THE YOUNG
California
gional
ility
HERMIT
AL
Women
OLIVER
OPTIC
866830





Fuller
frorn
Dorothy 415.






322 BA22
THE BOOK OF
Fuller, D.
Baird.
1.204 Baynes St.



ferguson Kennedy.
PHIL HAULED HIMSELF TO THE HEBE BY THE ROPE..-Page 146.


THE YOUNG HERMIT
OF LAKE MINNETONKA
BY
OLIVER OPTIC
AUTHOR OF
"Boat Club Series," "Woodville Stories," "Lake Shore Series,"
"Army and Navy Stories," etc.
ILLUSTRATED BY J. W. FERGUSON KENNEDY

1850 1904
KNO
WL
EDGE
NO
MORE
SHALL
BE
FOUN
TAIN
CLOS
1861
BOSTON:
LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO.


COPYRIGHT, 1888
BY FRANK A. MUNSEY
THE YOUNG HERMIT


CHAPTER
STACK
ANNEX
5125320
CONTENTS
I. THE NEPHEW OF HIS UNCLE
II.
A DIFFERENCE IN THE COUNT
III. ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS MISSING .
IV. THE SEARCH
V. THE EX-DETECTIVE
VI.
VII.
VIII. REVEALED AT MIDNIGHT
IX.
A TERRIBLE BLOW
X. THE INVESTIGATION
XI. THE BURGLAR ALARM
XII. LAKE MINNETONKA
XIII. THE APPROACHING STORM
XIV. A DISASTER ON THE LAKE
A FAMILY QUARREL
A DIVIDED HOUSE
·
•
XV. THE HERMIT OF MINNETONKA
XVI. CAPTAIN LUBBOCK
XVII. THE MEETING AT THE HOTEL
XVIII. THE HISTORY OF CONNY
XIX. THE LETTERS ON THE ARM
XX. SHOUTS FOR ASSISTANCE
XXI. A GIRL IN PERIL
XXII. AN EXCITING CHASE.
·
•
•
·
PAGE
5 29 4≈ 8 ± 85 ♡ ✪ ☀ ≈ 8*
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19
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38
44
50
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69
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82
89
95
101
107
113
120
127
134
140


ii
CONTENTS
CHAPTER
XXIII. MR. ARNOLD BLONDAY
XXIV. THE EXCITED PASSENGER
XXV. A PRESSING INVITATION
XXVI. UNWELCOME VISITORS.
XXVII. THE VISITORS IN THE SHANTY
XXVIII. GAY AND HIS FRIEND
XXIX. ALMOST A QUARREL
XXX. THE TRAVELING BAG
XXXI. FOR HIS BENEFACTOR
XXXII. A FLANK MOVEMENT
XXXIII. THE "HEBE" MAKES A TRIP
XXXIV. A MIDNIGHT SUMMONS
XXXV. THE EX-DETECTIVE TALKS .
XXXVI. CAPTAIN GREENWAY'S IDEA
XXXVII. MR. CAVAN'S PLAN
XXXVIII. THE GENTLEMAN FROM CHICAGO
XXXIX. CAVAN'S PLAN
•
XL. THE HAPPY PAIR
XLI.
THE STRANGER AT THE BANK
XLII. THE NEW PILOT OF THE "HEBE"
XLIII. THE LETTER.
XLIV. WHAT MR. CAVAN DID
XLV. UTTERLY Confounded
XLVI. A DARK TRANSACTION
XLVII. THE LAST OF THE HERMIT
·
·
·
PAGE
146
153
159
165
172
178
184
190
197
203
210
217
223
230
237
244
251
257
264
271
277
284
291
298
304


ILLUSTRATIONS
Phil hauled himself to the Hebe by the rope
(page 146).
"Paul Gayland!" gasped the capitalist
Captain Greenway put the helm hard over
"On shore!" replied Bashy.
boat!"..
•
·
66
Frontispiece
FACING PAGE
56
·
Bring off that
90
262





THE YOUNG HERMIT.
CHAPTER I.
THE NEPHEW OF HIS UNCLE.
"If you had any grit at all, you would not stay here
another day," said Sparks Gayland, a young man, of
eighteen, as he walked up and down the elegant par-
lor in which the other was seated.
"Where do you think I ought to go?" asked Paul
Gayland, a very good-looking boy of fourteen, putting
down the Pioneer Press he had been trying to read.
"Wherever you wish to go. You are not wanted
here," retorted Sparks, with a heavy tinge of bitter-
ness in his tones.
"You mean that I am in your way, and you don't
want me here," suggested Paul, with more of sadness
than of anger in his whole manner.
"I am not the only one that don't want you here,"
replied Sparks, halting in his walk before the boy.
"Your aunt, Mrs. Gayland, does not want me here
any more than you do, I am well aware," continued
Paul, looking very gloomy. His words seemed to come
from a young heart in which sorrow had already taken
up its abode.


6.
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Then why don't you take yourself out of the way?"
demanded Sparks, in taunting tones.
"Mrs. Gayland and yourself are not the only per-
sons in the family," answered the boy, in a very mild
tone, though he seemed to have some confidence in the
argument he offered.
"That's where the meanness on your part comes in!"
exclaimed Sparks, quite savagely, as he stalked away
from his companion.
"I don't exactly understand where the meanness
comes in. Mr. Gayland does not wish me to leave the
house, though I have spoken to him several times about
the matter," quietly responded Paul, as he looked at
his tormentor, for such the other speaker had certainly
become.
"Mr. Gayland is an old fool!" exclaimed Sparks.
Paul Gayland sprang to his feet, dropping the news-
paper on the floor. There was a decided snap in his
eyes as he fixed his earnest gaze on his angry com-
panion. He was evidently about to return a sharp
answer to the young man; but he restrained his rising.
choler, and, picking up his paper, seated himself again.
The cloud had passed away from his brow.
"I do not think your uncle is an old fool," he said,
in his usual mild manner.
"Of course I did not mean to say that offensively,"
added Sparks, suddenly changing his tone and manner,
as he walked up to his companion, and looked him full
in the face with an expression of anxiety.
"I don't see how you can call Mr. Gayland an old


THE NEPHEW OF HIS UNCLE
7
fool without saying it offensively," replied Paul, with
a sad smile on his handsome countenance.
"You know that I have the highest respect and re-
gard for my uncle," pleaded Sparks, who was no doubt
very sorry for the hasty remark he had incautiously
dropped in his anger.
Paul opened his eyes till his eyebrows were elevated
and his forehead wrinkled, while his lips curled just
enough to betray his incredulity.
"Perhaps you have," he added, in an indifferent tone.
"You know I both respect and love him, Paul!"
"I don't dispute it; that is a matter to be settled
with your own conscience, and it does not concern.
me."
"But you did dispute it," replied Sparks, warming
up again.
"I think not."
I
"What do you mean by putting a 'perhaps' in when
say I both love and respect my uncle?" demanded
Sparks.
"Just now you called your uncle an old fool, which
may be loving and respectful, but I don't see it in that
light," replied Paul, shrugging his shoulders as though
he had just come from Paris.
Sparks bit his lip till it ought to have bled, for he
was painfully conscious that his impetuosity had led
him into a serious blunder.
"I did not mean that," he said, subdued for the mo-
ment.


8
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"I can't tell what you mean except from what you
say, Sparks."
"But those hasty words might ruin me," suggested
the nephew of Mr. Gayland.
"I don't think they would, for your uncle is a just
man, and does not condemn a young fellow for a hasty
remark."
"If he knew I said that-______"9
"He shall not know it from me," interposed Paul,
only loud enough to break the sentence of his com-
panion.
"Do you mean that you will not tell him what I
said, Paul?" asked the other, his expression brighten-
ing up as though the offensive remark had been fully
atoned for.
"That is what I mean; and I will not tell him what
you said," replied Paul, so quietly that the impetuous
young man hardly believed what he said.
"Honor bright, you will not report what I said to
him?"
"I will not."
"Your hand on that, Paul," continued Sparks, ex-
tending his own.
"I make it a point to keep my promises," said the
boy, as he took the proffered hand.
"I know you do, and I will trust you."
"Thank you."
"Of course I don't believe that my uncle is an old
fool. I only mean to say that he has taken an unac-


THE NEPHEW OF HIS UNCLE
9
countable liking to you, while he is rather cold and stiff
with me," Sparks explained.
"In a word, Sparks, your uncle, who is said to be
worth six hundred thousand dollars, has taken a fancy
to me, and may mention me in his will for a few thou-
sands, just enough to keep me from coming to poverty
and want," continued Paul lightly, as though the whole
subject were a matter of indifference with him.
"A few thousands!" exclaimed Sparks.
"That is what I said; and you seem to object
to it."
"I do not object to a few thousands."
"Does your aunt object to it?" asked Paul.
"Neither of us would object to anything of that
sort; but my uncle is more likely to rob his wife and
me for the sake of making you a rich man when you
are of age, if he should die within the next seven years,
as I sincerely hope he will not."
"Rob your aunt and you!" exclaimed Paul, with a
slight spark of indignation in his tones.
"I wish I could be as cool as you are, Paul," added
Sparks, feeling that he had again overstepped the
bounds of discretion. "Of course I did not mean that
he would rob us."
"But that is what you said without stopping to think.
You believe that your uncle's property belongs to your
aunt and yourself."
"She is his wife, and I am his nephew, the only near
relation he has in the world."


10
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"That hardly answers my question. Mr. Gayland
has your permission and that of his wife to give me a
few thousands, say three or five, but all the rest be-
longs to you and her. That is the idea, is it not?" said
Paul, apparently not much interested in what he said.
"Of course I don't put it in that way," replied Sparks
impatiently.
"I had an idea that your uncle had a perfect right to
do as he thought best with his own property."
"To be sure he has; but do you think it right that a
young fellow, not in any way related to him, should
step in and take the bulk of his property?" demanded
Sparks indignantly.
"I should say that a young fellow had no right to
do anything of the kind, or to meddle with the matter
in any way, whether he be a young fellow of eighteen,
which is your age, or fourteen, which is my age."
"But I am his nephew, his next of kin, and his only
near relative," protested Sparks. "The law would
give half or two-thirds of his property to me if-
"If your uncle did not give it to somebody else,
which he has an undoubted right to do."
"Perhaps he has; but it isn't justice," growled
Sparks. "You have stepped in to cut me off, or at least
to cut me down. And who are you, Paul?"
"I haven't the least idea," replied the boy, shrugging
his shoulders as though it were a matter of little conse-
quence. "For aught I know, I am the son of Mr.
Ward Gayland, your uncle."


THE NEPHEW OF HIS UNCLE
II
"His son!" exclaimed Sparks, aghast at the very
idea.
"I did not say I was his son; I don't know anything
about it," returned Paul.
He rose from his chair and shoved up the coat sleeve
of one arm.


12
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER II.
A DIFFERENCE IN THE COUNT.
"What are you about, Paul? Do you want to get up
a fight with me?" demanded Sparks, stepping back and
looking with wonder at his young companion.
"Not at all," replied Paul, as he rolled up the shirt
sleeve on his right arm. "Do you see that?"
"What? I don't see anything," answered the other,
retaining his position at some distance from Paul, as
though he feared a sudden blow.
"You couldn't see it any better if you should go out
of doors; and you would need a spyglass to see it
where you are," continued Paul, as he walked toward
his associate.
"See what? What are you talking about, Paul?”
asked Sparks, keeping his gaze fastened on the other to
be ready for a sudden surprise.
"Can you see this mark on my arm?" asked Paul,
as he pointed to what looked like a spot halfway be-
tween the wrist and the elbow.
Sparks was reassured, and he ventured to look at
the mark.
"It consists of two letters," he added, looking at his
companion for an explanation.
"You are right; there are two letters on my arm."
"P. G.," added Sparks, as he bent over the bare arm,


A DIFFERENCE IN THE COUNT
13
and read the letters. "What does P. G. stand for?"
demanded the nephew of his uncle, apparently as much
distressed as he was surprised.
"The letters don't stand for George Washington,
do they?" inquired Paul, with a significant smile.
"Certainly not; but what do they stand for?” asked
the other as though his curiosity was very much ex-
cited.
"I don't know any better than you do; but I am
generally known as Paul Gayland, and it is barely pos-
sible that the letters stand for that name, though it
does not seem to occur to you that they mean that.”
"But how came those letters on your arm?" de-
manded Sparks, beginning to be a little excited.
"Give it up!"
"Don't you know how they came there?"
"I haven't the least idea. When I first made the
acquaintance of Paul Gayland those letters were on
his arm. That is all I know about it," replied Paul,
as he shrugged his shoulders from the force of habit,
and proceeded to pull down his sleeve.
"You don't know? That is very strange," added
the puzzled and discomfited nephew.
"But as true as it is strange."
"Does my uncle know that those letters are there?"
"I don't know whether he does or not; he never
spoke to me about them so far as I can remember."
"That is very strange," mused the expectant heir.
"For aught I know, he may have put them there
himself; and for aught I know, I may be his son."


14
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Impossible."
"Perhaps it is impossible; I don't know,” replied
Paul, again assuming his indifference of tone and man-
ner.
"You know the circumstances under which my uncle
took you into his keeping at first, and has cared for you
ever since," added Sparks.
"Of course I know the story which is told to explain
how I happen to be a member of this family, where it
appears now that I am not wanted."
"The story! Then you don't believe it is true, but
only a story?"
"I don't know whether it is true or not-how should
I? I only know that I did not bring myself to him,
and that I had nothing at all to do with his adopting
me."
"You were not more than six or seven years old,
and, of course, you had nothing to do with it; but I
have no doubt at all of the truth of the story."
"I don't deny or dispute it," said Paul, with some-
thing very like a yawn, as though the whole matter
was a bore to him.
"My uncle had just married his young wife, and then
went to Nice in France to spend the winter, for she
could not stand the cold of St. Paul. While they were
there, boarding at the hotel, they saw you in the care
of a man who did not treat you very well. My uncle's
sympathy was excited, and he spoke to the man, who
told him the child was an orphan, and he was going to
put you in an asylum of some sort."


A DIFFERENCE IN THE COUNT
15
"That's the story; I have heard it a dozen times
before, for your aunt likes to tell it to her callers,"
interposed Paul.
"You were said to be a very pretty child, and my
uncle and aunt felt a strong interest in you, the result
of which was they took you from the man, and you
have been a member of the family ever since, except
for the year when you ran away.'
99
"It is a great pity that I ever came back, as I should
not have done if I had had my own way," suggested
Paul.
"Now, in the face of this story, which is vouched
for by my aunt, who was in Nice at the time, what
do you mean by hinting that you are the son of my
uncle?" asked Sparks, who was even more disturbed
than he appeared to be.
"I don't say that I am Mr. Gayland's son, for I
don't know anything at all about it, though the initials
on my arm are rather suggestive.”
"Why don't you ask my uncle about those initials?"
"I don't care anything about them."
"Don't you wish to know whether or not you are my
uncle's son?”
"No."
"You don't?" demanded Sparks, amazed at the stoi-
cism of his companion.
"Why should I wish to know? If it were proved
that I was his son, it would cut you off from any share
in your uncle's wealth."


16
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"You would not cry about that," sneered the
nephew.
"I should weep my eyes out."
"You are the strangest fellow on the face of the
footstool!" exclaimed Sparks, beginning to pace the
apartment again.
At this moment the door opened as though it had
been burst in by a strong arm, and an old gentleman
dashed into the room with a great bundle of bank bills
in his hand.
All this conversation had taken place in the sitting
room of an elegant mansion on the hill, in St. Paul.
The elderly gentleman, overloaded with bank notes,
was Mr. Ward Gayland, a capitalist, though not a very
venturesome operator for the driving locality in which
he resided.
Mr. Gayland rushed to the table in the middle of the
room, and tossed the pile of bills upon it as though
he had no great respect for the wealth it represented.
"Here, Sparks, count this money. I have been over
it nineteen times, and I can't make it twice running
alike," said the capitalist, very much flurried about
something he did not explain.
As he spoke, he darted into his library, in the rear
of the parlor, as though he had something on his mind,
and Paul, not caring to meet the uncle and nephew
together at this time, hastened out of the apartment
and went to his chamber on the next floor.
Sparks seated himself at the table, and proceeded
to straighten out the pile of bank notes, which the old


A DIFFERENCE IN THE COUNT
17
gentleman had crumpled up in his hands. He smoothed
them out carefully, and laid them evenly before him on
the table; and it was evident that he was more method-
ical than his uncle. Thus arranged, the pile was not
a large one, and the young man went through the count
in a very short time.
"Eleven thousand," said he to himself, and then he
counted again. "Eleven thousand," he repeated, when
he had gone through the pile a second time.
Though he appeared to have no doubt in regard to
the amount, he laid off each bill by itself, and counted it
again; and as all the bills were of the denomination of
one thousand or five hundred, it took him but a couple
of minutes, though he stripped each one to assure him-
self that it was not double.
"Eleven thousand," he repeated. "I cannot make
any more or any less of it. But that is an odd amount,
and I will bet money Uncle Ward intended to make up
the sum of ten thousand, for that is the biggest amount
he will ever venture in one investment."
Then Sparks bent over the table and the bank notes,
and appeared to be doing some heavy thinking.
"How much do you make of it, Sparks?" demanded
Mr. Gayland, rushing back into the parlor from the
library with a paper in his hand. "That note for ten
thousand, given by Valderwin, which is almost the
only one I ever backed with my name in all my life,
will not be paid, and the payor has just notified me that
he cannot take care of it," he continued, without wait-
ing for an answer to his question.


18
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"But Valderwin is good, uncle," suggested the
nephew, as he laid the pile of bills in front of the
capitalist, who had rushed up to the table where he
was seated.
"I have no doubt of that; but he is always con-
founded short of funds," added Mr. Gayland. "I have
no doubt if I told him I would not pay the note till
it was protested he would raise the money. How much
did you say there was in that pile?”
"Ten thousand, Uncle Ward," replied Sparks, look-
ing down at the table as though he was reading a mem-
orandum of the amount.
"That is just what I made of it half the time, and
eleven the other half," said the rich man. "Have you
been over it carefully, Sparks?"
"Very carefully, sir; but I will go over it again if
you wish," answered the nephew.
"No; I will try it again myself. I drew checks from
three banks, and put a couple of thousand I had in the
safe with it; but I was a good deal disturbed by Valder-
win's letter, and my hand was not steady. You must
be right."
The capitalist proceeded to count the money.


ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS MISSING 19
CHAPTER III.
ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS MISSING.
Sparks Gayland watched his uncle with the deepest
interest as he counted the money in a rather clumsy
manner, though he was evidently much cooler than
when he had performed the task before.
He went through the pile three times, and he was
satisfied there was now no mistake, for he had not
been able to get the amount twice alike before while
he was disturbed by the payor's failure to take care
of his note.
"Ten thousand!" he exclaimed, in a loud tone.
"There is no mistake about it now. Take it over to
Valderwin's office, but don't give up the money till he
signs this note."
He handed the money and the unsigned note to his
nephew, who left the house with it.
Mr. Gayland wrinkled up his brow as soon as his
nephew had departed, and seemed to be cudgeling his
brain about something, for he soon rushed into the
library again, and began to figure on a piece of paper
at his desk.
Then he took out three check books, and looked
carefully at the last stub in each of them, noting the
amount on it on the paper. Then he put down another
sum and added the amounts.


20
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Eleven thousand beyond the possibility of a doubt!"
exclaimed he, rising from his chair, with the paper in
his hand. "What was I thinking about when I took
two thousand dollars out of the safe? I needed but
one thousand.”
The conundrum he asked himself seemed to bother
him, though he did not appear to be willing to "give
it up." He seated himself at the desk, going over his
figures again; but the result was the same as before.
"Did I take two thousand from the safe?" he asked
himself, as he rose nervously from his chair. "I ought
not to be so forgetful, or to make such blunders in
simple addition, for I am only sixty years old, and was
never in better health in my life."
Then he rushed to a door which appeared to lead
into a small closet, which he opened, and the iron door
of the safe was to be seen, where he kept his important
papers, bonds, and other valuables.
"Three times three are nine, and two are eleven,"
said he, as he proceeded to open the safe with a key
he took from his pocket. "No mistake about that.
I drew three checks of three thousand each, as the stubs
show. Now the question is whether I took one or two
thousand from the safe. I had just thirty-two hun-
dred on hand, with three thousand of which I was to
buy a mortgage this afternoon. There ought to be
twenty-two hundred left in the safe, and I must give
a check for a thousand. That is all straight enough."
He took a small drawer from the safe, and went to
the table in the middle of the library, where he counted


ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS MISSING
21
the money in it as many as five times before he was
satisfied.
"Only twelve hundred left in the safe; and that
makes it plain that I took out two thousand, as I sup-
posed I did; still I could make only ten thousand out of
the pile," muttered the capitalist, with a heavy knot
of wrinkles on his brow. "I don't understand it."
Then he rubbed his head to stimulate his ideas, and
paced the library, recalling all the events that had oc-
curred in the last hour.
"I made the money eleven thousand several times.
Two of the bills must have stuck together when I
made it only ten," he mused, talking out loud in his in-
terest in the subject before him. "But then Sparks
made it only ten thousand every time."
Then he piled up the wrinkles deeper and heavier
than before, dropping into an armchair, where he gave
himself up to thoughts to which he did not give ex-
pression, though he was somewhat in the habit of talk-
ing to himself when he was mentally exercised.
He sat in this attitude of deep thought as much as
twenty minutes, when he was disturbed by the entrance
of Sparks, who had executed his commission and who
placed the note, now signed, before his uncle, who be-
stowed no more than a glance on it.
"Sparks, are you sure there was only ten thousand
in that pile of bills I asked you to count?" asked Mr.
Gayland, fixing a searching look on his nephew.
"That is what I made of it," replied the nephew.
"Did you see Valderwin in his office?"


22
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Of course I did, for he has signed the note," re-
plied Sparks, pointing to the paper on the table, though
his speech was just a little shaky.
"Did he count the money you carried to him?"
"He did, twice over."
"Did he say it was right?"
"He didn't say anything about it."
"He would have said something if it had not been
right," added Mr. Gayland, fixing a stern gaze on the
young man, who stood on the other side of the table
from him. "But it must have been right, for I made
it ten thousand myself before I sent you off with it."
"I am sure I did not make any mistake, sir; and I
am equally sure you did not, for your count agreed
with mine," continued Sparks. "Why do you ask these
questions, Uncle Ward?"
"Because I am a thousand dollars out, and I am as
sure as I can be there was eleven thousand dollars in
that pile when I handed it to you, Sparks."
The young man turned slightly pale.
"Do you think I took a thousand dollars of the
money, uncle?" he asked, his voice becoming more
shaky than before.
"Who else could have taken it?" demanded the
capitalist sharply. "You were alone in the parlor
when I brought the money in?"
"No, sir; I was not alone. Paul was in the room,
and did not leave it till after you went into the library,"
replied Sparks, rather warmly, as though it was neces-
sary to defend himself.


ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS MISSING
23
"Paul did not touch the money."
"I don't say that he did; I don't know anything
about it. I did not know you had missed a thousand
dollars till you told me of it."
"Where was Paul when I threw the money on the
table in the sitting room?" asked Mr. Gayland, more
moderately than he had spoken before.
"He was sitting at the table, while I was walking
up and down the room," replied Sparks, truthfully re-
porting the situation of both.
"I am sure that I had eleven thousand dollars in
that pile, and I made it so by count several times,
though sometimes I could make but ten of it. While
you were out I have looked the matter over, and I am
sure there was eleven thousand dollars," and the
capitalist explained the process by which he had arrived
at this conclusion.
"Of course you are correct, for you have proved that
there must have been eleven thousand, unless you
dropped one of the bills on the floor."
Mr. Gayland caught at this suggestion, and the floor
of the sitting room and library was carefully examined
by both of them; but without finding the missing bill.
Then the nephew suggested that his uncle had come in
from the hall carrying the money, and he admitted that
he had been into the dining room for a glass of water
with the bills in his hand.
The dining room and the hall were as carefully
searched as the other rooms had been; but not a bank
bill was to be found there or in any other place. The


24
THE YOUNG HERMIT
servants were questioned, but not one of them had
been into the dining room within the last hour, and
the capitalist returned to the sitting room.
"I did not drop one of the bills on the floor; if I
had we should have found it," said he, looking Sparks
full in the eye, though the young man had now recov-
ered his self-possession, and stood the gaze without
flinching.
In fact, Sparks had become quite cheerful, as though
he realized that the thousand dollars, if lost, did not
come out of his pocket.
"I am afraid you have been gambling again,
Sparks," said Mr. Gayland, knitting his brow as sav-
agely as it was possible for a mild man like himself to
do it.
"No, sir, I have not; I never gambled but once in
all my life, and then I lost only two dollars," replied
the nephew promptly.
Mr. Gayland looked as though he had some doubts
on this point, though he did not express any.
"The money must have been taken from the pile
after I put it on the table," continued the capitalist.
"There were only two of you in the room, and one
of you must have taken it. This is not the first time I
have missed money, and I am going to the bottom of
the matter this time. Call Paul."
Sparks left the room to obey the order.


THE SEARCH
25
CHAPTER IV.
THE SEARCH.
Sparks had heard Paul go up the front staircase,
and he went to his chamber, where he found him.
"Mr. Gayland wishes to see you, Paul," said he, as
he entered the room and walked over to the window.
"Where shall I find him?" asked the occupant of
the room.
"In the sitting room," replied the nephew, as he
thrust his fingers into his vest pocket.
Though he appeared to be looking out the window,
Sparks had one eye on Paul, and as soon as the latter
had passed out of the room, he pulled out one of the
drawers of the bureau, and hastily dropped something
he took from his vest pocket into it.
Doubtless it was fortunate for him, or, at least, for
the cause of honesty in general, that his uncle did not
see him when he did this act.
It might have been the missing thousand dollars that
he dropped into the bureau drawer, or it might not
have been; but whatever he deposited in the drawer,
he did it with a good deal of haste and nervousness, for
he certainly was not a skilled rogue yet, though he may
have had the capacity to become one in time.
When he had closed the drawer, he rushed out of
the room and hastened to the stairs, overtaking Paul


26
THE YOUNG HERMIT
before he had reached the hall below. Both of the
young men entered the sitting room together, though
the nephew, probably for reasons of his own, got in
ahead of his companion.
Mr. Gayland had settled down in one of the easy-
chairs, and looked as though he felt qualified to sit in
judgment on the one who had appropriated a thousand
dollars of his money. He stated the case before him
at considerable length, giving the evidence which satis-
fied him that the money must have been taken by one
of the young men before him.
"You see that I cannot be mistaken, for the money
was taken within an hour, and no one but ourselves has
been in the house," he continued, looking very sternly
from one to the other of the culprits.
Paul looked very good-natured, and did not seem
to be at all disturbed by the charge which included him-
self in the probabilities; and Sparks had had plenty
of time to school himself to the situation, if he needed
any schooling.
"Well, Mr. Gayland, what is to be done about it?"
asked Paul, so cheerfully that the capitalist was im-
pressed with his manner. "I am ready to submit to
anything you think proper; and I suppose you wish to
search us both. I do not object."
"That would be the proper way to proceed, no doubt;
but I have no skill in such matters, and I think I need
some assistance," added Mr. Gayland, as he went to
the wall of the room and pressed the knob of an electric
bell.


THE SEARCH
27
"But I don't exactly like the idea of having this
affair known all over the city," suggested Sparks. “Of
course, I have no fears of the result."
"If either of you has taken this money, I shall not
take any pains to conceal the fact from the public,” re-
plied the rich man, putting on a sternness he seldom ex-
hibited. "The Pioneer Press and the Globe shall be
welcome to all the facts."
"Send for the constables and the reporters, sir," said
Paul, with one of his most decided shrugs of the shoul-
der. He appeared to be as indifferent about the pro-
ceedings as though he was not under suspicion.
"Go over to Mr. Cavan, the real-estate agent, and
ask him if he will be kind enough to give me a few
minutes of his time," continued Mr. Gayland, when
Prince, the colored manservant, presented himself at
the door of the sitting room.
The man bowed and retired without a word, while
both of the young men wondered what the real-estate
agent could have to do with the matter, or why he,
rather than any other person, had been sent for; and
the man of wealth did not consider it incumbent on
him to enlighten them.
Cavan had formerly been a detective in the highest
repute in New York; in fact, his talent was sufficient to
justify him in seeking a wider field of operations than
his profession, and he had made a success as a real-
estate and loan agent.
The capitalist had found him honest and square,
and had joined him in a number of undertakings re-


28
THE YOUNG HERMIT
quiring more capital than Cavan could command, so
that very intimate and friendly relations subsisted be-
tween them.
Neither of the young men asked any questions about
the person sent for, and while Paul was supremely in-
different to the proceedings, possibly Sparks comforted
himself with the assurance that the matter was not to
be committed to the officers of the law.
"Mr. Cavan will be over in a few minutes, sir," said
the servant, again appearing at the door.
In spite of himself Sparks was rather uneasy, and
walked about the room while they were waiting, as
though he was even more nervous than usual, while
Paul hardly moved a hair in his seat.
Mr. Cavan was announced before any of the party
had time to become very impatient. He was a man
between forty-five and fifty, with an eye which might
well have been a terror to evildoers, for he seemed
to have the power to look a rogue out of countenance
at a glance.
"What can I do for you to-day?" asked the real-
estate agent, after the usual salutations.
"Perhaps you can do a good deal for me, though
what I have to ask is not in the usual way of business,"
replied the rich man, with a seriousness which could
not fail to impress his visitor.
"Any service that I can render to Mr. Gayland will
be most cheerfully given, whether it relates to busi-
ness or pleasure, and whether there are any commis-


THE SEARCH
29
sions or not," replied Mr. Cavan, glancing at the two
young men in the room.
"It is rather an unpleasant affair, in fact, decidedly
unpleasant, and for the reason that I do not feel com-
petent to deal with it, I have taken the liberty to ask
for your assistance, knowing that you are skilled in
such matters as that I have in hand."
"I shall be very glad to assist you in any possible
manner," said the visitor, with a polite bow, as he
took a chair in front of his host.
"Thank you; you are very kind; and I will tell you
the whole story," continued the capitalist, as he pro-
ceeded to relate the particulars of his loss, as they have
been fully presented.
"And you suspect one of these young gentlemen?"
inquired the real-estate agent, after he had listened
without a word to the entire narrative.
"I more than suspect them, for I am absolutely sure
that one of them must have taken the money," replied
Mr. Gayland, looking as severe as though he was not
one of the most kind-hearted men in the world. "If
one of them did not take the money, perhaps you can
suggest what has become of it."
The ex-detective asked a number of questions which
were answered by Mr. Gayland or the boys, and he ob-
served the latter very critically as he examined them
in his very gentle way, for he put on no bluster, and
was not at all demonstrative in his manner.
"The proper thing to do first is to search the young
gentlemen, if they do not object, for, of course, they


30
THE YOUNG HERMIT
are as anxious to have the truth come out as you can
be, sir," the agent proceeded, when he had taken in
all the facts.
"That is rather humiliating," said Sparks, throwing
back his head as though it would be compromising his
dignity to submit to such a step.
"I don't object, and you may begin with me," inter-
posed Paul, walking up to the examiner, and throwing
up his arms to afford perfect facility for the search.
Mr. Cavan went through all the pockets of the boy;
and, not satisfied with this, he looked into his stockings,
and overhauled every part of his dress.
"All the bills were new and crisp, you said, Mr. Gay-
land," continued the ex-detective when he had com-
pleted the search.
"They were; but whether the money taken was in
one or two bills, I do not know," answered the rich
man.
"It makes no difference; but I am satisfied that the
money is not on the person of this young man,” added
Mr. Cavan, pointing to Paul.
"But he was up in his room for some time after
the money was brought in," suggested Sparks, who
thought the examiner was blundering.
"Thank you, Mr. Gayland," added Cavan, bowing
to the nephew, though there was a bit of sarcasm in
his tone and manner. "We will search his chamber
before we proceed in any other direction."
The examiner walked to the door, asking Paul to go


THE SEARCH
31
with him; and as soon as he was in the hall, he beck-
oned to the capitalist, who joined him at once.
"Keep your two eyes on the other one every mo-
ment of the time," he whispered to Mr. Gayland; and
then went upstairs followed by the boy.
Paul's chamber was searched in the most thorough
manner without finding anything that looked like a
bank note, though a piece of paper folded like one
was discovered in one of the bureau drawers; but the
occupant of the chamber declared that he had never
seen it before. As it was not a bank note, it was
thrown back into the drawer.
Cavan said he was satisfied, and they went down to
the sitting room again, where the ill success of the
search was announced.
"You did not find anything?" asked Sparks, greatly
astonished at the declaration of the examiner, though
he immediately checked himself.
"Not a thing. Now, if you will permit me, Mr. Gay-
land, I will see what is in your pockets. Of course, this
is a mere formality, and we resort to it merely to
establish your innocence," continued Cavan.
"Certainly I do not object under the circumstances;
but after you have examined me, I shall have some-
thing more to say," replied Sparks.
A new and crisp thousand-dollar bill was found in
his vest pocket.


32
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER V.
THE EX-DETECTIVE.
"That looks a little like business," said Mr. Cavan,
as he took the thousand-dollar bill from the vest pocket
of Sparks Gayland. With it was a piece of paper like
that which had been found in the drawer in Paul's
room.
"I did not put that bill there!" exclaimed Sparks,
overwhelmed with confusion.
"Of course you did not put it there, Mr. Gayland;
it jumped out of the pile of bills on the table, and
wickedly and maliciously took up its resting place in
your vest pocket," replied the ex-detective, in the bland-
est of tones. "Undoubtedly it was very wrong for
that bill to put itself into your pocket in that manner
at this particular time."
"I tell you I did not put it there!" persisted Sparks
violently. "I know nothing at all about it, any more
than you do."
"But I know all about it," suggested the agent pleas-
antly.
"I know nothing about it. I haven't the least idea
how the bill came to be in my pocket," protested the
culprit.
"I do know. But just now you suggested that you
had something to say after you had been searched,


THE EX-DETECTIVE
33
and this seems to be the time to say it," continued the
agent.
"I don't know that it will be of any use for me to
say anything now," answered Sparks, as though he
were the innocent victim of circumstance, as he turned
his gaze to Paul.
"Perhaps it will, and then again perhaps it will not,"
said Cavan. "You must be your own judge in regard
to that."
"If you have anything to say, Sparks, say it; and I
hope it will relieve you of the guilt which has now been
fastened upon you," added his uncle.
"When you threw the bills on the table, Uncle Ward,
they scattered about, and some of them fell within
reach of Paul, who was sitting at the table. If I am
not greatly mistaken, I saw him take one of them and
put it in his pocket just as he was going out of the
room," said the nephew, with a mighty effort to shake
off the guilt which had been fastened upon him.
"And that is the particular reason why the missing
bill was found in your pocket," added Cavan, with a
twinkle of the eye that Sparks Gayland did not like.
"Of course I put the bill in his pocket! That is
plain enough, and I ought to be hung, drawn, and
quartered on the spot," said Paul, with his habitual
shrug of the shoulders.
"One who had got far enough to take the bill from
the pile on the table would not have to strain himself
very hard to put it in the pocket of an innocent per-


34
THE YOUNG HERMIT
son when the time of trouble came," suggested Sparks
doggedly.
"And he would not have to strain himself much
harder to put the stolen bill in the bureau drawer of
an innocent person," said the ex-detective, with more
energy than he had before displayed, as a new idea
evidently dawned upon him. "Paul, will you oblige
me by bringing from your room the paper we found in
one of the drawers of the bureau?" he added.
Paul plainly did not wish to do anything to assist
in overwhelming the nephew of his uncle; but after a
moment's hesitation he left the room, and presently
returned with the folded paper, which he handed to
the examiner.
Cavan still held the paper he had taken from the
vest pocket of Sparks in his hand, and he proceeded
to compare the two papers, which were of the same
kind, and both of them had typewriter work upon them.
"I have been practicing on a machine in the office
of a friend of mine, and that is a part of my work,"
said Sparks, as the examiner unfolded the paper taken
from the pocket of the culprit.
"Ah! Then this paper belonged to you, did it?”
asked Cavan.
"Of course it did; it was taken from my pocket."
"And the one taken from the bureau drawer is ex-
actly like it, both being on bank-note paper," continued
the agent, unfolding the other paper in his hand.
"Both have typewriter work on them; and, of course,
Paul has also been practicing on the typewriter, and


THE EX-DETECTIVE
35
has also used precisely the same kind of paper; and
that a very expensive sort for mere play."
"I know nothing about the other piece of paper,"
said Sparks.
"Certainly you do not, for it was found in Paul's
room. But it was done on the same machine, for all the
outs in one paper appear in the other," the agent ex-
plained, as he examined the two papers side by side.
"I don't quite see what you are driving at," inter-
posed Mr. Gayland; and it was plain enough that his
nephew did not see the point any better, clear as it was
to Mr. Cavan and Paul.
"Excuse me one moment, sir, and then I will ex-
plain. When you made the discovery that you had
lost the money, were both of the young men in this
room?" asked Cavan.
"They were not," answered Mr. Gayland, after a
little reflection. "Sparks was here, and when I learned
that the other boy had been here when I put the money
on the table, I sent for Paul, who was in his room."
"That makes it all plain sailing," replied the ex-de-
tective, with his blandest smile. "Now, Paul, which
of you came out of your chamber first when Sparks
went up to call you?"
“I did, and I left Sparks at the window, where he
was looking out; but he passed me on the stairs, and
came into the sitting room first," replied Paul, with
something like a yawn in his manner, as though he
was weary of the subject.
"It is a good deal clearer than Mississippi water


36
THE YOUNG HERMIT
now," said the agent, as he rose from his chair, as if
to indicate that his mission was accomplished. "When
Sparks went up to the chamber to call Paul, he lin-
gered a moment in the room after Paul left, pretend-
ing to look out of the window. As soon as his com-
panion had passed the door, he put the thousand-dol-
lar bill into the bureau drawer, as he supposed, and
really believed he had, until the bank note was taken
from his pocket.
"He was more surprised then than any of the rest
of us, for none of us expected that it would be found
upon him.
In his haste to return as soon as Paul
to your presence, he made the slight mistake of put-
ting his paper with the typewriter work on it in the
drawer, for it felt like the bank note. That is the
whole story, Mr. Gayland, and I am very sorry for
your nephew, for he had evidently intended to keep
the thousand dollars if his caution would permit him
to do so."
"I understand the matter perfectly now, Mr. Cavan,"
added Mr. Gayland, nodding his head to emphasize
what he said.
"This seems to be a family affair, and I suppose
there is nothing more for me to do or say," continued
Mr. Cavan, as he moved toward the door.
Mr. Gayland expressed his thanks in the strongest
terms, and the real-estate agent departed. A profound
silence followed his exit, during which the gaze of
Sparks was fixed on his uncle.
Before any one had a chance to say anything,


THE EX-DETECTIVE
37
Mrs. Gayland entered the room, with her street dress
on, for she had just returned from a walk.
"What in the world is going on here?" she asked,
as she observed the solemn face of her husband, and
the hangdog look on that of Sparks.
In reply to this question her husband told the whole
story of the missing and recovered bank bill.
"Sparks Gayland stole the money!" she exclaimed.
"I don't believe a word of it!"
"It has been proved to my satisfaction,” replied Mr.
Gayland.
"You are too easily satisfied," added the lady, with
a toss of her head. "Sparks Gayland, did you steal the
money?"
"Of course I did not; this is a conspiracy to ruin
me in the estimation of my uncle, though I cannot tell
exactly how the affair has been managed by Paul-
99
"Paul? I might have known that he was at the
bottom of it!" exclaimed the lady, with a sneer on
her pretty face. Her husband had married her for
her beauty.
Paul Gayland was seated near the table, but he did
not even look at Mrs. Gayland; on the contrary, with-
out saying a word, he rose from his seat and walked
deliberately out of the room. He was followed by
the capitalist, who picked up the bank bill as he passed
the table.


