“I have been on the go ever since I left Putnam Hall,” said Anderson Rover. “It was a most unexpected trip. I will tell you all about it as soon as I have rested a bit and had something to eat.”
“We have something to tell, too,” answered Dick. “But that can keep until later.”
Inside of an hour Mr. Rover had been served with a good, hot breakfast and then he declared that he felt like a new man. He invited the whole family into the sitting room for a conference of importance.
“I told you lads I had something on my mind,” he said. “I did not want to speak of it while at the graduation exercises at the school because there was too much going on. Now I am going to tell you everything and also tell you what I propose to do. But first, I want to listen to what you have to tell me.”
It did not take the three boys long to relate the particulars of the pursuit of Cuffer and Shelley, and of what they had overheard at the old mill. Anderson Rover listened with close attention and did not seem surprised when they mentioned Sid Merrick’s name.
“That fits in, to a certain degree, with what I have to tell you.” he said, when they had finished.
“It is a strange story, and the only way for me to do, so that it will be perfectly clear to you, is to tell it from the beginning.”
“Well, we’re willing enough to listen,” said Dick, with a smile.
“We’ve been on pins and needles ever since you said you had something important to tell,” added Tom, grinning.
“Well, to start, this concerns Mrs. Stanhope more than it concerns ourselves,” began the father.
“What!” ejaculated Dick. He had not expected anything of this sort.
“I knew you would be surprised, Dick, and you’ll be more surprised when I get through.”
“Are the Lanings in this?” questioned Sam, thinking of Grace.
“They are in a certain sense—or will be if everything turns out successfully. When Mr. Stanhope died he left most of his property to Mrs. Stanhope and Dora—the majority to Dora—but a small share was left to the Lanings, they being so closely related and such good friends.”
“But what is it all about?” asked Tom, impatiently.
“As I said before, I must start at the beginning, or perhaps you won’t understand at all. As you know, Mr. Stanhope died some years ago. He was interested in various business enterprises, including a number of vessels which carried freight between the United States and the West Indies. One of his partners in the freight carrying business was a man named Robertson and another was a Silas Merrick.”
“Merrick!” cried Sam.
“Yes, and this Silas Merrick was an older brother to Sid Merrick, the rascal who stole the bonds, and whom you heard mentioned by Cuffer and Shelley. Let me say here that Silas Merrick is dead, and when he died he left all his property to his brother Sidney and his sister. The sister is dead, too, and her property, so I understand, went to her son Tad Sobber.”
“This is getting deep,” said Tom, his sunny face growing wrinkled.
“It will soon get deeper, Tom. During the time that the firm of Stanhope, Robertson & Merrick were carrying freight from the West Indies there was a fierce revolution in Central America. Some families of high rank were forced to flee, among them a nobleman named Parmonelli, who left home carrying with him gold and diamonds worth many thousands of dollars. He managed to get on board one of the vessels owned by Mr. Stanhope’s firm, and Mr. Stanhope was on the ship at the same time. The vessel was followed by revolutionists who were no better than pirates, and after a fierce fight the revolutionists shot Parmonelli and carried off his fortune.”
“This is certainly getting deep,” murmured Sam.
“Parmonelli was not killed at once, but died two days after being shot down. He was very bitter against the revolutionists, and said they had no right to take his fortune from him—that it was his and did not belong to the state. As Mr. Stanhope had befriended him to the last he made a will, leaving the fortune to Mr. Stanhope if the same could be recovered.”
“And how much was it?” questioned Dick.
“I cannot say exactly the will mentions six bags of gold and one bag of precious stones, all packed in several chests.”
“It’s queer I never heard of this from Dora,” said Dick. “She told me about the other money her father left.”
“Mr. Stanhope kept the matter to himself, and at his death told only Mr. Laning, for—as you know—Mrs. Stanhope was then in delicate health and it was deemed very unwise to excite her.”
