CHAPTER XXIV
THE CARGO MYSTERY EXPLAINED
There was a death-like silence for several seconds after Phil made his announcement. Even Captain Marshall was astonished, for he had not anticipated such a turn of affairs.
"Let me see that paper!" demanded Jasper Van Blott, wildly. "I will not believe a word of what you have said until I read that paper."
"Then read it," answered the shipowner's son, and passed it over.
With compressed lips, the supercargo perused the document. Then he gritted his teeth.
"So this is the game you have been playing on me, eh?" he snarled. "Well, it doesn't work."
"Doesn't work?" came from Roger, who was as much interested as any one.
"No, it doesn't work. That paper isn't worth the ink it's written with. It was drawn up in the United States, and we are not in the United States now."
"Perhaps not, but we are sailing under the United States flag, Mr. Van Blott," said Captain Marshall, quickly. "Besides that, I think the authorities here will respect a legal document drawn up in Uncle Sam's country."
"It's not worth a pinch of snuff!" roared the supercargo, and would have torn the paper to bits, had not Phil and Roger leaped forward and pre vented him.
"None of that!" cried Phil. "Let that alone, or I'll have Captain Marshall place you under arrest."
"Arrest? Me under arrest? I'd like to see you do it!" fumed the supercargo.
"I'll do it, unless you do what is right," said the master of the Stormy Petrel, quickly. "Mr. Van Blott, your actions do you no credit. Trying to destroy that document proves to me beyond a doubt that you have something to conceal. I shall begin an investigation at once, and the boys shall aid me."
"I don't care!" roared Jasper Van Blott. "But I am done with the ship and the whole crowd."
"Please hand over the keys to your safe boxes."
With bad grace, the supercargo did so.
"Now you will please sit down and let us go through the accounts," continued the captain.
The supercargo squirmed and argued, and did his best to get away, but it was all to no purpose, and, in the end, he had to remain in the office until the captain, Phil, and Roger had examined all the shipping accounts. Some of the entries were mixed up, and they could not obtain any satisfactory explanation regarding them.
"Now we will go on deck and examine that stuff that was to go ashore," said Captain Marshall.
"Especially the goods for Baumann & Feltmuller," put in the senator's son.
"Ha! What do you know about that firm?" gasped Jasper Van Blott.
"Not much."
"You—you have been spying on me—you must have followed me on shore," gasped the super cargo. "But you are mistaken, you will find nothing wrong," he added, suddenly, and then appeared to calm down.
They went on deck, where they found Dave still on guard. The first mate was sulking near the rail. As soon as the captain appeared Dave walked up to him.
"I am glad you are here," he whispered. "Mr. Shepley wanted to send the goods ashore, but I told him that, if he did so, I would call you."
"Is that so? Thank you, Dave, I am glad you went on watch," replied the master of the Stormy Petrel.
The inspection of the goods began, and in the midst of the work Jasper Van Blott gave an exclamation.
"Did anybody bring that brown book up?" he queried.
Nobody knew anything about a brown book, and all looked puzzled.
"That has this transaction in it in full," went on the supercargo. "I remember now, I put the book in my stateroom. I will go below and get it. That will prove everything is as straight as a string. Then I am going to sue somebody for heavy damages," he added.
He walked to the companionway and disappeared. Captain Marshall continued to inspect the goods to go ashore, and the boys aided him. That something was wrong they did not doubt, and they waited impatiently for the supercargo to reappear with his brown book.
"The first mate has gone below, too," announced Roger, presently. "Maybe the pair are talking it over between them. They are certainly hand-in-glove with each other, according to what Dave says."
"Go below and tell Mr. Van Blott I want him to come up at once," returned Captain Marshall.
The senator's son disappeared down the companionway and was gone for several minutes. He came up with a Worried look on his face.
"I can't find Mr. Van Blott anywhere!" he cried.
"What!" roared the master of the Stormy Petrel. "He must be down there."
"Unless he has sneaked ashore!" came quickly from Dave.
"Could he do that?" questioned Phil.
"He might."
"I will go below and look around," went on Captain Marshall. "You boys scatter on the deck and watch for him. He must not be allowed to get away!"
The boys did as requested, and the captain went below, to be gone quarter of an hour and more. When he came up, his face was much downcast.
"He has certainly gotten away," he declared. "His valise and some of his clothing are gone, and his money box is wide open and empty."
"Where is the mate?" asked Phil.