38
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER VI.
A FAMILY QUARREL.
"Paul," called Mr. Gayland, as soon as he reached
the door, which he did not take the trouble to close be-
hind him. "I am sorry you have been annoyed by this
business."
"Oh, I'm not at all annoyed," replied Paul, as he
returned to the place where the capitalist stood. "I
am afraid Sparks is more annoyed than I am.”
"He has sufficient reason to be," added Mr. Gay-
land. "Here is the thousand-dollar bill which has made
all this trouble; take it, Paul; it is yours."
"Mine, sir? I really don't understand you!" ex-
claimed Paul, almost thrown off his balance by the
words of his foster father.
"I give you this money; is that beyond your com-
prehension?" asked the capitalist.
"Yes, sir, it is; for I really don't see why you
should give me such a sum. I never expected to have
so much money to the end of my life, sir," replied
Paul, looking at the big bill, and perhaps thinking
what he might do with it if it was really his.
"I have always looked upon you as a prudent and
careful boy; and if you like you may salt this money
down, and then you will have so much pocket money,
for the savings bank will give you six per cent. a year


A FAMILY QUARREL
39
for the use of it. Perhaps I have some other motive;
if I have, no matter what it is," continued the rich
man, lowering his voice as he uttered the last sentence,
for he had evidently intended his wife and nephew
should hear what he said, possibly as a moral lesson
to the latter, and to assert his independence to the
former.
"What am I to do with all this money,. sir?" in-
quired Paul, who seemed to be bewildered by the mag-
nitude of the gift, though ordinarily nothing disturbed
him.
"You can do anything you like with it, though I
have suggested that you should invest it so that it will
pay you an annual income," replied Mr. Gayland.
"Do you mean that as an insult to your nephew?"
asked his wife, coming to the door that opened into
the hall. "You never did as much as that for Sparks."
"He never deserved it. He is a thief! I will not
have him in my house any longer!" exclaimed the rich
man. A philosopher would have said that he had bet-
ter have married a woman more nearly of his own
age, for their relations were evidently not as pleasant
as they had been when Paul was adopted in Nice, seven
or eight years before.
"You are mistaken, Ward, about this matter," an-
swered Mrs. Gayland, changing her tone very ma-
terially, when she saw that the capitalist was in a
sterner mood than she had ever seen him before.
"Sparks did not steal the money; he says he did not,
and I believe him."


40
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"The thousand-dollar bill was found in his vest
pocket, and the fact that he stole it has been proved
beyond the possibility of a doubt. More and worse
than stealing it, he tried to make it appear that Paul
was the guilty one."
"You are very partial to Paul," suggested the lady.
"And you are very partial to Sparks," retorted the
husband. "The matter has been settled. Sparks shall
not remain in my house, and nothing but the memory
of his dead father prevents me from handing him over
to the police."
"But I am sure you are mistaken, Ward," pleaded
the lady.
"That is easy to say, after I have taken the trouble
to go over the whole matter with the most skillful de-
tective in the country," replied the capitalist, frowning
terribly, and betraying no little anger in his tones for
him.
"Cavan doesn't know any more about it than I do,"
said Mrs. Gayland, with a sneer.
"I said the matter was settled; and nothing more
need be said about it," replied Mr. Gayland, as he
moved toward the hall entrance of the library.
"It is not settled, and I have something to say about
it!" continued the lady, in spiteful tones. "Sparks is
a member of this family, and he is entitled to fair treat-
ment."
"He shall have fair treatment then! I will send
for a policeman, and have him arrested for the crime.
He shall have a jury if he likes, or if you like, which


A FAMILY QUARREL
4I
is the same thing, madam," said Mr. Gayland, halt-
ing near the door. "If anything more is to be said or
done about it, the court shall decide whether he is guilty
or innocent; and I will pay for a lawyer to defend
him."
"You would not have Sparks arrested for such a
crime, Ward," said the lady, overwhelmed by the
threat.
"Why not? It is worse to commit the crime than it
is to be arrested."
"I cannot believe that Sparks-——”
"Don't say another word, Aunt Maud," interposed
the culprit, in mortal terror lest his uncle should exe-
cute his threat.
Mrs. Gayland did not say another word, and the
uncle passed into the library, and closed the door after
him, for he wanted to be alone after the painful scene
through which he had passed.
"You are the cause of all this, Paul!" exclaimed Mrs.
Gayland, as her gaze rested on the boy, who was stand-
ing in the hall with the thousand-dollar bill in his hand,
perhaps considering what he should do with so much
money.
"If I am, then I am," replied Paul, recovering his
indifferent manner.
"Why don't you confess that you stole the money?"
demanded the lady.
"That is what I should advise Sparks to do," an-
swered Paul, hardly bestowing a glance at her.


42
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"You know very well that you stole the money, and
put the bill in Sparks' pocket," continued the lady.
"There is room for a difference of opinion between
you and me on this subject; but I will ask Mr. Gay-
land if he thinks I had better confess the crime," re-
plied Paul, starting for the library door.
"Stop, Paul!" called the wife of the rich man, rush-
ing forward and taking him by the arm. Without say-
ing anything more she led him into the most distant
part of the hall, and Paul tamely submitted, though
he could easily have released himself.
"Paul Gayland, you have made trouble between me
and my husband, and between Sparks and his uncle,"
said the lady severely.
"I think not, Mrs. Gayland," replied the boy quietly.
"Yes, you have; don't deny it! You have been a
stumblingblock in the family. You have wheedled
yourself into the good graces of Mr. Gayland, and now
he even refuses to hear what I say."
"I think he has a mind of his own; but I didn't have
the making of him, and I think it is not my fault that
he will not hear you."
"You mean to say that it is my fault, do you?"
"I don't mean to say anything about it."
"You are an obstinate puppy."
"I haven't bitten you, if I am."
"And as saucy as you are impudent."
Paul looked at the floor.
99
"If you had a spark of manliness in you, you would
take yourself out of the way, and not make mischief


A FAMILY QUARREL
43
any longer between husband and wife, uncle and
nephew."
"I will go and ask Mr. Gayland if he thinks I had
better fire myself out of the house," said Paul, moving
off again toward the library.
"Stop, sir!" she cried, seizing him by the arm again.
Paul was not as submissive as usual this time, and
he struggled to escape.
"Why don't you help me, Sparks?" demanded the
lady, appealing to the nephew.
Sparks always did just what she told him to do;
but he had better not in this instance, for, as soon as
he attempted to lay hold of the refractory boy, Paul
knocked him down as easily as though there had not
been four years' difference in their ages, in favor of
the ally of the lady.
The nephew fell on the oak floor, and his fall made
considerable noise; enough, at least, to attract the at-
tention of the capitalist in his library, and he came out
to ascertain the cause of the commotion.
"What does all this mean?" demanded the rich man,
amazed and horrified at the idea of any violence in his
house.
"It means that Paul just struck Sparks, and knocked
him down!" exclaimed Mrs. Gayland, filled with ex-
citement.
"Is this true, Paul?"
"It is; he laid hands on me, and I defended my-
self."
"Served him right," said the capitalist.


44
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER VII.
A DIVIDED HOUSE.
Mr. Gayland seemed to understand the situation
without much inquiry into the facts, for, though the re-
lations of Paul had never been so critical with the lady
and the nephew as at the present time, they had been
considerably strained for the last year.
The difficulty in the family has already been indi-
cated. The capitalist had married a beautiful woman
hardly half of his own age, and her beauty had proved
to be her principal wealth, though she was not with-
out her good qualities.
It was in the first year of their marriage that their
attention had been attracted at the hotel in Nice to the
little boy of seven, in charge of a brutal man. Find-
ing that the little one was an orphan, they had adopted
him, even without being able to ascertain anything at
all about his deceased parents.
Both of them had been strongly attached to the
child till about a year before the story opens; for Paul,
as they agreed to call him, though rather odd in some
of his ways, was an affectionate boy.
On the right arm of the boy were the two letters
which he had shown to Sparks, the last of which was
the initial of his foster parent's surname, and the name


A DIVIDED HOUSE
45
of Paul was added to it to correspond with the first
initial.
Rather more than two years before the events nar-
rated occurred, Mr. Gayland had been very sick, and
his physician had grave doubts in regard to his recov-
ery, though his excellent constitution and steady habits
had enabled him to weather the storm, and he recov-
ered.
In the course of this sickness it came out that he
had made no will, and if he had died then, his estate
would have been equally divided by law between his
wife and nephew, as next of kin.
Sparks was the only child of Mr. Gayland's brother,
who had died poor, and the rich man had taken care
of the widow and son for some years, till the boy was
left an orphan.
Ward Gayland continued to care for the boy, and
after he married he took Sparks into his own family.
At first the young man did very well; but his contact
with wealth seemed to develop new and pernicious
ideas in him; and though his uncle, who was a prac-
tical man, found a place for him when he had com-
pleted his high-school education, he did not take kindly
to the labor imposed upon him, and his employer re-
fused to keep him.
Another place was found, with no better result, and
then his uncle set him at work as a sort of private
secretary for himself; but he found that the young man
was of very little use for him, for he was both indo-
lent and careless.


46
THE YOUNG HERMIT
Sparks had contracted some bad habits, and his uncle
discovered that he made occasional visits to Minne-
apolis, where he frequented a gambling house, and lost
more money than he could pay, which caused his
vicious habit to be discovered.
Sparks promised to abandon gambling, and even
Mrs. Gayland, with whom he had become a great favor-
ite, threatened to have him sent away from the house
if he persisted. So far as his foster parents could
know, he had ceased to gamble, and in other respects
appeared to be doing better.
The severe illness of the capitalist had opened a new
vein of thought to both the wife and the nephew, for
he was growing older every day, and the end was not
likely to be put off a great many years. The wife was
sure enough of her share; but her favorite nephew
was in peril, for Paul increased in favor with Mr. Gay-
land as Sparks lost ground by his indolence and way-
wardness.
The lady realized, after the dangerous sickness of
her husband, that her favorite was in peril of being
deprived of a considerable portion of his expectancy
in his uncle's estate, and she had talked freely with him
about the prospect.
The result was that Paul was at first treated very
coldly, and could not fail to see that he had lost the
good will of the woman who had treated him so kindly.
and she soon made it more evident by decided acts of
hostility, so that her husband could not help noticing
the change in her bearing toward him.


A DIVIDED HOUSE
47
He talked with her about the matter, but she failed
to give any reason for her conduct, though she grew
more and more hostile to the adopted son, until he
suffered severely on account of her ill treatment.
Though he had always been mild in his manner and
affectionate in his disposition, Paul was a boy of de-
cided spirit, and when he could stand it no longer, he
ran away, making his way to the coast with the inten-
tion of going to sea.
He did make one trip in a fishing vessel, and was
absent six months on the Grand Banks; but this sort
of life did not suit him, and he went to work as a
waiter in a steamer. In this position his foster father
found him, and induced him to return to St. Paul, for
he was so much attached to the boy that he sent out
a detective to track the fugitive as soon as he missed
him, very much to the disgust of Mrs. Gayland and
his nephew.
For a time after the return of Paul the current of
domestic life went along more gently in the elegant
mansion, and the boy finished his course in the high
school; but the jealousy of Sparks and the wife soon
broke out again, and Paul, who had a sensitive nature,
suffered even more than ever before.
There was not a selfish vein in the composition of
the boy, and he fully comprehended the situation.
While he despised the character of Sparks, he could
not help feeling that the young man had reason to be
dissatisfied with Paul's presence in the family, and


48
THE YOUNG HERMIT
especially with his intimate and affectionate relations
with the head of the house.
He felt himself that he was in the way, not of the
wife, but of the nephew; and he had on one occasion
talked with the rich man, and even begged him not
to give him anything in his will, or, at least, not to
give him enough to deprive Sparks of any material
portion of his property.
This unselfish conduct on the part of the adopted son
only endeared him all the more to the capitalist, and
he did not hesitate to say that, whatever he gave Paul,
he should give Sparks only enough to produce an in-
come that would support him comfortably, and that
would be in the hands of trustees, so that the young
man could not spend the principal.
Paul found that he could accomplish nothing by
his appeal, and he never renewed it, for he saw that
Mr. Gayland had a settled purpose in his mind, and
he submitted with the best grace he could to the un-
kindness of his household enemies.
But he was now charged with the crime of stealing
the thousand dollars, though it was clearly proved that
Sparks was the guilty one; and he felt that he could
not endure even a life of luxury while subjected to
such persecution. Even the rough and perilous life
of a fisherman on the Banks was to be preferred.
Mrs. Gayland was an impulsive woman, and she
was sorry for what she had done when her husband ap-
peared in the hall, to which the noise of the scuffle had


A DIVIDED HOUSE
49
called him, for she felt that she had endangered her
own cause by her foolish conduct.
"Madam, you are my wife," said Mr. Gayland,
trembling with emotion, "and I have nothing to say
to you here. You will oblige me by retiring to your
room."
The lady had never received such a request before
from her husband, and she made no reply, though she
did not offer to leave the hall.
“Sparks, I shall find a respectable boarding place for
you, and I shall insist on your leaving my house at
once," continued Mr. Gayland, struggling to master
his feelings.
Sparks made no reply; but he would have given all
he had to give if the wheels of time would set him
back a couple of hours, so that he could undo all that
he had done in that brief period.
Paul did not wait to hear any more, but went up
the stairs to his chamber, for it was plain enough to
him that a family quarrel had actually broken out in
that elegant mansion on the hill; and even if Sparks
were sent out of the house there could be no peace for
him as long as Mrs. Gayland remained.
After Paul had gone upstairs Mr. Gayland went to
his library, and the lady and the nephew talked for
two hours in the drawing room.
The next morning Paul did not appear at breakfast,
and could not be found in the house.


50
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER VIII.
REVEALED AT MIDNIGHT.
The family had met at tea the evening before, but
not a word had been said, for Prince, the manservant,
was on duty at the table; and probably nothing would
have been said if he had not been present, for no one
felt like saying anything.
Paul had decided not to go down to tea, for he did
not care to meet Mrs. Gayland and Sparks again at
present; but Mr. Gayland, suspecting the reason of his
absence, had sent the man for him, and he never dis-
regarded the request of his foster father.
Like the others, he said nothing, though he could
not help studying the faces of his companions at the
table; and he felt that, in the battle which had been
fought in the house that afternoon, the victory was
with the capitalist, though it was clear enough that
the storm had not yet blown over.
Mrs. Gayland and Sparks spent the evening to-
gether in the sitting room, but neither the head of the
house nor the adopted son appeared again that night.
The next morning, when Paul did not appear at
breakfast, Mr. Gayland sent Prince to his room to call
him, not doubting that he kept away from the table
for the same reason as on the preceding evening; and
the old gentleman was not willing that the slightest con-


REVEALED AT MIDNIGHT
51
cession should be made to the malcontents in the
house.
"Mr. Paul is not in his room, sir," reported Prince,
on his return.
"Not in his room!" exclaimed Mr. Gayland, with a
start which indicated the current of his thought. "Has
he gone out so early in the morning?"
"I have not seen him this morning, sir," answered
the man.
Prince seemed to be embarrassed for some reason,
and the head of the family noticed it, and did not seem
to be quite satisfied with the report, though Paul was
not infrequently last at the morning meal.
"You haven't seen him this morning?" repeated the
rich man.
"No, sir; and I don't think he came downstairs this
morning, for I have been here since six o'clock," the
man explained.
"If he did not come down, of course he is in his
room," added Mrs. Gayland, who had doubtless re-
pented of her conduct on the day before, and seemed
inclined to conciliate her husband.
"Are you sure he is not in his room, Prince?" asked
Mr. Gayland. "Did you look in the bed?"
"Yes, sir; I looked at the bed, but he was not in it,"
replied the servant, stammering a little, in his increased
embarrassment.
"Go up again and look in the bed. Tell him break-
fast is on the table, and I want to see him," continued
the capitalist briskly.


52
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"He is not there, sir, and no one slept in his bed
last night," replied Prince, coming to the point at last.
Mr. Gayland sprang out of his chair as though he
had not been sixty years old, for the fact announced
by Prince indicated that he was losing the fruits of
the victory of the day before.
"He must be somewhere in the house," suggested the
lady, who felt that she must say something, and she
could think of nothing else to say.
"He did not sleep in his bed last night, and I don't
expect to find him in the house," added Mr. Gayland,
as he left the dining room.
He went directly to the chamber of his foster son,
and all that Prince had said was fully confirmed. Paul
was not in the room, and the bed indicated that it had
not been occupied.
He was very much disturbed as he looked at the
bed which had not been tumbled by its usual occupant,
and he recalled the time when Paul had disappeared
before.
Then he opened the closet door, and found that a
considerable portion of the boy's clothes had been taken
from the hooks; and a large leather valise he used when
he went to Lake Superior in the summer was also
missing.
He examined the drawers of the bureau, and found
that nearly everything had been removed from them.
Even a part of the books had been taken from the
shelves, as the empty spaces indicated. Paul had evi-
dently filled his valise to its utmost capacity, and it


REVEALED AT MIDNIGHT
53
was plain to his foster father that he intended to be
absent for a long time; in fact, that he never meant
to return.
Mr. Gayland was sorely aggrieved at the discovery
he made, and, perhaps, he thought of Paul's ingrati-
tude to him when he was ready and willing to fight
his battle against all his household enemies. He was
really very strongly attached to the boy; not simply
because he had adopted him, though not in legal form,
but for what the runaway had proved himself to be—a
noble, unselfish, and devoted fellow, who loved his
foster father, not for what he had to give him, but for
his own sake alone.
Perhaps the contrast between the character of Paul
and Sparks had some influence, and the persecution to
which he had been subjected had done something to
draw him toward the young man.
He had gone, abandoned the home of his only friend
on earth, solely because his sensitive nature would not
permit him any longer to be a stumblingblock in the
path of Mrs. Gayland and her favorite. If the con-
duct of the youth was ungrateful to him, it was noble
and self-sacrificing in itself, for he refused to make
trouble in the family.
Having satisfied himself that Paul had actually gone,
for he needed no further evidence, he returned to the
dining room to finish his breakfast.
"He has gone again, and he does not intend to re-
turn," said Mr. Gayland, as he seated himself. "But


54
THE YOUNG HERMIT
let me say now that I made my will six months ago,
and I shall not alter it."
Mrs. Gayland looked at Sparks, and Sparks looked
at her; but neither of them ventured to make any com-
ment or ask any question in relation to the important
announcement just made, and which, it was plain
enough, had been made for a purpose.
Mr. Gayland stayed in the house all day long, and
until the middle of the afternoon no one but Mr.
Cavan called upon him; and if he took any steps to
ascertain what had become of the wanderer, as the rich
man chose to call him, rather than a runaway, his wife
and nephew were not aware of the fact; indeed it ap-
peared to them that he was doing nothing at all in that
direction, for the real-estate agent had not been sent
for, and he had volunteered the information that he
called to see about a mortgage.
At four o'clock in the afternoon, a farmer stopped
his span of horses in front of the elegant mansion on
the hill, and went into the house as soon as Prince
opened the door. He was there by appointment, and
certain papers, including a release of mortgage, were all
ready for him. He was shown to the library, where
he paid the capitalist fifty-two hundred dollars on the
secured note and interest.
Nothing had been said so far about the events of the
day before, and Sparks had been sent to the lawyer's
for the release, which indicated that his uncle had not
yet wholly cast him out, and he had even told the young
man that the mortgage was to be paid that afternoon.


REVEALED AT MIDNIGHT
55
Mr. Gayland came to the tea table that evening with
a telegram written out on the proper blank in his hand,
which he intimated that he wished Sparks to take to
the office and send it to Minneapolis.
The nephew replied that he was going over to Min-
neapolis to spend the night with his friend Pitburn,
after tea. The message was for Pitburn's father, and
he might take it as a memorandum, and tell the person
to whom it was addressed that he could have the six
thousand next morning, which he wanted on a mort-
gage.
In the evening Mr. Gayland and his wife were alone
in the house, and they talked together all the time.
The lady carried her conciliatory policy to the utmost,
for Paul had gone, and, though her husband had made
his will, he might alter it, in spite of his declaration to
the contrary.
So far as the husband and wife were concerned,
peace reigned in the elegant mansion before ten o'clock,
the usual hour for retiring; but the man of money and
mortgages could not sleep, for he was thinking of Paul
all the time.
The fact that he had six thousand dollars or more
in his house did not keep him awake, for he believed
it was as secure in his iron safe as though it had been
in the vaults of one of his banks. Besides, he had all
the doors and windows fitted with a burglar alarm,
which would set all the electric bells in the house to rat-
tling if one of the entrances was disturbed; and on


56
THE YOUNG HERMIT
the least alarm he could light the electric burners in the
house without getting out of his bed.
About the time the church clocks of the city were
striking the midnight hour, Mr. Gayland was sure
that he heard sounds in the lower part of the house.
He got out of bed, opened the door of his chamber,
and listened; and then he felt sure that he heard foot-
steps on the oak floor of the hall. Touching the button,
the electric light blazed up, and from the door he could
see that the same effect was produced in other parts of
the house.
He put on a portion of his clothes hastily, and rushed
downstairs, where he found the front door wide open,
and he saw two men run out.
1
Mrs. Gayland followed him a moment later in a
wrapper she put on, and reached the hall soon enough
to see the last of the two men as they passed out.
Just then they heard steps in the dining room, and
while they were standing at the foot of the stairs, a
young man, or a boy, rushed out into the hall, and made
all haste to the front door. As he passed Mr. Gayland
and his wife he glanced at them, and both of them
were sure that they knew him.
"Paul Gayland!" gasped the capitalist, in tones of
real horror.
"Paul Gayland!" cried the lady.



e
"PAUL GAYLAND!"
GASPED THE CAPITALIST.-Page 56.





A TERRIBLE BLOW
57
CHAPTER IX.
A TERRIBLE BLOW.
"Are you sure that was Paul Gayland?" asked the
capitalist, actually trembling with emotion. "Was it
he, Maud?"
"It was Paul; there can be no doubt of it, though
he has changed his clothes," replied Mrs. Gayland.
"I was sure it was he; but it does not seem to be
possible," added Mr. Gayland, as he dropped, appar-
ently overcome by his feelings, into a chair.
"This hall is as light as day, and I saw his face as
plainly as I saw it at tea time last night, and I could
not have been mistaken," persisted Mrs. Gayland.
"I am afraid you are right, Maud," answered her
husband. "I saw him myself, though I could hardly
believe the evidence of my own senses."
"I haven't any difficulty at all in believing that it
was Paul whom I saw," continued the lady, in a very
positive manner. "I am not at all surprised, as you
are, to find him breaking into your house."
The capitalist groaned in spirit, and covered his face
with his hands, as he thought of Paul engaged in a
criminal enterprise, for he had as much confidence in
his honesty and integrity as he had in the minister
under whose preaching he sat on Sundays.
The fact that he had seen Paul in the house at mid-


58
THE YOUNG HERMIT
night, in company with others whose business could
not well be mistaken, if he thought of their mission at
all, overwhelmed him, and he could turn his attention
to nothing else.
If the boy had been his own son he could not have
been more devoted to him; and Paul had always re-
turned his affection, and been unselfish in all his rela-
tions to him and to the other members of the family,
in spite of the ill treatment of the latter.
He had looked upon him as noble, generous, and
self-sacrificing, since the youth had begun to develop
his character, and for years he had believed that he
had no equal among the young people with whom he
was acquainted.
He was so engrossed by the unexpected revelation
of the hour that he did not even think of the mission
of the persons he had seen going out at the front door
before Paul came out of the dining room, and he was
hardly disposed to inquire into the object of the visit
of the midnight marauders.
So intense was his astonishment and confusion at the
conduct of his trusted young friend that he did not
even recall the fact that he had left six thousand two
hundred dollars in his safe in the library, most of which
had come in after bank hours.
Mrs. Gayland walked about the hall, looking here
and there to ascertain what the visitors had been doing,
though nothing seemed to be changed in that part of
the house; and then she went into the sitting room to
continue her examination.


A TERRIBLE BLOW
59
The capitalist sighed as he sat in the armchair in
the hall, for it seemed to him that the brightest hopes
of his advanced years had just been wrecked.
In a few years, be it more or less, he would naturally
become weak and feeble, even if no malady attacked
him, and he had looked upon Paul as the stay and sup-
port of his declining life, for he had felt sure that he
would be strong in his honesty and devotion, and that
an own son would be and do no more for him than his
adopted child.
Suddenly this hope, which had cheered him for
years, was dashed down, and it seemed to him that he
was left desolate and alone in the world; for Sparks
had disappointed him, and he admitted to himself,
though not to another person, that his marriage to a
young wife had failed to yield the fruit of perfect hap-
piness which he had anticipated.
His six hundred thousand dollars did not seem at
this moment to be of the least consequence to him, for
he could not enjoy it with no one to share existence
with him in the sense that he desired it to be shared,
and with no one for whom his heart yearned, upon
whose strong arm and honest soul he could lean for
support. Paul had filled the vacant place in his heart;
but now his treasure had suddenly been wrested from
its abiding place, and there was again a painful vacancy
there.
"The window in the sitting room is open, Ward,"
said Mrs. Gayland, returning to the hall after she had
made this discovery.


60
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Which window?" asked her husband, with a vacant
glance at her.
"The one that opens on the side of the house," she
answered, not a little disturbed as she saw that her
husband was actually suffering in consequence of the
discovery he had made in regard to the real character
of his favorite.
"Then they came in that way," he added, again fix-
ing his gaze on the floor, as though he felt no interest
in the subject.
"Then why did not the burglar alarm sound?" she
asked, trying to interest him in the present situation.
"I don't know; the wires were detached, I suppose,"
he answered, without looking up at his wife.
"But the house has been robbed, Ward!" exclaimed
the lady, suddenly throwing a great deal of energy into
her manner, as if she wished to bring her husband to
a realization of the situation, for he did not seem to
comprehend it.
"Very likely," he replied, with utter indifference.
"Are you not going to look over the house to see
what the rascals have done?" asked the lady, in vigor-
ous accents.
"I don't care much what they have done; they have
stolen the soul of Paul from me, and that is the great-
est loss that could be fall me," he replied, looking up
into the face of his wife.
"Nonsense, Ward! He had no soul to steal! I am
sure now that I knew him better than you did," snapped
the lady.


A TERRIBLE BLOW
61
"I am afraid, after what has happened to-night, that
you did understand him better than I did," replied Mr.
Gayland bitterly.
"I could not see how Paul managed to keep so cool
and unconcerned last night when I charged him with
stealing the thousand dollars and putting the bill in
Sparks' pocket; but it is plain enough now to me, for
he had this enterprise in his mind, and intended to run
away and join his companions in iniquity," continued
Mrs. Gayland, talking very rapidly, as she did when she
was excited.
"I suppose you are right, Maud; and Paul was like
all the rest of the world. All he wanted of me was
my money," added the capitalist, in a most mournful
tone.
"You know what he is now as well as I do; and I
hope you will not waste any more time in bewailing his
loss. He is a young rascal, as I have believed he was
for several years," said the lady, in tones of triumphant
assurance.
"I would rather have lost half my property than be
disappointed in that boy, for all my hopes were cen-
tred in him, and I feel as though I were alone in the
world," groaned the unhappy man.
"That is not very complimentary to your wife," said
she, with something like scorn in her tones, and much
of it in her looks.
"I only meant that I had more confidence in him than
I had in my nephew," Mr. Gayland explained, and in
tones which were an apology.


62
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Well, however you may feel, you ought not to
waste any more time in groaning over him. Why don't
you look over the house, and see what the rascals have
done?" demanded the lady, beginning to be impatient
over the want of action on the part of her husband.
"You ought to put the police on the track of the rob-
bers at once, and not let them escape if you can help it.”
"Have Paul arrested!" exclaimed the rich man, ris-
ing from his chair, as though the idea stung him to the
quick.
"Why not have him arrested? Are you going to let
him rob your house at midnight, and permit him to
go scot-free because you once thought he was an honest
boy?" demanded the wife, with indignation.
"You were not willing to have your favorite arrested
after he had stolen a thousand dollars from me," re-
plied Mr. Gayland, with more earnestness than he had
before displayed since he left his bed.
"Sparks did not steal the bill; Paul did it, and put
it into Sparks' pocket. Isn't that plain enough now?"
asked the lady, with a sneer on her pretty lips.
"It is no plainer to me now than it was in the time
of it. I do not think any more of my nephew because
I think less of Paul, by no means. If it had been he
whom I saw in the house, escaping with the others, I
should not have been at all surprised. He has been
preparing for a bad end for years.'
Mrs. Gayland was utterly disgusted.


THE INVESTIGATION
63
CHAPTER X.
THE INVESTIGATION.
Mrs. Gayland had been reckoning without her host
after she saw Paul leave the house under conviction, as
it were, for she believed that the ruin of her husband's
favorite fully established the standing of her own. She
found that she had been mistaken, and Sparks had
gained nothing by the event of the night; for it did not
even prove to the satisfaction of her husband that he
was innocent of the charge of stealing the thousand
dollars.
It was a decided setback to her, though her husband
could not deny the fact that Paul had been seen under
very suspicious circumstances; and she immediately
became anxious to know what crime had been com-
mitted in the house.
Mr. Gayland, in his disappointment over the fall of
his favorite, did not seem to care what mischief had
been done by the midnight visitors, though both of
them could not help believing that they had not come
for nothing, or left the mansion empty-handed.
To the lady it seemed to be necessary for the restora-
tion of her favorite that Paul should be convicted of
the crime of housebreaking, though it had been proved
that he had at least two confederates in the enterprise,
and probably was not the leading spirit in the burglary.


64
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"You are doing nothing, Ward, and the rascals are
escaping as fast as they can," said the lady, in reproach-
ful tones, as though he were neglecting a sacred duty.
"I will do something," he added, relapsing into his
former moodiness.
"You do not even know that the house has been
robbed of anything, though I suppose Paul was looking
for the silver in the dining room," she added, with
energy.
"Paul knows all about the house, and where every-
thing valuable was kept," replied the husband. "I have
no doubt they got something for their pains, though
we may have disturbed them before they finished their
work."
"I saw two men going out of the hall into the vesti-
bule, and they may have had their hands full of plun-
der, though I did not see anything in their possession.
Come, let us look over the house, and see what they
have taken," continued the wife, taking her husband
by the arm.
"No," he replied decidedly. "I want some one with
more skill than I have about such matters to make the
examination."
"Haven't you skill enough to see what has been
stolen from the house?" asked the lady contemptuously.
"I want something more than that; if there is any-
thing in the appearance of the house to assist in the
conviction of the robbers when captured, I desire to
have it noted by a man of experience. Will you call
Prince, Maud ?"


THE INVESTIGATION
65
"I will if you want him; and if you are going to send
for the police, I will dress myself a little more," an-
swered Mrs. Gayland, as she went upstairs, where she
was followed by her husband a little later, for he feared
he might take cold in the night air.
Both of them soon returned to the hall clothed as
usual, and Prince appeared fully dressed a minute later,
greatly impressed by the unusual proceedings in the
quiet house at this unseemly hour, for he had no
idea that the mansion had been entered for unlawful
purposes.
"The house has been broken into by robbers, Prince,'
said Mr. Gayland, in his usual tones, with no appear-
ance of excitement in his manner or speech.
"Broken into, sir!" exclaimed the colored man, start-
ing back, as though the mansion were still in peril.
"I said so. Do you know where Mr. Cavan lives,
Prince?" added the owner of the house despoiled.
99
"Yes, sir; I know very well, for you sent me there
last Sunday," replied the man.
"Go and call him up, and ask him to come up here
as soon as possible. You can tell him that the house
has been entered by burglars."
"Yes, sir; but is it safe to go into the street alone
at this hour?" inquired the prudent servant, as he
glanced at the open front door.
"If you are afraid, I will go with you," said the
female cook, coming out of the dining room at this
moment, for she had been aroused when Prince was
called.


66
THE YOUNG HERMIT
“I am not afraid, sir," protested Prince, fearful that
his question had armed the cook with a weapon which
she could use against him in kitchen councils. The man
made all haste to leave the house on his errand, for the
tongue of the presiding genius of the kitchen was a
positive terror to him-far transcending that of the
burglars.
Mr. Gayland dropped into the armchair again, and
gave way once more to the painful reflections that dis-
turbed him, for he would rather have followed his
favorite to the grave than have him commit a crime.
But it was evident to him that Paul had been actively
engaged in the burglary of the mansion of his bene-
factor, and with a just man's devotion to the integrity
of the law of God and man, with a Roman firmness in
the discharge of his duty, he had decided not to screen
the culprit from the penalty of his crime, though he
seemed not to act on such a lofty motive in the case
of his nephew. It was easier for him to punish himself
than to displease his wife.
Prince had used his legs to the best advantage, for,
as he went through the lonely street, he was in con-
stant fear that a terrible burglar would lay violent
hands on him; and Mr. Cavan was so much interested
in the news brought him that he made all possible haste
to reach the mansion of his frequent employer.
"I hope the villains have not made a good haul of it,”
said Cavan, as he came into the hall, puffing with the
haste he had made. "As you have read in the papers,
this is not the first house that has been broken into in


THE INVESTIGATION
67
these parts; and there appears to be a gang at work
over in Minneapolis. Did they carry off much stuff?”
"I don't know; I have not looked over the house since
they left," replied Mr. Gayland.
"You haven't? You don't seem to have much curi-
osity about the break," added the agent, with a smile,
for he was surprised at the coolness, not to say the in-
difference, of the proprietor of the elegant mansion on
the hill.
"I thought it was best not to disturb anything until
some one that understood such things was here," the
capitalist explained, without indicating to Cavan the
nature of his poignant grief.
"You seem to be all up and dressed in the house,”
the agent proceeded, glancing at all who had assembled
in the hall. "I don't see your nephew, Mr. Sparks,
among them, however; and I should not be at all sur-
prised if it was found in the end that he had a hand
in this break."
"I should be very much surprised!" interposed Mrs.
Gayland, her face flushed with indignation.
"I beg your pardon, madam; but the events of yes-
terday afternoon came to my mind, and I acknowl-
edge that I was hasty in the inference I made that he
might have been concerned in this affair," added
Cavan, with a low bow to the beautiful woman, who
was somewhat appeased by this apology.
"Sparks was not in the house, for he spent the night
over at Minneapolis with his friend Pitburn," said the
capitalist, coming so far to the assistance of his wife.


68
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"It is clear enough that Sparks had nothing at all to
do with this affair."
"Why don't you send for the police, Ward?" de-
manded Mrs. Gayland, who could not forgive the agent
for the fling he had made at her favorite. "It seems
to me to be very strange that you should call in one
of your business acquaintances to assist you in a matter
of this kind, when it would be a good deal more regu-
lar to bring in the police, for the city has skilled de-
tectives on duty all the time.'
99
"Mr. Cavan was formerly the most skillful detective
in the city of New York, Maud, and I prefer his as-
sistance at first to that of the police," added her hus-
band.
"He made a pretty mess of what he did here yester-
day afternoon, and I could have done better myself,"
snapped the lady.
"You did do better in your own opinion; but this
is my affair, and I shall handle it in my own way,"
added Mr. Gayland decidedly; so decidedly that his
wife said no more.
"Now, give me the particulars of the break, if you
please, Mr. Gayland," said Cavan, after he had bowed
his best to the lady.
The incidents of the night were recited in full so far
as the owner of the mansion was informed, though he
did not give Paul's name to the agent. Then they went
into the sitting room, where the open window had been
reported.
They made a strange discovery.
I
1
I


THE BURGLAR ALARM
69
CHAPTER XI.
THE BURGLAR ALARM.
"You have told me that you had a burglar alarm in
your house, Mr. Gayland," said the ex-detective, as
they entered the sitting room.
"Yes, I had it put in nearly a year ago,” replied Mr.
Gayland, mentioning the particular apparatus with
which his house had been furnished. "It proves to be
protection which doesn't protect."
"It has certainly been a failure in this instance," re-
marked the real-estate agent. "We will first take a
look at the windows which have not been opened, if
you please."
"The more time you waste, the more the rascals will
have to effect their escape," interposed Mrs. Gayland,
who could not see the utility of examining the windows
which had not been disturbed.
"You can return to your bed, Maud, for it is not
necessary that you should take part in this investiga-
tion," said her husband, rather sternly.
"I prefer to see what is done," she answered
haughtily.
"I do not object; but you will oblige me by making
no more remarks or criticisms," added the capitalist.
"You are letting the burglars escape while you are
fooling with this man," continued the lady.


