CHAPTER XXIII
THROUGH THE FOG
It was an astounding discovery.
With never a thought of the grotesque mistake, both youths had boardedthe launch believing it to be the _Deerfoot_; they had pursued theimaginary fugitive only to awaken to the fact that she was not afugitive, and that they had unconsciously stolen the property of theburglars, which must have been lying so near their own craft that theslight difference of location was not noticed.
Chester stepped down and seated himself at the elbow of his chum.
"Here are only four seats instead of six. Why didn't we notice itbefore?"
"Because we were too much occupied with other things, or rather were bothstruck with blindness just then. As Mike would say, I'm completelyflabbergasted."
"And I'm with you. What's to be done now?"
"Tell me where the _Deerfoot_ is."
"Ask me something easier. She may be lying where we left her, or twentymiles away."
"We should have heard her if she came down stream."
"She may have gone up the river and around into the Sheepscot."
"And back to the former hiding place of this boat or to a differentone--the 'Beautiful Isle of Somewhere,'" said Alvin grimly.
"One place will serve as well as another. I wonder whether there was everso wonderful a mix-up of launches since such craft were known."
Alvin shut off power and the two listened. From some point miles awaycame the hoarse growl of a steam whistle, but all else was still. He hadhoped that they would hear the _Deerfoot's_ exhaust, but nothing of thekind came to their ears. He flirted the switch around and resumed thespeed which was not above half a dozen miles an hour.
One of the plagues of the Maine coast is the dense fogs which sometimescreep far up the rivers. Such an obscurity now began settling overMontsweag Bay and Back River, shutting out the moonlight as well as therays of the rising sun. Before Alvin was aware, he could not see eithershore until he had run far over to the right and caught a shadowy sightof the pines, spruce and firs which lined the bank. The air drippedmoisture and, though it was summer, it grew chilly.
While gliding slowly forward they heard a steamer's bell, accompanied byoccasional blasts from her whistle. She was feeling her way down streamand sounding warnings to other craft. By and by the beat of her screw andthe ripple of the water from her bow sounded so near that Alvin edgedcloser to land. In the heavy mist loomed a minute later a bulky steamer,surging southward at sluggish speed, the crew, as seen for an instant,looking like saturated ghosts.
The boat was quickly swallowed up, her bell still tolling, with blastsfrom her whistle at short intervals.
Seated as described, the two youths discussed what was the best thing todo. It seemed advisable to return to the point from which they started,that is, near Beartown landing. There was not one chance in a hundredthat they would find the _Deerfoot_ there, but such a thing was notimpossible. That which made this policy seem wise was the likelihood ofagain meeting Detective Calvert. The news of the attempted robbery of theBeartown post office would be telegraphed far and wide, and he would besure to hear of it at Wiscasset. It would not take him and his brotherofficer long to reach the village, where the lads could hope to see him.
It was certainly a singular coincidence that the launch should be twicestolen in so brief a time, and the owner grimly asked himself whetherfate had not ordained that he was to lose it after all.
There was no light in the maze of conjecture that opened before them.Chester suggested an alarming complication.
"The _Deerfoot_ can outspeed any craft in the Maine waters. Theseburglars must have a hiding place, and we know there is no end to themamong the bays, inlets, coves and islands that stud the rivers. Supposethey board the launch and speed away till all pursuit is thrown off thescent--something they can easily do--and then abandon the boat."
"We shall find her sooner or later, and Calvert will perhaps in this wayget on their track."
"They can avert such danger by sinking her in deep water, where she maynot be found for years."
"I have not thought of that. It looks as if they had the whip-hand. Thesefellows may have blundered last night, but it was solely through thesudden appearance of Mike on the spot, for they are no fools. If we tryto get the best of them we shall get the worst, unless we have the helpof Mr. Calvert."
"And the only way to gain that is to go back to Beartown."
"So it seems to me. What do you think?" asked the Captain.
"I know of nothing better. Wouldn't it be well to hit up the pace alittle?"
"If this fog would only lift! But it seems to be growing thicker. We mustfeel our way."
