The Rover Boys in Southern Waters/Chapter 21
CHAPTER XXI
THE PICTURE IN THE CARDCASE
"Who is it?" questioned Hans, trying to gain possession of the photograph, but instead of answering Sam started from the cabin.
"I must show this to Dick and Tom!" he cried. "Come along."
"Yah, put" began the German boy, and then stopped, for there was nobody to talk to, Sam being already out of sight.
"Dick, look what I found," cried the youngest Rover, as he dashed into the pilot house.
"A fortune?" asked Dick, with a smile.
"No, a picture. Just look!"
Dick did as requested and gave a start.
"You found this on the yacht?" he cried.
"Yes. In the pocket of a big coat hanging in one of the lockers. It was in a cardcase."
"This is certainly queer. It looks exactly like Harold Bird, doesn't it?"
"It certainly is Harold. I wonder—Oh, look!"
Sam had turned the picture over. On the back were these words, written in a strong, masculine hand:
To father, from Harold. Merry Xmas!
"Why, Harold must have given this to his father," said Dick, thoughtfully. "And if so"
"Do you think the coat belonged to Mr. Bird?" broke in Sam.
"Perhaps. Did you find anything else?"
"Ve titn't look," came from Hans, who stood in the doorway. "So dot vos a picture of Harold Pird, alretty! Dot vos kveer!"
"It is astonishing," said Dick. "Sam, see if you can find anything else."
Sam went back and Hans with him, and while they were gone Dick, through the speaking tube, acquainted Tom with the discovery made.
"Maybe Mr. Bird was on this steam yacht," called up Tom.
Sam and Hans went over the stuff in the lockers with care. They found some cards bearing the name of James Morrison and a short note about a meeting of a yacht club addressed to Barton Knox.
"Those men must have been on the Mermaid," said Sam. "Perhaps they were part owners. Frequently several men or a whole club own a yacht like this in common."
"Vell, she ton't vos a common poat," was Hans' comment. "She vos a peauty."
Sam was on the point of giving up the search when he saw something sticking from a crack next to the wall. He pulled the object forth and saw it was the photograph of a big, heavy-set man with rather a handsome face. He turned it over and gave a short gasp, for on the back was written in pencil:
Sharwell Lee Bird, Murderer.
"What a horrible thing to write!" murmured the youngest Rover. "It makes a fellow shiver to read it!"
"Of he killed dot man ven he vos hunting he vos sure a murderer, Sam."
"Not exactly, Hans; he didn't mean to shoot the fellow. It was accidental."
"Yah, put der mans vos teat, ain't it!"
"Yes, and the death of the poor fellow drove Mr. Bird insane. I must show this to Dick, and to Tom, too."
Sam took the second picture, and all on board the steam yacht discussed the discovery for some time. But they could reach no conclusion saving that Mr. Bird had likely been on the vessel at one time and had left his coat and the two pictures behind him.
"Perhaps he was on this vessel after he disappeared from Kingston," said Tom. "If so, the question is, Where did he go after that?"
"We must tell Harold of this, the first chance, we get," said Sam.
"Providing he is alive," answered Dick. "Remember, we are not at all sure that the Mascotte outlived that crash in the fog."
The middle of the afternoon found the Mermaid steaming on her course at a good rate of speed. Tom had now become fairly familiar with the engine and he allowed the steam to run up some pounds higher than before. Hans fell to tending the fire and Sam took turns with Dick at the wheel.
"We ought to sight some kind of land by to-morrow," said the eldest Rover. "But of course there is no telling where we will fetch up, exactly."
"Somewhere on the coast of Florida, and not very many miles from Tampa Bay, I reckon," returned Sam. "By the way, Dick, don't you think the rascals on the Dogstar have had ample time in which to make their escape?"
"Perhaps so. But the storm may have crippled them, and we may overtake them even yet. A sailing vessel can't make the speed a steamer or a steam yacht can."
Twice during the afternoon they saw vessels at a distance, one a steamer and the other a bark, and both bound westward. Neither came close enough to be hailed and our friends did not think it wise to raise any signals of distress.
"The yacht is running all right now," said Dick. "We may as well take her into port and get the salvage money. The amount will be a good round sum."
"Do you know, I shouldn't mind owning a steam yacht like this myself," said Tom, to whom he was speaking. "Couldn't we take some dandy trips, off the coast of New England and elsewhere!"
"We certainly could, Tom. But you must remember that we ought to go back to school. If we don't, we'll never get through. It's about time I was thinking of college."
"I hate to think of leaving Putnam Hall, Dick. Why, the place is just like a second home to me!"
"It is to all of us. But we are growing older and must either go to college or get into business."
The sun was setting when Dick went on deck again. Hans was preparing supper and Sam was at his station in the pilot house. The waters of the gulf were growing calm and the scene was a beautiful one.
"This is something like," remarked the eldest Rover, as he drew in a deep breath of fresh air. "Doesn't look like the storm of last night, eh, Sam?"
"No, Dick, this is just splendid."
"What's that ahead?" asked the big brother, casting his eye on a dark speck directly in the track of the steam yacht.
"I don't know—I didn't see it before."
The object, whatever it was, was a long way ahead, and by the time they drew closer it was too dark to see clearly. But Dick saw enough to make him cry out in astonishment:
"A rowboat, and full of men!"
The eldest Rover was indeed right, it was a large rowboat and it contained six persons, four of whom were at the oars and the others in the stern. The rowboat contained in addition a keg of water and several small boxes and tins.
"Ship ahoy!" came hoarsely over the water, as the steam yacht drew closer to the small craft.
"Ahoy!" called back Dick, and ran forward, while Sam signaled to Tom to stop the engine.
"Can you take us on board?" was the question from a man in the rowboat. "We've lost our ship and we are played out."
"Certainly we can take you on board," answered Dick. "Wait a minute, and I'll throw you a rope ladder."
"Thank you very much!" called back the man.
The steam yacht was brought to a standstill and the ladder thrown out. Soon the rowboat came up to the ladder, and one after another those aboard the small craft mounted to the deck of the Mermaid. The three Rovers and Hans were at hand to see who they were.
"Dan Baxter!"
"Sack Todd!"
Such were the cries that came from Sam and Tom. Two of the new arrivals were indeed the persons named, and a third was Gasper Pold.
"Did you come from the Dogstar?" demanded Dick.
"We did," answered Dan Baxter, sullenly. Evidently he was much chagrined over this unexpected meeting.
"Have you been following us in this steam yacht?" asked Sack Todd, with a sickly grin on his hard face.
"We were certainly following you," answered Tom. "But we didn't start out in this vessel. We"
"Tom!" said Dick, warningly, and then Tom shut up instantly.
"Who's the captain here?" demanded one of the men from the rowboat.
"I suppose I am, for the present," answered Dick.
"You!" And the man, a burly fellow, took a step back in astonishment.
"Yes. Who are you?"
"I am Sid Jeffers, first mate of the Dogstar. We sprang several bad leaks in that storm last night and made up our mind the schooner was going down. So we got out the boats and I and two men and these three chaps manned one of them. We lost sight of the ship in the dark,—and here we are. We're mighty hungry and we'd like something to eat. And if you've got any liquor on board let us have it by all means," concluded Sid Jeffers.