70
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"If you cannot be silent we will suspend all further
investigation, and allow Mr. Cavan to go home," said
Mr. Gayland severely.
The lady made no reply, for by this time she had
become conscious that she was injuring her own cause;
but she had not failed to notice the fact that her hus-
band had neglected to inform the agent that Paul had
been one of the burglars. She believed that he intended
to screen the adopted son from the consequences of his
crime, and she was prepared to defeat this purpose.
Cavan went to the first window in the sitting room,
and gave his attention to the burglar alarm which was
attached to it; and he appeared to be perfectly informed
in regard to its working, for after he had unfastened it
he raised the lower sash.
The moment he did so all the electric bells in the
house began to rattle with the utmost fury, and they
kept up the din for a considerable length of time.
"There is nothing the matter with the apparatus at
this window," said the agent, after the rattle of the
bells had ceased.
"I should say not," replied Mr. Gayland. "The ap-
paratus can be easily detached from the sash; and in
warm weather, when it is necessary to open the win-
dows, I generally move the strikers from their position
myself, or ask Sparks to do it for me."
"Yesterday was a rather warm June day; were the
windows opened?" asked Cavan.
"In his room they were, though not all over the
house. I asked my nephew to change the strikers in
1


THE BURGLAR ALARM
71
this room, and in the library and dining room; and as
he was not in the house at the time, I put thein all in
place myself just before supper, for the room was
rather cool."
"You adjusted the strikers yourself, Mr. Gayland?"
"I did."
"At what time?”
"It was just before supper, say at quarter-past six.
I had been in my library till I began to feel cool, and
then I closed all the windows and adjusted the strik-
ers."
"Excuse me, sir, but are you very sure about this?"
asked the agent, more serious for the moment than he
had appeared to be before.
"So sure of it that I should be willing to swear that
I did it between quarter and half-past six, which is our
hour for tea," replied the capitalist decidedly.
"That is sure enough; and you will be kind enough
to keep this fact in mind—that you adjusted the strik-
ers at this particular time yourself."
"I shall not be likely to forget it after what has hap-
pened," added the owner of the mansion, with a smile.
"Now we will look at the other windows," continued
Cavan, as he led the way to the next one. "You did
your work well, sir, for this striker is as it ought to
be to give the alarm."
Then the party, headed by the agent, came to the
open window which the burglars had not taken the
trouble to close, though they had unfastened the two
doors between the vestibule and the hall, to effect their


72
THE YOUNG HERMIT
escape. They must have done this before they robbed
the house, if it should prove that they had robbed it,
for they had gone out without pausing an instant.
"Ah! This explains it all!" exclaimed Cavan, after
he had glanced at the sash of the open window. "Are
you sure, Mr. Gayland, that you adjusted the striker
on this window?"
"I am even more sure that I attended to that one.
than to any other, for I had to get a screw driver and
loosen it, it was so tight; and I tried it several times
before I arranged it for the night."
"Might you not have forgotten to adjust it in the
end, after the trouble it had given you?" asked the
agent.
"On my way back to the library I looked at all the
strikers in the room to satisfy myself that they were
in proper position. I am absolutely certain that the
striker of this window was adjusted as it should be
to give the alarm at quarter-past six."
"That is enough; and I am particularly happy that
you are so confident on this point," added Cavan, with
a rather searching glance at Mrs. Gayland, who was
giving the closest scrutiny to all the proceedings.
"I cannot possibly be mistaken," Mr. Gayland in-
sisted.
"Now let me call your attention to the position of
this striker," continued Cavan, pointing out the lever
against which the apparatus acted when the window
was raised. "You can see that it is not in its place as it
should be when adjusted to give the alarm. It is no


THE BURGLAR ALARM
73
fault of the machinery that all the bells in the house
did not ring when the sash was raised."
"That is all as plain as anything can be," added
Mr. Gayland, when he had looked at the striker.
"What does all that amount to?" demanded Mrs.
Gayland, who was not machinist enough to take in the
point the agent made.
"Do you observe the position of this metal lever,
called the striker, madam?" asked the examiner, as he
pointed to the part mentioned.
"Yes, I see it," replied the lady snappishly, for she
had not yet become reconciled to the mission of the
agent in the house.
"You observe that it is turned down to a vertical
position?" continued Cavan, as blandly as though the
lady had not attempted to snub him. "Now, do me
the favor to look at this window;" and she followed
him to the next one. "You see that this striker is in
a horizontal position, so that the bar on the sash would
hit it if the window were raised."
Cavan illustrated the whole matter fully at the next
window, by moving the striker and opening the lower
sash. She could not help understanding so simple an
affair when it was so clearly explained.
"I comprehend the workings of the alarm; but I
don't see what all this has to do with the burglary,"
added the lady impatiently.
"That is still to be shown, madam," replied Cavan,
as he returned to the side window. "This striker is in
a perpendicular position, and the window was raised


74
THE YOUNG HERMIT
without making the alarm. I have not touched this
striker, and it has not been disturbed by any one since
the burglars came in. That striker must have been
dropped to a vertical position by some one in the house
after Mr. Gayland had adjusted it at quarter-past six
last evening."
"That is clear enough," said the owner of the man-
sion. "Some one in the house must have lowered the
striker after I put it up."
"Of course Paul raised it," promptly added Mrs.
Gayland.
"But Paul was not in the house last evening after I
adjusted the striker," retorted the capitalist warmly.
"But Paul was one of the burglars!" exclaimed the
lady.
“That is true,” added Mr. Gayland, giving utterance
to the fact he had repressed before, which drew forth
some decided exclamations of astonishment on the part
of the agent.
"We have settled this matter, and now we will see
what the burglars have done in the house," said Mr.
Gayland, not caring to have any inferences drawn just
then from the fact that the striker had been tampered
with, as he led the way into his library.
The door of the closet which contained the safe was
wide open, and so was the door of the safe itself. Mr.
Gayland drew out the drawer in which he had de-
posited the six thousand dollars, or more, and found
that it was empty. The money had all been taken, but


THE BURGLAR ALARM
75
nothing else was missing in the house. Paul had evi-
dently taken a lunch in the dining room before he
came out.
"In spite of the fact that he was here, I will bet
my life that Paul is innocent," said Cavan to the owner,
in a whisper.
But how could the mystery be cleared up?


76
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XII.
LAKE MINNETONKA.
The sky over Lake Minnetonka was very black, for
what appeared to be a very heavy shower was coming
up from the westward.
The flashes of lightning were almost continuous, and
they were as blinding as they were frequent, while the
dense black clouds produced an oppressive darkness,
contrasted with the bright sunshine which had pre-
vailed half an hour before.
The wind had entirely subsided, and the surface of
the dark lake was as smooth as though three feet of ice
had covered it, as is the case in the winter, when the
mercury drops down to forty degrees below zero.
Several sailboats which had been trying to get to the
pier at Lake Park were becalmed a mile or more from
their destination.
It was in the month of July, about a month after the
elegant mansion on the hill in St. Paul had been en-
tered by burglars, and the pleasure season had been
fully inaugurated, though the number of visitors was
not yet as great as it was likely to be at a later period.
The lake is the popular resort in summer of the peo-
ple of Minneapolis, while White Bear Lake is more
especially the favorite of St. Paul; and all that could be


LAKE MINNETONKA
77
reasonably expected has been done to make both places
attractive to visitors.
Although each city vies with the other both in busi-
ness and pleasure, Lake Minnetonka is not exclusively
the resort of the pleasure seekers of Minneapolis, for
the other of the twin cities is respectably represented
at all the principal hotels and cottages on its shores;
and there is no law which prevents the citizens of Min-
neapolis from making their abode for a week or a
month on the banks of White Bear Lake.
But as a summer resort Minnetonka has most of
the advantages, for it is on a much grander scale, and
Nature has been very liberal in bestowing her attrac-
tions upon the beautiful sheet of water and its sur-
roundings.
Selected as a pleasure resort at an earlier period, the
enterprise of the people frequenting the place has more
thoroughly developed its resources, though there is still
room for vast improvements, which the progressive
spirit of the people will make from time to time.
Lake Minnetonka is not one open sheet of water, but
consists rather of a dozen smaller lakes, united by
natural or artificial channels into a single one, though
there is hardly room enough in any place for a smart
sea in an ordinary fresh breeze.
At the eastern end of the lake there is a view ex-
tending for nine miles from the head of one bay,
through several openings between headlands, to the ex-
tremity of another bay; but the ordinary reach of the


78
THE YOUNG HERMIT
eye in any other part of the lake is not more than a
mile or two.
Many extensive and very irregular peninsulas reach
out from the mainland on all sides; and there are not
a few picturesque islands breaking the monotony of the
scene.
Between the eastern and the western portions of the
lake it has been necessary to dig a couple of channels,
or canals, for the passage of steamers from one end to
the other of the lake, so that every part of the exten-
sive sheet of water can be navigated by large or small
craft.
Everything in the shape of a boat, from the steamer
capable of carrying a thousand passengers by crowding
them a little to the graceful wherry and racing craft,
may be found on its waters, including sailboats as swift
and jaunty as any that the Atlantic ports can boast.
Many of the wealthiest people of the near city and
the State, to say nothing of dwellers from hundreds
of miles away, have cottage homes on its shores, nest-
ling in the oak and linden groves that border most of
them; and several large hotels, equaling or exceeding
in proportions and luxury those of Newport and Cape
May, besides a score or more of smaller ones, afford
accommodations for thousands of summer visitors.
The lake is a dozen miles from Minneapolis, and
reached by two railroads, one on the north, and the
other on the south shore, by which scores of trains
convey passengers back and forth between both of the
twin cities and the locality.


LAKE MINNETONKA
79
There are two large steamers, half a dozen of me-
dium size, and a multitude of smaller ones, from the
small steam launch big enough for two or three per-
sons to the elegant yacht that would comfortably ac-
commodate a dozen or more; some of which are owned
and used by private individuals, and others are let by
the hour or day at the hotel or other piers.
As the deep darkness gathered over the lake, many
of these steam yachts were seen making for a harbor,
for more than one fatal disaster to such craft had been
recorded in the history of the lake as a summer resort.
In spite of the contracted areas in nearly all parts of
the beautiful sheet of water, it had been demonstrated
that squalls and sudden tempests produced a frightful
commotion even in the nearly landlocked bays and
channels.
Those in charge of these fairy craft, as they seem to
be as they glide over the smooth waters, appeared to
be aware of the possible danger from the threatening
clouds, for all of them were headed for the nearest
practicable landing place, which was at Lake Park, in
the locality indicated.
Already the wharf near the hotel was flanked with
steam yachts and sailboats, though there were several
more out on the broad lake, and more were coming in
through the channel between the peninsula and Big
Island, all apparently anxious to get their passengers
to the shelter and security of one of the large hotels
where the hours of waiting in the rain could be im-
proved in various frolics.


80
THE YOUNG HERMIT
At the time when the situation looked most threaten-
ing, a very elegant steam yacht, with the name of Hebe
on her pilot house, for she was just large enough to be
provided with such an appendage, came through the
New Narrows, as the canal connecting the two parts
of the lake is called.
Instead of heading for the hotel pier, as all the other
craft were doing, she stood boldly out into the lake,
heading for the eastern shore, as though the pilot had
nothing but contempt for the perils which the lake
threatened soon to present to the navigator, evidently
intending to go outside of Brightwood Island.
"Take in that awning, Bashy," said the pilot, speak-
ing to the engineer through the after window of his
little coop in the bow of the yacht.
"All right, Captain Greenway,” replied the engineer,
as he proceeded to execute the order with all possible
celerity. "I think it is high time something was did."
"We are doing something all the time, for the Hebe
is making twelve knots an hour," added the pilot, or
the captain, for he filled both of these important posi-
tions, as the entire ship's company consisted of only
the captain and the engineer.
"The quicker you go the worse it will be for you,”
said the engineer, as he glanced ahead at the two or
three miles of open water. "I reckon you don't know
half as much about this navigation as I do, for I have
been up here for years, and I have seen as fine a craft
as this one go to the bottom quicker than you could
pull your finger out of the fire."


LAKE MINNETONKA
81
"I intend to keep the Hebe on the top of the water,"
added Captain Greenway, casting his eye across the
peninsula to the westward.
"That was just what they meant to do in the Flocus
last summer; but she went to the bottom all the same,
and that is just what we shall do if you keep on," per-
sisted Bashy, as the captain called the engineer, though
this was evidently an abbreviation for some more dig-
nified name.
"If the Hebe goes to the bottom, let me know it,
if you please," answered the pilot, looking at his com-
panion with a quiet smile on his handsome face.
"I will do so, if I feel like it when we get down fifty
feet into the drink; but this water is wet, I can tell you,
and I don't believe I shall feel like making any long
speeches down there," said Bashy, with something like
a grin, grim and significant, on his peculiar face.
"Don't you be alarmed, Bashy," added the captain
cheerfully.
"I'm not a bit scared, any more than you are, Cap-
tain Greenway; and I'll bet a last year's almanac
against a wooden nutmeg that I can go as straight to
the bottom as you can, if you have had more schooling
than I have."
"I never bet against such odds; but stand by the en-
gine, whatever comes, and we are all right," added the
skipper.
Bashy promised faithfully to do so.


82
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XIII.
THE APPROACHING STORM.
When the Hebe was off Brightwood Island, most of
the steam yachts and sailboats, the latter by the vigor-
ous use of oars, had reached the vicinity of the hotel
pier, and were under the lee of the land, so that they
were no longer in peril.
"Hebe, ahoy!" shouted some one on board of the
nearest sailboat.
"On board the sloop!" responded Captain Green-
way.
"What are you about?" demanded the skipper of the
sloop, one of the regular boatmen of the Lake Park
Hotel.
"About my own business, and I recommend you to
be about something of the same kind,” replied the pilot
of the Hebe, who thought the boatman was not par-
ticularly civil, though his intentions were evidently
good.
"Get under a lee as quick as you can!" shouted the
skipper of the sailboat. "Don't you see there is going
to be a big squall?”
"Thank you! When it comes, let me know," an-
swered Captain Greenway, as he put the helm to port,
in order to head the steamer through the long reach
of nine miles.


THE APPROACHING STORM
83
"You will be in an awful sea within five minutes!"
yelled the skipper, as the Hebe increased her distance
from the sloop.
"All right! I have been there before," replied the
bold pilot, who was apparently not more than fourteen
years old, though he was a stout and well-built fellow
for his age.
The hotel skipper shook his head, doubtless feeling
that he had done all he could in warning the daring
captain of the Hebe of the peril into which he was
throwing his craft and those on board of her.
Bashy had taken in the awning of the after part of
the yacht, and stowed it away in its proper place, and
he had time to take a more leisurely survey of the situa-
tion, which was not at all satisfactory to him; for it
looked as though the captain was going into deadly
peril apparently for the fun of the thing, for he knew
that he had no business at Wayzata Bay, for which he
was now headed.
"You can see that every other craft on the lake has
stuck its nose into the sand," said he, after he had
looked about him a while.
"This is a free country, away up here in the North-
west, and they all had a perfect right to do just as they
pleased," replied Captain Greenway, “and I claim the
right to do as I please about it. I believe there is no
law in the State of Minnesota which compels me to
make a harbor."
"I reckon there ain't no State law, but some folks


84
THE YOUNG HERMIT
think common sense is a sort of law which sensible
folks ought to mind," continued the engineer.
"Common sense is good law, and I believe in obeying
its commands; but what is common sense to one person
is nonsense to another," said the captain, looking out
ahead of the yacht.
"That depends on how you look at things; but I
reckon it is common sense to go into the house when
it rains, and so it is to go into a harbor when it blows
heavy," argued Bashy.
"Where would your common sense be if there was
no harbor to go into?" demanded the pilot, with a
smile.
"What would you have for dinner if you didn't
have anything to eat?" returned the other.
"Go without dinner, as we shall without a harbor.
What would you do if you were a thousand miles from
the land, with things looking just as they do at this
moment?".
"I don't believe I should go on shore. But we ain't
a thousand miles from land, nor one mile just now. I
know how big a price you paid for this handsome
steamer, and I shouldn't wonder if you were so much
out in the course of the next five or ten minutes,"
growled the discontented engineer.
"And you will have the consolation of knowing that
it won't come out of your pocket. Put on all the steam
you can, Bashy," added the captain, as though it had
been bright sunshine on the lake at that moment.
"Do you want me to blow her up, Captain Green-


THE APPROACHING STORM
85
way, to save her from going to the bottom in the hurri-
cane?" asked the subordinate officer of the steamer.
"Don't do it, if you please. I agree with you that
it is going to blow great guns in the course of the next
few minutes, and we shall need all the power there is in
the engine."
"You shall have it all; but I don't like the looks of
things at this particular time; and there won't be any
time for a fellow to say his prayers after the hurricane
comes down on us," added Bashy, as he threw a scoop
of coal into the furnace.
"I have never been in the habit of going on shore
when it came on to blow; but perhaps I have no right
to expose you to danger," suggested the captain, look-
ing back at the engineer. "If you are afraid, I will
go to the pier, Bashy."
"I reckon I ain't no more scared than you are,
though I can't see the use of running any risk. Every
boat has gone in but the Hebe, and folks won't think
you are a coward if you don't stay out any longer,"
muttered Bashy, whose pride was the troublesome
factor in deciding upon his reply; and he could not
show the white feather before the captain did so, for
he thought it would injure his reputation.
"I don't care what people think in a matter of this
kind; but we are not out in the lake all alone, for there
is a steam yacht, coming out of Carson's Bay, probably
from the Hotel St. Louis," added Captain Greenway,
as he carefully examined the craft.


86
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"That's so, and she has ladies on board," replied
the engineer, as he closed the furnace door, and pro-
ceeded to inspect the steamer.
The steam yacht which was approaching was smaller
than the Hebe, and she was steaming at her highest
speed, doubtless hoping to reach her destination be-
fore the storm broke.
She was headed across the channel in the direc-
tion of Big Island after she came out from behind the
point; but Captain Greenway was going directly east,
which would soon place his craft on the weather shore
of the lake, where she would receive the full force of
the blast when it came.
"That is the Excelsior," said Bashy, after he had
taken the measure of the steamer. "She is a stiff boat,
or Captain Lubbock would not come out here just now.
But his head is level, and he knows what he is about-
sometimes, though he was a fool to come out here in
the teeth of all those black clouds."
"He is all right," added the pilot, watching the Ex-
celsior all the time. "I think if I had any ladies on
board I should make a harbor."
"He is going to do so just as quick as steam will let
him. I reckon you are putting the Hebe into the worst
place you can find for her when the storm comes,
Captain Greenway," continued Bashy, as he observed
that the yacht was rapidly approaching what would be
the weather shore when the tempest came.
Before the captain could make any reply to this


THE APPROACHING STORM
87
criticism, six flashes of lightning that seemed to set
fire to the entire landscape blazed before him, nearly
blinding him; and they were attended instantaneously
by as many peals of thunder in such rapid succession
that there seemed to be no interval between them.
They were heavy enough for earthquakes, and they
shook the craft under him, so that it seemed to him for
the moment that the end of all things had come, though
he did not relax his hold upon the wheel.
A vigorous scream from one or both of the ladies
on board of the Excelsior came over the waters while
the thunder was still rattling like a million of brass
pans, succeeding the awful peals which had shaken the
very earth.
Captain Greenway could not see that anything had
happened to the Excelsior to call forth such a shriek,
and he concluded that it had been occasioned by the
terror of the ladies, rather than by any immediate
danger.
The pilot thought at first that the captain of the
other steamer intended to get his boat under the lee
of Big Island when the blow came, but he continued
on his course, outside of Brightwood Island, evidently
expecting to reach the Lake Park before the danger
overtook him; and his craft was now exactly west of
the Hebe, with a mile of open water between her and
the shore for which she was headed.
"Stand by your engine, Bashy!" shouted Captain
Greenway. "It is coming now; keep your eyes and
ears wide open!"


88
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"All right, Captain Greenway; I shall be here when
the hurricane comes," replied the engineer.
A tremendous roaring sound came out of the west,
coming nearer and nearer each instant, as though it
were the rumble of the chariot wheels of the storm.
The fierce blast had come, and the waters began to
pile up ahead.


A DISASTER ON THE LAKE
89
CHAPTER XIV.
A DISASTER ON THE LAKE.
Trees on the Lake Park peninsula were beginning to
bend under the force of the tempest, and some of
them were breaking, as others were torn up by the roots
and carried into the lake; while upon the water rose
a mist on the surface, stirred up by the fury of the
wind.
The roaring sound continued to increase as the storm
swept down upon the lake, and soon the Excelsior was
hidden from the view of the pilot of the Hebe by the
rising mist from the water. Captain Greenway put the
helm of the steamer hard over, and the boat came
about, heeling well over on the starboard side as she
did so; but she pointed her head directly into the wind
before the full strength of the blast reached her.
The first heavy puffs swept over the surface of the
lake, making a swift moving line as the tempest in-
vaded the smooth water; but a violent agitation of the
lake followed almost instantly, as the fury of the squall
was brought to bear upon it. The roar of the tempest
continued to increase, and the waves began to pile
themselves up in white caps, till the sea looked very
dangerous to the engineer, who was watching the ad-
vent of the storm with all his eyes.
Captain Greenway stood firmly holding the wheel


90
THE YOUNG HERMIT
with his gaze fixed on the lake ahead of the boat, ready
for anything, and, as he had rung his speed bell after
he came about, the steamer was making but little head-
way; but the moment the craft began to feel the force
of the tempest, he rang again for full speed.
The waves increased in force till they came sweep-
ing down upon the Hebe with tremendous force; but
Captain Greenway kept her headed directly into the
wind, so that she leaped up and down like a fiery steed
on the plain. The pilot could no longer see the shore
of the peninsula, fully a mile distant, and the Excelsior
had also disappeared in the thick mist that hung like
a veil over the face of the waters; but the other steamer
had been headed into the wind when last seen, and
the captain had no doubt she was doing as well as his
own craft in the tempest.
The motion of the Hebe was something tremendous
for a boat of her size, and the captain had to hold on
tight at the wheel, and the engineer to a stanchion, to
avoid being pitched over by the leaping and plunging
of the vessel.
"I call this pretty rough," shouted Bashy, raising
his voice to the highest pitch in order to be heard above
the uproar of the storm.
"Rather; but it is all right. See that your fire is
doing well, and engine well oiled," replied Captain
Greenway, in the same loud tone.
"I will look out for my end of the steamer, never
you fear," returned Bashy, who did not like to be
bossed in his own department any better than most
3



ready
after
head-
force
weep-
but
the
teed
hore
sior
like
mer
and
his
ous
on
to
ng
2889
ng
ve
S5
CAPTAIN GREENWAY PUT THE HELM HARD OVER.-Page 89.





A DISASTER ON THE LAKE
91
other people. "My end will not go to the bottom till
yours does."
"Keep your eyes open, and don't talk any more till
there is something to say," added the captain, rather
impatiently, for he had his hands full to keep the
steamer from broaching to in the heavy sea, as he was
willing to admit that it was, in spite of his general
contempt for fresh-water navigation.
The Hebe made very little progress through the
water, though she carried a full head of steam, for the
force of the hurricane offered a tremendous resistance
to her progress; but she was not losing anything, as
the captain realized when he frequently looked back
at the Excelsior shore, for this was the name of the
town opposite to the peninsula.
The extreme fierceness of the tempest did not con-
tinue more than a few minutes, and Captain Green-
way soon noticed a decided reduction in the force of the
wind, which was also indicated by the greater progress
of the steam yacht through the water, as she increased
her distance from the shore. The rain began to fall
in sheets rather than in torrents, and it was so thick
ahead that the pilot had no little difficulty in seeing
where he was going, though he had resorted to his com-
pass to assist him in keeping a straight course.
Suddenly, out of the thick atmosphere made by the
rain and the mist, came several quick blasts from a
steam whistle, which he concluded were from the Ex-
celsior, for she must be directly ahead of the Hebe;
and they were immediately followed by a succession


92
THE YOUNG HERMIT
2
of screams from females, which seemed to settle the
origin of the call for assistance as given by the whistle.
It was evident enough to Captain Greenway that
the Excelsior had met with some mishap, and if he had
been in a talking mood he would have been willing to
volunteer an opinion in regard to the nature of the
disaster.
"More steam, Bashy! All you can get at a reason-
able risk!" shouted the pilot at the top of his lungs.
"What is the matter now?" demanded the engineer.
"Do as I told you, and ask no questions till you have
done it!" replied the captain, with more energy than
his companion had ever seen him display before.
Bashy looked at his steam gauge, and then shoveled
more coal into the furnace, arranging the drafts so
that the fire would do its best. When he had done
this, he looked ahead to see what had caused this order
to be given, for he had not heard the screams of the
ladies as they came over the stormy sea.
He could see nothing, any more than the captain,
and no whistle followed the series that had been given
a few minutes before; but a moment later, the ladies
again rent the air with their screams, as though some
new peril had overtaken them.
"I'll bet a wooden jackknife the Excelsior has gone
to the bottom!" yelled Bashy, fearfully excited by the
fact he pictured in his mind.
"Mind the engine, and don't let the fire down! Don't
speak a word again!" returned Captain Greenway, in
an earnest tone.


A DISASTER ON THE LAKE
93
"Can't we do something for them?" shouted the
engineer.
"Not unless you hold your tongue and mind what
you are about! Stick close to the engine!" replied the
pilot, without even turning his head.
As the hurricane continued to moderate, the Hebe
made better progress through the water, and the
screams, still continued, were more distinct, and ren-
dered it clear to the captain that the ladies at least were
not drowned or drowning.
The furnace roared in the fresh draft which the
gale gave it, and shook with the fury of the intense
heat, while the smokestack belched forth dense vol-
umes from the soft coal which supplied the fire, mak-
ing a dense black streak, beaten down by the rain, that
reached to the shore astern of the boat.
Bashy was attending closely to his duty, and, after
the admonition given him, he did not again attempt
to see what was ahead of the steamer, for he could
not do so without leaving the hissing, shaking boiler,
and he thought that being scalded to death by the ex-
plosion of the strained apparatus was even worse than
being drowned in the cool waters of the lake.
Besides, the decision and energy displayed by the
young captain had produced a strong impression on his
mind, and he was more than willing to believe that the
stout fellow in the pilot house was master of the situa-
tion.
In a few minutes more Captain Greenway discovered
the hapless Excelsior, or what there was of her above


94
THE YOUNG HERMIT
water, with the crew and passengers clinging to her.
From her position it was evident to the pilot of the
Hebe that she had got into the trough of the sea, rolled
over, filled, and gone to the bottom; but fortunately
the water was not deep enough where she was to leave
those on board of her without any support, for though
her bow was entirely submerged, the stern rested on
a shoal.
The heavy waves dashed remorselessly over the part
of the hull above the water, and it vas with the ut-
most difficulty that the ladies could avoid being
wrenched from their hold.
"Stand by to catch a line!" shouted Captain Green-
way, as the steamer approached the wreck on the lee
side; and at the right time he rang to stop her, and
rushing from the pilot house he seized a heave line, and
succeeded in throwing it so that the captain of the Ex-
celsior caught it, and made it fast.
On the lee side the water was comparatively smooth;
the Hebe was brought alongside the wreck, and all
hands were safely transferred to her deck. Captain
Greenway cast off the line, and in a few minutes more
he had conveyed the terrified party to the wharf at
Lake Park.
"Why, Conny Forbush!" suddenly exclaimed one of
the ladies, throwing her arms around the neck of the
young captain.
"A mistake, madam; I never saw you before in my
life," he replied.


THE HERMIT OF MINNETONKA
95
CHAPTER XV.
THE HERMIT OF MINNETONKA.
Captain Greenway, of the Hebe, was, or appeared
to be, very much astonished at the conduct of the lady
who had thrown her arms around his neck, and clung
to him as though he had been one of the long-lost sons
of the novels.
The woman was all of forty years of age, though
she had not yet lost all her good looks, and her dress.
and manner indicated that she was a lady in every sense
of the word; but she was wet to the skin, and was not
in condition to make the best impression upon a
stranger.
From the elegance of her drabbled garments, and
the jewelry she wore, one might easily have believed
that she was wealthy, to say nothing of the fact that
she and her companion were voyaging alone in a steam
yacht on the lake.
The other lady was not as richly dressed as the one
who had suddenly become so demonstrative toward
the captain of the Hebe; and from her manner, even
under the trying circumstances of this occasion, one
might have concluded that she was simply the humble
companion of a wealthy lady, to whom she had taken
a fancy.
"I am sure you are mistaken, madam," repeated


96
THE YOUNG HERMIT
Captain Greenway, with an effort to disengage himself
from the arms of the lady. "My name is not Forbush,
if that is what you called me, and I don't think I ever
heard of it before."
Without wholly releasing him from her grasp with
both hands, the richly dressed lady held him off at
arm's length from her, and gazed earnestly into his
handsome face.
"You are not Conny Forbush?" said she, shaking her
head slightly to indicate her incredulity.
"I am not, madam; and I am quite sure I never saw
you before in all my life," replied Captain Greenway,
smiling at the earnestness of the lady, though he was
not a little embarrassed at the scene in the presence of
the crowd of spectators who had gathered around the
party from the wreck of the Excelsior.
"You never saw me before, Conny! How can you
say that?" demanded the lady, evidently very much
distressed by the denial of the youthful captain of the
Hebe.
"I can say it because it is strictly true, madam. I
do not know you, and cannot even call you by name,"
persisted the captain.
"I am utterly astonished and deeply grieved to have
you treat me in this manner," added the dripping lady,
who seemed to forget her condition, though she occa-
sionally shivered with the cold from the effect of the
bath she had taken on board of the steamer.
"I am sorry to give you pain, madam, but I can.
only assure you that I speak the truth," added he.


THE HERMIT OF MINNETONKA
97
"Can you say that you did not live with me in Phila-
delphia for several years?" demanded the lady, looking
at him with even more earnestness than before, as if
she thought her question would carry conviction to the
mind of the obstinate commander of the Hebe.
"I can only reply that I never was in Philadelphia in
my life," protested the young pilot.
"Is it possible that you can be so bold as to deny
it, Conny?" asked the lady, with a slight wrinkling
of her brow into a frown, as she concentrated her gaze
anew on the face of the young man.
"My name is not Conny!" exclaimed the captain,
rather impatiently, as he renewed his effort to break
away from her, for the presence of the crowd under the
roof, where they had fled to escape the rain, became
more annoying to him.
But he had hardly uttered the words before he fixed
his gaze on the plank floor of the building; his fore-
head contracted, and he seemed to be in deep thought,
as though something had suddenly flashed on his mind;
something that was too indefinite to be resolved into a
clear idea.
"How can you deny your own name, my boy?" she
interposed, after looking at him a moment, as if ex-
pecting his thoughts would lead him to acknowledge
his name.
"I could not if my name were Conny, as you say
it is," replied the captain, giving up the attempt to em-
body the indefinite idea. "And, as I said, I do not
even know your name, madam."


98
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Have you looked at him, Joanna?" continued the
lady, turning to her companion, who was shivering
at her side with the cold.
"I have looked at him, Mrs. Forbush; and I have
no more doubt than you have. But I am afraid you
will catch your death of cold, and you had better go
to the hotel at once," replied the plainer woman of
the two, whose status as a "companion" seemed to be
fixed by the lady's manner of addressing her.
"But I would not lose sight of this young man for
anything in the world," replied Mrs. Forbush, with
a convulsive shiver as she spoke.
"Perhaps he will consent to see you after you have
put off your wet clothes?" suggested Joanna, putting
it as a question to the captain as much as a reply to
her employer.
"I shall be very happy to see the lady again, though
she is utterly mistaken in regard to my identity, and I
am as much puzzled as she is,” replied Captain Green-
way, anxious to escape the scrutiny of the assembled
crowd, for there was a little history connected with
his residence at Lake Minnetonka which stimulated the
curiosity of the regular inhabitants of the locality.
"I shall be very grateful to you if you will call
upon me in half an hour at the Lake Park Hotel,"
said Mrs. Forbush, looking very anxiously at the young
man, as though she feared to lose sight of him even
for the brief period indicated by herself.
"I will do so, Mrs. Forbush, without fail," replied


THE HERMIT OF MINNETONKA
99
the captain, noticing the extreme solicitude she betrayed
in her expression.
"I have not forgotten the debt of obligation I am
under to you for saving us from the wreck of the
steamer, for I am sure we should all have been drowned
if you had not come to our assistance," continued the
lady. "I desire to express my gratitude to you in
some more substantial manner than in mere words."
"Never mind that, madam; of course, I could not
help doing what I did."
"We will speak of that when I see you again; but
you will not fail to come to me at the hotel, will you?"
pleaded the lady, evidently fearing that the young
fellow was annoyed by her demonstrations, and might
desire to escape from any further expression of her
feelings toward him.
"I will not fail to be at the hotel in just half an
hour," replied the pilot, consulting his watch. "You
may depend upon me."
Mrs. Forbush and her companion walked toward
the hotel, attended by the proprietor, who had come
down to the wharf to ascertain what mischief had
been done by the hurricane, for such it had been for
a few minutes, though it would ordinarily be desig-
nated as only a severe squall.
The crowd on the wharf, composed of boatmen and
employees of the hotel, as well as guests of the Lake
Park and the cottages, looked at the captain of the
Hebe with no little interest, for, though he had been


100
THE YOUNG HERMIT
a dweller at the lake for over a month, he had never
been seen in the vicinity of any hotel before.
All that had been ascertained in regard to him was
that he lived in a kind of shanty at the extreme west-
ern point of the lake, on a little neck of land that pro-
jected out into Halsted's Bay, a portion of the lake
which was but seldom visited at this time by any save
an occasional fisherman.
The owner of the Hebe, on account of financial trou-
bles, had been unable to retain her, and she had been
bought by Bashy for his employer at a very low price
early in the season; and he also purchased the finest
rowboat that could be had in Minneapolis, where very
elegant ones are built.
Captain Greenway kept himself away from every-
body, and if any one attempted to visit him at his
shanty, which the engineer had christened The Hermit-
age, after reading the life of Andrew Jackson, the
owner and occupant "took to the woods," for he did
not wish to see any one.
The shanty was comfortably furnished, and in a
more substantial manner than mere campers out would
consider necessary, and contained three very small
rooms, one of which served for a kitchen and living
room, while each of the occupants had a chamber to
himself.
Every day except Sunday the captain made a trip
to some distant part of the lake, seldom landing; and
his exclusive habits had caused his nearest neighbor
to call him The Hermit of Minnetonka.


CAPTAIN LUBBOCK
IOI
CHAPTER XVI.
CAPTAIN LUBBOCK.
Even Bashy knew nothing at all of the history of
his employer, and it had been part of the trade made
when he was engaged that he should not talk about
the affairs of the occupant of The Hermitage, for the
captain accepted this name, and gratified his assistant
by frequently using it.
The real name of the engineer was Wabash Wing-
stone, which had been given to him by the facetious
clerk of a steamer on the Ohio River, after he had been
picked up from a burning boat, near the mouth of the
river which supplied his Christian name, the surname
being that of the steamer destroyed.
No one claimed him, and he was not old enough to
give his own name, so that it was clear that he was
the son of poor people who had perished in the destruc-
tion of the Wingstone. The colored stewardess took a
fancy to him, and the passengers on the boat made
up a purse of sixty dollars for him.
Then he was adopted by one of the engineers, who
sent him to school in Cincinnati for a few years; but
the youth liked the deck of a steamer better than he
did his books, and he had spent most of his life near
an engine, so that he learned in a practical manner
all about steam and the machinery.


102
THE YOUNG HERMIT
Three years before the advent of the hermit at Min-
netonka, the owner of the Hebe had seen him on board
of the steamer where he was serving as a sort of as-
sistant, and had engaged him to go to the lake; and
Captain Greenway had found him on board of the boat
when he went to Excelsior to look at her.
Bashy, as everybody called him-for "Wabash" is
not pronounced in the West as some of the dictionaries
have it, "Wau-bosh," but "Wau-bash," as though the
last three letters were the name of a certain tree-
Bashy rather liked the mystery which enveloped the
captain, as he called him from the moment he bought
the Hebe for him, and his lips were as tightly sealed
as though he had been under a solemn oath of secrecy.
He had been engaged not only as the engineer of the
steamer, but as a general assistant about The Hermit-
age, and he never objected to any kind of work that
was required of him, for the hermit treated him with
the utmost kindness, did not put on airs, and made him
his equal in all things, except the secret of his earlier
history, and paid him promptly all the wages he had
asked for his services.
Bashy had an easy time of it, and he liked the life
he lived much better than being at the beck and call of
a score of passengers and an employer who looked
down upon him as though he had been a servant.
After living with him a month, Bashy did not be-
lieve there was another person in the world that could
at all compare with Captain Greenway, and the ex-


CAPTAIN LUBBOCK
103
perience of the day of the hurricane had deepened his
devotion and appreciation even to intensity.
When the pilot and his passengers went on shore at
the pier, Bashy, like a faithful engineer, remained at
his post; and he had heard nothing of the remark-
able claim to his acquaintance of Mrs. Forbush, and
he was wiping the machine all the time during the ab-
sence of the hermit.
The captain was not inclined to make any talk with
the people on the wharf, a considerable portion of
which was roofed over, with stands for cake, candy,
and mild drinks, as well as offices and storerooms for
the boatmen. He was making his way to the Hebe as
diligently as he could, without answering the numerous
questions which were put to him, or rather at him,
when the captain of the Excelsior took him by the
arm, and insisted upon speaking with him.
"You handled your boat as though you were used
to heavy blows," said Captain Lubbock, with a smile
of appreciation on his bronzed face.
"I am used to heavy gales, and even hurricanes,"
answered Captain Greenway, still moving toward the
pier where the Hebe lay, as he cast an uneasy glance
at the crowd on the wharf. "Will you come on board
of my boat, captain?"
The captain of the wrecked steamer accepted the in-
vitation, and the gallant young fellow conducted him
on board of the Hebe.
"I have seen your steamer, but I have not met you


104
THE YOUNG HERMIT
before," said the visitor, as he seated himself in the
cushioned chair set for him in the little cabin.
"I am not much acquainted here," added the cap-
tain of the Hebe. "I don't exactly understand how
your boat happened to come to grief," he added, wish-
ing to change the subject to one less personal.
"I thought I should get to the wharf before the blow
came on; but when I found I could not, I decided to get
into the bay on the south of Big Island, under the lee
of the shore," replied the captain of the Excelsior,
who really wanted to tell his more fortunate com-
panion how the disaster happened to him. "I threw
over the wheel to head her to the northward, and as
soon as she came about she began to roll till she took
all the bay on board of her."
"Of course she did," added Captain Greenway
quietly. "Your coming about in such a sea was a fatal
mistake. I beg you will excuse me if I speak too
bluntly."
"Bluntly or not, I like to have a fellow tell me just
what he thinks," added he of the Excelsior. "But I
should like to have you tell me what else I could have
done, for it was blowing a hurricane, and I thought
the steamer was going to dive down to the bottom,
never to come up again. I never was out in any-
thing like this before."
1
"It certainly blew about as hard as it can blow; but
I believe the top of the water is the proper place for
a steamer, and that she ought to stay there as long
as nothing breaks," said he of the Hebe, though there


CAPTAIN LUBBOCK
105
was nothing offensive in his manner as he delivered
himself of his criticism.
"That is all very well; but if you are caught out
in it, what can you do?" demanded the captain of the
wrecked boat, who fully believed that it was the will
of that Power who rules the storm that his boat should
go to the bottom, and that nothing he could do would
have saved her from her fate.
"When you changed your course you lost the bat-
tle with the tempest; that is, when you put her into the
trough of the sea; for no boat of the size of the Hebe
or the Excelsior, with an engine and boiler on her bot-
tom, could stand such treatment as that. When I saw
your boat on the top of the water for the last time,
you were headed directly for this pier, and there was
no good reason in the world why you should not have
gone to it."
"But she was leaping like a galloping horse, burying
her nose in the water, and then lifting her head 'way
up into the air so that I could not see anything over the
bow; and the sea went over her from one end to the
other," replied Captain Lubbock, his eyes almost stick-
ing out of his head as he recalled the terrific scene. "I
never saw anything like it in my born days."
"The water that went from stem to stern was noth-
ing but spray, and that doesn't hurt anything. As long
as you kept her head up to the sea you cheated the
waves out of all their power by exposing only your
sharp bow to them. It will not do to let a small craft
like these steam yachts get into the trough of the sea.”