While the Captain was doing this, his second mate looked over the _WaterWitch_. Its resemblance to the _Deerfoot_ was remarkable. It was probablytwo or three feet shorter, but that was the only noticeable difference.The model was the same, even to the color of the paint used. As hasalready been said, however, there were only four seats while the_Deerfoot_ had six. The similarity of the craft was proved by the factthat Alvin Landon boarded and ran it for quite a number of miles beforeeven the slightest suspicion entered his mind.
All landmarks were shut from view until, as may be said, the launch ranagainst them. The boys had little or no acquaintance with the river theywere ascending, and only here and there were they able to identifycertain landings or towns from their previous study of the map. Alvinknew he was creeping northward, and sooner or later must reach the pointwhich he left during the latter part of the night. Even the landing wouldnot be recognized without close study, and possibly not even then.
Had not the noise made by the progress of the launch shut out a certainsound and had not the dense fog hidden something from sight, the twowould have made a startling discovery within the hour which followedtheir turning back. But no knowledge of that nature came to them.
The boys agreed that they would not reach their destination until longafter their change of course. Neither noted when this was done, butChester now looked at his watch and found it showed a few minutes toseven.
"A good hour for breakfast," he remarked, "and my appetite is with me, asI am sure yours is with you."
Alvin nodded and kept his eye on the receding shore and the water ahead.
"Mike is to be envied, for the good woman and especially the daughterwill give him the best their house can afford. These boats don't carry alarge stock of provisions--who knows but there's something of the kind onboard?"
He asked the Captain to rise while he lifted the cushioned lid of thelocker upon which he had been sitting. The next moment Chester uttered ajoyous cry.
"Hurrah! we're in luck!"
He held up a large paper bag into which he had peeped. It contained halfa dozen plump ham sandwiches.
"While we are about it suppose we see what other treasures are in theship's chest."
They found a most interesting stock indeed. Five black pieces of muslin,each with two peep-holes, several sets of false whiskers, two pairs ofbrass knuckles, three metal rings from each of which dangled more than adozen keys of varying sizes, a box of revolver cartridges, a formidableknife, some twine and a number of articles of no importance.
"They tell their story," said Chester, holding them up one after anotherfor his chum's inspection. "If the officers of the law arrest us, weshall have to depend upon our friends to prove an alibi."
"Meanwhile there is no need to keep those sandwiches waiting."
"Wonder if they are poisoned," laughed Chester, as he passed one to hischum, and sank his teeth in another. "Anyhow, I'm going to take chances."
"So am I. They don't seem to have any cooking utensils on board, socoffee and warm food are to be denied us."
The Captain ate with one hand on the steering wheel, and frequent glancesahead. Now and then they would find themselves approaching a sharpprojection of land, around which the launch was steered, and then perhapswould glide past a cunning looking cove, too narrow to admit a boat
oflarge size. Once, while doubling a cape, they came within a hair ofrunning down a small rowboat propelled by a single occupant. He shoutedangrily for the steersman to keep a better lookout.
"I'm sorry!" called back Alvin; "but the fog bothers us. Will you pleasetell me how far it is to Beartown landing?"
"'Bout half a mile, mebbe a little more. Who are you?"
Alvin gave his right name and thanked the man for his information.
"I thought that was about the distance," said Chester, as he resumed theduty of sentinel. "I can't recognize any landmark, and couldn't if therewas no fog to play the mischief with our sight."
Alvin stopped the engine two or three times while approaching the spot,in order to listen for sounds of the other boat. They heard nothing, buthad they not waited too long to make the experiment, they would havepicked up some exceedingly interesting information.
"Here's the spot!" called Chester a few minutes later, as he identifiedthe spiderlike landing from which a road led to Beartown.
"Then we have passed the place where the launch lay up last night. We mayas well go beyond and be out of the way of folks."
A hundred yards north of the wharf, too far to see it when they lookedback, the _Water Witch_ came gently to rest, the waiting Chester sprangashore with a line in hand and made fast.