Jack lost no time in communicating with his cousins, and the four boys talked the matter over again and then decided to speak to Captain Corning about it.
“You know the old saying, ‘Forewarned is forearmed,’” declared Jack. “We’d be in a fine pickle if we allowed that diver and his cronies to do us out of the treasure if we found it!”
Fred took the message to the captain, telling him they wished to see him in private and on important business. All repaired to the rear deck where they might be free from interruption.
Captain Corning’s face was a study when the lads told of what they had heard and Jack had related Patnak’s views on the subject.
“There may be nothing in this, and on the other hand it may mean a great deal,” said Captain Corning. “Personally, I must confess that I don’t like Olesen nor do I like Amend, and yet they came very highly recommended, and that ought to count for something. I’m glad that you spoke to Patnak and I’m sure that he’ll stick to us, no matter what happens. I never met a sailor I liked better, and Mr. Brooks likes him too.”
“What do you think of those other Norwegians—the fellows who were aboard the Firefly when you chartered her?” asked Randy.
“They seem to be good enough sort of sailors. If they hadn’t been I wouldn’t have let them sign up with me. But, of course, that class of fellows is often easily influenced by others. In fact, you can easily influence lots of sailors. When a proposition is put up to them they reason that they have very little to lose and everything to gain. Most of them don’t own a thing outside of what is in their chests and their ditty bags. If Olesen was really contemplating getting his hands on that treasure for himself, it might be an easy matter for him to start a mutiny on board and get some of the men to stand in with him simply by promising them a nice share of the loot.”
“My gracious, what a pack of rascals there must be in this world!” sighed Fred. “If the head diver and his bunch did that, they wouldn’t be any better than those bandits who held up the offices in Wall Street.”
“Well, you know what some men say of life,” returned Captain Corning, smiling grimly. “They say it’s a fight to get something and after that it’s a fight to keep it.”
“Well, what do you think we ought to do, Captain?” questioned Jack.
“We can’t do anything yet outside of keeping our eyes and ears open. If we discover any real plot on Olesen’s part to start a mutiny, I’ll have the Firefly taken to the nearest port and we’ll hand him and his followers over to the authorities. But we can’t do anything like that until we’ve got sufficient evidence.”
“Would it be a good plan to ask Patnak to keep his eyes and ears open and report to you?”
“It might be, Jack, because I think he’s perfectly honest. On the other hand, if he should take it into his head to play in with those other Norwegians, then it would be the worst possible thing for me to do, because then he could double-cross me, as they call it. I’ll think it over. And, in the meantime, I’ll speak to Mr. Brooks and I’ll ask you to keep your eyes and ears wide open, but don’t let Olesen and the others notice that you’re watching them. If they find that is being done, they’ll become more secretive than ever.”
Before leaving on the trip it had been decided that the Firefly should stop at Key West for a day or two to get into communication with those left behind. Accordingly, the course of the steam yacht was set in that direction. After the storm the weather became somewhat cooler, for which all aboard the Firefly were thankful.
“Now we can sleep nights,” was the way Randy expressed himself. “And believe me, I’m going to do it!”
During the remainder of the run to Key West all of the boys kept their eyes on Leif Olesen and Nick Amend. But this produced no results.
“We either misjudged them or else they’re playing foxy,” declared Jack. “Olesen has talked to those two Norwegian sailors only twice, so far as I’ve been able to learn, and then the conversation didn’t seem to have anything to do with the treasure. They were talking about the birds that are flying around the ship and about wanting to get something to drink when we arrive at Key West.”
On signing up for the trip there had been one bit of friction between the two divers and Captain Corning. This had been on the subject of liquor which the captain would not allow on board.
“I’ve always had a sober crew and I always intend to have,” was the way the captain expressed himself. “I can’t stop you when you’re ashore, but I don’t intend to have any drunkenness on my ship!” and this rule he carried out with everybody who sailed under him.
The run down the coast of Florida interested all the boys, for at some spots they drew quite close to the shore. Here they were once stopped by a government vessel looking for rum runners, but were soon let go with an apology from the officer in charge of the small boat which boarded them.
“Too bad we didn’t have a little rum on board,” said Nick Amend, making a wry face. “A drink just now wouldn’t go bad.”
“Well, we’ll get something good when we go ashore at Key West,” answered Leif Olesen.
“You’d better go slow on bootleg liquor,” was Captain Corning’s advice. “Remember a deep-sea diver needs to keep his eyesight.”
“Oh, I know good liquor when I see it,” grumbled Amend.
Just before they landed at Key West, which, as my readers must know, is located on the extreme southern point of Florida, Fred, walking forward on the deck, caught sight of Olesen behind the foremast in earnest conversation with Larsen and Smader. The three were talking in Norwegian, and, as before, only an occasional word was spoken in English. But these words interested Fred deeply, and he listened attentively until the sailors had to go off to attend to their duties and the diver walked to the stern. Then the youngest of the Rover boys rushed off to join his cousins.