106
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"I don't know but you are right," replied the cap-
tain of the Excelsior, musing. "I did not have any
trouble as long as I kept her head to the sea, as you
say. The fact is that I don't know much about this
business, for I was brought up on a farm. I bought
that boat because I thought I could make some money
with her in the summer; and I hired a man to run her
till I thought I knew as much about steamboating as
he did; and I got along very well till to-day. I sup-
pose I am out just what that boat cost me."
"Not at all; she can be raised, and be as good as
ever she was after she has been cleaned up," said Cap-
tain Greenway. "Do you know this lady that claims
to be acquainted with me, though I never saw her be-
fore in my life?”
"I only know that she is a rich lady from Phila-
delphia, a widow, and that she hires my boat almost
every day in the week, and never finds any fault with
the price I charge her. But, captain, this day's work
will ruin me, if you tell others what you have said to
me," continued Captain Lubbock anxiously.
"Not a word from me to any one. It is time for
me to go to her."
Captain Greenway went ashore, and walked up to
the hotel.


THE MEETING AT THE HOTEL 107
CHAPTER XVII.
THE MEETING AT THE HOTEL.
By this time the rain had ceased, though the light-
ning flashed and the thunder muttered in the distance;
but Captain Greenway would rather have faced the
storm than the crowd of curious people that confronted
him when he went ashore. They looked at him with
interest, not to say with admiration, for he had cer-
tainly done a bold and courageous deed in saving the
crew and passengers of the Excelsior, in the very teeth
of the storm, though it had subsided to a considerable
degree when he reached the wreck.
Possibly the privacy with which he had surrounded
himself in his new home and in his movements about
the lake magnified the interest of the dwellers at the
resort, and made him more of a hero than he really
was, or, at least, modestly thought himself to be.
Wabash Wingstone had done not a little by his eva-
sive answers, and by the general air of secrecy he
affected, to make the mystery of the young man's ex-
istence more profound than the occasion required;
but the young captain of the Hebe appeared to have a
stock of dignity hardly belonging to his age which
made him equal to the occasion.
No one said anything to him as he landed on the
pier, for all seemed to feel that it was useless to ask


108
THE YOUNG HERMIT
him any questions, as he was the embodiment of a
mystery, and had so far kept aloof from all who had
no special business with him; and he had a look which
was rather freezing to mere idle curiosity.
The captain walked up to the hotel without a chal-
lenge from any one, and without any annoyance from
the idlers, who observed his movements with so much
interest, mingled with respect on account of his bold
and skillful management of the steamer he sailed.
"I am glad to see you, Captain Greenway," said
Mr. Harrington, the proprietor of the Lake Park
Hotel, who appeared to be on the piazza on the lookout
for him.
"Can I see Mrs. Forbush yet?" asked the hero of
the hour, and it was plain that the guests gathered
near the door had been informed who he was as he
approached, for all eyes were turned to him, and not
a few left their chairs to obtain a nearer view of him.
"She asked me to send you up to her parlor as soon
as you came," replied the landlord, leading the way to
the rotunda, where the orchestra was playing an after-
noon concert.
The captain of the Hebe was clothed in a yacht
uniform of blue, and wore a white cap; but he was as
thoroughly wet as the ladies had been, and he did not
feel that he was in condition to attend a ball in the
dining room.
Several ladies and gentlemen spoke to the landlord
in a low tone, as he conducted the captain into the
house; and as the hero, for some reason or other, pos-


THE MEETING AT THE HOTEL
109
sibly modesty, kept his gaze fixed on the floor, he did
not heed the movements of the guests.
"These ladies and gentlemen request me to introduce
them to you, Captain Greenway," said Mr. Harring-
ton, taking the lad by the arm as he showed a disposi-
tion to get out of the crowd as soon as possible.
"I hope they will excuse me; I am wet and dirty,
and not in condition to be presented to ladies and
gentlemen," replied the captain, evidently very much
startled at the proposition. "I am in a hurry to get
away, and the lady is waiting to see me."
"Everybody in the house has been talking about you,
and they are very anxious to make your acquaintance,"
persisted the landlord. "There are some people of note
here, and it will do you no harm to know them."
"I must be excused, sir; I shall have to run away if
I can escape in no other manner," said the captain,
very decidedly.
"You must not do that, and I will say no more about
introducing the guests. Mrs. Forbush would never
forgive me if I let you go without seeing her," added
Mr. Harrington, as he led the way to the stairs, in-
forming the importunate guests that he must defer his
presentation to another time, though his charge in-
tended that he should do nothing of the kind in the
present or the future.
"I suppose there are some St. Paul people here," said
the captain, as they ascended the stairs.
"None to-day, for I was looking over the register
just before the shower came up. Not a great many


IIO
THE YOUNG HERMIT
ever come here, for most of them go to White Bear
Lake. Are you acquainted in St. Paul?"
"I have been there," replied the captain evasively.
"This is Mrs. Forbush's parlor," said the landlord,
as he stopped in the hall. "She was very much afraid
that you would go off without seeing her, and she
asked me to see that the Hebe did not leave the wharf.
I was to send a steamer after her if you tried to get
away," and he smiled as he gave this evidence of the
solicitude of the lady.
"I told her I would come up and see her, and I
should as soon think of breaking my neck as my word,"
answered the young man.
The landlord knocked at the door, and Captain
Greenway was promptly admitted, Mr. Harrington
retiring when he had ended his mission.
"I was afraid you would not come," said Mrs. For-
bush, now elegantly dressed, as she came to him with
both hands extended.
"But I told you I would come," added the young
captain, as he permitted the young lady to take both of
his hands.
“I know you did, Conny; but you don't always keep
your promises, as you are aware," replied Mrs. For-
bush, with a smile to break and soften her rather harsh
remark.
"I beg your pardon, madam; but as I said to the
landlord just now, I should as soon think of breaking
my neck as my promise, and I have felt so ever since
I was old enough to feel anything," replied he, putting


THE MEETING AT THE HOTEL
III
on some of his stock of dignity. "I am sure you do
not know me, or you would not make such a charge."
"If you keep your promise, you can hardly be our
Conny," said the lady.
"I am not your Conny, I assure you," protested
the captain, smiling at the absurdity of the situation
as it seemed to him. "You are entirely mistaken,
madam."
"Don't call me madam again, Conny; call me mother,
as you did before.".
"Why should I call you mother when you are not
my mother?" demanded the young man.
"Because you are my son by adoption, and you al-
ways used to call me mother," she replied, as though
she believed she gave a sufficient reason.
"I beg your pardon, Mrs. Forbush, but I never called
you mother in the whole course of my life, and never
even saw you before to-day," protested the captain
warmly, though he was very anxious to obtain a solu-
tion of the strange conduct of the lady.
"How can you treat me in this cruel manner, Conny,
when I have not seen you for a long time?" asked Mrs.
Forbush, who had occasion to apply her handkerchief
to her eyes.
"I desire to treat you in the most respectful man-
ner, Mrs. Forbush; but I do not at all understand what
you have been saying to me. I never saw you before
in my life till to-day, and my name is not Conny, and
you are not my mother, real or foster," said Captain
Greenway, in the most decided tones.


112
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"What is your name, then?" she asked.
"I call myself Philip Greenway," he answered,
though with a little hesitation.
"You call yourself Philip Greenway; but will you
say that is not an assumed name?" inquired Mrs. For-
bush.
Philip Greenway seemed to be very much confused,
and possibly he objected as strongly to a lie as he did
to breaking his promises; at any rate, he did not an-
swer the question.
"I am confused; for reasons which involve no crime
or meanness, I do not care to say whether the name
is assumed or not," replied the captain.
"Conny would not hesitate like that," suggested
Joanna Barlow, the companion, who was in the room.
"I know that Conny would lie as readily as he would
tell the truth; but, young man, whoever you are, please
take off your coat, and show me your left arm," con-
tinued the lady.
Philip Greenway, as he called himself, complied with
this request, and exhibited his arm.


THE HISTORY OF CONNY
113
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE HISTORY OF CONNY.
"There they are, Joanna!" exclaimed Mrs. Forbush,
pointing to the two letters on the forearm, which were
found there. "Have you any doubt that this young
man is Conny Forbush?"
She spoke in tones of triumph, as though she had
established the identity of her visitor precisely as she
had stated it from the beginning, and the companion
seemed to have as little doubt about it as her employer,
though she did not even rise from her chair at some dis-
tance from her, to examine the marks; and even the
lady herself had bestowed only a glance at them.
"You seem to be entirely satisfied," said Philip
Greenway, astonished at the result of the test the lady
had called for.
"I have no doubt whatever now that you are Conny
Forbush, and that you came to live with me seven years
ago," replied Mrs. Forbush, like one who had over-
whelmed another in an argument.
"Then I went to live with you seven years ago?"
asked the captain, opening his eyes and wondering
whether or not he was dreaming the events, stirring as
they were, of that day.
"Seven years ago; and I have told you all the par-


114
THE YOUNG HERMIT
ticulars of my taking you as a child more than once,"
replied the lady.
"If you did, it is very strange that I have not the
slightest recollection of those particulars," added Phil,
shrugging his shoulders like a Frenchman, while he
smiled at the earnestness of the new mother he had
found.
"How can you say so, Conny, when I am just as
sure as I can be that you are my adopted son? It was
cruel of you to run away from me when I love you as
though you had been my own son," continued Mrs.
Forbush reproachfully.
"I suppose you will not believe me, whatever I say,
and I may as well say nothing," returned Phil. "It
appears that the young man for whom you mistake me
was not in the habit of telling the truth, and you in-
sist that I shall keep up his reputation as a liar."
"You cannot deny that you ran away from me two
years ago."
"On the contrary, I do deny it with all my might;
and I repeat that I never saw you before to-day in my
life."
"I am sure I cannot understand your motives for this
strange conduct," said the lady, with no little bitter-
ness and grief in her manner. "Did I not treat you
well? Did I not give you everything you wanted that
was reasonable, and many things that were not reason-
able?"


THE HISTORY OF CONNY
115
"I am not aware that you ever gave me anything,
reasonable or unreasonable."
"I cannot understand it at all," she added, wiping
tears from her eyes, for the captain realized that she
was actually suffering from the ingratitude of her
protégé.
"I can understand it no better than you can, Mrs.
Forbush; and I assure you that I would not willingly
cause you pain or uneasiness. I do not mean to say
that I never told a lie, or acted one; but I can truth-
fully say that I mean to tell the truth, and that I almost
invariably succeed in doing so."
"That is not much like Conny, or he must have
changed a great deal in the last two years," interposed
Joanna, who seemed to be quite as much puzzled as the
lady herself.
"I hope he has improved since he left me, though I
am sure I did the best I could to make a good young
man of him," replied Mrs. Forbush.
"We do not seem to get ahead any at all, and per-
haps it is useless for me to remain any longer," sug-
gested the captain, "though I am willing to afford you
all the satisfaction in my power."
"Perhaps you will be willing to tell me where you
went when you left Philadelphia," said the lady, un-
able to hit upon any better way to unravel the enigma.
"I would if I could; but as I never was in Phila-
delphia it is quite impossible for me to tell where I went
when I left it, inasmuch as I never could have left it."


116
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"You are very obstinate, Conny," added Mrs. For-
bush, shaking her head.
"I should be willing to take my oath in any court in
the land that I uttered only the simple truth to you,"
protested Phil, wondering if the interview was ever
coming to an end.
"Yet you as good as admit that Philip Greenway,
the name under which you are known at the lake, is
not your real name," continued the lady, brightening
up
for an instant.
"It would have served my purpose better to say out-
right that my real name was Philip Greenway; and
if I had been willing to lie to you, I should have said
that it was not an assumed name," returned the cap-
tain.
Mrs. Forbush looked at Joanna, and seemed to be
impressed by the truth of the young man's argument.
The evident sincerity of the captain only increased her
perplexity, and she had about come to her wits' end in
the attempt to prove that the young man before her was
her adopted son, who had run away from her two years
before.
"Perhaps you will be willing to tell me something
about the young man of whom you speak, and to whom
you seem to be very much attached," suggested Phil,
whose curiosity had not been at all modified.
"That would only be telling you what you know as
well as I do," replied the lady.
"I have tried to show you that a lie would have


THE HISTORY OF CONNY
117
served my purpose, for the moment, better than the
truth to which I have confined myself, and it is useless
for me to say that I am more in the dark than you
are."
"Of course I am willing to tell you all about your-
self, and I hope it will bring us to some point where
we shall understand each other," continued Mrs. For-
bush, as she bent her head down, and seemed to be
considering what she should say. She looked up again
at the end of a minute or more, glanced at Joanna,
and then fixed her gaze upon the young captain of the
Hebe.
"Of course you know that I am the widow of Lon-
dyke Forbush, of Philadelphia," she began, with an-
other look at Joanna, who opened her eyes as though
something out of the common course was in progress.
"My husband was a very wealthy man, and as we have
no children of our own, and as he had no near relations,
he left me all his property in his will.
"I used to spend my winters in the south of France
or in Malaga, in Spain," continued the lady, glancing
at Joanna again. "I spent my winter in Spain seven
years ago-
99
"In Spain?" said Joanna, opening her eyes again.
"Don't interrupt me, Joanna, even if I make a mis-
take. Conny has heard the story so often that he can
correct me if I get it wrong, as I may, for my memory
seems to be failing me," replied Mrs. Forbush, though
she was hardly more than forty, and it was not time
for any of her faculties to be impaired by years.


118
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Excuse me, Mrs. Forbush; I made a mistake," Jo-
anna admitted, with the humility of a dependent.
"We were staying at the Hotel de la Alameda, in
Malaga, when I saw a man who appeared to be a
Frenchman, though he spoke Spanish, as I did not,
with a child of six or seven with him. I saw him kick
and cuff the child in a very brutal manner, and I was
so indignant about it that I spoke to the landlord.
"It seemed to me as though the wretch took the occa-
sion to abuse the little one, who was a very pretty and
interesting child, whenever he happened to be in my
presence, and his conduct made me very unhappy. The
landlord told me that the child was English, and that
its parents had died in Oran, in Africa, and he had been
asked to take the little one to a gentleman in Malaga;
but this gentleman had died a month before his arrival.
The child was left on his hands, and he did not know
what to do with it.
"The landlord brought the man and the child to me.
I was very much pleased with the little one, who spoke
English fluently, and told me his name was Conny,
though he did not know his surname. It ended in
my taking the child under my protection; and I hoped
when I went to England, on my return home, that I
should be able to find his relations. Before I left
Malaga I was so fond of the child that I was very
willing to adopt Conny as my own son; and though I
advertised for his friends in London no answer came
to me, and I brought the boy to my home. Since that


THE HISTORY OF CONNY
119
I have kept you, and done the best I could to educate
and make a good boy of you."
"Not of me, for the story is entirely new to me,"
added Philip Greenway, who had listened attentively to
the narration.
Mrs. Forbush was more than ever perplexed.


120
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XIX.
THE LETTERS ON THE ARM.
Both Mrs. Forbush and Joanna, plainly more puzzled
than ever, looked intently at Philip Greenway, and
seemed to be studying his expression with the utmost
care, as though the narrative would afford the means
of bringing about an understanding between the rich
widow and the captain of the Hebe.
Captain Greenway, though he had been interested in
the relation of Conny's earlier history, did not seem
to be impressed in the manner his two auditors evi-
dently expected he would be, for he remained as digni-
fied as before, and his expression was as blank as ever,
so far as any comprehension of the subject before them
was concerned.
"I have told you this story within three years, Conny,
and you must be able to recall it," added the lady, when
she had studied his face for a considerable time.
"I am sorry to say that I do not recall it," replied
Phil, with a smile. "I never heard it before."
"Did you notice any variation in the narrative, as
compared with the last time you heard it?" she asked,
apparently disappointed at the result of the story.
"As I never heard the story before, of course I did
not notice the slightest variation," replied the captain,


THE LETTERS ON THE ARM
121
who could hardly keep from laughing as he realized
the absurdity of the situation.
"We may as well give it up, Joanna; Conny is too
much for me, and he is a good deal more shrewd and
intelligent than I supposed he ever would be," said the
lady, with a sigh over her failure to convince the cap-
tain that he was her adopted son.
"I don't see that there is any other way for you to
do," replied the companion. "It seems as though he
must have noticed the difference in the story, for even
Conny knew his geography very well."
"Then as you seem to be satisfied that I am not
Conny, perhaps you are willing that I should take my
leave," suggested the captain.
"I am far from satisfied that you are not Conny,"
said the lady. "Do you think I could be mistaken in
a boy who had lived with me for five years, upon whom
I had bestowed a mother's care? I am not, I cannot
be mistaken! And Joanna is as certain as I am that
you are Conny."
"In some things he is very different from Conny,"
added Joanna; "but there has been time enough for
him to change a great deal in two years.'
99
"I do not wish to deceive you, Philip, and the story
was false in regard to the names of the places, though
it is all true in regard to the main points. Instead of
Malaga, in Spain, it was in Dresden, in Germany, and
the boy's parents died in St. Petersburg, instead of
Oran," the lady explained. "I hoped you would betray


122
THE YOUNG HERMIT
yourself by words or looks when I changed the names
of the places."
"If I had ever heard the story before probably I
should have betrayed myself," replied the captain.
"What possible motive do you think I could have for
denying all knowledge of you, Mrs. Forbush? You are
a wealthy lady, and I might make my fortune by
acknowledging the truth of all you have said, if it were
the truth."
"He has grown larger and heavier since he ran away,
and is browner than when he left home; but I think I
should swear in a court that he is Conny," remarked
Joanna.
“And you have the very letters on your arm which
Conny had, though I did not notice them till he had
been with me for a couple of years," continued Mrs.
Forbush, rising from her chair; and the captain did the
same. "It is not likely that two boys born in different
parts of the world would have the same letters in the
same place on their arms. Do you think such a thing
is possible, Captain Greenway, as you call yourself?"
"I should say that it is hardly possible," answered
the captain candidly.
"Then the letters prove that you are Conny, and
that you cannot be any one else," said she triumphantly.
"The letters on my arm seem to be the only real evi-
dence to sustain the position you have taken; and I
confess that they almost convince me that you are
right, even while I know that you are wrong. I do


THE LETTERS ON THE ARM
123
not know how the letters came upon my arm, though
I have a very indistinct recollection of having suffered
great pain when I was a small child," replied Phil.
"But there they are, and though they do not stand for
Philip Greenway, I know perfectly well what they do
represent."
"How could they stand for Philip Greenway, or any
other name with the same initials?" demanded Mrs.
Forbush, discovering a discrepancy in the captain's
statement, as she understood the matter.
"P. G. could easily stand for Philip Greenway, or
any other name beginning with the same letters," added
Philip.
"P. G.!" exclaimed the lady, approaching him as she
spoke.
"Those are the letters on my arm."
"P. G.?" repeated she.
"P. G.," repeated the captain, giving particular atten-
tion to his enunciation.
"But the letters are not P. G., but C. G.," said the
lady, beginning to believe they were coming nearer to a
solution of the problem.
"I beg your pardon, Mrs. Forbush, but the letters on
my arm are P. G., and it is not at all possible for me
to be mistaken in this matter, for a P does not look
at all like a C. I am afraid you did not stop to read
the letters when I showed them to you," continued
Philip warmly, as he began to see a streak of daylight
ahead of him.
"I hardly looked at them, I know; the sight of any


124
THE YOUNG HERMIT
letters where yours are satisfied me what they must be.
Will you let me look at them again?"
"Certainly," answered the captain, as he took off
his coat and turned up his shirt sleeve.
The lady and her companion looked with all their
eyes at the marks on the young man's arm; and, though
they were rather faint, they could still be distinctly
seen, and it was not possible to mistake the two letters
for others.
"The letters are certainly P. G.," said the rich
widow.
"There can be no mistake about it," added Joanna.
"I am as sure as I am of my own existence that the
first letter on Conny's arm was a C."
"So am I, for I hoped that at some future day the
mystery of these letters would be known," continued
Mrs. Forbush. "But I am even more astonished than
I was before. I believe after all that you are not
Conny, though every feature and look about you are
the same as Conny's. I am hardly willing to admit,
though, that you are not my adopted son."
"I should think the evidenec ought to satisfy you,
even if you refuse to believe what I say," replied the
captain.
"One letter is different; but that may have been
changed," suggested Joanna, who was still as incredu-
lous as her employer. "Two human beings could not
be so near alike and not be the same."
"I do not believe that letters pricked into the skin
with India ink could be changed; but you will excuse
僮
​


THE LETTERS ON THE ARM
125
me, Mrs. Forbush, if I decline to discuss the subject
any more," replied Philip Greenway, becoming im-
patient at further objections. "With your permission,
I will return to the Hebe."
He moved toward the door as though he fully in-
tended to end the debate at once; but he halted before
he reached it, and seemed to be troubled by a reflection
which came to him, for he looked upon the floor as he
considered it.
"Don't go yet, Captain Greenway, for I had almost
forgotten the debt of gratitude I owe you," interposed
the lady.
"Never mind the debt of gratitude," he replied.
"May I see you alone for a few minutes, Mrs. For-
bush?"
"Certainly, if you desire it; but Joanna has been my
friend and companion since the death of my husband,
and I have no secrets from her," replied the wealthy
widow.
"As Joanna has heard all that has been said, I had
better speak in her presence," continued the captain,
after a little reflection. "I have a favor to ask of you
which shall cancel the debt of gratitude of which you
speak. I desire to keep all that has passed between us
to-day in this room and on the wharf as a profound
secret."
"I give you my promise that not a word of it shall
be spoken to any one," answered the lady.
"And I will be as secret as the grave itself," added
Joanna.


126
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Thank you both; and I have a little more to add,
which is subject to the same secrecy. I was adopted
by an elderly gentleman and his young wife, who live
in St. Paul, and P. G. stands for Paul Gayland, which
is my real name. Mr. Gayland, who is one of the best
men that ever lived, and his wife do not agree very
well, and he has a nephew of eighteen in the family;
and the two latter made it very uncomfortable for me.
I was in the way of the wife and the nephew, and I left
one night a month ago."
"Poor fellow! I am really sorry for you," said the
lady, taking his hand. "I wish you would live with me
in place of Conny, if you are not he."
"I am not Conny. I am guilty of no crime, and
the worst I have done was to leave my foster father
when I made trouble all the time in the family, with no
fault on my part. You can see now why I wish to
keep my affairs to myself."
"Then your remarkable resemblance to Conny is
only an accident, and I am confident I was mistaken,”
replied Mrs. Forbush.
"So was I," added Joanna.
Mrs. Forbush promised to explain that she was mis-
taken to those who had witnessed the scene on the
wharf, and then made him promise to call upon her
again, as she sent Joanna to show him the way out
of the hotel by the back stairs, so that he should be
seen by none of the guests.


SHOUTS FOR ASSISTANCE
127
CHAPTER XX.
SHOUTS FOR ASSISTANCE.
Captain Greenway was very anxious to escape from
the hotel, though he believed that the gratitude of the
rich lady would protect him from any exposure of his
secret, if he could succeed in keeping out of the way
of other people.
He believed that he had disarmed Mrs. Forbush by
making her his confidante, even to telling her his real
name, if the reader had not before recognized in “The
Hermit of Minnetonka" the former resident of the ele-
gant mansion on the hill, Paul Gayland.
He had left the home of his benefactor soon after
the family had all retired the night before the robbery
of the safe, taking with him all his clothing, books, and
such other things as he desired, packing them in his
large valise.
Besides the thousand-dollar bill which Mr. Gayland
had presented to him as the basis of his future income,
he had some other money, with which he could pay his
expenses for a time, and he took the last train for
Minneapolis without any well-defined idea of what he
was going to do with himself.
It was with genuine sorrow that he left the house
of his benefactor; but he felt that he was the cause.
of so much discord in the family that he ought to leave,


128
THE YOUNG HERMIT
though it was not his fault that Mrs. Gayland made
trouble on his account.
Whether he was mistaken in his idea or not, he cer-
tainly left the house because he felt it to be his duty
to do so, for he was not the son of the rich man, and
he realized that he was stepping in between Sparks, if
not the wife, and his reasonable expectations.
As he made his way to the railroad station with his
hat pulled down over his eyes so that he should not
be recognized, he shed hot tears at the necessity which
had confronted him, and driven him away from what
had once been a delightful home to him. He was now
alone in the world, willing as his benefactor was to care
for him, and even love him as a son; but Paul felt that
he could not live in the midst of such strife, and that
he was really doing a kindness to Mr. Gayland in re-
lieving him of his presence in the house.
He went to a hotel of the smaller class in Minne-
apolis, and the next day took the train for the lake,
where he had found Wabash Wingstone at Excelsior.
The engineer was then in charge of the Hebe, pending
the sale of her to the highest bidder.
Philip Greenway, as he chose to call himself from the
time he reached Minneapolis, liked the looks of the
little steamer, and entered into conversation with her
engineer, who told him she was for sale for the most
she would bring.
Bashy volunteered to show up the steam yacht, if
the visitor had any intention of buying her, and Phil
hinted that he had the means to do so if she did not


SHOUTS FOR ASSISTANCE
129
cost too much; and the engineer procured a pilot at
once.
The passenger intimated that he should like to visit
the most unfrequented part of the lake, and he was
taken to Halsted's Bay, where he discovered the very
locality he most desired to find; and then he sounded
Bashy in regard to the probable value of the Hebe.
He found the sum less than he had supposed it would
be, though more than his means would permit him to
give; but he made an offer of six hundred dollars, with
which the engineer promised to wait on the assignee of
the bankrupt owner.
Somewhat to the astonishment of the hermit, as he
intended to make himself, the offer was accepted, the
large bill was changed at the bank, and Phil, or Cap-
tain Greenway, as the engineer called him from that
hour, became the owner of the Hebe, one of the finest
steam yachts on the lake.
Bashy had spoken an early word for himself, and he
was engaged to serve as engineer and general assistant
at the shanty when it should be erected. A rowboat
was purchased, and in less than a week The Hermitage
was completed. The assistance of the pilot was secured
for a few days, and the Hebe was going about all the
time to enable the new owner to learn the navigation
of the lake.
As has been said before, Philip Greenway, as he
had named himself to fit the initials on his arm, kept
himself out of the way of everybody, and he did not
even begin to read the Minneapolis Tribune on Sunday


130
THE YOUNG HERMIT
till he had lived two weeks at The Hermitage. He had
never heard of the robbery of the elegant mansion on
the hill at St. Paul, and he had not the remotest sus-
picion that he was charged with participating in the
burglary.
But even if he had read the papers, and learned that
the house had been entered, with a loss of over six
thousand dollars, he would not have known that he was
believed to have been concerned in the break, for
Cavan, for reasons of his own, had caused this fact to
be suppressed in the interests of justice; and even Mrs.
Gayland and Sparks dared not disregard the injunction
of secrecy.
Philip, as we will call him in deference to his desire,
had no doubt that Mr. Gayland would seek to recover
him again, as he had done on the former occasion; but
he thought he would be more likely to look for him in
Chicago, or at the seaboard, than in the immediate
vicinity; and for this reason he decided to spend the
summer at Lake Minnetonka, where he had been only
once before.
When he had escaped from the hotel, after his in-
terview with Mrs. Forbush, without passing through a
crowd of the assembled guests, he took a path by the
lake shore to the wharf, and went on board of the
steamer, where he immediately gave the order to cast
off the fasts, though he did it himself in the absence of
any deck hand.
The Hebe backed out from the pier without afford-
ing any of the people there an opportunity to talk with


SHOUTS FOR ASSISTANCE
131
the captain about himself or the thrilling incident of
the day; and in the pilot house he began to review what
had passed since he went to the assistance of the Ex-
celsior.
The clouds still hung over the lake, and though the
tempest had passed away, the wind still blew more than
half a gale from the northwest, and the water was
rough; but the captain of the Hebe rather enjoyed
handling his craft when there was sea enough to shake
her up.
He headed her for the north, through the passage
between the peninsula and Big Island, beyond which
was the Narrows, through which he had to pass in
order to reach The Hermitage; but he had no more
than got through the channel before his attention was
attracted by the vigorous shouts of a man who must be
at a considerable distance from him, judging by the
sound.
He saw a steam launch at the south of the North-
wood Park as he came through the passage, but he did
not bestow a second glance upon her till he heard the
yells, which he soon decided came from her.
A second look at her assured him that she was dis-
abled, and was drifting before the wind on the rather
heavy sea in that exposed part of the lake, and he im-
mediately threw over the wheel so as to overhaul her.
But he had made but a short distance before he
heard the scream of a woman, and he concluded that
the Excelsior was not the only craft that had suffered
from the hurricane of that day.


132
THE YOUNG HERMIT
The steam launch, being quite small, was rolling in
the trough of the sea in a manner that must have been
very trying to the nerves of a woman, or even a man
of little experience in a heavy sea.
The scream was repeated several times, and the cap-
tain of the Hebe concluded that the situation on board
of the steam launch was more trying than he had sup-
posed it could be, though the Hebe made tolerably good
weather of it, and did not even mind the trough of the
sea.
"Bashy, give me more steam!" called the captain
through the speaking tube. "There is a boat disabled
off here!"
The engineer proceeded to obey the order without
asking any questions, for he had learned more of the
humor of the captain that day than he had ever known
before.
The screams of the woman and the yells of the man
became more frequent and vigorous, and Phil hoped
the boat would not go to the bottom before he could
reach her.
As he continued to watch the launch, he saw a man
at the bow, for she was drifting stern foremost, mak-
ing the most energetic gestures for his benefit, though
for some time he could not make out the meaning of
his demonstration.
"There is a small boat off to windward of us!"
shouted Bashy, from the port side of the steamer, near
⚫ the engine.


SHOUTS FOR ASSISTANCE
133
Captain Greenway looked in the direction indicated
by his assistant, and for the first time he discovered
a very small boat, which seemed to be making very
bad weather of it.
A second look assured him that there was a young
girl in the boat.


134
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XXI.
A GIRL IN PERIL.
A's soon as he discovered the small boat containing
the young girl, Captain Greenway began to have a bet-
ter idea of the situation. Leaving the disabled steam
launch to take care of itself, he changed the course
of the Hebe, directing her toward the smaller craft,
which was in the greater peril.
It was evident from the screams that came from
the launch that there was a woman on board of it, and
it was clear that the danger to the young girl was the
occasion of the vigorous yell of the man and of the
shrieking of the female; and the belief was soon con-
firmed by the cessation of both cries.
The pilot took a marine glass from the brackets, and
gave a closer scrutiny to the little boat and its single
passenger; and he had no difficulty in realizing that
the girl was in imminent peril, for the boat was in the
trough of a sea which was altogether too much for a
craft of its size, and the waves seemed to be breaking
into it at every roll it made.
After changing her course the Hebe was headed into
the eye of the wind, and she made good weather of it,
hardly minding the waves that were a sore trial to the
steam launch, floundering about in the trough of the
sea.
i


A GIRL IN PERIL
135
Bashy was hurrying her all he dared, for he could
see that the young girl was in great danger of being
swamped, or washed out of the boat. He went to
take a look at her as often as about once a minute, say-
ing something to the captain each time he did so.
"Do you know what boat that is?" asked Phil Green-
way from the pilot house, after Bashy had made one
of his remarks about the situation of the smaller craft.
"I haven't the least idea; but I think the steam launch
belongs to the Hotel Lafayette, for there is one like
that kept over there," replied the engineer. "There
are a dozen boats like that little one about the lake, but
I reckon it belongs at Minnetonka Beach."
This was near the Hotel Lafayette, the largest at the
lake, situated on a peninsula at the northern shore of
Holmes Bay, where the Manitoba Railroad has its ter-
minus, though the information afforded the captain no
solution of the situation of the two crafts then in sight.
It is natural for almost any one to ask how anything
happened, and that was what Phil tried to reason out
as he watched the launch and the little rowboat, though
he had no facts on which to base any theory.
The hurricane had spent its fury more than an hour
before, though it was possible that the launch had been
disabled by its violence; but he could form no opinion
as to how the girl happened to be adrift at least half a
mile from the little steamer or the nearest land.
The Hebe had perceptibly increased her speed against
the smart gale which was blowing at the time, and she


136
THE YOUNG HERMIT
cut the water with her sharp bow as though she scorned
the resistance the waves presented to her progress.
Not a little of the moisture from the lake was dashed
upon the deck of the steamer, and even into the face.
of the bold pilot who directed her movements.
As the Hebe approached the light craft, and the girl
could be seen clinging convulsively to the rails on each
side of her, her screams became audible; and any one
would have been willing to excuse her for being fright-
ened under such circumstances.
"Hold on, and you are all right!" shouted Captain
Greenway, at the top of his lungs, when he thought he
was near enough to be heard by the little miss, who
appeared to be quaking with terror.
The hail, intended to encourage the girl, was an-
swered by a shrill scream from the sufferer, as she
gazed with the most intense earnestness at the ap-
proaching steamer.
"She ain't used up yet," shouted Bashy, when he had
heard the scream, which assured him that there was
some vitality left in the maiden, in spite of all she had
endured.
In a few minutes more the Hebe was near enough
to make it necessary to prepare to save the girl from
her perilous position, for the captain realized that a
mistake in the measures adopted to take the maiden
on board might result in the loss of the one they sought
to rescue, as even a slight collision with the frail row-
boat might smash in its side, and throw the girl into
the water, where she would evidently be helpless, and


A GIRL IN PERIL
137
might sink at once in her partially exhausted condi-
tion.
It was a nice manœuvre to approach such a feather-
weight as the light rowboat in such a sea as surrounded
it without sinking it, and the captain saw the necessity
of careful calculation, for the Hebe was leaping and
plunging in the opposing waves.
"Stand by the engine, and look sharp, Bashy!"
shouted the pilot, as he rang the bell to stop her.
A noise of hissing steam was all the reply he could
hear, for the engineer eased off the boiler as he shut
off steam from the machinery; but the captain saw that
his order was promptly obeyed, though the steamer
continued to approach the boat under the impetus
before acquired.
When the bow of the Hebe was almost up with the
rowboat, the captain threw over the wheel, and the
steamer circled part way round the boat, till her hull
was exactly to windward of the little boat, and not
more than ten feet from it, when he rang to back her.
Bashy obeyed the order on the instant, and the ef-
fect of the backing was to deprive the boat of its head-
way by simply checking her momentum; but the in-
stant her progress ceased she began to roll in a man-
ner that would have been dangerous to a smaller craft.
As soon as he had the boat as nearly at rest as the
angry waves would permit, Captain Greenway darted
from the pilot house as though he had been shot by
some invisible weapon, and made his way to the waist
of the vessel, abreast of which was the rowboat con-


138
THE YOUNG HERMIT
taining the terrified girl, whom Phil judged to be about
ten years old.
Taking a heave line in his hand as he stepped down
from the pilot house, upon which he had fixed his eye
while making his calculations for the rescue, he made
one end of it fast to the rail, and waited for the steamer
to drift up to the light boat; and he was so near that
he had to remain idle only the fraction of a second.
"Stand by here, Bashy, with a boat hook," said he to
the engineer, to whom no call from the pilot house
could now come.
"Here I am," replied the assistant, picking up the
implement which lay by the side of the engine.
Phil decided that it was not prudent to ask the girl
to do anything for her own safety, for he realized that
she must be almost paralyzed by the cold water and
the terror of her situation.
In another moment the Hebe had drifted upon the
boat, and the captain, with the rope in his hand,
dropped adroitly into the frail little craft, which was
now comparatively at rest under the lee of the steamer.
"Fend off the boat with the boat hook," said Phil,
with no appearance of excitement in his manner. Per-
haps the thrilling events on the other side of the island
had made the present one a tame affair.
When he had made fast the heave line to the boat,
the captain did not lose a single instant in proceeding
to the momentous business of his mission. Without
a word, he gathered up the little maiden in his strong


A GIRL IN PERIL
139
arms, and lifted her from her seat on the bottom of
the boat.
"Stand by, there, Bashy!" he called to the engineer.
"Never mind the boat hook now, but take the girl, and
handle her carefully."
The Hebe was low enough in the water to enable
Bashy to obey the order, and he took the maiden in
his arms as carefully as though she had been a basket
of eggs, in spite of the rolling of the steamer, and de-
posited her on the leather cushion in what was called,
by courtesy, the engine room, though it was not in-
closed from the rest of the craft.
As soon as the captain saw that she was safe, he cast
off the heave line, and went on board of the Hebe with
the painter of the rowboat in his hand; and, carrying it
aft, he made it fast at the stern of the steamer.
The moments of peril to the girl were past, and the
Hebe was in no danger at present; the captain there-
fore went to ascertain the condition of his little pas-
senger before he returned to the pilot house. He found
that Bashy had changed her sitting posture to a recum-
bent one, and had put his overcoat under her.
The engineer dropped the canvas curtains that in-
closed the boiler and machinery, and the place was soon
as hot as an oven.


140
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XXII.
AN EXCITING CHASE.
"What is your name, little miss?" asked Bashy, when
he had sheltered the girl from the savage blast that
came from the northwest.
"Sibyl Goldson," she replied, shivering with the cold
so that it was with the greatest difficulty she could an-
swer the question.
"Don't talk to her, Bashy; she is not in condition
to answer questions," interposed Captain Greenway.
"Let her entirely alone till she gets warm and comfort-
able; and it will soon be hot enough to toast her here."
"All right, captain; not another word," answered
the engineer, as he left the little passenger to look after
the engine.
"We will go ahead now, for I think that party in the
steam launch will be glad to see us as soon as we can
overhaul her," continued the captain, as he left the
engine room and went to the pilot house.
In a moment more the bell rang to go ahead, and
Bashy started the engine again, though he kept one
eye on the guest of the engine room, for he feared
that she might roll off the cushioned seat which served
for her couch, in the lively motion of the craft while
she was at rest.
The Hebe came about, making some tremendous


AN EXCITING CHASE
141
lee lurches as she did so, and went off before the wind,
though her motion became sensibly less as she darted
over the dashing waves.
The steam launch had drifted at least half a mile
since the captain of the Hebe had given any particular
attention to her, and the change in the direction of the
wind from west to northwest had carried her toward
the eastern part of Big Island, where she was in dan-
ger of going ashore before the needed assistance could
be rendered to her, and a heavy sea was breaking
against the beach.
"Keep her moving as lively as you can, Bashy,"
called the pilot through the speaking tube.
"What is the matter now, captain?" inquired the
engineer, through the same channel.
"The steam launch is drifting toward the shore of
Big Island," replied Phil. "She may knock a hole
in her bottom before we can reach her."
"All right; she shall do her best," added Bashy.
"Miss Sibyl is getting warm, and says, without any
asking, that she feels better."
"Glad to hear it; but keep the engine jumping, or
the rest of these people may need us more than the lit-
tle girl did."
The effect of this request was soon apparent in the
motion of the Hebe, for, though she leaped and buried
her bow in the waves, she was making rapid progress
through the water, and Captain Greenway had a lively
hope that he should be able to prevent the launch from
pounding on the shore.