“But what about the fortune—was it recovered?” asked Tom.
“No.”
“Then the money has long since been spent,” cried Sam in dismay.
“No, Sam, the money and the jewels, to the best of my belief, have never been touched. When the revolutionists carried them off they said they were going straight back to Central America with them. Instead, however, they landed on an island of the West Indies and there started to divide the fortune. This caused a bitter fight, in which several of the party were killed and wounded. Then it was decided to hide the money and jewels in a cave on the island and make a division later. A place was selected and the gold and jewels placed under heavy rocks in a small cave. After that the party sailed away. When they got home, much to their surprise and dismay, they found their country in the hands once more of the government. They were captured and all but two were sentenced to be shot as traitors. The two were sent to prison and they were released less than a year ago. One was a Spaniard named Doranez and the other a Spanish American sailor named Camel, but usually called Bahama Jack, because he has spent nearly all his life among the Bahama Islands.”
“Did those two men go after the treasure when they got out of prison?” asked Sam.
“They wanted to, but were poor and had forgotten the exact location of the island where the treasure was hidden. Bahama Jack was a happy go lucky sort of a sailor and he came to this country and worked for a while on a lumber schooner running from Florida to Boston. Doranez also came to this country, but where he kept himself at first I do not know.”
“Go on, Dad, this is getting exciting,” broke in Tom, as his parent paused in his recital.
“Not long ago Mrs. Stanhope came to me for advice concerning this matter. Mr. Laning had told her everything, and she wanted to know if it would be worth while to organize an expedition to hunt for the treasure. I said I would look into the matter and ask her to give me what papers Mr. Stanhope had left in reference to the affair. I started to hunt up Bahama Jack and Doranez. After a good deal of work I found the former and had several long talks with him.”
“Did you get any news from him?” asked Dick.
“A little. He does not remember exactly where the island was located, but told much about its general appearance and what other islands were in that vicinity. But he also told me something else, which worried me a good deal. It was that Sid Merrick, as the heir of Silas Merrick, was also after the treasure.”
CHAPTER VII
IN WHICH SOMETHING IS MISSING
“Sid Merrick after the treasure!” cried Dick.
“Yes. He wants it both for himself and for his nephew, Tad Sobber. He claims that the revolutionists took it from a ship belonging in part to his brother and consequently he has as much right to it as has Mrs. Stanhope.”
“But that isn’t so, is it?” asked Sam.
“No; the treasure, if it is found, belongs to Mr. Stanhope’s estate absolutely—that is, to Mrs. Stanhope, Dora and the Lanings. The fact that Silas Merrick had an interest in the ship at the time of the stealing of the wealth cuts no figure at all.”
“What is Sid Merrick doing?” asked Tom.
“He has been working in secret, looking for Bahama Jack and the Spaniard, Doranez. I found out that he had one talk with Bahama Jack, but the sailor did not like Merrick and told him very li
ttle. Then I started to find Doranez—he is the man I have been after during the past week. I found him and he promised to work with me if I would pay him for his trouble. But yesterday he sent me a note, stating he had changed his mind and was going to Spain, to look up some of his relatives. So he is probably out of it from now on.”
“Maybe he is going to look for the treasure on his own account,” suggested Randolph Rover.
“He cannot do that very well, for he has little or no money.”
“And what do you propose to do, father—go on a hunt for the treasure?” asked Dick.
“Yes. From what papers I have on hand and the information gotten from Bahama Jack I think we stand a fair chance of locating that island and of finding the cave where the treasure is secreted. Of course, there is a good deal of guess work about it, but I am convinced the thing is worth trying.”
“And how are you going at it?” came from Tom.
“A friend of mine in Philadelphia, a Mr. Dale, has a steam yacht which he is not going to use this summer, as he is going to Europe. I have determined to charter that yacht and go on a cruise among the West Indies. It will be a fine outing for the summer, even if we don’t locate Treasure Isle, as Mr. Stanhope called the spot.”
