The Motor Boat Club at Nantucket: or, The Mystery of the Dunstan Heir

“Haven’t seen a soul, except you sleepers,”Jed answered.

“How did you wake up, anyway!” demandedJoe suspiciously. “Alarm clock at your head?”

“Yes,” assented Prentiss. “But it reallywoke me up. That’s more than it could do foryou fellows.”

By the time they had that famous breakfastdown all felt better. Tom and Joe adjournedto the deck, where Jed joined them as soon ashe had washed the dishes and cleaned up.

“Here comes Mr. Dunstan now,” announcedJoe presently.

All turned to look at the boat’s owner. Mr.Dunstan appeared to have aged greatly afterhis night’s vigil. His face was furrowed bycare; he walked with a greater stoop than before.

“Poor fellow,” sighed Halstead. “And thereare only twenty-four hours left for finding theDunstan heir.”

“No news, I take it, sir?” hailed Tom, as theowner stepped upon the pier and came towardthe boat.

“None, since the word Mr. Musgrave sent melast night of your exploits,” murmured HoraceDunstan, shaking his head sadly. “And tothink that my boy has spent days aboard thatugly craft,” he added, gazing wistfully atthe yellow-hulled launch at anchor a few rodsaway. Then he turned once more to the youngskipper.

“How are you and your friends, Halstead?Very tired?”

“I don’t believe we’re so weary that you’dnotice it unless you looked very hard,” smiledHalstead.

“If you’re not too much used up by lastnight’s work I have a favor to ask of you. Butit’s not an order, understand?”

“Why, what can it be, Mr. Dunstan?”

“Well, you see,” continued the owner apologetically,“before this trouble happened we hadinvited Mrs. Lester and her two young daughtersto spend a fortnight with us. They had notheard of our misfortune, and so they came overon this morning’s boat. They heard in Nantucketand telephoned us, proposing to turnabout and go home again. But of course we insistedthat they should come to us. They aregoing to church, this evening, but Mrs. Dunstanis so much upset over the mystery surroundingour son that – that – well, we thoughtof proposing that they use the ‘Meteor’ for alittle sail this afternoon. That is, in case youyoung men are not too tired to – ”

“Why, of course we can take the boat out,”replied Halstead, breaking in upon the considerateowner. “It won’t tire us any more thanlolling around the pier.”

“Mrs. Dunstan and I will both be greatlypleased if you will do it,” declared HoraceDunstan gratefully.

“But do you think any developments fromshore will make it necessary to get the ‘Meteor’on the jump over to Wood’s Hole?” broke inJoe.

“You might keep the boat within sight of ourflagpole,” replied Mr. Dunstan. “That willallow you to sail some miles away if you usethe glass every few minutes. In case we wantyou to return here in haste we’ll hoist one redpennant. If we want you to make full speedfor Wood’s Hole, without first returning here,we’ll hoist two red pennants. In the latter caseyou can land Mrs. Lester and her daughters andthey can go to the hotel at Wood’s Hole untilyour work with the boat is done. Then you canbring them back.”

“That’ll all be clear and easy,” nodded Tom.“Well, sir, we’re ready when you are.”

“I’ll be right back with the ladies,” promisedMr. Dunstan. Joe began to oil the engine, whileJed made a dive for his cleanest white duck suit.Tom carefully brushed his uniform; he hadsecured another coat, at the owner’s expense, since leaving that other behind in the tight gripof Jonas French. It was a trim, natty-lookingboat’s crew that met the ladies when Mr. Dunstanbrought them aboard. Mrs. Lester was awoman of forty, still young looking and handsome.The girls – Elsie, aged seventeen, andJessie, fifteen, looked extremely sweet anddainty in their white dresses, blue reefers andyachting caps.

Mr. Dunstan left them almost immediately.

“Shall I take you aft to the deck chairs?” inquiredTom.

Mrs. Lester assented, but the girls declaredthat, if they might, they much preferred to remainon the bridge deck and watch the runningof the boat. To this Tom gladly assented.

The “Meteor” slipped gracefully away fromher pier, then turned and headed over in thedirection of Muskeget Island. This was a coursethat would keep them easily in sight of the Dunstanflagpole.

“You must look upon us as splendid nuisances?”suggested Elsie.

“Yes, to that, if you’ll leave out the word‘nuisances,’” smiled Captain Tom gallantly.

“But to be asked to take the boat out, afterall your hard and daring work last night,”added Jessie.

“Hard work comes naturally in a life on thesea,” Tom replied. “And we had our sleep, after the night’s work.”

“But what fearful danger you went through.Mr. Dunstan was telling us all about it, as heheard it from his man over at Wood’s Hole,”said Elsie. “What fearful danger you werein!”

“We didn’t think much about it at the time,”remarked Halstead modestly. “When one hashad to stand at the wheel of a motor boat, onthe broad ocean, in all sorts of weather, andwhen he has to win out and bring his craft andpassengers back safely, he doesn’t meet muchthat he calls dangerous.”

It was so quietly spoken that both girlsglanced quickly, admiringly at the young captain.Joe, standing at the hatchway, looked asthough he were thinking of nothing but the revolutionsper minute that the propeller shaft wasmaking.

“It must just be a splendid life!” declaredJessie impulsively. “I wish I were a boy.”

“Some day,” laughed Tom, “you may bepleased that you’re not.”

“Yet it must be fine,” pursued Elsie, “to lookover this handsome boat and feel that you’reman enough to be absolute master of her and tofeel that you can handle and control her underany conditions.”

“I couldn’t,” Halstead declared seriously.“I can steer the boat as long as the steeringgear isn’t damaged or broken, that is, if theboat is under headway. But let there be an accidentto the steering mechanism or let the motorrefuse to drive the propeller, and suppose theaccident to be of such a nature that we threeboys couldn’t make the necessary repairs, howmuch control do you think I’d have over thiscraft? How much of a master do you think I’dbe? Miss Lester, certain men have used theirbrains to design boat hulls. Other men have inventedand perfected the propeller mechanism.Then finally other men, out of their brains, constructedthe gasoline motor. We boys didn’thave anything to do with any of those triumphsof skill. All we’ve had to do is to learn how tobe handy with the handling of other people’s discoveries.”

“That doesn’t sound very impressive, doesit?” laughed Jessie.

“It isn’t,” declared Joe, taking part in thetalk for the first time. “Down at the mouth ofthe Kennebec River there’s a whole club of boyswho have learned to do just what we do.”

“You may try to make out that you’re notbrave and manly,” laughed Elsie, “but I shallkeep on believing that you are.”

“That’s why I wish, sometimes, I could be aboy and grow up to be a man,” added Jessie.

“I guess a woman can find enough chance toshow bravery,” Tom answered thoughtfully.

“Oh, how the boat is rolling,” cried Elsie, lurching as the “Meteor” rolled over to port.

Jed, who had just lowered the glass after alook at the Dunstan flagstaff, caught her lightlyby one elbow, steadying her.

“If you brace your feet, just this way,” explainedJed, illustrating the idea with his ownfeet, “the roll won’t carry you off your balance.”

Both girls practiced it, laughing gayly overhaving learned a new trick on shipboard.

“Mr. Dunstan said something about yourgoing only a certain distance away from hisplace,” observed Miss Elsie presently.

“We must keep within sight of the flagstaff; that is, we mustn’t go so far that we’d fail tosee a signal through the glass,” Tom explained.

“How much further can you go, then?” inquiredMiss Jessie.

“Do you see that point over on Muskeget Island?” – pointing.

“Yes.”

“We can go a couple of miles beyond thereand still be able to make out signals.”