The Lighthouse Mystery
Page 4
is Tahiti."
"Oh, boy!" cried Benny. "Maybe the captain will let us go over the
ship."
"Maybe," agreed his grandfather. "It will be a beautiful passenger ship,
not like the freighter you went to Blue Bay on."
"Very posh," said Benny.
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"Yes, I guess that is the word," said Grandfather, smiling. "I know the
company that owns that ship."
"Then I guess the captain will let us go on," said Jessie, looking at
Violet. "Grandfather does know a lot of people."
"I don't know this captain, but I hear he is a very good man with a
boat. He is young."
They washed the dishes and then got into the station wagon. Henry backed
it out and they were soon on their way to Ashland.
"Boats are always late," said Jessie. "We may have to wait all day."
"Right," said Mr. Alden. "But there are seats on the wharf and a roof to
keep the sun off. You will enjoy watching the small boats. They keep
coming and going."
"How do you know so much about Ashland?" asked Henry. "I never heard of
that town."
"Well, remember I grew up on Aunt Jane's farm. And I have been up here
with Mr. Carter a
69
few times. I am interested in that Tahiti boat."
"Ah, I thought so," said Jessie. "That's why we are going to see it come
in."
Mr. Alden laughed. "I like to see ships come in anyway-any ship."
The Tahiti was late.
"I told you boats are always late," said Jessie.
They all sat down and watched the small boats. There was one big empty
place for the Tahiti. Small boats came in to get gas and water.
"See that man having his breakfast on that boat?" said Jessie. "He has
bacon and eggs."
"Now his wife is bringing the toast," said Violet. "It must be fun to
cook and eat on a boat like that."
One boat had children climbing all over the deck. "Oh, they'll fall in!"
cried Violet.
"I don't think so," replied Grandfather. "Those children are used to a
boat."
The mother heard this. She looked up at Grandfather and laughed. She
said, "Don't you worry.
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All these children have been living on a boat since they were born. They
can all swim and dive."
Everything was interesting, but still the ship did not come in. At last
it was time for lunch.
"We had better get lunch at some place over here," said Mr. Alden.
"We'll hear the boat whistle if it comes in."
It seemed good to eat at a real table again. The Aldens had a good lunch
and finished with apple pie. Then they went back to the wharf.
"She's coming, sir," said a man in uniform. "She has passed the Point."
"Good!" said Mr. Alden. "Thanks for telling me."
Many men began to come down on the wharf to help tie up the big ship.
Soon they saw it coming in the distance. It was pure white.
"It has three big whistles," said Violet.
"No, Vi, those are not whistles," said Benny. "They are smokestacks. See
the smoke?"
Violet laughed at her mistake.
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From the South Seas
The big ship came nearer and nearer. It was very beautiful. A small boat
went out to meet it. Then it slowly came into the empty place at the
wharf. People were standing and waving at the rail of the ship. Then
Jessie noticed that many people had come down to meet them. It was
exciting to watch them. And Larry Cook was in the crowd. But it seemed
as if he did not want to be seen. He never looked toward the Aldens.
"Is that the captain?" asked Benny.
"Yes. You can tell by his uniform."
After the crowd had gone, Grandfather went up to the captain and said,
"Good day, sir. I am James Alden."
"Are you indeed?" said the captain. "I'm glad to meet you at last."
"These are my grandchildren. I wonder if they could go aboard," said Mr.
Alden.
"Certainly," said the young man, smiling. "My name is Snow. I'll have an
officer show them around."
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"I don't want to take up your time," said Mr. Alden.
"Oh, no," said Captain Snow. "I have three days' leave. I live just over
in Conley."
"Conley!" said Benny. "That's where we are staying. In the lighthouse."
"What an adventure that must be," said Captain Snow, "living in a
lighthouse. Here is an officer. He will show you over the Tahiti."
The officer showed them everything. They looked in the boiler room, the
swimming pool, the dining room, the cabins. Everything was much nicer
than the Sea Star that had taken them to Blue Bay.
"Have you a big kitchen?" asked Violet.
"Kitchen? Oh, yes! We call it a galley. We feed hundreds of people. It
takes a lot of pans and dishes, ranges, and an enormous refrigerator to
do that. Come this way, and you will see."
The refrigerator was interesting because it was as big as a small room.
There were two men in it,
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From the South Seas 73
[PICTURE NOT SHOWN]
74
putting things on the many shelves.
"Could we go in, too?" asked Benny.
"Sure," said the officer, smiling. "Plenty of room, but rather cold. You
won't want to stay there long."
"Brrr! No, I don't," said Benny. He went out as quickly as he had come
in. "You've got enough meat for a meat market, I should think."
"We have enough for many meat markets," said the officer.
When they had seen the whole ship, the young Aldens were ready to go
home to supper. They thanked the officer four times over.
