ngers had decided not to
go on board of the Sylvania till the next morning, and had ordered an
early breakfast. There was to be some sort of a social occasion in the
parlors that evening, and my father and his friends wished to be
present. I went on board of the steamer. On my way I looked in at the
window of Captain Boomsby's saloon, and saw that Nick was there
peddling out whiskey to thirsty customers. He had not concealed himself
on board of the Islander; and I had told Colonel Shepard to be on the
lookout in the morning, to assure himself that he had no more
passengers than he wanted. I was quite sure I had blocked Nick's
wheels, so far as running away in either of the steam-yachts was
concerned.

CHAPTER V.

THE STRANGE MOVEMENT OF THE ISLANDER.

Cobbington had engaged the additional waiter. His name was Reel
Bendick, as he spelled it out to me; and he seemed to be an intelligent
and docile man. He was to wait on the table in the fore-cabin, while
Tom Sands was to continue in the after-cabin, where he had always been
assisted by the steward, and on great occasions by Washington Gopher,
the accomplished cook who had come all the way from Detroit.

With these exceptions our crew remained the same as before.

Since our return from up the St. Johns, everything about the Sylvania
had been put in perfect order for sea. Moses Brickland, the engineer,
had overhauled the machinery and the boiler, and we had a full supply
of coal in the bunkers. I went all over the vessel, and assured myself
that everything was in order.

"I suppose there is no doubt about our leaving in the morning, is
there, Captain Alick?" asked Bob Washburn, the mate, as we seated
ourselves in the captain's cabin, after we had both been all over the
deck and the cabins.

"Of course I don't know anything more about that than you do, but I
think there cannot be much doubt of it," I replied. "We shall have no
passengers but my father, the Tiffanys, and my cousin."

"Does Owen Garningham go with us, Alick?" asked Washburn, with
astonishment.

"He told me this afternoon he had no invitation to go in the Islander,
and my father said he would have none," I replied.

"Then your father thinks there has been too much spooning on board,"
added Washburn, laughing.

"Probably Colonel Shepard thinks so too, and that may be the reason why
he decided to go in the Islander instead of in the Sylvania."

"I should think it would be better to separat