142
THE YOUNG HERMIT
The disabled craft was ahead of him, and he applied
his marine glass to her to ascertain how many persons
were on board of her. After a while he was able to
count four, though there might be more whom he could
not see.
The party appeared to consist of a lady, two men,
and a boy; and the captain concluded, from the screams
she had given while Miss Sibyl was in such imminent
peril, that the female was the child's mother.
As the Hebe came nearer to the chase, two of the
men made signals with their handkerchiefs, though, as
the steamer was doing her best, the captain of the
steamer gave no heed to them, for there was nothing to
be done that he was not already doing.
The launch was every moment getting nearer to the
shore, and, however well she was built, the sea was
heavy enough to give her a severe shock if she struck
the hard gravel or packed sand. As the distance to the
island became less, the signals became more forcible
and imperative; and the captain was now near enough
to see that one of the men was pointing nervously at
the land on his starboard hand.
As before stated, the steam launch was much smaller
than the Hebe, and a new difficulty was presented to
the pilot of the latter, for his own craft drew twice
as much water as the other, and he was liable to get
aground before he could reach the disabled boat.
He realized that it would be bad policy for him to
run the risk of knocking a hole in the hull of the


AN EXCITING CHASE
143
Hebe, for then he could do nothing for his own people
or for those in the launch.
"We are scraping on the bottom!" suddenly yelled
Bashy, through the speaking tube.
The captain put the helm to starboard, for he sus-
pected that the Hebe had thumped once or twice on
the bottom, and the steamer stood away from the peril-
ous locality; and this movement brought a yell of in-
dignation from the launch, whose people evidently did
not understand the reason for this change of course.
But Captain Greenway gave no heed to this demon-
stration, and only took the trouble to satisfy himself
that the launch was still afloat; then he came about,
and took a position abreast of the disabled craft and
fastened the wheel amidships as he rang to stop her.
Then he took off his coat, which the coolness of the
weather rendered necessary on the lake, and rolled up
his shirt sleeves, as though he had some difficult work
before him.
Leaving the pilot house, he went to the waist, and
raised the curtain of the engine room, where the sweat
was pouring off the forehead of Bashy in the heat he
had got up for the benefit of the little passenger.
"Bashy, keep her moving just enough to prevent her
from drifting toward the shore, for I have secured
the wheel amidships, though you must attend to her
steering if her head falls off too much," said Phil, in a
clear and calm voice, though the men on the launch
were yelling with all their might at him.
"All right, Captain Greenway; I have done that


144
THE YOUNG HERMIT
thing all along before, and I know just how to do it,
and the Hebe will mind me as though she had brains of
her own," replied the faithful engineer.
"Whether the Hebe has brains or not, you have,
Bashy, and I leave the steamer in your charge. Do
the best you can with her, and that is all I ask," added
the captain, as he walked to the stern of the boat.
On his way he took a coil of rope, which was the
longest single line on board, and secured one end of
it very carefully to a cleat used to moor her alongside
a wharf; and, taking the other end in his hand, he
stepped into the little rowboat, and made it fast at the
stern.
Taking the oars from the bottom of the little boat,
he cast off the painter, and began to pull toward the
launch, which was nearly abreast of the Hebe, both
craft looking directly into the wind.
It was not an easy task to pull a boat of that size
in such waves, and the tender of the steamer, which
the captain did not need, as he did not intend to make
a landing in his cruise, had been left at The Hermitage;
but the rower was evidently accustomed to pulling in
a heavy sea, and he soon displayed his skill in a man-
ner which astonished Bashy, who did not let a minute
pass without looking at him.
The men on board of the launch, whether they had
come to an understanding of the real situation or not,
had ceased to yell, and all on board of her were watch-
ing the little boat with the most intense interest, no
doubt with a mingling of anxiety for the success of


AN EXCITING CHASE
145
his efforts, whatever he intended to do, for they did
not seem to comprehend his movements.
When Phil reached the bow of the launch, his boat
was half full of water, for his course had kept him
in the trough of the sea, and it was only with great
difficulty, and the exercise of a skill which experi-
ence alone could give, that he had been able to keep it
right side up.
Bringing the light boat under the lee of the bow of
the launch, he made fast the long line he had brought
through the water from the Hebe to a ring in the stem
of the disabled craft, even before the captain of it could
determine what he was about.
Without waiting an instant after he had accom-
plished his mission at the launch, Phil pulled back to
his own steamer, though he was again greeted by the
yells of the two men.
"What are you about? Are you going to desert us
now? We shall be broken up in three minutes on this
shore," yelled one of the men.
"It is all right, and I am doing the best I can," re-
plied Phil, who had no wind to spare, after his des-
perate exertion, in explaining his plan.
"We shall all be drowned!" screamed the lady.
The captain of the Hebe had enough to do to handle
his featherweight boat, and he made no further reply;
but as soon as he saw Bashy in the waist of the Hebe
he yelled to him to go ahead, full steam.


146
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XXIII.
MR. ARNOLD BLONDAY.
Bashy heard the order, and obeyed it with his usual
promptness, starting the engine in the proper manner,
and hastening to the pilot house to look out for the
steering.
"Was the little girl drowned?" called one of the men
on the launch.
"No!" shouted Captain Greenway, who thought this
was a question that ought to be answered.
The Hebe went ahead, and the line straightened as
she did so, though it was plain that the people on the
launch had no idea whatever of what the young man
in the boat had been doing.
As the line came up out of the water, Phil noticed
it, and pulled toward it till he had it in his grasp, when
he unshipped his oars, and hauled himself to the Hebe
by the rope.
As soon as he came on board, he secured the little
boat, and hastened to the pilot house to relieve the
engineer of a part of his double duty, though he had
certainly performed both in a satisfactory manner.
The Hebe had no difficulty in bringing the launch
out of her proximity to the shore, and she seemed to
go off into the wind with hardly diminished speed;


MR. ARNOLD BLONDAY
147
for the captain intended to run under the lee of North-
wood, and there ascertain what was the pleasure of the
passengers on board of the tow, as he was not informed
where they belonged, or who and what they were. 1
After the experience of the forenoon with the pas-
sengers of the Excelsior, he was not at all inclined to
pay another visit to any hotel; if he did he was likely
to lose his character as The Hermit of Minnetonka.
"How is the little girl, Bashy?" asked the captain,
after everything had begun to go along as usual on
board, for he had not thought of her as long as his
mind was occupied with the safety of the people on
board of the launch.
"She is all right, and says she feels warm and com-
fortable now," replied the engineer, as she could not
well help being in the intense heat of the engine room.
"Her clothes are almost dry, and she says she should
like to see you.'
99
"Time enough to see me before she goes ashore," re-
turned Phil. “I am going to stop her under the lee of
the land ahead, and then we will see the people in the
launch."
This was said as a hint that Bashy need not drive the
engine, and he did not shovel any more coal into the
furnace, as he would otherwise have done; and in a
little while the bell came to stop her.
Phil went aft, and hauled in the towline as the
launch forged ahead after the engineer had backed
the Hebe so as to stop her headway; and without much


148
THE YOUNG HERMIT
effort, when Bashy came to his aid, the tow was hauled
alongside the steamer, for the water was quite smooth
under the lee of the shore.
The captain had gone to the little wheel of the
launch, but the rest of the party remained in the bow,
where they had been since the Hebe hauled her off the
lee shore, the lady springing to her feet as soon as she
saw that the boat was coming alongside the Hebe.
Though she appeared to be wet, and her clothes to
have been a good deal deranged by her experience in
the launch, Phil could see that she was dressed in costly
garments. He had no doubt she was a member of a
wealthy family, as were most of those who spent much
time at the hotels on the lake.
Though the captain guessed that she was from
thirty-five to forty years old, she was still a handsome
woman; but there was something in her expression that
he did not like, for it was too much like that of Mrs.
Gayland, whom he had come to know thoroughly.
By her side was a gentleman, who looked as though
he was somewhat older than the lady, and was dressed
as finely as she was, with an evident air of the man
of the world about him. Phil concluded that he was
the lady's husband and the father of the little girl in
the engine room, though this of course could be nothing
more than a guess.
"Where is my daughter?" called the lady, as soon
as the launch came abreast of the Hebe, with all the
anxiety any mother might feel under such circum-
stances.


MR. ARNOLD BLONDAY
149
"She is in the engine room, drying her clothes;
but she is all right now, and you need not be at all
disturbed about her," replied the captain in the most
assuring tones he could command.
"Oh, I am so rejoiced!" exclaimed the lady, who
also appeared to be shivering with the cold, though
perhaps it was partly her nervous anxiety. "Can
I see her?"
"Certainly you can, madam," said Phil, getting out
the gangplank for her use.
“I was sure she would be drowned! And you have
saved her?" exclaimed the lady, as she walked to the
place where the captain had placed the plank. "How
shall I ever reward you for what you have done?"
"The engineer says the little girl is doing very well,
and she has been in his room ever since she came on
board," replied Phil, without heeding the grateful ex-
pressions of the fond mother, as she really appeared
to be.
"I don't know you, young man, though we have been
at the lake for the last two weeks," interposed the gen-
tleman, who kept close to the lady.
"That is Captain Philip Greenway," said Bashy, who
had come to the after part of the steamer to assist with
the gangplank. "He is the captain of the Hebe, which
is the name of the boat."
"I am glad to know you, Captain Greenway," said
the gentleman, extending his hand to the hero of the
occasion. "This lady is Mrs. Austin Goldson."


150
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"I am particularly glad to make your acquaintance,
Captain Greenway; for you have saved my only child,
and I am under a debt of gratitude to you that I can
never repay," said Mrs. Goldson, extending her jeweled
hand to him.
"And you are Mr. Austin Goldson, I suppose?" in-
quired Phil, turning away from the lady when she be-
gan to talk of her gratitude, though he did not doubt
her sincerity.
"No, I am not," replied the gentleman very promptly.
"The lady is my sister, and I am the uncle of the lit-
tle girl whose life you have saved. My name is Arnold
Blonday."
Arnold! The young captain had studied American
history, and he wondered how any native could call
his son by such a name; but Mr. Blonday behaved him-
self with strict propriety, and personally he was not at
all disagreeable.
Phil showed the lady and her brother to the engine
room, where the mother infolded her daughter in a
long and hysteric embrace, while her uncle only took
her hand and kissed her just once.
The captain did not think it would be polite to wit-
ness the interview, and he left the family to rejoice
alone in their reunion with the one who was so nearly
lost to them, for even Phil could not explain how the
boat had kept right side up so long.
On his return to the deck, he thought he should make
a more presentable appearance with his coat on when it


MR. ARNOLD BLONDAY
151
should be his duty to look out for the comfort of his
passengers; but the skipper of the launch confronted
him before he could get to the pilot house, and he
was not cold.
"
"You have done a handsome thing for my party,"
said Captain Floyd, addressing the captain of the
Hebe.
"We did as well as we could for you, in spite of all
the yelling you set up," replied Phil. "How did that
little girl happen to get adrift in that boat?"
"You see we got caught in the storm, but I made
the lee of the point by Huntington's house; and we
stood it very well, for the water was smooth enough
there in the worst of it," returned Captain Floyd.
"That rowboat belongs to Miss Sibyl, and we took it
with us so that she could have a row when we landed
at the Hotel St. Louis. While we were waiting here
the little girl got into it, unknown to any of us, and we
didn't find it out till we heard her scream, for she
had got out into the big waves. She couldn't row
there, and she began to drift off. Her mother was
scared almost to death, and I started the Violet after
her. I hadn't any more than got into the big sea be-
fore my tiller ropes broke. I could not do a thing, and
we began to drift as you found us."
At this moment Mr. Arnold Blonday came out of
the engine room, just as the captain was pulling down
his sleeves and going for his coat.
"What is that mark on your arm, Captain Green-


152
THE YOUNG HERMIT
way?" demanded Mr. Blonday, putting his finger upon
the initials on his arm.
"The letters are the initials of my name-Philip
Greenway."
Arnold Blonday was terribly shaken by some emo-
tion which Phil could not understand.
(


THE EXCITED PASSENGER
153
CHAPTER XXIV.
THE EXCITED PASSENGER.
C
The day of the tempest was certainly a very eventful
one with Captain Philip Greenway, for it had made him
acquainted with the rich widow from Philadelphia, and
now the remarkable conduct of Mr. Arnold Blonday in-
dicated that he had some strange interest in him, judg-
ing by the depth of his emotion when he accidentally
saw the letters on his arm.
As the P. G. had been on his arm ever since he could
remember, he had become accustomed to the sight
of them himself, and they had long since ceased to ex-
cite his wonder as to how they came there.
He had half suspected that they stood for his real
name, and, reasoning from the strong affection which
Mr. Gayland manifested toward him, he could almost
believe that he was the son of that capitalist, by some
unexplained marriage, concealed for reasons which he
could not fathom.
He had asked the occupant of the elegant mansion on
the hill, in his last interview with him, about the let-
ters; but the only reply he had ever received was that
they were on his arm when he was brought to the hotel
at Nice; and, though the last letter was the initial of
his surname, he did not know for what the first one
stood, and he and Mrs. Gayland had agreed to call him


154
THE YOUNG HERMIT
Paul, after a brother of the lady, in order to make his
name correspond to the letters.
On leaving the elegant mansion, when he found it
advisable, if not absolutely necessary to assume a new
name, so as to prevent any report of him from being
carried back to St. Paul, he had selected Philip Green-
way so that it should agree with the initials on his
arm in case they should be seen by any person.
Bashy had spoken to him about them when they were
swimming in the lake; but as they stood for the cap-
tain's name, as the engineer knew it, it was not at all
strange that those particular letters should be there, if
any; and the bearer of them explained that sailors and
fishermen on the sea were very apt to have such marks
upon them.
The engineer had introduced his captain to Mr.
Blonday and his sister, using his full name, which
clearly accounted for both initials, and Phil could not
imagine what there was to call out so much emotion
on the part of the passenger.
A gentleman and a man of the world, as Mr. Blonday
appeared to be, would not be startled out of his stoicism
and even his self-possession by discovering a couple of
letters on the arm of a stranger, especially if they were
in accord with his announced name.
Probably if the initials on his arm had not been the
subject of so much remark with Mrs. Forbush only a
couple of hours before, he would have been less aston-
ished at the impression they produced upon his pres-
ent passenger; and, as he had never seen or heard of


THE EXCITED PASSENGER
155
Mr. Blonday or Mrs. Goldson before, he was utterly
unable to suggest any explanation of the behavior of
the former.
Mr. Blonday even turned pale, and his lips quivered
when he saw the initials, and he gazed at them as
though he was spellbound by the sight.
"Do you think it is anything very strange that I
should have the initials of my name on my arm, Mr.
Blonday?" asked the captain, after he had looked in
silence at the apparently petrified form in front of him.
"Those are the initials of your name, are they?"
said the passenger, without removing his gaze from
the characters which seemed to be so impressive to him.
"My name has been mentioned to you, and you can
judge for yourself," added Captain Greenway.
"I have really forgotten your Christian name, cap-
tain," continued Mr. Blonday, looking up at him for
the first time since he discovered the letters.
"Philip Greenway was the name which the engineer
gave me when he introduced me."
"Philip Greenway," repeated the gentleman, with a
more sinister expression than the captain had observed
before in his face. "You are right, and the initials do
stand for that name."
"Of course they do," said Phil, his wonder and dis-
like of the man increasing with every word that came
from him. "Is there anything very strange in the
fact that P. G. stands for Philip Greenway?"
"I can't say that there is; but it seems to me that
I have seen those initials on the arm of some other


156
THE YOUNG HERMIT
person," replied Mr. Blonday, suddenly recovering the
self-possession he had lost as he dropped the captain's
arm, and conjured up an enticing smile on his thin lips,
as if he felt that he had been "giving himself away."
"Where I have seen them, I cannot for the life of me
remember."
"It cannot have been on my arm, at any rate, for I
never saw you before in my life," remarked Phil.
"You have rendered my sister a very great service,
my young friend, and I shall not attempt to express her
gratitude or my own to you at this time; but you may
be very sure that we shall not forget what you have
done to-day; and every time we look upon the little
girl, even after she has reached the years of maturity,
we shall be apt to think of you, who have given us
back the life that had been lost without your assist-
ance," said Mr. Blonday, evidently thinking it was time
to change the subject.
"It looks as though it was going to blow pretty fresh
the rest of the day," remarked Phil, dodging the new
subject introduced by the passenger.
"I am not weather wise," answered Mr. Blonday,
trying to smile, though the effort was hardly a success.
"How long do we remain here, captain?"
"I ran up under the lee of the shore to enable you
and the lady to see the little girl; and I am ready to
leave at your pleasure, if you will tell me where you
wish to go."
99
"We have been boarding at the Hotel Lafayette for
the last two weeks, and we still have apartments there,"


THE EXCITED PASSENGER
157
replied the passenger. "We go out on the lake every
pleasant day, and have employed the steam launch on
our excursions; but the Violet does not seem to have
been put together in a very substantial manner, or she
would not have broken down to-day; and we shall
doubtless take some other boat in future."
"An accident is likely to happen to any steamer,
sir," suggested the captain.
"But we should prefer such a steamer as this one;
and my sister will be very glad to engage the Hebe,
for that I believe is the name of your boat," added
Mr. Blonday, in a patronizing tone, though this was
doubtless habitual rather than put on with reference to
the gallant young captain, whose services ought to have
exempted him from anything of that kind.
"The Hebe does not carry any passengers," replied
Captain Greenway, rather stiffly.
"You don't carry passengers?" queried the man of
the world, apparently astonished at the reply.
"Never, sir, unless we pick them up in distress, as
we did you, and as we did another party to-day," added
Phil.
Mr. Blonday wanted to know about the other party,
and the captain gave him the naked particulars with-
out enlarging upon the side incidents of the affair at
the Lake Park Hotel.
"Now, Mr. Blonday, if you are ready, I will take
your party to the Hotel Lafayette," suggested the cap-
tain.
"I hope you will stay to dinner with us, and I am
1


158
THE YOUNG HERMIT
sure the guests of the hotel will be glad to see one
who has made so good a record for himself as you
have, Captain Greenway," replied the passenger.
"You must excuse me, sir; and I have no desire to
meet the guests of the hotel," replied Phil, with all the
dignity he could command, for he had the impression
that the gentleman was patronizing him, and that was
something which he could not endure.
"But I hope we shall see you again; and I am sure
my sister will be very much disappointed if she fails
to meet you again in the near future."
The captain made no reply, but went to the pilot
house.


A PRESSING INVITATION
159
CHAPTER XXV.
A PRESSING INVITATION.
When Captain Greenway reached the pilot house of
the Hebe, he put on his coat; and he had almost vowed
never to take it off again, or, at least, not to roll up
his shirt sleeves so that any one could see the initials
on his arm, for he felt as though they had nearly be-
trayed The Hermit of Minnetonka.
2
He rang the bell to start the engine back, and as
soon as the Hebe was well off the shore, he rang again
to go ahead, and he pointed her out into the rough
water again.
Phil found that he had enough to engage his
thoughts for hours to come, though he was utterly un-
able to make anything of the situation in which he
found himself on this eventful day.
Mrs. Forbush had mistaken him for her adopted son,
though, as she resided in Philadelphia, it was not prob-
able that the genuine young man with C. G. on his arm
could be anywhere in the vicinity of Lake Minnetonka.
The only important fact which interested him in re-
gard to "Conny" was that he had initials on his arm,
in the same place as his own; and now it looked just
as though Mr. Arnold Blonday knew something about
letters on the arm.


160
THE YOUNG HERMIT
The captain cudgeled his active brain with the ut-
most vigor, but he could make nothing of the meager
particulars which had come to his knowledge; and the
more he racked his thinking powers, the more fathom-
less became the whole subject.
At last, in sheer disgust at what he could not com-
prehend, he was compelled to conclude that all which
was strange and unexplainable was merely an accident,
for the pricking of names and other devices on the arm
was a very common practice, not entirely confined to
those who follow the sea.
P. G., or even C. G., might stand for a hundred
names; and he amused himself in recalling all the let-
ters he could think of that would fit the initials; and
with this disposal of the whole subject he was fully
satisfied, and discharged it from his mind.
He had hardly set his mind at rest before the three
passengers on board appeared on the forward deck,
holding on with all their might to prevent themselves
from being thrown overboard by the motion of the
steamer, which was now approaching the pier at Min-
netonka Beach. There was not a single craft of any
kind moored there, for the hurricane raked squarely
across the bay, and even since the change of wind the
bay was not protected.
If the dangerous situation of the yacht had been
seen at all from the shore, as it could hardly have been,
there was not a steamer available in which to go to her
assistance, for all of them had sought shelter in a less
exposed locality before the storm; and it had been quite


A PRESSING INVITATION
161
impossible to see the little boat as it drifted with its
single passenger on the angry waves.
"I hope you feel better than you did, Miss Sibyl,"
said the captain, as the lady and her daughter took a
position beneath the front windows of the pilot house,
both of them supported by Mr. Blonday.
"Oh, I feel very nicely now, I thank you," replied
the little lady. "I am just as warm as toast, and I
know that you saved my life, and I shall always be the
best friend you have in all the world."
"I am very glad I was able to help you, Miss Sibyl;
and I shall be glad to have as good a friend as I know
you will be," said the gallant captain, with a pleasant
smile, for there was nothing sinister or unreal about the
child, however it might be with her mother and her
uncle.
"But you must come up to the hotel to dinner with
us, for I want to see more of you on the dry land,"
continued the little maiden; and it was plain enough
that she had been instructed to say this.
"I thank you very much, but I have to go home,
for I have been out on the lake ever since early this
morning; and I am not dressed up to dine with such
fine people as you and your mother," replied the cap-
tain. "You must excuse me this time, and some time
I may be able to see you again."
By this time Phil noticed that the mother of the
child was looking at him, and studying his features,
with an absorbing interest which was very strange to
him; and it looked just as though her brother had com-


162
THE YOUNG HERMIT
municated to her some of his own emotional impres-
sions, for she certainly had not seen the initials on
his arm.
"Couldn't you possibly dine with us to-day?" asked
the lady, with a fascinating smile, or one that must
have been put on as such, for the sharp eyes and close
observation of the captain had enabled him to dis-
cover that she was even more embarrassed than her
brother had been in his presence.
"It would be quite impossible for me to do so,
madam," he replied, with an earnestness begotten by
a fear of something he could not define.
Looking at Mrs. Goldson and her brother in any
manner he could, and struggling to be both just and
charitable in judging them, there was something sin-
ister in their expression.
"Will you come to-morrow, then?" persisted Mrs.
Goldson, though she dropped her gaze to the deck when
she realized that the young pilot was looking into her
very soul, as it were.
"If I decline your kind invitation for the present or
the future, I hope you will excuse me, for I never go
to any such occasions, and I do not feel at home in any
of these hotels, or even in a private house. I assure
you, madam, that the greatest favor you can do me
is to let me off from anything in the shape of a dinner,
a party, or a gathering of any kind," pleaded the cap-
tain.
"Buck says you are the hermit fellow that lives up
to Halsted's Bay," interposed Captain Floyd, of the


A PRESSING INVITATION
163
Violet, who was standing on the deck near enough to
hear the conversation.
"I am called so sometimes, though it is not a char-
acter of my own choice," replied Phil. "I suppose the
name was given me because I mind my own business,
and shun all company except that of my engineer."
"You are rather young to be a hermit," suggested
the lady.
"I am not a hermit in any proper sense of the word.
I am not a religious devotee, and I do not live alone. I
choose seclusion for reasons of my own which concern
no other person, for I am guilty of no wrong or crime
which should drive me from the society of others," re-
turned Phil. "With this explanation of my mode of
life, I am sure you will excuse my absence from your
table."
"Of course I shall not insist on your dining with
us against your will, though Sibyl and I will be very
glad to see you again," said the lady.
"Won't you let me see you again, Captain Green-
way?" pleaded the girl, so sincerely that Phil could
hardly resist her.
"I shall be very glad to see you again," he replied.
"I am not company, you know, for they send me to
bed when they have a dinner party," interposed the lit-
tle lady.
"I suppose you often row in your little boat; and
you may see the Hebe coming out of the Narrows,"
answered Phil. "If you hail her by waving your hand-
kerchief, I will take you on board, and give you a seat


164
THE YOUNG HERMIT
in the pilot house on a trip over the lower lake. I sup-
pose your mother will not be afraid to trust you with
me."
"Certainly not," said Mrs. Goldson. "I give my con-
sent, though I hope you will let us know that you
have taken her on board so that I need not worry about
her."
"I will agree to do that," replied the captain, as he
rang the bell to stop the engine near the pier of the
Hotel Lafayette.
"I am very glad that Captain Floyd knows where to
find you, for I may possibly have occasion to send a
messenger to you, though I will promise not to inter-
fere with your seclusion."
"I cannot imagine what occasion you may have to
send a messenger to me after the explanation of my
habits I have given, but the Hebe can be hailed almost
any day on the lake," suggested Phil, who did not like
the idea of having any visitors at The Hermitage.
By skillful management, Captain Greenway landed
his passengers safely at the pier, and they all took his
hand at parting.


UNWELCOME VISITORS
165
CHAPTER XXVI.
UNWELCOME VISITORS.
The wharf at the Hotel Lafayette was crowded with
people when the Hebe came in, for the rescue of the
Violet had been observed from Northwood, and the
news of the event had been forwarded to the hotel.
Captain Greenway made all possible haste to get away
as soon as he had landed his passengers, and several,
including the enterprising reporters of the Tribune and
Journal, attempted to "interview" him.
Phil leaped on board, and pulled his bell as soon as
he could get into the pilot house, bringing off the bow
fast with him, while Bashy hauled in the stern line.
The Hebe had hardly gone a cable's length from the
pier before the crowd upon it sent up a lusty cheer, and
the pilot saw the party he had just landed and others
waving their handkerchiefs at the steamer; and he con-
cluded that his late passengers had been telling of what
had happened.
Captain Floyd had taken the painter of his launch
on the wharf, and the Hebe had no tow to retard her
progress. Still, she rolled heavily in the trough of the
sea as she headed for the Narrows, and Phil was very
glad to be alone with himself once more, for it seemed
just as though the current of his life had been all


166
THE YOUNG HERMIT
broken up, he had been with so many people during the
day.
In spite of himself he could not help thinking about
the extraordinary interview with Mrs. Forbush, and
the singular conduct of Mrs. Goldson and her brother.
He had learned nothing at all in regard to the latter,
for he cared too little about them to ask any questions.
Like all the residents in the summer at the lake, ex-
cept the inhabitants of the two towns on its shore, they
did not belong there, and he had no idea where they
came from; but it did not occur to him that the G on
his arm might stand for Goldson as well as for Green-
way or Gayland; but it was also the initial of Gale,
Graham, Gardiner, and a hundred, if not a thousand,
other names, and the fact had no particular significance
to him.
The Hebe went through the Narrows, and stood
upon her course to the southwest for Howard's Point;
but off Cook's Point, which was somewhat sheltered
from the roughest of the northwest blast, he saw a boat
pulling out from the shore, and he concluded that a
gentleman in the stern sheets was crossing to Spring
Park, for there is no end of parks on the lake.
"Hebe, ahoy!" shouted the gentleman he had no-
ticed.
"In the boat!" replied Captain Greenway, though he
was very much disposed not to reply to the hail.
"Hold up a minute, will you?" shouted the passenger


UNWELCOME VISITORS
167
in the boat, for the two men had all they wanted to do
to pull the craft against the head sea.
"I can't stop now!" yelled the captain in reply.
"I have an important letter for you!" shouted the
gentleman; and he was near enough by this time for
the pilot to believe that he was the landlord of the
Lake Park Hotel.
"All right!" responded Phil, wondering who could
think of such a thing as sending him a letter on any
subject, for he had no business with any one but Bashy
on the face of the earth.
A second thought assured him that the letter must
come from Mrs. Forbush, and the easiest thing for him
to do was to receive it, and answer it by his silence.
He had rung the bell to stop her, for he was confident
that the landlord had no designs upon him, however
it might be with his wealthy guest from Philadelphia.
As the boat came up to the Hebe, Phil left the pilot
house, and caught the bow of it with the boat hook to
prevent it from striking too hard against the steamer's
side, and perhaps to keep it at a safe distance besides.
"This is for Captain Philip Greenway," said the
landlord, as he held up a letter in his hand. "It is very
important and valuable, and you must be careful, or
you may lose it overboard."
"I won't lose it," replied the captain, as he brought
the boat into position so that the bearer of it could
deliver the letter.
Phil took the letter and dropped it into the side


168
THE YOUNG HERMIT
pocket of his yacht uniform, for he was not dressed
as a hermit, though people called him so; and he had lit-
tle respect for the importance or the value of the mis-
sive.
"I heard that you would surely come this way be-
fore night, and I have been waiting some time for the
steamer to come along," continued the landlord, "for
the lady would not trust any one but me with it."
The captain thought he had begun a long story, and
he let go his hold on the boat, wishing to escape as
quickly as he could.
"Hold on a moment! I want a receipt for the let-
ter!" shouted the landlord, when he saw that his boat
was adrift. "Mrs. Forbush must be made certain that
I have delivered the letter to you in person."
"I will give you a receipt for the letter in a moment,'
replied the captain, who thought the request was a rea-
sonable one.
99
Returning to the pilot house, he took a sheet of note
paper from a locker, wrote the receipt in pencil, signed
it, and then carried it to the landlord, whose men had
made fast to the steamer; and their passenger directed
them to cast off as soon as he had the receipt.
Phil rang his bell again, and the Hebe resumed her
course for the upper end of the lake; but he could not
forget the letter in his pocket, though he was almost
stoical enough to do so, and he took it out.
It was directed to him in the neat writing of a lady,
though he was sure on the face of it that it was not


UNWELCOME VISITORS
169
a love letter. It was bulky enough to contain some-
thing besides note paper, though he could not imagine
what the lady should wish to send to him.
But the only way to settle this question was to open
the missive, and he did so; and, to his great astonish-
ment, he found that it contained a package of bank
notes, placed in an envelope.
He certainly had not expected a reward in money,
though he had cut the giver off from any other means
of testifying her gratitude; and, as he had not desired
any compensation for what he had done, he was not a
little disturbed when he ascertained the contents of the
letter.
His first impulse was to return the bank notes to
Mrs. Forbush; but she was very rich, and such a course
would hurt her feelings, and perhaps it would be bet-
ter for him to permit her to believe she had discharged
her obligation to him.
He opened the envelope again and took out the bills,
all of which were of the denomination of one hundred
dollars, and there were ten of them-a thousand dol-
lars, which almost made him rich in his own estima-
tion, with what he had on hand of Mr. Gayland's gift.
It was a princely reward, and, as Bashy had taken
part in the work of saving the passengers of the Ex-
celsior, he was entitled to a share of it, though the good
steamer had done the most of the work; and Phil de-
cided that three hundred dollars was a fair portion
for the engineer.


170
THE YOUNG HERMIT
Without any further incidents the Hebe reached the
cape at the head of the lake, behind which was a small
bay, on which The Hermitage was located.
The Hebe was soon moored here, for there was no
landing place on the cape, and Phil went ashore in the
tender, which had been attached to the moorings, for
Bashy wished to remain on board and put his engine
in order.
The captain decided to hand the money to his assist-
ant in the evening, when they had more time to talk
over the matter of the adventures of the day, and he
felt that he wanted to be alone for a while before he
saw the engineer.
He had a lounge in his room, and he threw himself
upon it to consider the events of the day, especially
in their connection with the passengers he had rescued
from the steam launch, for this matter pressed itself
upon his attention, in spite of his efforts to avoid it.
When he had lain there not more than half an hour,
he heard voices in front of the shanty, and they were
soon followed by a vigorous rapping at the door on
the lake side of the building; but he never opened the
door to any one, and he waited for the visitors to
leave, more than half suspecting that they were re-
porters from the newspapers, coming to interview him.
Presently the door was opened, and the hermit de-
cided in a moment not to see the visitors, whoever they
were. The only thing he could do was to "take to the
woods," as usual. He retreated to the trees farther up


UNWELCOME VISITORS
171
the cape. After waiting there half an hour, he thought
that he had put the letter containing the money in a
pine bureau Bashy had bought for him, and he re-
turned to make sure that it was not stolen.
Looking in at the only window in the rear, he saw
two young men in full possession at The Hermitage.


172
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE VISITORS IN THE SHANTY.
Philip Greenway was not prepared to believe, when
he looked in at the rear window of The Hermitage, that
there was anything very terrible about the two young
fellows, as they seemed to him to be, who had taken
possession of the shanty.
They had not approached the building from the point
of the cape, for then Bashy, on board of the Hebe,
would certainly have seen them, and would not have
failed to hail them.
The engineer spent a great deal of his time on board
of the steamer when not employed on shore, for the
engine of the boat was as much a pet of his as though
it had been a dog or a horse, and he could not have
slept at night if there was a piece of bright work about
it that was not shining like silver.
From his position in the rear of The Hermitage Phil
could see the steamer, and, as his assistant had rolled
up the curtains on each side of the machinery, he dis-
covered him hard at work, unconscious that the her-
mit's home had been invaded by outsiders.
Phil was conscious that he was nothing but a "squat-
ter" on the territory where his shanty was built, though
Bashy had obtained permission to put it there of a man
who claimed to have the care of the land. For aught


THE VISITORS IN THE SHANTY
173
he knew the invaders of his domicile might be the
sons, or other relatives, of the owner, and he was not
disposed to make a quarrel with them, though he ob-
jected to coming in contact with them.
The visitors were certainly making themselves en-
tirely at home in the shanty, and, as there was no one to
entertain them, they had assumed that function in their
own behalf.
The window, which was only a single sash set in an
aperture in the side, opened into the kitchen and living
room of the shanty, where a small cook stove had been
set up, while in the centre of the apartment was a table.
On this was placed a boiled ham and a loaf of bread
which had been taken from the cupboard, and the two
visitors were regaling themselves with the provision,
while a pot of coffee stood on the stove.
The proprietor of The Hermitage was disposed to be
very indignant when he saw the freedom which his
unwelcome guests were using on his premises. His
first thought was to take the boat, go for Bashy, and
drive them out of the shanty; but he concluded to ob-
tain further information in regard to them if he could.
The fellows had evidently been fully employed since
they went into the shanty, for they had made a fire,
set the table, and discovered the material for their re-
past, which must have taken them some time in a living
room where all was new and strange to them, and it
looked as though they had just seated themselves to
their supper.
Phil left his place at the window, and walked down


174
THE YOUNG HERMIT
•
to the shore of the bay, on the outside of Cape Cod,
as the captain had christened it, for it looked, on the
map of the lake with which he had provided himself,
like the neck of land with that name on the sea coast,
to ascertain, if he could, from which direction the in-
truders had come.
Below the higher ground on which the trees grew
was a sandy beach, where he looked for footprints;
and he soon discovered them some distance above the
shanty. Following them a few rods, he came to a boat
hauled up on the shore.
At the sight of it he concluded that his visitors were
fishermen, who had been driven from the waters of the
lake by the severity of the storm and the rough water
which had prevailed since the hurricane subsided.
As the boat, which was like most of those kept for
hirers at the hotels, was drawn partly out of the water,
he had no difficulty in examining it; and there was not a
fishline, a box of bait, or anything else that indicated
catching fish.
They were not fishermen, and, as both of them were
well dressed, it was more probable that they were
guests of one of the hotels, who had been caught
out in the storm, and the lake had been too rough for
them to return; and this was all that Phil could sur-
mise in regard to them.
He returned to The Hermitage, hoping the visitors
would depart as soon as they had finished the meal
they had prepared for themselves without leave or li-
cense.


THE VISITORS IN THE SHANTY
175
When he reached the rear of the shanty he saw that
Bashy was still at work on the Hebe, and the noise of
a hammer indicated that he was now repairing some
defect he had found about her; and, as it was only
five o'clock in the afternoon, he decided not to disturb
him.
The shanty was not air-tight, though the roof was
waterproof, and there were plenty of openings between
the boards with which the building was covered, so
that he could have no trouble in investigating the char-
acter of his visitors.
They were very busy eating, and they had already
sensibly diminished the size of the ham before them,
and the owner of The Hermitage wondered if there
would be bread enough left for the legitimate occupants
of the shanty.
What they said related solely to the food before
them, which they praised warmly, declaring that the
ham was the best they had eaten for many a day, and
that the coffee was better than they had found at a cer-
tain hotel.
Phil secured a position where he could seat himself
on a box which had been thrown out of the shanty, and
hear, through a knot hole of liberal proportions, all
that was said by his guests, as well as see everything
they did.
Human endurance, in the pleasing enjoyment of eat-
ing when the feeder is hungry, does not last forever;
and the scene soon became more interesting to the ob-
server outside of the building, for they had evidently


176
THE YOUNG HERMIT
reached the measure of their capacity before the ham or
even the loaf of bread was exhausted.
"This is not a bad place, and the fellow that runs it
knows a good ham from a bad one," said one of them,
as he leaned back in his chair, as if to allow the provi-
sion he had consumed to have full course and domin-
ion in his stomach.
This person was older than Phil had taken either of
the couple to be, and he judged that he was as much
as twenty-five years old, for he had a full-grown mus-
tache, with a reckless expression on his face, with
which his present position was in keeping.
"Not a bad place at all," replied the other, as he
hitched back his chair from the table.
But Phil could not observe what more was said, for
the voice of the last was a familiar one, and he was
not a little startled when he recognized it. He changed
his position, applying his eye closely to the knot hole
in order to obtain a full view of the last speaker's face.
"I wish we had just such a place as this for the next
week or two, Gay Sparkland," continued the first
speaker, whose name had not yet been mentioned.
"We have full possession of the den, and the law-
yers say that is nine points in the law," added Gay
Sparkland, as the other had called him; "and I don't
see why we should not remain here as long as we
please."
Beyond a doubt, in the mind of the listener, the last
speaker was no other than Sparks Gayland, the chang-
ing of which into "Gay Sparkland," if the nephew of


THE VISITORS IN THE SHANTY
177
his uncle wished to conceal his identity, was a clumsy
expedient, since the assumed name suggested the real
one.
Phil Greenway was not especially pleased with the
idea broached by his quarrelsome companion of the
past, to take and retain possession of his rude domicile;
but he was too much interested in the cheerful pair at
his fireside to bestow much consideration on the propo-
sition.
"Of course this shanty is inhabited by some one,
and the occupant has been here within a short time,
for that ham had not been here long enough to be dried
up," added the older of the two persons.
"Do you know who owns this land, Roddy?" asked
Gay Sparkland, as he chose to call himself.
"Of course I don't; and I don't believe you are any
wiser than I am on that point," replied Roddy.
"Suppose we take a look about the premises, and
then I will give you an idea of mine," said Gay, rising
from his chair.
Then both of them went out at the end door.