Jessie said, "If Captain Snow lives in Conley, I wonder which house he
lives in."
"If he is there for three days, we'll find out," said Henry. "We'll ask
Mr. Hall. He will know."
When Benny started to climb up to bed that night, he shouted, "Henry, I
am the dumbest thing in the world!"
"Why are you dumb?" Henry shouted back
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"Because I saw two or three long white bags in that refrigerator, just
the kind you get plankton in, and I never said a word about it."
"Yes, old boy, I'm dumb, too, because I saw those bags and just didn't
pay any attention. I was thinking about that refrigerator that we could
walk into."
"I saw them, too," said Jessie. "Aren't we all dumb? We could have asked
the officer what they had them for."
Grandfather said, "Now just what are you talking about?"
Benny called down the stairs, "Don't you remember, Grandfather, that's
the way to get plankton? To drag a long bag through the South Seas?"
"Of course I remember. Captain Snow was getting plankton for Larry. I
should say the whole family was quite stupid."
"Dumb," said Benny.
"All right. If you like it better-dumb," said Grandfather.
76
CHAPTER 9
Who Needs a
Friend?
The Alden family did not stay dumb for long.
Tuesday Benny said, "Let's see if we can find out where Captain Snow
lives."
"Just step down to the store," said Henry, laughing.
Everyone laughed.
&
nbsp; "Wait just a minute until we finish the breakfast dishes," said Jessie,
"and we can all go."
It was Grandfather who asked Mr. Hall, "Do you know Captain Snow of the
Tahiti?"
"I'll say I know him," said Mr. Hall. "I've known him ever since he was
a boy. He's brother to the Cook boy's mother."
"Aha!" said Jessie.
"Aha!" said Benny. "That explains a lot of things."
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Mr. Hall leaned on the counter. "Larry always goes over to see his uncle
when the Tahiti comes in. His uncle gives him something every time, but
nobody has ever found out what it is."
"Maybe he gets it in a covered pail," said Benny, looking at Mr. Hall.
"How did you know that?" asked Mr. Hall.
"I saw him come home late one night and he had a pail," said Benny.
"Sometimes his uncle gives him a box," said Mr. Hall, "and sometimes a
glass can. What do you suppose is in all those things?"
"We think we know," said Henry. "It's seaweed or plankton."
"And what's plankton, young feller?"
"It doesn't grow here close to shore," said Violet.
"It grows in the deep sea," said Henry. "In some places the deep sea is
full of it."
"And what is it?" asked Mr. Hall.
"It's what a whale eats," said Benny. "It's plants and tiny fish and
eggs and stuff you can't see with-
78
out a microscope, but whales live on it. The whale takes a big mouthful
and swallows the plankton and strains the water out of his mouth."
"Fishes eat it, too," Henry added. "It's something like the way land
animals feed on growing plants and smaller animals."
"Plankton tastes awful," said Benny. "They say there's enough plankton
in the deep sea to feed the world."
"You don't say!" said Mr. Hall. "Too bad it doesn't taste good. But what
I want to know is what the Cook boy wants it for."
"We think he studies it and experiments with it," said Henry.
"He's a smart boy all right," said Mr. Hall. "Maybe Captain Snow would
know."
"Where does he live?" asked Henry.
"Way up the street," said Mr. Hall. "Do you know where they're fixing
the driveway?"
"Yes, that's where we got our cement," said Jessie.
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Mr. Hall said, 'There's a white house near that corner and that's
Captain Snow's. He lives with his mother."
Benny said, "But most of the time he's out at sea."
"Yes," said Mr. Hall. "Most of the time."
Then Watch began to wag his tail. He went to the door.
A tall man came in and said, "Well, hello, dog. You are a good watchdog.
Your name ought to be Watch."
"It is!" cried everybody.
"You're Captain Snow of the Tahiti," said Benny. "We were just coming
down to see you."
"Good," said Captain Snow. "You are the Aldens who went over my ship.
Just give me some crackers and five pounds of sugar, Mr. Hall. Then I'll
go right home."
"Do you have to go home?" asked Benny.
"No, I'm not in a hurry. I'm on leave from ship just now."
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"Can you come and sit on our rocks for a while?" asked Henry. "Right
over there," he pointed.
"Certainly," said Captain Snow. "I'll leave the crackers and get them on
the way home." All this time he had his hand on Watch's head.
"Watch likes you," said Violet.
"I like dogs," said Captain Snow.
"Let's go," said Benny. "We have five chairs and a table made of rocks."
"I'll sit on the table," said the captain.
"No, Henry will sit on the table," said Jessie. "His chair will fit
you."
Soon they were sitting on the rocks, talking.
"You see that little house?" said Jessie, pointing to the little white
house. "It was a summer kitchen for the lighthouse."
Henry added, "Mr. Cook, Larry's father, owns it now. That's what Mr.
Hall told us."
"I see that it's empty," said the Captain.
