jobs. ’Tis not only I’m losin’ that -seventy-five bucks, ’tis....” - -“All right,” Crosley sniffed angrily. “You’re taking advantage of us. I -don’t believe you can earn seventy-five dollars for a day’s work. But -you have us at a disadvantage—the Lord knows who else we could get to -our rescue in this unfrequented channel.” - -“So and that’s all the thanks I get,” said Tully. “Comin’ way out o’ me -way....” - -“All right,” Skinner interposed. “Give it to him, Crosley. I know who -this fellow is. We’re at his mercy. But I’ll remember this, Tully—you’re -occupying the mud banks at Brown’s Basin. You and this boy, Dare, may -want some consideration when you people have to get out of the Basin. -And I’ll remember who’s living on the _Minnie M. Baxter_!” - -“You oughta!” Skippy shouted angrily, rising to his feet. “Your cheatin’ -boss what’s dead put it there, that’s what, an’ my father’ll never see -the sun on the river again on account of it too! So try an’ take it -away.” - -Skinner’s cold dignity seemed unruffled. He averted his gaze while -Crosley counted out seventy-five dollars to Big Joe Tully. Skippy stood -by, his heart full of hate, and at that moment he thought that he could -cheerfully see the _Minnehaha_ sink to the bottom of the Channel while -Skinner begged to be saved. - -While leisurely chugging back toward the Basin that afternoon he and -Tully talked it over seriously. - -“Well, and we got seventy-five bucks aisy money out o’ the tightwads,” -Tully chuckled in conclusion. - -“Seventy-five bucks an’ the promise of trouble from Skinner, Big Joe,” -Skippy reminded him with a note of apprehension in his voice. - -Tully’s face darkened. - -“I hate Skinner for sayin’ what he did, so I do,” he said ominously. -“Sufferin’ swordfish if he do be makin’ ye scared and drivin’ ye outa -the only home ye got—well, he better be lettin’ ye ’lone. _Me_, I don’t -care much where I live, but _you_ ... I’ll be fixin’ him if he....” - -“Don’t say it, Big Joe!” Skippy pleaded earnestly. “It scares me, ’cause -that’s just what Pop said the night he went to see old Mr. Flint on the -_Apollyon_! It’s sorta——” - -“And ’tis all right, kid, so ’tis.” Tully smiled. “Now ye be forgettin’ -it.” - -Skippy tried to; certainly he had forgotten that he himself had wished -Marty Skinner a like fate only that morning. - - - - - CHAPTER XXV - DAVY JONES - - -Tully’s game worked successfully for the next few weeks, for he had -distributed his activities among various club houses dotting the shore. -It had become an enterprise apparently without threat of untoward -incident—so much so that Skippy, with his uncanny knack of presaging -ill, came to feel that they must not go on with the distasteful -business. - -He had hated the treachery of it from the very beginning, partly because -of his innate honesty and also because in fairness to himself, he knew -he had no real grudge against his rich fellow men. And in his vague, -ignorant way Skippy knew that Skinner and Crosley represented something -which hate could never successfully combat. - -He felt it particularly one early morning when Tully, swaggering out of -the shanty of the _Minnie M. Baxter_, rubbed his large hands in gleeful -anticipation of the next victim. - -“’Tis up to the Riverview Yacht Club we’ll be goin’ this mornin’, kid,” -he said confidently. “We’ve worked aroun’ to it agin. Me pal, the boat -tender what tipped me off on Crosley’s _Minnehaha_, ain’t there no more, -but the new guy was aisy pickin’. He fell for a little split, without -battin’ an eye, so he did, and sent word down last night that a little -fishin’ party headed for Snug Island would push off at dawn.” - -“Snug Island, huh?” Skippy asked fearfully. “That means Watson’s Channel -for us again?” - -“Sure,” laughed Tully, “’tis a spot I like. Nobody goes through Watson’s -Channel ’cept they’re headed for Snug Island. And nobody goes to Snug -Island fishin’ but a coupla rich guys what own the whole place. It’s -aisy pickin’ so ’tis.” - -“For you it’s easy, Big Joe,” said Skippy, “but not for me. Sometimes I -think I never had anythin’ so hard to do in my life as just gettin’ up -nerve to go on these trips. Gee, I ain’t never had the heart to tell Pop -about them—I lied, an’ said we was makin’ a pretty good livin’ towin’ -an’ fishin’.” - -Big Joe roared with laughter. - -“Sure and we’re towin’ and fishin’,” he said with a malicious wink. “Ye -didn’t tell Toby no lie. We fish the money out o’ ’em and thin tow thim -back—that’s no story.” - -“I wish you wouldn’t laugh about it, Big Joe,” Skippy said with a frown. -“It makes it seem as if it was a joke—as if you liked it almost.” - -“And you’d be likin’ it too, kid, if ye wanted to get back at these rich -guys much as I do. But I won’t be laughin’ about it no more, if it makes -ye feel that way. Sufferin’ swordfish but ye don’t have to be actin’ -like we’re goin’ to a funeral.” - -“I feel funny about goin’ to the Riverview Yacht Club this morning. Big -Joe, would you stay away from there if I asked you to?” - -“Any mornin’ but this one, Skippy me boy,” said Tully with all his old -affection. “I can’t be side-steppin’ it on account o’ this new boat -tender. He’s expectin’ a little handout so I can’t be disappointin’ him. -But I’ll tell ye what, kid, if it’s makin’ ye feel so awful bad I’ll -chuck this game ’fore ye can say any more. I’ll be thinkin’ up somethin’ -else. Anythin’ but seem’ ye’ feelin’ sad, kid.” - -They got into the kicker and chugged out of the inlet once more. -Skippy’s eyes glistened happily and he told himself that he could forget -the ominous whisperings inside of him for just this once. Indeed, he -could forget everything distasteful in the past few weeks now that Tully -had promised to give up the hated business. - -“We ain’t heard from Crosley or Skinner since that mornin’ we towed ’em -back, huh Big Joe?” he asked irrelevantly. “I wonder if they found out -what was really wrong with the engine?” - -“We’d o’ heard ’bout it soon enough if they did, so we would,” said -Tully thoughtfully. “Anyways, I heard that Crosley sold the _Minnehaha_ -right that next day. He said he didn’t want no boat that almost put him -down in Watson’s Channel. Ha, ha! Sure and I’m glad he did. He should be -worryin’ with his money.” - -Once more they pulled up beside the slip of the Riverview Yacht Club and -once more Big Joe stole silently up the lawn in the gray morning -shadows. Skippy waited patiently, albeit anxiously, and held the boat -secure while his weary eyes blinked sleepily in the sultry air. - -After a time, Big Joe came hurrying out of the shadows. - -“Simple as sayin’ meow, kid,” he said exultantly. “The boat tender tells -me this guy’s goin’ alone to Snug Island this mornin’. He couldn’t be -rememberin’ the guy’s name what owns her, but he says the boat ain’t a -week old. She’s a peach—a trim, twenty-six footer, kid! And of all names -she’s got! Sufferin’ swordfish!” - -“What?” - -“The _Davy Jones_—so ’tis. Can ye be beatin’ that?” - -“_Big Joe!_” Skippy said in a small, frightened voice. “That’s a name -that scares me terrible.” - -“_Ye’re crazy, kid, ye’re crazy!_ Sure and what’s in a name. Just ’cause -Davy Jones happens to mean....” - -“Just the same I’m scared terrible,” Skippy maintained stoutly. “An’ -there’s lots in names whether you believe it or not. Now take the -_Minnie M. Baxter_—nothin’ bad could come of her in the end, I bet, and -if it did I bet it would be for the best, because it was my mother’s -name. Even if there’s been trouble about the barge from the beginnin’ -there’s good come on it too. When Pop was taken away, then you came to -be good to me so that shows there’s somethin’ good about the barge, -don’t it? But Davy Jones only means one thing, Big Joe, an’ you can say, -what’s in a name!” - -What, indeed! - - - - - CHAPTER XXVI - THE ROCKS - - -It was a murky dawn and no sun followed in its wake. The air was heavy -and oppressive, and low rumblings of thunder echoed in from sea. Skippy -shook his head worriedly as they chugged out of sight of the bay to let -the _Davy Jones_ pass by. - -“I don’t feel right this morning, Big Joe,” the boy insisted. “Say what -you like, but we shouldn’t wait—we oughta tail the _Davy Jones_, right -away—_this minute_, before the storm comes on.” - -“Now ye be worryin’ agin, hey?” Tully asked impatiently. “That storm’s -out at sea and it won’t hit the Channel. Sure ’tis just a murky -mornin’.” - -“All right,” said Skippy, “but I know.” - -Tully was beginning to be annoyed with Skippy’s gloomy predictions and -he showed it. Yet somehow it gave him a little uneasiness and from time -to time he glanced thoughtfully from the boy to the distant black -horizon. - -The storm clouds were coming nearer and thunder rolled ominously over -their heads. Finally Tully turned over his motor and set her nose about. -After she had warmed up, he opened wide the throttle and headed for the -bay. - -“I’ll be keepin’ her open and beat it for the Channel soon’s we get -across,” he explained. “We’ll be gettin’ there sure ’fore the storm -breaks bad.” - -“I hope so,” said Skippy, “because it’s travelin’ in from sea, fast.” - -“We’ll be goin’ round by The Rocks and save fifteen minutes or so,” -Tully said hopefully searching the boy’s face. “’Tis high enough tide -for to take a chance.” - -The Rocks, that bane of all mariners who were unfamiliar with the -lurking waters beyond the bay, could be safely passed in small boats at -high tide. There were few, however, who took advantage of this -concession of Nature to the small nautical man, nearly all mariners -preferring the greater safety that was offered them by going the long -way around Inland Beach. - -A high wind was steadily rising as they chugged into the vicinity of The -Rocks, and it prevented Skippy from hearing that call of distress for -which he was so intently listening. Whether the wind was against them, -he did not know, for the howling tempest and turbulent water drowned out -all other sounds. - -The storm broke after a few minutes and rain lashed at them from all -sides. Tully said not a word, but stayed at his wheel silent and grave. -And by his averted head, Skippy knew that he, too, was listening for -that siren call from the _Davy Jones_. - -Salt spray flung itself up over the bow and into Skippy’s face. He could -have moved farther back to avoid it, but he seemed incapable of action -then, and sat tense and white, listening, listening.... - -Tully did not miss it. The boy’s tragic expression so dismayed him that -he felt for the first time in his life that he should have mended his -ways while there was still time. All his sins seemed to have crowded -into Skippy’s face to accuse him. - -And still they heard no call of distress from the _Davy Jones_. - -Tully, desperate, raced his engine until they whistled through the -foaming spray. Then suddenly they felt the keel grind under them with -such force that it took all their combined strength to steady the boat -and keep her from turning over. - -“What happened, do you s’pose?” Skippy asked with white face. - -“Sufferin’ swordfish, kid!” Tully cried. “I think she’s stove in—The -Rocks! _Look!_” - -He pointed and Skippy looked, to see a jagged hole in the bottom of the -kicker. Water came in through it rapidly and even as he stared at it, it -trickled over his feet and up to his ankles. - - - - - CHAPTER XXVII - SUSPENSE - - -“What’ll we do?” Skippy cried. “Gee, what’ll we do?” - -“We’ll be swimmin’ for it, kid,” Big Joe answered, his face ashen and -drawn. “Inland Beach’s nearest—we’ll be swimmin’ it in a half hour, -takin’ it aisy like.” - -“_Easy!_ In this water and wind?” - -“Skippy, don’t be worryin’. Sure and I ain’t goin’ to see ye go down. -I’ll be keepin’ ye up if it takes me life.” - -Suddenly Skippy turned, pleading. Big Joe knew and his eyes dropped -before the boy’s accusing gaze. - -“And what can I be doin’ about the _Davy Jones_ now, kid!” he protested -“I _got_ ye to be thinkin’ about now.... Sufferin’ swordfish!” He -groaned. - -“Then we gotta swim to Inland Beach as fast as we can, Big Joe,” Skippy -said, master of himself once more. “We gotta get help right away for the -_Davy Jones_!” - -“Sure, sure,” the big fellow moaned, “anythin’, kid, only don’t be -lookin’ at me so accusin’. Did I know it was goin’ to happen like this? -Sufferin’ swordfish!” - -“C’mon, Big Joe—_c’mon_!” - -They had no sooner jumped clear of the boat than she sank out of sight. -A terrific gale blew them along and Skippy kept close to Tully, buoyed -up by the thought that he must keep going in order to get help for the -_Davy Jones_. - -And for once Tully was right in a prediction. It took them all of the -half hour before they sighted the sandy wastes of Inland Beach. - -The summer colonists sheltered from the storm in their inadequately -built bungalows sighted the bobbing heads of the swimmers as they -battled their way against the tide. Speedily the beach was covered with -people and the life-guards, summarily dragged from their bunks in their -beach shanty, jumped drowsy-eyed into the life-boat and went into -action. - -Ten minutes later, the two were rushed up to the guards’ shanty and -hurriedly divested of their dripping garments. - -“We gotta ...” Skippy began as soon as he had a chance to talk. - -“We thought we heard a siren,” Big Joe interposed. “Sure, it sounded -like distress—there ain’t a doubt.” - -“We heard it plain!” Skippy exclaimed anxiously. “An’ it came from the -Channel—didn’t it, Big Joe, huh?” - -“Sure and he’s right. ’Tis about where I figgered she was comin’ from,” -Tully added. - -“An’ we better start right out again!” Skippy said eagerly. “With this -high wind....” - -“A guy hasn’t much chance in the Channel,” interposed one of the guards -bluntly. “I can tell you that before we start. And if it wasn’t that you -say you’re sure you heard it, we wouldn’t take a chance ourselves. Even -a big tub like ours ain’t a match for the Channel in a storm and high -wind.” - -“But we’re sure we heard it! Ain’t we, Big Joe?” - -“Sure we did that!” Tully said emphatically. - -And so they started for the Channel. - -The wind died down shortly after they had lost sight of Inland Beach. -Presently the rain ceased and after a few moments’ struggle with storm -clouds, the sun came smiling through. - -Skippy smiled too, hopeful that it augured well for the object of their -search. Tully relaxed and took a cigarette that one of the guards -offered him. He talked little and kept his eyes ahead. - -They reached the Channel in a half hour and for a full hour they -searched it up and down. Skippy kept his eyes on the water; he dared not -let the guards see the hopelessness written there should his glance -chance to meet Tully’s. - -“Sure we _couldn’t_ be dreamin’ we heard a siren, now could we?” Tully -pleaded when the guards announced their intention of returning to the -beach. - -“You guys didn’t seem to be so sure you heard any at all when we first -got you out of the water,” one of the men reminded them. - -“Sure and we were kind o’ all in from the breaks we got,” Tully -explained. His voice sounded hollow and weary. - -“Well, we don’t hear no siren now,” said the other guard, “and we’ve -been up and down the Channel. If there _was_ any guy in distress, maybe -he’s been swept out to sea. And we can’t go hunting that far for you -fellers. We’ll send out word to the coast guard anyway when we get back -just to be on the safe side. They’ll find the tub if it’s still afloat.” - -“An’ if there was any siren signaling distress when that high wind first -come up,” said the first guard, “she’s most likely screeching now for to -get into Davy Jones’ locker. Who knows?” - -Skippy and Big Joe would have given their lives at that moment to know. - - - - - CHAPTER XXVIII - THE DUFFYS - - -They borrowed a kicker from one of the summer colonists and set out for -home just before noon. Skippy was too overwhelmed to speak until long -after they left the beach and Tully sat tragic and silent at the wheel. - -“We might’s well look agin,” he murmured brokenly, as he headed the boat -toward the Channel. “Just so’s to be makin’ sure.” - -“Might’s well,” Skippy echoed. Then: “Gee, do you think maybe he was -blowin’ the siren?” - -“That he must o’ done. He must o’ been blowin’ it like mad.” - -They spent half the afternoon chugging up and down the Channel and -passed several craft, government and otherwise, which had heard the -warning that the Inland Beach guards had passed along. Finally they -decided to return home and with bowed heads found their way out of the -treacherous waters. - -“Sure if the coast guards ain’t found him, we won’t—not if we be stayin’ -there all night,” said Tully mournfully. “Kid, don’t ye be jumpin’ on -me, now. If ye knew what I been through since ... since.... I been -blowin’ a siren in distress five hun’erd times, so I have, and five -hun’erd times, I been in that _Davy Jones_ callin’ me lungs out for help -an’ no help come! I’ve sunk with her too—oh shiverin’ swordfish ... kid, -I ain’t nothin’ but a plain....” - -“Don’t say it, Big Joe,” said Skippy, moved to the depths of his soul -with pity. “Gee, don’t I know! You wouldn’t have done it a-purpose.” - -“No. ’Tis right ye be there.” Tully looked beaten. - -They chugged on up the river and seemed to pass everyone they knew. -Inspector Jones and his men bobbed by in the trim harbor launch waving a -cheery greeting to Skippy and eyeing Tully with obvious suspicion. - -Skippy was grateful for the silent inlet and the warm throaty bark that -Mugs gave as he scrambled aboard the barge. He looked at the dog, winced -a little at his faithful canine eyes and took him up in his arms. He -couldn’t do to Mugs what they had done to that unknown man on the _Davy -Jones_. - -He sprawled in a rickety arm chair on deck while the sun sank slowly in -the west. The whole horizon was a blaze of scarlet, then gold, then -purple and at last it faded into leaden colored clouds. Big Joe was -calling him in to supper. - -Skippy looked down in the crook of his arm at the sleeping dog. Supper? -He didn’t want any—he never wanted to eat while that man on the _Davy -Jones_ lay in Watson’s Channel. He couldn’t do it to Mugs. - -Tully got tired of waiting and came out on deck. After one glance at -Skippy’s tragic face he got his hat, pulled it down over his head and -left the barge while the boy watched him go with a constricted feeling -in his throat. And though he wanted with all his heart to call Big Joe -back, he knew that he could never again sit opposite him at the table -with a dead man between them. - -Dusk settled over the inlet and through the shadows came Mrs. Duffy. Her -cheery smile was conspicuous by its absence just then and her cheeks -looked tear-stained and haggard. Skippy forgot the dead man in the _Davy -Jones_—he was all concern for this kindly neighbor who had helped nurse -him back to health. - -Hadn’t Skippy heard? Mrs. Duffy sobbed a little, then bravely smiled -through her tears. She had to be strong and brave—other wives and -mothers in the Basin were getting used to the experience of seeing their -menfolk taken in by the long arm of the law. And now Mr. Duffy had been -added to that number. - -What had he done? No more than other river folk had done before him. But -it was forbidden by the law and there you were. And the excuse that they -had to live and eat carried no weight in the courts of the land. Neither -did the courts care that a rich and unscrupulous Josiah Flint had lured -these men into his vicious employ at starvation wages only to leave them -unwanted and ostracized from honest employment upon his untimely death. -And Mr. Josephus Duffy, obeying that primal law of the survival of the -fittest, was to be jailed for five years because he stole when -employment was denied him. Five years of punishment for bringing food -home to his family! - -Skippy’s young heart was bursting with sympathy. Wrapped up in his own -and his father’s concerns he had been vaguely conscious of his -neighbors, the Duffys of the _Dinky O. Cross_. Squatters like himself, -he had been aware that they came and went, but that was all. Now they -became suddenly real and vivid to him—the Duffys, father and mother, and -their two children, minus the father now. - -“And wouldn’t Skinner give him nothin’ at the Central havin’ two kids -like you got?” he asked sympathetically. - -“Skinner’d push men in prison before he’d help ’em get a decent job,” -the good woman said with a jerk of her head. “He said he’s goin’ to -clean all us scum out of this Basin—ain’t you heard?” - -Yes, Skippy had heard only too well. He leaned over and timidly touched -the woman’s work-worn hands, pledging his slim, manly self as an aid and -comfort to herself and her two unfortunate children. In gratitude, she -hugged the boy to her breast and hurried back to the _Dinky O. Cross_ to -put her young ones to bed. - -Skippy cherished that embrace; it was the only maternal affection he had -ever known. His eyes shone into the darkness with the joy of it and he -hugged Mugs still closer in his arms and spent some time in reflecting -on why he was so happy when he was so sad. - -Josiah Flint and Marty Skinner rose up before his eyes. He was beginning -to realize what sorrow they had brought to the river people—_his -people_! A fellow feels things like that when he’s going on thirteen. - -Thirteen! Skippy looked up into the starlit sky and blinked. Mugs’ even -breathing was like the whisper of the breeze blowing about his head. And -he went to sleep planning how he could save the menfolk of the Basin -from future prison life. He would see that the boys went to school as he -himself had wanted to do so badly and he would see that they got decent, -honest wages so that they could live as other people did in houses with -pretty gardens.... - -Tully found him still asleep when he came back at midnight. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIX - GOOD NEWS - - -“Skip—Skippy, kid!” Tully called, shaking the boy to arouse him. - -Skippy sat up, startled. Mugs barked blatantly. - -“What’s up, huh? You look as if something’d happened—what’s the matter?” - -Tully motioned him into the shanty where he lighted the lamp and sat -down. - -“Can ye stand hearin’ somethin’ without faintin’?” he asked mirthlessly. - -“I guess so,” the boy answered shaking his straight hair from off his -forehead. “But I hope it ain’t anything worse!” - -“Better and worse, sorta,” Big Joe laughed ruefully. “But first so’s to -be aisin’ ye, kid—the _Davy Jones_ turned back, so she did, when she -reached the bay this mornin’. From what the boat tender told me, sure -must o’ put a little extra dose o’ the powder in the breather and she -started kickin’ up a rumpus a little sooner than ordinary, she did. So -the owner, bein’ a foxy guy, turned back when he heard that and saw the -storm clouds comin’ in from over the sea.” - -“So the _Davy Jones_ ain’t in her locker then, huh? Gee, am I glad!” - -“Sure, and she got back to the club, and the owner had somebody come -right away to be seein’ what was wrong.” - -“Did they find out?” - -“That they did, kid. He’s got the police on the case, and I think -they’ll be workin’ on me. But they ain’t got no evidence so they ain’t, -and besides, I took all me powder and threw it in the inlet tonight, so -I did.” - -Skippy sat down at the table, his head in his hands. - -“Gee, I was afraid something awful would come of it.” - -“Now don’t ye be worryin’ too soon, kid. They’ll have to be goin’ some -to get me.... You can bet on that.” - -“Gee, Big Joe, you don’t savvy. It’s the idea of gettin’ the coppers -suspectin’ me and sayin’ they expected sumpin’ like that from Toby -Dare’s kid. That’s what I couldn’t bear Pop to hear after he’s planned -better things for me. Gee, I couldn’t stand it!” Then: “Who owns the -_Davy Jones_, Big Joe, huh?” he demanded. - -“Now that’s a funny thing,” Tully said. “The _Davy Jones_ is Crosley’s. -He bought her a week ago after he sold the _Minnehaha_. I s’pose that’s -why he played foxy whin the ingine wint wrong with the new one? If that -big sap boat tender had only tole me who owned her I’d niver....” - -“Gee whiz, Big Joe, now I can see why Pop said these crooked rackets -don’t pay in the end. It’s account of that _if_. It’s always if this or -that didn’t happen everythin’ would be all right. But it never is. Oh, -gee, I’m not hoppin’ on you—maybe I’d been just like you if it wasn’t -that I’m sick and disgusted with crooked rackets already. Maybe it’s -because my mother came from a farm and so I’m not all river, huh? -Anyway, I know I don’t want any more of this business. I’m gonna be -straight I am. I learned a lesson today on that _Davy Jones_ business -an’ I mean it.” - -“Me, too!” said Big Joe with all his old time swagger. “I was tellin’ -meself comin’ back here that if I think up an aisy racket where the -coppers don’t get wise, I’ll be savin’ up a few grand an’ thin open up -one o’ thim hot dog stands in the country. Sure and the river won’t see -me at all, at all after that.” - -Skippy laughed outright—for, boy that he was, he could see that Tully -would be Tully as long as the river flowed down to the sea. - - - - - CHAPTER XXX - BEASELL - - -Next day, life in the Basin flowed once more in familiar channels. Tully -trod the decks watching for the unwelcome police and puffing furiously -on his cigarettes. Skippy sprawled in the rickety easy chair, playing -with the dog and calling out to Mrs. Duffy some words of cheer when the -occasion required. And when sunset came and the law had not put in its -appearance they had supper noisily together. - -Tully stretched out in his bunk after the meal had been cleared away. He -looked at peace with the world. Skippy, watching him out of the corner -of his eye, wondered what new racket he was planning now. And he didn’t -rest until he had asked the big fellow point blank. - -“Me racket for a while, kid,” Tully said amiably, “is to be keepin’ ye -from gettin’ gloomy and sad. Whin I’m sure that Crosley ain’t set the -coppers on me trail thin I’ll be turnin’ around—see? Right now I’m -stickin’ close to the _Minnie M. Baxter_, so I be.” - -“And you could do worse, Big Joe, believe me. I’m gonna stick close too -until I know what’s what. But we’ll talk about that then.” - -An insistent knock sounded on the door. Tully blanched and looked about -for some means of escape. But Skippy, braving himself to the task, swung -open the door to get it over with. - -A man stood outside, bowing graciously and smiling. He stepped inside at -Skippy’s invitation. - -“Beasell’s the name, boys,” he said. “Yuh heard how Marty Skinner’s -runnin’ the works for Buck Flint?” - -“Sure we been hearin’ it too much, I’ll be tellin’ ye,” Big Joe snapped -as he came ponderously out of his bunk and stood on the floor. - -“It’s all jake then, big boy, you an’ me won’t waste no time,” Beasell -said unruffled. - -“You’ve come to tell us....” Skippy began fearfully. - -“Marty says all yuh squatters in this Basin’ll have tuh scram by sundown -tomorrow, get me? He’s had all the rough stuff he’s goin’ for and that -goes double for the warehouse guys. So it’s scram in twenty-four hours, -see? If yuh can’t take these lousy scows out we’ll blow ’em up, get me? -Just a nice little Fourth uh July party, see?” He chuckled as if at a -great joke. - -“You can’t blow up the _Minnie M. Baxter_!” Skippy cried. “Even a guy -like Skinner can’t take her from me ’cause, ’cause....” - -“Lissen, punk, and you too, big boy, it’s scram by sundown tomorrow,” -Beasell snarled. “Yuh better get me. I ain’t kiddin’ believe yuh me!” He -scowled as he left to spread the bad news to the _Dinky O. Cross_. - -“Sufferin’ swordfish! Sure that Skinner’s a lousy rat,” Big Joe growled. -“I should o’ been pastin’ that slimy Beasell but it wouldn’t done no -good. He’s only carryin’ out orders.” - -“Not only me’n you’s gotta go, Big Joe,” said Skippy plaintively, “but -Mrs. Duffy an’ her kids an’ everybody here in the Basin. How’re they all -gonna pack up an’ clear out by tomorrow night, huh? Gee, that ain’t -fair. There ain’t one of us got a home to go to—gee whiz, these barges, -why—they’re home!” - -Tully’s face looked distorted as he walked to and fro across the shanty -floor. Finally he turned. - -“Sure Skinner don’t know what it means to be sendin’ that Beasell guy -down here to be tellin’ us we must be out by tomorrow night, bad cess to -him.” - -“What d’ye mean, Big Joe?” - -“Sure, folks here ain’t like other folks, like ye’ve noticed. They been -free for years and they ain’t goin’ to be kicked out without doin’ some -kickin’ first thimselves. Law? Sure, they don’t know what it’s all about -so what do they care, I’ll be askin’ ye.” - -Big Joe Tully had summed it all up in one sentence. They didn’t know -about the law, so what did they care about it? - -It wasn’t many hours before Skippy learned how little they did care. - - - - - CHAPTER XXXI - MOONLIGHT - - -Skippy waited until Tully was fast asleep that night, then he crept -stealthily out of the shanty with the dog skipping and sniffing at his -heels. He was careful to close the door softly behind him; he wanted to -be alone. - -It was a different Skippy that trod those decks, a new and older Skippy, -who looked about the lumbering old barge through his father’s eyes. It -did not seem possible to him that Skinner could so ruthlessly order him -away from the only home he had. Yet he realized that not many hours -hence he would not even have _that_ home. - -He went forward and, getting to his knees, leaned far over and stared -down at the trickling waters of the muddy inlet lapping against the -hull. The dog, thinking him to be playing, jumped about with a soft -whine to draw his master’s attention. - -Skippy tumbled him about for a while, then climbed down with him into -the borrowed kicker that was anchored alongside the barge. - -“We’re gonna take one last cruise out and back in the inlet again—see, -Mugs? I’ve just gotta see how the _Minnie M. Baxter’s_ gonna look when I -think of her afterwards. I don’t want to forget it’s where I lived with -two of the best pals I’ll ever have, outside of Pop. Gee, Mugs, maybe -it’s silly to feel so over a barge,” he confided to the attentive puppy, -“but I gotta feel that it’s sumpin’ I must think a lot of. Every time -I’ve visited Pop, he’s asked me how was the _Minnie M. Baxter_. Just -like as if she was a human being, he asked about her! So I love her on -accounta my Pop. He’s proud of her because she was so hard to get and -because he decided to quit Ol’ Flint and be honest so’s I’d have a -better chance.” - -He started the kicker after this long confidence and steered it with one -hand, putting his free arm about the dog. And as if cherishing the -whispered confidences and affection, the animal cuddled close and -remained perfectly still while the boat crept out to the mouth of the -river. - -As they turned back, a full moon broke through some dark clouds and -shone brilliantly down upon the Basin. Skippy looked at the mellow, -silver light gleaming over the grouped barges and he gazed in wonder at -the fairyland that the moon made of the sordid colony. The dust at once -became a shimmering film of silver and the washlines strung from shanty -to forward deck contained fluttering bits of laundry that stirred -flippantly in the soft night breeze. - -Skippy’s heartstrings tightened at the sight of it—he loved it all. His -honest nature cried out against the injustice of turning all these -people out of their homes. For that is just what it amounted to—no more -and no less. Skinner knew that there wasn’t a man in the Basin who could -afford to have his barge lifted out of the mud. They would have to face -it, he realized—they were people condemned! - -He steered the boat farther on until he caught sight of the moonlight -gleaming across his own shanty. Its shimmering rays picked out in bold -relief the now dulled letters, _Minnie M. Baxter_, and he thought of a -late afternoon when he and his father had looked on those same letters -so new and shining, shining in the last brilliant rays of a dying sun. - -He turned away from these reflections with heavy heart only to have his -attention drawn to a boat, floating about the bow of the kicker. As he -leaned forward to see it better, the dog growled ominously. - -Skippy drew back instantly, gasping with horror. He sat stark still for -a moment, as cold as ice and unable to take his eyes away from the -battered face and body of a man he had seen in robust health but a few -hours before. - -That man was Beasell, Marty Skinner’s lieutenant, and he appeared -lifeless. - - - - - CHAPTER XXXII - THE LAST OF THE BASIN - - -Skippy was so frightened that he did nothing for a moment but sit and -stare. Then suddenly he realized the terrible thing before his eyes, and -he pulled the boat up alongside of the barge, trembling from head to -foot. - -The dog leaped out of his arms the moment he got on deck and refused to -run with him to the shanty. But Skippy had neither the time nor the -nerves to think of anything but the battered Beasell in the boat -floating beside the barge. - -He flung open the door of the shanty and rushed to Tully’s bunk. The big -fellow jumped up startled, and sat motionless while Skippy whispered of -his discovery. - -“Won’t it go bad for everybody here?” he asked with agonized suspense. -“Won’t it, Big Joe?” - -“Sure ’twill be just too bad, so ’twill,” Tully said getting up and -dressing. “Somewan did it what’s gone cuckoo for thinkin’ they’ll be -turned out o’ their home tomorrow night. And crazy like, they beat up -that Beasell thinkin’ they’d be gettin’ even with Marty Skinner—see? -Sure I know me Brown’s Basin, kid.” - -Skippy shivered with the horror of it. If Brown’s Basin was like that, -he wouldn’t be sorry to leave it after all. Neither could he love people -who used such ghastly means for their revenge against Skinner. He wanted -to get away from it then, that minute. - -“We gotta tell the police, Big Joe, huh?” he murmured. - -Big Joe nodded as if he were dazed. - -“Us river people ain’t goin’ to have no peace whilst Skinner’s alive, -kid!” he said in hard, even tones. “Whoever slugged that Beasell -guy—well, _me_, I’d be goin’ for Skinner, so I would. So he’s goin’ to -take the _Minnie M. Baxter_ from ye, is he? Well, we’ll be seein’ about -that.” - -“Forget me for now, Big Joe. What worries me is, what’re we gonna do -with Beasell? Maybe he’s dead.” - -“Now ye be goin’ down and stay till I come, kid,” said the big fellow, -drawing on his shoes. - -Skippy started for the kicker. He went forward but that was as far as he -got for he became suddenly aware of a low, ominous rumbling noise that -seemed to come from shore and run through the barge colony. Before he -had a chance to determine what it was he felt himself lifted off his -feet bodily and like a feather he was thrown into the muddy waters of -the Basin. - -There was a terrific detonation throughout Brown’s Basin as Skippy came -to the surface. Fire leaped from one barge to the other in the twinkling -of an eye and the screams of men, women and children filled the turbid -air. - -Smoke poured skyward in great columns and in the light of the moon, -Skippy saw the ponderous form of Big Joe Tully standing on the deck of -the _Minnie M. Baxter_ shouting and waving his hands. Suddenly he leaped -into the kicker and the boy called out but he seemed not to hear in the -din about them. - -At that moment, the _Minnie M. Baxter_ burst into flames. Big Joe Tully -shouted deafeningly and Skippy, swimming hard to reach him, saw a -strange, almost maniacal expression on his large face. - -“’Tis Marty Skinner what’s done this!” he was shouting to no one in -particular. “’Tis him what’s blowed this place up and took the kid away -from me. ’Tis him! Skippy’s dead—I’m sure he’s dead! I can’t find him!” -he was almost whimpering. - -“I’m here!” Skippy called frantically. “Big Joe....” - -But Tully was even then steering the kicker out of the inlet. He had the -throttle wide open and Skippy had no more than a glimpse of the racing -craft before she slipped beyond his sight. - -Logs, huge chunks of driftwood and every known article of household -furniture, both broken and whole, floated in Skippy’s path, blocking his -progress. Suddenly he saw a little boat bearing down upon him, floating -through the inlet unoccupied. - -He reached out, grabbed the bow and climbed in, breathless and -exhausted. Other kickers were shoving off filled with crying women and -shouting men. Skippy looked about over the water, but saw nothing but a -procession of slowly moving debris. - -He turned over the motor and she responded with a fearful jerk. He was -moving, in any event, moving away from the fearful heat that the burning -barges threw out over the water. The moon’s shimmering light now looked -sickly and pale in contrast to the fearful red glare that spread over -the entire sky. - -The screaming sirens of motor boats soon became part of the pandemonium -and Skippy heard commanding shouts for the boats to clear out of the -inlet immediately. In the wake of this he heard a heart-rending shriek -from the midst of the barge inferno which made him feel sick and weak. - -“Mrs. Duffy an’ her two kids ain’t nowheres,” a man’s voice shouted -above the roar. “I’ll bet Skinner had that dynamite planted.” And as -Skippy attempted to turn the kicker about he was peremptorily ordered -from the approaching police launch to keep on his way out to the river. - -He didn’t look back again. The _Minnie M. Baxter_ was a seething mass -behind him—there was nothing left. Big Joe was nowhere about—Skippy -suddenly remembered the big fellow’s shouts about Skinner. It gave him -an idea and he nosed the boat down the river. - -Out of this confusion of mind, he thought of the dog. He remembered then -that he hadn’t seen the puppy since he had let him down on the deck -after seeing the battered Beasell. - -And what had become of him? Was he dead or alive? Skippy wiped a grimy -hand across his forehead. He was utterly weary and exhausted by the -ordeal. He could not think of an answer to anything. His world had -toppled over since the discovery of Beasell and the explosion. And now -Mugs was gone too—his skipping, faithful-eyed pal! Was there nothing -left for him at all? - -He put his hands over the wheel and gripped it bitterly, but soon he -relaxed and with a soft sob he covered his face. And nobody knew but the -river. - - - - - CHAPTER XXXIII - SKIPPY’S WISDOM - - -Skippy got the most out of his commandeered kicker. He opened it wide -and raced her down the river and the closer he got to the bay the more -apprehensive did he feel about Big Joe’s flight. He tried not to attach -any special significance to his good friend’s shouts, but he could not -help remembering Tully’s earlier veiled threats about Skinner. - -His fears grew as he chugged out into the bay and something urged him on -still faster. Then he spied the glistening hull of the beautiful -_Apollyon_, her anchor lights gleaming like stars against the night and -a single light amidships. - -Funny, the boy thought, how much it seemed like that night when he and -his father had come for the showdown with the older Flint. Now there was -to be no showdown, but he must warn Skinner against Big Joe’s sudden -maniacal fury. Queer that he should go to such trouble for a man who had -given them no quarter in anything. But he was not thinking of doing -Skinner a good turn beyond that it might prevent Big Joe from killing -the Flint agent and being sent to jail. - -He approached the yacht with his old feeling of awe. The deck was almost -dark as he scrambled aboard but up forward he saw the rotund form of the -second mate asleep and snoring in a luxurious swing. The boy could not -help remember a very solemn resolve that night long ago, when the mate -had sworn to be more faithful to his duties during his night watches. - -With silent tread, he hurried along the deck and stopped before the -lighted cabin amidships. Once, twice, he knocked softly, and waited. - -“Come in!” Marty Skinner’s cold voice commanded. - -Skippy stepped in, his heart bounding. He was thinking of the last time -he had been in this room and closed the door, determined he would not be -driven out again until he had had his say. - -“Well?” Skinner snapped but this time he did not order Skippy out. - -“You seen Big Joe Tully?” Skippy asked bravely. “He been here yet?” - -“What d’ye mean—yet? I have no business with Tully and I haven’t any -with you that I know of.” - -“You’re wrong both times Mister Skinner. ’Cause if you don’t listen to -me Big Joe’ll be comin’ here an’ he’ll try gettin’ you an’ he’s so mad -he’ll probably kill you.” - -Skinner was all interest now. “He’s mad and he may kill me and you come -to warn me. That’s funny.” - -“No it ain’t funny. I wouldn’t care much what happened to you Mister -Skinner you been so hard on me’n Pop an’ everybody, but I ain’t gonna -see Big Joe get in a jam an’ maybe go to jail for life on accounta you. -I’m tippin’ you off so’s Big Joe won’t have no chance gettin’ jammed. -Maybe after that blowin’ up of the barges tonight, which they say you -ordered done, an’ what happened to that guy Beasell I oughta let....” - -“Blowing up barges? Beasell? What d’ye mean, boy? What happened?” - -“Well, Beasell come an’ ordered us outa the Basin by sundown tomorrow, -sayin’ it was your orders, an’ if we can’t get the barges out they’ll be -blowed up. Some time after he left me’n Joe I go for a boat ride. When I -come back I see Beasell in a boat all battered an’ lookin’ as if he’s -dead. So I goes to call Joe an’ while he’s gettin’ his shoes on I comes -out again an’ I just got near the rail when there’s an explosion an’ I’m -tossed in the water. I swim till I find a boat an’ climb in. I see Big -Joe on deck an’ he’s yellin’ that I’m lost an’ acts like he’s gonna get -you when he jumps in his kicker an’ races off without hearin’ me. So I -come right here to beat him to it an’ keep him outa trouble, see?” - -Skinner did not seem interested in the explosion. While he appeared -callous as to the suffering and death that came in its wake he wanted to -know more about Beasell. “D’ye think he’s really dead?” he asked -anxiously. - -“Looked like that to me,” answered Skippy, “an’ if he wasn’t he probably -was blowed apart or burnt up.” He wondered at the look of satisfaction -that appeared on Skinner’s face. “But you better be beatin’ it Mister -Skinner or Big Joe’ll be here an’ takin’ you apart if he don’t kill -you.” - -“Well, if Big Joe comes here looking for trouble he’ll get it—and -plenty.” Skinner reached under his left arm and pulling out a pistol -laid it on the table before him. - -Skippy heard footsteps and turned as if to shout a warning. - -“Quiet you!” Skinner ordered as he picked up the pistol and leveled it -at the door. Skippy with visions of his beloved Big Joe shot dead in his -tracks as he opened the door wished from the bottom of his heart that he -had not tried to warn Skinner. All he had done was bait the trap for Big -Joe. - -He stood there, a bit to the side of the desk, his knees shaking and, -while his brain was active, he was so terror stricken that he could not -open his mouth to warn Big Joe of his impending fate. He closed his eyes -and said a little prayer as he heard the door creak a bit on its hinges. -Why hadn’t he left the door open when he came into Skinner’s cabin, -why.... - -A few tense seconds that seemed as so many hours to Skippy and then he -heard the voice of Inspector Jones: “Now that’s hardly the nice way to -welcome a police officer, Mr. Skinner. I like your extended hand but not -with a gun in it.” - -Skippy looked up to see Inspector Jones advancing into the room and this -time a policeman’s uniform was a most welcome sight to him. He breathed -thanks that the visitor was not Big Joe. - -“I’ll just tuck the hardware away, Inspector, and give you the hand.” -Skinner smiled and did so. “I thought you were Big Joe Tully coming in -to get me. The boy here warned me Joe was on the warpath so I was all -set to welcome him and beat him to the draw.” - -“So I could see,” the Inspector commented. “Heard about the burning of -the barges in the Basin and what happened to poor Beasell?” - -“This boy told me there was an explosion and that some one slugged -Beasell. Tell me is he—is he—dead?” The question sounded to Skippy as if -Skinner was hoping the answer would be yes. - -Inspector Jones looked sharply at Skinner. “Yes. He is,” he answered -simply and again looked up sharply as Skinner sighed as if in relief. - -“Beasell was in my confidence. He knew my business and I trusted him,” -Skinner spoke as if to himself. - -“Sure, I know you did,” the Inspector agreed and there was that in his -words which made Skippy feel as if there was something behind them. - -“And how did you know that, may I ask, Inspector?” Skinner seemed a bit -ill at ease. - -“I talked to him before he died. We picked him up in a boat when we went -to the fire. He had been badly beaten but before he died he regained -consciousness. He talked plenty, too.” - -“What did he say? Tell who beat him up?” Skinner was plainly anxious. - -“No, strange to say he didn’t.” - -“Well then...?” - -“Just this.” Inspector Jones whipped out his gun. “Put ’em up Skinner -and keep ’em up. I’m arresting you and I’m going to charge you with the -murder of Josiah Flint.” - -“Why—why—that’s—that’s ridiculous, Inspector. You can’t make a charge -like that stand up on the ravings of a dying man.” - -“I didn’t tell you that Beasell made any such charges. But I’m tellin’ -you now that he made a dying statement that he was in the kicker off the -yacht when Skippy and his father came along, that he had been there some -time, and hearing you and Flint quarreling, he watched through the -porthole, saw you two struggling after Flint charged you with cheating -him—saw you shoot the old man in the back when you twisted him around as -he tried to snatch the gun you drew in your anger. He also saw you sit -old Flint up again, scatter papers all over the place and take what -money there was in his desk. Beasell’s blackmailed you plenty since, -threatening to turn you in.” - -“But—but——” - -“And that isn’t all,” the Inspector went on relentlessly. “Buck Flint -has been giving you a free hand and staying away, but he’s had -accountants working on your books and he’s got plenty of evidence as to -how you’ve ben cheating him and how you cheated the old man.” - -“No jury will ever convict me on evidence like that.” Skinner seemed to -have regained his composure. “Beasell was only a cheap crook anyway and -he’s dead, too. Stealing money isn’t murder.” - -“Guess you’re right on those points,” the Inspector mused and Skinner -started to lower his hands. - -“Not so fast, not so fast there! Keep ’em up! There’s one bet you -overlooked, Skinner, and I’m going to call it right now.” Still keeping -Skinner covered the Inspector moved closer and pulled the gun out of the -man’s shoulder holster. “I’ve got a hunch that our ballistic expert will -find a groove in the barrel of your gun which will prove the bullet -which killed old Flint was fired by you. The gun never was found, you -remember, but the bullet with a peculiar mark was and it’s still right -down at headquarters.” - -Skinner slumped into a chair at that, but Skippy looked quickly from his -dejected figure as he heard a familiar bark. He turned to the door and -there in the arms of a policeman was his beloved Mugs. - -“Mugs! Mugs!” he cried out overjoyed. And then, as if in afterthought, -“See anythin’ of Big Joe, officer? Gee, if he’d only come along now, -’cause I know my Pop’s gonna be free soon, everythin’d be just grand. -Gee, but I’m happy. I’m....” - -He stopped suddenly frightened at something he saw in the policeman’s -face. “What—what—what’s wrong? Tell me,” he demanded. - -“I’m in a tough spot, kid, but I know you got plenty guts, so here goes -point blank. Big Joe went back to your barge figgering you might have -found your way back there. We see him and tell him you’re safe. Then he -hears the dog barkin’, goes into the flames after him and saves him.” He -paused, gulped, then went on: “He was burned bad, Big Joe was. Fulla -smoke, too. Well, anyways ... he kicked off.” - -There was a silence, which was finally broken by Skippy’s sobs. At a -motion from Inspector Jones the policeman, who had brought Mugs and the -sad news about Big Joe, handcuffed Skinner and took him out of the -cabin, softly closing the door. - -It was far in the night before Inspector Jones had Skippy sufficiently -comforted so that the boy fell asleep. Then the Inspector bundled him -up, carried him to the police launch and that night Skippy and Mugs -slept at the Inspector’s home. - - - - - CHAPTER XXXIV - THE GREAT ADVENTURE - - -Skippy had two things to show his delighted father when they met at the -railroad station a few weeks later, by which time Skinner had confessed -murdering Josiah Flint when mad with rage at having been caught -stealing, and Skippy’s grief over Big Joe’s death had become less -poignant. One was the gawky Mugs and the other a little satchel which he -carried under his arm with the greatest care. - -“What’s in there, Skippy son?” Toby asked after their outstretched arms -had clung in an awkward embrace. - -Skippy winked at his father mysteriously. - -“I waited to tell you now, Pop—sort of as a surprise. It’s what Buck -Flint calls redress money—money that Old Flint should have paid you and -didn’t. And he says it’s for the price of the _Minnie M. Baxter_ too. -Altogether he said he figured Old Flint owed you a thousand dollars with -interest—see Pop?” - -Toby was overwhelmed. - -“What we a-goin’ ter do with it, son?” he wanted to know. - -“Whatever you say, Pop. There’s enough to buy another _Minnie M. Baxter_ -and more besides, huh? An’ there’s enough to buy a nice hot dog stand -somewheres up in the mountains where the doctor said I wouldn’t have no -more bad throats. So what do you say, Pop?” - -“Mountains, Skippy boy,” said Toby with shining eyes. “We’ll call our -stand the _Minnie Baxter_ jest the same, hey? ’Cause didn’t she sort uv -bring us luck in the end, after all? How’d we got all this money if she -hadn’t uv burned up and that helped ter show up Skinner and made Buck -Flint feel sorry and that he ought ter make good. Yessir we’ll call her -that.” - -A train announcer sauntered out of the big iron gates and in his -sonorous voice called out, “Mountain Express on Track Number Four ... -Cold Glen ... Pine Ridge ... Baxter....” - -“Did yer hear that, Skippy?” asked Toby excitedly. “There’s a place in -them mountains what’s called _Baxter_! Seems like as if it was Fate or -somethin’! S’pose we jest try her fer luck. What do you say?” - -“I’m on, Pop,” Skippy cried joyfully. “Baxter for luck!” - -And arm in arm, Skippy and Toby, with Mugs sniffing at their heels, -darted through the big iron gates on their Great Adventure. - - - END - - - - - FOOTNOTES - - -[1]Stolen goods. - - - HAL KEEN MYSTERY STORIES - By HUGH LLOYD - -Boys! Meet Hal Keen, that lanky, nonchalant, red-headed youth whose -guiding star is the star that points to adventure, excitement and -mystery. Follow him in his hunts for clues and criminals. There are -plenty of thrills and shivers in these stories to keep you on your toes. - - THE SMUGGLER’S SECRET - -Hal Keen sets out to get to the bottom of a mystery that threatens the -safety of a whole community. - - THE MYSTERIOUS ARAB - -Mystery, excitement, murder in a scientist’s camp in the jungles of -Africa, where hate, revenge, and suspicion lead to tragedy. - - THE HERMIT OF GORDON’S CREEK - -The disappearance of two airmail pilots leads to a mystery that centers -about an abandoned mine and a strange old man. - - KIDNAPPED IN THE JUNGLE - -A hint of buried treasure in the ruins of an old French mission leads -Hal deep into the Central American jungle. - - THE COPPERHEAD TRAIL MYSTERY - -Baffling and blood-curdling events center about the ranch where Hal Keen -and his friends had gone in search of gold. - - THE LONESOME SWAMP MYSTERY - -The lonely and mysterious swamp gave up its secret only after a series -of terrifying events taxed Hal’s courage and ability. - - THE CLUE AT SKELETON ROCKS - -In this new thriller Hal Keen finds mystery and adventure in and about a -lonely lighthouse on Skeleton Rocks, off the Maine coast. - - THE DOOM OF STARK HOUSE - -Mystery and terror in an old house in the wilderness above Quebec where -Hal Keen is the guest of a strange family. - - - THE JUDY BOLTON MYSTERY STORIES - By MARGARET SUTTON - -Here is a new series of mystery stories for girls by an author who knows -the kind of stories every girl wants to read—mystery of the “shivery” -sort, adventure that makes the nerves tingle, clever “detecting” and a -new lovable heroine, Judy Bolton, whom all girls will take to their -hearts at once. - - THE VANISHING SHADOW - -Judy’s safety is threatened by a gang of crooks who think she knows too -much about their latest “deal.” She is constantly pursued by a -mysterious shadow which vanishes before she can get a glimpse of its -owner. - - THE HAUNTED ATTIC - -The Boltons move into a large rambling house reputed to be haunted. Even -the brave Judy who has looked forward to “spooky” goings on is -thoroughly frightened at the strange scrapings and rappings and the eery -“crying ghost.” - - THE INVISIBLE CHIMES - -Through an automobile accident a strange girl is taken into the Bolton -household—the whole family becomes attached to her and interested in her -story. Judy tracks down many clues before she finally uncovers the real -identity of “Honey.” - - SEVEN STRANGE CLUES - -Judy gets to the bottom of a mystery that centers around a prize poster -contest and a fire in the school building—through seven baffling clues -that hold the key to the answer. - - - THE NANCY DREW MYSTERY STORIES - By CAROLYN KEENE - - Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself. - -Here is a thrilling series of mystery stories for girls. Nancy Drew, -ingenious, alert, is the daughter of a famous criminal lawyer and she -herself is deeply interested in his mystery cases. Her interest involves -her often in some very dangerous and exciting situations. - - THE SECRET OF THE OLD CLOCK - -Nancy, unaided, seeks to locate a missing will and finds herself in the -midst of adventure. - - THE HIDDEN STAIRCASE - -Mysterious happenings in an old stone mansion lead to an investigation -by Nancy. - - THE BUNGALOW MYSTERY - -Nancy has some perilous experiences around a deserted bungalow. - - THE MYSTERY AT LILAC INN - -Quick thinking and quick action were needed for Nancy to extricate -herself from a dangerous situation. - - THE SECRET AT SHADOW RANCH - -On a vacation in Arizona Nancy uncovers an old mystery and solves it. - - THE SECRET OF RED GATE FARM - -Nancy exposes the doings of a secret society on an isolated farm. - - THE CLUE IN THE DIARY - -A fascinating and exciting story of a search for a clue to a surprising -mystery. - - NANCY’S MYSTERIOUS LETTER - -Nancy receives a letter informing her that she is heir to a fortune. -This story tells of her search for another Nancy Drew. - - - FLYING STORIES FOR BOYS - IN THE AIR WITH ANDY LANE - By EUSTACE L. ADAMS - - Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself. - -Mr. Adams, the author of this flying series for boys is an experienced -aviator and has had many thrilling adventures in the air—both as a -member of the famous Lafayette Escadrille in the World War and in the -United States Naval Aviation Service flying with the squadrons -patrolling the Atlantic Coast. His stories reveal not only his ability -to tell daring and exciting air episodes but also his first hand -knowledge of modern aeroplanes and the marvelous technical improvements -which have been made in the past few years. Andy Lane flies the latest -and most highly developed machines in the field of aviation. - - FIFTEEN DAYS IN THE AIR - OVER THE POLAR ICE - RACING ROUND THE WORLD - THE RUNAWAY AIRSHIP - PIRATES OF THE AIR - ON THE WINGS OF FLAME - THE MYSTERIOUS MONOPLANE - THE FLYING WINDMILL - THE PLANE WITHOUT A PILOT - WINGS OF ADVENTURE - ACROSS THE TOP OF THE WORLD - PRISONERS OF THE CLOUDS - - - THE REX LEE FLYING STORIES - By THOMSON BURTIS - - Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself. - -The author of this series of exciting flying stories is an experienced -aviator. He says, “During my five years in the army I performed nearly -every sort of flying duty—instructor, test pilot, bombing, photographing -pilot, etc., in every variety of ship, from tiny scout planes to the -gigantic three-motored Italian Caproni.” - -Not only has this author had many experiences as a flyer; a list of his -activities while knocking around the country includes postal clerk, -hobo, actor, writer, mutton chop salesman, preacher, roughneck in the -oil fields, newspaper man, flyer, scenario writer in Hollywood and -synthetic clown with the Sells Floto Circus. Having lived an active, -daring life, and possessing a gift for good story telling, he is well -qualified to write these adventures of a red-blooded dare-devil young -American who became one of the country’s greatest flyers. - - REX LEE; GYPSY FLYER - REX LEE; ON THE BORDER PATROL - REX LEE; RANGER OF THE SKY - REX LEE; SKY TRAILER - REX LEE; ACE OF THE AIR MAIL - REX LEE; NIGHT FLYER - REX LEE’S MYSTERIOUS FLIGHT - REX LEE; ROUGH RIDER OF THE AIR - REX LEE; AERIAL ACROBAT - REX LEE; TRAILING AIR BANDITS - REX LEE; FLYING DETECTIVE - - - THE HARDY BOYS SERIES - By FRANKLIN W. DIXON - - Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself. - -The Hardy Boys are sons of a celebrated American detective, and during -vacations and their off time from school they help their father by -hunting down clues themselves. - - THE TOWER TREASURE—A dying criminal confessed that his loot had been - secreted “in the tower.” It remained for the Hardy Boys to clear up - the mystery. - - THE HOUSE ON THE CLIFF—Mr. Hardy started to investigate—and - disappeared! An odd tale, with plenty of excitement. - - THE SECRET OF THE OLD MILL—Counterfeit money was in circulation, and - the limit was reached when Mrs. Hardy took some from a stranger. A - tale full of thrills. - - THE MISSING CHUMS—Two of the Hardy Boys’ chums disappear and are - almost rescued by their friends when all are captured. A thrilling - story of adventure. - - HUNTING FOR HIDDEN GOLD—In tracing some stolen gold the trail leads - the boys to an abandoned mine, and there things start to happen. - - THE SHORE ROAD MYSTERY—Automobiles were disappearing most mysteriously - from the Shore Road. It remained for the Hardy Boys to solve the - mystery. - - THE SECRET OF THE CAVES—When the boys reached the caves they came - unexpectedly upon a queer old hermit. - - THE MYSTERY OF CABIN ISLAND—A story of queer adventures on a rockbound - island. - - THE GREAT AIRPORT MYSTERY—The Hardy Boys solve the mystery of the - disappearance of some valuable mail. - - WHAT HAPPENED AT MIDNIGHT—The boys follow a trail that ends in a - strange and exciting situation. - - WHILE THE CLOCK TICKED—The Hardy Boys aid in vindicating a man who has - been wrongly accused of a crime. - - FOOTPRINTS UNDER THE WINDOW—The Smuggling of Chinese into this country - is the basis of this story in which the boys find thrills and - excitement aplenty. - - - WESTERN STORIES FOR BOYS - By JAMES CODY FERRIS - - Each Volume Complete in Itself. - -Thrilling tales of the great west, told primarily for boys but which -will be read by all who love mystery, rapid action, and adventures in -the great open spaces. - -The Manly boys, Roy and Teddy, are the sons of an old ranchman, the -owner of many thousands of heads of cattle. The lads know how to ride, -how to shoot, and how to take care of themselves under any and all -circumstances. - -The cowboys of the X Bar X Ranch are real cowboys, on the job when -required, but full of fun and daring—a bunch any reader will be -delighted to know. - - THE X BAR X BOYS ON THE RANCH - THE X BAR X BOYS IN THUNDER CANYON - THE X BAR X BOYS ON WHIRLPOOL RIVER - THE X BAR X BOYS ON BIG BISON TRAIL - THE X BAR X BOYS AT THE ROUND-UP - THE X BAR X BOYS AT NUGGET CAMP - THE X BAR X BOYS AT RUSTLER’S GAP - THE X BAR X BOYS AT GRIZZLY PASS - THE X BAR X BOYS LOST IN THE ROCKIES - THE X BAR X BOYS RIDING FOR LIFE - THE X BAR X BOYS IN SMOKY VALLEY - - - BOOKS BY LEO EDWARDS - - Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself. - -Hundreds of thousands of boys have laughed until their sides ached over -the weird and wonderful adventures of Jerry Todd, Poppy Ott, Trigger -Berg and their friends. Mr. Edwards’ boy characters are all real. They -do the things other boys like. Pirates! Mystery! Detectives! Adventure! -Ghosts! Buried Treasure! Achievement! Stories of boys making things, -doing things, going places—always on the jump and always having fun. His -stories are for boys and girls of all ages. - - THE JERRY TODD BOOKS - - JERRY TODD AND THE WHISPERING MUMMY - JERRY TODD AND THE ROSE COLORED CAT - JERRY TODD AND THE OAK ISLAND TREASURE - JERRY TODD AND THE WALTZING HEN - JERRY TODD AND THE TALKING FROG - JERRY TODD AND THE PURRING EGG - JERRY TODD IN THE WHISPERING CAVE - JERRY TODD, PIRATE - JERRY TODD AND THE BOB-TAILED ELEPHANT - JERRY TODD, EDITOR-IN-GRIEF - JERRY TODD, CAVEMAN - - THE POPPY OTT BOOKS - - POPPY OTT AND THE STUTTERING PARROT - POPPY OTT AND THE SEVEN LEAGUE STILTS - POPPY OTT AND THE GALLOPING SNAIL - POPPY OTT’S PEDIGREED PICKLES - POPPY OTT AND THE FRECKLED GOLDFISH - POPPY OTT AND THE TITTERING TOTEM - POPPY OTT AND THE PRANCING PANCAKE - POPPY OTT HITS THE TRAIL - - THE TRIGGER BERG BOOKS - - TRIGGER BERG AND THE TREASURE TREE - TRIGGER BERG AND 700 MOUSETRAPS - TRIGGER BERG AND THE SACRED PIG - - THE TUFFY BEAN BOOKS - - TUFFY BEAN’S PUPPY DAYS - TUFFY BEAN’S ONE RING CIRCUS - TUFFY BEAN AT FUNNY-BONE FARM - TUFFY BEAN AND THE LOST FORTUNE - - - GARRY GRAYSON FOOTBALL STORIES - By ELMER A. DAWSON - - Illustrated. Each Volume Complete in Itself. - -Garry Grayson is a football fan, first, last, and all the time. But more -than that, he is a wideawake American boy with a “gang” of chums almost -as wideawake as himself. - -How Garry organized the first football eleven his grammar school had, -how he later played on the High School team, and what he did on the Prep -School gridiron and elsewhere, is told in a manner to please all readers -and especially those interested in watching a rapid forward pass, a -plucky tackle, or a hot run for a touchdown. - -Good, clean football at its best—and in addition, rattling stories of -mystery and schoolboy rivalries. - - GARRY GRAYSON’S HILL STREET ELEVEN; or, The Football Boys of Lenox. - GARRY GRAYSON AT LENOX HIGH; or, The Champions of the Football League. - GARRY GRAYSON’S FOOTBALL RIVALS; or, The Secret of the Stolen Signals. - GARRY GRAYSON SHOWING HIS SPEED; or, A Daring Run on the Gridiron. - GARRY GRAYSON AT STANLEY PREP; or, The Football Rivals of Riverview. - GARRY GRAYSON’S WINNING KICK; or, Battling for Honor. - GARRY GRAYSON HITTING THE LINE; or, Stanley Prep on a New Gridiron. - GARRY GRAYSON’S WINNING TOUCHDOWN; or, Putting Passmore Tech on the - Map. - GARRY GRAYSON’S DOUBLE SIGNALS; or, Vanquishing the Football Plotters. - GARRY GRAYSON’S FORWARD PASS; or, Winning in the Final Quarter. - - - BOB CHASE BIG GAME SERIES - By FRANK A. WARNER - -In these thrilling stories of outdoor life the hero is a young -lumberjack who is a crack rifle shot. While tracking game in the Maine -woods he does some rich hunters a great service. They become interested -in him and take him on various hunting expeditions in this country and -abroad. Bob learns what it is to face not only wildcats, foxes and deer -but also bull moose, Rocky Mountain grizzly bears and many other species -of big game. - - BOB CHASE WITH THE BIG MOOSE HUNTERS - BOB CHASE AFTER GRIZZLY BEARS - BOB CHASE IN THE TIGER’S LAIR - BOB CHASE WITH THE LION HUNTERS - - - _A Skippy Dare Mystery Story_ - AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES - - _By_ - HUGH LLOYD - -Nearly all the boats and barges on the River that was “home” to Skippy -belonged to old Flint. A grasping and merciless man, Flint also -controlled the lives of most of the people who tried to earn their -living on the River. For many years Skippy’s father had worked for him; -loading and unloading illicit merchandise—aware that he was involved in -crooked business but reaping little benefit beyond a meager living -therefrom. - -Honest, courageous young Skippy finally persuades his father to leave -Flint’s employ—but it is impossible to escape the evil net in which they -are caught. Before they succeed in getting away from the illicit river -traffic, they become involved with the police—the boy’s father is -accused of murder—Skippy is forced into a crooked game—and the Basin, -where the condemned river barges provide homes for the river people is -blown up. In one great blast men, women, children and all their worldly -goods are destroyed in a sea of lapping flames. - -In the end Skippy’s fearless honesty and loyalty bring happy freedom to -himself and his best pal—his father. - - - Hal Keen Mystery Stories - - _By_ HUGH LLOYD - -Follow Hal Keen on his hunts for clues and criminals. There are plenty -of thrills and shivers in these stories of adventure and mystery. - - THE HERMIT OF GORDON’S CREEK - -The disappearance of two airmail pilots leads to a mystery that centers -about an abandoned mine. - - KIDNAPPED IN THE JUNGLE - -A hint of buried treasure leads Hal deep into the Central American -jungle. - - THE COPPERHEAD TRAIL MYSTERY - -What was the meaning of the baffling and blood curdling events that -centered about the ranch where Hal Keen had gone in search of gold? - - THE SMUGGLERS’ SECRET - -Hal Keen sets out to get to the bottom of a mystery that threatens the -safety of a whole community. - - THE MYSTERIOUS ARAB - -Mystery, excitement, murder in a scientist’s camp in the jungles of -Africa. - - THE LONESOME SWAMP MYSTERY - -The lonely and mysterious swamp gave up its secret only after a series -of terrifying events. - - THE CLUE AT SKELETON ROCKS - -Hal Keen finds mystery and adventure in and about a lonely lighthouse -off the Maine coast. - - THE DOOM OF STARK HOUSE - -A menacing cloud of mystery hangs over the isolated and snow bound Stark -house. - -THE LOST MINE OF THE AMAZON - -Hal’s sympathy for an exiled white family leads him on to solve the -tragic mystery that surrounds the lost mine. - - - _Skippy Dare_ - - courageous—honest—loyal - - A young “detective” who keeps his head when trouble starts. And Skippy - has a way of being in the thick of things - - HIS ADVENTURES MAKE TENSE READING - -He learns the trickery of crooked men on his father’s river barge; his -experience stands him in good stead when he becomes an office boy in a -detective agency—and he proves an invaluable aide to Conne, the great -detective.... Fearless, fast thinking Skippy is a hero well worth -knowing! - - - Skippy Dare Mystery Stories - by HUGH LLOYD - author of the “_Hal Keen Mystery Stories_” - - AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES - PRISONERS IN DEVIL’S BOG - HELD FOR RANSOM - - - GROSSET & DUNLAP · _Publishers_ · New York - - - - - Transcriber’s Notes - - ---Copyright notice provided as in the original—this e-text is public - domain in the country of publication. - ---Silently corrected palpable typos; left non-standard spellings and - dialect unchanged. - ---Relocated the illustrations (printed on unnumbered pages) to the - corresponding paragraph in the text. - ---In the text versions, delimited italics text in _underscores_ (the - HTML version reproduces the font form of the printed book.) - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Among the River Pirates, by Hugh Lloyd - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES *** - -***** This file should be named 53695-0.txt or 53695-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/3/6/9/53695/ - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, MFR and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Among the River Pirates - A Skippy Dare Mystery Story - -Author: Hugh Lloyd - -Illustrator: Seymour Fogel - -Release Date: December 8, 2016 [EBook #53695] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES *** - - - - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, MFR and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - _A SKIPPY DARE MYSTERY STORY_ - - - - - AMONG THE - RIVER PIRATES - - - BY - HUGH LLOYD - _Author of_ - The Hal Keen Mystery Stories - - - ILLUSTRATED BY - SEYMOUR FOGEL - - - GROSSET & DUNLAP - PUBLISHERS NEW YORK - - Copyright, 1934, by - GROSSET & DUNLAP, Inc. - _All Rights Reserved_ - _Printed in the United States of America_ - - - - - CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER PAGE - I Upstream 7 - II Condemned 14 - III The Basin 22 - IV Compromise 28 - V The Apollyon 35 - VI A Strange Story 44 - VII For Skippy 51 - VIII Alone 56 - IX A Visitor 61 - X A Suggestion 66 - XI All of a Kind 73 - XII Drifting 76 - XIII Lights 80 - XIV The Bell Buoy 84 - XV Rescued 91 - XVI River People 96 - XVII Mugs 103 - XVIII Bad News 110 - XIX Danger 115 - XX A Job 120 - XXI What Next? 124 - XXII Big Joe's Idea 129 - XXIII Another Job 134 - XXIV Another Rescue 139 - XXV Davy Jones 148 - XXVI The Rocks 153 - XXVII Suspense 157 - XXVIII The Duffys 162 - XXIX Good News 168 - XXX Beasell 172 - XXXI Moonlight 176 - XXXII The Last of the Basin 180 - XXXIII Skippy's Wisdom 186 - XXXIV The Great Adventure 195 - - - - - AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES - - - - - CHAPTER I - UPSTREAM - - -The shabby old motor boat moved slowly up the river towing an equally -shabby old barge. Dilapidated and unpainted as the hull was, the engine -was well muffled--suspiciously well muffled--and the disreputable -looking craft moved through the water with all the noiseless dignity of -a yacht. - -A ferry-boat paused midway of the long tow rope and its commuters, -crowded on the forward deck, watched this slow-moving procession with -some show of annoyance. Not a few impatient remarks rose loud and clear -above the hum of the restless crowd, directed at the head of a man -seated in the stern of the boat, calmly puffing on a pipe. Aft on the -barge, a young boy was wrestling heroically with the tiller, trying to -keep the lumbering hulk head on. - -Slowly they crawled upstream. On their left was the precipitous Jersey -shore, and on their right the towering buildings of the great city. Over -the water the late afternoon sun spread a warm, mellow glow and touched -with gold the myriad windows of the clustering skyscrapers across the -river. - -The man knocked out his pipe with calm deliberation and turned his wide, -gray eyes to the lofty Palisades, now bathed in a dazzling crimson. Then -slowly his glance wandered back to where the shimmering light fell -across the little shanty on the barge and picked out in hold relief the -incongruously new and shining letters, _Minnie M. Baxter_. - -A smile lighted up his lined, weary features, a smile of pride in -ownership. - -"She ain't so bad fer the old battle-axe that she is, hey Skippy?" he -called to the boy. - -The boy's tousled head appeared from around the battered cabin. - -"I'll say she ain't, Pop," he answered. "An' she's _ours_! Gee, I can't -believe my pop really an' truly owns a _whole_ barge!" - -The man laughed, then listened for a moment to a significant sound -emanating from the muffled engine. - -"That there front cylinder's missin' agin, Skippy," he shouted. "Loop -'er in that there ring; the tide's runnin' out now so she'll stand -upstream. Set 'er even 'n' come aboard here." - -The boy nodded obediently and with an end of rope fastened the old -tiller to a rusty ring. Then, hurrying forward, he jumped into the water -and grasping the taut tow line, pulled himself hand over hand and -scrambled over the stern of the launch. - -The father put out a large, work-worn hand and helped him in with a -tenderness that was surprising in one so rough and uncouth looking. - -"Gimme that there shirt and them shoes while I hang 'em near the -engine," he said, his voice soft with affection. "Ye'll be gettin' a bad -throat agin." He made no demand for the boy's trousers, which were the -only other article of apparel that the little fellow wore. - -Having spread the clothing to dry and adjusted the rebellious motor, the -man returned to the stern. He relighted his pipe and sat down with an -arm about his son. - -"I'll steer her fer a while, Pop," said Skippy. - -For a few minutes there was silence. - -"Yer glad we're goin' straight?" the man asked with a sudden move of his -arm on the boy's shoulder. - -Skippy's eyes widened and he looked up at his parent, hesitantly. - -"I mean yer glad we're goin' straight--in a straight racket, I mean? Now -there ain't goin' to be no more worry about coppers. I won't care if -they're floatin' all over the harbor an' I won't be worryin' about no -pinches. A man don't ever think uv bein' pinched when his racket's on -the up and up. An' that's me from now on. I said when I got three -hunderd saved I'd buy a barge an' not touch no more shady rackets. _An' -I have!