“Now this beats everything I ever heard of,” said Walter in great bewilderment. “We are not dreaming, are we?”
“No sir,” replied Perk, emphatically. “I was never more fully awake than I am at this moment. There’s some trick at the bottom of this.”
“I should be glad to tell you if I knew. You take one side of the street, and I’ll take the other. Don’t waste time now, but be careful to look into every shop and behind every house you pass.”
Walter, prompt to act upon the suggestion, set off at the top of his speed, followed by Perk, who, although equally anxious to get over a good deal of ground in the shortest possible space of time, conducted his search with more care. Had the former looked into one of the cross-streets past which he hurried with such frantic haste, he might, perhaps, have caught a partial glimpse of the burly form of Captain Conway standing in a doorway; and had he approached him he would have found Mr. Bell and Featherweight standing close behind him. But he did not know this, and neither was he aware that as soon as he and Perk passed on down the street, the master of the smuggling vessel came cautiously from his place of concealment, and looking around the corner of a house, watched them until they were two hundred yards away. But the Captain did this, and more. Having satisfied himself that the young tars had been eluded, he returned to the doorway and held a short conversation with Mr. Bell. When it was ended, that gentleman hurried off out of sight, and the Captain, drawing Fred’s arm through his own, conducted him along the cross-street and through lanes and by-ways back to the wharf, and on board a vessel—not the Stella, but a large ship, which, if one might judge by the hustle and confusion on her deck, was just on the point of sailing. As he and his captive boarded her, they were met by the master of the vessel who, without saying a word, led them into his cabin and showed them an open state-room. Without any ceremony Fred was pushed into it, the door closed and the key turned in the lock.
“There,” said Captain Conway, with a sigh of relief, “he is disposed of at last. If any of those Banner fellows can find him now, I should like to see them do it. Mr. Bell’s been in this business too long to be beaten by a lot of little boys.”
