to pull, and I can just
as well take two of you aboard as not."

"That's a good idea," agreed Lester. "Take Bill and Teddy. They're no
earthly good here anyway. Fred and I are doing all the work."

"I like that," replied Teddy in mock indignation. "Who was it that got
up a dinner that was good enough, I notice, for you fellows to stow away
in a hurry."

"It wasn't because it was so good that we bolted it," chaffed Fred. "It
was a disagreeable duty and we wanted to get it over with as soon as we
could."

"Come along, Ted," said Bill with dignity, "and don't bandy words with
those common sailors."

"It was only that I wanted to lift them up to our own level," rejoined
Teddy. "But I guess you're right, Bill. They can't appreciate the value
of our companionship, and we'll leave them to herd together. They've had
their chance, and there's no use our wasting time trying to make them
into human beings."

Ross brought the _Sleuth_ alongside and the two boys leaped aboard.

"I'll take the shark too, if you want me to," proposed Ross. "I guess my
engine could stand the strain."

"No, thank you," replied Lester. "You've got two sharks on board now,
and I guess that'll be all you can manage."

The boats fell apart and the lightening of the _Ariel's_ load
showed results at once as the little boat leaped through the water at a
quickened pace. Ross dropped away to a distance of perhaps a hundred
feet, in order that the _Ariel_ might have plenty of sea room, and
with their noses pointed toward Milton the two craft went on in company.

"How much further have we got to go?" asked Fred, as he let out the
sheet in order to get every ounce of wind.

"Not more than eight miles, I reckon," answered Lester.

He looked over the side to gauge the speed at which they were traveling.

"It's a ten-knot breeze," he conjectured, "and if we didn't have that
ugly customer in the rear to tow along, we'd make it in less than an
hour. But even as it is, we'll surely do it in an hour and a half."

But the wind freshened and cut some time off their schedule, so that it
was only a little over an hour when Lester gave a turn to the tiller
that swung the _Ariel_ in toward the coast.

"There's Milton," he said, pointing to a tiny village of small,
straggling houses that came down close to the beach, "but we don't go so
far as that. Mark lives in a little hut about a mile this side of the
town. Take the glasses and you can make it out. It stand