_ Three hunderd--every penny we had in the world, sonny, I paid -Josiah Flint fer the _Minnie M. Baxter_. She's worth every dime uv it." - -Skippy nodded gravely. - -"An'll that help me t' be honest when I grow up, too," he asked eagerly, -"an' be like--like a gentleman even?" - -"Sure, Skippy. Ain't that just why I saves up an' buys the _Minnie M. -Baxter_? So's yer kin grow up clean an' honest like--that's why I done -Josiah Flint's dirty work fer his dirty money! So's I could save an' buy -this ol' battle-axe an' give yer a good an' a clean start." - -"But we're gonna carry garbage an' ashes on her," said Skippy. "That -ain't so clean exactly, is it, Pop?" - -"Garbage an' ashes'll bring in clean money, Skippy--that's what I'm -talkin' about--clean money. Since yer ma died I ain't had many real -honest like jobs. It's been hard ter git 'em with yer needin' me with -yer so much counta yer bad throat. Anyways the money come easier an' -quicker on my jobs even if it was dirty an' now I'm all through with -gettin' it shady like." - -"An' my throat's lots better'n it usta be, Pop," said Skippy eagerly. "I -ain't had a bad one for three months'n over." - -"Sure, I know. Everthin'll be jake now with us goin' straight. Ol' -Flint, let him have his dirty money an' his fine yacht. It's a wonder he -gets so generous an' sells me such a good scow fer three hunderd -smackers. Everybody says he's such a money-pincher he'd even try makin' -money on a rusty nail." - -"A regular miser, huh, Pop?" said Skippy. "Maybe he felt sorry about you -savin' all that money so's you could get a clean business. Did he say -the _Minnie M. Baxter's_ a good barge for haulin' garbage an' ashes?" - -"Sure. He boosted her hisself when I tells him I wants a good scow. An' -he oughta know, him that owns more scows'n he can count." - -"Gee, three hunnerd dollars--real money," mused the boy. - -"Sure, but not for no scow like this one. Brand new ones cost four times -that. Big Joe Tully paid Ol' Flint five hunderd fer his an' Joe cleaned -up two thousand bucks on the first year. He tole me that fer a fact." - -"But ain't Big Joe Tully doin' sumpin' for Mr. Flint now?" Skippy asked. - -"Big Joe can't keep away from dirty money," replied the man. "He wants -to get rich quick. Not me, though. I can keep away from Ol' Flint from -now on, an' what's more, _I will_!" - -"Gee, I know you will, Pop," said the boy, with shining eyes. "You're -not like--well, you're different from old Mr. Flint an' that Big Joe." - -The father ran his hand over his son's tousled head and gripped a -handful of the straight brown hair affectionately. - -"That cabin ain't goin' ter make us no bad little shack, hey Skippy?" he -said nodding toward the little square shelter aft. - -"She's swell inside--for a barge, I mean. Three bunks an' a nice oil -stove an' a table an' chairs. Gee, that's a regular home, huh Pop? Even -there's a kerosene lamp." - -"Sure. Yer can read books an' be nice and comfortable in there nights. -That paint job," he said, scrutinizing it thoughtfully; "I ain't so fond -uv that there red, rusty color. It's kinda gloomy. Well, we can repaint -her sometime when we're makin' money. Blamed if that launch across -stream ain't headin' straight this way." - -"It's the harbor inspectors, Pop. Whadja s'pose...." - -"Well, I got my license all ready, if that's what they're after. -Anyways, we ain't got no stuff[1] aboard, so we should worry." - -Skippy wondered and shivered a little. His father's services in the -employ of the rich, unscrupulous Josiah Flint had brought a certain -instinctive fear of all uniformed officials and the harbor inspectors -were no exception. It was difficult for him to believe even now that -these uniformed men meant no harm to his father. - -Skippy had lived in the shadow of the law a little too long. - - - - - CHAPTER II - CONDEMNED - - -Skippy watched as the green, shining launch swept alongside and stopped. -He was instantly reassured, however, when its occupants smiled genially -at him and then at his father. - -"Well, if it ain't Toby Dare himself," said one of the men, heartily. -"Buy her lately, Dare?" - -"Jes' yesterday, Inspector Jones," said Skippy's father, proudly. "An' I -ain't a-goin' ter put nothin' on her but what I'll be glad ter show ter -anybody what asks." - -Inspector Jones' bland face became serious. - -"Big Joe Tully said the same thing when he bought his scow, Dare," he -said. "I wouldn't make promises too soon." - -Toby Dare's eyes turned fondly on his son. - -"Big Joe Tully ain't got no boy like my Skippy ter fetch up," he said -with firm resolve. - -"Good for you, Dare," the inspector smiled. "Skippy's worth keeping out -of trouble for. But see that you keep him in mind when you're tempted. -Most o' you birds that start a new leaf stub your toes." - -"Not me," said Toby vehemently. "I ain't carin' ter make no quick -fortune. A couple grand a year'll start Skippy an' git him educated. -That's all I'm carin' about, Inspector. _Me_, I don't need nothin'." - -Inspector Jones beamed upon the smiling Skippy, then casually glanced -toward the barge. - -"_Minnie M. Baxter_, eh?" he mused. - -"Yere," said Toby exultantly. "That was my wife's name when she was a -girl. She died when Skippy was born. I thought mebbe the name'd bring me -luck." - -The inspector nodded sympathetically. - -"Got any contracts lined up?" he asked. - -"Two," said Toby proudly. "An' it ain't bad fer a start. I'm ter haul -garbage an' ashes from the island." - -"Good for you, Dare. Well, we'll look her over and pass on her, then let -you beat it." - -Toby Dare looked exultantly at his son as the trim green launch chugged -off to circle the barge. It was a look of triumph and of high hopes for -the future. - -"All we need's his O.K., Skippy," he said in soft tones. "It's somethin' -ter be able ter face guys like the inspector, specially when I been -dodgin' him so long." - -"Then he knows you usta----" Skippy's tongue seemed not to be able to -say the word. - -"Sure," said Toby, a little abashed. "There ain't many reg'lars in this -harbor that the inspector ain't got spotted some time or other. But I -should worry now." - -Skippy nodded happily and a silence ensued between them. They listened -together and watched while the harbor launch paused midway of the -_Minnie M. Baxter_ and Inspector Jones and his two subordinates held an -inaudible conference. Then for a time they made soundings after which -the inspector boarded the barge and spent another five minutes -inspecting it fore and aft. - -"There's more ter this here inspectin' business than what a guy thinks," -said Toby simply. "All I know uv boats is this here kicker. I never did -more'n load an' unload aboard Ol' Flint's scows." - -"The inspector's gettin' back in the launch," said Skippy eagerly. "Now -they'll come back an' say it's all right an' then we can go, huh?" - -Toby Dare nodded and smilingly waited as the launch chugged back -alongside of his kicker. - -"What yer think uv my ol' battle-axe, hey, Inspector?" he asked, -chuckling. - -"Battle-axe is a good word for her, Dare," said the inspector solemnly. -"Nothing describes her better." - -Toby Dare's generous mouth seemed to tighten at the corners. - -"What yer mean, Inspector?" - -"How much did you pay for her?" - -"Three hunderd--why?" Toby's lips trembled a little and he searched the -inspector's face anxiously. - -"Who'd you buy her from?" the inspector persisted. - -"Ol' Flint! Josiah Flint," Toby answered suspiciously. "_Why?_" - -"I thought it must be somebody like him. I hate to spring it on you, -Dare, but you've paid three hundred dollars too much. She's not worth a -dime." - -Toby Dare cleared his throat and a strange look came into his kindly -gray eyes. - -"Inspector ----, yer mean this here barge ain't...." he began. - -"She's not seaworthy," the inspector interposed as kindly as he could. -"It's not safe to keep her afloat, Dare. Flint gypped you. You should -have had somebody look her over before you bought her--somebody that -knew an up-and-coming barge from driftwood. That's all you got on your -hands, I'm sorry to say--_driftwood_. Her keel's as rotten as a keel can -possibly be." - -Toby Dare's tanned, weather-beaten face went suddenly white and he made -a funny little clicking noise with his tongue. - -"The keel," he muttered hoarsely, "can't I have 'er fixed, -Inspector--_can't I_?" - -Inspector Jones shook his head. - -"It'd take more money than what you paid for the old hulk, Dare; more -money than you've got, I guess." - -"I ain't got a cent, Inspector, that's the truth," Toby said, choking on -his words. "Every cent I had I paid Ol' Flint an'--an'...." - -Inspector Jones leaned toward the miserable man. - -"Don't take on so, Dare. Maybe the thing's not as hopeless as it seems. -If Josiah Flint's got a spark of human feeling he'll make good. Perhaps -he didn't realize what shape the barge was in when he sold her. He owns -so many...." - -"That's jest it, Inspector," said Toby, clenching his calloused hands. -"Ol' Flint _ain't_ got human feelin'. I worked fer him an' I know. An' -fer a big ship-owner like him, he knows every craft he owns like a book. -Now that I think uv it, I know he knew what he was sellin' me! He knew I -was dumb about them things an' he took advantage uv it." Dare looked -down the harbor, glowing in the sunset, and his jaw was set -determinedly. "He smiled, Ol' Flint did, when I forked over my jack. He -knew all the time!" - -Skippy's eyes were misty and he looked appealingly at Inspector Jones. - -"Does that mean Pop can't use the _Minnie M. Baxter_?" he faltered. - -The inspector averted his face from the boy's pleading eyes. - -"If you think you can't appeal to Flint personally, Dare," said he, "sue -him. A lawyer'll make him kick in." - -"Not from Ol' Flint," said Toby Dare hoarsely and looking straight -across the river. "He's too rich ter be sued. But there's one way uv -fixin' him--_one way_!" - -Inspector Jones motioned his men to start their craft on its way. - -"Cheer up," he said, glancing quickly from father to son. "You'll get a -break yet. The safest way to get after Flint, Toby, is to sue him. You'd -certainly not get anywhere with him the way you feel now. Meanwhile, the -safest place for the scow is up at the Basin. She's just not safe even -to be towed around the harbor." - -Skippy watched the long line of foam that the launch left in its wake. -For a long time his misty eyes were fastened on the glistening bubbles -dancing atop the water until he could no longer stand his father's -silence. - -"Pop, Pop," he stammered, "can't we go--go somewhere now?" - -"Sure--sure," said Toby brokenly. "We're goin' somewheres a'right. We're -goin' ter the Basin where Jones told us to go with the _Minnie M. -Baxter_." He laughed sardonically. "We're goin' ter put the ol' -battle-axe in dry-dock _forever_!" - -"What's that mean, Pop?" Skippy asked pathetically. "It sounds like you -mean something terrible will happen to the _Minnie M. Baxter_." - -"It _is_ terrible ter me--an' ter you, Skippy boy," mumbled Toby. "It -means that the pore scow's so rotten she ain't fit fer nothin' but ter -be put high an' dry in Brown's Basin along with half a hunderd other -rotten scows. It's way in the inlet an' folks live in them scows like I -guess you an' me'll have ter till I kin think what next." - -"Then all those other barges like ours can never sail the harbor again, -huh?" Skippy asked sadly. "They just sorta stay there till they rot an' -fall apart, is that it? Like as if they're condemned." - -"That's the word, Skippy," said Toby Dare bitterly. "The _Minnie M. -Baxter's_ been condemned an' you an' me are condemned along with her." - - - - - CHAPTER III - THE BASIN - - -Brown's Basin was off the beaten track, even nautically speaking. One -could never have found it except by the merest chance, unless one were -fortunate enough to have a companion who was familiar with it. The -rivermen knew, perhaps knew too well, as did the police who preferred to -get no closer to the colony than the shadowy inlet which sulks silently -in the daylight hours and strangely springs to life under cover of the -blackest nights. - -The Basin, as it is more familiarly known, thrives under the protection -of the lofty Palisades. In summer the foliage all but hides it from the -shore, and in winter the grim, gray rocks give it ample security from -the prying eyes of the world. And the Basin wishes that security, for -the character of the residents is such that secrecy and isolation -provide the means for their livelihood and their existence. - -Perhaps half a hundred derelict barges dot the slimy mud banks of the -Basin, some of them occupied and some not. But on the whole the combined -population of this sordid looking place represents a fair number and on -bright, sunlit mornings one can get an occasional glimpse from the steep -river road of poorly clad children scrambling from one to the other of -the closely packed barges, much the same as they would scramble across -city streets. - -Large planks connect the sprawling hulks in a sort of interminable chain -and the denizens can traverse the entire settlement by this means. More -often than not the family laundry waving in the damp river breeze on the -forward deck must be dodged by this strolling citizenry, but they are -quite used to all forms of adroit evasion, particularly where the law is -concerned. - -It was into this little lawless colony that the _Minnie M. Baxter_ was -towed. Sunset had long since gone, leaving but a hint of vermilion -colored sky at the horizon as the kicker chugged silently farther and -farther into the muddy waters of the inlet. Skippy steered the -motor-boat and Toby Dare struggled at the tiller of the barge while most -of the colonists looked on indifferently. They sprawled about on the -various decks, men, women and children. - -Criticism, both friendly and otherwise, reached Toby Dare's sensitive -ears, but he paid little heed, using his own judgment as to a suitable -spot in which to rest the ill-fated barge. It was a spot at the very -edge of the Basin that he chose and so manifest was its isolation from -the rest of the colony that but one inference could be drawn: Toby Dare -did not intend his son or himself to be drawn into that maelstrom of -dubious citizenry. His grief over the recent misfortune in no way -blunted his keen senses and, as always, Skippy's future welfare was -uppermost in his mind. - -"They're people what ain't partic'lar 'bout things, Sonny," he explained -while the _Minnie M. Baxter_ was settling in the mud. "They--well, they -can't help it, but they're folks what ain't carin' whether their boys is -fetched up right or not. They jest let their kids live day after day -sorta an' they don't think uv next year. Me, I'm always a-thinkin' 'bout -you a year ahead--see? So it ain't no use botherin' with folks what -thinks different." - -"I see, Pop," said Skippy looking musingly into the rust-colored water. -"You know all about 'em, huh?" - -"More'n they know themselves, Sonny. Ain't they slaves fer Ol' Flint -same as I was? Only I did more uv his high class dirty work. I overseed -'em load an' unload the stuff fer Ol' Flint an' it paid enough ter keep -my sonny in a shack ashore where he didn't see his Pop helpin' ter beat -the law. Now when I thought I was through with that an' ready ter give -yer a clean, honest start--_where am I?_" He buried his face in his -hands. - -Skippy touched his father on the shoulder with a trembling hand. - -"Aw, Pop--forget it, huh? I can help soon too, can't I? When I get my -workin' papers I can. I'll even go to night school an' I'll be honest -an' like a gentleman just the same as if the _Minnie M. Baxter_ wasn't -condemned an' we could haul garbage an' ashes an' make plenty." He was -quite exhausted by this lengthy declaration but his eyes were full of -shining hope. - -Toby Dare raised his head. - -"Yer a-meanin' well, Sonny, but yer ain't got no idea how hard it is ter -do anythin' without a little money. Besides, it sort uv taints a man's -own fam'ly even, when he's worked fer Ol' Flint. Decent, honest -shipowners give a man the go-by when they find out yer been a Flint man. -Yer blackballed, in other words, Sonny--see? Yer ain't given no chance -ter work at an honest job no matter how bad yer want to. An' I can't do -nothin' but river work an' the like--I ain't never done nothin' else! -The only thing fer a man like me ter do was ter try an' go on his own -hook like I meant ter do with the _Minnie M. Baxter_. Now I can't do -that unless--unless...." His large, yellow teeth seemed to close over -the word hopefully. - -"Unless what, Pop?" Skippy asked eagerly. - -"Unless I kin make him give me back my money an' I kin buy another -_Minnie M. Baxter_." He choked a little and shook his disheveled head. -"But that's too much ter hope fer, Skippy. Ol' Flint's never been known -ter give anythin' back--it's me that oughta know that. I was a fool ter -think he could be honest with me--_me_, a poor workman uv his. Why, Ol' -Flint's bragged he'd skin anybody what was fool enough ter _be_ -skinned." - -Skippy shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. - -"So then will you go to a lawyer like Inspector Jones told you? To -please me, Pop, will you?" - -"I'm a-goin' nowheres but ter see Ol' Flint," answered Toby hoarsely. -"That swell yacht uv his is anchored in the bay an' he's livin' aboard -it durin' this hot spell so I know where ter find him after workin' -hours. He ain't only ten years older 'n me an' he's in good condition -an' jest my size so...." - -"Pop--Pop, you got fight on your mind an' it's just the way Inspector -Jones warned you not to go to see Mr. Flint! Besides, it ain't gonna be -half bad here till we can think up sumpin' else to do. Forget about Mr. -Flint if you're jus' thinkin' of him on accounta me. I'll be all -right----" - -"I'll forget anythin' 'ceptin' that Ol' Flint's cheated me with a grin -on his slick face," said Toby Dare with an ominous softness in his -voice. "So I'm a-goin' ter teach him a lesson, Skippy--I'm a-goin' ter -teach him that Toby Dare can't be cheated outa everythin' he's hoped -fer, fer years, without hittin' back. Yessir, Ol' Flint's gotta learn -what it means ter cheat me!" - -"Pop--Pop! You ain't goin'--honest?" - -"I am. I'm a-goin' sure as guns." - -"When--when you goin', Pop?" - -"_Tonight!_" - - - - - CHAPTER IV - COMPROMISE - - -Skippy got the first meal aboard the _Minnie M. Baxter_. His heart and -soul were certainly not in the task for he burned four of the flapjacks -that he was cooking. The coffee had twice boiled over and the narrow -little cabin was filled with a blue, acrid smoke and though the sight of -his father's lugubrious face, as he paced up and down outside the little -windows, disturbed him, he was not particularly unhappy. - -His mind, during the preparation of that meal, was not on his father's -misfortunes nor on the threatened and ominous visit to the Flint yacht -that very evening. Instead he was visualizing what benefits were to be -derived from residing in the Basin, chief among these being an -uninterrupted summer season of fishing and swimming. That to the heart -of a boy of his age compensated fully for the loss of the garbage and -ashes contract, yes, even for the loss of the barge's promise of a -remunerative future. - -It is not to be thought that Skippy did not deeply feel his father's -grief, for indeed he had brooded over it for hours. But after they had -settled and arranged their few belongings in the meagerly furnished -cabin of the barge, he had achieved that blessed miracle of youth and -accepted the inevitable without a question. Life stretched out ahead of -him as the inlet lay spread under this starlit night, broken now and -then by a quiet ripple until it reached the river. What would happen -beyond that point he knew he could find out when he came to it. - -And so, more contented than his brooding and troubled parent, Skippy -piled up the flapjacks until they resembled the leaning tower of Pisa, -and he whistled to the accompaniment of the sputtering coffee pot. All -the world seemed delightful and generous with these savory dishes ready -to be eaten, and he asked himself if his father wasn't making much of -little. After all, they had the _Minnie M. Baxter_ for a home, didn't -they? And wasn't living on a barge just the kind of life that he and his -pals had often wished for when they had lain about their dusty dooryards -on hot summer nights? - -The boy ran to the door, his tanned face flushed and expectant. He would -tell his father how much better he was going to feel out on the river -all summer than back in dusty, hot Riverboro where he had spent all his -life. He would fish and swim and take lots of deep, lung-developing -breaths. He'd probably never have another bad throat.... - -He inhaled deeply on the strength of this thought and though his lungs -filled with a queerly mixed odor of mud, decayed fish and salt, he -noticed it not at all. Moreover, the inlet might have been a clear, -wind-swept ocean waste, so far above the Basin had his imagination -carried him. - -A figure stirred in the shadows forward and then he heard the familiar -tread of his father. Suddenly on the damp salt breeze they heard the -distant sound of chimes and waited silently while the faint notes struck -off the hour of ten. - -"Pretty late to eat, huh Pop? Everythin's ready, so you better come -while it's hot." - -"Yer know where them chimes come from?" Toby asked in a tone of voice -that was strange to his son. "They come from River Heights on that swell -Town Hall what Ol' Flint give to the borough. Now I s'pose he'll give -the three hunderd dollars he cheated me outa, fer somethin' else what'll -give him a big name, hey? That's what some uv them scoundrels like Ol' -Flint do--give their dirty money ter things what'll give 'em a fine big -name. Well, he won't git the chanct ter give my three hunderd--not while -I live!" - -Josiah Flint again! Skippy's heart lost all its merry hopes in a -fleeting second. He turned back into the cabin and his father followed -him in gloomy silence. Mechanically, he carried the steaming plate from -the oil stove to the rickety little oil-cloth covered table and without -a word they pulled up their chairs and sat down. - -"I never tole yer before," said Toby after a few moments, "but if it -wasn't fer Ol' Flint there wouldn' never 'a' been no squatter colony -like this in Brown's Basin. It's him what's made it, that's what. -They're all blackballed men, Sonny; men what's got in Ol' Flint's -clutches an' ain't never got the chance nor the brains ter git out. Not -like me that had a little more brains ter earn bigger money so's I could -save fer the _Minnie M. Baxter_. _Save!_" He brought his fist down upon -the table with such force that a flapjack bounced from his plate to the -floor. "Ha, ha--what for did I save, hey?" - -He laughed so sardonically that Skippy hurried for the coffee to hide -his concern. - -"Aw, please don't take on so, Pop!" His eyes were directed at Toby's -back. "Gee, that old miser, he ain't worth you actin' so queer an' all. -It ain't so bad here. It's a nice little house we got in this cabin; -chairs an' the stove an' a table an' our trunk." His glance wandered to -the tiny windows opened to the damp salt breeze. "Even I bet I could put -up some cretonne stuff as good as a girl an' then won't this be one -nice-lookin' little place!" - -Toby's chair scraped over the rough, clean boards and he stood up, -straight and powerful and ominous. - -"Never mind the coffee now," he said hoarsely. "We kin heat it up an' -drink it when we come back." He laughed. "We'll drink it as a toast ter -Ol' Flint's health!" - -Skippy put down the coffee pot and wiped his grimy hands on his khaki -knickers. Then with a swift movement he shook back his straight, -rebellious hair and glanced up at his father. - -"You--you mean you want me with you, Pop?" he asked tremulously. - -"_Jest_ what I mean, Skippy. I want yer along so's I kin remember Ol' -Flint ain't worth ... well, what I mean is, if I have yer to talk ter on -the way I ain't so like ter lose my head when I git there an' talk ter -him. If he gits sneerin' at me like his habit is mostly, it'll be good -fer me ter know my Sonny's right outside a-waitin' in the kicker. -Waitin' fer his Pop, hey?" - -"Sure, sure," Skippy gulped. "Sure, I'll go with you if it's gonna make -you feel that way, Pop. Gee, I'll go anywheres with you if you only -promise not to lose your head." - -"Jest the sight uv that man'll make me lose my head, Skippy--I know it. -But so long as yer make me promise--I won't give him the worst uv it, if -I kin help it." - -Skippy knew his father well enough to accept just that much and hope for -the best. He went to the old battered trunk, took out a worn sweater and -while still drawing it on followed Toby outside. - -They descended the rope ladder in silence and got into the shabby boat. -Toby turned over the motor and Skippy took his place at the bow to watch -for drifting logs for the little kicker had not a light. Toby's former -nocturnal occupations had made it necessary for him to dispense with -this appurtenance and now, as he explained to his inquiring son, it had -become a habit to roam the river without illumination, knowing as he did -every square foot of it. Besides, he had come to love the solitude of -darkness. - -Skippy looked all about him, not exactly at his ease. The inlet was -black and at times the starlit sky seemed so far away as to be but a -mirage. Perhaps there wasn't a star in all the heavens, he would try to -tell himself. All was black night and the muffled motor purred with a -hushed monotony that affected him strangely. He fervently hoped that -they would not be long in reaching the river where he could breathe -without feeling that he was going to choke. - -He knew he was afraid and he knew it really had nothing to do with the -inlet or the black, silent night. It was a nameless dread that had -seized him and, try as he would, he could not shake it off. - -Instinctively, he felt that they shouldn't go on to Josiah Flint's yacht -that night. - - - - - CHAPTER V - THE APOLLYON - - -Skippy felt better when the boat nosed out into the river. He raised his -worried face to the clear salt breeze and let it blow over his hot -cheeks. Lights blinked here and there on the dark water and a tug -chortled by noisily. Then on the far shore he saw a cable light, and a -ship ran clear of it before she dropped her mooring anchor. - -Toby said nothing but sat in a lugubrious silence as he steered the -little craft downstream. Skippy stared hard at the spray foaming against -the bow; his mind was not on drifting logs. He turned to his father, -scanned his face anxiously, then peered downstream again. - -"Is Mr. Flint's yacht much further, Pop?" he asked after a few minutes. - -"No, we oughta soon be on top uv her," came the hoarse reply. "Yer can't -miss her--she's got her name sprawled fore an' aft in great big gold -letters. It's some fancy name called A--Apollyon. That's it. Kindo -highfalutin name, hey? Like all them there Flints." - -"How many Flints are there, Pop?" - -"Jest two now, like me an' you. Ol' Flint an' his son, Buck. His real -name's Harry. Anyway folks call him Buck. But he's got it better'n you, -Sonny. Much better. Besides he's old enough ter take his father's place -in the dirty business, though I heerd not so long ago that Buck ain't uv -a mind with the old man an' lets Marty Skinner help run the works. They -say Buck's terrible honest an' all fer the law but Skinner's nothin' but -a rat." - -"Well, maybe Buck'll take over his father's business some day and make -it pay without havin' smugglin' an' things like that, huh Pop?" - -"Mebbe, but not if that crook Skinner keeps his ball in the game. Still, -I heerd it said that Ol' Flint's business has always paid good enough -without him doin' dirty work fer easy money. But that's what a miser he -is--he's gotta have a crooked side line so's ter pile up his millions in -a coupla years. He ain't willin' like the rest uv these shipowners -'round here ter wait an' let a honest fortune pile up, say, in twenty -years or so. He can't be honest, Ol' Flint can't, not even with a poor -man like me, an' Skinner's the same breed uv cats." - -They were approaching a wide bend in the river. Anchored launches and -trim sailboats dotted the shadowy water like immaculate sentinels. -Skippy's restless eyes roved over the silent scene until he espied the -graceful sweep of a yacht's bow projecting out of the shadows into the -line of its anchor light. Simultaneously he saw great gold letters -spelling out the name _Apollyon_ and it occurred to him how modest and -neat was the brass lettering of the _Minnie M. Baxter_ in contrast. - -The white, dainty craft swayed ever so gently on the slight swell and -Skippy was lost in envy. He bethought himself of the sprawling uncouth -barge and for a moment wondered why things were like this; why a man of -Josiah Flint's sort could own this dainty, spotless yacht while his -father who wanted so much to be honest had not even the worth of the -hard-earned barge. - -For the first time, he understood how bitter and revengeful his father -must feel. He too felt bitter and revengeful as they got closer to the -_Apollyon_. Something began to smolder in his boy's heart; something -wholly alien to his cheerful, wholesome nature. But he was aware of -nothing of this, save that he felt like sneering aloud at this proud, -complacent craft swaying before his eyes. In a wild fancy he imagined -her to be mocking his father and himself for daring to hope that Josiah -Flint would make restitution. - -A dim light shone amidships and save for the anchor lights the rest of -the yacht was in darkness. Skippy stared hard at her and suddenly saw -something skimming away from her port side. - -He leaned far over the prow of the little motor boat until he saw that -the object was a kicker like their own with its engine muffled. In -whispered words he drew Toby's attention to it. - -"Wonder where she's been and where she's goin' to, huh Pop?" he queried. - -"That ain't none uv our business, Skippy," his father answered staring -up at the _Apollyon_. "Folks on the river don't think uv them things -this time uv night. They know a muffled engine's one that ain't carin' -ter be heard, same as I got one fer mine." - -"We could have ours taken off now, huh Pop? It ain't any more use now, -is it?" - -"That all depends, Sonny. It all depends on Ol' Flint," Toby said -softly. "Now here we are an' the less said, the better." - -"Ahoy!" called a voice in deep, soft tones from above. "Who's below?" - -Father and son glanced up to see the head and shoulders of a burly man -leaning over the glistening rail. Skippy saw Toby stiffen determinedly. - -"Ol' Flint aboard?" he asked. - -"Yeah," the man answered suppressing a yawn. "He's in his cabin -amidships. Lookin' for him?" - -"Yeah." - -"Move the kicker aft an' come aboard. Old man was talkin' with Mr. -Skinner when I come on duty two hours ago. His light's still on so he's -readin' likely." - -The little boat moved aft with hardly a splash and the next moment Toby -was scrambling up the ladder. Skippy listened intently as his father set -foot on the _Apollyon's_ deck. - -"Want me to tell him he's got a caller?" the man suddenly asked. - -"Nope. Thanks jest the same," Toby was saying. "I even got half an idee -that mebbe he expects me." - -"Awright, buddy," said the man heartily. "You'll find him 'midships like -I told you. There where the little light is." - -Skippy heard the soft tread of his father's step along the deck. A door -closed and after an interval of silence he looked up to see that the man -was still there, bending over the rail and apparently staring at him. - -"Your Dad, hey kid?" he asked, catching Skippy's upturned eyes. - -"My Pop," Skippy corrected, chuckling. He liked the man's hearty voice. -"You work aboard this yacht, Mister?" - -"Second mate, that's what. Easy job summers when the old man's busy. All -we do is to sleep and keep the old girl ship-shape." - -"Old girl?" - -"Yeah, this scow." - -"Some scow!" Skippy laughed. "She's pretty swell, I'll say. Not much -trouble keepin' _her_ ship-shape, huh?" - -"Naw. There ain't enough to keep us busy an' it makes a swab lazy. -Same's me tonight. Here I am the only one on duty (there ain't no need -for more'n one, anchored here like we are) and things are so quiet what -do I do but fall sound asleep! I'd sat me down and I hear the old man -bawlin' Mr. Skinner out fierce. Then I guess I was dozin' a spell 'fore -I heard the sound of a muffled motor aft. Dreamed it, I guess, and I -dreamed I heard somebody comin' out from the boss's quarters 'midships. -Anyways, I finally woke up and when I come to the rail I see you folks. -Guess that's what I was hearin' in my dreams all the time, hey?" - -"Maybe," said Skippy. "Our motor's muffled, I guess you noticed already, -but you might 'a' heard another kicker like ours too because one was aft -when we came along." - -"Guess maybe that's what it was then," said the second mate pleasantly. -"Just somebody bein' a little cautious, like. Still I got to quit bein' -so lazy nights and do my duty by _Polly_ like the old man pays me for." - -"_Polly?_" - -The second mate laughed softly and Skippy fancied that his mischievous -wink penetrated the darkness. - -"_Apollyon_--_Polly_ for short, kid! _Apollyon_ is too highfalutin for -able seamen, hey?" - -"That's what I thought, Mister. I never heard it before. Gee whiz, -what's it mean anyway?" - -The second mate paused a moment. - -"From what I could make out from the Cap'n it was the name of a Greek -story or somethin'. You know--one of them real old Greeks thousands of -years back. And this _Apollyon_ was a evil spirit or somethin' like -that, and folks called 'im the Destroyer! Ain't that a name for you?" - -Skippy nodded and looked at the graceful ship with a new interest. Evil -spirit? Destroyer? A queer name indeed for such a dainty craft. Why -should Josiah Flint give that beautiful hull such an evil name? The -sound of a dull thump interrupted his thoughts. - -"I couldn't work on a ship with a name like that," he said to the second -mate at length. - -"Why?" the man laughed. "Superstitious?" - -"I wouldn't say that," Skippy answered seriously. "At least I never -thought I was sup-super-superstitious more'n most kids. But it don't -seem exactly fair callin' a nice ship like that the destroyer or an evil -spirit or whatever _Apollyon_ really means. Gee, I've heard my Pop say -that a ship kinda gets lookin' like its name an' actin' like its name -after a while. That's why he named the barge he bought from Mr. Flint -after my mother; the _Minnie M. Baxter_ she's called. He said she'd be -the nicest barge on the river if she took after my mother. But so far it -ain't worked out," he added wistfully. - -"No?" the second mate inquired sympathetically. - -Skippy summed up the whole story of his father's misfortune in a few -words. Particularly did he stress Toby's grief over Josiah Flint's -wilful deception in the transaction. - -"And so your Pop's come to make the old man come across, hey? Well, I -don't blame him." The man lowered his voice to a mere whisper. "I only -hope he don't get the boss in a nasty temper 'cause he's not one to give -in and he sounded like he was good and sore when he was bawlin' out Mr. -Skinner. Besides, he ain't the one to admit he cheated your pop either. -Still...." - -A low moan startled them both and suddenly a door slammed, followed by -the sound of someone running along the deck. Skippy stood straight up in -the motor boat and listened intently. - -He knew those footsteps and he knew what was in the mind that directed -them with such force. His father never hurried, much less ran, unless he -was terribly angered or pained or.... - -He dared not complete that thought, nor did he have need to, for his -father's drawn, white face was already looking down at him from above -the rail and Skippy read there all that he needed to know. - -Something terrible had happened. - - - - - CHAPTER VI - A STRANGE STORY - - -The little motor boat had left the _Apollyon_ far behind, ignoring -shouts from its deck to halt, before Skippy dared break the tense -silence. - -"Gee, Pop," he stammered fearfully, "what happened between you and Mr. -Flint anyway, huh? Because you didn't even say goodnight to the mate an' -you got in the boat an' told me so cranky an' all to push off before I -got a chance to say goodnight to him, either--gee whiz! I never seen you -act so funny before in my life. What's the matter, huh?" - -Toby Dare groaned and buried his face between his hands. Then, for what -seemed to Skippy an interminable time, he rocked to and fro and the -groans that escaped him were distressing to the waiting boy. - -Finally Skippy could stand it no longer. - -"Pop, you gotta tell me what's the matter! Gee, it's somethin' terrible -the way...." - -"Sonny," Toby interposed brokenly, "git back ter the _Minnie M. Baxter_ -jest as quick as yer kin! I got ter put as much water between me--me -an'--an' _him_ as it's possible ter put." - -"Pop?" - -"It's like a dream, Sonny--a bad dream--a terrible dream. I can't make -head or tail uv it yet. I went ter his cabin 'midships like that mate -told me...." - -"Yes?" Skippy encouraged. - -"I knocked on the door an' I could uv sworn I heard a kinda grunt like -Ol' Flint does. He's a man uv few words. Anyways, I goes in an' there -he's sittin' in a big chair with a funny grin on his face." - -"Grinnin' at _you_, Pop?" Skippy asked clenching his straight white -teeth. - -"That's what I thought an' right away I got wild," Toby answered running -his hands nervously through his disheveled hair. "I forgot what I -promised--I forgot everythin' 'ceptin' the way he'd cheated me an' I got -tellin' him so but he didn't say nothin', but jest kep' sittin' there -a-grinnin' that funny way. Well, I knowed as how he always was a man uv -few words but I thought he could stop grinnin' an' at least say -_somethin'_. But he didn' an' that's what made me see red--I thought he -was a-makin' fun uv me, sorta, an'----" - -"You didn't go for him?" Skippy interposed fearfully. - -"Sonny, I jest sorta lost my head," answered Toby brokenly. "I kin -hardly remember what happened 'ceptin' I realized all uv a sudden that I -had my hands 'round his throat an' I was chokin' him." - -"And didn't he make any noise or anythin'?" Skippy was horrified. - -"That's what made me let go. I got wise right then that somethin' was -funny 'cause he didn't let a sound outa him all the time. His eyes -seemed ter git funnier lookin' though, but he kep' on grinnin' jest the -same. Then I let go quick an' _plop_--over he fell, head first he fell -an' that's when I saw it----" - -"_What?_" - -"That he'd been shot in the back," Toby whispered looking about -uneasily. - -"_Pop!_" - -"Sure as guns, Skippy," Toby moaned pitifully. "Then I knew he musta -been dead all the time--even before I got in the room." - -Skippy too groaned. - -"How--how could he sit up like that then, if he really was _dead_?" he -asked with an audible gulp. - -"That's what I've been wonderin' an' all I kin think is that whoever did -it, sat him up that way after it happened. I could see in his bedroom -off uv the room he was sittin' in an' papers was lyin' all 'round like -as if there'd been a scrap." - -"With somebody else," Skippy murmured as if to himself. Then, in a -frightened whisper: "What then, Pop?" - -"All I could do was stand there like a crazy man," Toby groaned. "I -don't even remember how long I stood there. It's all like part uv that -nightmare so I can't remember." - -"I know, Pop." Skippy tried to sound comforting. "Who--what groaned that -time? The second mate and me heard it plain's anythin'." - -"Me. That was when I knew he was dead! It jest sorta come ter me full in -the face an' I was so full uv fright that I had ter let it out some -way." - -Skippy turned around and for a few moments searched the face of his -unhappy father. - -"Pop--Pop," he faltered, "just one thing I can't understand--why--why -didn't you tell the second mate, an' me, right then? Why--why didn't you -spurt it right out an' not run away when you know you didn't do it?" - -"Who'd believe it?" Toby answered hopelessly. "There was the mark uv my -fingers on his throat--_there they was_! I'd even have ter admit ter -that mate that I was mad enough ter choke Ol' Flint ter death--he could -see my fingers there ter prove it, couldn't he? Well, why wouldn't he -think I give him an automatic in the back afterwards, hey? Why wouldn't -he?" - -"_But, Pop!_ If you only had said _sumpin_!" - -"I wanted ter git away from that awful grinnin' face. As far away as I -c'd get. I--I couldn't stay there ter tell nobody _nothin'_, Skippy. -Besides, do I know I didn't choke him ter--ter..." He sobbed a moment, -then looked up. "Mebbe 'twasn't the automatic what really got him, -Skippy--mebbe 'twas _me_, hey?" - -Skippy reached out and grasped Toby's damp flannel shirt sleeve in -agony. - -"Pop, it wasn't you--I know it--_I just feel it_!" he cried. "I can tell -from all you told me about him grinnin' like from the time you got -inside the room." He hesitated a moment, then: "You don't remember him -makin' a sound at all?" he asked, anxiously peering into his father's -face. - -"Not one sol'tary sound, Sonny--I didn't hear a one!" - -Skippy sighed and again took up the task of steering the little motor -boat upstream. His tired young face, however, had taken on a new look of -resolution. - -"You're tired, Pop, an' I'm gonna take you back to the _Minnie M. -Baxter_. Then I'm gonna turn this kicker straight back and head her -downstream again an' I'm goin' aboard that _Apollyon_ an' explain the -whole thing. I'll tell 'em everythin' like you told me an' I bet they'll -believe it all right 'cause they'll see that my Pop couldn't kill -anybody." - -Toby said nothing but continued to rock back and forth with his head in -his hands. - -"Maybe--maybe you're not so tired an' you'd turn 'round with me an' go -back an' tell 'em, huh Pop?" Skippy returned anxiously. - -"Skippy," Toby cried hoarsely, "jest now I wanta go back ter the _Minnie -M. Baxter_ an' think. Like a good boy don't talk about it no more till -we get there, hey?" - -Skippy, bewildered, promised that he wouldn't, and let the little kicker -out to the best of her ability. From time to time he heard the miserable -sighs of his father, and over and over again he told himself the story -of Josiah Flint's strange death just as Toby had told it. But with each -recurring thought, a strange suspicion asserted itself and clamored so -hard in the boy's conscious mind that he was forced to recognize that it -was a doubt, a small one, but nevertheless a doubt of his father's -story. - -And by the time they were once more on board the _Minnie M. Baxter_, -Skippy was fearful that possibly, after all, his father might be the -actual murderer of Josiah Flint! - - - - - CHAPTER VII - FOR SKIPPY - - -Skippy washed the dishes and cleaned up the cabin, then made some fresh -coffee. He put the two cups on a little tin tray and carried it out on -deck where his father sat disconsolately puffing a pipe. - -"I made this good an' careful, Pop," he said, handing Toby a cup of the -steaming beverage. "Maybe it'll make you feel better, it's so hot." - -Toby took the proffered cup and smiled wanly. - -"Yer think your Pop's a coward, takin' on this way?" he asked anxiously. - -Skippy flushed and, to cover his embarrassment, sat down on a stool a -little distance away. - -"Nah, I don't think that, Pop," he said at length. "I guess I know how -kinda crazy an' different you'd act after seem' that. Gee, it musta been -pretty awful to make you act so different." - -"I know how yer mean by different, Sonny, but I ain't blamin' yer. I -know it must look funny, but it ain't. Besides I ain't a coward 'bout -it. If I'd told the mate right on the spot, he'd had ter keep me till -the police come. Then what would happened ter _you_? Even if I give -myself up now they'll hold me on charges an' the law's that slow, it'll -be months mebbe 'fore I kin clear myself." - -"But that'd be better'n lettin' 'em think you was the one that killed -Mr. Flint, wouldn't it?" - -"I thought mebbe we could run somewheres out west or the like, hey -Skippy? Yer don't know what the law is once yer git in its fist. If they -can't find nobody else they'll pin it on me no matter what we say--I -know it! So we might's well take our duds an' beat it now." - -"Pop, you're not talkin' like yourself. You got sorta crazy on accounta -thinkin' how all this'll hurt me. Gee whiz, forget about me, because you -can't have the cops thinkin' you did it, when you didn't! Gee, I'll get -along somehow, honest I will, Pop. I'll get along better to know you did -what was right an' told the truth. An' even the law I bet can see when a -man's tellin' the truth an' they'll let you out quick--so will you go -for my sake, Pop?" - -Toby brought a hairy fist down on his bony knees. - -"It's fer yer sake that I didn't want ter go near 'em, Skippy," he said -vehemently. "But if yer promise yer Pop ter stay good an' all till they -let me out, I don't care. Fer my sake I _wanta_ go!" - -"Gee, Pop, I'm glad!" - -Toby drank his coffee with a determined gulp, then got up and stalked -into the cabin with the empty cup. When he came out, he held out his -hands to Skippy. - -"C'mon, then, Sonny," he said gripping the boy by the shoulders, "we'll -be a-gittin' back ter the _Apollyon_ 'fore too much water slips inter -the bay, hey?" - -"Just what I was thinkin' of, Pop," Skippy answered and averted his head -so that his father should not see the tears swimming in his eyes. "And, -Pop, you're kinda calm now, ain't you? Calm enough to remember better'n -when we were comin' down?" - -Toby Dare nodded wearily. - -"What yer wanta know, Skippy?" - -"Just that you're good an' sure that you didn't hear him make a noise -from the time you first seen him till you ran outa the room?" - -"Sure, I'm sure, Sonny. And like I told you, the grin was the same too." - -"Then he _was_ dead, Pop--dead all the time, an' somebody with an -automatic did it because the second mate said he dreamed he heard -somebody runnin' an' then he heard a muffled kicker shoving off aft like -I saw when we come along. Whoever had that automatic was in that kicker, -Pop. I got a hunch about it." - -"I hope the coppers believe you, Sonny. But c'mon, we'll take the -chance. Anyways, I'll tell what I know." - -They walked forward together and were just about to descend when they -saw a long, dark painted launch shoot alongside of the _Minnie M. -Baxter_. As Skippy and his father leaned over to get a better view they -were blinded with the glaring rays of a searchlight. - -"_Coppers, Pop!_" Skippy hissed. "It's the coppers!" - -[Illustration: "COPPERS, POP!" SKIPPY HISSED. "IT'S THE COPPERS!" -_Frontispiece_] - -Toby gripped his son's trembling fingers in his own. - -"Don't move, Dare!" a deep voice commanded from the police launch. - -"I'm not," Toby answered hoarsely. - -"We'll be right up. Stay right where you are." - -"Pop an' I were just comin'," Skippy cried to them, "that is, we were -just goin' back to the yacht--the _A--Apollyon_ an' tell them how it all -really happened. Pop ran away on accounta me, but after we talked about -it he decided to go back an' tell.... Mr. Flint was dead before Pop got -there--_he was; honest!_" - -"Oh yeah?" laughed the first officer to reach the deck. "Now that's -interestin'. But I'd wait till the rest of the gang gets up, kid, -because they all got ears too." - -Skippy watched them troop up until the last man set foot on the barge's -worn deck. Six men, he thought, with not a little fear. How weak would -his father's story seem to these frowning cops? Would they believe him -as he had believed him? - -His fingers were entwined in his father's in a tight grip and yet he had -the feeling that Toby was already snatched away from him. Now that the -police confronted them he was terribly afraid and in that instant his -hopes fled as quickly as the stars in the face of gathering storm clouds -overhead. - -Then Toby spoke in his hoarse, broken voice.... - - - - - CHAPTER VIII - ALONE - - -Skippy's hopes were somewhat rekindled during Toby's recital of his -visit to the yacht. The story sounded so straightforward as he told it, -that it did not seem possible that these representatives of the law -could find a single flaw in it. And yet to his utter dismay they found -more than a flaw in it; they found it sufficiently damning to threaten -his unhappy father with certain conviction. - -They had already seen Inspector Jones and had had his word for it that -Toby Dare had threatened to "fix Josiah Flint," and there was also the -corroboration of the inspector's men. There was also the strongly -incriminating statement of the second mate of the _Apollyon_ and the -charge that Toby refused to stop when called to from the yacht by -Skinner. - -"My Pop never carried a gun!" Skippy cried in protest. "You can't say -that he did!" - -"There's a robbery charge too," said one of the officers sternly. "You -went to Flint's yacht because you were sore and Inspector Jones heard -you crack that it would be bad for Flint if he didn't kick in for the -loss of the barge. It adds up swell for a jury." - -"Yeah," said another, "and when Flint give you the razz like you're -trying to tell us, you burn up, shoot him, then you choke him and frisk -him to get that three hundred with plenty interest back. Your -fingerprints on his throat are the only fingerprints we found. What did -you do with the gun--throw it in the river?" - -Toby denied it all with a groan, and Skippy sidled up to his father and -held on to his arm with a gesture of protection. The officers frowned -for there is neither time nor place for sentiment in the progress of the -law. They had come to arrest Toby Dare for the murder and robbery of -Josiah Flint and all Skippy's pleading would not thwart them. - -The faint boom of thunder sounded as Toby was led into the police launch -and a flash of lightning streaked the black sky just above the _Minnie -M. Baxter_. But Skippy was indifferent to everything save the hopeless, -staring look that his father gave him as their eyes met. - -He fought back the tears bravely and smiled his bravest. - -"Now, Pop, stop thinking about me again, huh!" he cried desperately. -"Gee whiz, I'll be swell--I promise I will so will you cheer up an' -everythin', huh? Because you gotta prove you're tellin' the truth an' -never had a gun so how could you do what they say you did? So will you -cheer up if I tell you I'll be all right, no matter what?" - -Toby Dare's troubled face lighted with a smile. - -"Skippy, boy," he gulped, "I kin do anythin' when I hear yer talk like -that. Jest hearin' yer say yer'll be a good boy's enough fer me." - -"All right, then, Pop," Skippy said, forcing a laugh. "So we won't even -say so long 'cause they'll let you come back in a day or so, I bet." - -"Sure," Toby assured him. "They're bound ter let me." - -And that was all, for the launch chugged off leaving Skippy strangely -numb and bewildered. He watched the snakelike movements of the trim -craft as she darted through the inlet but soon the darkness enfolded her -from view. After a few moments they switched on their running lights but -there was too much distance between them for the boy to see his father -and so he turned his back to the inlet and slowly walked toward the -little cabin. - -Not a light had appeared the length or breadth of the whole barge colony -since the police launch slipped up to the _Minnie M. Baxter_ yet Skippy -knew that every man and woman in Brown's Basin was awake and watching -all that had transpired. His father had told him that these strange, -lawless people had a surprising faculty for learning of the law's -arrival in the inlet. And hating the law as they did, they kept silently -out of its sight, nor did they want to be drawn into it through -another's troubles. - -Notwithstanding this knowledge, Skippy had the feeling that he had only -to call out and ask for help for himself and his father, and his lawless -neighbors would immediately respond. Yet that is just what Toby had -warned him against. Moreover, his promise to avoid dubious company was -not ten minutes old. - -And so he resolved to bear his troubles manfully and alone, though never -in his life had he so wanted the warmth and sympathy of human -companionship. He was young enough to be afraid, yet old enough to feel -ashamed of it. But the events of the day and his father's unhappy plight -finally proved too much for him and with trembling under lip he sought -the shelter of the cabin. - -A few minutes later a terrific storm broke over the river and swept -through the Basin relentlessly. Rain lashed against the tiny windows of -the cabin on the _Minnie M. Baxter_ and the wind moaned eerily in and -out of the inlet. - -Skippy buried his tousled head under a pillow in his bunk and tried to -stifle the sobs that would not stop. His heart raced madly in his breast -every time he thought of his father and his fears increased with every -crash of thunder. Could it possibly be that his father wouldn't come -back? - -He squirmed farther under the bedclothes. He would have shut out his -thoughts if that had been possible. Presently he heard a muffled -knocking at the cabin door. - - - - - CHAPTER IX - A VISITOR - - -Skippy sat up instantly, threw off the bedclothes and slid to the floor. -Then he hurried to the little table and lighted the lamp, meanwhile -glancing toward the door uneasily. The knock sounded again; this time -insistently. - -He rushed to the door and swung it open. A man stood before him in the -pelting rain, the tallest, broadest man he had ever seen in his life. He -could not have been out of his twenties and had a large, rather amiable -looking face; so large, indeed, that it made his blue eyes seem small -and insignificant. - -[Illustration: A MAN STOOD BEFORE HIM IN THE PELTING RAIN.] - -As Skippy waited questioningly, he moved his ponderous neck above his -upturned coat collar and smiled, a slow, secretive smile. Then he half -turned and glanced quickly toward the inlet, before he spoke. - -"Sure and be ye Toby's kid?" he asked with a slight brogue. "Can I come -in? And where's Toby bein' at this hour?" He walked into the cabin -quickly. - -The ghost of a smile flitted across Skippy's tear-stained cheeks as he -closed the door. - -"Sure, sure, come in!" he said hospitably. "Pop ain't here. He's...." - -"'Tis all right, so 'tis," the stranger interposed pleasantly, and -calmly divested himself of his wet clothing. "I got nothin' but time. -Your ould man told me I'd always be welcome in his diggins so here I be. -'Tis too bad 'bout this scow, though. I only got wise tonight that the -inspectors told Toby the _Minnie M. Baxter_ was junk. Bad cess to 'em. -So Flint gypped Toby on it, did he?" - -"An' how!" Skippy answered dismally. "Gee, gee...." - -The man got up and waving his hands deprecatingly, made a quick movement -toward one of the windows on the inlet side. He bent his huge frame in a -stooping posture and after rubbing the steam from the diminutive pane, -he peered out intently. - -Suddenly he turned back and smiled his slow, secretive smile. - -"I ain't exactly aisy in me mind, kid," he explained with a low chuckle. -"I be keepin' a weather eye on thim coppers. They're curious like 'bout -some stuff and I ain't in the spirit to answer thim. They got me barge -and that's enough, so 'tis." - -"You ain't Big Joe Tully?" Skippy asked. - -"That be callin' the turn, kid. S'pose your Pop give ye an earful 'bout -me. Well, I started out shootin' straight like he did, but whilst -Flint's got the monop'ly on shippin' and the like on this river, a guy's -a million to one, so he is." - -"Mr. Flint won't have it no more," Skippy gulped. "I guess you ain't -heard...." - -"_What?