"There he is!" exclaimed Dave, pointing to the bow.
The captain ran forward.
"Mr. Shepley, have you seen Mr. Van Blott?"
"When?" inquired the mate, slowly.
"Within the last ten or twenty minutes."
"Why, yes."
"Where is he?"
"I think he walked ashore. I didn't notice, particularly."
"Humph! Did he have his valise?"
"I don't know but what he did. I wasn't paying any particular attention. Are we to unload, or not?" went on the first mate.
"We are to do nothing until Mr. Van Blott is found," answered the captain, shortly.
"All right; in that case, you'll wait a long time," murmured the mate to himself.
After that a regular hunt was instituted, and the boys went ashore, along with Billy Dill. They even visited the offices of Baumann & Feltmuller, but not a trace of the missing supercargo could be found anywhere.
When the boys got back to the bark, they found that Captain Marshall had begun on an examination of the goods taken from the hold. He found a number of cases mismarked—those which were to have been sent to Baumann & Feltmuller.
"This stuff seems to have been meant for some firm in Australia—Featherstone & Harmsworth," said the captain. "How it came on my ship is a mystery to me."
"Wait!" shouted Dave. "I know something about that. Just before we left San Francisco I heard some dock officials speaking about some costly cases of goods which had disappeared from a neighboring dock. The goods were for the firm of Featherstone & Harmsworth, I remember the name well. The stuff was to go to Sydney. They said they had tried their best, but could get no trace of the stolen cases."
"That explains it!" exclaimed Phil. "Van Blott took the cases and had them stowed away in the hold of this ship. He was going to sell the stuff to Baumann & Feltmuller, in part or in whole."
"I believe you have struck the truth," returned Captain Marshall. "And now, fearing exposure, he has fled."
"What can you do with the goods?" questioned Roger.
"I don't know, yet. Either return them to their owners, or sell them and forward the money. I'll have to think the matter over."
"What a rascal Van Blott has proved himself to be!" was Phil's comment.
"Yes, and I reckon that man in San Francisco, Bangor, was in with him," said Dave, and he was correct in his surmise. It may be added here, though, that Bangor never suffered for this crime, for he was caught, shortly after the sailing of the Stormy Petrel, and tried for something equally unlawful, and sentenced to prison for several years.
The stolen goods were placed in another part of the ship, and then the work of unloading a part of the regular cargo began. Paul Shepley had to superintend this work, and did so in a thoughtful mood.
"I wish I knew the truth about the mate," said Phil to Dave. "I am going to watch him pretty closely after this."
"He certainly had something in common with the supercargo," replied the country boy.
From Baumann & Feltmuller, Captain Marshall could learn but little. The merchants said that the supercargo had offered to sell them some goods which, he declared, had not been accepted by other parties because of delay in shipment. They had agreed to take the same and pay on delivery, and when convinced that all was fair and above board.
"They are a tricky firm," said the captain to the boys. "But, as I have no proof against them, I'll have to let them go."
In spite of the excitement over the exposure of the supercargo, Dave was anxious to sail from Cavasa Island and be on the way to Sobago. It was with great satisfaction that he heard Captain Marshall say they would set sail on the following Monday morning.
"And how long will it take us to reach Nanpi?" he asked of the master of the Stormy Petrel.
"That will depend upon the wind, lad. If we have luck, we ought to get there in four or five days. But sometimes the wind is mighty contrary around these parts."
While at Cavasa the boys spent one whole day ashore, and went out riding in the direction of the volcano in company with Billy Dill. The old tar showed them where he and Dunston Porter and Mr. Lemington had camped out, and where they had hunted for the treasure.
"I'd like to feel an earthquake once, just for fun," remarked Roger. "It must be a queer sensation."
"It is," answered Billy Dill. "An' one ye ain't apt to forgit in a hurry."
"If it was bad, I think I'd be scared out of my wits," said Phil. "What do you think about it, Dave?"
"I don't want any in mine."
"Oh, what's a little earthquake!" cried the senator's son. "It would be an experience worth talking about, that's all."
"Well, maybe you'll have your wish gratified before we leave this region of the globe," said Dave. "I understand that earthquakes are common for thousands of miles around. Sometimes the quakes make new islands, while other islands sink out of sight."
"Excuse me from being on an island when it sinks out of sight," cried Phil. "I'd rather be on solid ground any time." And in this statement the others agreed with him.