The Boy Ranchers of Puget Sound Part 43

"I don't think it would be worth while," was Harry's answer. "You could hardly work the pump alone, and if I left the helm she'd keep running up into the wind and yawing about. I'd rather shove her along steadily toward the land."

"Then can't we get the foresail properly set and drive her a little faster?" Frank inquired. "She ought to bear it now the wind's dropping."

It was not only the leak that troubled him. He wanted to escape as soon as possible from the horror that seemed to pervade the vessel, and his companion eagerly seized upon the suggestion.

"Why, of course!" replied Harry. "I might have thought of it, but I've been kind of dazed since we got out of the cabin."

They went forward and led the halliards to the winch, but they would have had trouble in setting the partly lowered sail if the schooner had not come up into the wind and relieved the strain on it. By degrees they heaved up the gaff and peaked it, after which they went aft, as the vessel plowed faster over the falling sea.

"Now," said Frank, "the question is, where are we heading for?"

"I've been worrying over that while we set the sail," Harry responded.

"If we hauled her up right now we might, perhaps, fetch the inlet where we arranged to join Barclay, but we'd have to jibe the foresail over, and as I would have to keep the helm while I brought her round and you wouldn't be able to check the sheet alone, it's very likely that something would smash when the boom came across. Besides that, we'd have a strip of rocky coast to lee of us presently, and we mightn't be able to keep her off it with only the foresail set. On the other hand, so far as I can recollect from looking at the chart, the islands are dead to leeward and we'd only have to keep her running to reach them. There's a sound where we'd find smooth water once we sailed her in. That would be the wiser plan."

Frank, concurring in this, sat down near the helm. He felt that he would not like to go far away, and he remembered that night watch long afterward.

The moon crept on to the westward, getting lower, and now and then flying clouds obscured the silvery light. The combers still came surging after them crested with glittering froth, though they no longer broke about the rail, and there was a constant gurgling and splashing of water inside the lurching vessel. At last Jake jibed the sloop's mainsail over and stood away from them. The moon was very low now and Frank grew somewhat uneasy as he watched the boat's canvas fade into the creeping gloom. Shortly afterward the moon dipped altogether and it was very dark.

"We can't be far off the land," said Harry. "I don't want to come up with it before daylight, but with no after canvas on her I don't suppose we could round her up and wait. If we did, I'm not sure we could get her to fall off again--one of the jibs is torn to ribands and the other's split. We'll have to keep her running."

They drove on and presently a faint gray light crept across the water to the east. A little later, when all the sky was flushed with red and saffron, a long black smear cut sharply across the glow.

"The first of the islands," announced Harry. "It's right abeam. We must get some foresail sheet in."

They had difficulty in doing so, though they led the sheet to the winch, but the schooner came up closer afterward, and when the sun had climbed above a bank of cloud the end of the island was rising before them and a strip of water opening up beyond it. Half an hour later they ran in with the foresail peak lowered down, and Frank gazed anxiously ahead as they drove on more slowly up a broad channel. On one hand there were rocks and scrubby pines, with larger trees behind, but he wondered what the result would be if a reef or a jutting point lay in front of them. The vessel's speed, however, grew slower still, the water became smoother, and at last Harry looked around at him.

"If you'll unhook the tackle and cut the lashing you ought to get the anchor over," he remarked. "I'll luff her as far as possible and you'll heave the thing off when I drop the foresail."

There followed a clatter of blocks, and a furious rattle of running chain, which presently stopped. Then as the swinging vessel drew her cable out they toiled desperately at the windla.s.s to heave up more of it from below. The task was almost beyond their strength, but somehow they managed it and Harry clapped on a chain stopper.

"That should hold her," he said. "There's not much wind now. I'd be glad to leave her if I could get ash.o.r.e."

This, however, was out of the question, since the canoe had gone, and very much against their will they waited on board for several hours until at length a trail of smoke arose above the pines. Then a little steamer with foam about her bows appeared from behind a point and the hoot of her whistle rang sharply across the water.