_" asked Big Joe Tully reaching in his pocket for a cigarette. - -"He's dead--he was killed tonight." Tears rushed to Skippy's eyes again. -"An' my Pop's been sorta accused, Mr. Tully," he added, and blurted out -the whole story. - -Tully was puffing energetically on his cigarette when Skippy finished. - -"Now don't ye be worryin' kid," he said sympathetically. "If that ol' -rat was dead when Toby got there they can't do nothin' to him. Toby'll -be home tomorrow, so he will, I bet." - -Skippy felt instantly cheered. He was beginning to feel glad of Big -Joe's comforting presence when he bethought himself of the man's dubious -activities on the river. Wasn't it this man and his ilk that his father -had warned him against? Men who weren't honest? The boy sat down on his -bunk to think it over. - -To his surprise, Tully had got up and was putting on his coat and hat. -Immediately, Skippy forgot that he was considering the moral aspect of -an invitation to the man to stay; he forgot all his father's warnings -against association with the river gentry, and thought only of the void -that Tully's sudden departure would make in the long night. - -"I thought you said you were gonna stay, Mr. Tully?" he said with -evident disappointment. "Gee, now you ain't, huh?" - -"'Tis sorry I be, kid," said Big Joe with a friendly wink. "I did think -along thim lines when I come in, but since the coppers been nosin' -'round here tonight, I'll be mosyin' along. They might come back and -spot me here so I'd better be takin' the air." - -"Did they catch you carryin' _stuff_?" Skippy asked, interested. "Is -that why?" - -"Sure and they did that. Somewan tipped off the police--somewan what was -jealous I wasn't carryin' _their_ stuff." He laughed lightly. "The -coppers hook ye either way, so they do. Look how quick they come after -Toby and they knew he was on the up and up! So I says, does it pay?" -Then, seeing the shadow on Skippy's face, he added: "But sure you'll be -seein' Toby back tomorrow, kid. They can't be keepin' him when he didn't -do it." - -"He didn't do it, so they can't!" Skippy echoed. - -"'Tis a cinch, so 'tis," said Big Joe Tully with an awkward attempt to -sympathize. "Be hittin' the hay now, kid, an' ye'll be seein' Toby -tomorrow or me name ain't Joe Tully. Now I'll be swingin' into me kicker -and chug her up the river till daylight. I'll be layin' low a while and -some day I'll be seein' ye and Toby. Be watchin' the old step. S'long." - -He went out like a breeze and Skippy soon heard the chug of his engine. -Another craft muffled so that the ears of the law would not hear its -approach! The boy made a mental grimace at the thought of all this -muffled life on the river, Big Joe Tully included. His inherent love of -clean living and honesty had come to the fore as his father had wanted -it to. And honesty and clean living _did_ pay despite what Tully had -said. Certainly it would pay his father tomorrow! He lay back on his -bunk and closed his burning eyes. - -Tomorrow was almost here ... almost.... - - - - - CHAPTER X - A SUGGESTION - - -Many tomorrows had come and gone before Skippy saw his father again and -then it was under circumstances that the lonely boy had not -contemplated. The shadow of prison walls already threatened Toby Dare -for the rest of his natural life; conviction was certain. - -Skippy returned to the _Minnie M. Baxter_ toward noon. It threatened to -be a sultry day; the air was heavy and still, and a sickening blue haze -hung over the inlet. Brown's Basin, always more or less apathetic under -the glare of noonday, was unusually silent and Skippy listened in vain -for the cheering sound of a human voice. - -He set about preparing lunch, but it was a half-hearted, pathetic -attempt, for the Dare larder was getting dangerously bare. He had been -living on an almost exclusive diet of pancakes for more than a week past -and Nature was beginning to retaliate for Skippy was far from being a -robust boy. - -He pushed back his plate after a time, hurried out of the cabin and got -into his motor boat. It was his only consolation during the interminable -days and nights of his father's continued absence and on this particular -day his heart warmed toward it with a new, affectionate thought. - -His fishing tackle was assembled at his feet and he set the nose of the -little boat downstream as soon as he reached the river. Fog horns -pierced the still, hazy air with their dismal warnings and the screams -of steam winches and tooting whistles echoed and reechoed about the -boy's tousled head. - -He watched the passing river traffic abstractedly, particularly the -lumbering and heavily-laden barges moving along in the wake of chortling -tugs. The sight of them always made him think of his father and of what -might have been, and the more he saw of them the more did the feeling -grow within him that it was a strange and unjust law that could take his -father away from him. Moreover, he could not understand why a jury would -not believe his father's straightforward story, which proved so clearly -to him that another hand had taken Josiah Flint's life. - -Hadn't the police found that the rich man had been robbed of a -considerable sum of money and hadn't they admitted that it was neither -on Toby's person nor on the barge? Skippy remembered only too well the -day when the police ransacked the _Minnie M. Baxter_ fore and aft for -Josiah Flint's money. But their search was futile, as he knew it would -be, and although they now had ample proof that poverty threatened him, -they still insisted that the stolen money had been hidden by his unhappy -father. - -But Skippy did not consider the testimony of Marty Skinner that he, on -returning to his employer's stateroom, saw Toby Dare with his arm out -the porthole (from which a clever and venomous prosecuting attorney drew -the inference for the jury that Toby was disposing of the pistol from -which the fatal shot was fired). Skinner did not swear he saw any -weapon, but his testimony, linked with the other evidence, made for a -strong circumstantial case. - -Skinner also testified that he had rushed to his employer's side as Toby -raced from the room; that upon discovering that Josiah Flint had been -shot he chased after the squatter and shouted to him, as he made off in -his kicker, to no avail. The second mate corroborated the testimony that -Toby failed to heed the cries for him to halt. - -While the pistol had not been found, Inspector Jones and his men -testified that Toby had threatened to fix Josiah Flint because he felt -he had been cheated of his life savings of $300 in buying a rotten barge -from Flint. That, the prosecutor insisted to the jury, furnished the -motive for the crime. Altogether he made a case which convinced the -twelve men, but it did not convince Skippy for he could not be convinced -that his father was guilty. - -Skippy was deep in his bitter reflections and did not see the familiar -launch of the harbor inspectors until it was almost upon him. Inspector -Jones' bright and smiling face came alongside of him with startling -suddenness. - -"Well, Skippy!" he said pleasantly. "How's the boy?" - -Skippy winced and a frown darkened his face. He could not forget that -Inspector Jones' testimony had helped to take his father from him. - -"I feel sick on accounta my Pop, that's what," said he bitterly. "You -helped make things worse for him too, Mr. Jones, on account of the -things you told about what he said that day after you inspected the -_Minnie M. Baxter_." - -Inspector Jones' bland countenance looked immediately troubled. - -"I told the truth, Skippy," he said kindly. "I told only what your -father had said and my men were there to prove it." - -"You needn't have said that Pop said he was gonna _fix_ Mr. Flint 'cause -you mighta known he really didn't mean it. Pop was mad then, but he -promised me before we left for the _Apollyon_ that night that he -wouldn't lose his head. Gee, he's even sworn since he didn't take Mr. -Flint's life an' don't you suppose I know when my Pop's tellin' the -truth?" - -"I guess so," Inspector Jones answered with real feeling in his voice; -"I guess you know your Pop better than anybody, Skippy. I'm sorry, the -law required me to testify against him. But it was my duty--can't you -see?" - -"Then you believe they'll be keepin' my Pop in jail when he's innocent, -too, huh?" Skippy asked excitedly. - -"I'm rather inclined to believe that your father didn't shoot Flint," -answered the inspector. "But I can't do anything about it, Skippy, and I -doubt if my testimony alone would convict him. It's that -District-Attorney and Marty Skinner that's made it so tough for your -father. You know Skinner swore he saw Toby at the porthole and the D. A. -put it over to the jury that he was dropping the gun which did the job." - -"Yeah, but that diver didn't find no gun," Skippy replied, "an' my Pop -swore he wasn't near no porthole an' besides nobody tried findin' out -about that kicker that was around when we come up. I'll betcha the -feller what did the killin' got away in it." - -"You're right about not finding the gun, Skippy," Inspector Jones nodded -thoughtfully. "I'll look into the kicker angle some more." - -"Say, thanks, Mr. Jones, me'n Pop we'd be so thankful, we would. Maybe -if I went to see Mr. Skinner he'd help us 'cause I guess hard as he is -he'll see I don't tell lies even to get my Pop free. Maybe I oughta go -right away to see him, huh?" - -Inspector Jones nodded thinking how futile the boy's errand would be. -But he had boys of his own and he did not want to jolt the lad out of -his pleasant dream. So all he said was: "The sooner the better, because -I hear he's going on the _Apollyon_ for a week's cruise. You know Buck -Flint has gone to Europe and now Skinner, who was only Josiah Flint's -yes-man for years, is ruling the roost and living high on a -millionaire's yacht. Buck says he won't ever board her so it's pretty -soft for Skinner. He's got the boat anchored just outside in the bay, -ready to nose her out to sea after nightfall. If you get right on down -there, you'll catch him aboard, sure." - -Skippy smiled his thanks and turned his little motor over. The inspector -waved his hand. - -"From the sound of that kicker," he shouted, "I take it you've lost -Toby's muffler?" - -"Sure," Skippy answered laughing, "what do I need with a muffler, huh? -'Cepting it might be better for fishin' with. But gee, I should worry -about livin' on fish if I can see Mr. Skinner, huh? Pop ought to be out -by--by...." - -"Tomorrow, eh?" Inspector Jones interposed turning his head aside and -blowing his nose hard. - -"Nope," Skippy answered wistfully, "I won't say tomorrow 'cause then--oh -well, it's too quick. But anyway, if I see Mr. Skinner it won't be long -after tomorrow, I bet." - -He had yet to learn from his bitter experience that tomorrow never -comes. - - - - - CHAPTER XI - ALL OF A KIND - - -Skippy's little boat chugged out of the bay and around toward the Hook. -It was late afternoon and the haze had deepened into an ominous -sultriness. White caps danced atop the waves and off on the horizon -black clouds and black sea met in dismal union. A flock of gulls swarmed -about, flapping their huge wings between sky and sea with monotonous -precision. - -A miscellaneous collection of craft was anchored just outside the bay; -sailboats, fishing smacks, dories and yachts of every size, and not the -least of these was the shining hull of the lovely _Apollyon_. Skippy -caught sight of her immediately and slowed his own little boat that he -might have a better view of her in the light of day. - -Her superstructure was painted a most delicate shade of green and Skippy -understood then why he had imagined her to be of that ghostly whiteness -below her anchor lights which shone like stars against that dark, -memorable night. Too, the large gilt letters spelling out her queer name -seemed not so ornate now as when he had first seen them. - -His first reaction to the lovely yacht had been one of envy and -admiration; it was so now and he tried hard not to think of the unhappy -sequel that his first visit to the _Apollyon_ had brought. Yet somehow -he could not shake off the fear-inspiring memory of what the name really -meant and he wondered if anything but evil could tread those spotless -decks. - -He chuckled a little and turned his motor boat toward the yacht. There -were signs of a near-departure aboard and he caught sight of the second -mate resplendent in his spotless uniform and cap. Leaning over the -forward rail, he recognized Skippy at once, and waved his hand. - -"If it ain't the kid!" he called cheerfully. "Young Dare, hey? Well, -you've come a ways." - -"Sure," Skippy smiled. "I come down to see Mr. Skinner. It's awful -particular what I gotta see him about." - -"You look's if it might be a case of life or death at that," the second -mate mused. - -"It is a case of life, Mister--my Pop's whole life," said Skippy -anxiously. "That's why I wanta see Mr. Skinner." - -The second mate was all contrition. "Kid, I clean forgot about your Pop, -'deed I did. C'mon aboard. Sure Mr. Skinner'll be seein' you. 'Course I -ain't promisin' you'll find him easy talkin' to 'cause he ain't. He's -right set in his notions 'bout you Basin and river folks; he thinks -you're all rascals." - -"But his boss, ol' Flint----" Skippy began protesting. - -"He knowed like you'n me and plenty others that the old boss was a tough -egg--and between you'n me Skinner ain't no angel hisself--but that don't -change his mind none." - -Skippy realized this full well a little later when Marty Skinner refused -to hear him, ordered him off the boat, and shouted that his father was a -rogue and so was he. - -Skippy rushed blindly out of the cabin. The door slammed behind him, the -same door that had slammed behind his father on that tragic night. He -had accomplished just nothing at all in that cabin of past horrors, -nothing except to hear from a gentleman's lips what his kind really -thought of river people. - -And he, Skippy Dare, was one of the river people--himself, the son of a -rogue! - - - - - CHAPTER XII - DRIFTING - - -Skippy nosed the motor boat toward the Hook. He had no thought of -anything save that he was angry and hurt and wanted to feel the fresh, -salt breeze blow over his burning face. He felt that he must think over -this new and humiliating status in which Marty Skinner had so cruelly -placed him, and he wanted to think of it where no one could see the -unhappiness that it caused him. - -He hadn't the heart to turn back toward the Basin and home. Home! He -frowned at the word, for it seemed that the _Minnie M. Baxter_ and all -that it represented could bring him nothing now but recurring thoughts -of the hated Skinner. All that the man had said had left its mark on the -sensitive boy's mind and for the first time in his life he felt a bitter -hatred toward a fellow being. - -That Marty Skinner, old Josiah Flint's right-hand man, should call his -father a rogue, was hardly to be endured. But if it were so, he reasoned -in a calmer moment, then all the more reason for the blame to fall on -the dead Josiah. Hadn't Old Flint himself been the worst rogue of all? - -He was tempted to return and shout these thoughts so that all aboard the -_Apollyon_ might hear. He wanted to tell them what Toby had said about -Josiah Flint making the despised Brown's Basin possible because of his -selfish, unscrupulous dealings. - -But, boy-like, Skippy's anger was soon reduced to a smoldering memory -and his father's imminent incarceration was a thing that had to be -faced. Just now he was forced to think of his own present situation, for -a significant sputtering from the motor gave warning that he was about -to have trouble. - -He had not his father's knack for adjusting the rebellious motor, and so -he decided to turn the boat about and make for the quieter waters of the -bay. But just then the motor stalled and despite his earnest efforts, it -refused to respond. - -Skippy looked about him anxiously and saw that he had already been -carried an alarming distance. Dusk was rapidly settling, hastened by the -deepening haze and in a few moments the tide and undertow had swept him -out of sight of all the anchored craft clustered about the _Apollyon_. - -He looked hopefully toward the Hook but saw that it was useless to try -and reach it even with the one oar that the little boat had in reserve. -The tide was against him. - -After a quick glance about, he hunted around among some neglected tools -lying at his feet and picked out the searchlight. But that, too, refused -to respond; the battery was dead. Then he looked for some matches only -to meet with disheartening disappointment. - -He got to his knees after that and worked furiously at the cold motor, -squinting at his hopeless task in the near-darkness. The boom of thunder -could be heard from out at sea, and with the swiftly passing minutes the -storm came nearer and nearer until it broke directly overhead. - -Lightning flashed across the drifting boat and Skippy dodged under the -bow. There was something terrifying about the elements when one was -alone and drifting steadily toward the sea in an open boat. - -After a momentary lull, he crept out, not a little ashamed of his -cowardice. He looked about, trying hard not to look or feel panicky -despite the fact that he could see nothing of the Hook or anything else. -Darkness and high, shadowy waves upon which the little boat bobbed were -all that met his frightened gaze. Then a damp, cold wind began to blow. - -He crouched down in the bottom of the boat with a feeling of dull -despair. Rain pattered into an old rusty bait can that lay at his feet -and he edged his shivering body closer under the bow. Curiously enough, -he was quite calm now and the thought that his situation was dangerous -did not enter his mind. - -Skippy-like, he was thinking only that he was terribly hungry and more -than anything else he wanted to eat. - - - - - CHAPTER XIII - LIGHTS - - -The thunder and lightning died away after a time but the rain continued. -The constant boom of the sea gradually wore away some of Skippy's calm -and he raised his head from time to time to gaze apprehensively at the -dark sea rising all about him in mountainous waves. - -The sky seemed a black void and at times as the little boat tossed about -in the waves, he had the breath-taking sensation that he had turned -turtle. Once, he mused about what probability there was of his being -carried clear across the sea to some European port. He had heard of men -being able to live without food or water from ten to fourteen days. -Well, he had his fishing outfit, he reasoned hopefully; he needn't -starve, but how to get water puzzled him. - -After a few more minutes of tossing wildly about, he decided that the -little boat could probably never stand an ocean voyage. With each -succeeding wave it came perilously near to upsetting and he doubted that -the craft could triumph over the angry sea much longer. - -That contingency awoke a strong determination in him, for he got to his -feet, reached for the oar and struggled valiantly to balance the boat -against the oncoming foe. The rain soaked him through to the skin but he -was not cold for he was kept in constant action trying to make one oar -do the work of two. - -He had lost all sense of time and direction; he thought only of keeping -the boat balanced. That he could not keep it up very long did not occur -to him, for he already felt the effects of the past week's malnutrition -and his long journey from the Basin had fatigued him. - -After what seemed an interminable time he caught a glimpse of a light, a -faint gleam, but nevertheless a light. He gasped with joy and looked -hard into the darkness to get a definite idea of its location. In point -of fact he looked so hard he all but swamped the boat. - -Great beads of perspiration stood out on his forehead when he righted -the boat, but he came up triumphant on the crest of a wave. The exertion -was too much for him, however; he felt inexpressibly weak and tired. His -muscles ached and a giddiness in his head made him feel as if he must -lie down. - -But there was the light just ahead and he bent his frail body in a -supreme effort to reach it. He was cheered because it did not seem to -move and he ventured to hope that it might be on the shore. The main -thing--it was a light, and light might reasonably be expected to mean -rescue by all the rules of the game. - -Suddenly a great arc of faint yellow light swept from behind and circled -his head. He had come to no decision about its origin before it came -again, a little brighter than before. Then after some minutes had passed -and it had grown still brighter, it occurred to him that it was from the -lighthouse at the Hook and the great light had gradually penetrated the -fast dissolving haze. - -He took heart at this because he knew he could not be so very far away -from land. But he knew it was futile to even hope to get back there in -his boat. It might be ten miles and it might be twenty. The great light -at the Hook boasted a range of thirty miles on a clear night, he had -heard his father say. - -The light that gave him real hope was the heartening glimmer just ahead. -He knew that it was not just because he wished it so fervently, but he -could plainly see that it became brighter as the boat advanced. - -Then suddenly he heard the faint ringing of a bell, which echoed eerily -on the shifting wind. - - - - - CHAPTER XIV - THE BELL BUOY - - -He listened intently and thought that it came from the direction of the -light. It rang again and again, each time a little louder. Suddenly, -however, he was aware that the light seemed no longer stationary. He had -the disheartening experience of realizing that his beacon of hope was a -running light on a fishing smack. He felt like crying as he watched the -shadowy hull gaining speed for he realized that she must have just -started ahead, having waited for the wind to change. - -Every wave carried her farther and farther away from the watching boy. -If he had only got there just a little sooner, he thought dismally. But -he had done the best he could. There was nothing left now but to sit and -watch her swallowed up by the darkness and the mountainous seas and that -had happened in a few minutes' time. - -He was glad he had not been foolish enough to hope that he could reach -her and overtake her, only to be disappointed and use up what little -strength he had left. That at least was some satisfaction and it helped -him bear his desperate plight a little more patiently. - -The constant booming of the sea had a queer effect on his sensitive -ears. He imagined himself to be hearing all sorts of noises, -particularly the ringing of the bell. At times he could have sworn he -heard it right at hand and at other times it seemed but a mocking echo. - -The air was quite clear now, though the rain continued, and Skippy saw -to his dismay that the boat was getting a little too full of water for -his safety. He put down the oar for a while and bailed her out with his -rusty bait can. - -The little boat tossed against each rising wave like a feather; but he -worked feverishly and trusted to luck that it would not upset. Then -after a few minutes he was startled by the sound of the bell ringing -right over his head. Before he had time to look up he felt the boat bump -hard against something. - -He was on his feet in a second and saw to his great surprise that the -boat was alongside of a bell buoy. - -It has been truly said that time and tide wait for no man and certainly -Skippy was aware of this instantly, for in the next second a giant wave -had washed him out of reach of the buoy. This realization made him -desperate and he got into action to get back to it, for he well knew now -that to drift on through the night would mean certain death. - -With a swift movement he pushed his wet hair back from his high -forehead. Then he bent over, got the oar and grabbed a rope, holding it -tightly in his hand. And for fully five minutes he battled and struggled -against the undertow. - -His eyes were wide and staring from the strain and little streams of -water ran down either cheek. His clothes from head to foot were weighted -against him with water but he never stopped until he had brought the -boat back against the buoy and in a second he had thrown the painter -around it and pulled it taut. - -That done he sank down in the bottom of the boat, exhausted. - -For some time his mind was an utter blank. He was too tired and weak to -think or even to care. But the rain beating steadily down on his -unprotected body soon chilled him back into action and he got up and -exercised his arms and legs. - -As the buoy swayed upon each succeeding swell, the bell tolled -mournfully. Its eerie echoes were faint and quickly lost in the noise of -the pounding sea, and Skippy decided that no mariner ten minutes' sail -from the bell was likely to look that way. Also, the quick wash of the -sea prevented the bell from tolling its loudest and longest. Nothing but -his own two hands could do that. - -And so he did it. - -For the next hour he bent his frail body over the swaying buoy and swung -the cold, wet bell back and forth, back and forth. Peal after peal -tolled forth dismally and though his eyes became blurred with weariness -he knew that he had missed nothing, for nothing had passed for him to -miss. - -So it went on through the long, dark hours. He would take an interval of -rest and then jump up to his vigil at the bell for fear he would fall -asleep and miss some passing ship. - -The night seemed interminable. Indeed, he began to believe that he had -fallen asleep and that a day had passed and another night had come -without his being aware of it, for never had he thought the dark hours -were so long. - -Morning came at last and with the first streak of light on the eastern -horizon, hope came back anew. The rain gradually ceased and during -Skippy's intervals of rest he watched, with not a little awe, the wonder -of dawn at sea. Little by little the night fled before the roseate morn -and soon the entire sky was flooded with soft light. And as the sun -crept up out of the sea he stretched himself across the wet seats and -relaxed. - -Two hours later, he woke with the sun shining full in his face. He sat -up, startled, and realized that his head was aching and that he felt -stiff and chilled. Moreover, he felt sick with despair to think that he -had slept away the hours of daylight, hours when a ship might have -passed near enough for him to signal. - -He stood up and scanned the sunlit water in all directions but there was -not a sign of a sail, not a sign of a ship. In the distance, a gull -soared high above the water and after a moment another one seemed to -leap out of space and join it. - -The tide was going out and the whole surface of the blue-green water -seemed to roll on toward the horizon in a series of undulating hills. A -gentle murmur filled the warm, sunlit air and Skippy could not believe -that the booming surf of the past night had been anything but a bad -dream. - -He rang the bell for a time but had to give it up because of a terrible -giddiness in his head. And so for hours, he sat anxiously scanning the -illimitable sea and sky, hoping, hoping, hoping.... - -Noon came and passed and the sun scorched him cruelly. The boat, too, -had become a constant source of anxiety for she developed a leak and had -to be continually bailed out, and he was thankful that he had not obeyed -a former impulse and tried to row her east in the hope that he would -strike the Hook. - -Toward mid-afternoon he was conscious of pains in his chest, and his -hunger and thirst were becoming unbearable, particularly the thirst, for -the heat of the sun was intense. He wished fervently for the cooling -rain of the night before. - -Sunset came, however, and with it a soft, cool wind. Skippy welcomed it, -but hated the gray light of approaching twilight that obliterated the -deep blue clouds. It seemed to spell doom to him and he cried out in -despair. If daylight had not brought rescue what hope was there left for -another long night? - -His hopes sprang up afresh, however, and he conceived the idea of tying -to the bell a long length of rope which he found in the bottom of the -boat. In this manner, he could ring it constantly just by pulling the -rope which required little exertion on his part. By dusk he was feeling -too sick to either stand or sit up. - -He entered his second night at sea both hopeful and despairing. Every -doleful clang from the bell brought him hope but in the following -silence it would quickly vanish and he would sink in depths of despair. -Then with his fast-ebbing strength he would pull hopefully at the rope -again. - -[Illustration: EVERY DOLEFUL CLANG FROM THE BELL BROUGHT SKIPPY HOPE.] - -And so the bell tolled on through the long night hours. - - - - - CHAPTER XV - RESCUED - - -A few hours before dawn a long, trim, high-powered motor boat cut -through the placidly rolling waves. Its motor was so muffled that it -emitted no more than a low droning sound and could be heard for only a -short distance, despite the fact that it had been let out to full speed. - -Besides the man at the wheel the boat carried six men, three standing -fore and three aft. One of the men aft half lounged over the coaming and -his broad shoulders and large, amiable face all but filled the stern of -the boat. The spray constantly swept over his big, dangling hands and -the salt moisture struck at his tanned cheeks but he seemed not to -notice. His entire attention, like that of his comrades, was centered on -the grayish black horizon; his eyes seemed to miss nothing, yet there -was an abstracted look in them that the man at the wheel did not fail to -notice. - -"Whadja hear, Big Joe?" he asked quietly. - -The big man nodded his head without moving his body. - -"'Tis that buoy," he said absently. "Sure and she's goin' a great rate -for such a calm, me lad. Even in pretty bad storms I niver knowed -Flint's buoy to be ringin' like that." - -"Flint's?" queried another of the men, interested. - -Big Joe Tully smiled reminiscently. - -"And why not? 'Tis what most o' Flint's men called it. 'Tis a buoy at -the intrance to Kennedy's Channel and 'tis a bad spot, if iver there was -wan. Ye niver know how the tide's goin' to act. 'Tis like a colleen what -can't make up her mind, and she's not to be trusted, so nobody goes by -that way. Besides, 'tis a long way round past the Hook. Anyways, the -ould boss took advantage o' that place and we used to meet some o' his -best customers there and unload the stuff to thim." - -"Not a bad idea takin' us by there for an eyeful, hey, Tully?" suggested -the man at the wheel. "Long's you've decided on playin' ball with us, -since we squared that case 'gainst you, we might as well take your tips. -Seems like a wise mug like ol' Flint never made no mistakes. He got rich -an' the law never got him so if _he_ picked out a spot like this buoy, -he must 'a' known what he was doin'. Mebbe it'll be a pretty good spot -for our customers too?" - -They all laughed at this, but Big Joe Tully merely smiled and glanced -down at the compass. - -"Sure and ould Flint made his mistakes and plenty," he said in his soft, -deep voice. "He made mistakes whin he didn't watch out that the coppers -didn't take the scows o' men what was workin' for his racket. And he -made a mistake whin he stuck Toby Dare with a piece o' junk. I guess he -thought he'd be puttin' me on me uppers where I'd be goin' back and beg -him for work." - -"He got knocked off fust, didn't he, Big Joe?" laughed the man at the -wheel. - -"That he did. 'Tis too bad he couldn't 'a' lived to see how quick I -connected with you guys." - -"It's too bad he couldn' lived anyways," said another of the men, -"'cause that poor guy Dare wouldn't be in the can then. Anyhow I don't -think he knocked him off. I think he'd liked to 'cause Flint give him a -lousy break, but I believe what he said in court that some other guy -beat him to it." - -"I know lots o' guys what were layin' for ould Flint," said Big Joe. -"Sure he'd been dead a dozen times if iverywan what had it in for him, -did what they said they'd like to. That's why they won't be holdin' poor -Toby." - -"All the same, they _are_ holdin' poor Toby," said the man at the wheel. -"He was sentenced late yesterday afternoon for twenty years to life an' -by this time he's hittin' the hay in the big house, that's what." - -"And didn't ye hear!" said another. "His kid, Skippy, ain't been seen -since he had a talk with Marty Skinner aboard the _Apollyon_. Poor kid, -he went there to plead for his old man, the paper says, and that -hardshell Skinner wouldn't give him a break, I guess. The second mate -told a reporter that the kid left the yacht in a rush, hopped in his -kicker and beat it for the Hook. Guess he thought as long as he couldn't -do nothin' for Toby, he'd get away somewhere and try an' fergit. Well, -that's life." - -Big Joe Tully clenched his knotted, hairy fists. - -"Sufferin' swordfish!" he said. "Poor Toby! And that poor kid! 'Tis a -howlin' shame, so 'tis." - -"Know 'em?" asked the man at the wheel. - -"I oughta--I worked 'longside o' Toby doin' Flint's jobs night after -night, so I did. A whiter guy than Toby niver lived. He ain't -old--thirty-four or so. Got married whin he was a kid and his wife died. -He's crazy 'bout that kid o' his, Skippy. 'Tis what makes me feel bad." -Big Joe looked down at the compass once more. "North, northeast," he -said to the man at the wheel. "We oughta be at Flint's buoy in twinty -minutes. There's the light from the Hook." - -They watched intently the great sweeping arc of light swinging over the -smoothly rolling water. The motor boat plunged north, then northeast and -in Big Joe Tully's eyes was a thoughtful, puzzled expression, the closer -they got to the buoy. - -"D'ye say there ain't somethin' spooky 'bout the way that bell's -ringin'?" he asked his comrades. "Did ye iver hear a bell on a buoy ring -like that without stoppin'? 'Tain't natural, 'cause...." - -Just then he caught a glimpse of the little kicker bobbing merrily -alongside the buoy. - - - - - CHAPTER XVI - RIVER PEOPLE - - -"An' when I sees ye layin' in the bottom o' that kicker, I'd swore I was -seein' things so I would," Big Joe Tully was saying. "Lucky I gets it in -me noodle that somethin's wrong the way that bell keeps ringin'." - -The shanty of the _Minnie M. Baxter_ was bright with the light of -mid-morning. The floor had been scrubbed almost to whiteness, the table -was laid with a soft Turkey red cloth and the lamp looked shiny and -clean. Skippy's feverish eyes took it all in before he turned on his -pillow. - -"I felt so sick, I didn't exactly know it was you," he said weakly. "I -heard voices, but I couldn't think what it was all about. All I'd -thought all night was that I hadda keep on ringin' the bell." - -"Sure, kid, and ye rang it!" said Big Joe with a light laugh. - -"An' you sure saved me," Skippy smiled in return. "Gee, it was lucky you -came that way, huh? Where'd you been?" - -Big Joe lighted a cigarette and puffed on it before answering. - -"Sure an' just puttin' the big eye on some new location for a new -racket," he said softly. "I got six men with me." - -"Is it--is it gonna be straight?" Skippy asked. - -"Nah," Big Joe laughed. "Who'll be straight in the Basin and live like a -human bein'? As 'tis, what they got? They're all doin' the higher-up's -dirty work; but _me_, I ain't so foolish even if ould Flint tipped off -the coppers and they grab me scow. I got a little money and I'll work -this new racket and make lots more. The doctor says ye've got a pretty -weak lung so ye need a month in bed and the best o' food. Well, -sufferin' swordfish, we'll dig up the dough so's ye'll be fat an' sassy -'fore Toby comes out." - -Skippy's eyes lighted up. - -"Gee, Mr. Tully, it must be costin' an awful lotta money for a lawyer to -appeal the case, huh?" - -Big Joe waved a large hand deprecatingly. - -"Forget it, Skippy. Ain't I doin' it for a good friend and ain't I doin' -it so's ye won't see Toby in the can for twinty years or more? Don't ye -be worryin' 'bout the dough, me lad. I made it with the scow easy. Now -it'll do you and Toby some good, so 'twill." - -"Gee whiz," breathed the boy gratefully. "It's too much for you to do -for Pop and me 'cause we can't pay it back--_never_!" - -"That's why ye gotta be forgettin' it!" Tully protested. "I ain't got -nobody to spend it on, kid, so I might's well spend it on you and Toby. -I'd only leave it to ye in me will whin I died!" He laughed loudly. -"Now'll we be good friends, kid?" - -Skippy had to fight back the tears before he smiled. - -"Gee, _sure_! Gee, I like you an awful lot, Mis----" - -"Cut out the _Mister_, kid! Big Joe's me monicker, and nothin' else. Now -anythin' more on that big mind o' yourn?" - -Skippy nodded hesitantly. - -"Gee--gee whiz," he stammered, "I just was thinkin' wouldn't it be nice -if you had enough money so you didn't have to go into any crooked -rackets for a while, huh? Gee, I'd like to think you didn't have to do -it, honest I would, Big Joe! Maybe I'll be able to go to work when I get -strong and I'll be able to help then, huh? Maybe we can live on clean, -honest money like Pop wanted me to, huh? Besides, the money you're -helpin' Pop and me with is kind of from when you were runnin' your barge -straight, isn't it?" - -Big Joe got up from his chair, went over to the table and ground out his -cigarette stub in an ash tray. Then he came back and leaning over -Skippy's bunk, he rumpled the boy's hair playfully. - -"'Tis a funny lad ye be, Skippy. But I s'pose ye be gettin' it from -Toby. He was always agin doin' Flint's work. Said he wouldn't 'a' -started it if he hadn't been takin' care o' ye so much daytimes whin ye -was sick with that throat business." - -"Pop was always honest inside, that shows it," said Skippy proudly. - -Big Joe smiled. - -"Anyways ye're right about me runnin' me barge straight the first year," -he said vehemently. "I did." Then: "So ye want me on the level? Well, -we'll be seein' about that but we ain't goin' to starve I'll be tellin' -ye, so I will." - -Skippy's eyes were shining. - -"You'll get along if people can see you're tryin' to be honest, that's -what Pop said." - -"Sufferin' swordfish, kid," said Big Joe. "Be quittin' thinkin' 'bout -anythin' now 'ceptin' gettin' better. And no more talk about work when -ye're better. Sufferin' swordfish, ye ain't nothin' but skin and bones, -the doctor said! Ye're as pale as a ghost, too. Eggs, milk and chicken -soup is what ye need and what ye'll be gettin'." - -"Who'll fix 'em?" Skippy asked, chuckling weakly. - -"Our nixt door neighbor on the _Dinky O. Cross_," Big Joe said. "She's a -right nice woman, kid--Mrs. Duffy, and as soon as she sees us carryin' -ye in she said it milted her heart. So we put a plank across to her scow -and she come in here and did 'bout iverythin' 'fore the doctor come. I -give her the dough for the things and she's cookin' thim now." - -"She's a--she's one of the river people, huh? Like _you_, Big Joe?" -Skippy asked wondering. - -"Like you and me, Skippy me boy," answered Big Joe, nodding his head. -"She's one o' our people, the kind what helps their own whin there's -trouble." - -Skippy shut his eyes to visualize the stern, cold visage of Marty -Skinner. Hadn't he talked of river people as if they were all of a kind? -Hadn't he said they were all crooks and criminals? - -Big Joe had put him in that category of river people, he who had never -disobeyed a law in his young life! He resented it and wanted to say so, -but his better judgment prevailed against it and he decided to wait and -see what kind of people these river people of Brown's Basin really were. -Certainly if they were all like Big Joe Tully, Skinner had much to -learn. - -It was the buxom Mrs. Duffy who decided it, some moments later. She came -in like the fresh morning breeze from the inlet, clean-aproned and -smiling, laden with soup and eggnog and a wealth of bright cretonne -tucked under her generous arm. - -"Cretonne curtains for thim little windows, bhoy," she said -breathlessly. "Mr. Tully give me the money for 'em an' I made 'em up -'fore I come over. It'll seem more like home to ye in Brown's Basin whin -ye see 'em from the outside. The inlet's dismal enough, so 'tis, without -starin' at it through bare, dirty winders; ain't I right, Mr. Tully?" - -"Guess so," Big Joe answered a little abashed. "Women folks know more -about thim things, but even me, I be likin' that bright stuff flutterin' -around a winder. Ye got the soup an' everythin'?" - -Mrs. Duffy's smile was vast and it swept from Big Joe to the wan-looking -Skippy. - -"Ye'll pick up, so ye will, or me and Mr. Tully'll be to blame, Skippy," -she said heartily. - -Skippy almost choked with gratitude. He tried to speak, but could only -think that these were river people--his people! Big Joe, who was -spending a lot of money so that his father might have another chance for -freedom and who would spare no expense to nurse him back to health. And -Mrs. Duffy, who was bringing cheer into the shanty of the _Minnie M. -Baxter_ and who seemed to care so much that he get well! - -_River people?_ Skinner didn't know what he was talking about! He, -Skippy Dare, was proud to be one of the river people. - - - - - CHAPTER XVII - MUGS - - -Many delightful weeks Skippy spent after he was up and around. Day after -day, he and Big Joe roamed the length and breadth of the river, and -often they went down the bay and across to some unfrequented beach where -they swam and fished to their hearts' content. - -Skippy soon showed the effects of his healthful life and Mrs. Duffy's -fine cooking. He was browned from head to foot and his flat chest had -expanded two inches. And what was more, he had learned to triumph over -tears. - -That in itself was a great achievement, for he had great need to -practice self-control during the fall and the winter following. The gods -themselves seemed to have cast sorrowful glances over the _Minnie M. -Baxter_ and Skippy's mettle was tried to the breaking point sometimes, -yet always he came up smiling. Very often it was a poignant smile, the -kind that pierced Big Joe Tully's almost invulnerable heart and set him -to doing all sorts of extravagant things so that he might see the pain -effaced from the boy's face and hear him laugh happily. - -That was why on the evening of Toby's retrial, Big Joe left the shanty -of the _Minnie M. Baxter_ in awkward haste. He had left Skippy smiling a -smile so poignant that he could bear it no longer. - -"Big Joe," the boy said when they were dawdling over the most luxurious -meal that Tully's money could buy, "it was most like throwin' money -away, huh? They don't wanta let Pop get out, I guess. They can't find -the man that really did it and they've gotta have somebody so I s'pose -they think it might's well be my Pop. Now he _will_ be in for life on -account of the way they tripped him up in his answers. Gee, how could he -remember word for word what he said at his first trial? People don't -remember word for word 'bout things like that. Poor Pop was so nervous I -got chills down my back." - -"Don't ye be gettin' down, kid," Tully protested; "'tis not sayin' we're -licked till they turn down an appeal. We got some more dough." - -"So much money," said Skippy with a note of wonder in his high-pitched -voice. "Gee, Big Joe, you've spent so much on Pop an' me already. Now -you wanta spend the last you got! Gee whiz, I can't let you--_I can't_! -Much as I wanta see Pop free. It ain't fair lettin' you spend all your -hard-earned money...." - -Tully had long since learned that he could not lie to Skippy. - -"Sure an' this last coin ain't hard-earned, kid," he said not a little -abashed. "So ye see 'cause it ain't, it might's well be used for -springin' your old man." - -"All right, if you say it like that," said Skippy with a slightly -reproving smile. Suddenly he squared his shoulders; then: "Anyway, next -to Pop, Big Joe, I like you best. Gee, ain't you been just like Pop -even! So I don't care if that money's not so straight, but d'ye think -it'll be lucky for Pop? Sometimes I wonder if crooked money ain't hard -luck in the end. Maybe when you're broke you can start over clean?" - -"We'll see what the breaks'll be bringin' this winter, kid," Big Joe had -mumbled. "We'll see, so we will." - -And it was Skippy's answering smile that drove Big Joe off the barge for -a few hours. When he returned late in the evening, he had a fluffy sort -of bundle in his big arms and an expansive smile on his face. - -"Three guesses what's in me arms," he said with a mischievous wink, -standing half in and half out of the doorway. - -"Is it dead or alive?" Skippy asked chuckling. - -"'Tis the liveliest little guy ye ever see." Big Joe stooped over and -released the fluffy bundle from his arms and presently an Airedale pup -put its four young and rather unsteady legs on the shanty floor. - -Skippy laughed out loud. He twisted his hands together in a gesture of -delight, then got to his knees and coaxed the puppy to him. - -"It's got brown eyes like a reg'lar angel," he said. - -"An' brown legs like the divil," Big Joe laughed; "the divil for runnin' -into mischief. The man what I bought him from said he was a -son-of-a-sufferin' swordfish for runnin' an' chewin'. But he'll be -gettin' better as he gets older, so he will. Ain't he got the cute -little mug though, kid!" - -Skippy looked up with shining eyes, then drew the puppy up to him. - -"Big Joe, that's his name--it's a swell name for him! Mug--_Mugs_, huh? -With that funny little face he couldn't be called anything else." - -"Sure, sure, kid. Anythin' ye say. Mugs it'll be, so 'twill." He -coughed. "And will he be makin' ye happy now, kid?" - -"_Happy!_ Big Joe, Mugs'll make me happy 'cause you bought him to make -me laugh. Gee, gee...." Skippy swallowed his emotion. "What for do you -do so much, Big Joe?" he asked navely. "Gee--_why_?" - -"'Cause ye be such a nice kid, so ye be," the man answered, rumpling -Skippy's straight hair. "Ye kind o' get under a guy's skin--ye do that. -Ye seem to be needin' somebody for to look after ye, so ye do, an' with -Toby not about it might's well be me." He laughed nervously. "Besides I -ain't got nobody else at all, at all, kid, an' even a tough guy like me -does be needin' company, so he does." - -Skippy hugged the puppy gratefully and he was so overwhelmed by Tully's -generosity that he could not speak. Never, he thought, did a boy have a -friend like Big Joe! - -His cup of happiness would have been filled to the brim and his father -been released that day. But here again, Big Joe, like an angel of mercy, -was making a last supreme effort to bring his father back to him. It -seemed impossible that such gigantic effort could fail to bring a joyous -result and he told Tully so. - -"An' when Pop gets out," he said in conclusion, "I bet he'll never -forget what you've done an' all, Big Joe. Even now he don't forget it. -He said it's so gloomy and strict in prison that he's sad all the time, -'specially 'cause he was so used to roamin' all over the river free. -Gee, he said the feller what really killed Mr. Flint was a coward 'cause -he must know how it's keepin' Pop an' me away from each other an' he -said he could almost kill him for doin' that alone." - -"There, now, the ould man'll be gettin' out!" said Tully vehemently. "My -last grand'll do it, I be tellin' ye! See if it don't! Now ye ain't -goin' to start worryin' all over 'bout Toby now, are ye? An' me gettin' -ye Mugs so's to make it aisier like for ye." - -Skippy looked at the puppy sliding over the floor on his gawky legs. He -laughed. - -"Mugs makes up for an awful lot, Big Joe, but nobody could make up for -Pop," he said wistfully. "I never told Pop, 'cause he'd think it sounded -silly, but I love him. You know, like I guess girls feel only they show -it an' talk about it, but I don't. I couldn't. But I'm just tellin' you -like a secret--see? I get a funny pain in my heart when I'm not seein' -Pop an' it gets awful bad when I think maybe he won't ever get out of -prison." Then at the sight of Big Joe's frowning countenance, he added: -"But it's like I said, Big Joe, I like you almost as much as Pop. An' -now you've bought me Mugs--gee, how much'd you pay for him, huh?" - -"'Tis nothin'," said Big Joe smiling softly; "a coupla bucks. 'Course, -they cost a little more thin just muts, but the man at the dog place -said thim Airedales be great for protectin' kids so I think maybe he'd -be good for ye nights when I might be out with the boys. He'll be -comp'ny anyways." - -A little later, when Big Joe was having a good-night smoke alone on the -deck, he took out of his pocket a piece of paper, and in the light -gleaming from the cabin windows he glanced at it curiously. It was a -receipt for one Airedale puppy; price, one hundred and fifty dollars. - -He smiled, shrugged his powerful shoulders and tearing the paper into -bits let it drop in the inlet. Then he turned his trousers' pockets -outward and laughed ruefully. - -"Broke," he said half aloud. "Sure and 'tis aisy come, aisy go. And now -for to be gettin' some more dough. The kid'll be needin' it so----" He -shrugged as if getting money was the least of his troubles. - - - - - CHAPTER XVIII - BAD NEWS - - -Skippy had food and plenty of it during the next month. Big Joe saw to -that though it kept him away from the barge many hours at night, hours -when he lived in mortal fear that the boy would develop a "bad throat" -and be seriously sick before he could get back. - -Skippy's "bad throat" had become a veritable bugaboo to Tully and though -he had no definite idea of what it was, the fear of its recurrence -stalked every hour that he spent away from the boy. And when he did -return he would tiptoe into the silent shanty and up to the boy's bunk, -sighing with relief to find him sleeping quietly. Then, when he had made -sure there was no sign of the pinched look and feverish cheek, he would -climb into his own bunk with a light on his face that would have -surprised his rough comrades. - -Skippy saw this light on Tully's face one early morning. He saw it from -under half-opened lids and it made him glad until he noticed the quick -look of concern that passed over the man's tanned brow. - -"What's up, Big Joe?" he asked anxiously. - -"So it's awake ye be?" Big Joe returned nervously. "Well now I was just -lookin' and seem' if ye was all right. Sure an' the weather's gittin' -cold and all and I got wonderin' how the throat was. I bought a new -stove what'll give ye lots o' heat--it's comin' in the mornin'." - -"Gee whiz!" Skippy said gratefully, then: "You sorta looked worried." - -Big Joe turned his back and started to undress. - -"I've got to be tellin' ye sometime, kid--I--listen...." - -"You've heard about Pop, huh?" Skippy sat up. - -"Yes--they...." - -"They what?" said Skippy anxiously. - -"They turned down the appeal. But don't be takin' on about it, Skippy. -Sure an' next year we'll be diggin' up new evidence. Now...." - -"I ain't gonna take on, Big Joe, honest I ain't," said Skippy bravely. -"On accounta you I ain't. You been so good--all the money you spent -tryin' to get Pop free. An' now--well, maybe if I don't hope about it -sumpin'll happen, sometime." - -"Sure now that's bein' a good kid, takin' it so aisy like. We'll be -tryin' agin like I said. Some time Marty Skinner'll get over his crazy -notion that iverybody in Brown's Basin's agin him and that Toby did the -job. Sure he hates iverybody here so much I hear he's got Buck Flint to -agree to buy the whole inlet. And thin he'll be drivin' us squatters -out, so he will." - -"But he can't do that!" Skippy protested indignantly. "He can't drive me -outa the _Minnie M. Baxter_ 'cause it's Pop's home--gee, the only home -we got. I gotta stay here till--well, when I leave it, I'll know I ain't -got any hope that he'll come back." - -"And don't I be knowin' how ye feel, kid? But if Skinner's put it in -Buck Flint's head that the inlet's a good buy and the deal goes through, -he'll be orderin' us out and we'll be likin' it. Buck ain't a bad egg, -but Skinner's runnin' the works and what he says goes, so it does. Now -if he tells us to beat it I'm wonderin' who'll be towin' a barge out o' -this mud whin she's settled. Why, it'd take a derrick, so it would, an' -even then it'd be a chance." - -Skippy was deeply affected by this news. He could not sleep because of -it and long after Big Joe was snoring comfortably he rolled and tossed -in his bunk. Then, after a time, he thought of what Tully had said about -the barges being too deeply settled in the mud to get them out, and he -was so curious about it that he got up to see for himself. - -He bundled himself up and slipped out onto the deck in the cold, damp -air of an early fall morning. It was not yet dawn but the deep black of -night had gone and Brown's Basin lay silent in a dark gray mist. - -Skippy leaned far over aft where the _Minnie M. Baxter_ was settled -deepest in the mud. Up forward, the slinking waters of the inlet gurgled -plaintively against the keel at high tide. Big Joe was right, he decided -with sinking heart; it would take a derrick and more to pull the barge -out of her muddy berth. - -As he started to step back he noticed a tarpaulin to his right which -seemed to be covering some bulky objects. Something that Big Joe had -brought aboard, he thought, and curiously he raised one end of it. One -glimpse told him enough. - -They were stolen ships' supplies, things that his father had told him a -river pirate could easily dispose of to some unscrupulous ship captain. -Skippy knew instantly how they had come there and he turned on his heel -and had started back for the shanty when a searchlight suddenly fell -full upon him. - -He crouched out of its glare and needed but to look hastily up the inlet -to see that it was the police boat bearing down upon the _Minnie M. -Baxter_. - - - - - CHAPTER XIX - DANGER - - -Feverishly, Skippy set to work and pushed the stolen goods overboard -piece by piece. Most of them floated but a moment, then sank out of -sight, and the rest floated at a safe enough distance from the oncoming -launch to escape the eyes of the police. - -[Illustration: FEVERISHLY SKIPPY PUSHED THE STOLEN GOODS OVERBOARD.] - -When the last piece had been disposed of he rushed to the shanty, -awakened Big Joe and told him what he had done. - -"'Tis a good boy ye be, Skippy," he praised. "Sure th' bulls give me a -chase tonight so they did and I couldn' unload the goods on me customer -so I brought thim here till tomorrow night. Ye're a broth of a lad to be -droppin' thim over, so ye be." - -"Sh!" said Skippy, frightened. "Ain't that them boardin' us now?" He got -out of his clothes and back into his bunk. - -They listened in silence while the soft tramp of feet came along the -deck. Skippy had reason to remember another terrible occasion when the -police boat had come to take his father. He had thought then that it was -only for a day. - -He had only Big Joe now, his only friend in a singularly callous world. -Would the law take him too? He couldn't bear it--he wouldn't bear it! He -would like and protect Big Joe even if he was a murderer, the police -wouldn't take the one thing he had left! - -They knocked insistently and Big Joe padded to the door, barefooted and -feigning complete surprise. He invited them in, hurried ponderously to -the rickety table and lighted the lamp. Mugs growled ominously. - -The officers told Tully that a certain warehouse had been broken into -that night. The watchman who had surprised the intruder thought he had -recognized Big Joe Tully. - -"Tonight?" Skippy piped up from his bunk. "It ain't so 'cause Big Joe's -been here takin' care of me since noon. I got one of my bad throats -again an' he wouldn't go out 'cause I was feelin' so bad." - -Who of the river front police hadn't heard of Skippy Dare's bad throat? -None that had patrolled the harbor during the past four months. Hadn't -it been because of his frail boy that Toby Dare had fought his prison -sentence so hard? The papers had been full of it too. - -"So the throat's cutting up again, eh Skippy?" asked Inspector Jones. He -was the same man who had taken Toby away from his son. - -Skippy, always a bit wan looking when he lay in his bunk, looked more -wan than ever then. His pallor was not simulated; it was terribly real, -for he was not only frightened at the prospect of losing Big Joe; he was -frightened because of the barefaced lie he had just told--the first in -his life. - -"I always gotta be careful of my throat, Mister," he said to the officer -when the worst of his emotion had passed. "'Specially when it gets cold. -Sometimes I get fever right away an' the doctor told Big Joe the last -time that I gotta right away have attention." - -"Sure and the lad's right," Big Joe interposed with genuine feeling in -his voice, "he's got only me to be lookin' after him now." - -"What you doing for a living, Big Joe?" asked the officer a little -pointedly. - -Big Joe stifled a yawn and sat down on a chair. - -"Me?" he asked innocently. "Ye mean what'll I do when the money I saved -from me barge gives out, is it? With the way Flint blackballed me 'fore -he died, I guess I'll have to be workin' out o' the bay next summer, so -I do." - -"Got enough for you and the kid till next summer?" the officer -persisted. - -"Sure and 'tis lucky I have, the way things be," answered Big Joe. - -The officer leveled his eyes at Tully. - -"For the kid's sake, watch your step, Big Joe," he said with a warning -note. "For the kid's sake...." - -Skippy couldn't believe they had gone. It seemed too good to be true, -and in order to reassure him, Big Joe put something around him and went -out on deck to see that the launch had actually gone. - -"Sure she's aisy out to the river by this time," he assured Skippy when -he came back. He lighted a cigarette and sat down. "Now was that a close -shave I'll be askin'," he exclaimed. "And I can be thankin' ye for it, -kid. I never expected thim to come stealin' up on us here, no, I -didn't." - -"See it don't pay, Big Joe!" Skippy said gently. He seemed spent with -the great strain. "People know a big guy like you anywheres an' besides -like I say, it don't pay anyhow. Gee, if you can't get honest work -'cause Flint blackballed you then I gotta work myself. I can get a job -as office boy in a warehouse. I bet I can!" - -"Nix, kid, nix, ye ain't well enough," Big Joe protested hotly. "Besides -I don't niver take things from folks what are hard up, Skippy. I----" - -"Lemme try it, Big Joe, huh? I'm better now'n I been in a long time, so -lemme try it! I'm not kickin' 'bout you. Gee, I can see how it is now. -Even Pop once told me how hard it was for a blackballed man to get back -along the river. You spent all your money on Pop an' me an' we hadda eat -an' live, so what was you gonna do! I shoulda known before that your -money couldn't last forever--gee! All you've done for me, Big Joe--lemme -try!" - -Tully was still protesting at daylight, but Skippy, having made up his -mind, fell peacefully to sleep with the dog tucked snugly under his -outstretched arm. Big Joe sat watching them until long after the sun -came up. - -"Sure and the kid lied for me," he said as he climbed back into his -bunk. "Sure and that nice kid lied for me--_me_!" - -And as his large features settled in slumber, they looked strangely -troubled. - - - - - CHAPTER XX - A JOB - - -Skippy left the barge noiselessly that morning and did not return until -six o'clock in the evening. Consequently, Big Joe spent a troubled day, -waiting and hoping and fearing. When he saw the boy crossing the plank -from the _Dinky O. Cross_, he hurried to the door. - -"And where have ye been, Skippy?" he called anxiously. "Here and ye been -havin' me crazy wonderin' if ye'd run away!" - -Skippy laughed and greeted Mugs who seemed to be growing by the minute. -Then he swung energetically into the shanty and sat down to a hot supper -that Mrs. Duffy had faithfully sent over. - -"Guess what, Big Joe?" - -"Sure and ye'll not be for quittin' me 'cause o' what happened last -night?" Big Joe returned trying not to sound anxious. - -"I should say not. Whad'ye think I am? I ain't yeller, Big Joe. Besides -I like you too much. What I wanta say is, I got a job." - -Tully frowned. - -"It ain't gonna be hard," Skippy assured him. "I'm the new office boy at -the Central Warehouse an' I'll get ten bucks a week. So now you needn't -be scareda cops." - -Tully smiled in spite of himself. "My now, ain't that just fine. Ain't -that just fine, kid. But do ye be knowin' who's boss o' the Central?" - -"No. Who?" - -"Marty Skinner, actin' as Buck Flint's agent, no less." - -"Well, he can see then that my Pop brought me up honest an' hard -workin'," said Skippy after a moment's surprise. - -"Sure, to be sure and he can that, but shiverin' swordfish, don't ye be -goin' on expectin' too much from him, kid. D'ye be thinkin' he's wise ye -be on the payroll?" - -"No." - -"Well, now, just ye be waitin' till he is. Just ye be...." - -Skippy did not have long to wait. He had completed his first week's work -in the Central Warehouse when one day he heard a hushed voice pass -around the awesome news that "the boss" was coming. - -Skinner recognized Skippy as soon as he stepped into the room. There -were a few questions asked and Skippy trudged back to the _Minnie M. -Baxter_ that night with a heavy heart. - -Big Joe was all sympathy. - -"And what was he sayin' to ye, kid?" - -"He wanted to know how I come to get a job there," Skippy answered -dolefully. "Wanted to know how I had nerve enough an' said I was there -as a spotter for my father's gang probably. An' before he finished he -said it was lucky there hadn't been a robbery there or he'd handed me -right over to the police then an' there. _Me_--me that ain't done him a -bitta harm an' that wouldn't! Gee, Big Joe, ain't it enough that he -helped put Pop where he is? Can't he see how _I_ am?" - -"None o' 'em can see anythin', kid," Big Joe answered, bitterly. "That's -the trouble with me and Toby and every man in this Basin. Sure 'tis -'cause the likes o' Skinner can't see. They don't even give us a chance, -they don't 'cause we're river folks. They tell us so much that we're -crooked that we wind up that way whither we want to or not, so we do. -They make us be crooked. And now they be startin' in on you, kid. 'Tis a -dirty shame, so 'tis." - -"I'll get some other place," Skippy was defiant. "They're not gonna make -me crooked when I don't wanna be." - -"Skippy, kid," thought Tully from the depths of his river front wisdom, -"I ain't so sure, I ain't so sure." But what he said was: "Sure and that -they'll not, Skippy me boy, that they'll not." - - - - - CHAPTER XXI - WHAT NEXT? - - -Weary week after weary week passed for Skippy until the winter months -had come and gone. March arrived, cold, blustery and disappointing, for -he hadn't yet been able to hold a job longer than it took his employers -to find out just who their office boy was. And as gossip spreads quickly -along the river front, the discouraged boy seldom drew more than a few -days' pay at a time. - -He had learned upon being dismissed from his last job the reason why -employers had no use for his services. He demanded to know. - -"Is it 'cause my father's in prison?" he asked wistfully. "'Cause if it -is nobody is fair in the world. You've heard, I bet, that lots of -innocent people are in jail so can't you believe maybe my father could -be one of them? And anyway, does that prove that I'm...." - -The employer, thus confronted, protested. - -"No," he said in that self-righteous tone that was beginning to wear on -Skippy's nerves, "we think that you, yourself, mean to be honest but we -know that you can't hold out long against such home conditions as the -Basin offers. A wage such as a boy like you with your limited education -can earn isn't enough to provide you with all you want. And sooner or -later, your association with a person like Big Joe Tully will have its -effect on you." - -"My Pop was gonna send me to school so's I could get educated," Skippy -protested, "but anyway I'm honest an' I'm gonna stay honest, no matter -what you think. Besides, Big Joe's tried to live straight all this -winter for my sake, but are you an' everybody else I've tried to work -for tryin' to help him? No, nobody won't even give him a job so he can -stay straight. An' now you won't let me stay 'cause I live with him, -because you're afraid...." - -"My dear boy," the employer interposed patronizingly, "can you blame us? -Tully has served a jail sentence for robbing our warehouses. How can we -be certain that he won't do it again? Or that he won't use your position -of trust in our offices to learn more easily what goods we have in our -warehouses that he can steal? What assurance can you give us that he -don't do that when he gets tired treading the straight and narrow path? -None. Absolutely none! No, we warehouse owners have been too long aware -that it is you thieving river people who are responsible for our -tremendous losses every year. And so we maintain that, once a thief, -always a thief!" - -Skippy was wounded and bitter. His full, generous lips curled -sardonically. - -"Then it ain't any use to try to make you understand," he said bravely. -"You warehouse people complain that we're thieves an' you make us -thieves just like you're tryin' to make me one by keepin' me outa jobs -so's I can't make an honest livin'. An' anyway, if the only way I could -hold a job is to quit Big Joe then I won't do it! I'd rather _be_ a -thief, yes I would! He saved my life and he's helped my Pop ... oh, -what's the use!" - -He slammed the door behind him and rushed home to find Big Joe with his -faithful, smiling face. Plank after plank he hurried over, connecting -the barges, and at last he crossed the deck of the _Dinky O. Cross_, -waved a greeting to the smiling Mrs. Duffy and whistled for Mugs when he -reached the plank of the _Minnie M. Baxter_. - -"And have ye lost the job, kid?" Big Joe asked when he entered the -shanty. - -"My last job, Big Joe," the boy answered smiling ruefully. "You were -right about 'em--there ain't one that'll gimme a chance. Even you who -ain't always been honest yourself did more than that! You let me try at -least. They know more about you than I did--they know you served time." - -"Sure and that's why they're blackballin' ye, is it? 'Cause ye're -stickin' with me?" His bland face looked dark and ominous. Then as he -glanced at the boy's wistful countenance, his expression softened: "I'm -tellin' ye the truth, kid, whin I say that they railroaded me, so they -did--I was startin' in honest like you. Office boy. Thin one night the -warehouse was robbed and next mornin' they accused me o' workin' with -the gang--tippin' 'em off. 