, same road all the way," he chuckled as
he exhaled a cloud of smoke, "and the round trip is only eight miles.
It'll cost you a dollar apiece, and you don't want to miss it."

Clancy and Hill had already discovered that the inhabitants of Avalon
had a hand out for tourist money. When one had got all he could of a
guileless sight-seer, he passed him on to a brother who had something
else to show. But they were a kindly lot, those Avalonians for all that.

"Now, watch!" warned Ike. "Here the diver comes, for sure!"

This time Ike was correct. Clancy and Hill, peering through the glass
bottom of the boat, saw a human form glide gracefully to a point
directly underneath, turn over on its back, and float face upward, full
a dozen feet below the surface.

The diver commenced to throw kisses and to make faces, but he suddenly
ceased that pleasing performance. His face abruptly froze as with
horror, and his wide eyes looked, up at the two faces staring down
through the glass.

A sharp exclamation escaped Clancy's lips. Hill gave a yell, sat up and
began tearing off his coat, hat, and vest.

"It's--it's Hank Burton!" he murmured, far gone with wonder. "It's
Gerald Wynn's pard, and he helped walk off with your fifteen thousand,
Clancy! What's he doin' in the marine gardens, I'd like to know?
Wouldn't this put kinks into your intelleck? Say!"

Hiram Hill was climbing up on his seat, bending low to avoid hitting the
canopy top.

"What are you going to do?" shouted Clancy.

"I'm goin' down into the marine gardens, lookin' for trouble! If I can
get my lunch hooks on that chap below, I'll bring him aboard, or ashore,
or we'll both stay down in the kelp till the crack o' doom! You hear me,
Clancy? That feller gave us the slip once, but he'll not do it again!"

With that, Hiram Hill kicked off his shoes, rolled over the rail and
went into the water with a splash. Clancy reached for him, but was a
minute too late, for his fingers clutched only empty air.

"Look!" whispered Ike huskily, leaning over the glass bottom and
staring; "for the love o' Mike, look what's goin' on down there!"

CHAPTER VII.

AT THE BASE OF OLD SUGARLOAF.

Clancy and Ike had the privilege of seeing one of the strangest sights
that any one ever saw through a glass-bottom boat. They saw a half-clad
man grab another in a bathing suit, and immediately a submarine
wrestling match was staged. Burton gripped Hill about the throat, and
Hill's fingers sli