"But it isn't empty," said Benny. "That's where
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Larry does his experiments-at least we think so. He stays up most of the
night. We don't know how he gets in-he can't have a key."
"I always wondered where he worked," said Captain Snow. "He doesn't tell
me much, but I know he's trying to study by himself."
"He wants to go to college this fall," said Jessie.
"Everyone in town knows that," said the captain, laughing. "His father
didn't catch on that Larry was so smart and let him write letters to two
colleges."
"Did they want him?" asked Benny.
"Yes, they both wanted him," said the captain. "They wanted a young man
who has tried to carry on experiments in science by himself."
Then Grandfather said, "I think he can get the work he wants at Henry's
college. I might talk to the teachers there about him."
"Both colleges he wrote to wanted him. He chose Adams," said the
captain.
"That's Henry's very college," shouted Benny.
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"What do you know about that!" said Henry.
"If he went there, you could take care of him, Henry," said Benny.
Henry laughed. "He won't need anybody to take care of him," he said.
"But you could be his friend," said Violet.
"He'll need a friend," said Captain Snow. "So far his father has said
no"
"But why?" said Benny. "And why does Larry have to hide his work?"
Captain Snow said, "I will tell you that. Tom Cook is a selfish man with
a quick temper, but I think he really does love Larry."
"He doesn't show it much," said Benny.
"No, that's the trouble with them both," agreed the captain. "I think
Larry is afraid his father would spoil his experiments if he knew about
them."
"Larry cooked a wonderful supper," said Violet. "We heard his father was
proud of him. He made five hundred dollars for the street lights."
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Captain Snow got up. He said, "Well, I'll try to help him all I can. I
know how interested he is in science. And he seems to have found some
good friends."
After a minute Henry said, "Now the next thing is to make Larry really
friendly."
"How?" asked Jessie.
Violet said, "He is a little friendly now, but that's because we helped
him with the supper."
"What could we do, Grandfather?" asked Jessie. "Something that would
give him a good time?"
"Wait till morning," said Mr. Alden. "Something may come up."
Something did come up. And it was very different from anything they had
thought of.
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CHAPTER 10
Hints and Plans
The next morning Jessie looked at Violet. "What in the world is the
matter with you?" she asked.
"Mosquitoes," said Violet. Her face was red and puffed.
"Does your face hurt?" asked Jessie. "I would hardly know you. We'll
have to do something."
"I can hardly open my mouth," said Violet.
"I heard the mosquitoes," said Jessie. "Look at my arm."
The boys came down to breakfast.
"Hello! Hello!" said Benny. "What happened to you, Violet? You look fat
in the face."
"Mosquito bites," said Jess
ie.
"I had some, too," said Mr. Alden. "The wind has changed. Now it comes
off the land. That always means mosquitoes."
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Henry said slowly, "We have five windows."
"We have a screen door but no screens on the windows," said Benny. "I
have an idea. Let's put screen cloth on the windows and get Larry to
help us."
"And what about poor Violet?" asked Mr. Alden.
"Mr. Hall will have something for her bites," said Jessie. "I hope he
has screen cloth, too."
Violet could hardly eat.
Henry said, "I've finished breakfast. I'll run over to the store."
Soon he came back with a great many things. He had something for
Violet's face, a roll of screen cloth, a big box of tacks, and two small
hammers.
Jessie covered Violet's face with white stuff from Mr. Hall's.
"You don't need to help, Violet," said Benny. "You can't see the tacks."
"The next thing is to find Larry," said Jessie. "Now, Benny, don't say
anything about seeing him
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out in his father's boat. And don't ask him about what he does in the
summer kitchen. He'll tell us when he's ready."
Benny said, "Oh, Jessie, I'm not
that
dumb."
The Aldens walked up and down the street and looked at Larry's house.
Mrs. Cook was out in the yard.
"Where's Larry?" asked Henry.
"I don't know. He's out."
They could see that the Sea Cook was in.
At last they went down to the wharf. There was Larry, reading a book.
"Hi, Larry," shouted Benny. "Will you come and help us?"
"What doing?" asked Larry, shutting his book. "And where is the other
sister?"
"You wouldn't know her," said Benny. "She is all mosquito bites. One eye
is all shut."
Jessie said, "We want to put screens on five windows."
"You don't need me," said Larry.
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"Count us," said Benny. "We have five windows and four people."
Larry laughed. He got up, put his book under his arm, and they all
walked down the street.
Larry looked at the high windows. Then he looked at the screen cloth.
"You can't put this on from the outside," he said.
"No," said Benny. "We are going to put it on from the inside. We'll show
you. We have done it before."
"I'd like to see how you do it," said Larry.
Then Violet came out.
"I'm very sorry about your face," said Larry. Then he began to cut
screen cloth.
Grandfather sat out on the rocks. He laughed to himself. Everyone was