'Cause I'd been seen 'round with one o' the -guys what was caught. I got a year, I did, and didn't have a chance. -When I come out I was blackballed and Ol' Flint took me under. Sufferin' -swordfish, sure and I've tried twice now to travel on the up and up. -When I first got my barge and now. And 'tis no use, 'tis no use." - -"Seems that way," Skippy murmured, disconsolate. "Now I ain't gonna try. -I'm gonna live an' eat like other fellers my age. I wanta go to the -movies an' take things up to Pop when I go to see him. Gee, already he's -startin' to write to me that the food's bad up at the big house. So I -gotta help him have a little sumpin' to smile at if he's gonna be there -the rest of his life! An' I gotta have money to go to see him--I gotta -see him! If they won't lemme earn it honest--_what else_? Like the man -said, I don't know enough to work anywheres else." - -"And ye'll be wantin' to quit me, kid? Ye'll be wantin' to go away and -start over where they don't know 'bout river people and all?" Big Joe's -anxiety was pathetic. - -"I'm afraid of places too far away from the river," Skippy admitted. "I -guess I got the river in me like Pop, huh? I ain't got nerve enough to -break away. Besides I sorta promised Pop I'd stay by the _Minnie M. -Baxter_. S'pose just by a lucky break the governor pardons Pop some day, -huh? He's paid good money for this barge an' it's the only home he's -got. Besides, I don't wanta quit you, Big Joe--_I couldn't_!" - -And Skippy's decision stood until Brown's Basin was no more.... - - - - - CHAPTER XXII - BIG JOE'S IDEA - - -In May, Big Joe conceived a brilliant idea for making a living. He came -into the shanty of the barge with it one balmy noon, for it was embodied -in a large canvas bag which he carried in his big outstretched hand. - -"Sure and now we be goin' to eat, kid, and we be goin' to live high, and -ye be goin' to do all the things ye' want for Toby," he said chuckling. - -"Stealin'?" Skippy asked, looking worried and wan. "As hard up as we -been, Big Joe, I can't stand for sneakin' down the river at night an' -climbin' into warehouse windows. Gee, Pop'd feel fierce if we was caught -an' I was put in reform school or sumpin' like that!" - -"And d'ye be thinkin' I ain't carin' no more for ye than seein' ye -grabbed for somethin' like that, me boy? Kid, I been thinkin' and -thinkin' o' some way for us to be gettin' by--some way that no copper -could catch us up on. And if they iver should 'twon't be you what'd be -holdin' the bag--'twill be me, 'cause I'm the one what'll do the trick. -Do you catch on?" - -"What trick, Big Joe?" - -"'Tis the stuff I got in this bag, kid," answered Tully softly. "'Tis -ground carbon and whin it's poured in with oil it raises the divil with -thim nice engines in rich guys' boats up at the Riverview Yacht Club. -From now on till the end o' summer they're takin' trips--see? Well, sure -and Big Joe's got a good pal what looks out for the boats up there ... -he's told beforehand what rich guy's goin' out in his boat, he is ... my -pal tells me and I go up there--see? Him and me edge aisy like towards -the boat and whilst he's lookin' out the corners o' his eye that no -one's comin', Big Joe uncovers the crank case and 'fore ye could say -_scat_, I'm pourin' me little powder in the breather pipe and sure she's -mixin' with the oil." - -"An' what then?" Skippy asked, nervous, yet admiring Big Joe's ingenious -idea. - -Big Joe winked, then laughed. - -"Sure, I pour the right amount o' this powder, kid," he said, "thin I -beats it off quick and watch the rich guy start, so I do. If 'tis -possible, me pal finds out where the guy's goin' so's I can beat it on -ahead and circle his course so I come up on him by the time his ingine's -dead--see?" - -"The powder mixes through the oil an' up through the engine, huh?" -Skippy asked fearfully. "Makes the engine go dead, huh?" - -"Sure 'tis ground up like nobody's business, kid," Big Joe laughed. "An' -I make sure o' puttin' in enough so's I'll be knowin' about where the -ingine goes dead on thim. And thin I chug up to thim all innocent like -and asks do they want help. _Do_ they? Sure they must be towed back so I -says I don't think I'm their man 'cause I'll be losin' business -somewheres or other--see? And they're so anxious they'll be willin' to -pay me price, so they will. And I gotta be paid for the loss o' me -time!" He laughed heartily. - -"I--I--gee, in a way that's worse than pulling a warehouse, Big Joe? It -ain't so dangerous, but...." - -"Kid, sure I thought ye'd be takin' on, but I can tell ye it ain't so -bad at all, at all. I'll be pickin' out only thim what's payin' tin and -twinty grand for their kickers! What's the cost to thim what throws away -hundreds o' bucks at a time? And what's fifty or seventy-five bucks for -to be payin' me for towin' thim back? Sure 'tis a drop in the bucket, -says I. They'll niver be missin' it, kid. And we gotta live, you and me, -and Toby's case's gotta go before the governor some day and that takes -money too." - -Skippy nodded and Big Joe noticed that the old pinched look had come -back to his thin cheeks. - -"Kid, ye can't be goin' on like this, you and me!" he pleaded. "Like I -said 'tis only the big guys--guys what have the heavy sugar. We'll be -layin' off the others and we'll be workin' the different clubs so nobody -gets wise. Thim boat tenders'll go along for a little o' the split. So -ye needn't be worryin' that we're takin' thim what can't afford it! -Besides they're mostly rich warehouse guys that won't give you and me -the chance for honest work. Sure and now ye won't be feelin' so bad -about takin' it, will ye?" - -That decided Skippy. Hunger and privation had dulled his conscience, -embittered him against the warehouse owners and he was at last ready to -strike back at his oppressors. - -And strange to say, in contemplating the results of this stealthy -enterprise, Skippy did not think of the food, nor the movies to which he -could go. He was thinking instead that he would at last have the money -to pay for his journey up to see his father. For a few golden moments -the walls of the prison would fade away and Toby would imagine himself a -free man. And all because of a breath of river air that his son would -bring him in his smile. - -And for that, Skippy was willing to forget that he hated dishonesty in -any form. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIII - ANOTHER JOB - - -It was early morning a few days later when Skippy and Tully set out on -the first stage of their enterprise. The inlet was dark and shadowy, and -the sweet soft breath of spring floated about their heads. In its wake, -however, came the smell of mud and fish at low tide and the boy was glad -to get out into the fresh salt air of the river. - -"It's the only thing that makes me hate the inlet," he said to Big Joe -as they turned up toward the yacht club. "I get feelin' choked, -sorta--you know, sumpin' like I imagine people feel when they go to -jail." - -"Now don't ye be feelin' spooky," Tully admonished. "'Tain't the spirit -for a job like this. Sure, there's somethin' 'bout mentionin' jail what -gives me the creeps. So don't be thinkin' we'll be gettin' in any -jams--'tis hard luck, so 'tis." - -"I'm sorry, Big Joe," said Skippy contritely. "I--I didn't say it for -that, honest, because even Pop can tell you how the inlet always made me -feel like that. I'm all right when I'm up on the barge; it's only the -inlet makes me feel that way. Just as soon as we strike the river I feel -better." - -"That's the talk, me boy. And I'm sorry for jumpin' on ye so quick. I -thought ye was nervous 'bout this job, so I did." - -"Aw, no," Skippy protested, but his quivering lip belied his words. - -Tully did not see it, however, for he was intent on approaching the -yacht club unobtrusively. - -"Now if this ain't a good break," he said enthusiastically. "There's a -party o' three goin' out on a two days' fishing trip at Snug Island. -She's called the _Minnehaha_, me pal tells me, and she's a baby. -Twenty-six footer! Guy that owns her is Crosley." - -"Crosley Warehouse where I worked last?" Skippy asked anxiously. - -"Sure, and now don't that beat all! Little Old Lady Luck's playin' with -us, kid! Sure 'tis a break to make him hand over his bucks or sink in -Watson's Channel!" - -"You wouldn't let 'em do that, Big Joe?" Skippy asked fearfully. "_You -wouldn't!_" - -"Nah, Big Joe ain't that hard hearted, much as I got it in for thim rich -bugs. I'll just be lettin' thim think I'm doin' thim a favor not lettin' -Watson's Channel close 'em in, so I will." - -"Do you s'pose Mr. Crosley'll get wise we're doin' it a-purpose?" Skippy -was beginning to weaken already. - -"And how'll he be doin' that, I'm askin' ye? Me pal tipped me off they -be due at dawn. We'll be there and gone a half hour afore they show up. -So don't be startin' worryin', kid. Leave everythin' to Big Joe, as if -ye didn't know nothin' 'bout the business at all, at all. You don't say -nothin'. Be lookin' dumb if anybody talks to ye." - -"I will," said Skippy, half-whimsically, and half-frightened. "I'll be -_scared_ dumb so you needn't worry that I'll get nervous an' give -anythin' away--gee whiz!" - -Big Joe laughed, then he said, "Awright, kid, D'ye be knowin' Skinner -and Crosley be pals?" - -"Gee!" said Skippy. "Now I know why I couldn't get a job. Skinner put -'em all wise, huh? Gee!" - -They were silent after that and chugged steadily toward the yacht club. -A ferry-boat was crossing far up the river and her lights blinked out -over the dark water like a hundred evil eyes. Hundreds of boats anchored -near shore bobbed up and down on the tide like a ghostly river army, and -from the shore more lights winked down on them knowingly as if they knew -their secret. - -They crept into the slip alongside the yacht club; Big Joe had shut off -the motor. At a sign from him, Skippy dropped the anchor and without a -word, he got out and crept across the float and onto the club grounds. - -After the darkness hid him from view Skippy looked about, nervously. -There was a little light gleaming from under the vast clubhouse porch -and suddenly he saw Big Joe's ponderous figure pass under it. Presently, -he halted and held out his hand to a man approaching him from the other -direction. - -Skippy sighed with relief and relaxed. At least Big Joe had met his -comrade without accident. Besides, no one seemed to be about. He heard -not a sound except the river lapping restlessly around the piling under -the slip and the swish of anchored craft as they swayed on the tide. - -It seemed to him that Big Joe was staying an interminable time, but as -an actual fact, it was just seven minutes before he saw the man's bulky -figure coming stealthily toward him. - -Skippy weighed anchor without a sound and they pushed the kicker out of -the slip with oars. A little distance below the club, Big Joe turned -over his motor. - -"Shiverin' swordfish, kid," he murmured with a chuckle, "all we do now -is wait--wait so's Crosley can get 'bout as far as Watson's Channel. -He'll be gettin' no further'n that--so he won't." - -Skippy shivered a little and leaned over the coaming to watch for logs. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIV - ANOTHER RESCUE - - -As the moments wore on, Skippy felt meaner than ever. He tried to force -himself to accept Big Joe's point of view, but it was difficult and more -than once he wished he had not encouraged his good friend in this -dubious enterprise. - -They chugged into the bay and out of the awakening river traffic. Dawn -had broken through and glimmerings of dancing light peeped over the -horizon. An hour more and they would be in sight of Watson's Channel. - -"We'll not be goin' straight for the Channel, we'll not," called Big Joe -as if anticipating Skippy's fears. "We'll be layin' quite like below -here a ways 'till the _Minnehaha_ gets in the Channel. 'Tis a funny -name, hey kid?" - -"Mm," Skippy answered. "It's a Indian name, Big Joe--I think it means -sumpin' like Laughing--Laughing sumpin'." - -Big Joe's mirth knew no bounds. - -"Sure and just about now _Minnie_ ain't laughin', she ain't," he said. -"'Tis us." - -"Not me," Skippy said gloomily. "I won't laugh ... not till after." - -An hour later they were chugging noisily toward Watson's Channel. The -sun was glorious and the water glistened under its warm spring rays. -Gulls frolicked about in the foaming spray and Skippy tried hard to -believe there was nothing but peace in his busy mind. - -After a time they heard a distant sound, faint at first but growing -louder within a few minutes. Tully grinned at Skippy's questioning face -and nodded as the piercing note of a siren cut the silent sunlit air. - -"Sure, and I wonder what that might be?" he said with mock-seriousness. -"Sounds like distress I'd be sayin', I would." - -"Stop kiddin', Big Joe," Skippy pleaded. "You mean you think it's -_them_?" - -"Well now I wouldn' be s'prised," the big fellow answered. Then -seriously, he said: "We'll be gettin' there, kid! Don't be lookin' as if -they was drownin' or somethin'. Sure they could keep afloat for hours so -they could, and look at the tide besides." - -Skippy glanced at the quietly rolling swell and felt somewhat reassured. -But the voice of the siren jarred him and he was glad to see that Big -Joe looked serious and determined. He hadn't liked that note of raillery -in his friend's voice. - -But despite Skippy's fears Tully answered the siren call with all the -haste of a good Samaritan. One might have supposed that he gloried in -the duties of heroic service. And when he reached the Channel and they -sighted the distressed launch, he opened wide his throttle until the old -hull shook to the vibrations of the engine. - -Skippy clenched his slim, brown fingers and sat tense in his seat while -a spray rained into the boat. Big Joe coughed significantly and drove -his ramshackle craft straight for the disabled cruiser. - -"Now ain't she the sweet lookin' baby," he observed as if he had never -seen the launch before. - -Skippy said nothing but grimly watched the three men who awaited their -coming. Crosley he recognized at once, but the man standing alongside of -him was a stranger. The third occupant of the _Minnehaha_ was Marty -Skinner. Skippy remembered him from his father's trial and from the -night Skinner had ordered him off the _Apollyon_ without a hearing. - -"You see him?" he asked Big Joe between clenched teeth. - -"'Tis all the better," Big Joe seemed to say in his bland smile. - -He brought the kicker up alongside the _Minnehaha_ and laid a life -preserver over the coaming of his boat to prevent its scratching the -gleaming hull of the launch. Skippy scrambled to the rescue and held the -kicker as the ill-assorted pair rocked and rubbed in the heavy swell. - -"Sure I don't want to be scratchin' her," said Tully with a fine -assumption of humble respect for the launch. "I was tellin' the kid -here, she's some baby, hey? What's bein' the matter; power give out did -she? 'Tis too bad, so 'tis." - -Skippy kept his eyes on space, but he had the feeling that Big Joe and -he were being scrutinized with unfriendly stares. - -Crosley sniffed the air contemptuously before he spoke. - -"She's pumping oil to beat the band," he said. "We don't seem to be -getting any compression either. We can't get a kick out of her. Been -flopping around for an hour." - -"Sure maybe ye be needin' new rings," said Tully. "Guess ye been pushin' -her too hard, hey?" - -He glanced into the cockpit and with a fine show of rueful astonishment, -beheld the disastrous results of his own handiwork. She was indeed -pumping oil. The engine head was covered with it, and it was streaming -down the side over the carburetor. Three or four spark plugs had been -taken out and lay on a locker in little puddles of oozy muck. - -"If 't was only one cylinder now, I'd be sayin' ye had a busted ring, or -even a cracked piston," Tully said blandly. "But shiverin' swordfish if -it don't look like the whole six o' thim, don't it? Ye can't do nothin' -here. Looks like ye was racin' her a lot." His detestable device had -worked so well that he seemed moved to offer gratuitous suggestions. "I -knowed a guy was stuck on the bar over by Inland Beach and he kept -racin' his motor, and somehow--I dunno just how--she sucked in a lot o' -beach sand and it sanded down his cylinder wall good an' plenty, so it -did." - -Skinner's lips were drawn in a thin line above his pointed chin. - -"Does that mean we'll have to be towed back, Crosley?" he asked his host -petulantly. - -"Afraid so, Marty," answered Crosley. "I can't imagine how a fine engine -like mine could break down so soon." - -"Sure and if that ain't just like some guys," said Tully glibly. -"They're fine's a fiddle one day and the next--they're done for, ain't -it so?" - -Crosley nodded indifferently. - -"Could you tow us in?" he asked as if the question were distasteful. His -aversion to the uncouth, but amiable river man was too obvious to escape -Skippy's sensitive eyes. - -If Tully was aware of it too, he did not betray it. His face looked -grave and thoughtful. - -"Trouble is I'm due at the Hook," he said hesitantly. "Have an all day's -job towin' a barge. I'm late as 'tis. And if I ain't there in twinty -minutes I lose the job, so I do. 'Tis the first good payin' job I've had -in a long...." - -Crosley waved his hand in entreaty. - -"We'll see that you're paid for the loss of your day's job, man. How -much would you get for it, eh?" - -Tully moved his large head and shrugged his powerful shoulders. -"Seventy-five bucks is what they're goin' to pay me," he said modestly. - -Crosley gasped audibly. - -"That's a lot of money, but...." - -"It's a hold up!" snapped Skinner between his tightly drawn lips. - -"Sure and it's what they're payin' me, boss," said Big Joe with a look -of hurt pride. "I ain't askin' ye' for a cent, I'm not considerin' I may -lose my customer for future jobs. 'Tis not only I'm losin' that -seventy-five bucks, 'tis...." - -"All right," Crosley sniffed angrily. "You're taking advantage of us. I -don't believe you can earn seventy-five dollars for a day's work. But -you have us at a disadvantage--the Lord knows who else we could get to -our rescue in this unfrequented channel." - -"So and that's all the thanks I get," said Tully. "Comin' way out o' me -way...." - -"All right," Skinner interposed. "Give it to him, Crosley. I know who -this fellow is. We're at his mercy. But I'll remember this, -Tully--you're occupying the mud banks at Brown's Basin. You and this -boy, Dare, may want some consideration when you people have to get out -of the Basin. And I'll remember who's living on the _Minnie M. Baxter_!" - -"You oughta!" Skippy shouted angrily, rising to his feet. "Your cheatin' -boss what's dead put it there, that's what, an' my father'll never see -the sun on the river again on account of it too! So try an' take it -away." - -Skinner's cold dignity seemed unruffled. He averted his gaze while -Crosley counted out seventy-five dollars to Big Joe Tully. Skippy stood -by, his heart full of hate, and at that moment he thought that he could -cheerfully see the _Minnehaha_ sink to the bottom of the Channel while -Skinner begged to be saved. - -While leisurely chugging back toward the Basin that afternoon he and -Tully talked it over seriously. - -"Well, and we got seventy-five bucks aisy money out o' the tightwads," -Tully chuckled in conclusion. - -"Seventy-five bucks an' the promise of trouble from Skinner, Big Joe," -Skippy reminded him with a note of apprehension in his voice. - -Tully's face darkened. - -"I hate Skinner for sayin' what he did, so I do," he said ominously. -"Sufferin' swordfish if he do be makin' ye scared and drivin' ye outa -the only home ye got--well, he better be lettin' ye 'lone. _Me_, I don't -care much where I live, but _you_ ... I'll be fixin' him if he...." - -"Don't say it, Big Joe!" Skippy pleaded earnestly. "It scares me, 'cause -that's just what Pop said the night he went to see old Mr. Flint on the -_Apollyon_! It's sorta----" - -"And 'tis all right, kid, so 'tis." Tully smiled. "Now ye be forgettin' -it." - -Skippy tried to; certainly he had forgotten that he himself had wished -Marty Skinner a like fate only that morning. - - - - - CHAPTER XXV - DAVY JONES - - -Tully's game worked successfully for the next few weeks, for he had -distributed his activities among various club houses dotting the shore. -It had become an enterprise apparently without threat of untoward -incident--so much so that Skippy, with his uncanny knack of presaging -ill, came to feel that they must not go on with the distasteful -business. - -He had hated the treachery of it from the very beginning, partly because -of his innate honesty and also because in fairness to himself, he knew -he had no real grudge against his rich fellow men. And in his vague, -ignorant way Skippy knew that Skinner and Crosley represented something -which hate could never successfully combat. - -He felt it particularly one early morning when Tully, swaggering out of -the shanty of the _Minnie M. Baxter_, rubbed his large hands in gleeful -anticipation of the next victim. - -"'Tis up to the Riverview Yacht Club we'll be goin' this mornin', kid," -he said confidently. "We've worked aroun' to it agin. Me pal, the boat -tender what tipped me off on Crosley's _Minnehaha_, ain't there no more, -but the new guy was aisy pickin'. He fell for a little split, without -battin' an eye, so he did, and sent word down last night that a little -fishin' party headed for Snug Island would push off at dawn." - -"Snug Island, huh?" Skippy asked fearfully. "That means Watson's Channel -for us again?" - -"Sure," laughed Tully, "'tis a spot I like. Nobody goes through Watson's -Channel 'cept they're headed for Snug Island. And nobody goes to Snug -Island fishin' but a coupla rich guys what own the whole place. It's -aisy pickin' so 'tis." - -"For you it's easy, Big Joe," said Skippy, "but not for me. Sometimes I -think I never had anythin' so hard to do in my life as just gettin' up -nerve to go on these trips. Gee, I ain't never had the heart to tell Pop -about them--I lied, an' said we was makin' a pretty good livin' towin' -an' fishin'." - -Big Joe roared with laughter. - -"Sure and we're towin' and fishin'," he said with a malicious wink. "Ye -didn't tell Toby no lie. We fish the money out o' 'em and thin tow thim -back--that's no story." - -"I wish you wouldn't laugh about it, Big Joe," Skippy said with a frown. -"It makes it seem as if it was a joke--as if you liked it almost." - -"And you'd be likin' it too, kid, if ye wanted to get back at these rich -guys much as I do. But I won't be laughin' about it no more, if it makes -ye feel that way. Sufferin' swordfish but ye don't have to be actin' -like we're goin' to a funeral." - -"I feel funny about goin' to the Riverview Yacht Club this morning. Big -Joe, would you stay away from there if I asked you to?" - -"Any mornin' but this one, Skippy me boy," said Tully with all his old -affection. "I can't be side-steppin' it on account o' this new boat -tender. He's expectin' a little handout so I can't be disappointin' him. -But I'll tell ye what, kid, if it's makin' ye feel so awful bad I'll -chuck this game 'fore ye can say any more. I'll be thinkin' up somethin' -else. Anythin' but seem' ye' feelin' sad, kid." - -They got into the kicker and chugged out of the inlet once more. -Skippy's eyes glistened happily and he told himself that he could forget -the ominous whisperings inside of him for just this once. Indeed, he -could forget everything distasteful in the past few weeks now that Tully -had promised to give up the hated business. - -"We ain't heard from Crosley or Skinner since that mornin' we towed 'em -back, huh Big Joe?" he asked irrelevantly. "I wonder if they found out -what was really wrong with the engine?" - -"We'd o' heard 'bout it soon enough if they did, so we would," said -Tully thoughtfully. "Anyways, I heard that Crosley sold the _Minnehaha_ -right that next day. He said he didn't want no boat that almost put him -down in Watson's Channel. Ha, ha! Sure and I'm glad he did. He should be -worryin' with his money." - -Once more they pulled up beside the slip of the Riverview Yacht Club and -once more Big Joe stole silently up the lawn in the gray morning -shadows. Skippy waited patiently, albeit anxiously, and held the boat -secure while his weary eyes blinked sleepily in the sultry air. - -After a time, Big Joe came hurrying out of the shadows. - -"Simple as sayin' meow, kid," he said exultantly. "The boat tender tells -me this guy's goin' alone to Snug Island this mornin'. He couldn't be -rememberin' the guy's name what owns her, but he says the boat ain't a -week old. She's a peach--a trim, twenty-six footer, kid! And of all -names she's got! Sufferin' swordfish!" - -"What?" - -"The _Davy Jones_--so 'tis. Can ye be beatin' that?" - -"_Big Joe!_" Skippy said in a small, frightened voice. "That's a name -that scares me terrible." - -"_Ye're crazy, kid, ye're crazy!_ Sure and what's in a name. Just 'cause -Davy Jones happens to mean...." - -"Just the same I'm scared terrible," Skippy maintained stoutly. "An' -there's lots in names whether you believe it or not. Now take the -_Minnie M. Baxter_--nothin' bad could come of her in the end, I bet, and -if it did I bet it would be for the best, because it was my mother's -name. Even if there's been trouble about the barge from the beginnin' -there's good come on it too. When Pop was taken away, then you came to -be good to me so that shows there's somethin' good about the barge, -don't it? But Davy Jones only means one thing, Big Joe, an' you can say, -what's in a name!" - -What, indeed! - - - - - CHAPTER XXVI - THE ROCKS - - -It was a murky dawn and no sun followed in its wake. The air was heavy -and oppressive, and low rumblings of thunder echoed in from sea. Skippy -shook his head worriedly as they chugged out of sight of the bay to let -the _Davy Jones_ pass by. - -"I don't feel right this morning, Big Joe," the boy insisted. "Say what -you like, but we shouldn't wait--we oughta tail the _Davy Jones_, right -away--_this minute_, before the storm comes on." - -"Now ye be worryin' agin, hey?" Tully asked impatiently. "That storm's -out at sea and it won't hit the Channel. Sure 'tis just a murky -mornin'." - -"All right," said Skippy, "but I know." - -Tully was beginning to be annoyed with Skippy's gloomy predictions and -he showed it. Yet somehow it gave him a little uneasiness and from time -to time he glanced thoughtfully from the boy to the distant black -horizon. - -The storm clouds were coming nearer and thunder rolled ominously over -their heads. Finally Tully turned over his motor and set her nose about. -After she had warmed up, he opened wide the throttle and headed for the -bay. - -"I'll be keepin' her open and beat it for the Channel soon's we get -across," he explained. "We'll be gettin' there sure 'fore the storm -breaks bad." - -"I hope so," said Skippy, "because it's travelin' in from sea, fast." - -"We'll be goin' round by The Rocks and save fifteen minutes or so," -Tully said hopefully searching the boy's face. "'Tis high enough tide -for to take a chance." - -The Rocks, that bane of all mariners who were unfamiliar with the -lurking waters beyond the bay, could be safely passed in small boats at -high tide. There were few, however, who took advantage of this -concession of Nature to the small nautical man, nearly all mariners -preferring the greater safety that was offered them by going the long -way around Inland Beach. - -A high wind was steadily rising as they chugged into the vicinity of The -Rocks, and it prevented Skippy from hearing that call of distress for -which he was so intently listening. Whether the wind was against them, -he did not know, for the howling tempest and turbulent water drowned out -all other sounds. - -The storm broke after a few minutes and rain lashed at them from all -sides. Tully said not a word, but stayed at his wheel silent and grave. -And by his averted head, Skippy knew that he, too, was listening for -that siren call from the _Davy Jones_. - -Salt spray flung itself up over the bow and into Skippy's face. He could -have moved farther back to avoid it, but he seemed incapable of action -then, and sat tense and white, listening, listening.... - -Tully did not miss it. The boy's tragic expression so dismayed him that -he felt for the first time in his life that he should have mended his -ways while there was still time. All his sins seemed to have crowded -into Skippy's face to accuse him. - -And still they heard no call of distress from the _Davy Jones_. - -Tully, desperate, raced his engine until they whistled through the -foaming spray. Then suddenly they felt the keel grind under them with -such force that it took all their combined strength to steady the boat -and keep her from turning over. - -"What happened, do you s'pose?" Skippy asked with white face. - -"Sufferin' swordfish, kid!" Tully cried. "I think she's stove in--The -Rocks! _Look!_" - -He pointed and Skippy looked, to see a jagged hole in the bottom of the -kicker. Water came in through it rapidly and even as he stared at it, it -trickled over his feet and up to his ankles. - - - - - CHAPTER XXVII - SUSPENSE - - -"What'll we do?" Skippy cried. "Gee, what'll we do?" - -"We'll be swimmin' for it, kid," Big Joe answered, his face ashen and -drawn. "Inland Beach's nearest--we'll be swimmin' it in a half hour, -takin' it aisy like." - -"_Easy!_ In this water and wind?" - -"Skippy, don't be worryin'. Sure and I ain't goin' to see ye go down. -I'll be keepin' ye up if it takes me life." - -Suddenly Skippy turned, pleading. Big Joe knew and his eyes dropped -before the boy's accusing gaze. - -"And what can I be doin' about the _Davy Jones_ now, kid!" he protested -"I _got_ ye to be thinkin' about now.... Sufferin' swordfish!" He -groaned. - -"Then we gotta swim to Inland Beach as fast as we can, Big Joe," Skippy -said, master of himself once more. "We gotta get help right away for the -_Davy Jones_!" - -"Sure, sure," the big fellow moaned, "anythin', kid, only don't be -lookin' at me so accusin'. Did I know it was goin' to happen like this? -Sufferin' swordfish!" - -"C'mon, Big Joe--_c'mon_!" - -They had no sooner jumped clear of the boat than she sank out of sight. -A terrific gale blew them along and Skippy kept close to Tully, buoyed -up by the thought that he must keep going in order to get help for the -_Davy Jones_. - -And for once Tully was right in a prediction. It took them all of the -half hour before they sighted the sandy wastes of Inland Beach. - -The summer colonists sheltered from the storm in their inadequately -built bungalows sighted the bobbing heads of the swimmers as they -battled their way against the tide. Speedily the beach was covered with -people and the life-guards, summarily dragged from their bunks in their -beach shanty, jumped drowsy-eyed into the life-boat and went into -action. - -Ten minutes later, the two were rushed up to the guards' shanty and -hurriedly divested of their dripping garments. - -"We gotta ..." Skippy began as soon as he had a chance to talk. - -"We thought we heard a siren," Big Joe interposed. "Sure, it sounded -like distress--there ain't a doubt." - -"We heard it plain!" Skippy exclaimed anxiously. "An' it came from the -Channel--didn't it, Big Joe, huh?" - -"Sure and he's right. 'Tis about where I figgered she was comin' from," -Tully added. - -"An' we better start right out again!" Skippy said eagerly. "With this -high wind...." - -"A guy hasn't much chance in the Channel," interposed one of the guards -bluntly. "I can tell you that before we start. And if it wasn't that you -say you're sure you heard it, we wouldn't take a chance ourselves. Even -a big tub like ours ain't a match for the Channel in a storm and high -wind." - -"But we're sure we heard it! Ain't we, Big Joe?" - -"Sure we did that!" Tully said emphatically. - -And so they started for the Channel. - -The wind died down shortly after they had lost sight of Inland Beach. -Presently the rain ceased and after a few moments' struggle with storm -clouds, the sun came smiling through. - -Skippy smiled too, hopeful that it augured well for the object of their -search. Tully relaxed and took a cigarette that one of the guards -offered him. He talked little and kept his eyes ahead. - -They reached the Channel in a half hour and for a full hour they -searched it up and down. Skippy kept his eyes on the water; he dared not -let the guards see the hopelessness written there should his glance -chance to meet Tully's. - -"Sure we _couldn't_ be dreamin' we heard a siren, now could we?" Tully -pleaded when the guards announced their intention of returning to the -beach. - -"You guys didn't seem to be so sure you heard any at all when we first -got you out of the water," one of the men reminded them. - -"Sure and we were kind o' all in from the breaks we got," Tully -explained. His voice sounded hollow and weary. - -"Well, we don't hear no siren now," said the other guard, "and we've -been up and down the Channel. If there _was_ any guy in distress, maybe -he's been swept out to sea. And we can't go hunting that far for you -fellers. We'll send out word to the coast guard anyway when we get back -just to be on the safe side. They'll find the tub if it's still afloat." - -"An' if there was any siren signaling distress when that high wind first -come up," said the first guard, "she's most likely screeching now for to -get into Davy Jones' locker. Who knows?" - -Skippy and Big Joe would have given their lives at that moment to know. - - - - - CHAPTER XXVIII - THE DUFFYS - - -They borrowed a kicker from one of the summer colonists and set out for -home just before noon. Skippy was too overwhelmed to speak until long -after they left the beach and Tully sat tragic and silent at the wheel. - -"We might's well look agin," he murmured brokenly, as he headed the boat -toward the Channel. "Just so's to be makin' sure." - -"Might's well," Skippy echoed. Then: "Gee, do you think maybe he was -blowin' the siren?" - -"That he must o' done. He must o' been blowin' it like mad." - -They spent half the afternoon chugging up and down the Channel and -passed several craft, government and otherwise, which had heard the -warning that the Inland Beach guards had passed along. Finally they -decided to return home and with bowed heads found their way out of the -treacherous waters. - -"Sure if the coast guards ain't found him, we won't--not if we be -stayin' there all night," said Tully mournfully. "Kid, don't ye be -jumpin' on me, now. If ye knew what I been through since ... since.... I -been blowin' a siren in distress five hun'erd times, so I have, and five -hun'erd times, I been in that _Davy Jones_ callin' me lungs out for help -an' no help come! I've sunk with her too--oh shiverin' swordfish ... -kid, I ain't nothin' but a plain...." - -"Don't say it, Big Joe," said Skippy, moved to the depths of his soul -with pity. "Gee, don't I know! You wouldn't have done it a-purpose." - -"No. 'Tis right ye be there." Tully looked beaten. - -They chugged on up the river and seemed to pass everyone they knew. -Inspector Jones and his men bobbed by in the trim harbor launch waving a -cheery greeting to Skippy and eyeing Tully with obvious suspicion. - -Skippy was grateful for the silent inlet and the warm throaty bark that -Mugs gave as he scrambled aboard the barge. He looked at the dog, winced -a little at his faithful canine eyes and took him up in his arms. He -couldn't do to Mugs what they had done to that unknown man on the _Davy -Jones_. - -He sprawled in a rickety arm chair on deck while the sun sank slowly in -the west. The whole horizon was a blaze of scarlet, then gold, then -purple and at last it faded into leaden colored clouds. Big Joe was -calling him in to supper. - -Skippy looked down in the crook of his arm at the sleeping dog. Supper? -He didn't want any--he never wanted to eat while that man on the _Davy -Jones_ lay in Watson's Channel. He couldn't do it to Mugs. - -Tully got tired of waiting and came out on deck. After one glance at -Skippy's tragic face he got his hat, pulled it down over his head and -left the barge while the boy watched him go with a constricted feeling -in his throat. And though he wanted with all his heart to call Big Joe -back, he knew that he could never again sit opposite him at the table -with a dead man between them. - -Dusk settled over the inlet and through the shadows came Mrs. Duffy. Her -cheery smile was conspicuous by its absence just then and her cheeks -looked tear-stained and haggard. Skippy forgot the dead man in the _Davy -Jones_--he was all concern for this kindly neighbor who had helped nurse -him back to health. - -Hadn't Skippy heard? Mrs. Duffy sobbed a little, then bravely smiled -through her tears. She had to be strong and brave--other wives and -mothers in the Basin were getting used to the experience of seeing their -menfolk taken in by the long arm of the law. And now Mr. Duffy had been -added to that number. - -What had he done? No more than other river folk had done before him. But -it was forbidden by the law and there you were. And the excuse that they -had to live and eat carried no weight in the courts of the land. Neither -did the courts care that a rich and unscrupulous Josiah Flint had lured -these men into his vicious employ at starvation wages only to leave them -unwanted and ostracized from honest employment upon his untimely death. -And Mr. Josephus Duffy, obeying that primal law of the survival of the -fittest, was to be jailed for five years because he stole when -employment was denied him. Five years of punishment for bringing food -home to his family! - -Skippy's young heart was bursting with sympathy. Wrapped up in his own -and his father's concerns he had been vaguely conscious of his -neighbors, the Duffys of the _Dinky O. Cross_. Squatters like himself, -he had been aware that they came and went, but that was all. Now they -became suddenly real and vivid to him--the Duffys, father and mother, -and their two children, minus the father now. - -"And wouldn't Skinner give him nothin' at the Central havin' two kids -like you got?" he asked sympathetically. - -"Skinner'd push men in prison before he'd help 'em get a decent job," -the good woman said with a jerk of her head. "He said he's goin' to -clean all us scum out of this Basin--ain't you heard?" - -Yes, Skippy had heard only too well. He leaned over and timidly touched -the woman's work-worn hands, pledging his slim, manly self as an aid and -comfort to herself and her two unfortunate children. In gratitude, she -hugged the boy to her breast and hurried back to the _Dinky O. Cross_ to -put her young ones to bed. - -Skippy cherished that embrace; it was the only maternal affection he had -ever known. His eyes shone into the darkness with the joy of it and he -hugged Mugs still closer in his arms and spent some time in reflecting -on why he was so happy when he was so sad. - -Josiah Flint and Marty Skinner rose up before his eyes. He was beginning -to realize what sorrow they had brought to the river people--_his -people_! A fellow feels things like that when he's going on thirteen. - -Thirteen! Skippy looked up into the starlit sky and blinked. Mugs' even -breathing was like the whisper of the breeze blowing about his head. And -he went to sleep planning how he could save the menfolk of the Basin -from future prison life. He would see that the boys went to school as he -himself had wanted to do so badly and he would see that they got decent, -honest wages so that they could live as other people did in houses with -pretty gardens.... - -Tully found him still asleep when he came back at midnight. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIX - GOOD NEWS - - -"Skip--Skippy, kid!" Tully called, shaking the boy to arouse him. - -Skippy sat up, startled. Mugs barked blatantly. - -"What's up, huh? You look as if something'd happened--what's the -matter?" - -Tully motioned him into the shanty where he lighted the lamp and sat -down. - -"Can ye stand hearin' somethin' without faintin'?" he asked mirthlessly. - -"I guess so," the boy answered shaking his straight hair from off his -forehead. "But I hope it ain't anything worse!" - -"Better and worse, sorta," Big Joe laughed ruefully. "But first so's to -be aisin' ye, kid--the _Davy Jones_ turned back, so she did, when she -reached the bay this mornin'. From what the boat tender told me, sure -must o' put a little extra dose o' the powder in the breather and she -started kickin' up a rumpus a little sooner than ordinary, she did. So -the owner, bein' a foxy guy, turned back when he heard that and saw the -storm clouds comin' in from over the sea." - -"So the _Davy Jones_ ain't in her locker then, huh? Gee, am I glad!" - -"Sure, and she got back to the club, and the owner had somebody come -right away to be seein' what was wrong." - -"Did they find out?" - -"That they did, kid. He's got the police on the case, and I think -they'll be workin' on me. But they ain't got no evidence so they ain't, -and besides, I took all me powder and threw it in the inlet tonight, so -I did." - -Skippy sat down at the table, his head in his hands. - -"Gee, I was afraid something awful would come of it." - -"Now don't ye be worryin' too soon, kid. They'll have to be goin' some -to get me.... You can bet on that." - -"Gee, Big Joe, you don't savvy. It's the idea of gettin' the coppers -suspectin' me and sayin' they expected sumpin' like that from Toby -Dare's kid. That's what I couldn't bear Pop to hear after he's planned -better things for me. Gee, I couldn't stand it!" Then: "Who owns the -_Davy Jones_, Big Joe, huh?" he demanded. - -"Now that's a funny thing," Tully said. "The _Davy Jones_ is Crosley's. -He bought her a week ago after he sold the _Minnehaha_. I s'pose that's -why he played foxy whin the ingine wint wrong with the new one? If that -big sap boat tender had only tole me who owned her I'd niver...." - -"Gee whiz, Big Joe, now I can see why Pop said these crooked rackets -don't pay in the end. It's account of that _if_. It's always if this or -that didn't happen everythin' would be all right. But it never is. Oh, -gee, I'm not hoppin' on you--maybe I'd been just like you if it wasn't -that I'm sick and disgusted with crooked rackets already. Maybe it's -because my mother came from a farm and so I'm not all river, huh? -Anyway, I know I don't want any more of this business. I'm gonna be -straight I am. I learned a lesson today on that _Davy Jones_ business -an' I mean it." - -"Me, too!" said Big Joe with all his old time swagger. "I was tellin' -meself comin' back here that if I think up an aisy racket where the -coppers don't get wise, I'll be savin' up a few grand an' thin open up -one o' thim hot dog stands in the country. Sure and the river won't see -me at all, at all after that." - -Skippy laughed outright--for, boy that he was, he could see that Tully -would be Tully as long as the river flowed down to the sea. - - - - - CHAPTER XXX - BEASELL - - -Next day, life in the Basin flowed once more in familiar channels. Tully -trod the decks watching for the unwelcome police and puffing furiously -on his cigarettes. Skippy sprawled in the rickety easy chair, playing -with the dog and calling out to Mrs. Duffy some words of cheer when the -occasion required. And when sunset came and the law had not put in its -appearance they had supper noisily together. - -Tully stretched out in his bunk after the meal had been cleared away. He -looked at peace with the world. Skippy, watching him out of the corner -of his eye, wondered what new racket he was planning now. And he didn't -rest until he had asked the big fellow point blank. - -"Me racket for a while, kid," Tully said amiably, "is to be keepin' ye -from gettin' gloomy and sad. Whin I'm sure that Crosley ain't set the -coppers on me trail thin I'll be turnin' around--see? Right now I'm -stickin' close to the _Minnie M. Baxter_, so I be." - -"And you could do worse, Big Joe, believe me. I'm gonna stick close too -until I know what's what. But we'll talk about that then." - -An insistent knock sounded on the door. Tully blanched and looked about -for some means of escape. But Skippy, braving himself to the task, swung -open the door to get it over with. - -A man stood outside, bowing graciously and smiling. He stepped inside at -Skippy's invitation. - -"Beasell's the name, boys," he said. "Yuh heard how Marty Skinner's -runnin' the works for Buck Flint?" - -"Sure we been hearin' it too much, I'll be tellin' ye," Big Joe snapped -as he came ponderously out of his bunk and stood on the floor. - -"It's all jake then, big boy, you an' me won't waste no time," Beasell -said unruffled. - -"You've come to tell us...." Skippy began fearfully. - -"Marty says all yuh squatters in this Basin'll have tuh scram by sundown -tomorrow, get me? He's had all the rough stuff he's goin' for and that -goes double for the warehouse guys. So it's scram in twenty-four hours, -see? If yuh can't take these lousy scows out we'll blow 'em up, get me? -Just a nice little Fourth uh July party, see?" He chuckled as if at a -great joke. - -"You can't blow up the _Minnie M. Baxter_!" Skippy cried. "Even a guy -like Skinner can't take her from me 'cause, 'cause...." - -"Lissen, punk, and you too, big boy, it's scram by sundown tomorrow," -Beasell snarled. "Yuh better get me. I ain't kiddin' believe yuh me!" He -scowled as he left to spread the bad news to the _Dinky O. Cross_. - -"Sufferin' swordfish! Sure that Skinner's a lousy rat," Big Joe growled. -"I should o' been pastin' that slimy Beasell but it wouldn't done no -good. He's only carryin' out orders." - -"Not only me'n you's gotta go, Big Joe," said Skippy plaintively, "but -Mrs. Duffy an' her kids an' everybody here in the Basin. How're they all -gonna pack up an' clear out by tomorrow night, huh? Gee, that ain't -fair. There ain't one of us got a home to go to--gee whiz, these barges, -why--they're home!" - -Tully's face looked distorted as he walked to and fro across the shanty -floor. Finally he turned. - -"Sure Skinner don't know what it means to be sendin' that Beasell guy -down here to be tellin' us we must be out by tomorrow night, bad cess to -him." - -"What d'ye mean, Big Joe?" - -"Sure, folks here ain't like other folks, like ye've noticed. They been -free for years and they ain't goin' to be kicked out without doin' some -kickin' first thimselves. Law? Sure, they don't know what it's all about -so what do they care, I'll be askin' ye." - -Big Joe Tully had summed it all up in one sentence. They didn't know -about the law, so what did they care about it? - -It wasn't many hours before Skippy learned how little they did care. - - - - - CHAPTER XXXI - MOONLIGHT - - -Skippy waited until Tully was fast asleep that night, then he crept -stealthily out of the shanty with the dog skipping and sniffing at his -heels. He was careful to close the door softly behind him; he wanted to -be alone. - -It was a different Skippy that trod those decks, a new and older Skippy, -who looked about the lumbering old barge through his father's eyes. It -did not seem possible to him that Skinner could so ruthlessly order him -away from the only home he had. Yet he realized that not many hours -hence he would not even have _that_ home. - -He went forward and, getting to his knees, leaned far over and stared -down at the trickling waters of the muddy inlet lapping against the -hull. The dog, thinking him to be playing, jumped about with a soft -whine to draw his master's attention. - -Skippy tumbled him about for a while, then climbed down with him into -the borrowed kicker that was anchored alongside the barge. - -"We're gonna take one last cruise out and back in the inlet again--see, -Mugs? I've just gotta see how the _Minnie M. Baxter's_ gonna look when I -think of her afterwards. I don't want to forget it's where I lived with -two of the best pals I'll ever have, outside of Pop. Gee, Mugs, maybe -it's silly to feel so over a barge," he confided to the attentive puppy, -"but I gotta feel that it's sumpin' I must think a lot of. Every time -I've visited Pop, he's asked me how was the _Minnie M. Baxter_. Just -like as if she was a human being, he asked about her! So I love her on -accounta my Pop. He's proud of her because she was so hard to get and -because he decided to quit Ol' Flint and be honest so's I'd have a -better chance." - -He started the kicker after this long confidence and steered it with one -hand, putting his free arm about the dog. And as if cherishing the -whispered confidences and affection, the animal cuddled close and -remained perfectly still while the boat crept out to the mouth of the -river. - -As they turned back, a full moon broke through some dark clouds and -shone brilliantly down upon the Basin. Skippy looked at the mellow, -silver light gleaming over the grouped barges and he gazed in wonder at -the fairyland that the moon made of the sordid colony. The dust at once -became a shimmering film of silver and the washlines strung from shanty -to forward deck contained fluttering bits of laundry that stirred -flippantly in the soft night breeze. - -Skippy's heartstrings tightened at the sight of it--he loved it all. His -honest nature cried out against the injustice of turning all these -people out of their homes. For that is just what it amounted to--no more -and no less. Skinner knew that there wasn't a man in the Basin who could -afford to have his barge lifted out of the mud. They would have to face -it, he realized--they were people condemned! - -He steered the boat farther on until he caught sight of the moonlight -gleaming across his own shanty. Its shimmering rays picked out in bold -relief the now dulled letters, _Minnie M. Baxter_, and he thought of a -late afternoon when he and his father had looked on those same letters -so new and shining, shining in the last brilliant rays of a dying sun. - -He turned away from these reflections with heavy heart only to have his -attention drawn to a boat, floating about the bow of the kicker. As he -leaned forward to see it better, the dog growled ominously. - -Skippy drew back instantly, gasping with horror. He sat stark still for -a moment, as cold as ice and unable to take his eyes away from the -battered face and body of a man he had seen in robust health but a few -hours before. - -That man was Beasell, Marty Skinner's lieutenant, and he appeared -lifeless. - - - - - CHAPTER XXXII - THE LAST OF THE BASIN - - -Skippy was so frightened that he did nothing for a moment but sit and -stare. Then suddenly he realized the terrible thing before his eyes, and -he pulled the boat up alongside of the barge, trembling from head to -foot. - -The dog leaped out of his arms the moment he got on deck and refused to -run with him to the shanty. But Skippy had neither the time nor the -nerves to think of anything but the battered Beasell in the boat -floating beside the barge. - -He flung open the door of the shanty and rushed to Tully's bunk. The big -fellow jumped up startled, and sat motionless while Skippy whispered of -his discovery. - -"Won't it go bad for everybody here?" he asked with agonized suspense. -"Won't it, Big Joe?" - -"Sure 'twill be just too bad, so 'twill," Tully said getting up and -dressing. "Somewan did it what's gone cuckoo for thinkin' they'll be -turned out o' their home tomorrow night. And crazy like, they beat up -that Beasell thinkin' they'd be gettin' even with Marty Skinner--see? -Sure I know me Brown's Basin, kid." - -Skippy shivered with the horror of it. If Brown's Basin was like that, -he wouldn't be sorry to leave it after all. Neither could he love people -who used such ghastly means for their revenge against Skinner. He wanted -to get away from it then, that minute. - -"We gotta tell the police, Big Joe, huh?" he murmured. - -Big Joe nodded as if he were dazed. - -"Us river people ain't goin' to have no peace whilst Skinner's alive, -kid!" he said in hard, even tones. "Whoever slugged that Beasell -guy--well, _me_, I'd be goin' for Skinner, so I would. So he's goin' to -take the _Minnie M. Baxter_ from ye, is he? Well, we'll be seein' about -that." - -"Forget me for now, Big Joe. What worries me is, what're we gonna do -with Beasell? Maybe he's dead." - -"Now ye be goin' down and stay till I come, kid," said the big fellow, -drawing on his shoes. - -Skippy started for the kicker. He went forward but that was as far as he -got for he became suddenly aware of a low, ominous rumbling noise that -seemed to come from shore and run through the barge colony. Before he -had a chance to determine what it was he felt himself lifted off his -feet bodily and like a feather he was thrown into the muddy waters of -the Basin. - -There was a terrific detonation throughout Brown's Basin as Skippy came -to the surface. Fire leaped from one barge to the other in the twinkling -of an eye and the screams of men, women and children filled the turbid -air. - -Smoke poured skyward in great columns and in the light of the moon, -Skippy saw the ponderous form of Big Joe Tully standing on the deck of -the _Minnie M. Baxter_ shouting and waving his hands. Suddenly he leaped -into the kicker and the boy called out but he seemed not to hear in the -din about them. - -At that moment, the _Minnie M. Baxter_ burst into flames. Big Joe Tully -shouted deafeningly and Skippy, swimming hard to reach him, saw a -strange, almost maniacal expression on his large face. - -"'Tis Marty Skinner what's done this!" he was shouting to no one in -particular. "'Tis him what's blowed this place up and took the kid away -from me. 'Tis him! Skippy's dead--I'm sure he's dead! I can't find him!" -he was almost whimpering. - -"I'm here!" Skippy called frantically. "Big Joe...." - -But Tully was even then steering the kicker out of the inlet. He had the -throttle wide open and Skippy had no more than a glimpse of the racing -craft before she slipped beyond his sight. - -Logs, huge chunks of driftwood and every known article of household -furniture, both broken and whole, floated in Skippy's path, blocking his -progress. Suddenly he saw a little boat bearing down upon him, floating -through the inlet unoccupied. - -He reached out, grabbed the bow and climbed in, breathless and -exhausted. Other kickers were shoving off filled with crying women and -shouting men. Skippy looked about over the water, but saw nothing but a -procession of slowly moving debris. - -He turned over the motor and she responded with a fearful jerk. He was -moving, in any event, moving away from the fearful heat that the burning -barges threw out over the water. The moon's shimmering light now looked -sickly and pale in contrast to the fearful red glare that spread over -the entire sky. - -The screaming sirens of motor boats soon became part of the pandemonium -and Skippy heard commanding shouts for the boats to clear out of the -inlet immediately. In the wake of this he heard a heart-rending shriek -from the midst of the barge inferno which made him feel sick and weak. - -"Mrs. Duffy an' her two kids ain't nowheres," a man's voice shouted -above the roar. "I'll bet Skinner had that dynamite planted." And as -Skippy attempted to turn the kicker about he was peremptorily ordered -from the approaching police launch to keep on his way out to the river. - -He didn't look back again. The _Minnie M. Baxter_ was a seething mass -behind him--there was nothing left. Big Joe was nowhere about--Skippy -suddenly remembered the big fellow's shouts about Skinner. It gave him -an idea and he nosed the boat down the river. - -Out of this confusion of mind, he thought of the dog. He remembered then -that he hadn't seen the puppy since he had let him down on the deck -after seeing the battered Beasell. - -And what had become of him? Was he dead or alive? Skippy wiped a grimy -hand across his forehead. He was utterly weary and exhausted by the -ordeal. He could not think of an answer to anything. His world had -toppled over since the discovery of Beasell and the explosion. And now -Mugs was gone too--his skipping, faithful-eyed pal! Was there nothing -left for him at all? - -He put his hands over the wheel and gripped it bitterly, but soon he -relaxed and with a soft sob he covered his face. And nobody knew but the -river. - - - - - CHAPTER XXXIII - SKIPPY'S WISDOM - - -Skippy got the most out of his commandeered kicker. He opened it wide -and raced her down the river and the closer he got to the bay the more -apprehensive did he feel about Big Joe's flight. He tried not to attach -any special significance to his good friend's shouts, but he could not -help remembering Tully's earlier veiled threats about Skinner. - -His fears grew as he chugged out into the bay and something urged him on -still faster. Then he spied the glistening hull of the beautiful -_Apollyon_, her anchor lights gleaming like stars against the night and -a single light amidships. - -Funny, the boy thought, how much it seemed like that night when he and -his father had come for the showdown with the older Flint. Now there was -to be no showdown, but he must warn Skinner against Big Joe's sudden -maniacal fury. Queer that he should go to such trouble for a man who had -given them no quarter in anything. But he was not thinking of doing -Skinner a good turn beyond that it might prevent Big Joe from killing -the Flint agent and being sent to jail. - -He approached the yacht with his old feeling of awe. The deck was almost -dark as he scrambled aboard but up forward he saw the rotund form of the -second mate asleep and snoring in a luxurious swing. The boy could not -help remember a very solemn resolve that night long ago, when the mate -had sworn to be more faithful to his duties during his night watches. - -With silent tread, he hurried along the deck and stopped before the -lighted cabin amidships. Once, twice, he knocked softly, and waited. - -"Come in!" Marty Skinner's cold voice commanded. - -Skippy stepped in, his heart bounding. He was thinking of the last time -he had been in this room and closed the door, determined he would not be -driven out again until he had had his say. - -"Well?" Skinner snapped but this time he did not order Skippy out. - -"You seen Big Joe Tully?" Skippy asked bravely. "He been here yet?" - -"What d'ye mean--yet? I have no business with Tully and I haven't any -with you that I know of." - -"You're wrong both times Mister Skinner. 'Cause if you don't listen to -me Big Joe'll be comin' here an' he'll try gettin' you an' he's so mad -he'll probably kill you." - -Skinner was all interest now. "He's mad and he may kill me and you come -to warn me. That's funny." - -"No it ain't funny. I wouldn't care much what happened to you Mister -Skinner you been so hard on me'n Pop an' everybody, but I ain't gonna -see Big Joe get in a jam an' maybe go to jail for life on accounta you. -I'm tippin' you off so's Big Joe won't have no chance gettin' jammed. -Maybe after that blowin' up of the barges tonight, which they say you -ordered done, an' what happened to that guy Beasell I oughta let...." - -"Blowing up barges? Beasell? What d'ye mean, boy? What happened?" - -"Well, Beasell come an' ordered us outa the Basin by sundown tomorrow, -sayin' it was your orders, an' if we can't get the barges out they'll be -blowed up. Some time after he left me'n Joe I go for a boat ride. When I -come back I see Beasell in a boat all battered an' lookin' as if he's -dead. So I goes to call Joe an' while he's gettin' his shoes on I comes -out again an' I just got near the rail when there's an explosion an' I'm -tossed in the water. I swim till I find a boat an' climb in. I see Big -Joe on deck an' he's yellin' that I'm lost an' acts like he's gonna get -you when he jumps in his kicker an' races off without hearin' me. So I -come right here to beat him to it an' keep him outa trouble, see?" - -Skinner did not seem interested in the explosion. While he appeared -callous as to the suffering and death that came in its wake he wanted to -know more about Beasell. "D'ye think he's really dead?" he asked -anxiously. - -"Looked like that to me," answered Skippy, "an' if he wasn't he probably -was blowed apart or burnt up." He wondered at the look of satisfaction -that appeared on Skinner's face. "But you better be beatin' it Mister -Skinner or Big Joe'll be here an' takin' you apart if he don't kill -you." - -"Well, if Big Joe comes here looking for trouble he'll get it--and -plenty." Skinner reached under his left arm and pulling out a pistol -laid it on the table before him. - -Skippy heard footsteps and turned as if to shout a warning. - -"Quiet you!" Skinner ordered as he picked up the pistol and leveled it -at the door. Skippy with visions of his beloved Big Joe shot dead in his -tracks as he opened the door wished from the bottom of his heart that he -had not tried to warn Skinner. All he had done was bait the trap for Big -Joe. - -He stood there, a bit to the side of the desk, his knees shaking and, -while his brain was active, he was so terror stricken that he could not -open his mouth to warn Big Joe of his impending fate. He closed his eyes -and said a little prayer as he heard the door creak a bit on its hinges. -Why hadn't he left the door open when he came into Skinner's cabin, -why.... - -A few tense seconds that seemed as so many hours to Skippy and then he -heard the voice of Inspector Jones: "Now that's hardly the nice way to -welcome a police officer, Mr. Skinner. I like your extended hand but not -with a gun in it." - -Skippy looked up to see Inspector Jones advancing into the room and this -time a policeman's uniform was a most welcome sight to him. He breathed -thanks that the visitor was not Big Joe. - -"I'll just tuck the hardware away, Inspector, and give you the hand." -Skinner smiled and did so. "I thought you were Big Joe Tully coming in -to get me. The boy here warned me Joe was on the warpath so I was all -set to welcome him and beat him to the draw." - -"So I could see," the Inspector commented. "Heard about the burning of -the barges in the Basin and what happened to poor Beasell?" - -"This boy told me there was an explosion and that some one slugged -Beasell. Tell me is he--is he--dead?" The question sounded to Skippy as -if Skinner was hoping the answer would be yes. - -Inspector Jones looked sharply at Skinner. "Yes. He is," he answered -simply and again looked up sharply as Skinner sighed as if in relief. - -"Beasell was in my confidence. He knew my business and I trusted him," -Skinner spoke as if to himself. - -"Sure, I know you did," the Inspector agreed and there was that in his -words which made Skippy feel as if there was something behind them. - -"And how did you know that, may I ask, Inspector?" Skinner seemed a bit -ill at ease. - -"I talked to him before he died. We picked him up in a boat when we went -to the fire. He had been badly beaten but before he died he regained -consciousness. He talked plenty, too." - -"What did he say? Tell who beat him up?" Skinner was plainly anxious. - -"No, strange to say he didn't." - -"Well then...?" - -"Just this." Inspector Jones whipped out his gun. "Put 'em up Skinner -and keep 'em up. I'm arresting you and I'm going to charge you with the -murder of Josiah Flint." - -"Why--why--that's--that's ridiculous, Inspector. You can't make a charge -like that stand up on the ravings of a dying man." - -"I didn't tell you that Beasell made any such charges. But I'm tellin' -you now that he made a dying statement that he was in the kicker off the -yacht when Skippy and his father came along, that he had been there some -time, and hearing you and Flint quarreling, he watched through the -porthole, saw you two struggling after Flint charged you with cheating -him--saw you shoot the old man in the back when you twisted him around -as he tried to snatch the gun you drew in your anger. He also saw you -sit old Flint up again, scatter papers all over the place and take what -money there was in his desk. Beasell's blackmailed you plenty since, -threatening to turn you in." - -"But--but----" - -"And that isn't all," the Inspector went on relentlessly. "Buck Flint -has been giving you a free hand and staying away, but he's had -accountants working on your books and he's got plenty of evidence as to -how you've ben cheating him and how you cheated the old man." - -"No jury will ever convict me on evidence like that." Skinner seemed to -have regained his composure. "Beasell was only a cheap crook anyway and -he's dead, too. Stealing money isn't murder." - -"Guess you're right on those points," the Inspector mused and Skinner -started to lower his hands. - -"Not so fast, not so fast there! Keep 'em up! There's one bet you -overlooked, Skinner, and I'm going to call it right now." Still keeping -Skinner covered the Inspector moved closer and pulled the gun out of the -man's shoulder holster. "I've got a hunch that our ballistic expert will -find a groove in the barrel of your gun which will prove the bullet -which killed old Flint was fired by you. The gun never was found, you -remember, but the bullet with a peculiar mark was and it's still right -down at headquarters." - -Skinner slumped into a chair at that, but Skippy looked quickly from his -dejected figure as he heard a familiar bark. He turned to the door and -there in the arms of a policeman was his beloved Mugs. - -"Mugs! Mugs!" he cried out overjoyed. And then, as if in afterthought, -"See anythin' of Big Joe, officer? Gee, if he'd only come along now, -'cause I know my Pop's gonna be free soon, everythin'd be just grand. -Gee, but I'm happy. I'm...." - -He stopped suddenly frightened at something he saw in the policeman's -face. "What--what--what's wrong? Tell me," he demanded. - -"I'm in a tough spot, kid, but I know you got plenty guts, so here goes -point blank. Big Joe went back to your barge figgering you might have -found your way back there. We see him and tell him you're safe. Then he -hears the dog barkin', goes into the flames after him and saves him." He -paused, gulped, then went on: "He was burned bad, Big Joe was. Fulla -smoke, too. Well, anyways ... he kicked off." - -There was a silence, which was finally broken by Skippy's sobs. At a -motion from Inspector Jones the policeman, who had brought Mugs and the -sad news about Big Joe, handcuffed Skinner and took him out of the -cabin, softly closing the door. - -It was far in the night before Inspector Jones had Skippy sufficiently -comforted so that the boy fell asleep. Then the Inspector bundled him -up, carried him to the police launch and that night Skippy and Mugs -slept at the Inspector's home. - - - - - CHAPTER XXXIV - THE GREAT ADVENTURE - - -Skippy had two things to show his delighted father when they met at the -railroad station a few weeks later, by which time Skinner had confessed -murdering Josiah Flint when mad with rage at having been caught -stealing, and Skippy's grief over Big Joe's death had become less -poignant. One was the gawky Mugs and the other a little satchel which he -carried under his arm with the greatest care. - -"What's in there, Skippy son?" Toby asked after their outstretched arms -had clung in an awkward embrace. - -Skippy winked at his father mysteriously. - -"I waited to tell you now, Pop--sort of as a surprise. It's what Buck -Flint calls redress money--money that Old Flint should have paid you and -didn't. And he says it's for the price of the _Minnie M. Baxter_ too. -Altogether he said he figured Old Flint owed you a thousand dollars with -interest--see Pop?" - -Toby was overwhelmed. - -"What we a-goin' ter do with it, son?" he wanted to know. - -"Whatever you say, Pop. There's enough to buy another _Minnie M. Baxter_ -and more besides, huh? An' there's enough to buy a nice hot dog stand -somewheres up in the mountains where the doctor said I wouldn't have no -more bad throats. So what do you say, Pop?" - -"Mountains, Skippy boy," said Toby with shining eyes. "We'll call our -stand the _Minnie Baxter_ jest the same, hey? 