178
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XXVIII.
GAY AND HIS FRIEND.
It was certainly prudent in the intruders at Cape Cod
to survey the locality before they took possession of it
even for a week or two. But Phil did not care to meet
them face to face just yet, and he dodged around the
house to the end opposite that in which the rear door
was located.
He was not inclined to let the visitors loose on the
premises without keeping an eye on them.
Making his way with all the caution necessary, he
reached the front of the house. Here he heard the
voices of the two intruders, who appeared to be stand-
ing near the door by which they had left the kitchen,
where they were taking in the situation and comment-
ing upon it, in reference to the plan Gay had suggested.
Phil could see the Hebe from the position he had
chosen for the moment; but he did not see Bashy where
he had been the last time he looked that way, and he
concluded the engineer was at work below in the well
of the fireroom.
"There is no one on board of that steamer," said
Gay, evidently after a full examination of her.
"I should say the fellow that lived here had gone on
a visit to his relations; at any rate he is not here, and
there is no one on board of the steamer," replied


GAY AND HIS FRIEND
179
Roddy, for this seemed to be the name of the man with
the mustache. "But there is a boat on the shore, and
some one must have come on shore in it from the
steamer," he added. "I will bet some of my hard earn-
ings that the fellow who came ashore is about here
somewhere."
"If he were here we should have seen him before this
time," returned Gay. "But the proper thing to do is to
take possession of that boat and put it in a safe place."
“That will certainly derange the calculations of the
fellow that squats here," remarked Roddy.
"Squats is a good word, and that is just what the
fellow who built this shanty has done. I will attend to
the boat," and Gay ran down to the shore.
Shoving it off, he pulled around the point of Cape
Cod, Phil retreating to the front door of The Hermit-
age as he came abreast of it; and Roddy cut across the
point to the shore of the larger bay.
The proprietor by courtesy of the house was not at
all satisfied with his own position, and he entered the
shanty by the front door as his only means of keeping
out of sight of Gay, as the boat rounded the point.
He was once more an actual occupant of his domi-
cile, and he had time to pause and consider his future
operations. He was not at all willing to confront
Sparks Gayland at the present time, for that would
certainly betray him to Mr. Gayland, and spoil all the
elaborate plans he had made for the summer.
He hastened to the kitchen, and to the window in the
rear that looked into the woods which covered the


180
THE YOUNG HERMIT
upper part of the cape, where he saw one of the in-
truders in the boat, and the other crossing the point to
join him. They had landed in their own boat at the
border of the grove, as the occupants of the shanty
called the woods, and Phil could distinctly observe all
their movements, though he could no longer hear what
they said.
When Gay came up to the shore in the boat, there
was some talk between the two; and then they took the
boat out of the water and dragged it into the grove, in
which there was a considerable undergrowth, disap-
pearing from the view of the observer at the window,
though he had no difficulty in deciding that they had
hidden the tender of the Hebe in the bushes.
This did not seem to satisfy them, and after another
conference their own boat was taken from the water
and carried to a place of concealment; and when this
work was accomplished the intruders returned to the
shanty.
The two rooms in which the captain and his assistant
slept were on the front of the house, with a door from
each leading into the kitchen; and between the two was
the closet for provisions and dishes, the front door
leading into this closet.
Phil went through this closet into the kitchen in
order to reach the rear window from this direction;
and now that the cheerful couple were returning, it
became necessary for him to vacate the room and se-
cure a more retired location, upon which he had al-
ready decided.


GAY AND HIS FRIEND
181
He went into his own chamber, leaving the door open
after him, for he concluded that he could do better in-
side of the house than on the outside.
In each of the sleeping rooms a sort of bedstead,
about two feet high, had been built of boards in the
rough, on which cheap mattresses had been placed; and
under each was a space for stowing away clothes and
other articles, for it was necessary to economize the
space in the house to the best advantage.
This space had been boarded up, and had a door
opening into each chamber, and another which ren-
dered the store hole available from the kitchen; and
the pots and kettles were put in one of them, under
Bashy's bed.
Into the other closet, in his own chamber, the cap-
tain, dispensing with the dignity of his position for a
time, crawled as though he had been only an ordinary
groveling mortal, and not the commander of so fine a
steamer as the Hebe. His valise, overcoat, and some
spare clothes for his bed were deposited there, and he
arranged these articles so as to promote his comfort to
the best advantage while he remained a voluntary pris-
oner in his own abode.
He expected to sleep there at night, and he spread
out the comforters so that he could do so very well,
though he greatly preferred the bed above him; yet he
had often contented himself under vastly less favorable
circumstances.
He could not help thinking of Bashy, who must be
very busy with something in the bottom of the fire-


182
THE YOUNG HERMIT
room, or he would have seen Gay Sparkland when he
took the boat from the shore within an eighth of a mile
from him; but there were berths in the forward cabin
of the steamer where the engineer could sleep, and the
remains of the dinner they had eaten just before the
hurricane was sufficient to feed him.
Phil was not likely to get any supper himself ac-
cording to prospective appearances; but he was too
much interested in other matters to give a thought to
his stomach, though his appetite had not once failed
him since he had been at the lake.
For the want of a pair of hinges, when the shanty
was finished, the two doors to the closet under the bed
had not been hung, though they had been set up in their
places ready to be adjusted whenever they thought to
obtain the needed hardware, and Phil placed the door
of his hiding place in a manner to suit his purpose.
"We are all right now, and this place is a capital fit
for us," said Gay, as they came into the kitchen again.
"How long do you think we shall have to stay here,
Roddy, in order to do the job?"
"We may do it at once, or in a week, and it may be
two weeks before everything favors us," replied Roddy,
as he seated himself in a chair he drew back from the
table, and tipped back, barroom fashion, against the
partition directly over the door at which the captain
was an interested listener.
"Then this is just the place for us, for no one comes
up here very often, I am told; and there is not a cottage
within half a mile of us," said Gay.


GAY AND HIS FRIEND
183
"But this ranch is occupied by some other fellow,'
suggested Roddy, returning to the subject he had in
mind when they left the shanty. "You said you had a
plan by which that difficulty could be overcome, and
you asked me if I knew to whom this land belonged.'
""
"I confess that I am no wiser than you are in re-
gard to the ownership of this point, but I know that my
uncle does own a considerable tract of land in this part
of the lake," answered Gay. "If we have any trouble
with the occupant of this shanty, I shall claim the land
in the name of my uncle, Ward Gayland, of St. Paul.”
"But the fellow will want to move off the shanty,"
suggested Roddy.
"Then I shall claim the shanty, for I am lawyer
enough to know that the land covers all the buildings
on it."
99
The listener did not like the prospect before him, but
he waited eagerly for the speakers to proceed. He ex-
pected some interesting revelations, and he was not des-
tined to be disappointed.


184
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XXIX.
ALMOST A QUARREL.
It was not the fear of the pretended legal claim that
disturbed Captain Philip Greenway; but he saw that if
the reckless intruders carried out their intention to
make the claim it would compel him to confront
Sparks Gayland, his old enemy in the elegant mansion
on the hill.
As he felt at the present time, he was more disposed
to abandon The Hermitage, and seek a home in some
other part of the lake, than to permit Mr. Gayland to
know that he was in the State of Minnesota; and he
concluded that he would know it if the fact came to the
knowledge of his nephew.
It was a very bold and reckless proposition that Gay
made to his companion, but he had spoken of some job
that was to be done at the lake during the next week
or two, and Phil was more exercised to understand
what this meant than about anything else.
Why had Mr. Gayland's nephew come to that unfre-
quented part of the lake with the intention of staying
there in seclusion for one or two weeks, and why had
he found it necessary to change his name, and who
was the man with the mustache whom he called Roddy?
Phil could not answer any of these questions, and he
was obliged to refer them to the future for informa-


ALMOST A QUARREL
185
tion, and he hoped the conspirators, as he regarded
them, would talk plainly enough to enable him to com-
prehend their meaning, and explain the nature of the
job on their hands.
"Of course I don't mean to force things if the fellow
wants to resist, but I will propose a fair compromise
to him," continued Gay, when his associate suggested
resistance to his plan.
"You have cheek enough to fit out a smarter fellow
than you are," said Roddy, with a little chuckle which
the listener could distinctly hear.
"You, for instance," added Gay.
"I am not sure that I am a smarter fellow than you
are," answered the other.
"I know you are."
"What makes you think so? Why do you disparage
yourself?"
"Because you have been smart enough to keep two
thousand dollars that belongs to me, and I have not
been smart enough to get what belongs to me yet," re-
plied Gay, with a little bitterness in his tones.
"Two thousand dollars!" exclaimed Roddy, with
what appeared to Phil to be genuine surprise.
"Wasn't I one of three?" demanded Gay. "I think
we had better settle up on the last job before we under-
take a new one."
"I am perfectly willing to settle it, and have been
since the job was done," replied Roddy, who was not
in the least excited, as his associate was.


186
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Settle it how? Was I not one of three, I ask
again?"
"There is not the least doubt that you were one of
the three that did the job; but do you think that the
general and the corporal share alike in the spoils of
war?" asked Roddy impressively, and as gently as a
lamb.
"Oh, I am the corporal and you are the general, are
you?" demanded Gay; and Phil thought he argued ex-
actly in the same manner as he used to when he was
Sparks Gayland.
"That is about the length and breadth of it, though I
don't wish to state the matter offensively," replied
Roddy, whose coolness seemed to make him the master
of the situation.
"The general would have had a nice time in fighting
the battle without the corporal, in this instance."
"Of course the corporal always thinks he is a bigger
man than the general," said the man with the mustache,
in the quietest possible manner.
"Why didn't you tell me, up and down, what you
meant in the first of it?" demanded Gay, so angry that
he got out of his chair and began to pace up and down
the room, as he did in the elegant mansion when he was
disturbed in his temper.
"That would have been bad policy," answered
Roddy, with another chuckle at his own smartness.
“I thought there was honesty among thieves!" ex-
claimed the angry young man; and Phil could distinctly


ALMOST A QUARREL
187
hear the sounds of his heels as they came down on the
floor.
Captain Greenway began to think this interesting
pair would not need The Hermitage for the next week
or two, as they had before intimated, for they were
likely to part company in a quarrel before the sun went
down that day.
But he hoped they would not separate till they had
given him a better idea of what they had done, and
what they intended to do, for the fact that the "cor-
poral" claimed two thousand dollars for something he
had done had stimilated Phil's curiosity to the highest
degree.
He had even begun to believe that Sparks was a
more vicious young fellow than he had ever supposed,
though he had never given him credit for possessing
a high moral tone.
"People don't usually look for honesty among
thieves; and if they did, they would not always find it,
any more than among those who pretend to be honest;
when one puts in a claim for more than belongs to him,
why he really becomes a dishonest thief," Roddy re-
turned, evidently enjoying his side of the discussion,
for he was plainly too much for his companion.
"You said I was to have my share of the proceeds;
and if that don't mean an equal share, I don't under-
stand plain talk," protested Gay, very bitterly.
"The general and the corporal again," remarked
Roddy.


188
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Do you remember when we talked over that job?"
asked Gay, struggling to curb his angry passions.
"Perfectly."
"It was in a tiger shop in Washington Avenue, in
Minneapolis," continued Gay, seating himself again.
"I had never taken a hand in a job before."
"I am aware of it; you were nothing but a lamb from
the fold, fit only to be a corporal," Roddy assented.
"I had played with you and lost all the money I had,"
Gay went on.
"As innocent lambs generally do."
"Then when I had not money enough left to pay my
fare back to St. Paul, and owed you a pile besides, you
suggested that you could put me in the way of making
money a great deal faster than I could by fighting the
tiger."
"Quite true, and I did it."
"I should think you did!" exclaimed Gay, springing
to his feet again with force enough to shake the shanty.
"All that was done, I did myself; and when we come
to settle, for my share of over six thousand dollars, you
offer me five hundred dollars, taking out one hundred
and fifty that I owed you on the tiger fight!"
"Five hundred was a handsome thing for a first ef-
fort, and it is five times as much as I got out of my
maiden break," said Roddy, in mock soothing tones.
Though the villains did not say so in so many words,
Captain Greenway understood by this time that they
had committed a robbery of some kind, and that the six
thousand dollars was the proceeds of the crime; and it


ALMOST A QUARREL
189
almost froze his blood when he considered that one
of the robbers was the nephew of his benefactor.
"I will not stand it!" almost shouted Gay. "What
could you have done in this affair without me? Who
told you when there was money enough in the crib to
make it worth your while to crack it? Who fixed the
window so that you could get into the house without
rousing the whole neighborhood?"
"Why didn't you do this little job yourself, and put
the entire six thousand dollars into your own pocket?"
asked Roddy, not at all disturbed by the fury of his
companion.
"It was not in my line at that time. It was just a
month ago yesterday; and in that time you have been
leading me on till now I am ready for anything, if I
can get fair play."
"How much will satisfy you, Gay, on that last job?"
asked the superior genius of the happy pair.
"As you say, it was my first effort, and I will be sat-
isfied with a thousand, cash down," replied Gay, grace-
fully relenting.
"I will do it. But by thunder I have left my bag in
the boat, with six thousand two hundred dollars in it!"
suddenly exclaimed Roddy.
Both of the enterprising gentlemen bolted out of the
door in hot haste.


190
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XXX.
THE TRAVELING BAG.
Philip Greenway was utterly astonished and con-
founded by what he had just heard, from which it ap-
peared that a robbery had been committed, and that
Gay Sparkland had taken part in it, the proceeds being
six thousand two hundred dollars.
It also appeared that Roddy was the custodian of
the money, and carried it about with him in his small
traveling bag, which Phil had noticed in the boat when
he looked into it before its removal to the woods.
The captain had no suspicion that the nephew of his
uncle was so bad a fellow as the conversation to which
he had just listened indicated that he was. Gay claimed
that he had given the information which had enabled
the burglars to obtain this large sum, and that he had
"fixed a window," which enabled the villains to get
into the house, office, or bank from which the money
had been stolen.
If Phil was not a philosopher, he was gifted with
average reasoning powers, and he proceeded to con-
sider the bearing of the facts he had obtained, when
he heard the intruders bolt out of the shanty.
But even reason and philosophy have to give way to
the demands of the stomach, and the captain was pain-


THE TRAVELING BAG
191
fully reminded that he had not had his supper, and that
he was not likely to get any if he did not attend to the
matter while the visitors were absent from the shanty.
Removing the unhung door from the place where he
had put it, he crawled out into the kitchen, cut off a
couple of slices from the ham which was still on the
table, and took a good share of what remained of the
bread, and then returned to his hiding place, where he
restored everything to the condition in which he had
left it before.
He did not feel any great interest in satisfying the
needs of his stomach, and he ate from a sense of duty
rather than any strong desire to do so, for his mind was
too much engrossed with the astounding information he
had gathered from the intruders to think of anything
else except in a perfunctory manner.
He ate his supper, but he could not help discussing
in his mind the problems which the absent scoundrels
had suggested to him, the first of which was the connec-
tion of the nephew of his uncle with the productive
robbery they had perpetrated.
Gay was not in any business, and had not been for
the last seven months, and in what bank or office could
he have had the means of knowing "when the crib was
in condition to be cracked," or when there was money
enough in it to make it worth the risk of "breaking and
entering" to obtain it, as Phil understood the profes-
sional phrase?
His uncle had discovered that Gay sometimes gam-
bled, and if he knew something about the habits of his


192
THE YOUNG HERMIT
nephew, it was probable that others knew a great deal
more, and it looked as though that was the reason why
no one appeared to be willing to employ him, though
his want of interest in any kind of business was a suffi-
cient explanation of his frequent failures to retain a
position.
He had "fixed a window" so that the robbers could
effect an entrance to the building in which the money
was deposited; and Phil concluded at first that he had
contrived to unfasten some sash fastening in a room he
was in the habit of visiting.
Suddenly it flashed upon him that his uncle's elegant
mansion on the hill was protected by a burglar alarm,
and Phil had himself been sometimes asked to adjust
the levers on the sashes, which enabled him to give a
new interpretation to "fixing a window," especially as
the idea of "rousing the whole neighborhood" had been
mentioned by the injured claimant. The burglar alarm,
which set all the electric bells in the house to rattling at
the same time, was certainly capable of alarming an en-
tire neighborhood, which could hardly be done without
some similar apparatus, even in the stillness of the
night.
Phil's indignation was roused to the boiling point
when he began to realize that it must have been the
elegant mansion on the hill which had been robbed, for
Mr. Gayland had a steel safe set in the closet of his
library, and often kept considerable sums of money
in it.
Gay would have been in position to know "when the


THE TRAVELING BAG
193
crib was in condition to be cracked," for he assisted
his uncle to some extent in the management of his af-
fairs; and he was not likely to be informed when any
other "crib" was in condition to invite a visit from
rogues.
Being an intelligent young man, who had obtained
no small portion of his education from the newspapers,
Phil had placed a box for the reception of the daily
paper at Hardscrabble Point, where the news boat Min-
nehaha could deposit it on its trip to the Chapman
House, for he did not care to have the boat visit The
Hermitage every day.
He had not made this arrangement till he had been at
Cape Cod more than a week, and there were at least ten
days during which he had failed to obtain and read a
paper; and for this reason he had never heard of the
robbery of the elegant mansion in St. Paul.
Though it has taken some time to tell what the cap-
tain was thinking about in his den under the bed, he
had arrived at his conclusions long before the return
of his undesirable guests, though, under the circum-
stances, he was not sorry that they had done him the
honor to select The Hermitage as their temporary
abode, even if it was continued as long as two weeks.
In fact, he was only afraid now that Bashy would
make a row in some manner, and disturb the intruders,
and he wished there had been some way by which he
could communicate with the engineer, and tell him not
to meddle with the present occupants of the shanty,
though this was impossible on the face of it.


194
THE YOUNG HERMIT
The faithful engineer would wonder why Phil did
not come off to him, and bring him on shore, as he
always did by six o'clock; and though he might not
have seen the tender on its way around the point, he
could see that it was not in the place where he usually
left it.
He was sure that Bashy would not attempt to swim
ashore, and there were no spars or lumber on board
with which he could construct a raft; but Bashy was a
patient body, and Phil could only hope that he would
keep quiet, and not bother his head about the non-
appearance of his captain.
His meditations were disturbed by the entrance of
the happy pair; and both of them seemed to be a good
deal happier than when they had left the shanty; for
Phil could see as they came in at the door that Roddy
had the traveling bag in his hand.
"I should say that you were a careless fellow,
Roddy," said Gay, as he closed the door behind him.
"That bag, containing over six thousand dollars, you
carry about with you as though it were not worth two
cents."
"You are a professional now, my gentle little lamb,
and I hope that in the course of two weeks you will be
worth ten thousand dollars, and then you will be
obliged to keep it about you or near you, for banks
were not organized for your benefit and mine," replied
the chief of the happy pair.
"Unless it is to gather a pile together where we may
conveniently put our fingers upon it," suggested Gay;


THE TRAVELING BAG
195
and Phil thought he was making rapid progress in his
newly chosen calling.
"Precisely so; and that was well put for a begin-
ner," added Roddy in a patronizing tone. "It will be
well for you to realize that you are in constant danger
of having an officer put his polluted fingers upon you,
and you should be ready at all times to make a good
showing for yourself. If I had this money in my
pocket, I could not dispose of it to advantage in an
emergency."
"I hope you will be able to dispose of a portion of
it very soon, and transfer the responsibility of it to
me," added Gay.
"Very well, and I shall do so before I leave this
hospitable mansion. There is a stone in this bag, and
if I got into a tight place on the lake, I should drop it
overboard, and mark the place. On shore I should bury
it. That is why I have carried six thousand dollars
in a bag."
"I think I can take care of my share, and save you
the trouble of doing so," suggested Gay. "You have
had this money for a month, and I don't see why you
have not divided it before this time. You say there is
another fellow belonging to our party, though I have
not seen his face yet."
"He was with us when we did the only job we have
done in this part of the country," replied Roddy, still
standing in the room with the bag in his hand.
"I know he was; but he wore his cap over his face


196
THE YOUNG HERMIT
so that I could not see it; and he has not been near us
since."
"He has not been near you, for you have not been
with me."
Just then Roddy stooped down and thrust the bag
into the closet in which Phil was concealed.


FOR HIS BENEFACTOR
197
thy
CHAPTER XXXI.
FOR HIS BENEFACTOR.
Phil Greenway was startled at the unexpected inva-
sion of his little dominion under the bed, though it was
evident to him that Roddy had been considering what
he should do with the bag and its valuable contents,
for he had been able to see the intruder in the position
he had taken, though the darkness of his retreat pre-
vented him from being seen.
The chief of the trio, for it appeared that there were
three of the party, though one had not yet put in an
appearance, had apparently noticed the door at the
opening, and through the open door of the chamber
must have seen that it led into a closet, boxed up under
the bed, which had led him to select this place for the
safe-keeping of his treasure; and the captain thought
he could not have selected a better place.
When he tossed the bag into the space behind the
door, it had nearly fallen on Phil's head, and he rolled
over two or three times very carefully on the com-
forters he had placed on the floor so as to get out of
the way of a possible investigation of his den.
Roddy seemed to be entirely satisfied with what he
had done without any special inquiry into the safety
of the closet from intrusion; but he closed the door,
and turned the two buttons on it which secured it in


198
THE YOUNG HERMIT
place on the outside, much to the chagrin of Phil, who
was made a prisoner by this act.
The partition was not tight enough to prevent him
from hearing all that was said in the room, even if it
were said in whispers, and he had no doubt he should
find a way to get out of his den when he desired to
do so.
"I have seen you occasionally since we did that job,
though I never found the other fellow with you,” said
Gay, who seemed to be anxious to obtain more infor-
mation in regard to the unknown member of the trio.
"For reasons of his own, he does not allow himself
to be seen; but Chick Gillpool is a good fellow, and he
will take a hand in the job we have chosen for the next
venture," replied Roddy, as he seated himself, and
tipped back his chair as before.
"I should like to see him," added Gay.
"When I see him and inform him that we have a
nice place here, where we can get everything ready
without being seen, he will join us; but he will not
show himself anywhere about the lake."
"Why not? It seems to me that he has no need to
be any more careful than you are."
"It is not on account of the job we did that he is so
particular, but for other reasons," Roddy explained,
with an air of mystery.
"Then he is driving a business separate from ours,'
suggested Gay.
"Not at all; he is simply keeping out of the way for
fear that some one will recognize him."
99


FOR HIS BENEFACTOR
199
"Where does he keep himself?"
"He keeps himself out of sight, though he has his
headquarters in a small hotel in Minneapolis. That is
really all I can tell you about him, for I don't know
anything more."
"He looked as though he was a younger fellow than
I am when I saw him that night," said Gay, whose curi-
osity was evidently greatly excited.
"He is not over sixteen years old."
99
"Then he cannot be very useful to you.'
Roddy changed the subject abruptly.
"I am not a machinist by trade, but I have a natural
taste for machinery; and I suppose that is what has
been the ruin of me, from the moral point of view, for
it led me into this business, which I know as thoroughly
as any man in this or any other country."
"I should say that you did, from the way you opened
that safe," added Gay, with something like admiration
in his tones.
"That was an easy job, and it required no great skill;
our next operation will be a more difficult one, and it
will take a master of the art to open the vault of that
bank, though I think I have done a bigger job than
this," replied Roddy, with professional pride, which
was simply disgusting to the listener, who did not think
he was half so smart as he claimed to be, or he would
not be engaged in talking over his private affairs in the
presence of a possible witness.
"You don't seem to be doing anything to help along
the job you have in mind," said Gay.


200
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"I have had no time to do anything yet, for I came
here only day before yesterday. But I hope to have
Chick Gillpool here by to-morrow or next day, though
he does not want to show himself here."
"Why not?"
"I told you before. When we were in Minneapolis,
we loafed into the rotunda of the West Hotel; we
saw two ladies going into the elevator, and they nearly
frightened the life out of Chick."
"He must be a brave fellow to be afraid of a couple
of women," sneered Gay.
"Chick belongs to one of the first families in an-
other city a great many miles from here, and that is
the reason why he and I are good friends."
"Then blood tells."
"It is a good thing to have connection with the first
families, for if we get into trouble, we shall have strong
friends to help us out of the mire."
"These ladies might recognize him, and I suppose
that was the reason he was afraid of them."
"That is so; and when I went to the hotel later to
inquire for this lady, for the other was of no account,
I was told that she had gone to the lake, where she
intended to spend the summer; and that is the particu-
lar reason why Chick don't dare to show himself here."
"And you say you are not inclined to show yourself,
as your coming to this out-of-the-way place shows if
you hadn't said it," replied Gay.
"That is about the dimensions of it," said Roddy;
and Phil could see, if the nephew of his uncle could


FOR HIS BENEFACTOR
201
not, that he was not telling all he knew to his com-
panion.
"Then I don't see how you are to obtain the infor-
mation you need in regard to the bank," returned Gay
bluntly.
"Hush, man!" interposed Roddy, with some severity
in his tone. "Don't you see that you are using a word
you are not to mention even in your sleep? How do
we know that some one is not listening to us at this
minute, for we know nothing about the crowd that be-
longs in this shanty?"
"I think we had better take a look about the premises,
for it is very strange that some one that belongs here
has not put in an appearance before this time," replied
Gay, rising from his chair with noise enough to in-
form Phil what he was doing.
"That's a good scheme," said Roddy. "You ought
to see some one by this time, and make your claim
for the premises. I am very sure there is no one in the
house, for I have not heard a sound since we came
into it."
"We will look about the premises outside," said
Gay; and Phil heard him open the door.
The captain of the Hebe did not lose a moment in
improving his own prospects by turning the two buttons
on the outside of the door so that he could open it when
he wished; and this he did with his pocketknife with-
out any difficulty, for the door did not fit so tightly as
not to leave a broad crack.
Then he took the traveling bag, in which he had by


202
THE YOUNG HERMIT
no means lost his interest while he listened to the con-
versation in the kitchen, and as it was not locked he
had it open in half a minute.
Among other things in the bag, including the rock
that was to sink it in an emergency, he found a pack-
age wrapped in oiled silk, and tied with a red string,
which he untied in haste, and removed its contents.
As he surmised, it contained the money which had
been mentioned by both of the conspirators, and as the
bills did not make a large pile, he transferred them to
his pocket without the ceremony of counting them,
though Mr. Gayland had once told him that he should
never receive money without doing so.
He placed the money in a pocketbook he carried
in the inside of his vest, and then restored the package
to its original dimensions by putting a piece of news-
paper in the place of the bills, and placed it in the bag
just as he had found it.
Just then he felt that he was acting in the interests
of his benefactor, and that it would be money in his
pocket because he had left the elegant mansion even
secretly and in the night.
Then he turned his attention to the intruders again,
for he could hear their voices at the door of the shanty.


A FLANK MOVEMENT
203
CHAPTER XXXII.
A FLANK MOVEMENT.
The intruders had left the door of the kitchen open,
and were standing quite near it, so that Captain Green-
way had no difficulty in hearing what they said, espe-
cially as they were somewhat excited, and spoke louder
than when in the shanty, though the attentive listener
could no longer see them.
"I tell you there is a fellow on board of that
steamer," insisted Gay Sparkland. "I saw his head just
now as he raised it above the rail."
"No matter if there is a fellow on board of her; he
has not seen us. Most likely it is a steamer that has
anchored in this bay to get out of the way of the
storm," replied Roddy. "She will leave as soon as the
lake gets a little smoother."
"I should like to know whether he belongs here or
not," continued Gay.
"No matter whether he does or not; he has no boat,
and he cannot get ashore. But there must be another
fellow with him, for that steamer cannot be handled by
one man alone. I wonder what has become of him."
Phil thought that was an important question; so did
the two intruders, and they began to make an examina-
tion of the premises, though both of them evidently


204
THE YOUNG HERMIT
felt quite sure that the missing hand on board of the
steamer could not be in the house.
The intruders walked away, and Phil heard nothing
more of them for half an hour; and by this time it had
begun to be rather dark under the bed; but he was sat-
isfied that they had found no one; and on their return
they came in at the front door.
The most singular circumstance about the present
situation was that Bashy had raised no disturbance or
even made his presence on board of the steamer defi-
nitely known; and the captain wondered if he had not
gone to sleep.
"There is no one within half a mile of this shanty;
that is plain enough," said Gay, as the happy couple re-
turned to the kitchen.
"I don't believe you saw any one on board of the
steamer," replied Roddy. "I agree with you that there
is no one near us; and I should say that the occupants
of this shanty will not return to-night, for the wind is
still blowing strong from the northwest, and there is a
big sea in the bay outside of us."
"I think we can have it all our own way till to-mor-
row morning," returned Gay. "Do you mean to bring
your things here, Roddy?"
"Of course I mean to bring them here, though not
till we have gained possession of this place either by
fair means or foul," replied Roddy. "I shall have to
go for my valise in the boat, for we would never find
our way here by land."
"You told the people where you left your baggage


A FLANK MOVEMENT
205
that you were going to camp out; and you bought a
boat because you could not hire one."
"But I did not leave my baggage where any one can
examine it, and wonder what makes it so heavy," added
Roddy.
"Are there any rocks in it so that it will sink?"
"Not a rock."
"But the point I make is, why did you not bring it
with you in the boat instead of hiding it on an unin-
habited island?"
"I don't care about any one handling or examining
it, for it is a good deal heavier than a valise filled with
wearing apparel is; and I do not wish, if anything hap-
pens to us, to have a clown come into court and tell
how heavy it was.'
99
"You must have a big kit of tools, Roddy."
"I have all I am likely to need," replied the chief,
with a decided gape.
"I suppose we can't do anything till we find out
something more about this shanty and its owner.
I
should like to see him, and I think I could fix things
with him, either by frightening or coaxing him."
"You won't see him to-night," replied Roddy, with
another yawn. "I am sleepy, and I don't forget that
we were up all night. I feel as though I should like
to turn in."
"That is just my idea; and we can sleep just as well
as not while we wait for the owner of this hovel,"
added Gay.


206
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Light one of those lamps, Gay, for I want to look
into my bag before I go to sleep," added Roddy.
While Gay was lighting one of the kerosene lamps
that stood on the shelf, the chief got down on the
floor, and just as the other struck a match, Phil saw
the hand that reached in for the bag; and the captain,
who had rolled himself out of the way when he heard
Roddy speak of it, was obliging enough to place it
within his reach, for he no longer felt any particular
interest in it.
The lamp was lighted, and Roddy went into the cap-
tain's room, Gay standing at the door, and opened his
bag, as Phil learned from what was said, and there was
no little trepidation on the part of the hidden sentinel.
"I only wanted to look at it to see that it was all
right," said Roddy. "Here is the package, and it is
just as I left it. I shall sleep with it under my head
as I always do."
A moment later Phil heard the creak of the thin
boards as the chief lay down, and told his companion
to take the light, which he did, and left the chamber,
intending to sleep in that belonging to Bashy.
Roddy had more than one bad habit, for he not only
robbed safes of the valuables they contained, but he
snored most sonorously; though this was a good idea
on his part, for it informed Phil that he was asleep.
By this time the captain had begun to be somewhat im-
patient. He could hardly hope to hear Gay Sparkland
snore, if he also had the vicious habit; but he waited


A FLANK MOVEMENT
207
what he regarded as a reasonable time for Gay to drop
his form into the arms of Morpheus, and then he re-
moved the door which led from his den out into the
kitchen, using the utmost care to make not a particle
of noise.
He crawled on his hands and knees across the floor
to the door of the kitchen, without troubling himself
any further about the slumbers of Gay, for as the
happy pair had been up all night, both of them ought to
be asleep.
Whether they were or not, they made no sign to
indicate that they knew, or either of them, what was
transpiring in the residence of which they had taken
possession, and in a few minutes Phil found himself
outside of the shanty; and as he had moved like
a cat, he was confident that he was master of the situa-
tion.
Then he ventured to stand erect like a man, and look
about him; and he found that his limbs were stiff from
his long confinement without moving in his den under
the bed.
He looked in the direction of the place where the
Hebe was moored, and he saw her dark form very dis-
tinctly on the water, though there was nothing in sight
to indicate that Bashy was still on board of her.
With as much care as he had used in the kitchen,
Phil walked away from the shanty, and not till he was
several rods from it did he venture to step with his
natural pace; but he had made up his mind what to


208
THE YOUNG HERMIT
do long before the intruders turned in, and then he
hastened to the woods where he had last seen his
tender.
He was obliged to feel about under the trees and
in the underbrush before he could find one of the boats;
and then he could not tell in the darkness which one
it was; but it was not heavy, and he dragged it to the
water, where by the light of the stars he saw that it
was not the tender.
After a while he found the other boat, and dragged
it to the shore; and as the captain of the Hebe was
not a narrow-minded young man, he decided to take
possession of both boats, which would give the in-
truders a long walk if they concluded to leave the
premises before he was willing to have them do so.
Taking the boat of the happy couple in tow, he rowed
far out from the shore, so that the noise of his oars
should not attract the attention of the sleepers in the
shanty if they should happen to wake, and then de-
scribed a circle around Cape Cod till he came to the
Hebe at her moorings.
Making fast the painters of the two boats, he went
on board without any challenge from the engineer. He
concluded that Bashy was following the example of
the intruders in the shanty; but he went into the for-
ward cabin, and struck a match with the intention of
lighting a lantern.
"Who's there?" demanded Bashy from one of the
berths.


A FLANK MOVEMENT
209
"The great continental jackass," replied Phil, recall-
ing an expression of the chief of the burglars.
"Who's he?" asked Bashy.
"He is not Captain Philip Greenway, as I happen
to be," replied he. "Turn out, Bashy! We must get
under way at once."
The engineer obeyed with his usual celerity.


210
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XXXIII.
THE "HEBE" MAKES A TRIP.
'As soon as Bashy got it through his head that it was
the captain of the Hebe that called him, he was wide
awake; and as he had only lain down without undress-
ing himself, it did not take him long to make his toilet.
"What in all creation is up now, Captain Green-
way?" asked the engineer, as he sprang out of his berth,
and looked at Phil with the most intense interest.
"I will tell you all about it when I have more time,
though I don't know that I am in any particular hurry,"
replied the captain. "What have you been about all
the afternoon, Bashy? Why didn't you come ashore
and get your supper?"
"Go ashore? How could I go ashore when you did
not bring back the tender?" demanded the assistant,
opening his eyes at what he considered the strange
question of the captain.
In fact, he thought his superior officer had acted
very strangely that day, and he could not help asking
himself if The Hermit of Minnetonka was not a little
out of his head. Such a supposition would explain his
singular conduct that day, as well as his odd whim in
establishing himself in this secluded part of the lake
for no reason which Bashy could comprehend.


THE "HEBE" MAKES A TRIP
211
But Captain Greenway considered his question quite
as strange as the engineer had, and he had asked it only
in the way of banter, for he was not always as serious
as a hermit should be.
"You could see the shore, near the shanty, couldn't
you?" inquired Phil, who was wondering all the time
what view his assistant had taken of the situation, and
of the captain's failure to come off after him at the
usual hour.
"Of course I could see the shore; I haven't got blind
since the hurricane," replied Bashy. "I saw you with
another fellow on the shore, and then you got into
the boat and pulled it around the point."
"You saw me on the shore?"
"I thought it was you, though you had been into
the house and put on your everyday clothes. I can't
see quite as well a quarter of a mile off as I can close
to," replied the engineer, looking with increasing
astonishment at the captain.
"Never mind now, Bashy; we will go to the engine
and start the fire, and while it is getting under way,
we will talk about things," said Phil, as he led the
way out of the cabin.
The faithful engineer had everything in readiness
to get up steam without any delay, and he applied the
match to the combustibles in the furnace, and shov-
eled on the coal; after which he had nothing more to
do, and seated himself by the side of his superior on
the divan abaft the engine.


212
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"I don't think you have seen me at all since I went
ashore, Bashy," the captain began, when there was
nothing more in the preparation for getting under
way that could be done.
"I didn't look very sharp, but I reckoned it was you
that pulled the boat round the point," replied Bashy,
who was still in condition to be enlightened.
"You were mistaken; and there has been a big circus
at The Hermitage," continued Phil. "In fact, a couple
of fellows, one of whom I know very well, have taken
possession of The Hermitage, and intend to turn us
out."
"Turn us out!" exclaimed the engineer, rising in his
excitement from his seat. "And what do you mean to
do about it, Captain Greenway?"
"I mean to let them stay there,” replied Phil, who
was feeling so good since he reached the steamer
without any accident that he was rather inclined to
tease his companion.
"Let them stay there! I thought you was Captain
Greenway, and not the great continental jackass," said
Bashy. The mild expletive of the chief burglar seemed
to be catching.
"For the present I am; and when they move out, I
intend that they shall transfer their residence to a
prison of some sort," said Phil, as he proceeded to give
his companion the principal details of the doings of
the intruders, though he deemed it prudent to conceal a
portion of the facts he had obtained and of the con-
clusions he had reached.


THE "HEBE” MAKES A TRIP
213
Bashy listened attentively to the narrative; but as
the captain had concealed some of the material points
in the history of the affair, he was hardly prepared
to take a just view of what ought to be done; but he
was not a little dissatisfied with the idea of departing
and leaving the intruders in full possession of The
Hermitage.
"Why don't you go in and bounce them, Captain
Greenway? What is the use of fooling with such fel-
lows?" demanded Bashy, with no little indignation in
his tones and manner.
"Such a course does not suit my purpose. I have
not told you all I know, for I don't feel at liberty to
do so till those fellows are behind the bars,” replied
Phil.
"Are they barkeepers?"
"They are even worse than that," added the cap-
tain, as he looked at his watch, and then took a rail-
road time-table from his pocket, which he examined
with care.
"There is a late train to Minneapolis to-night, and
I have business there," he continued. By this time
the steam in the boiler had begun to demonstrate that
it had an existence.
"I am all ready to set the engine going when you
say the word, Captain Greenway; but I should like to
take a hand in cleaning out those fellows before we go,
for I helped build that shanty, and I feel some inter-
est in it."


214
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"You are all right, Bashy; but when you know more
about this business than you do now, you will admit
that I am doing just the right thing," said Phil, pleased
with the devotion of his companion.
"You always do just the right thing, Captain Green-
way, and I haven't a single word to say against any-
thing you do," protested the engineer.
"I am sure that I can trust you to do anything I
desire, and that you will stand by me to the end,
Bashy."
"As long as the earth hangs together, and then I
shall be ready to go up with you," returned the as-
sistant warmly.
"Then I will add that I have a large sum of money-
that these villains in the shanty stole, and which I got
away from them; and I am going now to restore it to
the rightful owner," said Phil, desiring to increase the
interest of his companion in his present movement.
"Whew!" whistled the engineer, turning from the
engine, and looking the captain full in the face.
"And that is not the worst of it, for they are plan-
ning another robbery on a larger scale, and I want to
get in ahead of them."
"Whatever you say is gospel to me, and all I have to
do is to obey orders without asking any questions,"
replied the assistant, as he permitted the steam to as-
sert itself for an instant.
Phil was satisfied that the engineer would not trou-
ble him in the carrying out of his plan, and that he


THE "HEBE" MAKES A TRIP
215
would continue to hold his tongue as he had done in
the past.
He made both boats fast to the stern of the Hebe,
and then cast off the moorings, with the assistance of
Bashy.
"Don't make any more noise with the engine than is
necessary, Bashy, and don't whistle or do anything of
that sort to wake those fellows in the shanty," said
Phil, as he stepped into the pilot house. "Start her as
soon as you are ready without any bell."
"All right, Captain Greenway; I won't make any
more noise than a mouse does when it steals a piece of
cheese," replied the engineer, as he returned to his
machine.
The engine started, and the pilot headed the steamer
toward the northern shore of the little bay, so as to
keep her as far as possible from the shanty; and in
a few minutes Phil was at a safe distance from the
intruders, though he could not help keeping one eye
on The Hermitage all the time.
But he was conscious that he had the occupants of
the shanty where he could probably find them when he
wanted them, for they had no boat by which they could
get away by water, and it was a very long walk to any
place where they could find one.
The wind was still blowing very fresh out of the
northwest, and Phil found it necessary to put on his
overcoat, for a decided falling in the temperature had
come since the hurricane.


