Dave Porter in the South Seas Part 38

gasped the supercargo. "But you are mistaken, you will find nothing wrong," he added, suddenly, and then appeared to calm down.

They went on deck, where they found Dave still on guard. The first mate was sulking near the rail. As soon as the captain appeared Dave walked up to him.

"I am glad you are here," he whispered. "Mr. Shepley wanted to send the goods ash.o.r.e, but I told him that, if he did so, I would call you."

"Is that so? Thank you, Dave, I am glad you went on watch," replied the master of the _Stormy Petrel_.

The inspection of the goods began, and in the midst of the work Jasper Van Blott gave an exclamation.

"Did anybody bring that brown book up?" he queried.

n.o.body knew anything about a brown book, and all looked puzzled.

"That has this transaction in it in full," went on the supercargo. "I remember now, I put the book in my stateroom. I will go below and get it. That will prove everything is as straight as a string. Then I am going to sue somebody for heavy damages," he added.

He walked to the companionway and disappeared. Captain Marshall continued to inspect the goods to go ash.o.r.e, and the boys aided him.

That something was wrong they did not doubt, and they waited impatiently for the supercargo to reappear with his brown book.

"The first mate has gone below, too," announced Roger, presently. "Maybe the pair are talking it over between them. They are certainly hand-in-glove with each other, according to what Dave says."

"Go below and tell Mr. Van Blott I want him to come up at once,"

returned Captain Marshall.

The senator's son disappeared down the companionway and was gone for several minutes. He came up with a worried look on his face.

"I can't find Mr. Van Blott anywhere!" he cried.

"What!" roared the master of the _Stormy Petrel_. "He must be down there."

"Unless he has sneaked ash.o.r.e!" came quickly from Dave.

"Could he do that?" questioned Phil.

"He might."

"I will go below and look around," went on Captain Marshall. "You boys scatter on the deck and watch for him. He must not be allowed to get away!"

The boys did as requested, and the captain went below, to be gone quarter of an hour and more. When he came up, his face was much downcast.

"He has certainly gotten away," he declared. "His valise and some of his clothing are gone, and his money box is wide open and empty."

"Where is the mate?" asked Phil.

"There he is!" exclaimed Dave, pointing to the bow.

The captain ran forward.

"Mr. Shepley, have you seen Mr. Van Blott?"

"When?" inquired the mate, slowly.

"Within the last ten or twenty minutes."

"Why, yes."

"Where is he?"

"I think he walked ash.o.r.e. I didn't notice, particularly."

"Humph! Did he have his valise?"

"I don't know but what he did. I wasn't paying any particular attention.

Are we to unload, or not?" went on the first mate.

"We are to do nothing until Mr. Van Blott is found," answered the captain, shortly.

"All right; in that case, you'll wait a long time," murmured the mate to himself.

After that a regular hunt was inst.i.tuted, and the boys went ash.o.r.e, along with Billy Dill. They even visited the offices of Baumann & Feltmuller, but not a trace of the missing supercargo could be found anywhere.

When the boys got back to the bark, they found that Captain Marshall had begun on an examination of the goods taken from the hold. He found a number of cases mismarked--those which were to have been sent to Baumann & Feltmuller.

"This stuff seems to have been meant for some firm in Australia--Featherstone & Harmsworth," said the captain. "How it came on my s.h.i.+p is a mystery to me."

"Wait!" shouted Dave. "I know something about that. Just before we left San Francisco I heard some dock officials speaking about some costly cases of goods which had disappeared from a neighboring dock. The goods were for the firm of Featherstone & Harmsworth, I remember the name well. The stuff was to go to Sydney. They said they had tried their best, but could get no trace of the stolen cases."

"That explains it!" exclaimed Phil. "Van Blott took the cases and had them stowed away in the hold of this s.h.i.+p. He was going to sell the stuff to Baumann & Feltmuller, in part or in whole."

"I believe you have struck the truth," returned Captain Marshall. "And now, fearing exposure, he has fled."

"What can you do with the goods?" questioned Roger.

"I don't know, yet. Either return them to their owners, or sell them and forward the money. I'll have to think the matter over."

"What a rascal Van Blott has proved himself to be!" was Phil's comment.

"Yes, and I reckon that man in San Francisco, Bangor, was in with him,"

said Dave, and he was correct in his surmise. It may be added here, though, that Bangor never suffered for this crime, for he was caught, shortly after the sailing of the _Stormy Petrel_, and tried for something equally unlawful, and sentenced to prison for several years.

The stolen goods were placed in another part of the s.h.i.+p, and then the work of unloading a part of the regular cargo began. Paul Shepley had to superintend this work, and did so in a thoughtful mood.

"I wish I knew the truth about the mate," said Phil to Dave. "I am going to watch him pretty closely after this."

"He certainly had something in common with the supercargo," replied the country boy.

From Baumann & Feltmuller, Captain Marshall could learn but little. The merchants said that the supercargo had offered to sell them some goods which, he declared, had not been accepted by other parties because of delay in s.h.i.+pment. They had agreed to take the same and pay on delivery, and when convinced that all was fair and above board.

"They are a tricky firm," said the captain to the boys. "But, as I have no proof against them, I'll have to let them go."