'Cause didn't she sort uv -bring us luck in the end, after all? How'd we got all this money if she -hadn't uv burned up and that helped ter show up Skinner and made Buck -Flint feel sorry and that he ought ter make good. Yessir we'll call her -that." - -A train announcer sauntered out of the big iron gates and in his -sonorous voice called out, "Mountain Express on Track Number Four ... -Cold Glen ... Pine Ridge ... Baxter...." - -"Did yer hear that, Skippy?" asked Toby excitedly. "There's a place in -them mountains what's called _Baxter_! Seems like as if it was Fate or -somethin'! S'pose we jest try her fer luck. What do you say?" - -"I'm on, Pop," Skippy cried joyfully. "Baxter for luck!" - -And arm in arm, Skippy and Toby, with Mugs sniffing at their heels, -darted through the big iron gates on their Great Adventure. - - - END - - - - - FOOTNOTES - - -[1]Stolen goods. - - - HAL KEEN MYSTERY STORIES - By HUGH LLOYD - -Boys! Meet Hal Keen, that lanky, nonchalant, red-headed youth whose -guiding star is the star that points to adventure, excitement and -mystery. Follow him in his hunts for clues and criminals. There are -plenty of thrills and shivers in these stories to keep you on your toes. - - THE SMUGGLER'S SECRET - -Hal Keen sets out to get to the bottom of a mystery that threatens the -safety of a whole community. - - THE MYSTERIOUS ARAB - -Mystery, excitement, murder in a scientist's camp in the jungles of -Africa, where hate, revenge, and suspicion lead to tragedy. - - THE HERMIT OF GORDON'S CREEK - -The disappearance of two airmail pilots leads to a mystery that centers -about an abandoned mine and a strange old man. - - KIDNAPPED IN THE JUNGLE - -A hint of buried treasure in the ruins of an old French mission leads -Hal deep into the Central American jungle. - - THE COPPERHEAD TRAIL MYSTERY - -Baffling and blood-curdling events center about the ranch where Hal Keen -and his friends had gone in search of gold. - - THE LONESOME SWAMP MYSTERY - -The lonely and mysterious swamp gave up its secret only after a series -of terrifying events taxed Hal's courage and ability. - - THE CLUE AT SKELETON ROCKS - -In this new thriller Hal Keen finds mystery and adventure in and about a -lonely lighthouse on Skeleton Rocks, off the Maine coast. - - THE DOOM OF STARK HOUSE - -Mystery and terror in an old house in the wilderness above Quebec where -Hal Keen is the guest of a strange family. - - - THE JUDY BOLTON MYSTERY STORIES - By MARGARET SUTTON - -Here is a new series of mystery stories for girls by an author who knows -the kind of stories every girl wants to read--mystery of the "shivery" -sort, adventure that makes the nerves tingle, clever "detecting" and a -new lovable heroine, Judy Bolton, whom all girls will take to their -hearts at once. - - THE VANISHING SHADOW - -Judy's safety is threatened by a gang of crooks who think she knows too -much about their latest "deal." She is constantly pursued by a -mysterious shadow which vanishes before she can get a glimpse of its -owner. - - THE HAUNTED ATTIC - -The Boltons move into a large rambling house reputed to be haunted. Even -the brave Judy who has looked forward to "spooky" goings on is -thoroughly frightened at the strange scrapings and rappings and the eery -"crying ghost." - - THE INVISIBLE CHIMES - -Through an automobile accident a strange girl is taken into the Bolton -household--the whole family becomes attached to her and interested in -her story. Judy tracks down many clues before she finally uncovers the -real identity of "Honey." - - SEVEN STRANGE CLUES - -Judy gets to the bottom of a mystery that centers around a prize poster -contest and a fire in the school building--through seven baffling clues -that hold the key to the answer. - - - THE NANCY DREW MYSTERY STORIES - By CAROLYN KEENE - - Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself. - -Here is a thrilling series of mystery stories for girls. Nancy Drew, -ingenious, alert, is the daughter of a famous criminal lawyer and she -herself is deeply interested in his mystery cases. Her interest involves -her often in some very dangerous and exciting situations. - - THE SECRET OF THE OLD CLOCK - -Nancy, unaided, seeks to locate a missing will and finds herself in the -midst of adventure. - - THE HIDDEN STAIRCASE - -Mysterious happenings in an old stone mansion lead to an investigation -by Nancy. - - THE BUNGALOW MYSTERY - -Nancy has some perilous experiences around a deserted bungalow. - - THE MYSTERY AT LILAC INN - -Quick thinking and quick action were needed for Nancy to extricate -herself from a dangerous situation. - - THE SECRET AT SHADOW RANCH - -On a vacation in Arizona Nancy uncovers an old mystery and solves it. - - THE SECRET OF RED GATE FARM - -Nancy exposes the doings of a secret society on an isolated farm. - - THE CLUE IN THE DIARY - -A fascinating and exciting story of a search for a clue to a surprising -mystery. - - NANCY'S MYSTERIOUS LETTER - -Nancy receives a letter informing her that she is heir to a fortune. -This story tells of her search for another Nancy Drew. - - - FLYING STORIES FOR BOYS - IN THE AIR WITH ANDY LANE - By EUSTACE L. ADAMS - - Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself. - -Mr. Adams, the author of this flying series for boys is an experienced -aviator and has had many thrilling adventures in the air--both as a -member of the famous Lafayette Escadrille in the World War and in the -United States Naval Aviation Service flying with the squadrons -patrolling the Atlantic Coast. His stories reveal not only his ability -to tell daring and exciting air episodes but also his first hand -knowledge of modern aeroplanes and the marvelous technical improvements -which have been made in the past few years. Andy Lane flies the latest -and most highly developed machines in the field of aviation. - - FIFTEEN DAYS IN THE AIR - OVER THE POLAR ICE - RACING ROUND THE WORLD - THE RUNAWAY AIRSHIP - PIRATES OF THE AIR - ON THE WINGS OF FLAME - THE MYSTERIOUS MONOPLANE - THE FLYING WINDMILL - THE PLANE WITHOUT A PILOT - WINGS OF ADVENTURE - ACROSS THE TOP OF THE WORLD - PRISONERS OF THE CLOUDS - - - THE REX LEE FLYING STORIES - By THOMSON BURTIS - - Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself. - -The author of this series of exciting flying stories is an experienced -aviator. He says, "During my five years in the army I performed nearly -every sort of flying duty--instructor, test pilot, bombing, -photographing pilot, etc., in every variety of ship, from tiny scout -planes to the gigantic three-motored Italian Caproni." - -Not only has this author had many experiences as a flyer; a list of his -activities while knocking around the country includes postal clerk, -hobo, actor, writer, mutton chop salesman, preacher, roughneck in the -oil fields, newspaper man, flyer, scenario writer in Hollywood and -synthetic clown with the Sells Floto Circus. Having lived an active, -daring life, and possessing a gift for good story telling, he is well -qualified to write these adventures of a red-blooded dare-devil young -American who became one of the country's greatest flyers. - - REX LEE; GYPSY FLYER - REX LEE; ON THE BORDER PATROL - REX LEE; RANGER OF THE SKY - REX LEE; SKY TRAILER - REX LEE; ACE OF THE AIR MAIL - REX LEE; NIGHT FLYER - REX LEE'S MYSTERIOUS FLIGHT - REX LEE; ROUGH RIDER OF THE AIR - REX LEE; AERIAL ACROBAT - REX LEE; TRAILING AIR BANDITS - REX LEE; FLYING DETECTIVE - - - THE HARDY BOYS SERIES - By FRANKLIN W. DIXON - - Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself. - -The Hardy Boys are sons of a celebrated American detective, and during -vacations and their off time from school they help their father by -hunting down clues themselves. - - THE TOWER TREASURE--A dying criminal confessed that his loot had been - secreted "in the tower." It remained for the Hardy Boys to clear up - the mystery. - - THE HOUSE ON THE CLIFF--Mr. Hardy started to investigate--and - disappeared! An odd tale, with plenty of excitement. - - THE SECRET OF THE OLD MILL--Counterfeit money was in circulation, and - the limit was reached when Mrs. Hardy took some from a stranger. A - tale full of thrills. - - THE MISSING CHUMS--Two of the Hardy Boys' chums disappear and are - almost rescued by their friends when all are captured. A thrilling - story of adventure. - - HUNTING FOR HIDDEN GOLD--In tracing some stolen gold the trail leads - the boys to an abandoned mine, and there things start to happen. - - THE SHORE ROAD MYSTERY--Automobiles were disappearing most - mysteriously from the Shore Road. It remained for the Hardy Boys to - solve the mystery. - - THE SECRET OF THE CAVES--When the boys reached the caves they came - unexpectedly upon a queer old hermit. - - THE MYSTERY OF CABIN ISLAND--A story of queer adventures on a - rockbound island. - - THE GREAT AIRPORT MYSTERY--The Hardy Boys solve the mystery of the - disappearance of some valuable mail. - - WHAT HAPPENED AT MIDNIGHT--The boys follow a trail that ends in a - strange and exciting situation. - - WHILE THE CLOCK TICKED--The Hardy Boys aid in vindicating a man who - has been wrongly accused of a crime. - - FOOTPRINTS UNDER THE WINDOW--The Smuggling of Chinese into this - country is the basis of this story in which the boys find thrills and - excitement aplenty. - - - WESTERN STORIES FOR BOYS - By JAMES CODY FERRIS - - Each Volume Complete in Itself. - -Thrilling tales of the great west, told primarily for boys but which -will be read by all who love mystery, rapid action, and adventures in -the great open spaces. - -The Manly boys, Roy and Teddy, are the sons of an old ranchman, the -owner of many thousands of heads of cattle. The lads know how to ride, -how to shoot, and how to take care of themselves under any and all -circumstances. - -The cowboys of the X Bar X Ranch are real cowboys, on the job when -required, but full of fun and daring--a bunch any reader will be -delighted to know. - - THE X BAR X BOYS ON THE RANCH - THE X BAR X BOYS IN THUNDER CANYON - THE X BAR X BOYS ON WHIRLPOOL RIVER - THE X BAR X BOYS ON BIG BISON TRAIL - THE X BAR X BOYS AT THE ROUND-UP - THE X BAR X BOYS AT NUGGET CAMP - THE X BAR X BOYS AT RUSTLER'S GAP - THE X BAR X BOYS AT GRIZZLY PASS - THE X BAR X BOYS LOST IN THE ROCKIES - THE X BAR X BOYS RIDING FOR LIFE - THE X BAR X BOYS IN SMOKY VALLEY - - - BOOKS BY LEO EDWARDS - - Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself. - -Hundreds of thousands of boys have laughed until their sides ached over -the weird and wonderful adventures of Jerry Todd, Poppy Ott, Trigger -Berg and their friends. Mr. Edwards' boy characters are all real. They -do the things other boys like. Pirates! Mystery! Detectives! Adventure! -Ghosts! Buried Treasure! Achievement! Stories of boys making things, -doing things, going places--always on the jump and always having fun. -His stories are for boys and girls of all ages. - - THE JERRY TODD BOOKS - - JERRY TODD AND THE WHISPERING MUMMY - JERRY TODD AND THE ROSE COLORED CAT - JERRY TODD AND THE OAK ISLAND TREASURE - JERRY TODD AND THE WALTZING HEN - JERRY TODD AND THE TALKING FROG - JERRY TODD AND THE PURRING EGG - JERRY TODD IN THE WHISPERING CAVE - JERRY TODD, PIRATE - JERRY TODD AND THE BOB-TAILED ELEPHANT - JERRY TODD, EDITOR-IN-GRIEF - JERRY TODD, CAVEMAN - - THE POPPY OTT BOOKS - - POPPY OTT AND THE STUTTERING PARROT - POPPY OTT AND THE SEVEN LEAGUE STILTS - POPPY OTT AND THE GALLOPING SNAIL - POPPY OTT'S PEDIGREED PICKLES - POPPY OTT AND THE FRECKLED GOLDFISH - POPPY OTT AND THE TITTERING TOTEM - POPPY OTT AND THE PRANCING PANCAKE - POPPY OTT HITS THE TRAIL - - THE TRIGGER BERG BOOKS - - TRIGGER BERG AND THE TREASURE TREE - TRIGGER BERG AND 700 MOUSETRAPS - TRIGGER BERG AND THE SACRED PIG - - THE TUFFY BEAN BOOKS - - TUFFY BEAN'S PUPPY DAYS - TUFFY BEAN'S ONE RING CIRCUS - TUFFY BEAN AT FUNNY-BONE FARM - TUFFY BEAN AND THE LOST FORTUNE - - - GARRY GRAYSON FOOTBALL STORIES - By ELMER A. DAWSON - - Illustrated. Each Volume Complete in Itself. - -Garry Grayson is a football fan, first, last, and all the time. But more -than that, he is a wideawake American boy with a "gang" of chums almost -as wideawake as himself. - -How Garry organized the first football eleven his grammar school had, -how he later played on the High School team, and what he did on the Prep -School gridiron and elsewhere, is told in a manner to please all readers -and especially those interested in watching a rapid forward pass, a -plucky tackle, or a hot run for a touchdown. - -Good, clean football at its best--and in addition, rattling stories of -mystery and schoolboy rivalries. - - GARRY GRAYSON'S HILL STREET ELEVEN; or, The Football Boys of Lenox. - GARRY GRAYSON AT LENOX HIGH; or, The Champions of the Football League. - GARRY GRAYSON'S FOOTBALL RIVALS; or, The Secret of the Stolen Signals. - GARRY GRAYSON SHOWING HIS SPEED; or, A Daring Run on the Gridiron. - GARRY GRAYSON AT STANLEY PREP; or, The Football Rivals of Riverview. - GARRY GRAYSON'S WINNING KICK; or, Battling for Honor. - GARRY GRAYSON HITTING THE LINE; or, Stanley Prep on a New Gridiron. - GARRY GRAYSON'S WINNING TOUCHDOWN; or, Putting Passmore Tech on the - Map. - GARRY GRAYSON'S DOUBLE SIGNALS; or, Vanquishing the Football Plotters. - GARRY GRAYSON'S FORWARD PASS; or, Winning in the Final Quarter. - - - BOB CHASE BIG GAME SERIES - By FRANK A. WARNER - -In these thrilling stories of outdoor life the hero is a young -lumberjack who is a crack rifle shot. While tracking game in the Maine -woods he does some rich hunters a great service. They become interested -in him and take him on various hunting expeditions in this country and -abroad. Bob learns what it is to face not only wildcats, foxes and deer -but also bull moose, Rocky Mountain grizzly bears and many other species -of big game. - - BOB CHASE WITH THE BIG MOOSE HUNTERS - BOB CHASE AFTER GRIZZLY BEARS - BOB CHASE IN THE TIGER'S LAIR - BOB CHASE WITH THE LION HUNTERS - - - _A Skippy Dare Mystery Story_ - AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES - - _By_ - HUGH LLOYD - -Nearly all the boats and barges on the River that was "home" to Skippy -belonged to old Flint. A grasping and merciless man, Flint also -controlled the lives of most of the people who tried to earn their -living on the River. For many years Skippy's father had worked for him; -loading and unloading illicit merchandise--aware that he was involved in -crooked business but reaping little benefit beyond a meager living -therefrom. - -Honest, courageous young Skippy finally persuades his father to leave -Flint's employ--but it is impossible to escape the evil net in which -they are caught. Before they succeed in getting away from the illicit -river traffic, they become involved with the police--the boy's father is -accused of murder--Skippy is forced into a crooked game--and the Basin, -where the condemned river barges provide homes for the river people is -blown up. In one great blast men, women, children and all their worldly -goods are destroyed in a sea of lapping flames. - -In the end Skippy's fearless honesty and loyalty bring happy freedom to -himself and his best pal--his father. - - - Hal Keen Mystery Stories - - _By_ HUGH LLOYD - -Follow Hal Keen on his hunts for clues and criminals. There are plenty -of thrills and shivers in these stories of adventure and mystery. - - THE HERMIT OF GORDON'S CREEK - -The disappearance of two airmail pilots leads to a mystery that centers -about an abandoned mine. - - KIDNAPPED IN THE JUNGLE - -A hint of buried treasure leads Hal deep into the Central American -jungle. - - THE COPPERHEAD TRAIL MYSTERY - -What was the meaning of the baffling and blood curdling events that -centered about the ranch where Hal Keen had gone in search of gold? - - THE SMUGGLERS' SECRET - -Hal Keen sets out to get to the bottom of a mystery that threatens the -safety of a whole community. - - THE MYSTERIOUS ARAB - -Mystery, excitement, murder in a scientist's camp in the jungles of -Africa. - - THE LONESOME SWAMP MYSTERY - -The lonely and mysterious swamp gave up its secret only after a series -of terrifying events. - - THE CLUE AT SKELETON ROCKS - -Hal Keen finds mystery and adventure in and about a lonely lighthouse -off the Maine coast. - - THE DOOM OF STARK HOUSE - -A menacing cloud of mystery hangs over the isolated and snow bound Stark -house. - -THE LOST MINE OF THE AMAZON - -Hal's sympathy for an exiled white family leads him on to solve the -tragic mystery that surrounds the lost mine. - - - _Skippy Dare_ - - courageous--honest--loyal - - A young "detective" who keeps his head when trouble starts. And Skippy - has a way of being in the thick of things - - HIS ADVENTURES MAKE TENSE READING - -He learns the trickery of crooked men on his father's river barge; his -experience stands him in good stead when he becomes an office boy in a -detective agency--and he proves an invaluable aide to Conne, the great -detective.... Fearless, fast thinking Skippy is a hero well worth -knowing! - - - Skippy Dare Mystery Stories - by HUGH LLOYD - author of the "_Hal Keen Mystery Stories_" - - AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES - PRISONERS IN DEVIL'S BOG - HELD FOR RANSOM - - - GROSSET & DUNLAP _Publishers_ New York - - - - - Transcriber's Notes - - ---Copyright notice provided as in the original--this e-text is public - domain in the country of publication. - ---Silently corrected palpable typos; left non-standard spellings and - dialect unchanged. - ---Relocated the illustrations (printed on unnumbered pages) to the - corresponding paragraph in the text. - ---In the text versions, delimited italics text in _underscores_ (the - HTML version reproduces the font form of the printed book.) - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Among the River Pirates, by Hugh Lloyd - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES *** - -***** This file should be named 53695-8.txt or 53695-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/3/6/9/53695/ - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, MFR and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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} - p.bkpr {font-size:90%; } - p.bkrv { } - dl.blist dt { margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; } - dl.blist, dl.biblio { margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto; max-width:25em; } -</style> -</head> -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Among the River Pirates, by Hugh Lloyd - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Among the River Pirates - A Skippy Dare Mystery Story - -Author: Hugh Lloyd - -Illustrator: Seymour Fogel - -Release Date: December 8, 2016 [EBook #53695] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES *** - - - - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, MFR and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - -</pre> - -<div class="img"> -<img id="coverpage" src="images/cover.jpg" alt="Among the River Pirates, A Skippy Dare Mystery Story" width="500" height="744" /> -</div> -<div class="img"> -<img src="images/icover.jpg" alt="Among the River Pirates, A Skippy Dare Mystery Story" width="500" height="757" /> -</div> -<div class="box"> -<p class="center"><i><span class="u">A SKIPPY DARE MYSTERY STORY</span></i></p> -<h1>AMONG THE -<br />RIVER PIRATES</h1> -<p class="tbcenter"><span class="small">BY</span> -<br /><span class="large">HUGH LLOYD</span> -<br /><span class="small"><i>Author of</i> -<br /><span class="sc">The Hal Keen Mystery Stories</span></span></p> -<p class="tbcenter"><span class="small">ILLUSTRATED BY</span> -<br />SEYMOUR FOGEL</p> -<p class="tbcenter"><span class="large">GROSSET & DUNLAP</span> -<br />PUBLISHERS <span class="hst">NEW YORK</span></p> -</div> -<p class="center smaller"><span class="sc">Copyright, 1934, by -<br />GROSSET & DUNLAP, Inc.</span> -<br /><i>All Rights Reserved</i> -<br /><i>Printed in the United States of America</i></p> -<h2>CONTENTS</h2> -<dl class="toc"> -<dt class="jr"><span class="jl"><span class="small">CHAPTER</span></span> <span class="small">PAGE</span></dt> -<dt><span class="cn">I </span><a href="#c1">Upstream</a> 7</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">II </span><a href="#c2">Condemned</a> 14</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">III </span><a href="#c3">The Basin</a> 22</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">IV </span><a href="#c4">Compromise</a> 28</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">V </span><a href="#c5">The Apollyon</a> 35</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">VI </span><a href="#c6">A Strange Story</a> 44</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">VII </span><a href="#c7">For Skippy</a> 51</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">VIII </span><a href="#c8">Alone</a> 56</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">IX </span><a href="#c9">A Visitor</a> 61</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">X </span><a href="#c10">A Suggestion</a> 66</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XI </span><a href="#c11">All of a Kind</a> 73</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XII </span><a href="#c12">Drifting</a> 76</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XIII </span><a href="#c13">Lights</a> 80</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XIV </span><a href="#c14">The Bell Buoy</a> 84</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XV </span><a href="#c15">Rescued</a> 91</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XVI </span><a href="#c16">River People</a> 96</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XVII </span><a href="#c17">Mugs</a> 103</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XVIII </span><a href="#c18">Bad News</a> 110</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XIX </span><a href="#c19">Danger</a> 115</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XX </span><a href="#c20">A Job</a> 120</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXI </span><a href="#c21">What Next?</a> 124</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXII </span><a href="#c22">Big Joe’s Idea</a> 129</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXIII </span><a href="#c23">Another Job</a> 134</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXIV </span><a href="#c24">Another Rescue</a> 139</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXV </span><a href="#c25">Davy Jones</a> 148</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXVI </span><a href="#c26">The Rocks</a> 153</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXVII </span><a href="#c27">Suspense</a> 157</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXVIII </span><a href="#c28">The Duffys</a> 162</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXIX </span><a href="#c29">Good News</a> 168</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXX </span><a href="#c30">Beasell</a> 172</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXXI </span><a href="#c31">Moonlight</a> 176</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXXII </span><a href="#c32">The Last of the Basin</a> 180</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXXIII </span><a href="#c33">Skippy’s Wisdom</a> 186</dt> -<dt><span class="cn">XXXIV </span><a href="#c34">The Great Adventure</a> 195</dt> -</dl> -<div class="pb" id="Page_7">7</div> -<h1 title="">AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES</h1> -<h2 id="c1">CHAPTER I -<br /><span class="small">UPSTREAM</span></h2> -<p>The shabby old motor boat moved slowly up the -river towing an equally shabby old barge. Dilapidated -and unpainted as the hull was, the engine was -well muffled—suspiciously well muffled—and the disreputable -looking craft moved through the water -with all the noiseless dignity of a yacht.</p> -<p>A ferry-boat paused midway of the long tow rope -and its commuters, crowded on the forward deck, -watched this slow-moving procession with some -show of annoyance. Not a few impatient remarks -rose loud and clear above the hum of the restless -crowd, directed at the head of a man seated in the -stern of the boat, calmly puffing on a pipe. Aft on -the barge, a young boy was wrestling heroically with -the tiller, trying to keep the lumbering hulk head on.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_8">8</div> -<p>Slowly they crawled upstream. On their left -was the precipitous Jersey shore, and on their right -the towering buildings of the great city. Over the -water the late afternoon sun spread a warm, mellow -glow and touched with gold the myriad windows of -the clustering skyscrapers across the river.</p> -<p>The man knocked out his pipe with calm deliberation -and turned his wide, gray eyes to the lofty Palisades, -now bathed in a dazzling crimson. Then -slowly his glance wandered back to where the shimmering -light fell across the little shanty on the -barge and picked out in hold relief the incongruously -new and shining letters, <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>.</p> -<p>A smile lighted up his lined, weary features, a -smile of pride in ownership.</p> -<p>“She ain’t so bad fer the old battle-axe that she is, -hey Skippy?” he called to the boy.</p> -<p>The boy’s tousled head appeared from around -the battered cabin.</p> -<p>“I’ll say she ain’t, Pop,” he answered. “An’ -she’s <i>ours</i>! Gee, I can’t believe my pop really an’ -truly owns a <i>whole</i> barge!”</p> -<p>The man laughed, then listened for a moment to -a significant sound emanating from the muffled engine.</p> -<p>“That there front cylinder’s missin’ agin, Skippy,” -he shouted. “Loop ’er in that there ring; the tide’s -runnin’ out now so she’ll stand upstream. Set ’er -even ’n’ come aboard here.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_9">9</div> -<p>The boy nodded obediently and with an end of -rope fastened the old tiller to a rusty ring. Then, -hurrying forward, he jumped into the water and -grasping the taut tow line, pulled himself hand over -hand and scrambled over the stern of the launch.</p> -<p>The father put out a large, work-worn hand and -helped him in with a tenderness that was surprising -in one so rough and uncouth looking.</p> -<p>“Gimme that there shirt and them shoes while I -hang ’em near the engine,” he said, his voice soft -with affection. “Ye’ll be gettin’ a bad throat agin.” -He made no demand for the boy’s trousers, which -were the only other article of apparel that the little -fellow wore.</p> -<p>Having spread the clothing to dry and adjusted -the rebellious motor, the man returned to the stern. -He relighted his pipe and sat down with an arm -about his son.</p> -<p>“I’ll steer her fer a while, Pop,” said Skippy.</p> -<p>For a few minutes there was silence.</p> -<p>“Yer glad we’re goin’ straight?” the man asked -with a sudden move of his arm on the boy’s shoulder.</p> -<p>Skippy’s eyes widened and he looked up at his -parent, hesitantly.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_10">10</div> -<p>“I mean yer glad we’re goin’ straight—in a -straight racket, I mean? Now there ain’t goin’ to be -no more worry about coppers. I won’t care if they’re -floatin’ all over the harbor an’ I won’t be worryin’ -about no pinches. A man don’t ever think uv bein’ -pinched when his racket’s on the up and up. An’ -that’s me from now on. I said when I got three hunderd -saved I’d buy a barge an’ not touch no more -shady rackets. <i>An’ I have!</i> Three hunderd—every -penny we had in the world, sonny, I paid -Josiah Flint fer the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>. She’s worth -every dime uv it.”</p> -<p>Skippy nodded gravely.</p> -<p>“An’ll that help me t’ be honest when I grow up, -too,” he asked eagerly, “an’ be like—like a gentleman -even?”</p> -<p>“Sure, Skippy. Ain’t that just why I saves up -an’ buys the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>? So’s yer kin grow -up clean an’ honest like—that’s why I done Josiah -Flint’s dirty work fer his dirty money! So’s I -could save an’ buy this ol’ battle-axe an’ give yer a -good an’ a clean start.”</p> -<p>“But we’re gonna carry garbage an’ ashes on -her,” said Skippy. “That ain’t so clean exactly, is -it, Pop?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_11">11</div> -<p>“Garbage an’ ashes’ll bring in clean money, -Skippy—that’s what I’m talkin’ about—clean -money. Since yer ma died I ain’t had many real -honest like jobs. It’s been hard ter git ’em with -yer needin’ me with yer so much counta yer bad -throat. Anyways the money come easier an’ -quicker on my jobs even if it was dirty an’ now I’m -all through with gettin’ it shady like.”</p> -<p>“An’ my throat’s lots better’n it usta be, Pop,” -said Skippy eagerly. “I ain’t had a bad one for -three months’n over.”</p> -<p>“Sure, I know. Everthin’ll be jake now with us -goin’ straight. Ol’ Flint, let him have his dirty -money an’ his fine yacht. It’s a wonder he gets so -generous an’ sells me such a good scow fer three -hunderd smackers. Everybody says he’s such a -money-pincher he’d even try makin’ money on a -rusty nail.”</p> -<p>“A regular miser, huh, Pop?” said Skippy. -“Maybe he felt sorry about you savin’ all that -money so’s you could get a clean business. Did he -say the <i>Minnie M. Baxter’s</i> a good barge for haulin’ -garbage an’ ashes?”</p> -<p>“Sure. He boosted her hisself when I tells him -I wants a good scow. An’ he oughta know, him that -owns more scows’n he can count.”</p> -<p>“Gee, three hunnerd dollars—real money,” -mused the boy.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_12">12</div> -<p>“Sure, but not for no scow like this one. Brand -new ones cost four times that. Big Joe Tully paid -Ol’ Flint five hunderd fer his an’ Joe cleaned up -two thousand bucks on the first year. He tole me -that fer a fact.”</p> -<p>“But ain’t Big Joe Tully doin’ sumpin’ for Mr. -Flint now?” Skippy asked.</p> -<p>“Big Joe can’t keep away from dirty money,” replied -the man. “He wants to get rich quick. Not me, -though. I can keep away from Ol’ Flint from now -on, an’ what’s more, <i>I will</i>!”</p> -<p>“Gee, I know you will, Pop,” said the boy, with -shining eyes. “You’re not like—well, you’re different -from old Mr. Flint an’ that Big Joe.”</p> -<p>The father ran his hand over his son’s tousled -head and gripped a handful of the straight brown -hair affectionately.</p> -<p>“That cabin ain’t goin’ ter make us no bad little -shack, hey Skippy?” he said nodding toward the little -square shelter aft.</p> -<p>“She’s swell inside—for a barge, I mean. Three -bunks an’ a nice oil stove an’ a table an’ chairs. -Gee, that’s a regular home, huh Pop? Even there’s -a kerosene lamp.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_13">13</div> -<p>“Sure. Yer can read books an’ be nice and comfortable -in there nights. That paint job,” he said, -scrutinizing it thoughtfully; “I ain’t so fond uv that -there red, rusty color. It’s kinda gloomy. Well, we -can repaint her sometime when we’re makin’ money. -Blamed if that launch across stream ain’t headin’ -straight this way.”</p> -<p>“It’s the harbor inspectors, Pop. Whadja -s’pose....”</p> -<p>“Well, I got my license all ready, if that’s what -they’re after. Anyways, we ain’t got no stuff<a class="fn" id="fr_1" href="#fn_1">[1]</a> -aboard, so we should worry.”</p> -<p>Skippy wondered and shivered a little. His -father’s services in the employ of the rich, unscrupulous -Josiah Flint had brought a certain instinctive -fear of all uniformed officials and the harbor -inspectors were no exception. It was difficult -for him to believe even now that these uniformed -men meant no harm to his father.</p> -<p>Skippy had lived in the shadow of the law a little -too long.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_14">14</div> -<h2 id="c2">CHAPTER II -<br /><span class="small">CONDEMNED</span></h2> -<p>Skippy watched as the green, shining launch -swept alongside and stopped. He was instantly -reassured, however, when its occupants smiled -genially at him and then at his father.</p> -<p>“Well, if it ain’t Toby Dare himself,” said one -of the men, heartily. “Buy her lately, Dare?”</p> -<p>“Jes’ yesterday, Inspector Jones,” said Skippy’s -father, proudly. “An’ I ain’t a-goin’ ter put nothin’ -on her but what I’ll be glad ter show ter anybody -what asks.”</p> -<p>Inspector Jones’ bland face became serious.</p> -<p>“Big Joe Tully said the same thing when he -bought his scow, Dare,” he said. “I wouldn’t make -promises too soon.”</p> -<p>Toby Dare’s eyes turned fondly on his son.</p> -<p>“Big Joe Tully ain’t got no boy like my Skippy -ter fetch up,” he said with firm resolve.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_15">15</div> -<p>“Good for you, Dare,” the inspector smiled. -“Skippy’s worth keeping out of trouble for. But see -that you keep him in mind when you’re tempted. -Most o’ you birds that start a new leaf stub your -toes.”</p> -<p>“Not me,” said Toby vehemently. “I ain’t carin’ -ter make no quick fortune. A couple grand a -year’ll start Skippy an’ git him educated. That’s -all I’m carin’ about, Inspector. <i>Me</i>, I don’t need -nothin’.”</p> -<p>Inspector Jones beamed upon the smiling Skippy, -then casually glanced toward the barge.</p> -<p>“<i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>, eh?” he mused.</p> -<p>“Yere,” said Toby exultantly. “That was my -wife’s name when she was a girl. She died when -Skippy was born. I thought mebbe the name’d -bring me luck.”</p> -<p>The inspector nodded sympathetically.</p> -<p>“Got any contracts lined up?” he asked.</p> -<p>“Two,” said Toby proudly. “An’ it ain’t bad -fer a start. I’m ter haul garbage an’ ashes from -the island.”</p> -<p>“Good for you, Dare. Well, we’ll look her over -and pass on her, then let you beat it.”</p> -<p>Toby Dare looked exultantly at his son as the -trim green launch chugged off to circle the barge. -It was a look of triumph and of high hopes for the -future.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_16">16</div> -<p>“All we need’s his O.K., Skippy,” he said in soft -tones. “It’s somethin’ ter be able ter face guys like -the inspector, specially when I been dodgin’ him so -long.”</p> -<p>“Then he knows you usta——” Skippy’s tongue -seemed not to be able to say the word.</p> -<p>“Sure,” said Toby, a little abashed. “There -ain’t many reg’lars in this harbor that the inspector -ain’t got spotted some time or other. But I should -worry now.”</p> -<p>Skippy nodded happily and a silence ensued between -them. They listened together and watched -while the harbor launch paused midway of the <i>Minnie -M. Baxter</i> and Inspector Jones and his two subordinates -held an inaudible conference. Then for a -time they made soundings after which the inspector -boarded the barge and spent another five minutes -inspecting it fore and aft.</p> -<p>“There’s more ter this here inspectin’ business -than what a guy thinks,” said Toby simply. “All I -know uv boats is this here kicker. I never did -more’n load an’ unload aboard Ol’ Flint’s scows.”</p> -<p>“The inspector’s gettin’ back in the launch,” said -Skippy eagerly. “Now they’ll come back an’ say -it’s all right an’ then we can go, huh?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_17">17</div> -<p>Toby Dare nodded and smilingly waited as -the launch chugged back alongside of his kicker.</p> -<p>“What yer think uv my ol’ battle-axe, hey, Inspector?” -he asked, chuckling.</p> -<p>“Battle-axe is a good word for her, Dare,” said -the inspector solemnly. “Nothing describes her -better.”</p> -<p>Toby Dare’s generous mouth seemed to tighten -at the corners.</p> -<p>“What yer mean, Inspector?”</p> -<p>“How much did you pay for her?”</p> -<p>“Three hunderd—why?” Toby’s lips trembled a -little and he searched the inspector’s face anxiously.</p> -<p>“Who’d you buy her from?” the inspector persisted.</p> -<p>“Ol’ Flint! Josiah Flint,” Toby answered suspiciously. -“<i>Why?</i>”</p> -<p>“I thought it must be somebody like him. I hate -to spring it on you, Dare, but you’ve paid three hundred -dollars too much. She’s not worth a dime.”</p> -<p>Toby Dare cleared his throat and a strange look -came into his kindly gray eyes.</p> -<p>“Inspector ——, yer mean this here barge ain’t....” -he began.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_18">18</div> -<p>“She’s not seaworthy,” the inspector interposed -as kindly as he could. “It’s not safe to keep her -afloat, Dare. Flint gypped you. You should -have had somebody look her over before you -bought her—somebody that knew an up-and-coming -barge from driftwood. That’s all you got on your -hands, I’m sorry to say—<i>driftwood</i>. Her keel’s as -rotten as a keel can possibly be.”</p> -<p>Toby Dare’s tanned, weather-beaten face went -suddenly white and he made a funny little clicking -noise with his tongue.</p> -<p>“The keel,” he muttered hoarsely, “can’t I have -’er fixed, Inspector—<i>can’t I</i>?”</p> -<p>Inspector Jones shook his head.</p> -<p>“It’d take more money than what you paid for -the old hulk, Dare; more money than you’ve got, I -guess.”</p> -<p>“I ain’t got a cent, Inspector, that’s the truth,” -Toby said, choking on his words. “Every cent I -had I paid Ol’ Flint an’—an’....”</p> -<p>Inspector Jones leaned toward the miserable man.</p> -<p>“Don’t take on so, Dare. Maybe the thing’s not -as hopeless as it seems. If Josiah Flint’s got a -spark of human feeling he’ll make good. Perhaps -he didn’t realize what shape the barge was in when -he sold her. He owns so many....”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_19">19</div> -<p>“That’s jest it, Inspector,” said Toby, clenching -his calloused hands. “Ol’ Flint <i>ain’t</i> got human -feelin’. I worked fer him an’ I know. An’ fer a -big ship-owner like him, he knows every craft he -owns like a book. Now that I think uv it, I know -he knew what he was sellin’ me! He knew I was -dumb about them things an’ he took advantage uv -it.” Dare looked down the harbor, glowing in the -sunset, and his jaw was set determinedly. “He -smiled, Ol’ Flint did, when I forked over my jack. -He knew all the time!”</p> -<p>Skippy’s eyes were misty and he looked appealingly -at Inspector Jones.</p> -<p>“Does that mean Pop can’t use the <i>Minnie M. -Baxter</i>?” he faltered.</p> -<p>The inspector averted his face from the boy’s -pleading eyes.</p> -<p>“If you think you can’t appeal to Flint personally, -Dare,” said he, “sue him. A lawyer’ll make -him kick in.”</p> -<p>“Not from Ol’ Flint,” said Toby Dare hoarsely -and looking straight across the river. “He’s too -rich ter be sued. But there’s one way uv fixin’ him—<i>one -way</i>!”</p> -<p>Inspector Jones motioned his men to start their -craft on its way.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_20">20</div> -<p>“Cheer up,” he said, glancing quickly from father -to son. “You’ll get a break yet. The safest way -to get after Flint, Toby, is to sue him. You’d certainly -not get anywhere with him the way you feel -now. Meanwhile, the safest place for the scow is -up at the Basin. She’s just not safe even to be -towed around the harbor.”</p> -<p>Skippy watched the long line of foam that the -launch left in its wake. For a long time his misty -eyes were fastened on the glistening bubbles dancing -atop the water until he could no longer stand -his father’s silence.</p> -<p>“Pop, Pop,” he stammered, “can’t we go—go -somewhere now?”</p> -<p>“Sure—sure,” said Toby brokenly. “We’re goin’ -somewheres a’right. We’re goin’ ter the Basin -where Jones told us to go with the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>.” -He laughed sardonically. “We’re goin’ ter -put the ol’ battle-axe in dry-dock <i>forever</i>!”</p> -<p>“What’s that mean, Pop?” Skippy asked pathetically. -“It sounds like you mean something -terrible will happen to the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>.”</p> -<p>“It <i>is</i> terrible ter me—an’ ter you, Skippy boy,” -mumbled Toby. “It means that the pore scow’s so -rotten she ain’t fit fer nothin’ but ter be put high -an’ dry in Brown’s Basin along with half a hunderd -other rotten scows. It’s way in the inlet an’ folks -live in them scows like I guess you an’ me’ll have ter -till I kin think what next.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_21">21</div> -<p>“Then all those other barges like ours can never -sail the harbor again, huh?” Skippy asked sadly. -“They just sorta stay there till they rot an’ fall -apart, is that it? Like as if they’re condemned.”</p> -<p>“That’s the word, Skippy,” said Toby Dare bitterly. -“The <i>Minnie M. Baxter’s</i> been condemned -an’ you an’ me are condemned along with her.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_22">22</div> -<h2 id="c3">CHAPTER III -<br /><span class="small">THE BASIN</span></h2> -<p>Brown’s Basin was off the beaten track, even -nautically speaking. One could never have found -it except by the merest chance, unless one were fortunate -enough to have a companion who was familiar -with it. The rivermen knew, perhaps knew -too well, as did the police who preferred to get no -closer to the colony than the shadowy inlet which -sulks silently in the daylight hours and strangely -springs to life under cover of the blackest nights.</p> -<p>The Basin, as it is more familiarly known, thrives -under the protection of the lofty Palisades. In -summer the foliage all but hides it from the shore, -and in winter the grim, gray rocks give it ample security -from the prying eyes of the world. And the -Basin wishes that security, for the character of the -residents is such that secrecy and isolation provide -the means for their livelihood and their existence.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_23">23</div> -<p>Perhaps half a hundred derelict barges dot the -slimy mud banks of the Basin, some of them occupied -and some not. But on the whole the combined -population of this sordid looking place represents a -fair number and on bright, sunlit mornings one can -get an occasional glimpse from the steep river road -of poorly clad children scrambling from one to the -other of the closely packed barges, much the same -as they would scramble across city streets.</p> -<p>Large planks connect the sprawling hulks in a sort -of interminable chain and the denizens can traverse -the entire settlement by this means. More often -than not the family laundry waving in the damp -river breeze on the forward deck must be dodged -by this strolling citizenry, but they are quite used to -all forms of adroit evasion, particularly where the -law is concerned.</p> -<p>It was into this little lawless colony that the <i>Minnie -M. Baxter</i> was towed. Sunset had long since -gone, leaving but a hint of vermilion colored sky at -the horizon as the kicker chugged silently farther -and farther into the muddy waters of the inlet. -Skippy steered the motor-boat and Toby Dare -struggled at the tiller of the barge while most of -the colonists looked on indifferently. They -sprawled about on the various decks, men, women -and children.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_24">24</div> -<p>Criticism, both friendly and otherwise, reached -Toby Dare’s sensitive ears, but he paid little heed, -using his own judgment as to a suitable spot in which -to rest the ill-fated barge. It was a spot at the -very edge of the Basin that he chose and so manifest -was its isolation from the rest of the colony -that but one inference could be drawn: Toby Dare -did not intend his son or himself to be drawn into -that maelstrom of dubious citizenry. His grief -over the recent misfortune in no way blunted his -keen senses and, as always, Skippy’s future welfare -was uppermost in his mind.</p> -<p>“They’re people what ain’t partic’lar ’bout things, -Sonny,” he explained while the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> -was settling in the mud. “They—well, they can’t -help it, but they’re folks what ain’t carin’ whether -their boys is fetched up right or not. They jest let -their kids live day after day sorta an’ they don’t -think uv next year. Me, I’m always a-thinkin’ -’bout you a year ahead—see? So it ain’t no use -botherin’ with folks what thinks different.”</p> -<p>“I see, Pop,” said Skippy looking musingly into -the rust-colored water. “You know all about ’em, -huh?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_25">25</div> -<p>“More’n they know themselves, Sonny. Ain’t -they slaves fer Ol’ Flint same as I was? Only I -did more uv his high class dirty work. I overseed -’em load an’ unload the stuff fer Ol’ Flint an’ it paid -enough ter keep my sonny in a shack ashore where -he didn’t see his Pop helpin’ ter beat the law. Now -when I thought I was through with that an’ ready -ter give yer a clean, honest start—<i>where am I?</i>” -He buried his face in his hands.</p> -<p>Skippy touched his father on the shoulder with a -trembling hand.</p> -<p>“Aw, Pop—forget it, huh? I can help soon too, -can’t I? When I get my workin’ papers I can. I’ll -even go to night school an’ I’ll be honest an’ like a -gentleman just the same as if the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> -wasn’t condemned an’ we could haul garbage an’ -ashes an’ make plenty.” He was quite exhausted -by this lengthy declaration but his eyes were full of -shining hope.</p> -<p>Toby Dare raised his head.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_26">26</div> -<p>“Yer a-meanin’ well, Sonny, but yer ain’t got no -idea how hard it is ter do anythin’ without a little -money. Besides, it sort uv taints a man’s own -fam’ly even, when he’s worked fer Ol’ Flint. -Decent, honest shipowners give a man the go-by -when they find out yer been a Flint man. Yer blackballed, -in other words, Sonny—see? Yer ain’t given -no chance ter work at an honest job no matter how -bad yer want to. An’ I can’t do nothin’ but river -work an’ the like—I ain’t never done nothin’ else! -The only thing fer a man like me ter do was ter try -an’ go on his own hook like I meant ter do with the -<i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>. Now I can’t do that unless—unless....” -His large, yellow teeth seemed to -close over the word hopefully.</p> -<p>“Unless what, Pop?” Skippy asked eagerly.</p> -<p>“Unless I kin make him give me back my money -an’ I kin buy another <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>.” He -choked a little and shook his disheveled head. “But -that’s too much ter hope fer, Skippy. Ol’ Flint’s -never been known ter give anythin’ back—it’s me -that oughta know that. I was a fool ter think he -could be honest with me—<i>me</i>, a poor workman uv -his. Why, Ol’ Flint’s bragged he’d skin anybody -what was fool enough ter <i>be</i> skinned.”</p> -<p>Skippy shifted uncomfortably from one foot to -the other.</p> -<p>“So then will you go to a lawyer like Inspector -Jones told you? To please me, Pop, will you?”</p> -<p>“I’m a-goin’ nowheres but ter see Ol’ Flint,” answered -Toby hoarsely. “That swell yacht uv his -is anchored in the bay an’ he’s livin’ aboard it durin’ -this hot spell so I know where ter find him after -workin’ hours. He ain’t only ten years older ’n me -an’ he’s in good condition an’ jest my size so....”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_27">27</div> -<p>“Pop—Pop, you got fight on your mind an’ it’s -just the way Inspector Jones warned you not to go -to see Mr. Flint! Besides, it ain’t gonna be half -bad here till we can think up sumpin’ else to do. -Forget about Mr. Flint if you’re jus’ thinkin’ of him -on accounta me. I’ll be all right——”</p> -<p>“I’ll forget anythin’ ’ceptin’ that Ol’ Flint’s -cheated me with a grin on his slick face,” said Toby -Dare with an ominous softness in his voice. “So -I’m a-goin’ ter teach him a lesson, Skippy—I’m -a-goin’ ter teach him that Toby Dare can’t be -cheated outa everythin’ he’s hoped fer, fer years, -without hittin’ back. Yessir, Ol’ Flint’s gotta learn -what it means ter cheat me!”</p> -<p>“Pop—Pop! You ain’t goin’—honest?”</p> -<p>“I am. I’m a-goin’ sure as guns.”</p> -<p>“When—when you goin’, Pop?”</p> -<p>“<i>Tonight!</i>”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_28">28</div> -<h2 id="c4">CHAPTER IV -<br /><span class="small">COMPROMISE</span></h2> -<p>Skippy got the first meal aboard the <i>Minnie M. -Baxter</i>. His heart and soul were certainly not in -the task for he burned four of the flapjacks that he -was cooking. The coffee had twice boiled over and -the narrow little cabin was filled with a blue, acrid -smoke and though the sight of his father’s lugubrious -face, as he paced up and down outside the little -windows, disturbed him, he was not particularly unhappy.</p> -<p>His mind, during the preparation of that meal, -was not on his father’s misfortunes nor on the -threatened and ominous visit to the Flint yacht that -very evening. Instead he was visualizing what -benefits were to be derived from residing in the -Basin, chief among these being an uninterrupted -summer season of fishing and swimming. That to -the heart of a boy of his age compensated fully for -the loss of the garbage and ashes contract, yes, even -for the loss of the barge’s promise of a remunerative future.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_29">29</div> -<p>It is not to be thought that Skippy did not deeply -feel his father’s grief, for indeed he had brooded -over it for hours. But after they had settled and -arranged their few belongings in the meagerly furnished -cabin of the barge, he had achieved that -blessed miracle of youth and accepted the inevitable -without a question. Life stretched out ahead of -him as the inlet lay spread under this starlit night, -broken now and then by a quiet ripple until it -reached the river. What would happen beyond -that point he knew he could find out when he came -to it.</p> -<p>And so, more contented than his brooding and -troubled parent, Skippy piled up the flapjacks until -they resembled the leaning tower of Pisa, and he -whistled to the accompaniment of the sputtering -coffee pot. All the world seemed delightful and -generous with these savory dishes ready to be eaten, -and he asked himself if his father wasn’t making -much of little. After all, they had the <i>Minnie M. -Baxter</i> for a home, didn’t they? And wasn’t living -on a barge just the kind of life that he and his -pals had often wished for when they had lain about -their dusty dooryards on hot summer nights?</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_30">30</div> -<p>The boy ran to the door, his tanned face flushed -and expectant. He would tell his father how much -better he was going to feel out on the river all summer -than back in dusty, hot Riverboro where he had -spent all his life. He would fish and swim and take -lots of deep, lung-developing breaths. He’d probably -never have another bad throat....</p> -<p>He inhaled deeply on the strength of this thought -and though his lungs filled with a queerly mixed odor -of mud, decayed fish and salt, he noticed it not at -all. Moreover, the inlet might have been a clear, -wind-swept ocean waste, so far above the Basin had -his imagination carried him.</p> -<p>A figure stirred in the shadows forward and then -he heard the familiar tread of his father. Suddenly -on the damp salt breeze they heard the distant -sound of chimes and waited silently while the faint -notes struck off the hour of ten.</p> -<p>“Pretty late to eat, huh Pop? Everythin’s ready, -so you better come while it’s hot.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_31">31</div> -<p>“Yer know where them chimes come from?” -Toby asked in a tone of voice that was strange to -his son. “They come from River Heights on that -swell Town Hall what Ol’ Flint give to the borough. -Now I s’pose he’ll give the three hunderd dollars he -cheated me outa, fer somethin’ else what’ll give him -a big name, hey? That’s what some uv them -scoundrels like Ol’ Flint do—give their dirty money -ter things what’ll give ’em a fine big name. Well, -he won’t git the chanct ter give my three hunderd—not -while I live!”</p> -<p>Josiah Flint again! Skippy’s heart lost all its -merry hopes in a fleeting second. He turned back -into the cabin and his father followed him in -gloomy silence. Mechanically, he carried the -steaming plate from the oil stove to the rickety little -oil-cloth covered table and without a word they -pulled up their chairs and sat down.</p> -<p>“I never tole yer before,” said Toby after a few -moments, “but if it wasn’t fer Ol’ Flint there -wouldn’ never ’a’ been no squatter colony like this -in Brown’s Basin. It’s him what’s made it, that’s -what. They’re all blackballed men, Sonny; men -what’s got in Ol’ Flint’s clutches an’ ain’t never got -the chance nor the brains ter git out. Not like me -that had a little more brains ter earn bigger money -so’s I could save fer the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>. <i>Save!</i>” -He brought his fist down upon the table with such -force that a flapjack bounced from his plate to the -floor. “Ha, ha—what for did I save, hey?”</p> -<p>He laughed so sardonically that Skippy hurried -for the coffee to hide his concern.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_32">32</div> -<p>“Aw, please don’t take on so, Pop!” His eyes -were directed at Toby’s back. “Gee, that old -miser, he ain’t worth you actin’ so queer an’ all. It -ain’t so bad here. It’s a nice little house we got in -this cabin; chairs an’ the stove an’ a table an’ our -trunk.” His glance wandered to the tiny windows -opened to the damp salt breeze. “Even I bet I -could put up some cretonne stuff as good as a girl -an’ then won’t this be one nice-lookin’ little place!”</p> -<p>Toby’s chair scraped over the rough, clean -boards and he stood up, straight and powerful and -ominous.</p> -<p>“Never mind the coffee now,” he said hoarsely. -“We kin heat it up an’ drink it when we come back.” -He laughed. “We’ll drink it as a toast ter Ol’ -Flint’s health!”</p> -<p>Skippy put down the coffee pot and wiped his -grimy hands on his khaki knickers. Then with a -swift movement he shook back his straight, rebellious -hair and glanced up at his father.</p> -<p>“You—you mean you want me with you, Pop?” -he asked tremulously.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_33">33</div> -<p>“<i>Jest</i> what I mean, Skippy. I want yer along -so’s I kin remember Ol’ Flint ain’t worth ... well, -what I mean is, if I have yer to talk ter on the way -I ain’t so like ter lose my head when I git there an’ -talk ter him. If he gits sneerin’ at me like his habit -is mostly, it’ll be good fer me ter know my Sonny’s -right outside a-waitin’ in the kicker. Waitin’ fer -his Pop, hey?”</p> -<p>“Sure, sure,” Skippy gulped. “Sure, I’ll go with -you if it’s gonna make you feel that way, Pop. Gee, -I’ll go anywheres with you if you only promise not -to lose your head.”</p> -<p>“Jest the sight uv that man’ll make me lose my -head, Skippy—I know it. But so long as yer make -me promise—I won’t give him the worst uv it, if I -kin help it.”</p> -<p>Skippy knew his father well enough to accept just -that much and hope for the best. He went to the -old battered trunk, took out a worn sweater and -while still drawing it on followed Toby outside.</p> -<p>They descended the rope ladder in silence and got -into the shabby boat. Toby turned over the motor -and Skippy took his place at the bow to watch for -drifting logs for the little kicker had not a light. -Toby’s former nocturnal occupations had made it -necessary for him to dispense with this appurtenance -and now, as he explained to his inquiring son, it had -become a habit to roam the river without illumination, -knowing as he did every square foot of it. Besides, -he had come to love the solitude of darkness.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_34">34</div> -<p>Skippy looked all about him, not exactly at his -ease. The inlet was black and at times the starlit -sky seemed so far away as to be but a mirage. Perhaps -there wasn’t a star in all the heavens, he would -try to tell himself. All was black night and the -muffled motor purred with a hushed monotony that -affected him strangely. He fervently hoped that -they would not be long in reaching the river where -he could breathe without feeling that he was going -to choke.</p> -<p>He knew he was afraid and he knew it really had -nothing to do with the inlet or the black, silent night. -It was a nameless dread that had seized him and, -try as he would, he could not shake it off.</p> -<p>Instinctively, he felt that they shouldn’t go on to -Josiah Flint’s yacht that night.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_35">35</div> -<h2 id="c5">CHAPTER V -<br /><span class="small">THE APOLLYON</span></h2> -<p>Skippy felt better when the boat nosed out into -the river. He raised his worried face to the clear -salt breeze and let it blow over his hot cheeks. -Lights blinked here and there on the dark water -and a tug chortled by noisily. Then on the far -shore he saw a cable light, and a ship ran clear of it -before she dropped her mooring anchor.</p> -<p>Toby said nothing but sat in a lugubrious silence -as he steered the little craft downstream. Skippy -stared hard at the spray foaming against the bow; -his mind was not on drifting logs. He turned to -his father, scanned his face anxiously, then peered -downstream again.</p> -<p>“Is Mr. Flint’s yacht much further, Pop?” he -asked after a few minutes.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_36">36</div> -<p>“No, we oughta soon be on top uv her,” came the -hoarse reply. “Yer can’t miss her—she’s got her -name sprawled fore an’ aft in great big gold letters. -It’s some fancy name called A—Apollyon. That’s -it. Kindo highfalutin name, hey? Like all them -there Flints.”</p> -<p>“How many Flints are there, Pop?”</p> -<p>“Jest two now, like me an’ you. Ol’ Flint an’ his -son, Buck. His real name’s Harry. Anyway folks -call him Buck. But he’s got it better’n you, Sonny. -Much better. Besides he’s old enough ter take his -father’s place in the dirty business, though I heerd -not so long ago that Buck ain’t uv a mind with the -old man an’ lets Marty Skinner help run the works. -They say Buck’s terrible honest an’ all fer the law -but Skinner’s nothin’ but a rat.”</p> -<p>“Well, maybe Buck’ll take over his father’s business -some day and make it pay without havin’ smugglin’ -an’ things like that, huh Pop?”</p> -<p>“Mebbe, but not if that crook Skinner keeps his -ball in the game. Still, I heerd it said that Ol’ -Flint’s business has always paid good enough without -him doin’ dirty work fer easy money. But -that’s what a miser he is—he’s gotta have a crooked -side line so’s ter pile up his millions in a coupla -years. He ain’t willin’ like the rest uv these shipowners -’round here ter wait an’ let a honest fortune -pile up, say, in twenty years or so. He can’t be -honest, Ol’ Flint can’t, not even with a poor man -like me, an’ Skinner’s the same breed uv cats.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_37">37</div> -<p>They were approaching a wide bend in the river. -Anchored launches and trim sailboats dotted the -shadowy water like immaculate sentinels. Skippy’s -restless eyes roved over the silent scene until he -espied the graceful sweep of a yacht’s bow projecting -out of the shadows into the line of its anchor -light. Simultaneously he saw great gold letters -spelling out the name <i>Apollyon</i> and it occurred to -him how modest and neat was the brass lettering of -the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> in contrast.</p> -<p>The white, dainty craft swayed ever so gently on -the slight swell and Skippy was lost in envy. He -bethought himself of the sprawling uncouth barge -and for a moment wondered why things were like -this; why a man of Josiah Flint’s sort could own this -dainty, spotless yacht while his father who wanted -so much to be honest had not even the worth of the -hard-earned barge.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_38">38</div> -<p>For the first time, he understood how bitter and -revengeful his father must feel. He too felt bitter -and revengeful as they got closer to the <i>Apollyon</i>. -Something began to smolder in his boy’s heart; -something wholly alien to his cheerful, wholesome -nature. But he was aware of nothing of this, save -that he felt like sneering aloud at this proud, complacent -craft swaying before his eyes. In a wild -fancy he imagined her to be mocking his father and -himself for daring to hope that Josiah Flint would -make restitution.</p> -<p>A dim light shone amidships and save for the -anchor lights the rest of the yacht was in darkness. -Skippy stared hard at her and suddenly saw something -skimming away from her port side.</p> -<p>He leaned far over the prow of the little motor -boat until he saw that the object was a kicker like -their own with its engine muffled. In whispered -words he drew Toby’s attention to it.</p> -<p>“Wonder where she’s been and where she’s goin’ -to, huh Pop?” he queried.</p> -<p>“That ain’t none uv our business, Skippy,” his -father answered staring up at the <i>Apollyon</i>. -“Folks on the river don’t think uv them things this -time uv night. They know a muffled engine’s one -that ain’t carin’ ter be heard, same as I got one fer -mine.”</p> -<p>“We could have ours taken off now, huh Pop? -It ain’t any more use now, is it?”</p> -<p>“That all depends, Sonny. It all depends on Ol’ -Flint,” Toby said softly. “Now here we are an’ -the less said, the better.”</p> -<p>“Ahoy!” called a voice in deep, soft tones from -above. “Who’s below?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_39">39</div> -<p>Father and son glanced up to see the head and -shoulders of a burly man leaning over the glistening -rail. Skippy saw Toby stiffen determinedly.</p> -<p>“Ol’ Flint aboard?” he asked.</p> -<p>“Yeah,” the man answered suppressing a yawn. -“He’s in his cabin amidships. Lookin’ for him?”</p> -<p>“Yeah.”</p> -<p>“Move the kicker aft an’ come aboard. Old -man was talkin’ with Mr. Skinner when I come on -duty two hours ago. His light’s still on so he’s -readin’ likely.”</p> -<p>The little boat moved aft with hardly a splash -and the next moment Toby was scrambling up the -ladder. Skippy listened intently as his father set -foot on the <i>Apollyon’s</i> deck.</p> -<p>“Want me to tell him he’s got a caller?” the man -suddenly asked.</p> -<p>“Nope. Thanks jest the same,” Toby was saying. -“I even got half an idee that mebbe he expects -me.”</p> -<p>“Awright, buddy,” said the man heartily. -“You’ll find him ’midships like I told you. There -where the little light is.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_40">40</div> -<p>Skippy heard the soft tread of his father’s step -along the deck. A door closed and after an interval -of silence he looked up to see that the man was -still there, bending over the rail and apparently staring -at him.</p> -<p>“Your Dad, hey kid?” he asked, catching Skippy’s -upturned eyes.</p> -<p>“My Pop,” Skippy corrected, chuckling. He -liked the man’s hearty voice. “You work aboard -this yacht, Mister?”</p> -<p>“Second mate, that’s what. Easy job summers -when the old man’s busy. All we do is to sleep and -keep the old girl ship-shape.”</p> -<p>“Old girl?”</p> -<p>“Yeah, this scow.”</p> -<p>“Some scow!” Skippy laughed. “She’s pretty -swell, I’ll say. Not much trouble keepin’ <i>her</i> ship-shape, -huh?”</p> -<p>“Naw. There ain’t enough to keep us busy an’ -it makes a swab lazy. Same’s me tonight. Here -I am the only one on duty (there ain’t no need for -more’n one, anchored here like we are) and things -are so quiet what do I do but fall sound asleep! -I’d sat me down and I hear the old man bawlin’ Mr. -Skinner out fierce. Then I guess I was dozin’ a -spell ’fore I heard the sound of a muffled motor aft. -Dreamed it, I guess, and I dreamed I heard somebody -comin’ out from the boss’s quarters ’midships. -Anyways, I finally woke up and when I come to the -rail I see you folks. Guess that’s what I was hearin’ -in my dreams all the time, hey?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_41">41</div> -<p>“Maybe,” said Skippy. “Our motor’s muffled, I -guess you noticed already, but you might ’a’ heard -another kicker like ours too because one was aft -when we came along.”</p> -<p>“Guess maybe that’s what it was then,” said the -second mate pleasantly. “Just somebody bein’ a -little cautious, like. Still I got to quit bein’ so lazy -nights and do my duty by <i>Polly</i> like the old man -pays me for.”</p> -<p>“<i>Polly?</i>”</p> -<p>The second mate laughed softly and Skippy -fancied that his mischievous wink penetrated the -darkness.</p> -<p>“<i>Apollyon</i>—<i>Polly</i> for short, kid! <i>Apollyon</i> is -too highfalutin for able seamen, hey?”