216
THE YOUNG HERMIT
The sky was clear, and Phil had learned the naviga-
tion of the lake thoroughly, so that he had no difficulty
in reaching Excelsior in season for the last train, and
a little while later he was hurrying off on his way to
Minneapolis.


A MIDNIGHT SUMMONS
217
CHAPTER XXXIV.
A MIDNIGHT SUMMONS.
Phil Greenway's first visit to Minnetonka had
brought him to Excelsior, the town and village on the
southern shore of the lake, and he had taken posses-
sion of the Hebe at this place, so that he knew its
geography very well, and made the landing at the low
pier without asking any questions.
He bought his provisions and other supplies there,
which had required him to make occasional visits to
the town, and the large bill he brought with him on his
coming had been changed at the bank there by Bashy,
for he did not care to subject himself to suspicion by
a visit in person.
"I shall not return before some time to-morrow,
Bashy; and I want you to make yourself as comfort-
able as possible till I come back," said the captain,
when the boat was made fast to the wharf.
"I
guess I can do that, for there is grub enough left
in the forward cabin for my breakfast," replied Bashy.
"You may go to one of the hotels and get a hot
breakfast, and I will pay for it," added Phil, as he took
the plethoric pocketbook from the inside of his vest.
"What there is on hand is good enough for me; put
up your money, Captain Greenway," answered the
engineer.


218
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"I did not take out my money to pay for your
breakfast, though I prefer that you should get a good
meal at one of the hotels."
"All right, then; if you prefer it, I will go to the
White House."
"I do prefer it," replied the captain, as he opened the
pocketbook by the light of a lantern the engineer had
brought into the pilot house.
Bashy could hardly repress sundry exclamations that
came to his lips when he saw what a pile of bills the
captain had in his possession; but he "held in,” as he
called it, while the superior counted out three of the
notes, and then tendered them to the engineer.
"Hundred-dollar bills!" exclaimed Bashy, actually
retreating in his amazement at the sight of so much
money, for the pile in possession of his companion
seemed to be composed of this denomination.
"These are for you, Bashy," added the captain
quietly, spreading out the bills so that the engineer
could see that there were three of them.
"To pay for my breakfast?" gasped the assistant.
"Not at all; whatever you pay for your breakfast
I will hand you when I return," replied Phil, looking
at his watch to make sure that he did not lose the
train.
"Three hundred dollars!" exclaimed the astonished
engineer. "Did I understand you to say that this
money was for me, Captain Greenway?"
"That is precisely what I intended that you should


A MIDNIGHT SUMMONS
219
understand, but you don't seem to catch on," laughed
Phil, when he found that he had plenty of time.
"You don't expect a fellow like me to catch on to
three hundred dollars, do you?" demanded Bashy, who
could not realize that his companion was in earnest.
"I hope you will make an effort to do so. Take the
bills, for I have not much time to spare; and then I
will explain the matter," answered Phil.
"Is this some of the money you took from them
chaps that stole The Hermitage?" asked the doubt-
ful engineer, as he accepted the bills.
"Not a dollar of it. Do you remember that, as we
were passing Cook's Point yesterday, a boat came off
and brought a letter to me?"
"Of course I remember it, for the landlord of the
Lake Park Hotel brought the letter, and wanted a
receipt for it. But what has that to do with this three
hundred dollars you are giving me?"
"It has a great deal to do with it. In that letter
were ten one-hundred-dollar bills, which the lady in
the Excelsior sent me for our services in saving her
and her companion," the captain explained.
"A thousand dollars!" exclaimed Bashy. "That was
liberal pay for the job. But, creation! You don't
think of giving me three hundred dollars of it, for I
am only a poor chicken working for wages."
"That is what I shall give you as your share; and
this is the way I figure it out; and if you are not satis-
fied with the division, I want you to say so, and not
make any bones about it."


220
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Satisfied with the division? It is ten times as much
as I had any right to look for; and I did not expect a
single cent for anything I did. It was you that han-
dled the boat, and every cent of the money ought to
stay in your pocket, where it belongs," protested
Bashy, who sincerely felt all that he said.
"You did your part as well as I did mine; but I
think the Hebe did more than either of us, and I put
her down for four hundred dollars of the reward,"
continued Phil. "If the money goes into my pocket, it
is only to pay me back a part of what the boat cost
me."
"That's perfectly fair; and if the Hebe could eat
grub, I would take her up to the hotel to breakfast
with me to-morrow morning," remarked Bashy.
"I think it is a fair thing; I went on a fishing trip
once, and in dividing the proceeds of the catch the
vessel took the lion's share, as it was just that she
should; and I have gone on that principle in this case.
The remaining six hundred dollars I have halved with
you."
"You are too liberal, Captain Greenway: one hun-
dred is enough for me," said Bashy.
"An equal division is what I shall insist on having;
and I have no more time to talk about it. Put the
money in your pocket, and perhaps you will soon be
able to buy a steamer for yourself, especially if we
should have another hurricane, and some other craft
is not well handled."
Bashy was sincere, and he made some further objec-


A MIDNIGHT SUMMONS
221
tion, to which the captain would not listen, and at last
he put the bills in his pocket, though not till Phil had
left him; and then very likely he dreamed of being
some time the owner of such a steamer as the Hebe,
which he believed was the finest craft of her size on
the lake.
Phil Greenway walked through the streets to the sta-
tion, and on his way he passed the bank, which he be-
lieved was the next objective point of the gentlemen in
possession of The Hermitage, though they had not said
so in so many words.
"Minneapolis or St. Paul?" asked the station agent,
when he called for his ticket.
"Does this train go to St. Paul?" he asked.
"Single or return?" asked the agent, when he had
mentioned St. Paul as the destination.
"Return," replied Phil, as he handed out his money.
He was not posted in regard to the trains, and had
not noticed on the table that the trains on this road
went through to the farther of the twin cities, and
he was decidedly pleased to find that he should reach
his old home, or the city that contained it, without any
delay, and before midnight.
He had plenty to think about on the way, and he
considered whether or not to pay a midnight visit to
his benefactor, and make a confidant of him; but he
was unable to decide this qestion before his arrival,
and he was willing to leave his action to be controlled
by circumstances.
On the arrival of the train at its destination he has-


222
THE YOUNG HERMIT
tened with all the speed he could command to the resi-
dence of Mr. Cavan, the real-estate agent and friend of
Mr. Gayland. He was confident that, as the capitalist
had called in the ex-detective when the thousand-dol-
lar bill disappeared, he had done the same thing when
the safe was robbed of six times as large a sum.
He had often been to the house on errands, and he
was able to find it in the darkness of the night with-
out any difficulty; and he did not hesitate to ring the
bell vigorously, for he felt that the business upon
which he had come from the lake justified his call at
this unseemly hour. He repeated the ring several
times before he obtained any response to his sum-
mons.
"Who's there? The doctor lives next door on the
left!" said a man in a nightshirt, putting his head out
of the window over the front door, expressing himself
with no little impatience, and it was possible that others
had made the mistake his reply suggested.
"I don't want the doctor; I wish to see Mr. Cavan
on the most important business," replied the midnight
visitor.
"Call at the office in the morning! I don't do busi-
ness at this hour of the night," answered the agent.
"I have six thousand dollars with me, and I must
carry it off with me if you don't let me in."
"Who are you?" demanded the prudent business
man.
"Paul Gayland."
In five minutes more Mr. Cavan was at the door.


THE EX-DETECTIVE TALKS
223
CHAPTER XXXV.
THE EX-DETECTIVE TALKS.
"What did you say your name was?" asked Mr.
Cavan, as he opened the door wide enough to obtain
a look at the visitor at this late hour.
"Paul Gayland," replied the captain, in the most
decided tone he could command.
The real-estate agent opened his door a little wider,
for evidently he did not recognize the young man in
his blue yacht uniform and white cap; but he had
lighted the gas in the hall of his house, and its aid
enabled him to see the face of the visitor.
"Come in, if you please, and let me have a better
look at you," said Mr. Cavan, resuming his natural
politeness. "It is a month since I saw you last, and
you don't look as you did then."
"I cannot have changed very much in that time,
though I wear different clothes," added Phil.
"All right, young man; I know you now, and hope
you are very well," continued Mr. Cavan, extending
his hand to the midnight caller.
"Quite well, I thank you; never better," replied the
captain, taking the proffered hand. "I hope Mr. Gay-
land is in good health, for I have not heard a word
from him or of him since I went away."
"He is very well, though I think he misses you


224
THE YOUNG HERMIT
very much, and he seems to be rather melancholy, like
a man who has been disappointed in this life, and was
looking forward to one more hopeful. You left his
house rather suddenly, Paul," said the agent, looking
very keenly into the face of his visitor.
99
"Suddenly to others, but not to myself, for I had
been thinking of leaving for months before I went,"
replied Phil.
"I suppose you are aware that certain persons are
looking for you," continued the agent.
"If they are they have not been where I was, for
I was not even aware of the fact that a search for me
had been made."
"It is very unfortunate that you left at just the par-
ticular time you did," said Cavan, looking sharply at
him again.
"Why so?" asked the wanderer, as his benefactor
called him, with what seemed to be innocent surprise
to the business agent of his benefactor.
"If you had left the night after the robbery in-
stead of the night before, it would have been better,"
suggested the agent, as quietly as though he saw noth-
ing out of the way in the departure of the young man.
"What robbery?" asked Phil, though he was not
much surprised to hear of such an event.
"Didn't you know that Mr. Gayland's house had
been entered, his safe opened, and over six thousand
dollars taken from it?" asked the ex-detective, toying
with a pen on the table at his side.
"I had no actual knowledge of it, but I suspected


THE EX-DETECTIVE TALKS
225
as much from information which I obtained within
six hours," replied Phil, as he took his pocketbook
from the inside of his vest, and proceeded to open it
on the table, at which he had seated himself, opposite
the agent.
He had placed the money he had taken from the
burglar's bag in a compartment by itself, and he took
out the pile without exhibiting the rest of his money,
and held it in his hand, while he turned his eyes again
to the business agent of his benefactor.
"Can you tell me the exact amount taken from
Mr. Gayland's house?" he asked.
"Six thousand two hundred dollars; nothing but
the money was taken," replied Cavan promptly.
"Will you be kind enough to count this money, Mr.
Cavan?" said Phil, and he passed the package of bills
to him.
"Certainly, if you desire it;" and he suited the action
to the word; and, as the amount was all in large bills,
it took him but a couple of minutes, though he went
over it twice. "Six thousand two hundred dollars,'
he added, as he passed the money back to the young
99
man.
"I will thank you to retain it, and give it to Mr.
Gayland, for it appears that the amount is correct,"
continued the captain of the Hebe.
"I will do as you request, and give you a receipt
for the money," replied Cavan, as he wrote the docu-
ment and handed it to the visitor.
"I think I have done my duty now," added Phil,


226
THE YOUNG HERMIT
as he put the receipt into his pocketbook and returned
it to its place inside of his vest.
"I suppose you have, so far as this money is con-
cerned," said the agent, with a heavy frown on his
brow, as though he did not entirely appreciate the hon-
esty of the captain.
In fact a great change had come over his face, or
the expression of it, and he looked like a disappointed
man. He had said to his wealthy client, after he fin-
ished his investigation of the robbery, that he was will-
ing to bet his life that Paul was innocent, in spite of
the condemning appearances against him.
But now the real-estate agent considered himself
obliged to change his mind. He could not help believ-
ing that Paul Gayland had really been guilty of steal-
ing the money, which he now, through some feeling of
remorse, wished to return to its rightful owner.
"What more can I do?" asked Phil, surprised at the
qualification in the reply of the other.
"This appears to be a case of conscience," replied
the agent, still frowning heavily in his disappoint-
ment, derived from the honest deed of his visitor.
"You stole the money; but your conscience, and
perhaps the remembrance of what Mr. Gayland has
been to you and done for you, has compelled you
to restore your swag to its rightful owner."
"I stole the money!" gasped the wanderer, spring-
ing out of his chair, his brown cheeks mantled with
crimson.
"That is precisely what Mrs. Gayland believes and


THE EX-DETECTIVE TALKS
227
insists upon, and Mr. Gayland is unable to gainsay the
charge; and that is precisely what it looks like to me
now, though I have given your foster father all the
hope he has had that you were possibly innocent,"
added Mr. Cavan, rising from his chair also.
"Did you tell Mr. Gayland that I was innocent of
this crime?" asked the wanderer, the tears flooding his
eyes.
"I told him I believed you were innocent, and I
have thought so till now," replied the agent, resuming
his seat when his guest did so, to drop his head upon
the table, covering his face with both hands and weep-
ing like one with a broken heart.
The ex-detective looked at the sufferer, and possibly
his feelings were moved by the violence of his grief,
though it might be the agony of repentance rather
than of wounded sensibility at the injustice done him.
"You were right, Mr. Cavan!" exclaimed the wan-
derer, springing to his feet again, throwing back his
head.
"I believe you!" returned the agent, after he had
looked in the young man's face for a moment; and he
was evidently glad to have his former earnest convic-
tion restored to him by the conduct of the wanderer,
for he believed that he could tell a rogue when he saw
him.
He extended his hand to Phil, and bestowed a warm
pressure on that of his visitor; for, after all, it is a very
great comfort for any one to believe he was right in


228
THE YOUNG HERMIT
the face of conflicting evidence, though he may be mis-
taken in the end.
"I never even heard of the robbery till a few hours
ago; and even then it did not occur to me that I was
suspected," said Phil.
"Perhaps you had better tell me all about the mat-
ter, as you understand it," suggested Mr. Cavan. "I
may add that the testimony against you is very strong,
and while I believe you are innocent, I do not see how
the fact can be established."
"I don't know anything at all about the robbery, and
never heard of it till five o'clock this afternoon, and
then only by guessing at half of it," Phil protested.
He began his narrative at once, starting it at the
time when he left the elegant mansion on the hill, and
relating all that had occurred to the moment when he
rang the bell at Mr. Cavan's door.
"Are you absolutely sure that one of the pair that
took possession of The Hermitage was Sparks Gay-
land?" asked the agent, when he had finished.
"I am absolutely sure it was he, though the other
fellow called him Gay Sparkland," answered the cap-
tain.
"That is a transposition of the syllables of his real
name; and, for purposes of concealment, the change is
as stupid as some other things Sparks has done. But
you say that he was one of the burglars, though I am
not at all surprised at it, for I have long believed him
capable of such a venture, though his uncle knows less
about him than almost any other person in the city. If


THE EX-DETECTIVE TALKS
229
he was one of them it proves, almost, that you were not
another of them.
"Then I am suspected of being one who entered the
house?" said Phil, deeply grieved at the thought of the
sorrow the suspicion must have given his benefactor.
"Suspected!" exclaimed Mr. Cavan. "You were
both seen and recognized by Mr. Gayland and by his
wife."
The wanderer was utterly confounded by this state-
ment.


230
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XXXVI.
CAPTAIN GREENWAY'S IDEA.
"Do you mean to say, Mr. Cavan, that I was seen
in Mr. Gayland's house on the night of this robbery?"
demanded Phil Greenway, his chest heaving with emo-
tion.
"I do not mean to say that I saw you there; but I
do mean to say that both Mr. Gayland and his wife
saw you; and they know you well enough to be subject
to no ordinary mistake," replied the ex-detective. "The
servant came for me shortly after midnight, and I went
to the house at once. Then and there they told me they
had seen you come out of the dining room, pass
through the hall where they were, and leave by the
front door."
"Did I speak to them?" asked Phil, almost breathless
with astonishment.
"You did not, for you were in a hurry to get out
of the house; but all the gas burners in the house were
lighted, and they were positive that it was you.”
"I am equally positive that it was not I," protested
Phil, dropping into his chair, overwhelmed by the state-
ment of the agent.
"I don't understand it," added Mr. Cavan. “You
have been in the house with them for years, the front


CAPTAIN GREENWAY'S IDEA
231
hall was as light as day, and they could hardly have
made a mistake in regard to your identity."
The captain looked up into the face of the agent to
determine if he could whether or not he believed what
he said; but his expression conveyed no information
to satisfy him, for he seemed to be as thoroughly
mystified as the young man himself.
"I am willing to swear in any court in Christendom
that I was on the border of Lake Minnetonka during
the night on which this robbery was committed," said
Phil, beginning to gather up his forces to meet the
mysterious assertion of the agent.
"Are you sure on this point?" asked Mr. Cavan.
"Absolutely sure, for it was the night after I left
St. Paul, and I fix the time by that fact. You can
see that it would be impossible for me to be mis-
taken," continued Phil.
"I should say that it was; and perhaps you can prove
what you say by witnesses if it becomes necessary to
do so?"
"I think I could."
"Where did you spend the night on which the break
was made?”
"On the day after I left I went out to Lake Minne-
tonka, and spent the day there, making a trip in the
Hebe to Halsted's Bay, and that afternoon I made an
offer for the steamer. I slept that night on board of
the Hebe, by invitation of the person in charge of her,
to whom I made the offer."


232
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"That sounds like a clear statement, and that per-
son is your witness, if he did not leave you on board
of the boat."
"He did not leave me, for he slept in the forward
cabin with me, and we both turned out at five o'clock
in the morning. Bashy will be willing to testify that
I must have remained in the cabin all night, for we did
not turn in till eleven o'clock. We were busy talking
about the steamer I wanted to buy."
"Who is Bashy?"
"He is the engineer of the Hebe.”
"I can make nothing of these two stories, for each
one contradicts the other," said the agent, and he
looked as though he were thoroughly perplexed; and
his visitor was in no better condition.
"I am as much in the dark as you are, and I can
make nothing of it," Phil went on. "If Mrs. Gay-
land were the only one who saw me, I could under-
stand it better."
"Mr. Gayland was as positive as his wife was," con-
tinued Cavan, looking earnestly into the face of his
visitor. "Did it ever occur to you, Paul, that Mr.
Gayland might be your father?" he asked, after a little
hesitation.
"It has occurred to me, for he has always treated
me as well as the most affectionate father could treat
a son; and there is something else which encouraged
this idea," replied Phil.
"What is that? It needs something stronger than


CAPTAIN GREENWAY'S IDEA
233
the facts on the surface to account for his devotion to
you," added the agent.
In answer to the question Phil took off his coat,
stripped up his sleeve, and exhibited the letters on his
arm.
"P. G.," said the agent, reading the letters. "They
certainly stand for Paul Gayland.”
"But my foster father explains them by saying that
he found them on my arm when he assumed the care
of me in Nice, and he gave me the first name after one
of his brothers."
"Nice ?"
"You have not heard the story of my adoption; and
if you are not too sleepy, I will give it to you,” said
Phil.
"I am wide awake, and I should be glad to hear it;
for this is the biggest romance that I have met with
in late years," answered the agent, settling himself
into his armchair.
The captain of the Hebe told the story as it had been
related to him by both the capitalist and his wife; and
the listener gave the closest attention to it.
"But in spite of that story Mr. Gayland may be
your father," said Cavan, when the young man had fin-
ished his narrative. "He may have been secretly mar-
ried for reasons of his own, and did not care to reveal
the facts to his young wife, or let her know that he
had a son. Such things have happened, and I had
something to do with a case in New York not un-
like it."


234
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"The only difficulty I have in believing that such a
thing might be is in the fact that Mr. Gayland is an
honest and true man; and he said that I was not his
son," was Phil's comment.
"Of course he could not acknowledge you. But I
have not mentioned the fact which suggested this idea
to me, Paul," continued Cavan. "If you were only his
adopted son, and he found that you were a villain,
wicked enough to rob his house after he had given
you a thousand dollars only the day before, he would
have been willing to drop you, cast you out like an un-
clean thing, and let you go to the prison where you de-
served to be."
"I think so myself."
"Instead of doing this he is deeply grieved at your
conduct, and is ready to save you from the conse-
quences of the alleged crime. Only himself, his wife,
and I know that you visited his house as one of the
burglars, for he almost swore me to secrecy, and in-
sisted that his wife should not mention the fact to any
one."
"He seems to be even more devoted to me than I
had supposed," added Phil, wiping the moisture from
his eyes.
"I have not seen him for a month when he did not
repeat his injunction to be silent in regard to you; and
he told me he had even threatened his wife if she ever
betrayed the secret."
"I do not understand the relations between Sparks


CAPTAIN GREENWAY'S IDEA
235
Gayland and his aunt; but she seems to be quite as
much devoted to him as her husband is to me," said
Phil, looking to the agent for a possible explanation.
"He is a good-looking young fellow, and he has
done everything he could to work himself into her
good graces, evidently for the purpose of obtaining her
influence with her husband in the disposal of his prop-
erty. But Sparks has ruined himself."
"I should say that he had, if the whole truth comes
out."
"It must come out!" exclaimed Cavan, manifesting
more excitement than he was in the habit of displaying.
“If I hand this money over to Mr. Gayland, saying
that you brought it to me, it will look to him, as it did
to me, that you had simply concluded to return your
ill-gotten gain. That will not do just yet. You said
that the two burglars had another job on their hands.”
"I did;" and Phil repeated some portion of his
former narrative.
"Possibly it will be better to let them carry out their
plan; and then there will be no doubt about their inten-
tions, for the return of this money by you has a bad
look."
Just then, with the remembrance of what he had
heard at the shanty repeated a moment before, some-
thing more of the talk of the burglars came back to
him, and he leaped out of his chair as a new train of
ideas came into his mind with startling force.
"What is the matter, Paul? You were the most
indifferent fellow I ever saw when we unearthed that


236
THE YOUNG HERMIT
thousand-dollar bill; but now you seem to be excited,”
said the agent.
"Those villains spoke of another fellow that be-
longed with them," replied Phil, after reflecting a mo-
ment, as though he had been stunned with a new idea.
Then he was sure he had a clue to the mystery.


MR. CAVAN'S PLAN
237
CHAPTER XXXVII.
MR. CAVAN'S PLAN.
As Mr. Cavan suggested, Phil Greenway was not a
demonstrative young man, but he was certainly ex-
cited when the clock struck one in an adjoining room;
but it was clear that he had not yet clearly defined the
idea which had stunned him in its advent.
He resumed his seat at the table, and the wrinkles
on his brow indicated that he was bringing his thought
to bear upon the subject his sudden recollection had
sprung upon him, and he said nothing for a few min-
utes.
The agent realized that he was struggling at the
birth of a new idea, and was laboring to develop its
meaning; and he sensibly held his peace to enable his
companion to settle his thoughts.
"I begin to see through the whole of it," said he
at last. "Roddy and-"
"Who is Roddy?" interposed the agent, who was not
willing to let any point escape his understanding.
"Roddy is the companion of Sparks Gayland in his
new enterprise, and the chief of the burglars, a cool-
headed rascal who has drawn Sparks into his clutches,
and uses him as an assistant. But they spoke of a
third person who was connected with them, and said he
was not more than sixteen years old.”


238
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"What has he to do with all this?”
"That is what I am trying to explain to myself.
Some one went to Mr. Gayland's house on the night
of the robbery with Roddy and Sparks; and this third
person was mistaken for me."
"Mr. Gayland and his wife were positive it was you;
and they knew you well enough to believe they could
not be mistaken," added Cavan.
"Let me give you another incident of my experience
at Minnetonka," continued the captain, relating the
event of the hurricane, and the saving of the passen-
gers and crew of the Excelsior.
"That seems to be another story," interposed the
agent, rather impatiently.
"Wait a moment, if you please, and you will see
that it is a part of the same story," answered Phil, with
a very expressive smile on his brown face. "After
we went ashore, the lady invited me to her parlor
at the Lake Park Hotel, though not till she had called
me by a name I never heard before, and insisted that
I was somebody else."
"Mistook you for another?" said Cavan, with an ef-
fort to repress a gape.
"That is just what she did; and she would have it
that I was her adopted son, and called me Conny."
"Didn't she know her adopted son?"
"She would have it that I was he, though he had
run away from her a year or two before. I could
not convince her to the contrary for a long time; and


MR. CAVAN'S PLAN
239
she told me very nearly the same story that Mr. Gay-
land and his wife related to me to show how I hap-
pened to be with them, stating first that it was in Mal-
aga, and then changing the place to Dresden."
"Didn't she know where the event occurred?"
"She told me wrong first as a trick to see if I did
not detect the difference in the story; and when she
found I did not notice the error, she changed the name
of the place.'
99
Phil repeated the narrative of Mrs. Forbush more
in detail than he had given it at first; and as the ex-
detective began to see the bearing of the incident, he
ceased to gape.
"Once more," continued the captain, "Roddy told
Sparks that the third person of the trio had seen a
lady at the West Hotel who might identify him. That
brings the several incidents into close connection, I
should say."
"I believe you, my lad."
"Roddy called the third member of the trio Chick
Gillpool, which is not likely to be his real name,” added
Phil.
"And you say that the lady, after she had looked at
the initials on your arm, expected to find C. G. there.
There seems to be a hole in the curtain, and we can
soon see what is behind it," said the agent, who had
become as much interested in the matter as though he
expected to make ten thousand dollars out of it.
"There was another incident at the lake yesterday,


240
THE YOUNG HERMIT
though I cannot connect it with the robbery in any
manner," continued the captain, recalling the affair of
the steam launch, and the singular conduct of Mr. Ar-
nold Blonday.
"Then we will let it rest till another time," added
Mr. Cavan, rising from his chair as though he had
business on his hands. "You have done your errand
here, and done it well, Paul."
"I have done a good deal more than I intended when
I came here, for I did not think of telling you anything
more than was necessary to explain how the six thou-
sand dollars came into my possession. I have related
the rest of my experience in self-defense."
"What do you intend to do next?" asked the agent.
"It was my purpose to take the first train for the
lake, which leaves at seven in the morning."
"Will you go with me now to Mr. Gayland's house,
and tell him what you have told me?"
"No, sir! I will not! I will never go into his pres-
ence, and especially not into the presence of Mrs. Gay-
land, till I can prove my innocence of the charge
against me," replied the captain, with a blush on his
cheeks.
"I will not insist upon it," replied Mr. Cavan, as he
put the money Phil had brought into his pocketbook.
"What are you going to do when you get back to the
lake?"
"I had not decided what to do when I left. You
have had more experience in such matters than I have,


MR. CAVAN'S PLAN
241
and the right kind of experience, too; and I should
like to have you advise me what to do," suggested Phil.
"If I had had the direction of the case a little earlier,
I should have advised you to let the two intruders
remain in full possession of your shanty, and carry out
their original plan of robbing the bank, as you suspect
that they intend to do."
"I thought of that myself; but I could not take the
responsibility of keeping the money any longer.”
"Perhaps we can rectify the error," continued Cavan,
pursing his lips and contracting his brow as he paused
to reflect.
"I will do just what you say," said Phil.
"Paul, I am going to Minnetonka with you!" ex-
claimed the agent suddenly. "I am as much concerned
to prove your innocence as you can be yourself, for
I have fully committed myself in that direction."
"You are very kind, sir; and I have no right to ex-
pect so much of you," replied Phil, who really felt as
though his innocence was already established, with
such a powerful and skillful person to assist him.
"There is only one difficulty in the way. An old
friend of mine who lived in New York when I was
there, wrote me that he should arrive at the Ryan last
evening, and wished to see me on business of the ut-
most importance early in the morning. I must see
him."
Cavan was troubled by the clashing of this engage-
ment with his intention to accompany the captain to


242
THE YOUNG HERMIT
the lake; but after he had considered the subject for a
few minutes, he appeared to have arrived at a solution
of the difficulty.
"I think we had better not wait for the train in the
morning, Paul," said he. "I should like to be on the
ground before these fellows are stirring, and I think
I can manage it."
The captain asked no questions, and the agent went
to his room to finish his toilet; but he came down in
a few minutes, and they left the house together, mak-
ing their way to the Ryan House as soon as possible.
"I thought I should find you coming into the house
at about this time," said Cavan, accosting a gentleman
he found smoking his cigar at the door.
"I am off a little earlier than usual to-night; but I
have to return to the station again soon," replied the
smoker.
"I want to get to Lake Minnetonka in the shortest
possible time," continued the agent, as the gentleman
threw away the stump of his cigar, and looked at the
clock.
"I have to send a freight train over to the mills,
near there, in about half an hour, and you may go in
the caboose, Cavan. To what part of the lake do you
want to go?"
"To Excelsior," replied the captain, when the agent
looked at him.
"I will send you the rest of the way on the engine,
if you like."


MR. CAVAN'S PLAN
243
"Thank you, Brooks; the engine will do. We will
be at the freight station in half an hour," replied
Cavan, going to the office of the hotel, where he ex-
amined the register, after giving the night clerk his
pocketbook to deposit in the safe. Then he pointed
to a name on the book.


244
THE YOUNG HERMIT
66
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
THE GENTLEMAN FROM CHICAGO.
'David Westlawn,' " continued Mr. Cavan, reading
the name on the register at which he pointed. "I want
to see this gentleman at once, for he is an old friend of
mine," he added, turning to the night clerk.
"Do you wish to have him called, Mr. Cavan?"
asked the clerk.
"No; I will see him in his room, for I was to meet
him in the morning, and I have to leave the city at
once."
A servant was called and directed to show the gen-
tleman to Mr. Westlawn's room, and the agent told the
captain he had better go up with him, which Phil was
quite willing to do.
"David Westlawn has had hard luck in business, for
he lost all he had in Chicago, though he was well off
when he went there," said Cavan, as he walked up the
stairs. "He employed me to look up a couple of chil-
dren about seven or eight years old, and I told him
in the end they had been sent to Paris to attend a
school there."
"A couple of children!" exclaimed Phil. "Where
did they live?"
"In New York."
"Were they lost?"


THE GENTLEMAN FROM CHICAGO
245
"No; I don't remember much about the case now;
but to the best of my recollection, the children were
his nieces or nephews, and he had been told they were
sent to Paris to attend a school, for their mother was
a French lady. For some reason which he did not ex-
plain, or which I have forgotten, he did not believe
the statement. But I found the steamer in which they
were taken to Paris with another uncle, or something
of that sort; and my report satisfied him. After that
David and I became strong friends, and have had busi-
ness relations in the West."
"Is his business now about the two children?" asked
Phil.
"Of course not, for that matter is eight years old;
and I don't think he ever mentioned the subject to me
again."
"Some real-estate operation then," suggested the
captain.
"I don't know; I have done no detective work for
years, and he cannot wish to see me on account of the
old affair. I have forgotten all about my old cases,
and very likely I have not stated the matter of the chil-
dren exactly as it was. But I have all my old notes of
cases in the house, though I have not looked at them
since I came to St. Paul," replied Cavan, as the servant
stopped at the door.
The agent knocked vigorously on the panel, and the
summons was answered by a sleepy demand on the
part of the occupant of the room.
"Who's there?" he asked a minute later.


246
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Cavan," replied the ex-detective. "I want to see
you at once."
"All right; I will open the door in a minute," re-
sponded the guest.
Presently Mr. Westlawn opened the door, and
showed himself, dressed only in his pajamas.
"Come in, Cavan; I am glad to see you, though I
did not expect to have a call from you before morn-
ing," said the guest, as he grasped the hand of his
old friend.
"I have to go away in half an hour, and I have only
come to say that I cannot be here in the morning," re-
plied Cavan.
"You are a bird of the night; but where are you
going at this strange hour, though it is none of my
business?" asked Mr. Westlawn.
"I am only going over to Excelsior," replied the
agent, prudently keeping his business to himself.
"I believe that was the cry of the young fellow who
was climbing a hill, but I never heard of a place of
that name, commented Mr. Westlawn, as he led
the way into his room, where he had lighted the gas.
"It is over on Lake Minnetonka."
99
"Lake Minnetonka!" exclaimed Mr. Westlawn.
"Is there anything strange about that, Westlawn?"
"My business is with a party of people who are at
that lake, if I do not mistake the name," answered the
guest, as he took a memorandum book from his coat,
hanging on a hook.
"Lake Minnetonka is the great summer resort of the


THE GENTLEMAN FROM CHICAGO
247
Minneapolitans; and even some from St. Paul have
been known to go there," Cavan explained, as he
looked at his watch.
"That is the place; I have the name here," replied
the gentleman from Chicago. "But I want to see you
as soon as possible. I have never given up that affair
of eight years ago, about which you helped me; and I
have obtained some new light on the subject," con-
tinued Mr. Westlawn, with no little anxiety in his ex-
pression. "Of course I know you are not in your
former occupation, and I am only going to ask your
advice as a friend.”
"Of course I shall be glad to give you any advice
in my power when I have time to hear the case," an-
swered Cavan.
"I have learned that the sister of one of my birds
has moved from New York to Minneapolis, and my
party are here on a visit; and they have gone out to
this lake to spend the summer. What is the reason
I cannot go with you, for I shall have a chance to
tell you all about it on the way without taking up
any more of your time?" suggested the guest.
The agent did not like to have two irons in the
fire at the same time, and he looked at Phil, as though
he expected him to say something about the matter.
"It will take nearly an hour to reach The Hermitage
after we get to Excelsior," the captain remarked.
"You can have the cabin all to yourselves for your con-
ference."


248
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"I have no objection to your going, Westlawn; but
you must get ready in five minutes," said Cavan.
"I will be with you in three minutes," replied the
gentleman, as he proceeded to dress himself.
"I don't remember much about the case on which I
worked for you, and I have not time to go back to my
house to look up my notebook in which I should
find the whole of the details."
"No matter for that; I can tell you all about it,"
replied Mr. Westlawn, glancing at Phil, as though he
understood that he must be careful what he said in
the presence of a stranger.
He glanced at the captain of the Hebe, and then did
more than that, for he fixed his gaze upon him, and
suspended his operations as though something about
the young man had attracted his attention.
"You did not introduce your friend, Cavan," he
added, turning to the agent.
"My name is Philip Greenway; or, at least, that is
the name by which I am known at the lake; and I am
the captain of the steamer Hebe, though it is no great
thing of a steamer," interposed Phil, afraid that the
agent would mention his real name.
"That is it, Captain Greenway," added Cavan. "But
hurry up, or we shall lose the freight train on which
we are to travel. If you don't like the accommoda-
tions, Westlawn, you must wait till seven in the morn-
ing for a passenger train."
"What is good enough for you is good enough for
me, Cavan," said the guest, as he put on his coat.


THE GENTLEMAN FROM CHICAGO
249
"It seems to me just as though I had seen this young
man somewhere, though I can't tell where."
"He has lived in St. Paul for seven years at least,
and very likely you have seen him there."
"That is not possible, since I never was here before
in my life."
But it was time to go, and there was no time to say
anything more; and in a few minutes they were in
the caboose of the freight train on the way to their
destination. There were several other persons in the
car, and they had no opportunity to talk about the
business of the gentleman from Chicago.
At three o'clock in the morning they arrived at Ex-
celsior, and went on board of the Hebe. They were
not expected by the engineer, and it took some minutes
to wake him, and induce him to unlock the door of the
forward cabin.
"Get up steam just as quick as you possibly can,
Bashy," said the captain, as soon as he got a sight of
his faithful assistant, who was as much surprised at
the appearance on board of the trio from St. Paul as
though they had dropped down from the sky through
the hurricane deck.
"What is up now, Captain Greenway?" stammered
Bashy.
"No time for a word now! Get up steam, and then
we can talk," said the captain, more sharply than he
was accustomed to address the engineer.
Phil took the door of the after cabin, opened it, and


250
THE YOUNG HERMIT
lighted the lamps; and the gentleman from Chicago
admitted that no room in the Ryan could be better for
their purpose.
In less than an hour, and while it was hardly day-
light, the Hebe was off The Hermitage, neither of the
burglars being in sight.