“And you’ll take us along?” asked Tom, quickly.
“If you want to go.”
“If we want to go? Does a duck want to swim, or a dog want to scratch fleas? Of course we want to go.”
“Such a trip will suit me to a T,” said Sam. “And I hope with all my heart we locate that treasure,” he added earnestly.
“Of course you’ll take this Bahama Jack along,” said Dick.
“Yes, and I have promised him a big reward if the treasure is recovered,” answered his father.
“Who else will be in the party?”
At this question Anderson Rover’s eyes began to sparkle.
“I was going to keep it a secret, but perhaps I had better tell you. The steam yacht is a large one and can readily accommodate fifteen or twenty passengers. I have decided to ask Mrs. Stanhope to go and bring Dora, and will also ask the Lanings. Then they will know exactly what is being done to recover the treasure. In addition, if you want to take some of your chums with you, as you did on that houseboat trip.”
“Hurrah, just the thing!” burst out Sam. “Let us take Fred Garrison by all means.”
“Yes, and Songbird Powell and Hans Mueller” added Tom. “They will help to make things lively.”
“Can they go?” questioned Dick.
“We can telegraph and find out,” answered Tom. “I’ll telegraph this afternoon,” he added always ready to do things on the rush. “We ought to get an answer to night or to morrow morning.
“When do you want to start on the trip?” asked Dick.
“As soon as the party can be made up, and the steam yacht can be gotten in readiness. I have already instructed the captain to provision her for the trip.”
“Then she has a captain and a crew?”
“Oh, Yes, she carries ten men, including an engineer and his assistant.”
“That is certainly fine!” said Dick, and he smiled as he thought of what a nice trip they would have with Dora Stanhope on board. Dick was not “moonstruck,” but he had a manly regard for Dora that did him credit.
After that Anderson Rover gave them many more details regarding the treasure, and his talks with Bahama Jack and of what he hoped to accomplish. He had a fair idea of the latitude and longitude of Treasure Isle, which, he had been told, was of coral formation, covered with palms and shaped somewhat like a horseshoe.
“Bahama Jack says the treasure cave is about in the center of the inner curve of the island, but that you cannot sail close to it on account of the numerous reefs. You have to land on the island in a small boat, and that is why very few ships stop there. Natives of that vicinity occasionally go there for fruit and for birds, but there is no regular village on the island.”
“If the island is shaped like a horseshoe we ought not to have great difficulty in locating it,” said Dick.
“The trouble is, you cannot see the formation very well from the sea, Dick. If one were in a balloon it would be different. You must remember that there are many hundreds of islands scattered in that part of our globe.”
“Let’s take a balloon along,” suggested Tom. “Then we could go up and take a look around.”
“You couldn’t look far enough, Tom, and if you tried to sail in the balloon you’d probably drop into the ocean and be drowned. No, we’ll have to do our searching from the steam yacht. But I have several maps and drawings which I think, will aid us.”
“The things Cuffer and Shelley were after?” cried Dick.
“Perhaps if they are in league with Sid Merrick. Merrick, of course, would like to get all the information possible.”
“I’d like to look at the maps and drawings.”
“So would I,” added Sam and Tom. The idea of going on a treasure hunt filled them with great interest.
“The maps and drawings I have are only copies,” went on Anderson Rover. “The originals are in Mrs. Stanhope’s possession.”
Mr. Rover turned to his brother. “You have them, Randolf. Will you please get them?”
“I have them?” queried Randolph Rover, in perplexity. As my old readers know, he was at times somewhat absent minded.
“Why, yes, don’t you remember my giving them to you? They were in a large yellow envelope. I think you placed them away with your traction company bonds.”
“Why—er—so I did,” stammered Randolph Rover. “But I—er—I don’t quite remember what I did with them.” He scratched his head. “I’ll go and get my tin box.”