</p> -<p>“That’s what I thought, Mister. I never heard -it before. Gee whiz, what’s it mean anyway?”</p> -<p>The second mate paused a moment.</p> -<p>“From what I could make out from the Cap’n it -was the name of a Greek story or somethin’. You -know—one of them real old Greeks thousands of -years back. And this <i>Apollyon</i> was a evil spirit or -somethin’ like that, and folks called ’im the Destroyer! -Ain’t that a name for you?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_42">42</div> -<p>Skippy nodded and looked at the graceful ship -with a new interest. Evil spirit? Destroyer? A -queer name indeed for such a dainty craft. Why -should Josiah Flint give that beautiful hull such an -evil name? The sound of a dull thump interrupted -his thoughts.</p> -<p>“I couldn’t work on a ship with a name like that,” -he said to the second mate at length.</p> -<p>“Why?” the man laughed. “Superstitious?”</p> -<p>“I wouldn’t say that,” Skippy answered seriously. -“At least I never thought I was sup-super-superstitious -more’n most kids. But it don’t seem exactly -fair callin’ a nice ship like that the destroyer -or an evil spirit or whatever <i>Apollyon</i> really means. -Gee, I’ve heard my Pop say that a ship kinda gets -lookin’ like its name an’ actin’ like its name after a -while. That’s why he named the barge he bought -from Mr. Flint after my mother; the <i>Minnie M. -Baxter</i> she’s called. He said she’d be the nicest -barge on the river if she took after my mother. -But so far it ain’t worked out,” he added wistfully.</p> -<p>“No?” the second mate inquired sympathetically.</p> -<p>Skippy summed up the whole story of his father’s -misfortune in a few words. Particularly did he -stress Toby’s grief over Josiah Flint’s wilful deception -in the transaction.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_43">43</div> -<p>“And so your Pop’s come to make the old man -come across, hey? Well, I don’t blame him.” The -man lowered his voice to a mere whisper. “I only -hope he don’t get the boss in a nasty temper ’cause -he’s not one to give in and he sounded like he was -good and sore when he was bawlin’ out Mr. Skinner. -Besides, he ain’t the one to admit he cheated -your pop either. Still....”</p> -<p>A low moan startled them both and suddenly a -door slammed, followed by the sound of someone -running along the deck. Skippy stood straight up -in the motor boat and listened intently.</p> -<p>He knew those footsteps and he knew what was -in the mind that directed them with such force. -His father never hurried, much less ran, unless he -was terribly angered or pained or....</p> -<p>He dared not complete that thought, nor did he -have need to, for his father’s drawn, white face was -already looking down at him from above the rail -and Skippy read there all that he needed to know.</p> -<p>Something terrible had happened.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_44">44</div> -<h2 id="c6">CHAPTER VI -<br /><span class="small">A STRANGE STORY</span></h2> -<p>The little motor boat had left the <i>Apollyon</i> far -behind, ignoring shouts from its deck to halt, before -Skippy dared break the tense silence.</p> -<p>“Gee, Pop,” he stammered fearfully, “what happened -between you and Mr. Flint anyway, huh? -Because you didn’t even say goodnight to the mate -an’ you got in the boat an’ told me so cranky an’ -all to push off before I got a chance to say goodnight -to him, either—gee whiz! I never seen you -act so funny before in my life. What’s the matter, -huh?”</p> -<p>Toby Dare groaned and buried his face between -his hands. Then, for what seemed to Skippy an -interminable time, he rocked to and fro and the -groans that escaped him were distressing to the -waiting boy.</p> -<p>Finally Skippy could stand it no longer.</p> -<p>“Pop, you gotta tell me what’s the matter! Gee, -it’s somethin’ terrible the way....”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_45">45</div> -<p>“Sonny,” Toby interposed brokenly, “git back ter -the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> jest as quick as yer kin! I -got ter put as much water between me—me an’—an’ -<i>him</i> as it’s possible ter put.”</p> -<p>“Pop?”</p> -<p>“It’s like a dream, Sonny—a bad dream—a terrible -dream. I can’t make head or tail uv it yet. -I went ter his cabin ’midships like that mate told -me....”</p> -<p>“Yes?” Skippy encouraged.</p> -<p>“I knocked on the door an’ I could uv sworn I -heard a kinda grunt like Ol’ Flint does. He’s a -man uv few words. Anyways, I goes in an’ there -he’s sittin’ in a big chair with a funny grin on his -face.”</p> -<p>“Grinnin’ at <i>you</i>, Pop?” Skippy asked clenching -his straight white teeth.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_46">46</div> -<p>“That’s what I thought an’ right away I got -wild,” Toby answered running his hands nervously -through his disheveled hair. “I forgot what I -promised—I forgot everythin’ ’ceptin’ the way he’d -cheated me an’ I got tellin’ him so but he didn’t say -nothin’, but jest kep’ sittin’ there a-grinnin’ that -funny way. Well, I knowed as how he always was -a man uv few words but I thought he could stop -grinnin’ an’ at least say <i>somethin’</i>. But he didn’ -an’ that’s what made me see red—I thought he was -a-makin’ fun uv me, sorta, an’——”</p> -<p>“You didn’t go for him?” Skippy interposed fearfully.</p> -<p>“Sonny, I jest sorta lost my head,” answered -Toby brokenly. “I kin hardly remember what happened -’ceptin’ I realized all uv a sudden that I had -my hands ’round his throat an’ I was chokin’ him.”</p> -<p>“And didn’t he make any noise or anythin’?” -Skippy was horrified.</p> -<p>“That’s what made me let go. I got wise right -then that somethin’ was funny ’cause he didn’t let a -sound outa him all the time. His eyes seemed ter -git funnier lookin’ though, but he kep’ on grinnin’ -jest the same. Then I let go quick an’ <i>plop</i>—over -he fell, head first he fell an’ that’s when I saw -it——”</p> -<p>“<i>What?</i>”</p> -<p>“That he’d been shot in the back,” Toby whispered -looking about uneasily.</p> -<p>“<i>Pop!</i>”</p> -<p>“Sure as guns, Skippy,” Toby moaned pitifully. -“Then I knew he musta been dead all the time—even -before I got in the room.”</p> -<p>Skippy too groaned.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_47">47</div> -<p>“How—how could he sit up like that then, if he -really was <i>dead</i>?” he asked with an audible gulp.</p> -<p>“That’s what I’ve been wonderin’ an’ all I kin -think is that whoever did it, sat him up that way -after it happened. I could see in his bedroom off -uv the room he was sittin’ in an’ papers was lyin’ all -’round like as if there’d been a scrap.”</p> -<p>“With somebody else,” Skippy murmured as if to -himself. Then, in a frightened whisper: “What -then, Pop?”</p> -<p>“All I could do was stand there like a crazy -man,” Toby groaned. “I don’t even remember -how long I stood there. It’s all like part uv that -nightmare so I can’t remember.”</p> -<p>“I know, Pop.” Skippy tried to sound comforting. -“Who—what groaned that time? The second -mate and me heard it plain’s anythin’.”</p> -<p>“Me. That was when I knew he was dead! It -jest sorta come ter me full in the face an’ I was -so full uv fright that I had ter let it out some -way.”</p> -<p>Skippy turned around and for a few moments -searched the face of his unhappy father.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_48">48</div> -<p>“Pop—Pop,” he faltered, “just one thing I can’t -understand—why—why didn’t you tell the second -mate, an’ me, right then? Why—why didn’t you -spurt it right out an’ not run away when you know -you didn’t do it?”</p> -<p>“Who’d believe it?” Toby answered hopelessly. -“There was the mark uv my fingers on his throat—<i>there -they was</i>! I’d even have ter admit ter that -mate that I was mad enough ter choke Ol’ Flint ter -death—he could see my fingers there ter prove it, -couldn’t he? Well, why wouldn’t he think I give -him an automatic in the back afterwards, hey? -Why wouldn’t he?”</p> -<p>“<i>But, Pop!</i> If you only had said <i>sumpin</i>!”</p> -<p>“I wanted ter git away from that awful grinnin’ -face. As far away as I c’d get. I—I couldn’t stay -there ter tell nobody <i>nothin’</i>, Skippy. Besides, do -I know I didn’t choke him ter—ter...” He -sobbed a moment, then looked up. “Mebbe -’twasn’t the automatic what really got him, Skippy—mebbe -’twas <i>me</i>, hey?”</p> -<p>Skippy reached out and grasped Toby’s damp -flannel shirt sleeve in agony.</p> -<p>“Pop, it wasn’t you—I know it—<i>I just feel it</i>!” -he cried. “I can tell from all you told me about -him grinnin’ like from the time you got inside the -room.” He hesitated a moment, then: “You don’t -remember him makin’ a sound at all?” he asked, -anxiously peering into his father’s face.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_49">49</div> -<p>“Not one sol’tary sound, Sonny—I didn’t hear a -one!”</p> -<p>Skippy sighed and again took up the task of steering -the little motor boat upstream. His tired -young face, however, had taken on a new look of -resolution.</p> -<p>“You’re tired, Pop, an’ I’m gonna take you back -to the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>. Then I’m gonna turn -this kicker straight back and head her downstream -again an’ I’m goin’ aboard that <i>Apollyon</i> an’ explain -the whole thing. I’ll tell ’em everythin’ like -you told me an’ I bet they’ll believe it all right -’cause they’ll see that my Pop couldn’t kill anybody.”</p> -<p>Toby said nothing but continued to rock back and -forth with his head in his hands.</p> -<p>“Maybe—maybe you’re not so tired an’ you’d -turn ’round with me an’ go back an’ tell ’em, huh -Pop?” Skippy returned anxiously.</p> -<p>“Skippy,” Toby cried hoarsely, “jest now I wanta -go back ter the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> an’ think. Like -a good boy don’t talk about it no more till we get -there, hey?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_50">50</div> -<p>Skippy, bewildered, promised that he wouldn’t, -and let the little kicker out to the best of her ability. -From time to time he heard the miserable sighs of -his father, and over and over again he told himself -the story of Josiah Flint’s strange death just as -Toby had told it. But with each recurring -thought, a strange suspicion asserted itself and -clamored so hard in the boy’s conscious mind that he -was forced to recognize that it was a doubt, a small -one, but nevertheless a doubt of his father’s story.</p> -<p>And by the time they were once more on board -the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>, Skippy was fearful that possibly, -after all, his father might be the actual murderer -of Josiah Flint!</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_51">51</div> -<h2 id="c7">CHAPTER VII -<br /><span class="small">FOR SKIPPY</span></h2> -<p>Skippy washed the dishes and cleaned up the -cabin, then made some fresh coffee. He put the -two cups on a little tin tray and carried it out on -deck where his father sat disconsolately puffing a -pipe.</p> -<p>“I made this good an’ careful, Pop,” he said, -handing Toby a cup of the steaming beverage. -“Maybe it’ll make you feel better, it’s so hot.”</p> -<p>Toby took the proffered cup and smiled wanly.</p> -<p>“Yer think your Pop’s a coward, takin’ on this -way?” he asked anxiously.</p> -<p>Skippy flushed and, to cover his embarrassment, -sat down on a stool a little distance away.</p> -<p>“Nah, I don’t think that, Pop,” he said at length. -“I guess I know how kinda crazy an’ different you’d -act after seem’ that. Gee, it musta been pretty -awful to make you act so different.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_52">52</div> -<p>“I know how yer mean by different, Sonny, but I -ain’t blamin’ yer. I know it must look funny, but it -ain’t. Besides I ain’t a coward ’bout it. If I’d -told the mate right on the spot, he’d had ter keep -me till the police come. Then what would happened -ter <i>you</i>? Even if I give myself up now -they’ll hold me on charges an’ the law’s that slow, -it’ll be months mebbe ’fore I kin clear myself.”</p> -<p>“But that’d be better’n lettin’ ’em think you was -the one that killed Mr. Flint, wouldn’t it?”</p> -<p>“I thought mebbe we could run somewheres out -west or the like, hey Skippy? Yer don’t know what -the law is once yer git in its fist. If they can’t find -nobody else they’ll pin it on me no matter what we -say—I know it! So we might’s well take our duds -an’ beat it now.”</p> -<p>“Pop, you’re not talkin’ like yourself. You got -sorta crazy on accounta thinkin’ how all this’ll hurt -me. Gee whiz, forget about me, because you can’t -have the cops thinkin’ you did it, when you didn’t! -Gee, I’ll get along somehow, honest I will, Pop. -I’ll get along better to know you did what was right -an’ told the truth. An’ even the law I bet can see -when a man’s tellin’ the truth an’ they’ll let you out -quick—so will you go for my sake, Pop?”</p> -<p>Toby brought a hairy fist down on his bony knees.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_53">53</div> -<p>“It’s fer yer sake that I didn’t want ter go near -’em, Skippy,” he said vehemently. “But if yer -promise yer Pop ter stay good an’ all till they let me -out, I don’t care. Fer my sake I <i>wanta</i> go!”</p> -<p>“Gee, Pop, I’m glad!”</p> -<p>Toby drank his coffee with a determined gulp, -then got up and stalked into the cabin with the -empty cup. When he came out, he held out his -hands to Skippy.</p> -<p>“C’mon, then, Sonny,” he said gripping the boy -by the shoulders, “we’ll be a-gittin’ back ter the -<i>Apollyon</i> ’fore too much water slips inter the bay, -hey?”</p> -<p>“Just what I was thinkin’ of, Pop,” Skippy answered -and averted his head so that his father -should not see the tears swimming in his eyes. -“And, Pop, you’re kinda calm now, ain’t you? Calm -enough to remember better’n when we were comin’ -down?”</p> -<p>Toby Dare nodded wearily.</p> -<p>“What yer wanta know, Skippy?”</p> -<p>“Just that you’re good an’ sure that you didn’t -hear him make a noise from the time you first seen -him till you ran outa the room?”</p> -<p>“Sure, I’m sure, Sonny. And like I told you, the -grin was the same too.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_54">54</div> -<p>“Then he <i>was</i> dead, Pop—dead all the time, an’ -somebody with an automatic did it because the second -mate said he dreamed he heard somebody runnin’ -an’ then he heard a muffled kicker shoving off -aft like I saw when we come along. Whoever had -that automatic was in that kicker, Pop. I got a -hunch about it.”</p> -<p>“I hope the coppers believe you, Sonny. But -c’mon, we’ll take the chance. Anyways, I’ll tell -what I know.”</p> -<p>They walked forward together and were just -about to descend when they saw a long, dark -painted launch shoot alongside of the <i>Minnie M. -Baxter</i>. As Skippy and his father leaned over to -get a better view they were blinded with the glaring -rays of a searchlight.</p> -<p>“<i>Coppers, Pop!</i>” Skippy hissed. “It’s the coppers!”</p> -<div class="img"> -<img src="images/im2.jpg" alt="" width="500" height="772" /> -<p class="pcap">“COPPERS, POP!” SKIPPY HISSED. “IT’S THE COPPERS!” <i>Frontispiece</i></p> -</div> -<p>Toby gripped his son’s trembling fingers in his -own.</p> -<p>“Don’t move, Dare!” a deep voice commanded -from the police launch.</p> -<p>“I’m not,” Toby answered hoarsely.</p> -<p>“We’ll be right up. Stay right where you are.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_55">55</div> -<p>“Pop an’ I were just comin’,” Skippy cried to -them, “that is, we were just goin’ back to the yacht—the -<i>A—Apollyon</i> an’ tell them how it all really -happened. Pop ran away on accounta me, but after -we talked about it he decided to go back an’ tell.... -Mr. Flint was dead before Pop got there—<i>he -was; honest!</i>”</p> -<p>“Oh yeah?” laughed the first officer to reach the -deck. “Now that’s interestin’. But I’d wait till -the rest of the gang gets up, kid, because they all -got ears too.”</p> -<p>Skippy watched them troop up until the last man -set foot on the barge’s worn deck. Six men, he -thought, with not a little fear. How weak would -his father’s story seem to these frowning cops? -Would they believe him as he had believed him?</p> -<p>His fingers were entwined in his father’s in a tight -grip and yet he had the feeling that Toby was already -snatched away from him. Now that the police -confronted them he was terribly afraid and in -that instant his hopes fled as quickly as the stars in -the face of gathering storm clouds overhead.</p> -<p>Then Toby spoke in his hoarse, broken -voice....</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_56">56</div> -<h2 id="c8">CHAPTER VIII -<br /><span class="small">ALONE</span></h2> -<p>Skippy’s hopes were somewhat rekindled during -Toby’s recital of his visit to the yacht. The story -sounded so straightforward as he told it, that it did -not seem possible that these representatives of the -law could find a single flaw in it. And yet to his -utter dismay they found more than a flaw in it; they -found it sufficiently damning to threaten his unhappy -father with certain conviction.</p> -<p>They had already seen Inspector Jones and had -had his word for it that Toby Dare had threatened -to “fix Josiah Flint,” and there was also the corroboration -of the inspector’s men. There was also -the strongly incriminating statement of the second -mate of the <i>Apollyon</i> and the charge that Toby refused -to stop when called to from the yacht by Skinner.</p> -<p>“My Pop never carried a gun!” Skippy cried in -protest. “You can’t say that he did!”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_57">57</div> -<p>“There’s a robbery charge too,” said one of the -officers sternly. “You went to Flint’s yacht because -you were sore and Inspector Jones heard you crack -that it would be bad for Flint if he didn’t kick in for -the loss of the barge. It adds up swell for a jury.”</p> -<p>“Yeah,” said another, “and when Flint give you -the razz like you’re trying to tell us, you burn up, -shoot him, then you choke him and frisk him to get -that three hundred with plenty interest back. Your -fingerprints on his throat are the only fingerprints -we found. What did you do with the gun—throw -it in the river?”</p> -<p>Toby denied it all with a groan, and Skippy sidled -up to his father and held on to his arm with a gesture -of protection. The officers frowned for there -is neither time nor place for sentiment in the progress -of the law. They had come to arrest Toby -Dare for the murder and robbery of Josiah Flint -and all Skippy’s pleading would not thwart them.</p> -<p>The faint boom of thunder sounded as Toby was -led into the police launch and a flash of lightning -streaked the black sky just above the <i>Minnie M. -Baxter</i>. But Skippy was indifferent to everything -save the hopeless, staring look that his father gave -him as their eyes met.</p> -<p>He fought back the tears bravely and smiled his -bravest.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_58">58</div> -<p>“Now, Pop, stop thinking about me again, huh!” -he cried desperately. “Gee whiz, I’ll be swell—I -promise I will so will you cheer up an’ everythin’, -huh? Because you gotta prove you’re tellin’ the -truth an’ never had a gun so how could you do what -they say you did? So will you cheer up if I tell you -I’ll be all right, no matter what?”</p> -<p>Toby Dare’s troubled face lighted with a smile.</p> -<p>“Skippy, boy,” he gulped, “I kin do anythin’ when -I hear yer talk like that. Jest hearin’ yer say yer’ll -be a good boy’s enough fer me.”</p> -<p>“All right, then, Pop,” Skippy said, forcing a -laugh. “So we won’t even say so long ’cause they’ll -let you come back in a day or so, I bet.”</p> -<p>“Sure,” Toby assured him. “They’re bound ter -let me.”</p> -<p>And that was all, for the launch chugged off leaving -Skippy strangely numb and bewildered. He -watched the snakelike movements of the trim craft -as she darted through the inlet but soon the darkness -enfolded her from view. After a few moments -they switched on their running lights but there was -too much distance between them for the boy to see -his father and so he turned his back to the inlet and -slowly walked toward the little cabin.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_59">59</div> -<p>Not a light had appeared the length or breadth -of the whole barge colony since the police launch -slipped up to the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> yet Skippy knew -that every man and woman in Brown’s Basin was -awake and watching all that had transpired. His -father had told him that these strange, lawless people -had a surprising faculty for learning of the law’s -arrival in the inlet. And hating the law as they -did, they kept silently out of its sight, nor did they -want to be drawn into it through another’s troubles.</p> -<p>Notwithstanding this knowledge, Skippy had the -feeling that he had only to call out and ask for help -for himself and his father, and his lawless neighbors -would immediately respond. Yet that is just -what Toby had warned him against. Moreover, -his promise to avoid dubious company was not ten -minutes old.</p> -<p>And so he resolved to bear his troubles manfully -and alone, though never in his life had he so wanted -the warmth and sympathy of human companionship. -He was young enough to be afraid, yet old enough -to feel ashamed of it. But the events of the day -and his father’s unhappy plight finally proved too -much for him and with trembling under lip he -sought the shelter of the cabin.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_60">60</div> -<p>A few minutes later a terrific storm broke over -the river and swept through the Basin relentlessly. -Rain lashed against the tiny windows of the cabin on -the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> and the wind moaned eerily -in and out of the inlet.</p> -<p>Skippy buried his tousled head under a pillow in -his bunk and tried to stifle the sobs that would not -stop. His heart raced madly in his breast every -time he thought of his father and his fears increased -with every crash of thunder. Could it possibly be -that his father wouldn’t come back?</p> -<p>He squirmed farther under the bedclothes. He -would have shut out his thoughts if that had been -possible. Presently he heard a muffled knocking -at the cabin door.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_61">61</div> -<h2 id="c9">CHAPTER IX -<br /><span class="small">A VISITOR</span></h2> -<p>Skippy sat up instantly, threw off the bedclothes -and slid to the floor. Then he hurried to the little -table and lighted the lamp, meanwhile glancing -toward the door uneasily. The knock sounded -again; this time insistently.</p> -<p>He rushed to the door and swung it open. A -man stood before him in the pelting rain, the tallest, -broadest man he had ever seen in his life. He -could not have been out of his twenties and had a -large, rather amiable looking face; so large, indeed, -that it made his blue eyes seem small and insignificant.</p> -<div class="img"> -<img src="images/im3.jpg" alt="" width="500" height="792" /> -<p class="pcap">A MAN STOOD BEFORE HIM IN THE PELTING RAIN.</p> -</div> -<p>As Skippy waited questioningly, he moved his -ponderous neck above his upturned coat collar and -smiled, a slow, secretive smile. Then he half -turned and glanced quickly toward the inlet, before -he spoke.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_62">62</div> -<p>“Sure and be ye Toby’s kid?” he asked with a -slight brogue. “Can I come in? And where’s -Toby bein’ at this hour?” He walked into the -cabin quickly.</p> -<p>The ghost of a smile flitted across Skippy’s tear-stained -cheeks as he closed the door.</p> -<p>“Sure, sure, come in!” he said hospitably. “Pop -ain’t here. He’s....”</p> -<p>“’Tis all right, so ’tis,” the stranger interposed -pleasantly, and calmly divested himself of his wet -clothing. “I got nothin’ but time. Your ould man -told me I’d always be welcome in his diggins so here -I be. ’Tis too bad ’bout this scow, though. I only -got wise tonight that the inspectors told Toby the -<i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> was junk. Bad cess to ’em. -So Flint gypped Toby on it, did he?”</p> -<p>“An’ how!” Skippy answered dismally. “Gee, -gee....”</p> -<p>The man got up and waving his hands deprecatingly, -made a quick movement toward one of the -windows on the inlet side. He bent his huge frame -in a stooping posture and after rubbing the steam -from the diminutive pane, he peered out intently.</p> -<p>Suddenly he turned back and smiled his slow, -secretive smile.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_63">63</div> -<p>“I ain’t exactly aisy in me mind, kid,” he explained -with a low chuckle. “I be keepin’ a -weather eye on thim coppers. They’re curious like -’bout some stuff and I ain’t in the spirit to answer -thim. They got me barge and that’s enough, so -’tis.”</p> -<p>“You ain’t Big Joe Tully?” Skippy asked.</p> -<p>“That be callin’ the turn, kid. S’pose your Pop -give ye an earful ’bout me. Well, I started out -shootin’ straight like he did, but whilst Flint’s got -the monop’ly on shippin’ and the like on this river, -a guy’s a million to one, so he is.”</p> -<p>“Mr. Flint won’t have it no more,” Skippy -gulped. “I guess you ain’t heard....”</p> -<p>“<i>What?</i>” asked Big Joe Tully reaching in his -pocket for a cigarette.</p> -<p>“He’s dead—he was killed tonight.” Tears -rushed to Skippy’s eyes again. “An’ my Pop’s been -sorta accused, Mr. Tully,” he added, and blurted -out the whole story.</p> -<p>Tully was puffing energetically on his cigarette -when Skippy finished.</p> -<p>“Now don’t ye be worryin’ kid,” he said sympathetically. -“If that ol’ rat was dead when Toby -got there they can’t do nothin’ to him. Toby’ll be -home tomorrow, so he will, I bet.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_64">64</div> -<p>Skippy felt instantly cheered. He was beginning -to feel glad of Big Joe’s comforting presence when -he bethought himself of the man’s dubious activities -on the river. Wasn’t it this man and his ilk that -his father had warned him against? Men who -weren’t honest? The boy sat down on his bunk to -think it over.</p> -<p>To his surprise, Tully had got up and was putting -on his coat and hat. Immediately, Skippy forgot -that he was considering the moral aspect of an invitation -to the man to stay; he forgot all his father’s -warnings against association with the river gentry, -and thought only of the void that Tully’s sudden -departure would make in the long night.</p> -<p>“I thought you said you were gonna stay, Mr. -Tully?” he said with evident disappointment. -“Gee, now you ain’t, huh?”</p> -<p>“’Tis sorry I be, kid,” said Big Joe with a -friendly wink. “I did think along thim lines when -I come in, but since the coppers been nosin’ ’round -here tonight, I’ll be mosyin’ along. They might -come back and spot me here so I’d better be takin’ -the air.”</p> -<p>“Did they catch you carryin’ <i>stuff</i>?” Skippy asked, -interested. “Is that why?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_65">65</div> -<p>“Sure and they did that. Somewan tipped off the -police—somewan what was jealous I wasn’t carryin’ -<i>their</i> stuff.” He laughed lightly. “The coppers -hook ye either way, so they do. Look how -quick they come after Toby and they knew he was -on the up and up! So I says, does it pay?” Then, -seeing the shadow on Skippy’s face, he added: -“But sure you’ll be seein’ Toby back tomorrow, kid. -They can’t be keepin’ him when he didn’t do it.”</p> -<p>“He didn’t do it, so they can’t!” Skippy echoed.</p> -<p>“’Tis a cinch, so ’tis,” said Big Joe Tully with an -awkward attempt to sympathize. “Be hittin’ the -hay now, kid, an’ ye’ll be seein’ Toby tomorrow or -me name ain’t Joe Tully. Now I’ll be swingin’ into -me kicker and chug her up the river till daylight. -I’ll be layin’ low a while and some day I’ll be seein’ -ye and Toby. Be watchin’ the old step. S’long.”</p> -<p>He went out like a breeze and Skippy soon heard -the chug of his engine. Another craft muffled so -that the ears of the law would not hear its approach! -The boy made a mental grimace at the -thought of all this muffled life on the river, Big Joe -Tully included. His inherent love of clean living -and honesty had come to the fore as his father had -wanted it to. And honesty and clean living <i>did</i> pay -despite what Tully had said. Certainly it would -pay his father tomorrow! He lay back on his bunk -and closed his burning eyes.</p> -<p>Tomorrow was almost here ... almost....</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_66">66</div> -<h2 id="c10">CHAPTER X -<br /><span class="small">A SUGGESTION</span></h2> -<p>Many tomorrows had come and gone before -Skippy saw his father again and then it was under -circumstances that the lonely boy had not contemplated. -The shadow of prison walls already -threatened Toby Dare for the rest of his natural -life; conviction was certain.</p> -<p>Skippy returned to the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> toward -noon. It threatened to be a sultry day; the air was -heavy and still, and a sickening blue haze hung over -the inlet. Brown’s Basin, always more or less -apathetic under the glare of noonday, was unusually -silent and Skippy listened in vain for the cheering -sound of a human voice.</p> -<p>He set about preparing lunch, but it was a half-hearted, -pathetic attempt, for the Dare larder was -getting dangerously bare. He had been living on -an almost exclusive diet of pancakes for more than -a week past and Nature was beginning to retaliate -for Skippy was far from being a robust boy.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_67">67</div> -<p>He pushed back his plate after a time, hurried -out of the cabin and got into his motor boat. It -was his only consolation during the interminable -days and nights of his father’s continued absence -and on this particular day his heart warmed toward -it with a new, affectionate thought.</p> -<p>His fishing tackle was assembled at his feet and -he set the nose of the little boat downstream as -soon as he reached the river. Fog horns pierced -the still, hazy air with their dismal warnings and the -screams of steam winches and tooting whistles -echoed and reechoed about the boy’s tousled head.</p> -<p>He watched the passing river traffic abstractedly, -particularly the lumbering and heavily-laden barges -moving along in the wake of chortling tugs. The -sight of them always made him think of his father -and of what might have been, and the more he saw -of them the more did the feeling grow within him -that it was a strange and unjust law that could take -his father away from him. Moreover, he could -not understand why a jury would not believe his -father’s straightforward story, which proved so -clearly to him that another hand had taken Josiah -Flint’s life.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_68">68</div> -<p>Hadn’t the police found that the rich man had -been robbed of a considerable sum of money and -hadn’t they admitted that it was neither on Toby’s -person nor on the barge? Skippy remembered only -too well the day when the police ransacked the <i>Minnie -M. Baxter</i> fore and aft for Josiah Flint’s money. -But their search was futile, as he knew it would be, -and although they now had ample proof that -poverty threatened him, they still insisted that the -stolen money had been hidden by his unhappy -father.</p> -<p>But Skippy did not consider the testimony of -Marty Skinner that he, on returning to his employer’s -stateroom, saw Toby Dare with his arm out -the porthole (from which a clever and venomous -prosecuting attorney drew the inference for the jury -that Toby was disposing of the pistol from which -the fatal shot was fired). Skinner did not swear he -saw any weapon, but his testimony, linked with the -other evidence, made for a strong circumstantial -case.</p> -<p>Skinner also testified that he had rushed to his -employer’s side as Toby raced from the room; that -upon discovering that Josiah Flint had been shot he -chased after the squatter and shouted to him, as he -made off in his kicker, to no avail. The second -mate corroborated the testimony that Toby failed -to heed the cries for him to halt.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_69">69</div> -<p>While the pistol had not been found, Inspector -Jones and his men testified that Toby had threatened -to fix Josiah Flint because he felt he had been -cheated of his life savings of $300 in buying a rotten -barge from Flint. That, the prosecutor insisted to -the jury, furnished the motive for the crime. Altogether -he made a case which convinced the twelve -men, but it did not convince Skippy for he could not -be convinced that his father was guilty.</p> -<p>Skippy was deep in his bitter reflections and did -not see the familiar launch of the harbor inspectors -until it was almost upon him. Inspector Jones’ -bright and smiling face came alongside of him with -startling suddenness.</p> -<p>“Well, Skippy!” he said pleasantly. “How’s the -boy?”</p> -<p>Skippy winced and a frown darkened his face. -He could not forget that Inspector Jones’ testimony -had helped to take his father from him.</p> -<p>“I feel sick on accounta my Pop, that’s what,” -said he bitterly. “You helped make things worse -for him too, Mr. Jones, on account of the things -you told about what he said that day after you inspected -the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>.”</p> -<p>Inspector Jones’ bland countenance looked immediately -troubled.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_70">70</div> -<p>“I told the truth, Skippy,” he said kindly. “I -told only what your father had said and my men -were there to prove it.”</p> -<p>“You needn’t have said that Pop said he was -gonna <i>fix</i> Mr. Flint ’cause you mighta known he -really didn’t mean it. Pop was mad then, but he -promised me before we left for the <i>Apollyon</i> that -night that he wouldn’t lose his head. Gee, he’s -even sworn since he didn’t take Mr. Flint’s life an’ -don’t you suppose I know when my Pop’s tellin’ the -truth?”</p> -<p>“I guess so,” Inspector Jones answered with real -feeling in his voice; “I guess you know your Pop -better than anybody, Skippy. I’m sorry, the law required -me to testify against him. But it was my -duty—can’t you see?”</p> -<p>“Then you believe they’ll be keepin’ my Pop in -jail when he’s innocent, too, huh?” Skippy asked -excitedly.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_71">71</div> -<p>“I’m rather inclined to believe that your father -didn’t shoot Flint,” answered the inspector. “But -I can’t do anything about it, Skippy, and I doubt if -my testimony alone would convict him. It’s that -District-Attorney and Marty Skinner that’s made -it so tough for your father. You know Skinner -swore he saw Toby at the porthole and the D. A. -put it over to the jury that he was dropping the -gun which did the job.”</p> -<p>“Yeah, but that diver didn’t find no gun,” Skippy -replied, “an’ my Pop swore he wasn’t near no porthole -an’ besides nobody tried findin’ out about that -kicker that was around when we come up. I’ll -betcha the feller what did the killin’ got away in it.”</p> -<p>“You’re right about not finding the gun, Skippy,” -Inspector Jones nodded thoughtfully. “I’ll look -into the kicker angle some more.”</p> -<p>“Say, thanks, Mr. Jones, me’n Pop we’d be so -thankful, we would. Maybe if I went to see Mr. -Skinner he’d help us ’cause I guess hard as he is he’ll -see I don’t tell lies even to get my Pop free. Maybe -I oughta go right away to see him, huh?”</p> -<p>Inspector Jones nodded thinking how futile the -boy’s errand would be. But he had boys of his own -and he did not want to jolt the lad out of his pleasant -dream. So all he said was: “The sooner the -better, because I hear he’s going on the <i>Apollyon</i> -for a week’s cruise. You know Buck Flint has gone -to Europe and now Skinner, who was only Josiah -Flint’s yes-man for years, is ruling the roost and living -high on a millionaire’s yacht. Buck says he -won’t ever board her so it’s pretty soft for Skinner. -He’s got the boat anchored just outside in the bay, -ready to nose her out to sea after nightfall. If -you get right on down there, you’ll catch him -aboard, sure.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_72">72</div> -<p>Skippy smiled his thanks and turned his little -motor over. The inspector waved his hand.</p> -<p>“From the sound of that kicker,” he shouted, “I -take it you’ve lost Toby’s muffler?”</p> -<p>“Sure,” Skippy answered laughing, “what do I -need with a muffler, huh? ’Cepting it might be better -for fishin’ with. But gee, I should worry about -livin’ on fish if I can see Mr. Skinner, huh? Pop -ought to be out by—by....”</p> -<p>“Tomorrow, eh?” Inspector Jones interposed -turning his head aside and blowing his nose hard.</p> -<p>“Nope,” Skippy answered wistfully, “I won’t say -tomorrow ’cause then—oh well, it’s too quick. But -anyway, if I see Mr. Skinner it won’t be long after -tomorrow, I bet.”</p> -<p>He had yet to learn from his bitter experience -that tomorrow never comes.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_73">73</div> -<h2 id="c11">CHAPTER XI -<br /><span class="small">ALL OF A KIND</span></h2> -<p>Skippy’s little boat chugged out of the bay and -around toward the Hook. It was late afternoon -and the haze had deepened into an ominous sultriness. -White caps danced atop the waves and off on -the horizon black clouds and black sea met in dismal -union. A flock of gulls swarmed about, flapping -their huge wings between sky and sea with -monotonous precision.</p> -<p>A miscellaneous collection of craft was anchored -just outside the bay; sailboats, fishing smacks, dories -and yachts of every size, and not the least of these -was the shining hull of the lovely <i>Apollyon</i>. Skippy -caught sight of her immediately and slowed his own -little boat that he might have a better view of her -in the light of day.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_74">74</div> -<p>Her superstructure was painted a most delicate -shade of green and Skippy understood then why he -had imagined her to be of that ghostly whiteness below -her anchor lights which shone like stars against -that dark, memorable night. Too, the large gilt -letters spelling out her queer name seemed not so -ornate now as when he had first seen them.</p> -<p>His first reaction to the lovely yacht had been one -of envy and admiration; it was so now and he tried -hard not to think of the unhappy sequel that his first -visit to the <i>Apollyon</i> had brought. Yet somehow -he could not shake off the fear-inspiring memory of -what the name really meant and he wondered if anything -but evil could tread those spotless decks.</p> -<p>He chuckled a little and turned his motor boat -toward the yacht. There were signs of a near-departure -aboard and he caught sight of the second -mate resplendent in his spotless uniform and cap. -Leaning over the forward rail, he recognized -Skippy at once, and waved his hand.</p> -<p>“If it ain’t the kid!” he called cheerfully. -“Young Dare, hey? Well, you’ve come a ways.”</p> -<p>“Sure,” Skippy smiled. “I come down to see -Mr. Skinner. It’s awful particular what I gotta -see him about.”</p> -<p>“You look’s if it might be a case of life or death -at that,” the second mate mused.</p> -<p>“It is a case of life, Mister—my Pop’s whole -life,” said Skippy anxiously. “That’s why I wanta -see Mr. Skinner.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_75">75</div> -<p>The second mate was all contrition. “Kid, I -clean forgot about your Pop, ’deed I did. C’mon -aboard. Sure Mr. Skinner’ll be seein’ you. -’Course I ain’t promisin’ you’ll find him easy talkin’ -to ’cause he ain’t. He’s right set in his notions -’bout you Basin and river folks; he thinks you’re all -rascals.”</p> -<p>“But his boss, ol’ Flint——” Skippy began protesting.</p> -<p>“He knowed like you’n me and plenty others that -the old boss was a tough egg—and between you’n -me Skinner ain’t no angel hisself—but that don’t -change his mind none.”</p> -<p>Skippy realized this full well a little later when -Marty Skinner refused to hear him, ordered him off -the boat, and shouted that his father was a rogue -and so was he.</p> -<p>Skippy rushed blindly out of the cabin. The -door slammed behind him, the same door that had -slammed behind his father on that tragic night. He -had accomplished just nothing at all in that cabin -of past horrors, nothing except to hear from a gentleman’s -lips what his kind really thought of river -people.</p> -<p>And he, Skippy Dare, was one of the river people—himself, -the son of a rogue!</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_76">76</div> -<h2 id="c12">CHAPTER XII -<br /><span class="small">DRIFTING</span></h2> -<p>Skippy nosed the motor boat toward the Hook. -He had no thought of anything save that he was -angry and hurt and wanted to feel the fresh, salt -breeze blow over his burning face. He felt that -he must think over this new and humiliating status -in which Marty Skinner had so cruelly placed him, -and he wanted to think of it where no one could see -the unhappiness that it caused him.</p> -<p>He hadn’t the heart to turn back toward the -Basin and home. Home! He frowned at the -word, for it seemed that the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> and -all that it represented could bring him nothing now -but recurring thoughts of the hated Skinner. All -that the man had said had left its mark on the sensitive -boy’s mind and for the first time in his life -he felt a bitter hatred toward a fellow being.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_77">77</div> -<p>That Marty Skinner, old Josiah Flint’s right-hand -man, should call his father a rogue, was hardly -to be endured. But if it were so, he reasoned in a -calmer moment, then all the more reason for the -blame to fall on the dead Josiah. Hadn’t Old -Flint himself been the worst rogue of all?</p> -<p>He was tempted to return and shout these -thoughts so that all aboard the <i>Apollyon</i> might -hear. He wanted to tell them what Toby had said -about Josiah Flint making the despised Brown’s -Basin possible because of his selfish, unscrupulous -dealings.</p> -<p>But, boy-like, Skippy’s anger was soon reduced -to a smoldering memory and his father’s imminent -incarceration was a thing that had to be faced. Just -now he was forced to think of his own present situation, -for a significant sputtering from the motor -gave warning that he was about to have trouble.</p> -<p>He had not his father’s knack for adjusting the -rebellious motor, and so he decided to turn the boat -about and make for the quieter waters of the bay. -But just then the motor stalled and despite his earnest -efforts, it refused to respond.</p> -<p>Skippy looked about him anxiously and saw that -he had already been carried an alarming distance. -Dusk was rapidly settling, hastened by the deepening -haze and in a few moments the tide and undertow -had swept him out of sight of all the anchored -craft clustered about the <i>Apollyon</i>.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_78">78</div> -<p>He looked hopefully toward the Hook but saw -that it was useless to try and reach it even with the -one oar that the little boat had in reserve. The -tide was against him.</p> -<p>After a quick glance about, he hunted around -among some neglected tools lying at his feet and -picked out the searchlight. But that, too, refused -to respond; the battery was dead. Then he looked -for some matches only to meet with disheartening -disappointment.</p> -<p>He got to his knees after that and worked furiously -at the cold motor, squinting at his hopeless -task in the near-darkness. The boom of thunder -could be heard from out at sea, and with the swiftly -passing minutes the storm came nearer and nearer -until it broke directly overhead.</p> -<p>Lightning flashed across the drifting boat and -Skippy dodged under the bow. There was something -terrifying about the elements when one was -alone and drifting steadily toward the sea in an -open boat.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_79">79</div> -<p>After a momentary lull, he crept out, not a little -ashamed of his cowardice. He looked about, trying -hard not to look or feel panicky despite the fact -that he could see nothing of the Hook or anything -else. Darkness and high, shadowy waves upon -which the little boat bobbed were all that met his -frightened gaze. Then a damp, cold wind began -to blow.</p> -<p>He crouched down in the bottom of the boat with -a feeling of dull despair. Rain pattered into an old -rusty bait can that lay at his feet and he edged his -shivering body closer under the bow. Curiously -enough, he was quite calm now and the thought that -his situation was dangerous did not enter his mind.</p> -<p>Skippy-like, he was thinking only that he was -terribly hungry and more than anything else he -wanted to eat.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_80">80</div> -<h2 id="c13">CHAPTER XIII -<br /><span class="small">LIGHTS</span></h2> -<p>The thunder and lightning died away after a -time but the rain continued. The constant boom of -the sea gradually wore away some of Skippy’s calm -and he raised his head from time to time to gaze -apprehensively at the dark sea rising all about him -in mountainous waves.</p> -<p>The sky seemed a black void and at times as the -little boat tossed about in the waves, he had the -breath-taking sensation that he had turned turtle. -Once, he mused about what probability there was -of his being carried clear across the sea to some European -port. He had heard of men being able to -live without food or water from ten to fourteen -days. Well, he had his fishing outfit, he reasoned -hopefully; he needn’t starve, but how to get water -puzzled him.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_81">81</div> -<p>After a few more minutes of tossing wildly about, -he decided that the little boat could probably never -stand an ocean voyage. With each succeeding -wave it came perilously near to upsetting and he -doubted that the craft could triumph over the angry -sea much longer.</p> -<p>That contingency awoke a strong determination -in him, for he got to his feet, reached for the oar -and struggled valiantly to balance the boat against -the oncoming foe. The rain soaked him through -to the skin but he was not cold for he was kept in -constant action trying to make one oar do the work -of two.</p> -<p>He had lost all sense of time and direction; he -thought only of keeping the boat balanced. That -he could not keep it up very long did not occur to -him, for he already felt the effects of the past week’s -malnutrition and his long journey from the Basin -had fatigued him.</p> -<p>After what seemed an interminable time he -caught a glimpse of a light, a faint gleam, but nevertheless -a light. He gasped with joy and looked -hard into the darkness to get a definite idea of its -location. In point of fact he looked so hard he all -but swamped the boat.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_82">82</div> -<p>Great beads of perspiration stood out on his forehead -when he righted the boat, but he came up triumphant -on the crest of a wave. The exertion -was too much for him, however; he felt inexpressibly -weak and tired. His muscles ached and a giddiness -in his head made him feel as if he must lie -down.</p> -<p>But there was the light just ahead and he bent -his frail body in a supreme effort to reach it. He -was cheered because it did not seem to move and -he ventured to hope that it might be on the shore. -The main thing—it was a light, and light might -reasonably be expected to mean rescue by all the -rules of the game.</p> -<p>Suddenly a great arc of faint yellow light swept -from behind and circled his head. He had come -to no decision about its origin before it came again, -a little brighter than before. Then after some minutes -had passed and it had grown still brighter, it -occurred to him that it was from the lighthouse at -the Hook and the great light had gradually penetrated -the fast dissolving haze.</p> -<p>He took heart at this because he knew he could -not be so very far away from land. But he knew it -was futile to even hope to get back there in his boat. -It might be ten miles and it might be twenty. The -great light at the Hook boasted a range of thirty -miles on a clear night, he had heard his father say.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_83">83</div> -<p>The light that gave him real hope was the heartening -glimmer just ahead. He knew that it was -not just because he wished it so fervently, but he -could plainly see that it became brighter as the boat -advanced.</p> -<p>Then suddenly he heard the faint ringing of a -bell, which echoed eerily on the shifting wind.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_84">84</div> -<h2 id="c14">CHAPTER XIV -<br /><span class="small">THE BELL BUOY</span></h2> -<p>He listened intently and thought that it came -from the direction of the light. It rang again and -again, each time a little louder. Suddenly, however, -he was aware that the light seemed no longer -stationary. He had the disheartening experience -of realizing that his beacon of hope was a running -light on a fishing smack. He felt like crying as he -watched the shadowy hull gaining speed for he realized -that she must have just started ahead, having -waited for the wind to change.</p> -<p>Every wave carried her farther and farther away -from the watching boy. If he had only got there -just a little sooner, he thought dismally. But he -had done the best he could. There was nothing -left now but to sit and watch her swallowed up by -the darkness and the mountainous seas and that had -happened in a few minutes’ time.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_85">85</div> -<p>He was glad he had not been foolish enough to -hope that he could reach her and overtake her, only -to be disappointed and use up what little strength he -had left. That at least was some satisfaction and -it helped him bear his desperate plight a little more -patiently.</p> -<p>The constant booming of the sea had a queer effect -on his sensitive ears. He imagined himself to -be hearing all sorts of noises, particularly the ringing -of the bell. At times he could have sworn he -heard it right at hand and at other times it seemed -but a mocking echo.</p> -<p>The air was quite clear now, though the rain continued, -and Skippy saw to his dismay that the boat -was getting a little too full of water for his safety. -He put down the oar for a while and bailed her out -with his rusty bait can.</p> -<p>The little boat tossed against each rising wave -like a feather; but he worked feverishly and trusted -to luck that it would not upset. Then after a few -minutes he was startled by the sound of the bell -ringing right over his head. Before he had time to -look up he felt the boat bump hard against something.</p> -<p>He was on his feet in a second and saw to his -great surprise that the boat was alongside of a bell -buoy.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_86">86</div> -<p>It has been truly said that time and tide wait for -no man and certainly Skippy was aware of this instantly, -for in the next second a giant wave had -washed him out of reach of the buoy. This realization -made him desperate and he got into action to -get back to it, for he well knew now that to drift on -through the night would mean certain death.</p> -<p>With a swift movement he pushed his wet hair -back from his high forehead. Then he bent over, -got the oar and grabbed a rope, holding it tightly -in his hand. And for fully five minutes he battled -and struggled against the undertow.</p> -<p>His eyes were wide and staring from the strain -and little streams of water ran down either cheek. -His clothes from head to foot were weighted against -him with water but he never stopped until he had -brought the boat back against the buoy and in a -second he had thrown the painter around it and -pulled it taut.</p> -<p>That done he sank down in the bottom of the -boat, exhausted.</p> -<p>For some time his mind was an utter blank. He -was too tired and weak to think or even to care. -But the rain beating steadily down on his unprotected -body soon chilled him back into action and he -got up and exercised his arms and legs.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_87">87</div> -<p>As the buoy swayed upon each succeeding swell, -the bell tolled mournfully. Its eerie echoes were -faint and quickly lost in the noise of the pounding -sea, and Skippy decided that no mariner ten minutes’ -sail from the bell was likely to look that way. -Also, the quick wash of the sea prevented the bell -from tolling its loudest and longest. Nothing but -his own two hands could do that.</p> -<p>And so he did it.</p> -<p>For the next hour he bent his frail body over the -swaying buoy and swung the cold, wet bell back and -forth, back and forth. Peal after peal tolled forth -dismally and though his eyes became blurred with -weariness he knew that he had missed nothing, for -nothing had passed for him to miss.</p> -<p>So it went on through the long, dark hours. He -would take an interval of rest and then jump up to -his vigil at the bell for fear he would fall asleep and -miss some passing ship.</p> -<p>The night seemed interminable. Indeed, he began -to believe that he had fallen asleep and that a -day had passed and another night had come without -his being aware of it, for never had he thought the -dark hours were so long.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_88">88</div> -<p>Morning came at last and with the first streak of -light on the eastern horizon, hope came back anew. -The rain gradually ceased and during Skippy’s intervals -of rest he watched, with not a little awe, the -wonder of dawn at sea. Little by little the night -fled before the roseate morn and soon the entire sky -was flooded with soft light. And as the sun crept -up out of the sea he stretched himself across the wet -seats and relaxed.</p> -<p>Two hours later, he woke with the sun shining -full in his face. He sat up, startled, and realized -that his head was aching and that he felt stiff and -chilled. Moreover, he felt sick with despair to -think that he had slept away the hours of daylight, -hours when a ship might have passed near enough -for him to signal.</p> -<p>He stood up and scanned the sunlit water in all -directions but there was not a sign of a sail, not a -sign of a ship. In the distance, a gull soared high -above the water and after a moment another one -seemed to leap out of space and join it.</p> -<p>The tide was going out and the whole surface of -the blue-green water seemed to roll on toward the -horizon in a series of undulating hills. A gentle -murmur filled the warm, sunlit air and Skippy could -not believe that the booming surf of the past night -had been anything but a bad dream.</p> -<p>He rang the bell for a time but had to give it up -because of a terrible giddiness in his head. And -so for hours, he sat anxiously scanning the illimitable -sea and sky, hoping, hoping, hoping....</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_89">89</div> -<p>Noon came and passed and the sun scorched him -cruelly. The boat, too, had become a constant -source of anxiety for she developed a leak and had -to be continually bailed out, and he was thankful -that he had not obeyed a former impulse and tried -to row her east in the hope that he would strike the -Hook.</p> -<p>Toward mid-afternoon he was conscious of pains -in his chest, and his hunger and thirst were becoming -unbearable, particularly the thirst, for the heat -of the sun was intense. He wished fervently for -the cooling rain of the night before.</p> -<p>Sunset came, however, and with it a soft, cool -wind. Skippy welcomed it, but hated the gray light -of approaching twilight that obliterated the deep -blue clouds. It seemed to spell doom to him and -he cried out in despair. If daylight had not -brought rescue what hope was there left for another -long night?</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_90">90</div> -<p>His hopes sprang up afresh, however, and he conceived -the idea of tying to the bell a long length of -rope which he found in the bottom of the boat. In -this manner, he could ring it constantly just by pulling -the rope which required little exertion on his -part. By dusk he was feeling too sick to either -stand or sit up.</p> -<p>He entered his second night at sea both hopeful -and despairing. Every doleful clang from the bell -brought him hope but in the following silence it -would quickly vanish and he would sink in depths -of despair. Then with his fast-ebbing strength he -would pull hopefully at the rope again.</p> -<div class="img"> -<img src="images/im4.jpg" alt="" width="500" height="753" /> -<p class="pcap">EVERY DOLEFUL CLANG FROM THE BELL BROUGHT SKIPPY HOPE.</p> -</div> -<p>And so the bell tolled on through the long night -hours.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_91">91</div> -<h2 id="c15">CHAPTER XV -<br /><span class="small">RESCUED</span></h2> -<p>A few hours before dawn a long, trim, high-powered -motor boat cut through the placidly rolling -waves. Its motor was so muffled that it emitted no -more than a low droning sound and could be heard -for only a short distance, despite the fact that it had -been let out to full speed.</p> -<p>Besides the man at the wheel the boat carried six -men, three standing fore and three aft. One of the -men aft half lounged over the coaming and his -broad shoulders and large, amiable face all but -filled the stern of the boat. The spray constantly -swept over his big, dangling hands and the salt moisture -struck at his tanned cheeks but he seemed not -to notice. His entire attention, like that of his comrades, -was centered on the grayish black horizon; -his eyes seemed to miss nothing, yet there was an -abstracted look in them that the man at the wheel -did not fail to notice.</p> -<p>“Whadja hear, Big Joe?” he asked quietly.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_92">92</div> -<p>The big man nodded his head without moving his -body.</p> -<p>“’Tis that buoy,” he said absently. “Sure and -she’s goin’ a great rate for such a calm, me lad. -Even in pretty bad storms I niver knowed Flint’s -buoy to be ringin’ like that.”</p> -<p>“Flint’s?” queried another of the men, interested.</p> -<p>Big Joe Tully smiled reminiscently.</p> -<p>“And why not? ’Tis what most o’ Flint’s men -called it. ’Tis a buoy at the intrance to Kennedy’s -Channel and ’tis a bad spot, if iver there was wan. -Ye niver know how the tide’s goin’ to act. ’Tis -like a colleen what can’t make up her mind, and she’s -not to be trusted, so nobody goes by that way. Besides, -’tis a long way round past the Hook. Anyways, -the ould boss took advantage o’ that place -and we used to meet some o’ his best customers -there and unload the stuff to thim.”</p> -<p>“Not a bad idea takin’ us by there for an eyeful, -hey, Tully?” suggested the man at the wheel. -“Long’s you’ve decided on playin’ ball with us, since -we squared that case ’gainst you, we might as well -take your tips. Seems like a wise mug like ol’ Flint -never made no mistakes. He got rich an’ the law -never got him so if <i>he</i> picked out a spot like this -buoy, he must ’a’ known what he was doin’. Mebbe -it’ll be a pretty good spot for our customers too?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_93">93</div> -<p>They all laughed at this, but Big Joe Tully merely -smiled and glanced down at the compass.</p> -<p>“Sure and ould Flint made his mistakes and -plenty,” he said in his soft, deep voice. “He made -mistakes whin he didn’t watch out that the coppers -didn’t take the scows o’ men what was workin’ for -his racket. And he made a mistake whin he stuck -Toby Dare with a piece o’ junk. I guess he thought -he’d be puttin’ me on me uppers where I’d be goin’ -back and beg him for work.”</p> -<p>“He got knocked off fust, didn’t he, Big Joe?” -laughed the man at the wheel.</p> -<p>“That he did. ’Tis too bad he couldn’t ’a’ lived -to see how quick I connected with you guys.”</p> -<p>“It’s too bad he couldn’ lived anyways,” said another -of the men, “’cause that poor guy Dare -wouldn’t be in the can then. Anyhow I don’t think -he knocked him off. I think he’d liked to ’cause -Flint give him a lousy break, but I believe what he -said in court that some other guy beat him to it.”</p> -<p>“I know lots o’ guys what were layin’ for ould -Flint,” said Big Joe. “Sure he’d been dead a dozen -times if iverywan what had it in for him, did what -they said they’d like to. That’s why they won’t be -holdin’ poor Toby.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_94">94</div> -<p>“All the same, they <i>are</i> holdin’ poor Toby,” said -the man at the wheel. “He was sentenced late yesterday -afternoon for twenty years to life an’ by this -time he’s hittin’ the hay in the big house, that’s -what.”</p> -<p>“And didn’t ye hear!” said another. “His kid, -Skippy, ain’t been seen since he had a talk with -Marty Skinner aboard the <i>Apollyon</i>. Poor kid, he -went there to plead for his old man, the paper says, -and that hardshell Skinner wouldn’t give him a -break, I guess. The second mate told a reporter -that the kid left the yacht in a rush, hopped in his -kicker and beat it for the Hook. Guess he thought -as long as he couldn’t do nothin’ for Toby, he’d get -away somewhere and try an’ fergit. Well, that’s -life.”</p> -<p>Big Joe Tully clenched his knotted, hairy fists.</p> -<p>“Sufferin’ swordfish!” he said. “Poor Toby! -And that poor kid! ’Tis a howlin’ shame, so ’tis.”</p> -<p>“Know ’em?” asked the man at the wheel.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_95">95</div> -<p>“I oughta—I worked ’longside o’ Toby doin’ -Flint’s jobs night after night, so I did. A whiter -guy than Toby niver lived. He ain’t old—thirty-four -or so. Got married whin he was a kid and -his wife died. He’s crazy ’bout that kid o’ his, -Skippy. ’Tis what makes me feel bad.” Big Joe -looked down at the compass once more. “North, -northeast,” he said to the man at the wheel. “We -oughta be at Flint’s buoy in twinty minutes. There’s -the light from the Hook.”</p> -<p>They watched intently the great sweeping arc of -light swinging over the smoothly rolling water. -The motor boat plunged north, then northeast and -in Big Joe Tully’s eyes was a thoughtful, puzzled -expression, the closer they got to the buoy.</p> -<p>“D’ye say there ain’t somethin’ spooky ’bout the -way that bell’s ringin’?” he asked his comrades. -“Did ye iver hear a bell on a buoy ring like that -without stoppin’? ’Tain’t natural, ’cause....”</p> -<p>Just then he caught a glimpse of the little kicker -bobbing merrily alongside the buoy.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_96">96</div> -<h2 id="c16">CHAPTER XVI -<br /><span class="small">RIVER PEOPLE</span></h2> -<p>“An’ when I sees ye layin’ in the bottom o’ that -kicker, I’d swore I was seein’ things so I would,” -Big Joe Tully was saying. “Lucky I gets it in me -noodle that somethin’s wrong the way that bell keeps -ringin’.”</p> -<p>The shanty of the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> was bright -with the light of mid-morning. The floor had been -scrubbed almost to whiteness, the table was laid with -a soft Turkey red cloth and the lamp looked shiny -and clean. Skippy’s feverish eyes took it all in before -he turned on his pillow.</p> -<p>“I felt so sick, I didn’t exactly know it was you,” -he said weakly. “I heard voices, but I couldn’t -think what it was all about. All I’d thought all -night was that I hadda keep on ringin’ the bell.”</p> -<p>“Sure, kid, and ye rang it!” said Big Joe with a -light laugh.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_97">97</div> -<p>“An’ you sure saved me,” Skippy smiled in return. -“Gee, it was lucky you came that way, huh? -Where’d you been?”</p> -<p>Big Joe lighted a cigarette and puffed on it before -answering.</p> -<p>“Sure an’ just puttin’ the big eye on some new location -for a new racket,” he said softly. “I got six -men with me.”</p> -<p>“Is it—is it gonna be straight?” Skippy asked.</p> -<p>“Nah,” Big Joe laughed. “Who’ll be straight in -the Basin and live like a human bein’? As ’tis, what -they got? They’re all doin’ the higher-up’s dirty -work; but <i>me</i>, I ain’t so foolish even if ould Flint -tipped off the coppers and they grab me scow. I -got a little money and I’ll work this new racket and -make lots more. The doctor says ye’ve got a pretty -weak lung so ye need a month in bed and the best o’ -food. Well, sufferin’ swordfish, we’ll dig up the -dough so’s ye’ll be fat an’ sassy ’fore Toby comes -out.”</p> -<p>Skippy’s eyes lighted up.</p> -<p>“Gee, Mr. Tully, it must be costin’ an awful lotta -money for a lawyer to appeal the case, huh?”</p> -<p>Big Joe waved a large hand deprecatingly.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_98">98</div> -<p>“Forget it, Skippy. Ain’t I doin’ it for a good -friend and ain’t I doin’ it so’s ye won’t see Toby in -the can for twinty years or more? Don’t ye be -worryin’ ’bout the dough, me lad. I made it with -the scow easy. Now it’ll do you and Toby some -good, so ’twill.”</p> -<p>“Gee whiz,” breathed the boy gratefully. “It’s -too much for you to do for Pop and me ’cause we -can’t pay it back—<i>never</i>!”</p> -<p>“That’s why ye gotta be forgettin’ it!” Tully protested. -“I ain’t got nobody to spend it on, kid, so I -might’s well spend it on you and Toby. I’d only -leave it to ye in me will whin I died!” He laughed -loudly. “Now’ll we be good friends, kid?”</p> -<p>Skippy had to fight back the tears before he -smiled.