ou don't find that every word I tell you is true you can hang me to
your own yardarm."

Captain Whyte laughed. It was a fair and frank offer, but he was a
reader of men, and he felt quite sure that the strange youth was telling
the absolute truth.

"He's given me, sir, quite correct accounts of events that happened in
the colonies last year," said Lanham. "He was at Ticonderoga and his
narrative of the battle agrees fully with the accounts that we
received."

And just at that moment coincidence stretched out her long arm again, as
she does so often.

"I had a cousin at Ticonderoga," said Captain Whyte. "A splendid young
fellow, name of Grosvenor. I've seen a letter from him in which he says
'twas a terrible fight, but that we threw away our chances before we
went upon the field."

"Grosvenor! Grosvenor!" exclaimed Robert eagerly. "Why, I knew him! He
was a friend of mine! We were in the forest together, in combat and
escape. His first name was Alfred. Did he say nothing in his letter of
Robert Lennox?"

"Of course he did! I was so much interested in you that I paid little
attention to your name, and it glided past me as if I'd not heard it. He
told of a friend of his, name of yours, who had been lost, murdered they
all believed by some spy."

"And did he say nothing also of Tayoga, a wonderful Onondaga Indian, and
of David Willet, a great hunter?"

"Aye, so he did. I recall those names too. Said the Indian was the most
marvelous trailer the world had ever known, could trace the flight of a
bird through the air, and a lot more that must have been pure romance."

"It's all true! every word of it. I'll see that you meet Tayoga, and
then you'll believe, and you must know Willet, too, one of the grandest
men that ever lived, soul of honor, true as steel, all those things."

"I believe you! Every word you say! But I can't keep you talking here
with the water dripping from you. We really couldn't question your
truth, either, after you'd saved our ship and all our lives. I see you
have a naval uniform of ours. Well, we'll give you a dry one in its
place. See that the best the _Hawk_ has is his, Lanham."

Robert was taken to a small cabin that was vacant and he exchanged into
dry clothing. He went back a little later to the captain's room with
Lanham, where they insisted upon his taking refreshment, and then
Captain Whyte sent him to bed.

"I've a million questions to ask you, Mr. Lennox," he said, "but I won't
a