He left the sitting room, and after being gone fully ten minutes returned with a flat tin box, in which he kept some papers of value.
“The envelope doesn’t seem to be here,” he said, turning over the contents of the box.
“Don’t you remember it?” asked his brother, anxiously.
“Oh, yes, I remember it very well now. I saw it only a couple of days before I went to Carwell with my bonds.”
“Did you take that tin box to Carwell?” asked Tom.
“Yes.”
“Was the envelope in it then?”
“I—er—I really don’t know, Thomas. You see I was much upset, thinking my bonds were no good. Perhaps the yellow envelope was in the box, under the bonds.”
“And did Sid Merrick have hold of the box?” demanded Anderson Rover.
“He may have had. The box was on a side table, and he walked around the room and over to it several times.”
“Then, unless you have the envelope now, Sid Merrick stole it,” said Anderson Rover, somewhat bitterly.
This announcement filled Randolph Rover with increased anxiety and as a result he looked over all his private papers and ransacked his safe and his desk from end to end. But the precious yellow envelope and its contents were not brought to light.
“Merrick must have gotten hold of that envelope at the time he stole the bonds,” said Dick. “Maybe that is what made him trace up this story of the treasure.”
“That may be true, Dick,” answered his parent.
Randolph Rover was greatly distressed over the disappearance of the maps and drawings and upbraided himself roundly for not having been more careful.
“Now that they are in this Merrick’s hands he may make use of them,” he said dolefully.
“Undoubtedly he will,” answered Anderson Rover.
“If he has those papers and maps why did he send Cuffer and Shelley here?” asked Tom.
“Most likely he thought he could get additional information.”
“It seems to me the best thing we can do is to get after that treasure without delay,” said Dick. “If we don’t, Merrick may form some kind of a
party, locate the island, and steal the gold and jewels from under our very noses!”
“Oh, such things are not done in a day, Dick,” said his father, with a faint smile. “But I agree with you, the quicker we get after the treasure the better.”
After that a discussion lasting well after the dinner hour followed, and was only ended when Mrs. Rover fairly drove them into the dining room for the midday repast. It was resolved that the party to go in search of the treasure should be made up of Anderson Rover and his three sons, Mrs. Stanhope and Dora, the Lannings, and also Fred Garrison, Songbird Powell and Hans Mueller. During the afternoon a number of telegrams and letters were written, and the boys send these off before nightfall.
Aleck Pop was very much interested in such conversation as he had overheard, and as he had accompanied the boys to the jungles of Africa and on the houseboat trip he was very anxious to be a member of the present party.
“I don’t see how yo’ young gen’men is gwine to get along widout me,” he said to Sam. “Don’t yo’ think you kin squeeze me aboadh somehow?”
“Aren’t you afraid you’d get seasick, Aleck?” asked Sam.
“I ain’t afraid ob muffin, if only yo’ll take me along,” answered the darkey earnestly.
“I suppose the steam yacht has its cook.”
“Dat might be, Massa Sam, but didn’t I cook all right on dot houseboat?”
“You certainly did.”
“Might be as how I could gab dot cook on de yacht seem p’ints as to wot yo’ young gen’men like, ain’t dot so?”
“Perhaps, Aleck. If you wish, I’ll speak to father about it.”
“T’ank yo’ werry much, Massa Sam!”
“But you must promise one thing,” put Tom, who was listening to the talk.
“Wot is dat?”
“You won’t run off and marry the widow Taylor when you get back.”
“Huh! I’se done wid dat trash!” snorted Aleck. “She kin mahrry dat Thomas an’ welcome. I don’t want her or her chillun neither!”
“All right, then, Aleck, we’ll, see what we can do for you,” said Tom, and Sam said the same. In the end it was agreed that Aleck should accompany the party as a general helper, and this pleased the colored man very much. It was a lucky thing for the boys that Aleck went along, as certain later events proved.
The Rover Boys Megapack Page 187