"Two gentlemen from New York? at least one of them? No; they went from here several days ago."
The disappointment was as sudden as the hope.
"Do you know what place they left for?" asked Philip, eagerly—"their addresses? We want to get a message forwarded to them as soon as possible."
The man consulted a memorandum-book. "I don't know where they were going to. H'm! Letters to be sent to the Epoch Club, New York, and to the Ossokosee Hotel. That's Mr. Marcy's address. He's the proprietor."
"Papa belongs to the Epoch," whispered Gerald.
"You are sure they did not expect to return, here at present?"
"I don't know. They said nothing about that; and there are those addresses. The gentlemen came on because of the loss of the steamer. Mr. Saxton's son was drowned, with a clerk of Mr. Marcy's, I believe, at the same time."
The lads turned and looked at each other in astonishment. So they were really not sup-