</p> -<p>“Gee, <i>sure</i>! Gee, I like you an awful lot, -Mis——”</p> -<p>“Cut out the <i>Mister</i>, kid! Big Joe’s me monicker, -and nothin’ else. Now anythin’ more on that -big mind o’ yourn?”</p> -<p>Skippy nodded hesitantly.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_99">99</div> -<p>“Gee—gee whiz,” he stammered, “I just was -thinkin’ wouldn’t it be nice if you had enough money -so you didn’t have to go into any crooked rackets -for a while, huh? Gee, I’d like to think you didn’t -have to do it, honest I would, Big Joe! Maybe I’ll -be able to go to work when I get strong and I’ll be -able to help then, huh? Maybe we can live on -clean, honest money like Pop wanted me to, huh? -Besides, the money you’re helpin’ Pop and me with -is kind of from when you were runnin’ your barge -straight, isn’t it?”</p> -<p>Big Joe got up from his chair, went over to the -table and ground out his cigarette stub in an ash -tray. Then he came back and leaning over Skippy’s -bunk, he rumpled the boy’s hair playfully.</p> -<p>“’Tis a funny lad ye be, Skippy. But I s’pose ye -be gettin’ it from Toby. He was always agin doin’ -Flint’s work. Said he wouldn’t ’a’ started it if he -hadn’t been takin’ care o’ ye so much daytimes whin -ye was sick with that throat business.”</p> -<p>“Pop was always honest inside, that shows it,” -said Skippy proudly.</p> -<p>Big Joe smiled.</p> -<p>“Anyways ye’re right about me runnin’ me barge -straight the first year,” he said vehemently. “I -did.” Then: “So ye want me on the level? Well, -we’ll be seein’ about that but we ain’t goin’ to starve -I’ll be tellin’ ye, so I will.”</p> -<p>Skippy’s eyes were shining.</p> -<p>“You’ll get along if people can see you’re tryin’ -to be honest, that’s what Pop said.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_100">100</div> -<p>“Sufferin’ swordfish, kid,” said Big Joe. “Be -quittin’ thinkin’ ’bout anythin’ now ’ceptin’ gettin’ -better. And no more talk about work when ye’re -better. Sufferin’ swordfish, ye ain’t nothin’ but skin -and bones, the doctor said! Ye’re as pale as a -ghost, too. Eggs, milk and chicken soup is what ye -need and what ye’ll be gettin’.”</p> -<p>“Who’ll fix ’em?” Skippy asked, chuckling weakly.</p> -<p>“Our nixt door neighbor on the <i>Dinky O. Cross</i>,” -Big Joe said. “She’s a right nice woman, kid—Mrs. -Duffy, and as soon as she sees us carryin’ ye in -she said it milted her heart. So we put a plank -across to her scow and she come in here and did -’bout iverythin’ ’fore the doctor come. I give her -the dough for the things and she’s cookin’ thim -now.”</p> -<p>“She’s a—she’s one of the river people, huh? -Like <i>you</i>, Big Joe?” Skippy asked wondering.</p> -<p>“Like you and me, Skippy me boy,” answered Big -Joe, nodding his head. “She’s one o’ our people, -the kind what helps their own whin there’s trouble.”</p> -<p>Skippy shut his eyes to visualize the stern, cold -visage of Marty Skinner. Hadn’t he talked of -river people as if they were all of a kind? Hadn’t -he said they were all crooks and criminals?</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_101">101</div> -<p>Big Joe had put him in that category of river -people, he who had never disobeyed a law in his -young life! He resented it and wanted to say so, -but his better judgment prevailed against it and he -decided to wait and see what kind of people these -river people of Brown’s Basin really were. Certainly -if they were all like Big Joe Tully, Skinner -had much to learn.</p> -<p>It was the buxom Mrs. Duffy who decided it, some -moments later. She came in like the fresh morning -breeze from the inlet, clean-aproned and smiling, -laden with soup and eggnog and a wealth of bright -cretonne tucked under her generous arm.</p> -<p>“Cretonne curtains for thim little windows, bhoy,” -she said breathlessly. “Mr. Tully give me the -money for ’em an’ I made ’em up ’fore I come over. -It’ll seem more like home to ye in Brown’s Basin -whin ye see ’em from the outside. The inlet’s dismal -enough, so ’tis, without starin’ at it through -bare, dirty winders; ain’t I right, Mr. Tully?”</p> -<p>“Guess so,” Big Joe answered a little abashed. -“Women folks know more about thim things, but -even me, I be likin’ that bright stuff flutterin’ around -a winder. Ye got the soup an’ everythin’?”</p> -<p>Mrs. Duffy’s smile was vast and it swept from -Big Joe to the wan-looking Skippy.</p> -<p>“Ye’ll pick up, so ye will, or me and Mr. Tully’ll -be to blame, Skippy,” she said heartily.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_102">102</div> -<p>Skippy almost choked with gratitude. He tried -to speak, but could only think that these were river -people—his people! Big Joe, who was spending a -lot of money so that his father might have another -chance for freedom and who would spare no expense -to nurse him back to health. And Mrs. -Duffy, who was bringing cheer into the shanty of -the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> and who seemed to care so -much that he get well!</p> -<p><i>River people?</i> Skinner didn’t know what he was -talking about! He, Skippy Dare, was proud to be -one of the river people.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_103">103</div> -<h2 id="c17">CHAPTER XVII -<br /><span class="small">MUGS</span></h2> -<p>Many delightful weeks Skippy spent after he was -up and around. Day after day, he and Big Joe -roamed the length and breadth of the river, and -often they went down the bay and across to some -unfrequented beach where they swam and fished to -their hearts’ content.</p> -<p>Skippy soon showed the effects of his healthful -life and Mrs. Duffy’s fine cooking. He was -browned from head to foot and his flat chest had -expanded two inches. And what was more, he had -learned to triumph over tears.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_104">104</div> -<p>That in itself was a great achievement, for he -had great need to practice self-control during the -fall and the winter following. The gods themselves -seemed to have cast sorrowful glances over -the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> and Skippy’s mettle was tried -to the breaking point sometimes, yet always he came -up smiling. Very often it was a poignant smile, the -kind that pierced Big Joe Tully’s almost invulnerable -heart and set him to doing all sorts of extravagant -things so that he might see the pain effaced -from the boy’s face and hear him laugh happily.</p> -<p>That was why on the evening of Toby’s retrial, -Big Joe left the shanty of the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> in -awkward haste. He had left Skippy smiling a smile -so poignant that he could bear it no longer.</p> -<p>“Big Joe,” the boy said when they were dawdling -over the most luxurious meal that Tully’s money -could buy, “it was most like throwin’ money away, -huh? They don’t wanta let Pop get out, I guess. -They can’t find the man that really did it and they’ve -gotta have somebody so I s’pose they think it might’s -well be my Pop. Now he <i>will</i> be in for life on account -of the way they tripped him up in his answers. -Gee, how could he remember word for word what -he said at his first trial? People don’t remember -word for word ’bout things like that. Poor Pop -was so nervous I got chills down my back.”</p> -<p>“Don’t ye be gettin’ down, kid,” Tully protested; -“’tis not sayin’ we’re licked till they turn down an -appeal. We got some more dough.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_105">105</div> -<p>“So much money,” said Skippy with a note of -wonder in his high-pitched voice. “Gee, Big Joe, -you’ve spent so much on Pop an’ me already. Now -you wanta spend the last you got! Gee whiz, I -can’t let you—<i>I can’t</i>! Much as I wanta see Pop -free. It ain’t fair lettin’ you spend all your hard-earned -money....”</p> -<p>Tully had long since learned that he could not -lie to Skippy.</p> -<p>“Sure an’ this last coin ain’t hard-earned, kid,” -he said not a little abashed. “So ye see ’cause it -ain’t, it might’s well be used for springin’ your old -man.”</p> -<p>“All right, if you say it like that,” said Skippy -with a slightly reproving smile. Suddenly he -squared his shoulders; then: “Anyway, next to Pop, -Big Joe, I like you best. Gee, ain’t you been just -like Pop even! So I don’t care if that money’s not -so straight, but d’ye think it’ll be lucky for Pop? -Sometimes I wonder if crooked money ain’t hard -luck in the end. Maybe when you’re broke you can -start over clean?”</p> -<p>“We’ll see what the breaks’ll be bringin’ this winter, -kid,” Big Joe had mumbled. “We’ll see, so we -will.”</p> -<p>And it was Skippy’s answering smile that drove -Big Joe off the barge for a few hours. When he -returned late in the evening, he had a fluffy sort of -bundle in his big arms and an expansive smile on his -face.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_106">106</div> -<p>“Three guesses what’s in me arms,” he said with -a mischievous wink, standing half in and half out of -the doorway.</p> -<p>“Is it dead or alive?” Skippy asked chuckling.</p> -<p>“’Tis the liveliest little guy ye ever see.” Big -Joe stooped over and released the fluffy bundle from -his arms and presently an Airedale pup put its four -young and rather unsteady legs on the shanty floor.</p> -<p>Skippy laughed out loud. He twisted his hands -together in a gesture of delight, then got to his -knees and coaxed the puppy to him.</p> -<p>“It’s got brown eyes like a reg’lar angel,” he said.</p> -<p>“An’ brown legs like the divil,” Big Joe laughed; -“the divil for runnin’ into mischief. The man what -I bought him from said he was a son-of-a-sufferin’ -swordfish for runnin’ an’ chewin’. But he’ll be gettin’ -better as he gets older, so he will. Ain’t he got -the cute little mug though, kid!”</p> -<p>Skippy looked up with shining eyes, then drew the -puppy up to him.</p> -<p>“Big Joe, that’s his name—it’s a swell name for -him! Mug—<i>Mugs</i>, huh? With that funny little -face he couldn’t be called anything else.”</p> -<p>“Sure, sure, kid. Anythin’ ye say. Mugs it’ll -be, so ’twill.” He coughed. “And will he be makin’ -ye happy now, kid?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_107">107</div> -<p>“<i>Happy!</i> Big Joe, Mugs’ll make me happy -’cause you bought him to make me laugh. Gee, -gee....” Skippy swallowed his emotion. “What -for do you do so much, Big Joe?” he asked naïvely. -“Gee—<i>why</i>?”</p> -<p>“’Cause ye be such a nice kid, so ye be,” the man -answered, rumpling Skippy’s straight hair. “Ye -kind o’ get under a guy’s skin—ye do that. Ye -seem to be needin’ somebody for to look after ye, -so ye do, an’ with Toby not about it might’s well be -me.” He laughed nervously. “Besides I ain’t got -nobody else at all, at all, kid, an’ even a tough guy -like me does be needin’ company, so he does.”</p> -<p>Skippy hugged the puppy gratefully and he was -so overwhelmed by Tully’s generosity that he could -not speak. Never, he thought, did a boy have a -friend like Big Joe!</p> -<p>His cup of happiness would have been filled to the -brim and his father been released that day. But -here again, Big Joe, like an angel of mercy, was -making a last supreme effort to bring his father back -to him. It seemed impossible that such gigantic -effort could fail to bring a joyous result and he told -Tully so.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_108">108</div> -<p>“An’ when Pop gets out,” he said in conclusion, -“I bet he’ll never forget what you’ve done an’ all, -Big Joe. Even now he don’t forget it. He said -it’s so gloomy and strict in prison that he’s sad all -the time, ’specially ’cause he was so used to roamin’ -all over the river free. Gee, he said the feller what -really killed Mr. Flint was a coward ’cause he must -know how it’s keepin’ Pop an’ me away from each -other an’ he said he could almost kill him for doin’ -that alone.”</p> -<p>“There, now, the ould man’ll be gettin’ out!” said -Tully vehemently. “My last grand’ll do it, I be -tellin’ ye! See if it don’t! Now ye ain’t goin’ to -start worryin’ all over ’bout Toby now, are ye? -An’ me gettin’ ye Mugs so’s to make it aisier like -for ye.”</p> -<p>Skippy looked at the puppy sliding over the floor -on his gawky legs. He laughed.</p> -<p>“Mugs makes up for an awful lot, Big Joe, but -nobody could make up for Pop,” he said wistfully. -“I never told Pop, ’cause he’d think it sounded silly, -but I love him. You know, like I guess girls feel -only they show it an’ talk about it, but I don’t. I -couldn’t. But I’m just tellin’ you like a secret—see? -I get a funny pain in my heart when I’m not -seein’ Pop an’ it gets awful bad when I think maybe -he won’t ever get out of prison.” Then at the sight -of Big Joe’s frowning countenance, he added: “But -it’s like I said, Big Joe, I like you almost as much -as Pop. An’ now you’ve bought me Mugs—gee, -how much’d you pay for him, huh?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_109">109</div> -<p>“’Tis nothin’,” said Big Joe smiling softly; “a -coupla bucks. ’Course, they cost a little more thin -just muts, but the man at the dog place said thim -Airedales be great for protectin’ kids so I think -maybe he’d be good for ye nights when I might be -out with the boys. He’ll be comp’ny anyways.”</p> -<p>A little later, when Big Joe was having a good-night -smoke alone on the deck, he took out of his -pocket a piece of paper, and in the light gleaming -from the cabin windows he glanced at it curiously. -It was a receipt for one Airedale puppy; price, one -hundred and fifty dollars.</p> -<p>He smiled, shrugged his powerful shoulders and -tearing the paper into bits let it drop in the inlet. -Then he turned his trousers’ pockets outward and -laughed ruefully.</p> -<p>“Broke,” he said half aloud. “Sure and ’tis aisy -come, aisy go. And now for to be gettin’ some -more dough. The kid’ll be needin’ it so——” He -shrugged as if getting money was the least of his -troubles.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_110">110</div> -<h2 id="c18">CHAPTER XVIII -<br /><span class="small">BAD NEWS</span></h2> -<p>Skippy had food and plenty of it during the next -month. Big Joe saw to that though it kept him -away from the barge many hours at night, hours -when he lived in mortal fear that the boy would -develop a “bad throat” and be seriously sick before -he could get back.</p> -<p>Skippy’s “bad throat” had become a veritable -bugaboo to Tully and though he had no definite idea -of what it was, the fear of its recurrence stalked -every hour that he spent away from the boy. And -when he did return he would tiptoe into the silent -shanty and up to the boy’s bunk, sighing with relief -to find him sleeping quietly. Then, when he had -made sure there was no sign of the pinched look -and feverish cheek, he would climb into his own -bunk with a light on his face that would have surprised -his rough comrades.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_111">111</div> -<p>Skippy saw this light on Tully’s face one early -morning. He saw it from under half-opened lids -and it made him glad until he noticed the quick look -of concern that passed over the man’s tanned brow.</p> -<p>“What’s up, Big Joe?” he asked anxiously.</p> -<p>“So it’s awake ye be?” Big Joe returned nervously. -“Well now I was just lookin’ and seem’ if -ye was all right. Sure an’ the weather’s gittin’ cold -and all and I got wonderin’ how the throat was. I -bought a new stove what’ll give ye lots o’ heat—it’s -comin’ in the mornin’.”</p> -<p>“Gee whiz!” Skippy said gratefully, then: -“You sorta looked worried.”</p> -<p>Big Joe turned his back and started to undress.</p> -<p>“I’ve got to be tellin’ ye sometime, kid—I—listen....”</p> -<p>“You’ve heard about Pop, huh?” Skippy sat up.</p> -<p>“Yes—they....”</p> -<p>“They what?” said Skippy anxiously.</p> -<p>“They turned down the appeal. But don’t be -takin’ on about it, Skippy. Sure an’ next year we’ll -be diggin’ up new evidence. Now....”</p> -<p>“I ain’t gonna take on, Big Joe, honest I ain’t,” -said Skippy bravely. “On accounta you I ain’t. -You been so good—all the money you spent tryin’ -to get Pop free. An’ now—well, maybe if I don’t -hope about it sumpin’ll happen, sometime.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_112">112</div> -<p>“Sure now that’s bein’ a good kid, takin’ it so -aisy like. We’ll be tryin’ agin like I said. Some -time Marty Skinner’ll get over his crazy notion that -iverybody in Brown’s Basin’s agin him and that -Toby did the job. Sure he hates iverybody here so -much I hear he’s got Buck Flint to agree to buy -the whole inlet. And thin he’ll be drivin’ us squatters -out, so he will.”</p> -<p>“But he can’t do that!” Skippy protested indignantly. -“He can’t drive me outa the <i>Minnie M. -Baxter</i> ’cause it’s Pop’s home—gee, the only home -we got. I gotta stay here till—well, when I leave -it, I’ll know I ain’t got any hope that he’ll come -back.”</p> -<p>“And don’t I be knowin’ how ye feel, kid? But -if Skinner’s put it in Buck Flint’s head that the inlet’s -a good buy and the deal goes through, he’ll be -orderin’ us out and we’ll be likin’ it. Buck ain’t a -bad egg, but Skinner’s runnin’ the works and what -he says goes, so it does. Now if he tells us to beat -it I’m wonderin’ who’ll be towin’ a barge out o’ this -mud whin she’s settled. Why, it’d take a derrick, -so it would, an’ even then it’d be a chance.”</p> -<p>Skippy was deeply affected by this news. He -could not sleep because of it and long after Big Joe -was snoring comfortably he rolled and tossed in his -bunk. Then, after a time, he thought of what -Tully had said about the barges being too deeply -settled in the mud to get them out, and he was so -curious about it that he got up to see for himself.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_113">113</div> -<p>He bundled himself up and slipped out onto the -deck in the cold, damp air of an early fall morning. -It was not yet dawn but the deep black of night had -gone and Brown’s Basin lay silent in a dark gray -mist.</p> -<p>Skippy leaned far over aft where the <i>Minnie M. -Baxter</i> was settled deepest in the mud. Up forward, -the slinking waters of the inlet gurgled plaintively -against the keel at high tide. Big Joe was -right, he decided with sinking heart; it would take a -derrick and more to pull the barge out of her muddy -berth.</p> -<p>As he started to step back he noticed a tarpaulin -to his right which seemed to be covering some bulky -objects. Something that Big Joe had brought -aboard, he thought, and curiously he raised one end -of it. One glimpse told him enough.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_114">114</div> -<p>They were stolen ships’ supplies, things that his -father had told him a river pirate could easily dispose -of to some unscrupulous ship captain. Skippy -knew instantly how they had come there and he -turned on his heel and had started back for the -shanty when a searchlight suddenly fell full upon -him.</p> -<p>He crouched out of its glare and needed but to -look hastily up the inlet to see that it was the police -boat bearing down upon the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_115">115</div> -<h2 id="c19">CHAPTER XIX -<br /><span class="small">DANGER</span></h2> -<p>Feverishly, Skippy set to work and pushed the -stolen goods overboard piece by piece. Most of -them floated but a moment, then sank out of sight, -and the rest floated at a safe enough distance from -the oncoming launch to escape the eyes of the police.</p> -<div class="img"> -<img src="images/im5.jpg" alt="" width="500" height="775" /> -<p class="pcap">FEVERISHLY SKIPPY PUSHED THE STOLEN GOODS OVERBOARD.</p> -</div> -<p>When the last piece had been disposed of he -rushed to the shanty, awakened Big Joe and told -him what he had done.</p> -<p>“’Tis a good boy ye be, Skippy,” he praised. -“Sure th’ bulls give me a chase tonight so they did -and I couldn’ unload the goods on me customer so -I brought thim here till tomorrow night. Ye’re -a broth of a lad to be droppin’ thim over, so ye be.”</p> -<p>“Sh!” said Skippy, frightened. “Ain’t that them -boardin’ us now?” He got out of his clothes and -back into his bunk.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_116">116</div> -<p>They listened in silence while the soft tramp of -feet came along the deck. Skippy had reason to -remember another terrible occasion when the police -boat had come to take his father. He had thought -then that it was only for a day.</p> -<p>He had only Big Joe now, his only friend in a -singularly callous world. Would the law take him -too? He couldn’t bear it—he wouldn’t bear it! -He would like and protect Big Joe even if he was a -murderer, the police wouldn’t take the one thing he -had left!</p> -<p>They knocked insistently and Big Joe padded to -the door, barefooted and feigning complete surprise. -He invited them in, hurried ponderously to -the rickety table and lighted the lamp. Mugs -growled ominously.</p> -<p>The officers told Tully that a certain warehouse -had been broken into that night. The watchman -who had surprised the intruder thought he had -recognized Big Joe Tully.</p> -<p>“Tonight?” Skippy piped up from his bunk. -“It ain’t so ’cause Big Joe’s been here takin’ care of -me since noon. I got one of my bad throats again -an’ he wouldn’t go out ’cause I was feelin’ so bad.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_117">117</div> -<p>Who of the river front police hadn’t heard of -Skippy Dare’s bad throat? None that had patrolled -the harbor during the past four months. -Hadn’t it been because of his frail boy that Toby -Dare had fought his prison sentence so hard? The -papers had been full of it too.</p> -<p>“So the throat’s cutting up again, eh Skippy?” -asked Inspector Jones. He was the same man who -had taken Toby away from his son.</p> -<p>Skippy, always a bit wan looking when he lay in -his bunk, looked more wan than ever then. His -pallor was not simulated; it was terribly real, for -he was not only frightened at the prospect of losing -Big Joe; he was frightened because of the barefaced -lie he had just told—the first in his life.</p> -<p>“I always gotta be careful of my throat, Mister,” -he said to the officer when the worst of his emotion -had passed. “’Specially when it gets cold. Sometimes -I get fever right away an’ the doctor told Big -Joe the last time that I gotta right away have attention.”</p> -<p>“Sure and the lad’s right,” Big Joe interposed -with genuine feeling in his voice, “he’s got only me -to be lookin’ after him now.”</p> -<p>“What you doing for a living, Big Joe?” asked -the officer a little pointedly.</p> -<p>Big Joe stifled a yawn and sat down on a chair.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_118">118</div> -<p>“Me?” he asked innocently. “Ye mean what’ll -I do when the money I saved from me barge gives -out, is it? With the way Flint blackballed me ’fore -he died, I guess I’ll have to be workin’ out o’ the -bay next summer, so I do.”</p> -<p>“Got enough for you and the kid till next summer?” -the officer persisted.</p> -<p>“Sure and ’tis lucky I have, the way things be,” -answered Big Joe.</p> -<p>The officer leveled his eyes at Tully.</p> -<p>“For the kid’s sake, watch your step, Big Joe,” -he said with a warning note. “For the kid’s -sake....”</p> -<p>Skippy couldn’t believe they had gone. It -seemed too good to be true, and in order to reassure -him, Big Joe put something around him and went -out on deck to see that the launch had actually gone.</p> -<p>“Sure she’s aisy out to the river by this time,” he -assured Skippy when he came back. He lighted a -cigarette and sat down. “Now was that a close -shave I’ll be askin’,” he exclaimed. “And I can be -thankin’ ye for it, kid. I never expected thim to -come stealin’ up on us here, no, I didn’t.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_119">119</div> -<p>“See it don’t pay, Big Joe!” Skippy said gently. -He seemed spent with the great strain. “People -know a big guy like you anywheres an’ besides like I -say, it don’t pay anyhow. Gee, if you can’t get honest -work ’cause Flint blackballed you then I gotta -work myself. I can get a job as office boy in a -warehouse. I bet I can!”</p> -<p>“Nix, kid, nix, ye ain’t well enough,” Big Joe protested -hotly. “Besides I don’t niver take things -from folks what are hard up, Skippy. I——”</p> -<p>“Lemme try it, Big Joe, huh? I’m better now’n -I been in a long time, so lemme try it! I’m not -kickin’ ’bout you. Gee, I can see how it is now. -Even Pop once told me how hard it was for a blackballed -man to get back along the river. You spent -all your money on Pop an’ me an’ we hadda eat an’ -live, so what was you gonna do! I shoulda known -before that your money couldn’t last forever—gee! -All you’ve done for me, Big Joe—lemme try!”</p> -<p>Tully was still protesting at daylight, but Skippy, -having made up his mind, fell peacefully to sleep -with the dog tucked snugly under his outstretched -arm. Big Joe sat watching them until long after -the sun came up.</p> -<p>“Sure and the kid lied for me,” he said as he -climbed back into his bunk. “Sure and that nice kid -lied for me—<i>me</i>!”</p> -<p>And as his large features settled in slumber, they -looked strangely troubled.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_120">120</div> -<h2 id="c20">CHAPTER XX -<br /><span class="small">A JOB</span></h2> -<p>Skippy left the barge noiselessly that morning -and did not return until six o’clock in the evening. -Consequently, Big Joe spent a troubled day, waiting -and hoping and fearing. When he saw the boy -crossing the plank from the <i>Dinky O. Cross</i>, he hurried -to the door.</p> -<p>“And where have ye been, Skippy?” he called -anxiously. “Here and ye been havin’ me crazy -wonderin’ if ye’d run away!”</p> -<p>Skippy laughed and greeted Mugs who seemed -to be growing by the minute. Then he swung energetically -into the shanty and sat down to a hot supper -that Mrs. Duffy had faithfully sent over.</p> -<p>“Guess what, Big Joe?”</p> -<p>“Sure and ye’ll not be for quittin’ me ’cause o’ -what happened last night?” Big Joe returned trying -not to sound anxious.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_121">121</div> -<p>“I should say not. Whad’ye think I am? I -ain’t yeller, Big Joe. Besides I like you too much. -What I wanta say is, I got a job.”</p> -<p>Tully frowned.</p> -<p>“It ain’t gonna be hard,” Skippy assured him. -“I’m the new office boy at the Central Warehouse -an’ I’ll get ten bucks a week. So now you needn’t -be scareda cops.”</p> -<p>Tully smiled in spite of himself. “My now, ain’t -that just fine. Ain’t that just fine, kid. But do ye -be knowin’ who’s boss o’ the Central?”</p> -<p>“No. Who?”</p> -<p>“Marty Skinner, actin’ as Buck Flint’s agent, no -less.”</p> -<p>“Well, he can see then that my Pop brought me -up honest an’ hard workin’,” said Skippy after a moment’s -surprise.</p> -<p>“Sure, to be sure and he can that, but shiverin’ -swordfish, don’t ye be goin’ on expectin’ too much -from him, kid. D’ye be thinkin’ he’s wise ye be on -the payroll?”</p> -<p>“No.”</p> -<p>“Well, now, just ye be waitin’ till he is. Just ye -be....”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_122">122</div> -<p>Skippy did not have long to wait. He had completed -his first week’s work in the Central Warehouse -when one day he heard a hushed voice pass -around the awesome news that “the boss” was coming.</p> -<p>Skinner recognized Skippy as soon as he stepped -into the room. There were a few questions asked -and Skippy trudged back to the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> -that night with a heavy heart.</p> -<p>Big Joe was all sympathy.</p> -<p>“And what was he sayin’ to ye, kid?”</p> -<p>“He wanted to know how I come to get a job -there,” Skippy answered dolefully. “Wanted to -know how I had nerve enough an’ said I was there -as a spotter for my father’s gang probably. An’ -before he finished he said it was lucky there hadn’t -been a robbery there or he’d handed me right over -to the police then an’ there. <i>Me</i>—me that ain’t -done him a bitta harm an’ that wouldn’t! Gee, Big -Joe, ain’t it enough that he helped put Pop where -he is? Can’t he see how <i>I</i> am?”</p> -<p>“None o’ ’em can see anythin’, kid,” Big Joe answered, -bitterly. “That’s the trouble with me and -Toby and every man in this Basin. Sure ’tis ’cause -the likes o’ Skinner can’t see. They don’t even give -us a chance, they don’t ’cause we’re river folks. -They tell us so much that we’re crooked that we -wind up that way whither we want to or not, so we -do. They make us be crooked. And now they be -startin’ in on you, kid. ’Tis a dirty shame, so ’tis.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_123">123</div> -<p>“I’ll get some other place,” Skippy was defiant. -“They’re not gonna make me crooked when I don’t -wanna be.”</p> -<p>“Skippy, kid,” thought Tully from the depths of -his river front wisdom, “I ain’t so sure, I ain’t so -sure.” But what he said was: “Sure and that -they’ll not, Skippy me boy, that they’ll not.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_124">124</div> -<h2 id="c21">CHAPTER XXI -<br /><span class="small">WHAT NEXT?</span></h2> -<p>Weary week after weary week passed for Skippy -until the winter months had come and gone. -March arrived, cold, blustery and disappointing, -for he hadn’t yet been able to hold a job longer than -it took his employers to find out just who their -office boy was. And as gossip spreads quickly along -the river front, the discouraged boy seldom drew -more than a few days’ pay at a time.</p> -<p>He had learned upon being dismissed from his -last job the reason why employers had no use for his -services. He demanded to know.</p> -<p>“Is it ’cause my father’s in prison?” he asked -wistfully. “’Cause if it is nobody is fair in the -world. You’ve heard, I bet, that lots of innocent -people are in jail so can’t you believe maybe my -father could be one of them? And anyway, does -that prove that I’m....”</p> -<p>The employer, thus confronted, protested.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_125">125</div> -<p>“No,” he said in that self-righteous tone that was -beginning to wear on Skippy’s nerves, “we think -that you, yourself, mean to be honest but we know -that you can’t hold out long against such home conditions -as the Basin offers. A wage such as a boy -like you with your limited education can earn isn’t -enough to provide you with all you want. And -sooner or later, your association with a person like -Big Joe Tully will have its effect on you.”</p> -<p>“My Pop was gonna send me to school so’s I -could get educated,” Skippy protested, “but anyway -I’m honest an’ I’m gonna stay honest, no matter -what you think. Besides, Big Joe’s tried to live -straight all this winter for my sake, but are you an’ -everybody else I’ve tried to work for tryin’ to help -him? No, nobody won’t even give him a job so he -can stay straight. An’ now you won’t let me stay -’cause I live with him, because you’re afraid....”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_126">126</div> -<p>“My dear boy,” the employer interposed patronizingly, -“can you blame us? Tully has served a jail -sentence for robbing our warehouses. How can we -be certain that he won’t do it again? Or that he -won’t use your position of trust in our offices to -learn more easily what goods we have in our warehouses -that he can steal? What assurance can you -give us that he don’t do that when he gets tired -treading the straight and narrow path? None. -Absolutely none! No, we warehouse owners have -been too long aware that it is you thieving river people -who are responsible for our tremendous losses -every year. And so we maintain that, once a thief, -always a thief!”</p> -<p>Skippy was wounded and bitter. His full, generous -lips curled sardonically.</p> -<p>“Then it ain’t any use to try to make you understand,” -he said bravely. “You warehouse people -complain that we’re thieves an’ you make us thieves -just like you’re tryin’ to make me one by keepin’ me -outa jobs so’s I can’t make an honest livin’. An’ -anyway, if the only way I could hold a job is to quit -Big Joe then I won’t do it! I’d rather <i>be</i> a thief, -yes I would! He saved my life and he’s helped my -Pop ... oh, what’s the use!”</p> -<p>He slammed the door behind him and rushed -home to find Big Joe with his faithful, smiling face. -Plank after plank he hurried over, connecting the -barges, and at last he crossed the deck of the <i>Dinky -O. Cross</i>, waved a greeting to the smiling Mrs. -Duffy and whistled for Mugs when he reached the -plank of the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>.</p> -<p>“And have ye lost the job, kid?” Big Joe asked -when he entered the shanty.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_127">127</div> -<p>“My last job, Big Joe,” the boy answered smiling -ruefully. “You were right about ’em—there -ain’t one that’ll gimme a chance. Even you who -ain’t always been honest yourself did more than -that! You let me try at least. They know more -about you than I did—they know you served time.”</p> -<p>“Sure and that’s why they’re blackballin’ ye, is it? -’Cause ye’re stickin’ with me?” His bland face -looked dark and ominous. Then as he glanced at -the boy’s wistful countenance, his expression softened: -“I’m tellin’ ye the truth, kid, whin I say that -they railroaded me, so they did—I was startin’ in -honest like you. Office boy. Thin one night the -warehouse was robbed and next mornin’ they accused -me o’ workin’ with the gang—tippin’ ’em off. -’Cause I’d been seen ’round with one o’ the guys -what was caught. I got a year, I did, and didn’t -have a chance. When I come out I was blackballed -and Ol’ Flint took me under. Sufferin’ swordfish, -sure and I’ve tried twice now to travel on the up and -up. When I first got my barge and now. And ’tis -no use, ’tis no use.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_128">128</div> -<p>“Seems that way,” Skippy murmured, disconsolate. -“Now I ain’t gonna try. I’m gonna live an’ -eat like other fellers my age. I wanta go to the -movies an’ take things up to Pop when I go to see -him. Gee, already he’s startin’ to write to me that -the food’s bad up at the big house. So I gotta help -him have a little sumpin’ to smile at if he’s gonna be -there the rest of his life! An’ I gotta have money -to go to see him—I gotta see him! If they won’t -lemme earn it honest—<i>what else</i>? Like the man -said, I don’t know enough to work anywheres else.”</p> -<p>“And ye’ll be wantin’ to quit me, kid? Ye’ll be -wantin’ to go away and start over where they don’t -know ’bout river people and all?” Big Joe’s anxiety -was pathetic.</p> -<p>“I’m afraid of places too far away from the -river,” Skippy admitted. “I guess I got the river -in me like Pop, huh? I ain’t got nerve enough to -break away. Besides I sorta promised Pop I’d stay -by the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>. S’pose just by a lucky -break the governor pardons Pop some day, huh? -He’s paid good money for this barge an’ it’s the -only home he’s got. Besides, I don’t wanta quit -you, Big Joe—<i>I couldn’t</i>!”</p> -<p>And Skippy’s decision stood until Brown’s Basin -was no more....</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_129">129</div> -<h2 id="c22">CHAPTER XXII -<br /><span class="small">BIG JOE’S IDEA</span></h2> -<p>In May, Big Joe conceived a brilliant idea for -making a living. He came into the shanty of the -barge with it one balmy noon, for it was embodied -in a large canvas bag which he carried in his big -outstretched hand.</p> -<p>“Sure and now we be goin’ to eat, kid, and we be -goin’ to live high, and ye be goin’ to do all the things -ye’ want for Toby,” he said chuckling.</p> -<p>“Stealin’?” Skippy asked, looking worried and -wan. “As hard up as we been, Big Joe, I can’t -stand for sneakin’ down the river at night an’ climbin’ -into warehouse windows. Gee, Pop’d feel fierce -if we was caught an’ I was put in reform school or -sumpin’ like that!”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_130">130</div> -<p>“And d’ye be thinkin’ I ain’t carin’ no more for -ye than seein’ ye grabbed for somethin’ like that, -me boy? Kid, I been thinkin’ and thinkin’ o’ some -way for us to be gettin’ by—some way that no copper -could catch us up on. And if they iver should -’twon’t be you what’d be holdin’ the bag—’twill be -me, ’cause I’m the one what’ll do the trick. Do -you catch on?”</p> -<p>“What trick, Big Joe?”</p> -<p>“’Tis the stuff I got in this bag, kid,” answered -Tully softly. “’Tis ground carbon and whin it’s -poured in with oil it raises the divil with thim nice -engines in rich guys’ boats up at the Riverview -Yacht Club. From now on till the end o’ summer -they’re takin’ trips—see? Well, sure and Big Joe’s -got a good pal what looks out for the boats up -there ... he’s told beforehand what rich guy’s goin’ -out in his boat, he is ... my pal tells me and -I go up there—see? Him and me edge aisy like -towards the boat and whilst he’s lookin’ out the corners -o’ his eye that no one’s comin’, Big Joe uncovers -the crank case and ’fore ye could say <i>scat</i>, -I’m pourin’ me little powder in the breather pipe -and sure she’s mixin’ with the oil.”</p> -<p>“An’ what then?” Skippy asked, nervous, yet admiring -Big Joe’s ingenious idea.</p> -<p>Big Joe winked, then laughed.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_131">131</div> -<p>“Sure, I pour the right amount o’ this powder, -kid,” he said, “thin I beats it off quick and watch the -rich guy start, so I do. If ’tis possible, me pal finds -out where the guy’s goin’ so’s I can beat it on ahead -and circle his course so I come up on him by the -time his ingine’s dead—see?”</p> -<p>“The powder mixes through the oil an’ up -through the engine, huh?” Skippy asked fearfully. -“Makes the engine go dead, huh?”</p> -<p>“Sure ’tis ground up like nobody’s business, kid,” -Big Joe laughed. “An’ I make sure o’ puttin’ in -enough so’s I’ll be knowin’ about where the ingine -goes dead on thim. And thin I chug up to thim all -innocent like and asks do they want help. <i>Do</i> -they? Sure they must be towed back so I says I -don’t think I’m their man ’cause I’ll be losin’ business -somewheres or other—see? And they’re so -anxious they’ll be willin’ to pay me price, so they -will. And I gotta be paid for the loss o’ me time!” -He laughed heartily.</p> -<p>“I—I—gee, in a way that’s worse than pulling a -warehouse, Big Joe? It ain’t so dangerous, -but....”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_132">132</div> -<p>“Kid, sure I thought ye’d be takin’ on, but I can -tell ye it ain’t so bad at all, at all. I’ll be pickin’ -out only thim what’s payin’ tin and twinty grand for -their kickers! What’s the cost to thim what throws -away hundreds o’ bucks at a time? And what’s -fifty or seventy-five bucks for to be payin’ me for -towin’ thim back? Sure ’tis a drop in the bucket, -says I. They’ll niver be missin’ it, kid. And we -gotta live, you and me, and Toby’s case’s gotta go -before the governor some day and that takes money -too.”</p> -<p>Skippy nodded and Big Joe noticed that the old -pinched look had come back to his thin cheeks.</p> -<p>“Kid, ye can’t be goin’ on like this, you and me!” -he pleaded. “Like I said ’tis only the big guys—guys -what have the heavy sugar. We’ll be layin’ -off the others and we’ll be workin’ the different clubs -so nobody gets wise. Thim boat tenders’ll go -along for a little o’ the split. So ye needn’t be -worryin’ that we’re takin’ thim what can’t afford -it! Besides they’re mostly rich warehouse guys -that won’t give you and me the chance for honest -work. Sure and now ye won’t be feelin’ so bad -about takin’ it, will ye?”</p> -<p>That decided Skippy. Hunger and privation -had dulled his conscience, embittered him against -the warehouse owners and he was at last ready to -strike back at his oppressors.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_133">133</div> -<p>And strange to say, in contemplating the results -of this stealthy enterprise, Skippy did not think of -the food, nor the movies to which he could go. He -was thinking instead that he would at last have the -money to pay for his journey up to see his father. -For a few golden moments the walls of the prison -would fade away and Toby would imagine himself -a free man. And all because of a breath of river -air that his son would bring him in his smile.</p> -<p>And for that, Skippy was willing to forget that -he hated dishonesty in any form.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_134">134</div> -<h2 id="c23">CHAPTER XXIII -<br /><span class="small">ANOTHER JOB</span></h2> -<p>It was early morning a few days later when -Skippy and Tully set out on the first stage of their -enterprise. The inlet was dark and shadowy, and -the sweet soft breath of spring floated about their -heads. In its wake, however, came the smell of -mud and fish at low tide and the boy was glad to get -out into the fresh salt air of the river.</p> -<p>“It’s the only thing that makes me hate the inlet,” -he said to Big Joe as they turned up toward the -yacht club. “I get feelin’ choked, sorta—you -know, sumpin’ like I imagine people feel when they -go to jail.”</p> -<p>“Now don’t ye be feelin’ spooky,” Tully admonished. -“’Tain’t the spirit for a job like this. -Sure, there’s somethin’ ’bout mentionin’ jail what -gives me the creeps. So don’t be thinkin’ we’ll be -gettin’ in any jams—’tis hard luck, so ’tis.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_135">135</div> -<p>“I’m sorry, Big Joe,” said Skippy contritely. “I—I -didn’t say it for that, honest, because even Pop -can tell you how the inlet always made me feel like -that. I’m all right when I’m up on the barge; it’s -only the inlet makes me feel that way. Just as soon -as we strike the river I feel better.”</p> -<p>“That’s the talk, me boy. And I’m sorry for -jumpin’ on ye so quick. I thought ye was nervous -’bout this job, so I did.”</p> -<p>“Aw, no,” Skippy protested, but his quivering lip -belied his words.</p> -<p>Tully did not see it, however, for he was intent -on approaching the yacht club unobtrusively.</p> -<p>“Now if this ain’t a good break,” he said enthusiastically. -“There’s a party o’ three goin’ out on -a two days’ fishing trip at Snug Island. She’s called -the <i>Minnehaha</i>, me pal tells me, and she’s a baby. -Twenty-six footer! Guy that owns her is Crosley.”</p> -<p>“Crosley Warehouse where I worked last?” -Skippy asked anxiously.</p> -<p>“Sure, and now don’t that beat all! Little Old -Lady Luck’s playin’ with us, kid! Sure ’tis a break -to make him hand over his bucks or sink in Watson’s -Channel!”</p> -<p>“You wouldn’t let ’em do that, Big Joe?” Skippy -asked fearfully. “<i>You wouldn’t!</i>”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_136">136</div> -<p>“Nah, Big Joe ain’t that hard hearted, much as -I got it in for thim rich bugs. I’ll just be lettin’ -thim think I’m doin’ thim a favor not lettin’ Watson’s -Channel close ’em in, so I will.”</p> -<p>“Do you s’pose Mr. Crosley’ll get wise we’re -doin’ it a-purpose?” Skippy was beginning to -weaken already.</p> -<p>“And how’ll he be doin’ that, I’m askin’ ye? Me -pal tipped me off they be due at dawn. We’ll be -there and gone a half hour afore they show up. So -don’t be startin’ worryin’, kid. Leave everythin’ -to Big Joe, as if ye didn’t know nothin’ ’bout the -business at all, at all. You don’t say nothin’. Be -lookin’ dumb if anybody talks to ye.”</p> -<p>“I will,” said Skippy, half-whimsically, and half-frightened. -“I’ll be <i>scared</i> dumb so you needn’t -worry that I’ll get nervous an’ give anythin’ away—gee -whiz!”</p> -<p>Big Joe laughed, then he said, “Awright, kid, -D’ye be knowin’ Skinner and Crosley be pals?”</p> -<p>“Gee!” said Skippy. “Now I know why I -couldn’t get a job. Skinner put ’em all wise, huh? -Gee!”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_137">137</div> -<p>They were silent after that and chugged steadily -toward the yacht club. A ferry-boat was crossing -far up the river and her lights blinked out over the -dark water like a hundred evil eyes. Hundreds of -boats anchored near shore bobbed up and down on -the tide like a ghostly river army, and from the -shore more lights winked down on them knowingly -as if they knew their secret.</p> -<p>They crept into the slip alongside the yacht club; -Big Joe had shut off the motor. At a sign from -him, Skippy dropped the anchor and without a -word, he got out and crept across the float and onto -the club grounds.</p> -<p>After the darkness hid him from view Skippy -looked about, nervously. There was a little light -gleaming from under the vast clubhouse porch and -suddenly he saw Big Joe’s ponderous figure pass -under it. Presently, he halted and held out his -hand to a man approaching him from the other direction.</p> -<p>Skippy sighed with relief and relaxed. At least -Big Joe had met his comrade without accident. Besides, -no one seemed to be about. He heard not a -sound except the river lapping restlessly around the -piling under the slip and the swish of anchored craft -as they swayed on the tide.</p> -<p>It seemed to him that Big Joe was staying an interminable -time, but as an actual fact, it was just -seven minutes before he saw the man’s bulky figure -coming stealthily toward him.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_138">138</div> -<p>Skippy weighed anchor without a sound and they -pushed the kicker out of the slip with oars. A little -distance below the club, Big Joe turned over his -motor.</p> -<p>“Shiverin’ swordfish, kid,” he murmured with a -chuckle, “all we do now is wait—wait so’s Crosley -can get ’bout as far as Watson’s Channel. He’ll -be gettin’ no further’n that—so he won’t.”</p> -<p>Skippy shivered a little and leaned over the -coaming to watch for logs.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_139">139</div> -<h2 id="c24">CHAPTER XXIV -<br /><span class="small">ANOTHER RESCUE</span></h2> -<p>As the moments wore on, Skippy felt meaner -than ever. He tried to force himself to accept Big -Joe’s point of view, but it was difficult and more -than once he wished he had not encouraged his good -friend in this dubious enterprise.</p> -<p>They chugged into the bay and out of the awakening -river traffic. Dawn had broken through and -glimmerings of dancing light peeped over the horizon. -An hour more and they would be in sight -of Watson’s Channel.</p> -<p>“We’ll not be goin’ straight for the Channel, -we’ll not,” called Big Joe as if anticipating Skippy’s -fears. “We’ll be layin’ quite like below here a -ways ’till the <i>Minnehaha</i> gets in the Channel. ’Tis -a funny name, hey kid?”</p> -<p>“Mm,” Skippy answered. “It’s a Indian name, -Big Joe—I think it means sumpin’ like Laughing—Laughing -sumpin’.”</p> -<p>Big Joe’s mirth knew no bounds.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_140">140</div> -<p>“Sure and just about now <i>Minnie</i> ain’t laughin’, -she ain’t,” he said. “’Tis us.”</p> -<p>“Not me,” Skippy said gloomily. “I won’t -laugh ... not till after.”</p> -<p>An hour later they were chugging noisily toward -Watson’s Channel. The sun was glorious and the -water glistened under its warm spring rays. Gulls -frolicked about in the foaming spray and Skippy -tried hard to believe there was nothing but peace in -his busy mind.</p> -<p>After a time they heard a distant sound, faint at -first but growing louder within a few minutes. -Tully grinned at Skippy’s questioning face and -nodded as the piercing note of a siren cut the silent -sunlit air.</p> -<p>“Sure, and I wonder what that might be?” he -said with mock-seriousness. “Sounds like distress -I’d be sayin’, I would.”</p> -<p>“Stop kiddin’, Big Joe,” Skippy pleaded. “You -mean you think it’s <i>them</i>?”</p> -<p>“Well now I wouldn’ be s’prised,” the big fellow -answered. Then seriously, he said: “We’ll be gettin’ -there, kid! Don’t be lookin’ as if they was -drownin’ or somethin’. Sure they could keep afloat -for hours so they could, and look at the tide besides.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_141">141</div> -<p>Skippy glanced at the quietly rolling swell and felt -somewhat reassured. But the voice of the siren -jarred him and he was glad to see that Big Joe -looked serious and determined. He hadn’t liked -that note of raillery in his friend’s voice.</p> -<p>But despite Skippy’s fears Tully answered the -siren call with all the haste of a good Samaritan. -One might have supposed that he gloried in the -duties of heroic service. And when he reached the -Channel and they sighted the distressed launch, he -opened wide his throttle until the old hull shook to -the vibrations of the engine.</p> -<p>Skippy clenched his slim, brown fingers and sat -tense in his seat while a spray rained into the boat. -Big Joe coughed significantly and drove his ramshackle -craft straight for the disabled cruiser.</p> -<p>“Now ain’t she the sweet lookin’ baby,” he observed -as if he had never seen the launch before.</p> -<p>Skippy said nothing but grimly watched the three -men who awaited their coming. Crosley he recognized -at once, but the man standing alongside of -him was a stranger. The third occupant of the -<i>Minnehaha</i> was Marty Skinner. Skippy remembered -him from his father’s trial and from the night -Skinner had ordered him off the <i>Apollyon</i> without -a hearing.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_142">142</div> -<p>“You see him?” he asked Big Joe between -clenched teeth.</p> -<p>“’Tis all the better,” Big Joe seemed to say in his -bland smile.</p> -<p>He brought the kicker up alongside the <i>Minnehaha</i> -and laid a life preserver over the coaming of -his boat to prevent its scratching the gleaming hull -of the launch. Skippy scrambled to the rescue and -held the kicker as the ill-assorted pair rocked and -rubbed in the heavy swell.</p> -<p>“Sure I don’t want to be scratchin’ her,” said -Tully with a fine assumption of humble respect for -the launch. “I was tellin’ the kid here, she’s some -baby, hey? What’s bein’ the matter; power give -out did she? ’Tis too bad, so ’tis.”</p> -<p>Skippy kept his eyes on space, but he had the feeling -that Big Joe and he were being scrutinized with -unfriendly stares.</p> -<p>Crosley sniffed the air contemptuously before he -spoke.</p> -<p>“She’s pumping oil to beat the band,” he said. -“We don’t seem to be getting any compression -either. We can’t get a kick out of her. Been flopping -around for an hour.”</p> -<p>“Sure maybe ye be needin’ new rings,” said Tully. -“Guess ye been pushin’ her too hard, hey?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_143">143</div> -<p>He glanced into the cockpit and with a fine show -of rueful astonishment, beheld the disastrous results -of his own handiwork. She was indeed pumping -oil. The engine head was covered with it, and it -was streaming down the side over the carburetor. -Three or four spark plugs had been taken out and -lay on a locker in little puddles of oozy muck.</p> -<p>“If ’t was only one cylinder now, I’d be sayin’ ye -had a busted ring, or even a cracked piston,” Tully -said blandly. “But shiverin’ swordfish if it don’t -look like the whole six o’ thim, don’t it? Ye can’t -do nothin’ here. Looks like ye was racin’ her a -lot.” His detestable device had worked so well -that he seemed moved to offer gratuitous suggestions. -“I knowed a guy was stuck on the bar over -by Inland Beach and he kept racin’ his motor, and -somehow—I dunno just how—she sucked in a lot o’ -beach sand and it sanded down his cylinder wall -good an’ plenty, so it did.”</p> -<p>Skinner’s lips were drawn in a thin line above his -pointed chin.</p> -<p>“Does that mean we’ll have to be towed back, -Crosley?” he asked his host petulantly.</p> -<p>“Afraid so, Marty,” answered Crosley. “I can’t -imagine how a fine engine like mine could break -down so soon.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_144">144</div> -<p>“Sure and if that ain’t just like some guys,” said -Tully glibly. “They’re fine’s a fiddle one day and -the next—they’re done for, ain’t it so?”</p> -<p>Crosley nodded indifferently.</p> -<p>“Could you tow us in?” he asked as if the question -were distasteful. His aversion to the uncouth, -but amiable river man was too obvious to escape -Skippy’s sensitive eyes.</p> -<p>If Tully was aware of it too, he did not betray it. -His face looked grave and thoughtful.</p> -<p>“Trouble is I’m due at the Hook,” he said hesitantly. -“Have an all day’s job towin’ a barge. -I’m late as ’tis. And if I ain’t there in twinty minutes -I lose the job, so I do. ’Tis the first good payin’ -job I’ve had in a long....”</p> -<p>Crosley waved his hand in entreaty.</p> -<p>“We’ll see that you’re paid for the loss of your -day’s job, man. How much would you get for it, -eh?”</p> -<p>Tully moved his large head and shrugged his -powerful shoulders. “Seventy-five bucks is what -they’re goin’ to pay me,” he said modestly.</p> -<p>Crosley gasped audibly.</p> -<p>“That’s a lot of money, but....”</p> -<p>“It’s a hold up!” snapped Skinner between his -tightly drawn lips.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_145">145</div> -<p>“Sure and it’s what they’re payin’ me, boss,” said -Big Joe with a look of hurt pride. “I ain’t askin’ -ye’ for a cent, I’m not considerin’ I may lose my -customer for future jobs. ’Tis not only I’m losin’ -that seventy-five bucks, ’tis....”</p> -<p>“All right,” Crosley sniffed angrily. “You’re -taking advantage of us. I don’t believe you can -earn seventy-five dollars for a day’s work. But -you have us at a disadvantage—the Lord knows -who else we could get to our rescue in this unfrequented -channel.”</p> -<p>“So and that’s all the thanks I get,” said Tully. -“Comin’ way out o’ me way....”</p> -<p>“All right,” Skinner interposed. “Give it to -him, Crosley. I know who this fellow is. We’re -at his mercy. But I’ll remember this, Tully—you’re -occupying the mud banks at Brown’s Basin. -You and this boy, Dare, may want some consideration -when you people have to get out of the Basin. -And I’ll remember who’s living on the <i>Minnie M. -Baxter</i>!”</p> -<p>“You oughta!” Skippy shouted angrily, rising -to his feet. “Your cheatin’ boss what’s dead put it -there, that’s what, an’ my father’ll never see the sun -on the river again on account of it too! So try an’ -take it away.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_146">146</div> -<p>Skinner’s cold dignity seemed unruffled. He -averted his gaze while Crosley counted out seventy-five -dollars to Big Joe Tully. Skippy stood by, his -heart full of hate, and at that moment he thought -that he could cheerfully see the <i>Minnehaha</i> sink to -the bottom of the Channel while Skinner begged -to be saved.</p> -<p>While leisurely chugging back toward the Basin -that afternoon he and Tully talked it over seriously.</p> -<p>“Well, and we got seventy-five bucks aisy money -out o’ the tightwads,” Tully chuckled in conclusion.</p> -<p>“Seventy-five bucks an’ the promise of trouble -from Skinner, Big Joe,” Skippy reminded him with -a note of apprehension in his voice.</p> -<p>Tully’s face darkened.</p> -<p>“I hate Skinner for sayin’ what he did, so I do,” -he said ominously. “Sufferin’ swordfish if he do be -makin’ ye scared and drivin’ ye outa the only home -ye got—well, he better be lettin’ ye ’lone. <i>Me</i>, I -don’t care much where I live, but <i>you</i> ... I’ll be -fixin’ him if he....”</p> -<p>“Don’t say it, Big Joe!” Skippy pleaded earnestly. -“It scares me, ’cause that’s just what Pop -said the night he went to see old Mr. Flint on the -<i>Apollyon</i>! It’s sorta——”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_147">147</div> -<p>“And ’tis all right, kid, so ’tis.” Tully smiled. -“Now ye be forgettin’ it.”</p> -<p>Skippy tried to; certainly he had forgotten that -he himself had wished Marty Skinner a like fate -only that morning.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_148">148</div> -<h2 id="c25">CHAPTER XXV -<br /><span class="small">DAVY JONES</span></h2> -<p>Tully’s game worked successfully for the next -few weeks, for he had distributed his activities -among various club houses dotting the shore. It -had become an enterprise apparently without threat -of untoward incident—so much so that Skippy, with -his uncanny knack of presaging ill, came to feel that -they must not go on with the distasteful business.</p> -<p>He had hated the treachery of it from the very -beginning, partly because of his innate honesty and -also because in fairness to himself, he knew he had -no real grudge against his rich fellow men. And -in his vague, ignorant way Skippy knew that Skinner -and Crosley represented something which hate -could never successfully combat.</p> -<p>He felt it particularly one early morning when -Tully, swaggering out of the shanty of the <i>Minnie -M. Baxter</i>, rubbed his large hands in gleeful anticipation -of the next victim.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_149">149</div> -<p>“’Tis up to the Riverview Yacht Club we’ll be -goin’ this mornin’, kid,” he said confidently. -“We’ve worked aroun’ to it agin. Me pal, the -boat tender what tipped me off on Crosley’s <i>Minnehaha</i>, -ain’t there no more, but the new guy was aisy -pickin’. He fell for a little split, without battin’ -an eye, so he did, and sent word down last night -that a little fishin’ party headed for Snug Island -would push off at dawn.”</p> -<p>“Snug Island, huh?” Skippy asked fearfully. -“That means Watson’s Channel for us again?”</p> -<p>“Sure,” laughed Tully, “’tis a spot I like. Nobody -goes through Watson’s Channel ’cept they’re -headed for Snug Island. And nobody goes to Snug -Island fishin’ but a coupla rich guys what own the -whole place. It’s aisy pickin’ so ’tis.”</p> -<p>“For you it’s easy, Big Joe,” said Skippy, “but -not for me. Sometimes I think I never had anythin’ -so hard to do in my life as just gettin’ up nerve -to go on these trips. Gee, I ain’t never had the -heart to tell Pop about them—I lied, an’ said we -was makin’ a pretty good livin’ towin’ an’ fishin’.”</p> -<p>Big Joe roared with laughter.</p> -<p>“Sure and we’re towin’ and fishin’,” he said with -a malicious wink. “Ye didn’t tell Toby no lie. We -fish the money out o’ ’em and thin tow thim back—that’s -no story.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_150">150</div> -<p>“I wish you wouldn’t laugh about it, Big Joe,” -Skippy said with a frown. “It makes it seem as if -it was a joke—as if you liked it almost.”</p> -<p>“And you’d be likin’ it too, kid, if ye wanted to -get back at these rich guys much as I do. But I -won’t be laughin’ about it no more, if it makes ye -feel that way. Sufferin’ swordfish but ye don’t have -to be actin’ like we’re goin’ to a funeral.”</p> -<p>“I feel funny about goin’ to the Riverview Yacht -Club this morning. Big Joe, would you stay away -from there if I asked you to?”</p> -<p>“Any mornin’ but this one, Skippy me boy,” said -Tully with all his old affection. “I can’t be side-steppin’ -it on account o’ this new boat tender. He’s -expectin’ a little handout so I can’t be disappointin’ -him. But I’ll tell ye what, kid, if it’s makin’ ye -feel so awful bad I’ll chuck this game ’fore ye can -say any more. I’ll be thinkin’ up somethin’ else. -Anythin’ but seem’ ye’ feelin’ sad, kid.”</p> -<p>They got into the kicker and chugged out of the -inlet once more. Skippy’s eyes glistened happily -and he told himself that he could forget the ominous -whisperings inside of him for just this once. -Indeed, he could forget everything distasteful in the -past few weeks now that Tully had promised to -give up the hated business.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_151">151</div> -<p>“We ain’t heard from Crosley or Skinner since -that mornin’ we towed ’em back, huh Big Joe?” he -asked irrelevantly. “I wonder if they found out -what was really wrong with the engine?”</p> -<p>“We’d o’ heard ’bout it soon enough if they did, -so we would,” said Tully thoughtfully. “Anyways, -I heard that Crosley sold the <i>Minnehaha</i> right that -next day. He said he didn’t want no boat that almost -put him down in Watson’s Channel. Ha, ha! -Sure and I’m glad he did. He should be worryin’ -with his money.”</p> -<p>Once more they pulled up beside the slip of the -Riverview Yacht Club and once more Big Joe stole -silently up the lawn in the gray morning shadows. -Skippy waited patiently, albeit anxiously, and held -the boat secure while his weary eyes blinked sleepily -in the sultry air.</p> -<p>After a time, Big Joe came hurrying out of the -shadows.</p> -<p>“Simple as sayin’ meow, kid,” he said exultantly. -“The boat tender tells me this guy’s goin’ alone to -Snug Island this mornin’. He couldn’t be rememberin’ -the guy’s name what owns her, but he says -the boat ain’t a week old. She’s a peach—a trim, -twenty-six footer, kid! And of all names she’s -got! Sufferin’ swordfish!”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_152">152</div> -<p>“What?”</p> -<p>“The <i>Davy Jones</i>—so ’tis. Can ye be beatin’ -that?”</p> -<p>“<i>Big Joe!</i>” Skippy said in a small, frightened -voice. “That’s a name that scares me terrible.”</p> -<p>“<i>Ye’re crazy, kid, ye’re crazy!</i> Sure and what’s -in a name. Just ’cause Davy Jones happens to -mean....”</p> -<p>“Just the same I’m scared terrible,” Skippy maintained -stoutly. “An’ there’s lots in names whether -you believe it or not. Now take the <i>Minnie M. -Baxter</i>—nothin’ bad could come of her in the end, -I bet, and if it did I bet it would be for the best, because -it was my mother’s name. Even if there’s -been trouble about the barge from the beginnin’ -there’s good come on it too. When Pop was taken -away, then you came to be good to me so that shows -there’s somethin’ good about the barge, don’t it? -But Davy Jones only means one thing, Big Joe, an’ -you can say, what’s in a name!”</p> -<p>What, indeed!</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_153">153</div> -<h2 id="c26">CHAPTER XXVI -<br /><span class="small">THE ROCKS</span></h2> -<p>It was a murky dawn and no sun followed in its -wake. The air was heavy and oppressive, and low -rumblings of thunder echoed in from sea. Skippy -shook his head worriedly as they chugged out of -sight of the bay to let the <i>Davy Jones</i> pass by.</p> -<p>“I don’t feel right this morning, Big Joe,” the -boy insisted. “Say what you like, but we shouldn’t -wait—we oughta tail the <i>Davy Jones</i>, right away—<i>this -minute</i>, before the storm comes on.”</p> -<p>“Now ye be worryin’ agin, hey?” Tully asked -impatiently. “That storm’s out at sea and it won’t -hit the Channel. Sure ’tis just a murky mornin’.”</p> -<p>“All right,” said Skippy, “but I know.”</p> -<p>Tully was beginning to be annoyed with Skippy’s -gloomy predictions and he showed it. Yet somehow -it gave him a little uneasiness and from time -to time he glanced thoughtfully from the boy to the -distant black horizon.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_154">154</div> -<p>The storm clouds were coming nearer and thunder -rolled ominously over their heads. Finally -Tully turned over his motor and set her nose about. -After she had warmed up, he opened wide the throttle -and headed for the bay.</p> -<p>“I’ll be keepin’ her open and beat it for the Channel -soon’s we get across,” he explained. “We’ll be -gettin’ there sure ’fore the storm breaks bad.”</p> -<p>“I hope so,” said Skippy, “because it’s travelin’ -in from sea, fast.”</p> -<p>“We’ll be goin’ round by The Rocks and save -fifteen minutes or so,” Tully said hopefully searching -the boy’s face. “’Tis high enough tide for to -take a chance.”</p> -<p>The Rocks, that bane of all mariners who were -unfamiliar with the lurking waters beyond the bay, -could be safely passed in small boats at high tide. -There were few, however, who took advantage of -this concession of Nature to the small nautical man, -nearly all mariners preferring the greater safety -that was offered them by going the long way around -Inland Beach.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_155">155</div> -<p>A high wind was steadily rising as they chugged -into the vicinity of The Rocks, and it prevented -Skippy from hearing that call of distress for which -he was so intently listening. Whether the wind -was against them, he did not know, for the howling -tempest and turbulent water drowned out all other -sounds.</p> -<p>The storm broke after a few minutes and rain -lashed at them from all sides. Tully said not a -word, but stayed at his wheel silent and grave. And -by his averted head, Skippy knew that he, too, was -listening for that siren call from the <i>Davy Jones</i>.</p> -<p>Salt spray flung itself up over the bow and into -Skippy’s face. He could have moved farther back -to avoid it, but he seemed incapable of action then, -and sat tense and white, listening, listening....</p> -<p>Tully did not miss it. The boy’s tragic expression -so dismayed him that he felt for the first time -in his life that he should have mended his ways -while there was still time. All his sins seemed to -have crowded into Skippy’s face to accuse him.</p> -<p>And still they heard no call of distress from the -<i>Davy Jones</i>.</p> -<p>Tully, desperate, raced his engine until they whistled -through the foaming spray. Then suddenly -they felt the keel grind under them with such force -that it took all their combined strength to steady the -boat and keep her from turning over.</p> -<p>“What happened, do you s’pose?” Skippy asked -with white face.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_156">156</div> -<p>“Sufferin’ swordfish, kid!” Tully cried. “I think -she’s stove in—The Rocks! <i>Look!</i>”</p> -<p>He pointed and Skippy looked, to see a jagged -hole in the bottom of the kicker. Water came in -through it rapidly and even as he stared at it, it -trickled over his feet and up to his ankles.