"Barclay, sure!" said Harry. "I'm certainly glad to see him."

A few minutes later Mr. Barclay climbed on board and went down into the cabin and all over the vessel with them before he made any remarks. At length he turned to the boys as they stood by the rail.

"You have done a very smart thing and I don't think you'll have any reason for regretting it," he said pointedly. "This is a good set-off against the failure at the other end. Jake got in with the message and we started as soon as I'd had a talk with him. Fortunately, we were able to creep along through the sounds and it's scarcely likely that any of the smugglers can have seen us."

"But what has become of this vessel's crew?" Frank asked.

"I don't know," replied Mr. Barclay. "We'll probably ascertain something about them later."

"Do you expect to corral the rest of them to-night?" Harry broke in.

"It's possible," said Mr. Barclay with a trace of dryness. "The first thing, however, is to beach this vessel, and then you and Jake must get off in the sloop. There's a good deal to be done, and I want to run the steamer back out of sight up the inlet as soon as it can be managed."

He called some of his companions on board, and when Frank and Harry sat down to an excellent meal in the steamer's cabin they heard the men heaving the schooner's anchor.

CHAPTER XXIX

THE RAID

Daylight was breaking when the boys ran into the cove near the ranch after a quick pa.s.sage and saw Mr. Oliver standing on the beach.

"I've been looking out for you rather anxiously," he said when he had shaken hands with them. "Has Barclay been successful?"

"No," said Harry, "not altogether. Some of the dope men got away at the first place where they landed."

Mr. Oliver looked rather grave at this. "How many of them escaped?"

"I don't know exactly. The messenger said several. Besides, the crew of the schooner abandoned her, and it seems likely that they got ash.o.r.e.

That would make two parties who may have joined each other."

"Ah!" said Mr. Oliver; "it's a pity in various ways! How did Barclay get on at the other end?"

"I can't tell you. He didn't expect to make the seizure until night when the dope men's friends would be waiting for the schooner to run in, and he sent us off in the afternoon."

"It was wise of him," Mr. Oliver answered. "In the meanwhile your aunt hasn't cleared breakfast away, and as I expect you're ready for it we'll go in at once."

During the meal they gave him an outline of their adventures, to which he listened thoughtfully. Then he said:

"You had better lie down and get a sleep. We'll have another talk about it later on."

"I think I'd rather work," said Frank. "We got some sleep in turns last night, and I don't feel like lying down. The fact is," he added hesitatingly, "we've been doing something or other so hard since we went away that I don't think I could leave off all at once. I feel strung up yet and I'd rather keep busy."

Mr. Oliver smiled understandingly. "That's sensible. There's nothing as good as your regular work for cooling you off and helping you to get calm again; but if you like you can take a note over to Webster and you needn't hurry back if he asks you to have dinner with him. Then there are two or three stumps you may as well grub out."

They set out soon afterward and Frank, for one, was glad of the walk. He had been cramped on board the sloop, and the excitement of the last few days had told on him. He was nervously restless and felt that it would be useless to lie down until he was physically worn out. When he mentioned it to Harry the latter confessed to a similar sensation, and added that they had not yet finished with the dope men.

Mr. Webster was at work in his clearing when they reached it, but he walked with them to his house, dropping Mr. Oliver's note into the stove as soon as he read it.

"You'll have dinner before you go back and tell your father I'll come along," he said. "Would you like to take that single gun with you, Frank? Harry still has the other one."

Frank said that he would be very glad, but his companion broke in:

"What did dad ask you to come over for?"

"He wasn't very precise," answered Mr. Webster evasively. "He'll probably tell me more when I'm at the ranch."

As it was evident that he did not mean to be communicative, they ate their dinner without asking any further questions, but when they were walking home through the bush Harry smiled at his companion significantly.

"What do you make of the whole thing?" he asked.