“Here’s a new one!” he exclaimed excitedly. “I just caught Olesen talking to those two sailors, Larsen and Smader. He mentioned pistols and ammunition several times, and so did one of the other men!”
“Pistols and ammunition!” exclaimed Jack and the twins simultaneously.
“That’s what!”
“Sounds bad to me,” went on the oldest of the Rover boys. “Looks as if they were surely getting ready for a mutiny.”
“Don’t you think we had better tell Captain Corning?” came from Randy.
“I certainly do,” answered Jack. “What do you think, Fred? You heard them talking.”
“I think Captain Corning ought to know all about it, and at once.”
After this the lads lost no time in hunting up the commander of the Firefly, who was talking to one of the dock officials.
“Humph!” mused the captain, after Fred had told his story. “That certainly does look bad! I think I had better have Olesen and Amend watched while they’re ashore and find out just what they do.”
“We’ll keep our eyes on them if you say so, Captain,” answered Jack promptly.
“I’m afraid that wouldn’t go, Jack. Those fellows know you and your cousins too well. I’ll fix it up—never fear. I know the officials down here and know a number of other men too. I’ll have some strangers keep tab on them.”
It had been arranged that the boys should stop at a local brokerage house known to the elder Rovers and there receive any mail or messages that might have come in. So, telling the captain that they were bound for that place, they leaped into a taxicab and were soon on their way.
“Gee, I wish we could have followed up Olesen and Amend and caught them in the act of supplying themselves and those other Norwegians with firearms!” was Randy’s comment as they rode along. “If those fellows are up to some underhand work I’d like to catch ’em right in the midst of it.”
“And that’s just what I’d like to do!” put in his twin.
“Well, we can’t be in two places at once,” came from Fred. “I’d like to watch them too, but I’m also anxious to get some letters and messages from home. If they have managed to round up those hold-up men I want to know it.”
“Oh, well, I want to know that too!” came promptly from Andy.
“Now that we’ve warned Captain Corning I guess we can trust him to have those fellows watched,” said Jack. “He’s as suspicious of them as we are and just as anxious to save that treasure, provided it’s located.”
It did not take the taxicab long to reach the offices of Ditson and Roebuck, the brokers known to the Rovers. When they entered the place a round-faced, good-natured clerk came up and shook hands cordially with them.
“I remembered you the minute I saw you, Mr. Rover,” he said to Jack. “Don’t you remember I was in your office in New York one day—the same day you had had trouble with the son of another broker named Martell?”
“Oh, yes! I remember you now, Mr. Ditson!” cried Jack. He knew that the young man was the son of the head of the firm.
“We’re after letters and messages,” put in Fred, a bit impatiently. “We trust you’ve got good news for us.”
“I don’t know how good it is,” was the reply, as Harry Ditson walked back of one of the counters and brought forth a number of letters and several telegrams. “I certainly hope they’ve been able to get track of the stuff that was stolen from your firm. My! that was rather a serious affair, wasn’t it?”
“We’ll tell the world it was!” responded Randy, as he took a letter addressed to himself and tore it open eagerly.
Jack had two telegrams, as well as a letter. One telegram was from Ruth in which the girl stated briefly that she was very sorry she had not received his communication in time to answer it before the Firefly sailed and that she hoped the treasure quest would be successful. Jack read this telegram twice, and it is perhaps needless to say he was much gratified.
The other telegram was one from his father, evidently sent two days after the steam yacht had sailed. Dick Rover merely stated that all were well and that there was no news of importance and that he was making a hasty run to the oil fields while Tom Rover was going out West to the Rolling Thunder mine.
“Too bad that there is no good news from Wall Street,” said Jack, after all had read the telegrams. Then the boys turned to the letters which had been written by Mary and Martha and the mother of the twins.
Mrs. Tom Rover and the girls had little of importance to tell except that all of the men were greatly worried because the banks were not inclined to renew some of the loans made to the Company. Dick Rover had said something about sacrificing some of his interests in the oil fields, and both Tom and Sam had mentioned that they might sell their interest in one of the gold mines.
“Looks to me as if matters were blacker than we thought,” mused Randy. “It’s too bad, isn’t it?”
“If only we could locate that treasure and help them out!” murmured his brother.
After reading their letters carefully the boys had a little further conversation with Harry Ditson and were then on the point of leaving when a telegraph messenger came in.
“Hello! here’s another telegram for you,” exclaimed Harry Ditson, and turned it over to Jack.
The telegram was from Sam Rover and ran as follows:
“Have located Josiah Crabtree and made him confess. Look for important developments in the near future.”