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_157">157</div> -<h2 id="c27">CHAPTER XXVII -<br /><span class="small">SUSPENSE</span></h2> -<p>“What’ll we do?” Skippy cried. “Gee, what’ll -we do?”</p> -<p>“We’ll be swimmin’ for it, kid,” Big Joe answered, -his face ashen and drawn. “Inland -Beach’s nearest—we’ll be swimmin’ it in a half -hour, takin’ it aisy like.”</p> -<p>“<i>Easy!</i> In this water and wind?”</p> -<p>“Skippy, don’t be worryin’. Sure and I ain’t goin’ -to see ye go down. I’ll be keepin’ ye up if it -takes me life.”</p> -<p>Suddenly Skippy turned, pleading. Big Joe -knew and his eyes dropped before the boy’s accusing -gaze.</p> -<p>“And what can I be doin’ about the <i>Davy Jones</i> -now, kid!” he protested “I <i>got</i> ye to be thinkin’ -about now.... Sufferin’ swordfish!” He groaned.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_158">158</div> -<p>“Then we gotta swim to Inland Beach as fast as -we can, Big Joe,” Skippy said, master of himself -once more. “We gotta get help right away for the -<i>Davy Jones</i>!”</p> -<p>“Sure, sure,” the big fellow moaned, “anythin’, -kid, only don’t be lookin’ at me so accusin’. Did I -know it was goin’ to happen like this? Sufferin’ -swordfish!”</p> -<p>“C’mon, Big Joe—<i>c’mon</i>!”</p> -<p>They had no sooner jumped clear of the boat -than she sank out of sight. A terrific gale blew -them along and Skippy kept close to Tully, buoyed -up by the thought that he must keep going in order -to get help for the <i>Davy Jones</i>.</p> -<p>And for once Tully was right in a prediction. It -took them all of the half hour before they sighted -the sandy wastes of Inland Beach.</p> -<p>The summer colonists sheltered from the storm -in their inadequately built bungalows sighted the -bobbing heads of the swimmers as they battled their -way against the tide. Speedily the beach was covered -with people and the life-guards, summarily -dragged from their bunks in their beach shanty, -jumped drowsy-eyed into the life-boat and went into -action.</p> -<p>Ten minutes later, the two were rushed up to the -guards’ shanty and hurriedly divested of their dripping -garments.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_159">159</div> -<p>“We gotta ...” Skippy began as soon as he had -a chance to talk.</p> -<p>“We thought we heard a siren,” Big Joe interposed. -“Sure, it sounded like distress—there ain’t -a doubt.”</p> -<p>“We heard it plain!” Skippy exclaimed anxiously. -“An’ it came from the Channel—didn’t it, Big Joe, -huh?”</p> -<p>“Sure and he’s right. ’Tis about where I figgered -she was comin’ from,” Tully added.</p> -<p>“An’ we better start right out again!” Skippy -said eagerly. “With this high wind....”</p> -<p>“A guy hasn’t much chance in the Channel,” interposed -one of the guards bluntly. “I can tell you -that before we start. And if it wasn’t that you say -you’re sure you heard it, we wouldn’t take a chance -ourselves. Even a big tub like ours ain’t a match -for the Channel in a storm and high wind.”</p> -<p>“But we’re sure we heard it! Ain’t we, Big -Joe?”</p> -<p>“Sure we did that!” Tully said emphatically.</p> -<p>And so they started for the Channel.</p> -<p>The wind died down shortly after they had lost -sight of Inland Beach. Presently the rain ceased -and after a few moments’ struggle with storm -clouds, the sun came smiling through.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_160">160</div> -<p>Skippy smiled too, hopeful that it augured well -for the object of their search. Tully relaxed and -took a cigarette that one of the guards offered him. -He talked little and kept his eyes ahead.</p> -<p>They reached the Channel in a half hour and for -a full hour they searched it up and down. Skippy -kept his eyes on the water; he dared not let the -guards see the hopelessness written there should his -glance chance to meet Tully’s.</p> -<p>“Sure we <i>couldn’t</i> be dreamin’ we heard a siren, -now could we?” Tully pleaded when the guards announced -their intention of returning to the beach.</p> -<p>“You guys didn’t seem to be so sure you heard -any at all when we first got you out of the water,” -one of the men reminded them.</p> -<p>“Sure and we were kind o’ all in from the breaks -we got,” Tully explained. His voice sounded hollow -and weary.</p> -<p>“Well, we don’t hear no siren now,” said the other -guard, “and we’ve been up and down the Channel. -If there <i>was</i> any guy in distress, maybe he’s been -swept out to sea. And we can’t go hunting that far -for you fellers. We’ll send out word to the coast -guard anyway when we get back just to be on the -safe side. They’ll find the tub if it’s still afloat.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_161">161</div> -<p>“An’ if there was any siren signaling distress -when that high wind first come up,” said the first -guard, “she’s most likely screeching now for to get -into Davy Jones’ locker. Who knows?”</p> -<p>Skippy and Big Joe would have given their lives -at that moment to know.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_162">162</div> -<h2 id="c28">CHAPTER XXVIII -<br /><span class="small">THE DUFFYS</span></h2> -<p>They borrowed a kicker from one of the summer -colonists and set out for home just before noon. -Skippy was too overwhelmed to speak until long -after they left the beach and Tully sat tragic and -silent at the wheel.</p> -<p>“We might’s well look agin,” he murmured brokenly, -as he headed the boat toward the Channel. -“Just so’s to be makin’ sure.”</p> -<p>“Might’s well,” Skippy echoed. Then: “Gee, do -you think maybe he was blowin’ the siren?”</p> -<p>“That he must o’ done. He must o’ been blowin’ -it like mad.”</p> -<p>They spent half the afternoon chugging up and -down the Channel and passed several craft, government -and otherwise, which had heard the warning -that the Inland Beach guards had passed along. -Finally they decided to return home and with bowed -heads found their way out of the treacherous waters.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_163">163</div> -<p>“Sure if the coast guards ain’t found him, we -won’t—not if we be stayin’ there all night,” said -Tully mournfully. “Kid, don’t ye be jumpin’ on -me, now. If ye knew what I been through since -... since.... I been blowin’ a siren in distress -five hun’erd times, so I have, and five hun’erd times, -I been in that <i>Davy Jones</i> callin’ me lungs out for -help an’ no help come! I’ve sunk with her too—oh -shiverin’ swordfish ... kid, I ain’t nothin’ but a -plain....”</p> -<p>“Don’t say it, Big Joe,” said Skippy, moved to -the depths of his soul with pity. “Gee, don’t I -know! You wouldn’t have done it a-purpose.”</p> -<p>“No. ’Tis right ye be there.” Tully looked -beaten.</p> -<p>They chugged on up the river and seemed to pass -everyone they knew. Inspector Jones and his men -bobbed by in the trim harbor launch waving a cheery -greeting to Skippy and eyeing Tully with obvious -suspicion.</p> -<p>Skippy was grateful for the silent inlet and the -warm throaty bark that Mugs gave as he scrambled -aboard the barge. He looked at the dog, winced -a little at his faithful canine eyes and took him up -in his arms. He couldn’t do to Mugs what they -had done to that unknown man on the <i>Davy Jones</i>.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_164">164</div> -<p>He sprawled in a rickety arm chair on deck while -the sun sank slowly in the west. The whole horizon -was a blaze of scarlet, then gold, then purple -and at last it faded into leaden colored clouds. Big -Joe was calling him in to supper.</p> -<p>Skippy looked down in the crook of his arm at the -sleeping dog. Supper? He didn’t want any—he -never wanted to eat while that man on the <i>Davy -Jones</i> lay in Watson’s Channel. He couldn’t do it -to Mugs.</p> -<p>Tully got tired of waiting and came out on deck. -After one glance at Skippy’s tragic face he got his -hat, pulled it down over his head and left the barge -while the boy watched him go with a constricted -feeling in his throat. And though he wanted with -all his heart to call Big Joe back, he knew that he -could never again sit opposite him at the table with -a dead man between them.</p> -<p>Dusk settled over the inlet and through the -shadows came Mrs. Duffy. Her cheery smile was -conspicuous by its absence just then and her cheeks -looked tear-stained and haggard. Skippy forgot -the dead man in the <i>Davy Jones</i>—he was all concern -for this kindly neighbor who had helped nurse -him back to health.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_165">165</div> -<p>Hadn’t Skippy heard? Mrs. Duffy sobbed a little, -then bravely smiled through her tears. She had -to be strong and brave—other wives and mothers -in the Basin were getting used to the experience of -seeing their menfolk taken in by the long arm of the -law. And now Mr. Duffy had been added to that -number.</p> -<p>What had he done? No more than other river -folk had done before him. But it was forbidden by -the law and there you were. And the excuse that -they had to live and eat carried no weight in the -courts of the land. Neither did the courts care -that a rich and unscrupulous Josiah Flint had lured -these men into his vicious employ at starvation -wages only to leave them unwanted and ostracized -from honest employment upon his untimely death. -And Mr. Josephus Duffy, obeying that primal law -of the survival of the fittest, was to be jailed for five -years because he stole when employment was denied -him. Five years of punishment for bringing food -home to his family!</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_166">166</div> -<p>Skippy’s young heart was bursting with sympathy. -Wrapped up in his own and his father’s concerns he -had been vaguely conscious of his neighbors, the -Duffys of the <i>Dinky O. Cross</i>. Squatters like himself, -he had been aware that they came and went, -but that was all. Now they became suddenly real -and vivid to him—the Duffys, father and mother, -and their two children, minus the father now.</p> -<p>“And wouldn’t Skinner give him nothin’ at the -Central havin’ two kids like you got?” he asked -sympathetically.</p> -<p>“Skinner’d push men in prison before he’d help -’em get a decent job,” the good woman said with a -jerk of her head. “He said he’s goin’ to clean all -us scum out of this Basin—ain’t you heard?”</p> -<p>Yes, Skippy had heard only too well. He leaned -over and timidly touched the woman’s work-worn -hands, pledging his slim, manly self as an aid and -comfort to herself and her two unfortunate children. -In gratitude, she hugged the boy to her -breast and hurried back to the <i>Dinky O. Cross</i> to -put her young ones to bed.</p> -<p>Skippy cherished that embrace; it was the only -maternal affection he had ever known. His eyes -shone into the darkness with the joy of it and he -hugged Mugs still closer in his arms and spent some -time in reflecting on why he was so happy when he -was so sad.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_167">167</div> -<p>Josiah Flint and Marty Skinner rose up before his -eyes. He was beginning to realize what sorrow -they had brought to the river people—<i>his people</i>! -A fellow feels things like that when he’s going on -thirteen.</p> -<p>Thirteen! Skippy looked up into the starlit sky -and blinked. Mugs’ even breathing was like the -whisper of the breeze blowing about his head. And -he went to sleep planning how he could save the menfolk -of the Basin from future prison life. He -would see that the boys went to school as he himself -had wanted to do so badly and he would see -that they got decent, honest wages so that they could -live as other people did in houses with pretty gardens....</p> -<p>Tully found him still asleep when he came back -at midnight.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_168">168</div> -<h2 id="c29">CHAPTER XXIX -<br /><span class="small">GOOD NEWS</span></h2> -<p>“Skip—Skippy, kid!” Tully called, shaking the -boy to arouse him.</p> -<p>Skippy sat up, startled. Mugs barked blatantly.</p> -<p>“What’s up, huh? You look as if something’d -happened—what’s the matter?”</p> -<p>Tully motioned him into the shanty where he -lighted the lamp and sat down.</p> -<p>“Can ye stand hearin’ somethin’ without faintin’?” -he asked mirthlessly.</p> -<p>“I guess so,” the boy answered shaking his -straight hair from off his forehead. “But I hope it -ain’t anything worse!”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_169">169</div> -<p>“Better and worse, sorta,” Big Joe laughed ruefully. -“But first so’s to be aisin’ ye, kid—the <i>Davy -Jones</i> turned back, so she did, when she reached the -bay this mornin’. From what the boat tender told -me, sure must o’ put a little extra dose o’ the powder -in the breather and she started kickin’ up a rumpus -a little sooner than ordinary, she did. So the -owner, bein’ a foxy guy, turned back when he heard -that and saw the storm clouds comin’ in from over -the sea.”</p> -<p>“So the <i>Davy Jones</i> ain’t in her locker then, huh? -Gee, am I glad!”</p> -<p>“Sure, and she got back to the club, and the owner -had somebody come right away to be seein’ what was -wrong.”</p> -<p>“Did they find out?”</p> -<p>“That they did, kid. He’s got the police on the -case, and I think they’ll be workin’ on me. But they -ain’t got no evidence so they ain’t, and besides, I -took all me powder and threw it in the inlet tonight, -so I did.”</p> -<p>Skippy sat down at the table, his head in his -hands.</p> -<p>“Gee, I was afraid something awful would come -of it.”</p> -<p>“Now don’t ye be worryin’ too soon, kid. -They’ll have to be goin’ some to get me.... You -can bet on that.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_170">170</div> -<p>“Gee, Big Joe, you don’t savvy. It’s the idea of -gettin’ the coppers suspectin’ me and sayin’ they expected -sumpin’ like that from Toby Dare’s kid. -That’s what I couldn’t bear Pop to hear after he’s -planned better things for me. Gee, I couldn’t -stand it!” Then: “Who owns the <i>Davy Jones</i>, Big -Joe, huh?” he demanded.</p> -<p>“Now that’s a funny thing,” Tully said. “The -<i>Davy Jones</i> is Crosley’s. He bought her a week -ago after he sold the <i>Minnehaha</i>. I s’pose that’s -why he played foxy whin the ingine wint wrong with -the new one? If that big sap boat tender had only -tole me who owned her I’d niver....”</p> -<p>“Gee whiz, Big Joe, now I can see why Pop said -these crooked rackets don’t pay in the end. It’s account -of that <i>if</i>. It’s always if this or that didn’t -happen everythin’ would be all right. But it never -is. Oh, gee, I’m not hoppin’ on you—maybe I’d -been just like you if it wasn’t that I’m sick and disgusted -with crooked rackets already. Maybe it’s -because my mother came from a farm and so I’m -not all river, huh? Anyway, I know I don’t want -any more of this business. I’m gonna be straight -I am. I learned a lesson today on that <i>Davy Jones</i> -business an’ I mean it.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_171">171</div> -<p>“Me, too!” said Big Joe with all his old time -swagger. “I was tellin’ meself comin’ back here -that if I think up an aisy racket where the coppers -don’t get wise, I’ll be savin’ up a few grand an’ -thin open up one o’ thim hot dog stands in the country. -Sure and the river won’t see me at all, at all -after that.”</p> -<p>Skippy laughed outright—for, boy that he was, -he could see that Tully would be Tully as long as -the river flowed down to the sea.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_172">172</div> -<h2 id="c30">CHAPTER XXX -<br /><span class="small">BEASELL</span></h2> -<p>Next day, life in the Basin flowed once more in -familiar channels. Tully trod the decks watching -for the unwelcome police and puffing furiously on -his cigarettes. Skippy sprawled in the rickety easy -chair, playing with the dog and calling out to Mrs. -Duffy some words of cheer when the occasion required. -And when sunset came and the law had -not put in its appearance they had supper noisily together.</p> -<p>Tully stretched out in his bunk after the meal -had been cleared away. He looked at peace with -the world. Skippy, watching him out of the corner -of his eye, wondered what new racket he was -planning now. And he didn’t rest until he had -asked the big fellow point blank.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_173">173</div> -<p>“Me racket for a while, kid,” Tully said amiably, -“is to be keepin’ ye from gettin’ gloomy and sad. -Whin I’m sure that Crosley ain’t set the coppers on -me trail thin I’ll be turnin’ around—see? Right -now I’m stickin’ close to the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>, so -I be.”</p> -<p>“And you could do worse, Big Joe, believe me. -I’m gonna stick close too until I know what’s what. -But we’ll talk about that then.”</p> -<p>An insistent knock sounded on the door. Tully -blanched and looked about for some means of -escape. But Skippy, braving himself to the task, -swung open the door to get it over with.</p> -<p>A man stood outside, bowing graciously and smiling. -He stepped inside at Skippy’s invitation.</p> -<p>“Beasell’s the name, boys,” he said. “Yuh -heard how Marty Skinner’s runnin’ the works for -Buck Flint?”</p> -<p>“Sure we been hearin’ it too much, I’ll be tellin’ -ye,” Big Joe snapped as he came ponderously out of -his bunk and stood on the floor.</p> -<p>“It’s all jake then, big boy, you an’ me won’t -waste no time,” Beasell said unruffled.</p> -<p>“You’ve come to tell us....” Skippy began fearfully.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_174">174</div> -<p>“Marty says all yuh squatters in this Basin’ll have -tuh scram by sundown tomorrow, get me? He’s -had all the rough stuff he’s goin’ for and that goes -double for the warehouse guys. So it’s scram in -twenty-four hours, see? If yuh can’t take these -lousy scows out we’ll blow ’em up, get me? Just a -nice little Fourth uh July party, see?” He chuckled -as if at a great joke.</p> -<p>“You can’t blow up the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>!” -Skippy cried. “Even a guy like Skinner can’t take -her from me ’cause, ’cause....”</p> -<p>“Lissen, punk, and you too, big boy, it’s scram by -sundown tomorrow,” Beasell snarled. “Yuh better -get me. I ain’t kiddin’ believe yuh me!” He -scowled as he left to spread the bad news to the -<i>Dinky O. Cross</i>.</p> -<p>“Sufferin’ swordfish! Sure that Skinner’s a lousy -rat,” Big Joe growled. “I should o’ been pastin’ -that slimy Beasell but it wouldn’t done no good. -He’s only carryin’ out orders.”</p> -<p>“Not only me’n you’s gotta go, Big Joe,” said -Skippy plaintively, “but Mrs. Duffy an’ her kids an’ -everybody here in the Basin. How’re they all -gonna pack up an’ clear out by tomorrow night, -huh? Gee, that ain’t fair. There ain’t one of us -got a home to go to—gee whiz, these barges, why—they’re -home!”</p> -<p>Tully’s face looked distorted as he walked to and -fro across the shanty floor. Finally he turned.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_175">175</div> -<p>“Sure Skinner don’t know what it means to be -sendin’ that Beasell guy down here to be tellin’ us -we must be out by tomorrow night, bad cess to him.”</p> -<p>“What d’ye mean, Big Joe?”</p> -<p>“Sure, folks here ain’t like other folks, like ye’ve -noticed. They been free for years and they ain’t -goin’ to be kicked out without doin’ some kickin’ -first thimselves. Law? Sure, they don’t know -what it’s all about so what do they care, I’ll be askin’ -ye.”</p> -<p>Big Joe Tully had summed it all up in one sentence. -They didn’t know about the law, so what -did they care about it?</p> -<p>It wasn’t many hours before Skippy learned how -little they did care.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_176">176</div> -<h2 id="c31">CHAPTER XXXI -<br /><span class="small">MOONLIGHT</span></h2> -<p>Skippy waited until Tully was fast asleep that -night, then he crept stealthily out of the shanty with -the dog skipping and sniffing at his heels. He was -careful to close the door softly behind him; he -wanted to be alone.</p> -<p>It was a different Skippy that trod those decks, -a new and older Skippy, who looked about the lumbering -old barge through his father’s eyes. It did -not seem possible to him that Skinner could so ruthlessly -order him away from the only home he had. -Yet he realized that not many hours hence he would -not even have <i>that</i> home.</p> -<p>He went forward and, getting to his knees, leaned -far over and stared down at the trickling waters of -the muddy inlet lapping against the hull. The dog, -thinking him to be playing, jumped about with a soft -whine to draw his master’s attention.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_177">177</div> -<p>Skippy tumbled him about for a while, then -climbed down with him into the borrowed kicker -that was anchored alongside the barge.</p> -<p>“We’re gonna take one last cruise out and back -in the inlet again—see, Mugs? I’ve just gotta see -how the <i>Minnie M. Baxter’s</i> gonna look when I -think of her afterwards. I don’t want to forget it’s -where I lived with two of the best pals I’ll ever have, -outside of Pop. Gee, Mugs, maybe it’s silly to feel -so over a barge,” he confided to the attentive -puppy, “but I gotta feel that it’s sumpin’ I must -think a lot of. Every time I’ve visited Pop, he’s -asked me how was the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>. Just -like as if she was a human being, he asked about -her! So I love her on accounta my Pop. He’s -proud of her because she was so hard to get and because -he decided to quit Ol’ Flint and be honest so’s -I’d have a better chance.”</p> -<p>He started the kicker after this long confidence -and steered it with one hand, putting his free arm -about the dog. And as if cherishing the whispered -confidences and affection, the animal cuddled close -and remained perfectly still while the boat crept out -to the mouth of the river.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_178">178</div> -<p>As they turned back, a full moon broke through -some dark clouds and shone brilliantly down upon -the Basin. Skippy looked at the mellow, silver light -gleaming over the grouped barges and he gazed in -wonder at the fairyland that the moon made of the -sordid colony. The dust at once became a shimmering -film of silver and the washlines strung from -shanty to forward deck contained fluttering bits of -laundry that stirred flippantly in the soft night -breeze.</p> -<p>Skippy’s heartstrings tightened at the sight of it—he -loved it all. His honest nature cried out -against the injustice of turning all these people out -of their homes. For that is just what it amounted -to—no more and no less. Skinner knew that there -wasn’t a man in the Basin who could afford to have -his barge lifted out of the mud. They would have -to face it, he realized—they were people condemned!</p> -<p>He steered the boat farther on until he caught -sight of the moonlight gleaming across his own -shanty. Its shimmering rays picked out in bold relief -the now dulled letters, <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i>, and -he thought of a late afternoon when he and his -father had looked on those same letters so new and -shining, shining in the last brilliant rays of a dying -sun.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_179">179</div> -<p>He turned away from these reflections with heavy -heart only to have his attention drawn to a boat, -floating about the bow of the kicker. As he leaned -forward to see it better, the dog growled ominously.</p> -<p>Skippy drew back instantly, gasping with horror. -He sat stark still for a moment, as cold as ice and -unable to take his eyes away from the battered face -and body of a man he had seen in robust health but -a few hours before.</p> -<p>That man was Beasell, Marty Skinner’s lieutenant, -and he appeared lifeless.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_180">180</div> -<h2 id="c32">CHAPTER XXXII -<br /><span class="small">THE LAST OF THE BASIN</span></h2> -<p>Skippy was so frightened that he did nothing for -a moment but sit and stare. Then suddenly he realized -the terrible thing before his eyes, and he pulled -the boat up alongside of the barge, trembling from -head to foot.</p> -<p>The dog leaped out of his arms the moment he -got on deck and refused to run with him to the -shanty. But Skippy had neither the time nor the -nerves to think of anything but the battered Beasell -in the boat floating beside the barge.</p> -<p>He flung open the door of the shanty and rushed -to Tully’s bunk. The big fellow jumped up -startled, and sat motionless while Skippy whispered -of his discovery.</p> -<p>“Won’t it go bad for everybody here?” he asked -with agonized suspense. “Won’t it, Big Joe?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_181">181</div> -<p>“Sure ’twill be just too bad, so ’twill,” Tully said -getting up and dressing. “Somewan did it what’s -gone cuckoo for thinkin’ they’ll be turned out o’ -their home tomorrow night. And crazy like, they -beat up that Beasell thinkin’ they’d be gettin’ even -with Marty Skinner—see? Sure I know me -Brown’s Basin, kid.”</p> -<p>Skippy shivered with the horror of it. If Brown’s -Basin was like that, he wouldn’t be sorry to leave it -after all. Neither could he love people who used -such ghastly means for their revenge against Skinner. -He wanted to get away from it then, that -minute.</p> -<p>“We gotta tell the police, Big Joe, huh?” he murmured.</p> -<p>Big Joe nodded as if he were dazed.</p> -<p>“Us river people ain’t goin’ to have no peace -whilst Skinner’s alive, kid!” he said in hard, even -tones. “Whoever slugged that Beasell guy—well, -<i>me</i>, I’d be goin’ for Skinner, so I would. So he’s -goin’ to take the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> from ye, is he? -Well, we’ll be seein’ about that.”</p> -<p>“Forget me for now, Big Joe. What worries me -is, what’re we gonna do with Beasell? Maybe he’s -dead.”</p> -<p>“Now ye be goin’ down and stay till I come, kid,” -said the big fellow, drawing on his shoes.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_182">182</div> -<p>Skippy started for the kicker. He went forward -but that was as far as he got for he became suddenly -aware of a low, ominous rumbling noise that -seemed to come from shore and run through the -barge colony. Before he had a chance to determine -what it was he felt himself lifted off his feet -bodily and like a feather he was thrown into the -muddy waters of the Basin.</p> -<p>There was a terrific detonation throughout -Brown’s Basin as Skippy came to the surface. Fire -leaped from one barge to the other in the twinkling -of an eye and the screams of men, women and children -filled the turbid air.</p> -<p>Smoke poured skyward in great columns and in -the light of the moon, Skippy saw the ponderous -form of Big Joe Tully standing on the deck of the -<i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> shouting and waving his hands. -Suddenly he leaped into the kicker and the boy -called out but he seemed not to hear in the din about -them.</p> -<p>At that moment, the <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> burst into -flames. Big Joe Tully shouted deafeningly and -Skippy, swimming hard to reach him, saw a strange, -almost maniacal expression on his large face.</p> -<p>“’Tis Marty Skinner what’s done this!” he was -shouting to no one in particular. “’Tis him what’s -blowed this place up and took the kid away from -me. ’Tis him! Skippy’s dead—I’m sure he’s -dead! I can’t find him!” he was almost whimpering.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_183">183</div> -<p>“I’m here!” Skippy called frantically. “Big -Joe....”</p> -<p>But Tully was even then steering the kicker out -of the inlet. He had the throttle wide open and -Skippy had no more than a glimpse of the racing -craft before she slipped beyond his sight.</p> -<p>Logs, huge chunks of driftwood and every known -article of household furniture, both broken and -whole, floated in Skippy’s path, blocking his progress. -Suddenly he saw a little boat bearing down -upon him, floating through the inlet unoccupied.</p> -<p>He reached out, grabbed the bow and climbed in, -breathless and exhausted. Other kickers were shoving -off filled with crying women and shouting men. -Skippy looked about over the water, but saw nothing -but a procession of slowly moving debris.</p> -<p>He turned over the motor and she responded with -a fearful jerk. He was moving, in any event, moving -away from the fearful heat that the burning -barges threw out over the water. The moon’s -shimmering light now looked sickly and pale in contrast -to the fearful red glare that spread over the -entire sky.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_184">184</div> -<p>The screaming sirens of motor boats soon became -part of the pandemonium and Skippy heard commanding -shouts for the boats to clear out of the inlet -immediately. In the wake of this he heard a -heart-rending shriek from the midst of the barge -inferno which made him feel sick and weak.</p> -<p>“Mrs. Duffy an’ her two kids ain’t nowheres,” a -man’s voice shouted above the roar. “I’ll bet Skinner -had that dynamite planted.” And as Skippy -attempted to turn the kicker about he was peremptorily -ordered from the approaching police launch -to keep on his way out to the river.</p> -<p>He didn’t look back again. The <i>Minnie M. -Baxter</i> was a seething mass behind him—there was -nothing left. Big Joe was nowhere about—Skippy -suddenly remembered the big fellow’s shouts about -Skinner. It gave him an idea and he nosed the boat -down the river.</p> -<p>Out of this confusion of mind, he thought of the -dog. He remembered then that he hadn’t seen the -puppy since he had let him down on the deck after -seeing the battered Beasell.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_185">185</div> -<p>And what had become of him? Was he dead or -alive? Skippy wiped a grimy hand across his forehead. -He was utterly weary and exhausted by the -ordeal. He could not think of an answer to anything. -His world had toppled over since the discovery -of Beasell and the explosion. And now -Mugs was gone too—his skipping, faithful-eyed pal! -Was there nothing left for him at all?</p> -<p>He put his hands over the wheel and gripped it -bitterly, but soon he relaxed and with a soft sob -he covered his face. And nobody knew but the -river.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_186">186</div> -<h2 id="c33">CHAPTER XXXIII -<br /><span class="small">SKIPPY’S WISDOM</span></h2> -<p>Skippy got the most out of his commandeered -kicker. He opened it wide and raced her down the -river and the closer he got to the bay the more apprehensive -did he feel about Big Joe’s flight. He -tried not to attach any special significance to his -good friend’s shouts, but he could not help remembering -Tully’s earlier veiled threats about Skinner.</p> -<p>His fears grew as he chugged out into the bay and -something urged him on still faster. Then he spied -the glistening hull of the beautiful <i>Apollyon</i>, her anchor -lights gleaming like stars against the night and -a single light amidships.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_187">187</div> -<p>Funny, the boy thought, how much it seemed like -that night when he and his father had come for the -showdown with the older Flint. Now there was to -be no showdown, but he must warn Skinner against -Big Joe’s sudden maniacal fury. Queer that he -should go to such trouble for a man who had given -them no quarter in anything. But he was not thinking -of doing Skinner a good turn beyond that it -might prevent Big Joe from killing the Flint agent -and being sent to jail.</p> -<p>He approached the yacht with his old feeling of -awe. The deck was almost dark as he scrambled -aboard but up forward he saw the rotund form of -the second mate asleep and snoring in a luxurious -swing. The boy could not help remember a very -solemn resolve that night long ago, when the mate -had sworn to be more faithful to his duties during -his night watches.</p> -<p>With silent tread, he hurried along the deck and -stopped before the lighted cabin amidships. Once, -twice, he knocked softly, and waited.</p> -<p>“Come in!” Marty Skinner’s cold voice commanded.</p> -<p>Skippy stepped in, his heart bounding. He was -thinking of the last time he had been in this room -and closed the door, determined he would not be -driven out again until he had had his say.</p> -<p>“Well?” Skinner snapped but this time he did not -order Skippy out.</p> -<p>“You seen Big Joe Tully?” Skippy asked bravely. -“He been here yet?”</p> -<p>“What d’ye mean—yet? I have no business with -Tully and I haven’t any with you that I know of.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_188">188</div> -<p>“You’re wrong both times Mister Skinner. ’Cause -if you don’t listen to me Big Joe’ll be comin’ here -an’ he’ll try gettin’ you an’ he’s so mad he’ll probably -kill you.”</p> -<p>Skinner was all interest now. “He’s mad and he -may kill me and you come to warn me. That’s -funny.”</p> -<p>“No it ain’t funny. I wouldn’t care much what -happened to you Mister Skinner you been so hard on -me’n Pop an’ everybody, but I ain’t gonna see Big -Joe get in a jam an’ maybe go to jail for life on accounta -you. I’m tippin’ you off so’s Big Joe won’t -have no chance gettin’ jammed. Maybe after that -blowin’ up of the barges tonight, which they say you -ordered done, an’ what happened to that guy Beasell -I oughta let....”</p> -<p>“Blowing up barges? Beasell? What d’ye -mean, boy? What happened?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_189">189</div> -<p>“Well, Beasell come an’ ordered us outa the Basin -by sundown tomorrow, sayin’ it was your orders, -an’ if we can’t get the barges out they’ll be blowed -up. Some time after he left me’n Joe I go for a -boat ride. When I come back I see Beasell in a -boat all battered an’ lookin’ as if he’s dead. So I -goes to call Joe an’ while he’s gettin’ his shoes on I -comes out again an’ I just got near the rail when -there’s an explosion an’ I’m tossed in the water. I -swim till I find a boat an’ climb in. I see Big Joe -on deck an’ he’s yellin’ that I’m lost an’ acts like -he’s gonna get you when he jumps in his kicker an’ -races off without hearin’ me. So I come right here -to beat him to it an’ keep him outa trouble, see?”</p> -<p>Skinner did not seem interested in the explosion. -While he appeared callous as to the suffering and -death that came in its wake he wanted to know more -about Beasell. “D’ye think he’s really dead?” he -asked anxiously.</p> -<p>“Looked like that to me,” answered Skippy, “an’ -if he wasn’t he probably was blowed apart or burnt -up.” He wondered at the look of satisfaction that -appeared on Skinner’s face. “But you better be -beatin’ it Mister Skinner or Big Joe’ll be here an’ -takin’ you apart if he don’t kill you.”</p> -<p>“Well, if Big Joe comes here looking for trouble -he’ll get it—and plenty.” Skinner reached under -his left arm and pulling out a pistol laid it on the -table before him.</p> -<p>Skippy heard footsteps and turned as if to shout -a warning.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_190">190</div> -<p>“Quiet you!” Skinner ordered as he picked up the -pistol and leveled it at the door. Skippy with -visions of his beloved Big Joe shot dead in his tracks -as he opened the door wished from the bottom of -his heart that he had not tried to warn Skinner. -All he had done was bait the trap for Big Joe.</p> -<p>He stood there, a bit to the side of the desk, his -knees shaking and, while his brain was active, he was -so terror stricken that he could not open his mouth -to warn Big Joe of his impending fate. He closed -his eyes and said a little prayer as he heard the door -creak a bit on its hinges. Why hadn’t he left the -door open when he came into Skinner’s cabin, -why....</p> -<p>A few tense seconds that seemed as so many hours -to Skippy and then he heard the voice of Inspector -Jones: “Now that’s hardly the nice way to welcome -a police officer, Mr. Skinner. I like your extended -hand but not with a gun in it.”</p> -<p>Skippy looked up to see Inspector Jones advancing -into the room and this time a policeman’s uniform -was a most welcome sight to him. He -breathed thanks that the visitor was not Big Joe.</p> -<p>“I’ll just tuck the hardware away, Inspector, and -give you the hand.” Skinner smiled and did so. “I -thought you were Big Joe Tully coming in to get me. -The boy here warned me Joe was on the warpath -so I was all set to welcome him and beat him to the -draw.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_191">191</div> -<p>“So I could see,” the Inspector commented. -“Heard about the burning of the barges in the Basin -and what happened to poor Beasell?”</p> -<p>“This boy told me there was an explosion and -that some one slugged Beasell. Tell me is he—is -he—dead?” The question sounded to Skippy as if -Skinner was hoping the answer would be yes.</p> -<p>Inspector Jones looked sharply at Skinner. “Yes. -He is,” he answered simply and again looked up -sharply as Skinner sighed as if in relief.</p> -<p>“Beasell was in my confidence. He knew my -business and I trusted him,” Skinner spoke as if to -himself.</p> -<p>“Sure, I know you did,” the Inspector agreed and -there was that in his words which made Skippy feel -as if there was something behind them.</p> -<p>“And how did you know that, may I ask, Inspector?” -Skinner seemed a bit ill at ease.</p> -<p>“I talked to him before he died. We picked him -up in a boat when we went to the fire. He had -been badly beaten but before he died he regained -consciousness. He talked plenty, too.”</p> -<p>“What did he say? Tell who beat him up?” -Skinner was plainly anxious.</p> -<p>“No, strange to say he didn’t.”</p> -<p>“Well then...?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_192">192</div> -<p>“Just this.” Inspector Jones whipped out his -gun. “Put ’em up Skinner and keep ’em up. I’m -arresting you and I’m going to charge you with the -murder of Josiah Flint.”</p> -<p>“Why—why—that’s—that’s ridiculous, Inspector. -You can’t make a charge like that stand up on -the ravings of a dying man.”</p> -<p>“I didn’t tell you that Beasell made any such -charges. But I’m tellin’ you now that he made a -dying statement that he was in the kicker off the -yacht when Skippy and his father came along, that -he had been there some time, and hearing you and -Flint quarreling, he watched through the porthole, -saw you two struggling after Flint charged you with -cheating him—saw you shoot the old man in the -back when you twisted him around as he tried to -snatch the gun you drew in your anger. He also -saw you sit old Flint up again, scatter papers all -over the place and take what money there was in his -desk. Beasell’s blackmailed you plenty since, -threatening to turn you in.”</p> -<p>“But—but——”</p> -<p>“And that isn’t all,” the Inspector went on relentlessly. -“Buck Flint has been giving you a free -hand and staying away, but he’s had accountants -working on your books and he’s got plenty of evidence -as to how you’ve ben cheating him and how -you cheated the old man.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_193">193</div> -<p>“No jury will ever convict me on evidence like -that.” Skinner seemed to have regained his composure. -“Beasell was only a cheap crook anyway -and he’s dead, too. Stealing money isn’t murder.”</p> -<p>“Guess you’re right on those points,” the Inspector -mused and Skinner started to lower his hands.</p> -<p>“Not so fast, not so fast there! Keep ’em up! -There’s one bet you overlooked, Skinner, and I’m -going to call it right now.” Still keeping Skinner -covered the Inspector moved closer and pulled the -gun out of the man’s shoulder holster. “I’ve got a -hunch that our ballistic expert will find a groove in -the barrel of your gun which will prove the bullet -which killed old Flint was fired by you. The gun -never was found, you remember, but the bullet with -a peculiar mark was and it’s still right down at headquarters.”</p> -<p>Skinner slumped into a chair at that, but Skippy -looked quickly from his dejected figure as he heard -a familiar bark. He turned to the door and there -in the arms of a policeman was his beloved Mugs.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_194">194</div> -<p>“Mugs! Mugs!” he cried out overjoyed. And -then, as if in afterthought, “See anythin’ of Big Joe, -officer? Gee, if he’d only come along now, ’cause -I know my Pop’s gonna be free soon, everythin’d -be just grand. Gee, but I’m happy. I’m....”</p> -<p>He stopped suddenly frightened at something he -saw in the policeman’s face. “What—what—what’s -wrong? Tell me,” he demanded.</p> -<p>“I’m in a tough spot, kid, but I know you got -plenty guts, so here goes point blank. Big Joe went -back to your barge figgering you might have found -your way back there. We see him and tell him -you’re safe. Then he hears the dog barkin’, goes -into the flames after him and saves him.” He -paused, gulped, then went on: “He was burned bad, -Big Joe was. Fulla smoke, too. Well, anyways -... he kicked off.”</p> -<p>There was a silence, which was finally broken by -Skippy’s sobs. At a motion from Inspector Jones -the policeman, who had brought Mugs and the sad -news about Big Joe, handcuffed Skinner and took -him out of the cabin, softly closing the door.</p> -<p>It was far in the night before Inspector Jones had -Skippy sufficiently comforted so that the boy fell -asleep. Then the Inspector bundled him up, carried -him to the police launch and that night Skippy -and Mugs slept at the Inspector’s home.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_195">195</div> -<h2 id="c34">CHAPTER XXXIV -<br /><span class="small">THE GREAT ADVENTURE</span></h2> -<p>Skippy had two things to show his delighted -father when they met at the railroad station a few -weeks later, by which time Skinner had confessed -murdering Josiah Flint when mad with rage at having -been caught stealing, and Skippy’s grief over -Big Joe’s death had become less poignant. One was -the gawky Mugs and the other a little satchel which -he carried under his arm with the greatest care.</p> -<p>“What’s in there, Skippy son?” Toby asked after -their outstretched arms had clung in an awkward -embrace.</p> -<p>Skippy winked at his father mysteriously.</p> -<p>“I waited to tell you now, Pop—sort of as a surprise. -It’s what Buck Flint calls redress money—money -that Old Flint should have paid you and -didn’t. And he says it’s for the price of the <i>Minnie -M. Baxter</i> too. Altogether he said he figured -Old Flint owed you a thousand dollars with interest—see -Pop?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_196">196</div> -<p>Toby was overwhelmed.</p> -<p>“What we a-goin’ ter do with it, son?” he wanted -to know.</p> -<p>“Whatever you say, Pop. There’s enough to buy -another <i>Minnie M. Baxter</i> and more besides, huh? -An’ there’s enough to buy a nice hot dog stand somewheres -up in the mountains where the doctor said I -wouldn’t have no more bad throats. So what do -you say, Pop?”</p> -<p>“Mountains, Skippy boy,” said Toby with shining -eyes. “We’ll call our stand the <i>Minnie Baxter</i> -jest the same, hey? ’Cause didn’t she sort uv bring -us luck in the end, after all? How’d we got all this -money if she hadn’t uv burned up and that helped -ter show up Skinner and made Buck Flint feel sorry -and that he ought ter make good. Yessir we’ll call -her that.”</p> -<p>A train announcer sauntered out of the big iron -gates and in his sonorous voice called out, “Mountain -Express on Track Number Four ... Cold -Glen ... Pine Ridge ... Baxter....”</p> -<p>“Did yer hear that, Skippy?” asked Toby excitedly. -“There’s a place in them mountains what’s -called <i>Baxter</i>! Seems like as if it was Fate or -somethin’! S’pose we jest try her fer luck. What -do you say?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_197">197</div> -<p>“I’m on, Pop,” Skippy cried joyfully. “Baxter -for luck!”</p> -<p>And arm in arm, Skippy and Toby, with Mugs -sniffing at their heels, darted through the big iron -gates on their Great Adventure.</p> -<p class="tbcenter"><span class="small">END</span></p> -<h2 id="c35">FOOTNOTES</h2> -<div class="fnblock"><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_1" href="#fr_1">[1]</a>Stolen goods. -</div> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_198">198</div> -<h3 id="c36">HAL KEEN MYSTERY STORIES -<br /><span class="small">By HUGH LLOYD</span></h3> -<p>Boys! Meet Hal Keen, that lanky, nonchalant, red-headed -youth whose guiding star is the star that points to -adventure, excitement and mystery. Follow him in his -hunts for clues and criminals. There are plenty of thrills -and shivers in these stories to keep you on your toes.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE SMUGGLER’S SECRET</span></p> -<p>Hal Keen sets out to get to the bottom of a mystery that -threatens the safety of a whole community.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE MYSTERIOUS ARAB</span></p> -<p>Mystery, excitement, murder in a scientist’s camp in the jungles -of Africa, where hate, revenge, and suspicion lead to tragedy.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE HERMIT OF GORDON’S CREEK</span></p> -<p>The disappearance of two airmail pilots leads to a mystery that -centers about an abandoned mine and a strange old man.</p> -<p><span class="center">KIDNAPPED IN THE JUNGLE</span></p> -<p>A hint of buried treasure in the ruins of an old French mission -leads Hal deep into the Central American jungle.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE COPPERHEAD TRAIL MYSTERY</span></p> -<p>Baffling and blood-curdling events center about the ranch -where Hal Keen and his friends had gone in search of gold.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE LONESOME SWAMP MYSTERY</span></p> -<p>The lonely and mysterious swamp gave up its secret only after -a series of terrifying events taxed Hal’s courage and ability.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE CLUE AT SKELETON ROCKS</span></p> -<p>In this new thriller Hal Keen finds mystery and adventure in and -about a lonely lighthouse on Skeleton Rocks, off the Maine coast.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE DOOM OF STARK HOUSE</span></p> -<p>Mystery and terror in an old house in the wilderness above -Quebec where Hal Keen is the guest of a strange family.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_199">199</div> -<h3 id="c37">THE JUDY BOLTON MYSTERY STORIES -<br /><span class="small">By MARGARET SUTTON</span></h3> -<p>Here is a new series of mystery stories for girls by an -author who knows the kind of stories every girl wants to -read—mystery of the “shivery” sort, adventure that makes -the nerves tingle, clever “detecting” and a new lovable -heroine, Judy Bolton, whom all girls will take to their -hearts at once.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE VANISHING SHADOW</span></p> -<p>Judy’s safety is threatened by a gang of crooks who think she -knows too much about their latest “deal.” She is constantly pursued -by a mysterious shadow which vanishes before she can get a -glimpse of its owner.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE HAUNTED ATTIC</span></p> -<p>The Boltons move into a large rambling house reputed to be -haunted. Even the brave Judy who has looked forward to “spooky” -goings on is thoroughly frightened at the strange scrapings and -rappings and the eery “crying ghost.”</p> -<p><span class="center">THE INVISIBLE CHIMES</span></p> -<p>Through an automobile accident a strange girl is taken into the -Bolton household—the whole family becomes attached to her and -interested in her story. Judy tracks down many clues before she -finally uncovers the real identity of “Honey.”</p> -<p><span class="center">SEVEN STRANGE CLUES</span></p> -<p>Judy gets to the bottom of a mystery that centers around a -prize poster contest and a fire in the school building—through -seven baffling clues that hold the key to the answer.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_200">200</div> -<h3 id="c38">THE NANCY DREW MYSTERY STORIES -<br /><span class="small">By CAROLYN KEENE</span></h3> -<p class="center">Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself.</p> -<p>Here is a thrilling series of mystery stories for girls. -Nancy Drew, ingenious, alert, is the daughter of a -famous criminal lawyer and she herself is deeply interested -in his mystery cases. Her interest involves her -often in some very dangerous and exciting situations.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE SECRET OF THE OLD CLOCK</span></p> -<p>Nancy, unaided, seeks to locate a missing will and finds herself -in the midst of adventure.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE HIDDEN STAIRCASE</span></p> -<p>Mysterious happenings in an old stone mansion lead to an investigation -by Nancy.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE BUNGALOW MYSTERY</span></p> -<p>Nancy has some perilous experiences around a deserted bungalow.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE MYSTERY AT LILAC INN</span></p> -<p>Quick thinking and quick action were needed for Nancy to extricate -herself from a dangerous situation.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE SECRET AT SHADOW RANCH</span></p> -<p>On a vacation in Arizona Nancy uncovers an old mystery and -solves it.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE SECRET OF RED GATE FARM</span></p> -<p>Nancy exposes the doings of a secret society on an isolated farm.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE CLUE IN THE DIARY</span></p> -<p>A fascinating and exciting story of a search for a clue to a surprising -mystery.</p> -<p><span class="center">NANCY’S MYSTERIOUS LETTER</span></p> -<p>Nancy receives a letter informing her that she is heir to a fortune. -This story tells of her search for another Nancy Drew.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_201">201</div> -<h3 id="c39">FLYING STORIES FOR BOYS -<br /><span class="small">IN THE AIR WITH ANDY LANE -<br />By EUSTACE L. ADAMS</span></h3> -<p class="center">Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself.</p> -<p>Mr. Adams, the author of this flying series for boys is an experienced -aviator and has had many thrilling adventures in the air—both -as a member of the famous Lafayette Escadrille in the World -War and in the United States Naval Aviation Service flying with -the squadrons patrolling the Atlantic Coast. His stories reveal not -only his ability to tell daring and exciting air episodes but also his -first hand knowledge of modern aeroplanes and the marvelous -technical improvements which have been made in the past few years. -Andy Lane flies the latest and most highly developed machines in -the field of aviation.</p> -<dl class="int"><dt>FIFTEEN DAYS IN THE AIR</dt> -<dt>OVER THE POLAR ICE</dt> -<dt>RACING ROUND THE WORLD</dt> -<dt>THE RUNAWAY AIRSHIP</dt> -<dt>PIRATES OF THE AIR</dt> -<dt>ON THE WINGS OF FLAME</dt> -<dt>THE MYSTERIOUS MONOPLANE</dt> -<dt>THE FLYING WINDMILL</dt> -<dt>THE PLANE WITHOUT A PILOT</dt> -<dt>WINGS OF ADVENTURE</dt> -<dt>ACROSS THE TOP OF THE WORLD</dt> -<dt>PRISONERS OF THE CLOUDS</dt></dl> -<div class="pb" id="Page_202">202</div> -<h3 id="c40">THE REX LEE FLYING STORIES -<br /><span class="small">By THOMSON BURTIS</span></h3> -<p class="center">Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself.</p> -<p>The author of this series of exciting flying stories -is an experienced aviator. He says, “During my five -years in the army I performed nearly every sort of -flying duty—instructor, test pilot, bombing, photographing -pilot, etc., in every variety of ship, from tiny -scout planes to the gigantic three-motored Italian -Caproni.”</p> -<p>Not only has this author had many experiences as -a flyer; a list of his activities while knocking around -the country includes postal clerk, hobo, actor, writer, -mutton chop salesman, preacher, roughneck in the oil -fields, newspaper man, flyer, scenario writer in Hollywood -and synthetic clown with the Sells Floto Circus. -Having lived an active, daring life, and possessing a -gift for good story telling, he is well qualified to write -these adventures of a red-blooded dare-devil young -American who became one of the country’s greatest -flyers.</p> -<dl class="int"><dt>REX LEE; GYPSY FLYER</dt> -<dt>REX LEE; ON THE BORDER PATROL</dt> -<dt>REX LEE; RANGER OF THE SKY</dt> -<dt>REX LEE; SKY TRAILER</dt> -<dt>REX LEE; ACE OF THE AIR MAIL</dt> -<dt>REX LEE; NIGHT FLYER</dt> -<dt>REX LEE’S MYSTERIOUS FLIGHT</dt> -<dt>REX LEE; ROUGH RIDER OF THE AIR</dt> -<dt>REX LEE; AERIAL ACROBAT</dt> -<dt>REX LEE; TRAILING AIR BANDITS</dt> -<dt>REX LEE; FLYING DETECTIVE</dt></dl> -<div class="pb" id="Page_203">203</div> -<h3 id="c41">THE HARDY BOYS SERIES -<br /><span class="small">By FRANKLIN W. DIXON</span></h3> -<p class="center">Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself.</p> -<p>The Hardy Boys are sons of a celebrated American -detective, and during vacations and their off time from -school they help their father by hunting down clues themselves.</p> -<blockquote> -<p>THE TOWER TREASURE—A dying criminal confessed that -his loot had been secreted “in the tower.” It remained for the -Hardy Boys to clear up the mystery.</p> -<p>THE HOUSE ON THE CLIFF—Mr. Hardy started to investigate—and -disappeared! An odd tale, with plenty of excitement.</p> -<p>THE SECRET OF THE OLD MILL—Counterfeit money was -in circulation, and the limit was reached when Mrs. Hardy took -some from a stranger. A tale full of thrills.</p> -<p>THE MISSING CHUMS—Two of the Hardy Boys’ chums -disappear and are almost rescued by their friends when all are -captured. A thrilling story of adventure.</p> -<p>HUNTING FOR HIDDEN GOLD—In tracing some stolen -gold the trail leads the boys to an abandoned mine, and there -things start to happen.</p> -<p>THE SHORE ROAD MYSTERY—Automobiles were disappearing -most mysteriously from the Shore Road. It remained for -the Hardy Boys to solve the mystery.</p> -<p>THE SECRET OF THE CAVES—When the boys reached -the caves they came unexpectedly upon a queer old hermit.</p> -<p>THE MYSTERY OF CABIN ISLAND—A story of queer -adventures on a rockbound island.</p> -<p>THE GREAT AIRPORT MYSTERY—The Hardy Boys solve -the mystery of the disappearance of some valuable mail.</p> -<p>WHAT HAPPENED AT MIDNIGHT—The boys follow a -trail that ends in a strange and exciting situation.</p> -<p>WHILE THE CLOCK TICKED—The Hardy Boys aid in vindicating -a man who has been wrongly accused of a crime.</p> -<p>FOOTPRINTS UNDER THE WINDOW—The Smuggling -of Chinese into this country is the basis of this story in which the -boys find thrills and excitement aplenty.</p> -</blockquote> -<div class="pb" id="Page_204">204</div> -<h3 id="c42">WESTERN STORIES FOR BOYS -<br /><span class="small">By JAMES CODY FERRIS</span></h3> -<p class="center">Each Volume Complete in Itself.</p> -<p>Thrilling tales of the great west, told primarily for boys -but which will be read by all who love mystery, rapid -action, and adventures in the great open spaces.</p> -<p>The Manly boys, Roy and Teddy, are the sons of an old -ranchman, the owner of many thousands of heads of cattle. -The lads know how to ride, how to shoot, and how to -take care of themselves under any and all circumstances.</p> -<p>The cowboys of the X Bar X Ranch are real cowboys, -on the job when required, but full of fun and daring—a -bunch any reader will be delighted to know.</p> -<dl class="int"><dt>THE X BAR X BOYS ON THE RANCH</dt> -<dt>THE X BAR X BOYS IN THUNDER CANYON</dt> -<dt>THE X BAR X BOYS ON WHIRLPOOL RIVER</dt> -<dt>THE X BAR X BOYS ON BIG BISON TRAIL</dt> -<dt>THE X BAR X BOYS AT THE ROUND-UP</dt> -<dt>THE X BAR X BOYS AT NUGGET CAMP</dt> -<dt>THE X BAR X BOYS AT RUSTLER’S GAP</dt> -<dt>THE X BAR X BOYS AT GRIZZLY PASS</dt> -<dt>THE X BAR X BOYS LOST IN THE ROCKIES</dt> -<dt>THE X BAR X BOYS RIDING FOR LIFE</dt> -<dt>THE X BAR X BOYS IN SMOKY VALLEY</dt></dl> -<div class="pb" id="Page_205">205</div> -<h3 id="c43">BOOKS BY LEO EDWARDS</h3> -<p class="center">Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in Itself.</p> -<p>Hundreds of thousands of boys have laughed until their -sides ached over the weird and wonderful adventures of -Jerry Todd, Poppy Ott, Trigger Berg and their friends. -Mr. Edwards’ boy characters are all real. They do the -things other boys like. Pirates! Mystery! Detectives! -Adventure! Ghosts! Buried Treasure! Achievement! -Stories of boys making things, doing things, going places—always -on the jump and always having fun. His stories -are for boys and girls of all ages.</p> -<p class="center">THE JERRY TODD BOOKS</p> -<dl class="int"><dt>JERRY TODD AND THE WHISPERING MUMMY</dt> -<dt>JERRY TODD AND THE ROSE COLORED CAT</dt> -<dt>JERRY TODD AND THE OAK ISLAND TREASURE</dt> -<dt>JERRY TODD AND THE WALTZING HEN</dt> -<dt>JERRY TODD AND THE TALKING FROG</dt> -<dt>JERRY TODD AND THE PURRING EGG</dt> -<dt>JERRY TODD IN THE WHISPERING CAVE</dt> -<dt>JERRY TODD, PIRATE</dt> -<dt>JERRY TODD AND THE BOB-TAILED ELEPHANT</dt> -<dt>JERRY TODD, EDITOR-IN-GRIEF</dt> -<dt>JERRY TODD, CAVEMAN</dt></dl> -<p class="center">THE POPPY OTT BOOKS</p> -<dl class="int"><dt>POPPY OTT AND THE STUTTERING PARROT</dt> -<dt>POPPY OTT AND THE SEVEN LEAGUE STILTS</dt> -<dt>POPPY OTT AND THE GALLOPING SNAIL</dt> -<dt>POPPY OTT’S PEDIGREED PICKLES</dt> -<dt>POPPY OTT AND THE FRECKLED GOLDFISH</dt> -<dt>POPPY OTT AND THE TITTERING TOTEM</dt> -<dt>POPPY OTT AND THE PRANCING PANCAKE</dt> -<dt>POPPY OTT HITS THE TRAIL</dt></dl> -<p class="center">THE TRIGGER BERG BOOKS</p> -<dl class="int"><dt>TRIGGER BERG AND THE TREASURE TREE</dt> -<dt>TRIGGER BERG AND 700 MOUSETRAPS</dt> -<dt>TRIGGER BERG AND THE SACRED PIG</dt></dl> -<p class="center">THE TUFFY BEAN BOOKS</p> -<dl class="int"><dt>TUFFY BEAN’S PUPPY DAYS</dt> -<dt>TUFFY BEAN’S ONE RING CIRCUS</dt> -<dt>TUFFY BEAN AT FUNNY-BONE FARM</dt> -<dt>TUFFY BEAN AND THE LOST FORTUNE</dt></dl> -<div class="pb" id="Page_206">206</div> -<h3 id="c44">GARRY GRAYSON FOOTBALL STORIES -<br /><span class="small">By ELMER A. DAWSON</span></h3> -<p class="center">Illustrated. Each Volume Complete in Itself.</p> -<p>Garry Grayson is a football fan, first, last, and all the time. But -more than that, he is a wideawake American boy with a “gang” -of chums almost as wideawake as himself.</p> -<p>How Garry organized the first football eleven his grammar -school had, how he later played on the High School team, and -what he did on the Prep School gridiron and elsewhere, is told in -a manner to please all readers and especially those interested in -watching a rapid forward pass, a plucky tackle, or a hot run for a -touchdown.</p> -<p>Good, clean football at its best—and in addition, rattling stories -of mystery and schoolboy rivalries.</p> -<dl class="int"><dt>GARRY GRAYSON’S HILL STREET ELEVEN; or, The Football Boys of Lenox.</dt> -<dt>GARRY GRAYSON AT LENOX HIGH; or, The Champions of the Football League.</dt> -<dt>GARRY GRAYSON’S FOOTBALL RIVALS; or, The Secret of the Stolen Signals.</dt> -<dt>GARRY GRAYSON SHOWING HIS SPEED; or, A Daring Run on the Gridiron.</dt> -<dt>GARRY GRAYSON AT STANLEY PREP; or, The Football Rivals of Riverview.</dt> -<dt>GARRY GRAYSON’S WINNING KICK; or, Battling for Honor.</dt> -<dt>GARRY GRAYSON HITTING THE LINE; or, Stanley Prep on a New Gridiron.</dt> -<dt>GARRY GRAYSON’S WINNING TOUCHDOWN; or, Putting Passmore Tech on the Map.</dt> -<dt>GARRY GRAYSON’S DOUBLE SIGNALS; or, Vanquishing the Football Plotters.</dt> -<dt>GARRY GRAYSON’S FORWARD PASS; or, Winning in the Final Quarter.</dt></dl> -<div class="pb" id="Page_207">207</div> -<h3 id="c45">BOB CHASE BIG GAME SERIES -<br /><span class="small">By FRANK A. WARNER</span></h3> -<p>In these thrilling stories of outdoor life the hero is a -young lumberjack who is a crack rifle shot. While -tracking game in the Maine woods he does some rich -hunters a great service. They become interested in him -and take him on various hunting expeditions in this -country and abroad. Bob learns what it is to face not -only wildcats, foxes and deer but also bull moose, -Rocky Mountain grizzly bears and many other species -of big game.</p> -<dl class="int"><dt>BOB CHASE WITH THE BIG MOOSE HUNTERS</dt> -<dt>BOB CHASE AFTER GRIZZLY BEARS</dt> -<dt>BOB CHASE IN THE TIGER’S LAIR</dt> -<dt>BOB CHASE WITH THE LION HUNTERS</dt></dl> -<div class="pb" id="Page_208">208</div> -<h3 id="c46"><i><span class="u">A Skippy Dare Mystery Story</span></i> -<br />AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES</h3> -<p class="center"><i>By</i> -<br />HUGH LLOYD</p> -<p>Nearly all the boats and barges on -the River that was “home” to -Skippy belonged to old Flint. A -grasping and merciless man, Flint -also controlled the lives of most -of the people who tried to earn -their living on the River. For -many years Skippy’s father had -worked for him; loading and unloading -illicit merchandise—aware -that he was involved in crooked -business but reaping little benefit -beyond a meager living therefrom.</p> -<p>Honest, courageous young Skippy -finally persuades his father to -leave Flint’s employ—but it is impossible -to escape the evil net in -which they are caught. Before -they succeed in getting away from -the illicit river traffic, they become -involved with the police—the -boy’s father is accused of murder—Skippy -is forced into a crooked -game—and the Basin, where the -condemned river barges provide -homes for the river people is -blown up. In one great blast men, -women, children and all their -worldly goods are destroyed in a -sea of lapping flames.</p> -<p>In the end Skippy’s fearless -honesty and loyalty bring happy -freedom to himself and his best -pal—his father.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_209">209</div> -<h3 id="c47">Hal Keen Mystery Stories</h3> -<p class="center"><i>By</i> HUGH LLOYD</p> -<p>Follow Hal Keen on his hunts for clues -and criminals. There are plenty of thrills -and shivers in these stories of adventure -and mystery.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE HERMIT OF GORDON’S CREEK</span></p> -<p>The disappearance of two airmail -pilots leads to a mystery that centers -about an abandoned mine.</p> -<p><span class="center">KIDNAPPED IN THE JUNGLE</span></p> -<p>A hint of buried treasure leads Hal -deep into the Central American jungle.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE COPPERHEAD TRAIL MYSTERY</span></p> -<p>What was the meaning of the baffling -and blood curdling events that centered -about the ranch where Hal Keen had -gone in search of gold?</p> -<p><span class="center">THE SMUGGLERS’ SECRET</span></p> -<p>Hal Keen sets out to get to the bottom -of a mystery that threatens the safety -of a whole community.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE MYSTERIOUS ARAB</span></p> -<p>Mystery, excitement, murder in a scientist’s -camp in the jungles of Africa.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE LONESOME SWAMP MYSTERY</span></p> -<p>The lonely and mysterious swamp -gave up its secret only after a series of -terrifying events.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE CLUE AT SKELETON ROCKS</span></p> -<p>Hal Keen finds mystery and adventure -in and about a lonely lighthouse off the -Maine coast.</p> -<p><span class="center">THE DOOM OF STARK HOUSE</span></p> -<p>A menacing cloud of mystery hangs -over the isolated and snow bound Stark -house.</p> -<p>THE LOST MINE OF THE AMAZON</p> -<p>Hal’s sympathy for an exiled white -family leads him on to solve the tragic -mystery that surrounds the lost mine.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_210">210</div> -<div class="img" id="im6"> -<img src="images/im6.jpg" alt="Reader with flashlight" width="500" height="275" /> -</div> -<h3 id="c48"><i>Skippy Dare</i></h3> -<p class="center">courageous—honest—loyal</p> -<p class="center">A young “detective” who keeps his head when trouble starts. And Skippy has a way of being in the thick of things</p> -<p class="center">HIS ADVENTURES MAKE TENSE READING</p> -<p>He learns the trickery of crooked men on his -father’s river barge; his experience stands -him in good stead when he becomes an -office boy in a detective agency—and he -proves an invaluable aide to Conne, the -great detective.... Fearless, fast thinking -Skippy is a hero well worth knowing!</p> -<h3 id="c49"><span class="sc">Skippy Dare Mystery Stories</span> -<br /><span class="small">by HUGH LLOYD</span> -<br /><span class="smaller">author of the “<i>Hal Keen Mystery Stories</i>”</span></h3> -<dl class="int"><dt>AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES</dt> -<dt>PRISONERS IN DEVIL’S BOG</dt> -<dt>HELD FOR RANSOM</dt></dl> -<p class="tbcenter">GROSSET & DUNLAP · <i>Publishers</i> · New York</p> -<div class="img" id="im7"> -<img src="images/im7.jpg" alt="Endpapers" width="800" height="605" /> -</div> -<h2 id="tn">Transcriber’s Notes</h2><ul> -<li>Copyright notice provided as in the original—this e-text is public domain in the country of publication.</li> -<li>Silently corrected palpable typos; left non-standard spellings and dialect unchanged.</li> -<li>Relocated the illustrations (printed on unnumbered pages) to the corresponding paragraph in the text.</li> -<li>In the text versions, delimited italics text in _underscores_ (the HTML version reproduces the font form of the printed book.)</li> -</ul> - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Among the River Pirates, by Hugh Lloyd - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AMONG THE RIVER PIRATES *** - -***** This file should be named 53695-h.htm or 53695-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/3/6/9/53695/ - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, MFR and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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