CAVAN'S PLAN
251
CHAPTER XXXIX.
CAVAN'S PLAN.
Mr. Cavan and his friend from Chicago remained in
the after cabin on the passage from Excelsior to Hal-
sted's Bay, and it had not been decided what should be
done when the steamer arrived at her destination, for
that was to depend upon the situation at The Hermit-
age.
When the Hebe was within a quarter of a mile of
Cape Cod, Captain Greenway called through the speak-
ing tube for the engineer to stop her, for he did not
wish to disturb the intruders before the ex-detective
decided what should be done.
Leaving the pilot house, he went to the after cabin,
and knocked at the door, for the conference between
the two gentlemen was held with closed doors, though
there was no one on board to disturb them.
Mr. Cavan answered the knock, and seemed to be
greatly surprised when informed that the steamer had
reached her destination, for he had evidently been as
much interested in the affairs of his friend as he had
been in those of the captain.
"All right, Paul-"
"Don't call me by that name, if you please," inter-
posed Phil, in a whisper. "I am afraid I shall be dis-


252
THE YOUNG HERMIT
covered, for no one at the lake has the least idea who
I am."
"Very well, Captain Greenway; I will not forget it
again, and you shall not have occasion to complain of
me for letting the cat out of the bag,” replied the agent,
with a laugh. "But I am not sure that it would not be
better to tell Westlawn all about your history, though
I have not said a single word to him yet.'
""
"Tell him about my history!" exclaimed the cap-
tain, wondering what the shrewd ex-detective could
be thinking about. "I hope you will not do anything
of the kind."
"I will not without your knowledge and consent,"
added Cavan, with an expression that puzzled Phil.
"For the present we will confine our attention to these
fellows in the shanty, though I have not seen anything
of the surroundings, and have not the least idea where
we are."
"I told you that we are off Cape Cod, and the shanty
is not more than a quarter of a mile from us," said the
captain.
"Have you seen anything of the happy pair, as I
heard you call them?" asked the agent. For some rea-
son which Phil could not comprehend, he seemed to be
in excellent humor, and was even inclined to be mirth-
ful, though he ought to have been sleepy and stupid
after being up nearly the whole of the night.
"Everything is exactly as I left it last night."
"As the happy pair did not sleep any night before
last, they will make a long snooze of it this morning,


CAVAN'S PLAN
253
and they may not put in an appearance for hours yet,"
continued Cavan, as he came out of the cabin to the
open space at the stern of the boat.
"The Hermitage is dead ahead of the steamer," said
the captain, pointing forward.
Mr. Westlawn followed his friend out of the cabin;
but Cavan stopped him, and said he was working at
his old profession, so that his operations must be con-
ducted privately, though he seemed to be inclined to
laugh all the time.
"Captain Greenway, my friend has not had much
sleep to-night, any more than the rest of us, and per-
haps he had better turn in, if there is a berth for him,”
suggested the agent.
"There is a good berth in the forward cabin, and
he can sleep there all day if he wishes," replied Phil,
wondering what it was that amused his companion.
Mr. Westlawn liked the idea, and was shown to the
forward cabin, where he inserted himself in the little
berth, and was instructed by his friend not to show
himself on deck without an invitation to do so.
"Now, Captain Greenway, we will see where we
are," said Cavan, when the gentleman from Chicago
had been disposed of.
"It is not so light as it will be in half an hour, but
you can see The Hermitage," returned Phil.
"But I think we had better keep out of sight as much
as possible."
"Then we will go into the pilot house. It is rather
small quarters for two, but we can keep pretty com-


254
THE YOUNG HERMIT
fortable there, and see all about us from the windows,"
continued the captain, as he led the way into the little
box, where he placed the agent on one side of the
wheel, while he stationed himself in his usual place on
the other.
"That shanty on the point is The Hermitage, I sup-
pose?" said Cavan, as he looked through the window
in front of him at the surroundings.
“That is The Hermitage; and the Hebe was moored
last night in the bay beyond the cape," answered the
captain, as he proceeded to point out the localities of
the narrative he had given the agent.
"I don't believe those fellows have moved since they
turned in last night," said Cavan, after he had con-
sidered the situation for a moment. "Now where is
the place, did you say, that the two boats were hid-
den in the grove?"
"You can see the trees farther up the point from the
shanty."
"As I find things here, I think our policy is to put
things exactly as the fellows left them, and then wait
for them to make the next move," said Cavan. "I
should keep the steamer as far as possible from the
shanty, and land the boats, even if we have to carry
them some distance."
The captain called to the engineer through the tube,
and told him to go ahead slowly, and not to blow off
steam, or make any sound that could be heard at the
shanty.
The Hebe went ahead again, and the pilot took her


CAVAN'S PLAN
255
to a point as close to the shore as the depth of water
would permit, and ran her forefoot on the sand, where
the boats were restored to their former position under
the bushes in the grove.
The party were obliged to wade out to the steamer,
and it was awkward to be without a tender; but no one
complained, and the steamer was shoved off from the
sand.
"Now we are all right, and your engineer had bet-
ter let his fires down, so that the smoke will not be-
tray us in half an hour or an hour from now. We will
circle round at a good distance from the point, and go
to the moorings of the boat, where you had her last
evening," continued Cavan, who seemed to have a plan
in his head, though he had not yet explained it.
The captain and the agent returned to the pilot
house, and the boat started again, Phil keeping her
well off the shore, as he had been directed.
"There is only one thing that I am afraid of which
can betray what has been done since those fellows
went to bed in the shanty," said Cavan, who wore
a look of anxiety as he spoke.
"What is that, sir?" asked Phil, very desirous of
avoiding any mishap.
"I am afraid Roddy, as you call him, will miss the
money you took from his satchel; and that might
change the entire current of affairs, though it might,
at the same time, make him all the more anxious to
undertake his next job, which you think is to be
at the bank in the village where we took the steamer."
•


256
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"I concluded from what I heard that the bank was
their next objective point, though I am not sure of
it," replied the captain.
"I don't think there is anything else here to employ
their talents, unless they go through some of these big
hotels," said Cavan. "If Roddy should discover that
his six thousand dollars was gone, he might possibly
conclude that his movements were observed, or he is
just as likely to believe that he had been robbed in his
turn by one of his two companions."
"I don't think he is likely to discover his loss at
present," said Phil. "Last night he looked into the
bag, and when he found the package, which I had re-
stored to its original appearance, he was satisfied, and
did not open it."
"But he had agreed to divide with Gay Sparkland,
if that is what you call the nephew of our friend; and
he may take out the money for this purpose," sug-
gested Cavan.
"I don't believe he means to divide with Gay, for
he has kept the money without giving any of it to
either of his companions, and I believe he intends to
skip at the right time without troubling himself about
his associates, for he is the monkey that uses their cats-
paws to pull his chestnuts out of the fire."
"Then he is the real villain of the party."
"When he is done with Gay and Chick Gillpool he
will drop them both like a hot potato."
The Hebe reached her moorings, and was made fast
to them.


THE HAPPY PAIR
257
CHAPTER XL.
THE HAPPY PAIR.
After the steamer was moored in her usual berth,
the captain and the agent took another careful survey
of The Hermitage and its surroundings; but there was
no sign of life in or near the shanty.
There was nothing more to be done, and the situa-
tion was beginning to be monotonous, so that both the
captain and the agent began to gape fearfully, espe-
cially the former, for he had not slept a wink during
the night.
"We are as quiet here as though we were on a desert
island in the middle of the ocean," said Cavan, with a
long yawn.
"I suppose you know what your next step is to be,
Mr. Cavan," said Phil, giving this as a hint that he
should like to know something more of his plans.
"I have no more idea what we shall do next than you
have, Captain Greenway; if I had I should tell you at
once," answered the agent, with another long gape.
"The next step will depend upon the movements of
that happy pair, and our present purpose is simply to
let them have their own way and lull them into security
by all the expedients within our reach."
"That is just what I should have done last night


258
THE YOUNG HERMIT
if I had not been burdened with that money," replied
Phil.
"I had that put into the safe at the Ryan while you
were reading your time-table, and I have a receipt for
it," added Cavan. "We may have nothing to do for
the next three or four hours, and we may as well turn
in, and have a nap while we are waiting; but some one
will have to be on watch where he can see what is done,
if anything, on the point."
"Bashy has had about four hours' sleep, and he can
keep the watch," suggested the captain, gaping till he
had nearly dislocated his jaw.
Cavan went to the forward cabin, and took posses-
sion of one of the four berths, while the captain
called at the engine room to see Bashy, who was en-
tirely willing to take the morning watch, and de-
clared that he was not at all sleepy.
The captain took possession of another of the berths,
and soon all in the cabin were sound asleep, for they
did not "need a brass band to lull them to slumber"
after the occupation of the night.
Bashy had dropped the canvas curtains that inclosed
the engine room; the fuel in the furnace had been ex-
hausted so that no smoke issued from the smokestack,
and the Hebe looked exactly as she had the night be-
fore when the happy pair went to their beds in the
shanty.
The engineer stretched himself on the divan abaft
the engine, after he had raised the curtain on the port


THE HAPPY PAIR
259
side so that he could see the shore; but he was not as
wide awake as he had protested that he was, for he
could stand a great deal of sleep, and he was soon in
the same condition as those in the cabin; but he was
sure that any unusual thing would wake him in an in-
stant; and the captain had suggested that he might
sleep on his sofa if he was so disposed.
The bay was as smooth as glass in the early morn-
ing, for the northwest wind had subsided, and there
was not a ripple of water nor the movement of a
human being to disturb him, and he slept as soundly
as his companions in the cabin.
It was all of nine o'clock when Bashy came to a
realizing sense that he was still a living being, and
when he woke, he looked at the shore through the open-
ing under the curtain.
The smoke was pouring out of the funnel which
had been carried above the roof of the shanty, and it
was evident that the occupants of The Hermitage had
finished their long night of slumber.
In accordance with his instructions the engineer
called the captain and informed him that the happy
pair in the shanty were up, and appeared to be getting
breakfast, for there were two uncooked hams, plenty
of potatoes, a keg of hardtack, and a supply of gro-
ceries in the closet, which they would have no diffi-
culty in finding.
"Don't show yourself, Captain Greenway," said
Cavan, when he was called. "Not more than one of


260
THE YOUNG HERMIT
our party must be seen by the cheerful couple. I have
a plan, though it depends upon the movements of those
fellows."
"You can go into the engine room, where you can
see without being seen," suggested Bashy, who hoped
that he would be called upon to take an active part in
the drama which was to be played.
The captain and the agent adopted this suggestion,
and, passing out of the cabin, went by the starboard
side, where they could not be seen from the shore, to
the engine room, leaving Mr. Westlawn still asleep in
his berth.
"That smoke suggests breakfast," said Cavan, after
he had taken a full survey, in the better light of the
sunshine, of the point and the shanty. "I suppose we
are out on that score, and we shall have to let our
stomachs grumble till those fellows will let us go to one
of the hotels."
"Not at all; we have crackers and cheese enough on
board to keep you from starving, though they don't
make a very nice breakfast for a gentleman," inter-
posed the engineer.
"Trot them out, Bashy; they will do as well as any-
thing while we are on watch," said the agent.
The bucket containing the food was brought into
the engine room, and all then proved that they had
appetites, and were not epicures, for they used up a
full half hour in eating the dry breakfast.
From the sounds that came from the forward cabin,


THE HAPPY PAIR
261
it was evident that Mr. Westlawn was stirring, and
Bashy carried the crackers and cheese to him, with the
request that he should remain where he was.
"We may have to stay here all day," suggested Cap-
tain Greenway, when his watch informed him that it
was ten o'clock.
"I don't think so," replied Mr. Cavan. "Those fel-
lows will be as discontented as we are for the want
of something to do. I have no doubt they will hail the
steamer if they see any one on board of her, as we
must take care that they do."
"Bashy can show himself where they will see him,”
said Phil.
"Not yet," interposed Cavan when the engineer rose
to take the hint. "He must be the only one that is
seen. There are the two villains on the shore!"
The agent unfolded his plan for the next move, and
gave Bashy, who was to be the only actor in it, full in-
structions in regard to his duty; and then he was sent
out where he could be seen by the intended victims of
the strategy.
"Steamer ahoy!" shouted Gay Sparkland from the
nearest shore, though he could hardly be heard in the
distance.
"On shore!" replied Bashy, whose lungs were good
for half a mile. "Bring off that boat!"
Roddy and Gay seemed to be in consultation over
this request; then they soon left the beach and walked
across the point; but in less than half an hour a boat


262
THE YOUNG HERMIT
was discovered coming around the point, and it was
seen that the happy pair were complying with the re-
quest made by the engineer.
"We must all go into the forward cabin with West-
lawn," said Cavan, beginning to be fully alive again.
They retired to the cabin indicated, with the ex-
ception of Bashy, to whom the agent gave more par-
ticular instructions, and the door of the cabin was
locked, while the ex-detective drew the curtains in-
side so that not a sight of the interior could be ob-
tained by the expected visitors.
The arrangements were hardly completed before
the boat, which was the one belonging to the steamer,
came alongside, and without waiting for an invitation
the happy pair went on board.
"Good morning, sir," said Roddy, in his blandest
manner. "I hope you are very well."
"I couldn't be any better if I had been in the hos-
pital for six months," replied Bashy, with abundant
assurance. "I am glad you brought off that boat, for
I am a prisoner on board, as I can't swim a stroke."
"Are you alone here?" asked the chief of the vis-
itors, while Gay was looking about the boat.
"Well, I couldn't be any more alone if I had been
Mr. Adam in the Garden of Eden before he lost his
rib. My engineer went ashore yesterday afternoon,
and was to go over to the Chapman House to see his
girl; and did not come back at six o'clock, as he prom-
ised. I pity the girl if she married him, for he is a



JrvengusanKennedy
"ON SHORE!" REPLIED BASHY.
Copy
"BRING OFF THAT BOAT!"
Page 261.





THE HAPPY PAIR
263
drunken fellow when he gets off, and I suppose he
found whisky."
"Who lives in this shanty?" asked Roddy, pointing
to the shore.
"I do," replied Bashy.
99
"Then you are the man I want to see.'
Bashy invited them to the engine room.


264
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XLI.
THE STRANGER AT THE BANK.
Bashy seated himself and his guests in the engine
room, and treated them with distinguished considera-
tion, though he knew but little about them.
"We got caught here yesterday in the storm, and
could not get away, for the waves were too big for our
boat," said Roddy. "We knocked at the door of the
shanty; and as no one answered, we went in and made
ourselves at home there. We will pay for everything
we had, however."
"Don't mention it; you did just right, and I am
much obliged to you for using my humble abode," re-
plied Bashy.
"We like the place so much that we should like
to stay there for a week or two, and will pay a hand-
some rent for the shanty," continued Roddy.
"Don't mention it, for I shall be glad to have the
cottage occupied, as I shall have to be away from it for
a week or two," responded Bashy, in the most gracious
manner.
"That settles it, and we are already in possession."
"Some of the scalawags come up here in my ab-
sence and make mischief in the cottage; and as you
are gentlemen, I shall be glad to have you occupy
the house to keep them out of it."


THE STRANGER AT THE BANK 265
Bashy was so very obliging that it was quite unnec-
essary to resort to the claim which Gay had sug-
gested, and the happy pair were evidently greatly
pleased with the result of their visit.
"I am very much obliged to you for bringing my
boat back, for now I can go up the lake and get an-
other engineer," continued the representative of the
Hebe.
"But how are we to get ashore if you keep the
boat?" asked Roddy.
“I will pull you ashore, and bring it back with me."
"All right; we have a boat of our own. Does this
steamer carry passengers?" asked Roddy.
"As a rule she does not; that is, she does not carry
them for money," replied Bashy, with abundant self-
complaisance. “I have got money enough to live on,
and I only take my friends out in her; and some of
them are staying at the hotels, so that I shall have
enough to do for a week or two."
"We expect a friend to come up to-day, and we
wish to bring him up here; but as you don't"
"Yes, I do; I do anything of that sort; but if you
should offer me any money for it, I don't know but
it would lead to a duel," replied the engineer, very
cheerfully. "But I can't do anything for you till I
find an engineer. I can run the boat alone down to
the place where I expect to get one; for I won't have
Banks after the trick he played on me yesterday."
"We are in no hurry, and any time to-day will suit
us; and we are all ready to go ashore, though I am


266
THE YOUNG HERMIT
sorry to trouble you so much," said the chief. It
looked as though he did not trust Gay to say a word.
"No trouble at all!" protested Bashy. "I am so glad
you have consented to look out for my cottage for me
that I shall be happy to do anything for you."
The engineer pulled the happy pair to the shore;
and they manifested no curiosity to know anything
more about the Hebe or the apparent owner of her and
the shanty; but before he started he lighted the fire in
the furnace.
On his return he was warmly praised by Cavan,
who had heard some of his remarks in the engine
room by opening a window a little; and Bashy was as
happy as though he had won a victory, though he did
not understand the object of the plan in which he had
been the chief actor.
Bashy attended to the engine, and as soon as there
was steam enough the moorings were cast off, for the
agent had accomplished all he desired, and even more,
for it looked as though the unseen and cautious Chick
Gillpool was to join the party at once.
Phil took charge of the engine while Bashy went
into the pilot house to steer until the Hebe was out of
sight of Cape Cod, as she would be as soon as she
reached the narrow passage out of the bay, when each
of them resumed his usual duty.
"I think you have got me into a mess, Mr. Cavan,”
said the captain, when he took his place at the wheel,
though he laughed to soften it.


THE STRANGER AT THE BANK
267
"What makes you think so, Captain Greenway?
We shall soon have that happy trio in a very tight
place," replied the agent, rubbing his hands at the suc-
cess of his plan.
"Of course Gay Sparkland will know me when he
comes on board of the boat, and it seems to me that
will end the whole matter," said Phil, not a little dis-
concerted.
"But it is not my intention to have him recognize
you.'
99
"How can you possibly prevent it, sir?”
"You must either get another pilot to take your
place, or-
"But I should say that it was necessary for us to
watch these fellows all the time," interposed Phil, who
did not like the idea of having another person run his
steamer.
99
"I should say so myself; and if you don't object to
the plan, I can fix things so that Gay will not know
you. I have done such a thing when I wanted wit-
nesses."
"I will do anything rather than hand the Hebe over
to another pilot."
"Very well; we shall have plenty of time to attend.
to the matter before you return to The Hermitage,”
added Cayan. "Now, where did you say the man was
stopping that was so much startled when he saw your
arm?"
"I landed him at the Lafayette."


268
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Who did you say was with him?"
"A lady who was his sister, and her name was Mrs.
Goldson; she had a daughter, Sibyl," replied the cap-
tain, who wondered why he put these particular ques-
tions at this time.
"Mrs. Goldson," repeated Cavan, as he wrote the
name in his memorandum book. "Mr. Westlawn
wants you to land him at the Lafayette."
"Do I land you there, or do you remain on board
to make the trip with the happy pair?"
"No; I shall go on to Excelsior; but be sure and
leave my friend at the Lafayette."
"Of course I shall do so, though it is somewhat out
of the course to Excelsior," replied the captain, won-
dering if the agent thought he could forget to do so.
"On the whole, I think you had better leave him at
the Lafayette after you have landed me at Excelsior,"
said Cavin, who seemed to be in deep thought all the
time. "We had not finished our talk when you got to
the cape this morning."
The agent joined the gentleman from Chicago in
the after cabin where he had sent him, and nothing
more was seen of either of them till the Hebe touched
the wharf at her destination.
It had been decided that all hands should take break-
fast at Excelsior, and they started for a hotel for this
purpose; but when they were opposite the bank the ex-
detective wished to examine the premises in view of
future events, and the captain and the engineer walked


THE STRANGER AT THE BANK
269
to the hotel to order the meal, leaving the two gentle-
men in the street.
Cavan and his friend went into the bank and looked
over the room; and after they had completed the ex-
amination they went to the door to leave, when the
agent suddenly halted, as a young man came in.
"Look at him, Westlawn!" exclaimed Cavan, draw-
ing his companion back so that he could see the per-
son indicated.
The young man who had excited the attention of
the ex-detective was not more than fourteen or fifteen,
was well dressed, and looked about him as though he
had nothing in particular to engage his attention, for
he did not go to the counter.
"How are you, Mr. Cavan?" said the cashier of the
bank, recognizing the real-estate agent.
"Do you know that young man who appears to be
wandering about the bank without any business on his
hands?" asked the agent, after he had talked a few
minutes with the cashier.
"I never saw him before in my life," replied the
bank officer.
"I suppose you know most of the people that live in
this town?"
"About all of them who live here, but not all the
summer boarders."
"That young man does not live here, then?”
"No; and I should say that he has not been here
long, or I should have seen him before," added the
cashier.


270
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"He came up in the last train; I saw him," said a
man at the counter.
"Did you ever see anything like it!" exclaimed
Cavan. "He is the image of Captain Greenway of the
Hebe."
Mr. Westlawn was even more astonished than the
agent.


THE NEW PILOT OF THE "HEBE" 271
CHAPTER XLII.
THE NEW PILOT OF THE "HEBE."
The resemblance between the young man in the bank
and the young captain of the Hebe was certainly very
remarkable, and, if they had been dressed alike, it
would have puzzled a keen observer to tell one from
the other.
Still there was something in the expression of the
stranger which was not that of Captain Greenway;
something that was at least a shade less open, honest,
and manly, though one would hardly have noticed this
difference unless he were skilled, as the ex-detective
was, in reading faces.
"But isn't that the young fellow in command of the
steamer?" asked Mr. Westlawn, turning his back to
the stranger so as not to excite his attention.
"Captain Greenway could not have changed his
clothes since he left us in the street just now, even if
he had had another suit with him," replied Cavan.
"Besides, I am beginning to note a shade of difference
between the two."
"I can't see a point of variation between the faces
or forms," said the gentleman from Chicago.
"I see it all now!" exclaimed the agent, clapping
his hands together, and walking away from the


272
THE YOUNG HERMIT
stranger, who seemed to be aware that he was under
notice, and was moving toward the outside door.
"What do you see?" asked Westlawn, impressed
by the manner of his companion.
"I have two cases on my hands; and it seems to me
now that they are beginning to run together, and I am
afraid I shall get them mixed," said Cavan, leading
the way out of the bank, after he had again spoken
to the cashier.
"What do you mean by that?" inquired the other, to
whom the agent had said nothing of his mission to the
lake with the captain of the Hebe.
"We shall be likely to see this young fellow that
looks like the captain again, for the steamer is coming
down to this place again to-day," replied Cavan, as
they walked up the street to the hotel.
"I never saw such a close resemblance between two
human beings as between the captain and that fellow
in the bank. I wonder where he has gone," remarked
Westlawn.
"You will see him again soon, and I believe your
affair is coming out all right," answered the agent, as
they went into the hotel, and the subject was dropped.
At breakfast, though it was pretty near a country
dinner hour, nothing was said about the matter, for
there were representatives of each of the ex-detective's
cases present, and for reasons of his own he was not
ready to mingle them.
"I suppose you will be back in the course of two or


THE NEW PILOT OF THE "HEBE" 273
three hours, Captain Greenway," said Cavan, when
they had returned to the wharf.
"I shall, if I am not detained on the way," replied
Phil. "But if I am to leave you here, I do not yet
understand how I am to act as pilot of the steamer on
the next trip without being recognized by Gay Spark-
land."
"I don't know that you will agree to my plan,"
added Cavan, as he took from his pocket a couple of
old corks he had picked up near the hotel. "But here
is the key to the difficulty."
"Those corks?"
"These corks. If I am not mistaken, you took part
in an amateur minstrel show last winter with my boy.
I was in the audience, though I did not know one per-
son from another."
"I see what you mean; and I am to go into burnt
cork," said Phil, laughing at the idea.
"All but the opera, for you will not have to sing,
unless you prefer to do so," replied Cavan.
"I don't object to the singing, though Gay might
recognize my songs or my voice."
"Do as you like about that. Have you any other
clothes on board?"
"I have a suit that I put on when I have any dirty
work to do."
"All right; and you had better put on your other
rig before we leave, for I have business in Excelsior
which will keep me here, apart from my desire not to
embarrass the movements of the happy pair at the


274
THE YOUNG HERMIT
other end of the lake; and you can put on your war
paint as well here as anywhere else."
The captain did not object, and, procuring his old
clothes, he dressed himself for his part in the forward
cabin, though not till he had prepared his cork under
the boiler; and in less than half an hour, with the as-
sistance of Cavan, who had had experience in this de-
partment of professional work, he appeared on deck
as a young colored man, who got his complexion from
the burnt cork.
The laying on of the color was done better than it
is sometimes. He was not "so black that charcoal
would make a white mark on him," but just dark
enough to show that he was not a white man; and his
dress was carefully arranged to keep up his character.
Mr. Westlawn was smoking his cigar on the fore-
castle, and Bashy was at work in the engine room, get-
ting ready for the trip, and expecting to get the bell
to back her every moment.
"Where is Captain Greenway?" asked Bashy, when
Cavan showed himself at the engine room, the curtains
of which had been rolled up.
"He does not go with us," replied the agent, with a
twinkle of the eye, as he glanced at the dark-skinned
pilot at his side.
"The captain doesn't go with us!" exclaimed the
engineer, pausing in his occupation with surprise.
"Of course not; one of the passengers you will bring
down from The Hermitage would recognize him if he
were on board, to which all of us object," replied


THE NEW PILOT OF THE "HEBE"
275
Cavan; but he thought the engineer ought to know
more than he did about the situation, and he explained
as much of their movements as he deemed expedient.
"I knew there was something out of the way, and
that you would not take all this trouble for nothing,"
added Bashy, opening his eyes very wide. "But we
can't get along without a pilot."
"The pilot has just come on board," said the agent,
pointing at the young colored man.
Bashy looked at him, and did not seem to be par-
ticularly delighted with the change, and possibly he had
some prejudices against the race to which he ap-
peared to belong; but he said nothing in the presence
of the new pilot, who was directed by the agent to
take his place at the wheel, which he did, though not
till he had looked the engineer full in the face without
being recognized.
"I don't know about this business," said Bashy,
shaking his head when the pilot had gone to his sta-
tion. "I thought I knew every man on the lake that
knows how to steer a steamer, but I never saw that
darky before, and I don't believe he knows the naviga-
tion through Priest's Bay."
"I am sure that he knows the way as well as Cap-
tain Greenway himself," Cavan insisted; and then,
after speaking with Mr. Westlawn, he went on shore.
The new pilot cast off the fasts, and rang to back
her, though Bashy was very confident that the Hebe
would come to grief before she reached Cape Cod, and


276
THE YOUNG HERMIT
he kept a very close watch upon the course of the
steamer after she got away from the wharf.
The boat took her usual course, and after she had
gone a couple of miles, keeping in deep water all the
time, the engineer began to have more confidence in
the new pilot, though he was quite sure that the passage
through Priest's Bay would bother the colored fellow.
"You seem to be a new hand," said Mr. Westlawn,
when he had finished his cigar, as he stopped in front
of the pilot house.
"Yes, sir,” replied Phil, when he found that the pas-
senger did not know him. "But I think I know my
way about this lake."
"No doubt of it; but did the captain tell you that I
was to be left at the Hotel Lafayette?"
"Yes, sir; he told me all about it; and I know the
name of the man you want to see over here," an-
swered Phil, somewhat exhilarated by the success of
his disguise.
"What is that large hotel on the left? Isn't that
the Lafayette?"
"No, sir; that is the Lake Park."
The gentleman from Chicago was satisfied that he
was not going astray in the new hands to which he
had been committed, and he seated himself to look at
the scenery.
In a short time the Hebe was approaching Minne-
tonka Beach at full speed, for the engineer had been
cautious at first.


THE LETTER
277
CHAPTER XLIII.
THE LETTER.
'As the Hebe approached the wharf in front of the
hotel, the pilot saw a rowboat, with a gentleman and
lady in the stern sheets, pulled by a little girl, in whom
he recognized the one he had saved from the angry
waves the day before.
Miss Sibyl promptly identified the Hebe, and stopped
rowing, while she spoke to those in the stern of the
boat, when all of them began to wave their handker-
chiefs at the steamer, and the pilot rang the bell to stop
her.
"What is the matter?" called the engineer through
the tube, for he felt that, in the absence of the captain,
he ought to exercise some supervision over the manage-
ment of the steamer.
"Nothing at all; we are all right," replied a voice
through the tube.
"What are you stopping here for, then?" demanded
Bashy.
"I know what I am about," responded Phil, rather
sharply, and forgetting that he was a person of another
color, whom the engineer did not know. "Mind your
bells, and don't meddle with my department."
Bashy did not like this sharp answer; but he knew
that the engineer was subject to the orders of the pilot,


278
THE YOUNG HERMIT
at least so far as the bells were concerned, and he went
to the side of the boat to ascertain the occasion of the
stoppage.
"Mr. Westlawn, that is the gentleman in the boat
that you wish to see," said the pilot, calling to the pas-
senger.
The gentleman from Chicago rose from his seat
and looked at the party in the boat with the most in-
tense interest, as Phil judged from the expression on
his face.
"Where is Captain Greenway?" asked the little
girl at the oars; and by this time the Hebe had forged
ahead so far that the little boat was abreast of it when
she lost her headway.
"He is not on board, Miss Sibyl," replied Bashy,
who was now nearer to the little maiden than the pilot
was.
"Not on board!" she exclaimed, evidently much dis-
appointed. "I wanted to see him ever so much."
"We left him at Excelsior," added the engineer,
speaking what he believed to be the truth. "He will
be on board again this afternoon, or by to-morrow."
"Where is the captain?" repeated Mr. Arnold Blon-
day. "I have a very important letter for him.”
"He stopped off at Excelsior; but he will soon be on
board again," replied Bashy. "I will give him your
letter as soon as I see him."
"But it is a very important letter, and I would not
have it lost for a thousand dollars," added Mr. Blon-
day.


THE LETTER
279
"You had better give it to the engineer," added the
colored pilot, who had left the wheel and come out on
deck.
Mr. Blonday consulted with his sister, and after he
had done so the boat came alongside the steamer, and
the letter was handed to Bashy, who assured the gen-
tleman that it would be perfectly safe.
"Good morning, Mrs. Goldson. How do you do?"
interposed the gentleman from Chicago at this moment,
as he took off his hat, and bowed low to the lady.
"Why, Mr. Westlawn! Can that be you?" ex-
claimed the lady; and Phil thought she was not half so
glad to see the passenger as she wished to make it ap-
pear.
If a ten-pound weight had been suddenly attached to
the chin of Mr. Blonday, his jaw could not have
dropped lower than it did; and it was true, and not a
fancy of the captain of the Hebe, that both the gentle-
man and the lady turned pale as soon as they recog-
nized the gentleman from Chicago.
,
"I am very glad to see you, and I hope you are go-
ing to stay a day or two with us," continued Mrs.
Goldson. Phil was sure that she was lying, for her
tones and her looks indicated it; and he concluded that
the relations between his passenger and the lady and
her brother were not the most cordial in the world.
"Thank you, Mrs. Goldson! I am most happy to
accept your kind invitation, for I have some very im-
portant business with you and your brother; and I


280
THE YOUNG HERMIT
have come to this lake on purpose to see you. In a
word, I have some news from Paris."
If Mrs. Goldson and her brother were pale before,
they both turned red now, and looked each at the
other, as though the situation were exceedingly embar-
rassing to them.
"I shall be very glad to see you," replied the lady,
who was the first to recover her self-possession. "I
am sorry this boat is so small that we can't take
you in."
The steamer will put me on the wharf, and I will
meet you at the hotel," added Mr. Westlawn, as he
nodded to the colored pilot, and the boat pushed off.
Phil rang the bell to back her in order to get out of
the way of the boat, and not trouble the maiden at the
oars; and he was wondering all the time what it was
that made Mrs. Goldson and her brother turn pale and
red by turns.
Then he could not help thinking of the emotion of
the gentleman when he accidentally discovered the let-
ters on his arm; and, though he could make nothing
of the situation, he felt just as if there was going to
be a great convulsion when the gentleman met the two
guests at the Lafayette.
But it was none of his business what happened at the
hotel, for all the actors in the coming scene were al-
most strangers to him, and he rang the bell to go
ahead as soon as the Hebe was clear of the boat.
In a few minutes more he had landed his passenger
on the wharf, and his mission in Minnetonka Bay was


THE LETTER
281
ended, though the gentleman lingered on the wharf by
the side of the pilot house, and seemed to be in deep
thought.
"You are going back to Excelsior, are you not?" he
asked, turning to the colored pilot.
"Yes, sir; if we are not detained at the head of the
lake, we shall be back there in a couple of hours," re-
plied Phil. "But I believe we have to take a party
back to the other end."
"Shall we see Mr. Cavan when you get to Ex-
celsior?" asked Mr. Westlawn.
"Who is Mr. Cavan?" asked the pilot, more for fun
than for anything else.
"The pilot don't know him; but I shall see him," in-
terposed Bashy, who was standing near the pilot house.
"Will you be kind enough to tell him that Mr. West-
lawn wishes to see him before night, if possible?"
"I will tell him so," answered the engineer; and the
gentleman walked to another part of the wharf, where
he could see the boat rowed by the little maiden.
The fasts were cast off, and the steamer was soon
under way again, and headed for the Narrows, through
which she had to pass on her way to Cape Cod; but
when she reached the canal, the Belle of Minnetonka,
the largest steamer on the lake, with apparently a thou-
sand passengers on board, was just entering the pas-
sage, and the pilot stopped the engine to wait for her
to get through.
He had run the Hebe out of the way of the big
steamer, and when she had lost her headway he came


282
THE YOUNG HERMIT
out of the pilot house, and met the engineer in the
waist.
"You have a letter for the captain, Bashy," said the
pilot, when he realized that he and the engineer were
the only persons left on board.
"That's so; I have a letter for the captain," replied
Bashy; and his tone indicated that he intended to
keep it.
"I think you had better give it to me," suggested
Phil.
"Give it to you?" exclaimed Bashy, thoroughly in-
dignant. “Not if I know Wabash Wingstone; and I
think I know him better than any other fellow."
"I am the pilot, you know," added Phil.
"And I am the engineer, you know," replied Bashy.
"I think the letter is for me: will you show it to
me?"
"No; I will not even show it to you! When any-
thing is left with me for Captain Greenway, he will
get it if the round earth holds together long enough
for me to deliver it," protested the engineer.
"I think you don't know me, Bashy," said the cap-
tain, laughing.
"I don't wish to know a fellow, white or black, that
wants to meddle with letters that don't belong to him."
"But you don't know me, Bashy."
"That is just what I say. I never set eyes on you
before."
"I am the captain of the Hebe, and you don't know
me, Bashy."


THE LETTER
283
"So is my great-grandmother the captain of the
Hebe!" exclaimed Bashy, with the utmost contempt
in his looks and tones.
"I tell you the truth, though I have colored my
face,” replied Phil, unbuttoning his vest, and show-
ing his name on the front of his shirt bosom.
But the engineer was incredulous, and the pilot re-
moved his clothes enough to show a portion of his
white skin; and then he produced his pocketbook, in
which his name was written, and began to tell him
about events in the past which no other person could
have known.
"I give it up; and here is the letter," said Bashy at
last. "I have been looking out for you ever since we
left Excelsior, for I was afraid you would sink the
steamer; and you were Captain Greenway all the
time!"
The captain opened the letter.


284
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XLIV.
WHAT MR. CAVAN DID..
The letter which Captain Greenway opened was a
rather thick one, and he was not a little surprised to
find that it contained quite a number of bank bills, the
one on top being a hundred.
As in the letter of the day before, there were ten
of this denomination; and the captain was aware that
the liberality of Mrs. Forbush had been made known
in the two hotels near the middle of the lake, if it had
not been published in the newspapers.
"More money," said Phil, as the Belle of Minne-
tonka came out of the Narrows. "We may as well
divide it as we did yesterday;" and he handed the
engineer three of the bills.
"Now I know you are Captain Greenway, for no
other fellow in the world would do such a handsome
thing," said Bashy, in tones of admiration and grati-
tude, as he put the bills in his pocket. "I can buy a
steamer now; and I will give you six hundred dollars
for the Hebe as soon as you will say the word."
"I shall not say it at present," replied Phil, as he
went into the pilot house.
The steamer went ahead again, and in half an hour
she was off Cape Cod, whistling for her passengers
who were to go to Excelsior; and when they appeared,


WHAT MR. CAVAN DID
285
they were brought off by Bashy in the boat, who told
them that he had found a darky who was a pilot, but
not an engineer, so that he was obliged to attend to
the machinery himself.
This explanation satisfied the passengers, and they
only glanced at the pilot, as they saw him through the
window at the wheel; though Phil, fearing that Gay
might recognize him, pulled down the old soft hat
he wore over a part of his face.
Roddy and Gay appeared to have changed their ap-
pearance somewhat, for they had evidently daubed
their faces with the mud they found at a spring near
the house, and had combed their hair in an odd fashion.
They went immediately to the after cabin, which
Bashy opened for them, and they were not seen again
till the steamer arrived at her destination, and had
made fast to the wharf.
Mr. Cavan had gone ashore as soon as the colored
pilot took his place at the wheel after he had changed
his appearance. As he had himself suggested, he had
business in Excelsior other than merely keeping out
of sight of the happy pair who were to be passengers
in the Hebe from Cape Cod. He had not told Captain
Greenway what this business was, and he seemed to
have become very reticent, so far as the young man
was concerned, however it may have been with his
friend from Chicago.
As soon as the Hebe had sailed, he walked up the
street toward the bank, where he looked all about the
building, possibly to inform himself still better in re-


286
THE YOUNG HERMIT
gard to the premises, in anticipation of the robbery
which he believed was to take place there.
He went into the bank, after he had looked all
about it; and he was not a little surprised to see the
young man who so closely resembled the captain of
the Hebe at the counter, where he had asked to have
a fifty-dollar bill changed.
He held it in his hand, but he seemed to be survey-
ing the premises inside of the counter all the time
while the cashier was taking the smaller bills from
his drawer.
Cavan went to the room in the rear, and from there
called the cashier, who came out of the banking room
with the money in his hand, and looked with some
astonishment at the real-estate agent.
99
"Find out who that young fellow is, if you can,"
said Cavan, in a whisper and without letting the sub-
ject of his request know that he was in the room. "It
may be important to you."
The cashier bowed and returned to his counter,
where he proceeded to ask general questions, and
finally if he was staying at one of the hotels, to which
he only replied that he was going to camp out for a
fortnight with some friends who would come for him
some time that day.
Cavan heard all that the young man said, and was
at the front of the counter by the time he had put his
money into his pocket.
"How are you, Conny?" said he, walking up to the
stranger and extending his hand to him, which the


WHAT MR. CAVAN DID
287
young man took, apparently surprised into this con-
cession.
"You have the advantage of me, for I don't think I
know you," replied he, with no little hesitation and
embarrassment.
"You don't know me, Conny Forbush!" exclaimed
Cavan, who was certainly a good actor. "When did
you leave Philadelphia ?”
"I did not leave Philadelphia, and I am not the per-
son you take me for," protested Conny, so called.
"Nonsense, Conny! What sort of a lark are you on
now that you don't know your old friends?" continued
the agent, in a tone of raillery. "I see that your
mother is at the Lake Park Hotel, and, of course, you
are there, too."
"But I am not there!" said Conny, beginning to be
indignant at the persistency of his new friend.
"If you are not, you will be soon, for the train
leaves for Lake Park in twenty minutes, and you are
going over there with me," continued the agent, in a
matter-of-fact way, and as though he intended to carry
out the program he had indicated.
"I am not going over there with you or any other
person!" stormed Conny. "You are a stranger to me,
and your conduct does not please me at all."
"I am sorry for that, though I can't help it," added
Cavan, as good-natured as though he had just sold a
corner lot at a big price. "I think you had better take
me into your confidence, or I shall take you into mine,
Conny."


288
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"Don't call me Conny again, for that is not my
name."
"Well, Chick Gillpool, if that suits you any better,
and I judge that it does, as you sometimes call your-
self by that name. I shall not call you Conny Forbush,
if you don't like it, for I don't believe that is your
name any more than you do," returned Cavan.
Conny, or Chick, whichever he was if he was either,
had evidently been hit where he was raw, for he shrank
back and turned pale, looking at his tormentor with
something like horror rather than astonishment.
"The C. G. on your arm stands for either of your
names, but neither of them is the right name," said
Cavan, who seemed to be better posted than any other
person who had tried to interpret the mysterious let-
ters.
"I see that you know me," gasped the owner of the
names.
"Better than you know yourself," added Cavan.
"Now, will you go over to the Lake Park Hotel and
see your foster mother?”
"I cannot go to-day; I expect a couple of my friends
to come after me soon to camp out with them."
"It is to keep you from meeting them that I wish
you to go to Lake Park. Roddy will only get you into
trouble; and you never will get your share of the six
thousand two hundred dollars your party of three took
from the mansion in St. Paul."
"You know all!" gasped Chick. "You mean to ar-
rest me!"


WHAT MR. CAVAN DID
289
"On the contrary, I wish to save you."
"Then I will go anywhere with you."
In less than an hour they were in the parlor of Mrs.
Forbush at the Lake Park, waiting for her to come
out of her chamber, from which she presently ap-
peared; and the moment she saw Conny, she threw her
arms around his neck, and embraced him as though he
had been her own son.
She did not seem to fear that he might be the one
she had met before, and possibly she saw something
about him that enabled her to identify him certainly
this time.
"Where have you been all this time, Conny?" she
asked, still holding him as though he might fly away
if she released her grasp.
"I think he will not tell you, Mrs. Forbush, and you
had better not insist on an answer," interposed the
agent. "Are you satisfied this is your adopted son, for
you were mistaken once before?"
"I am satisfied, and I was satisfied before; I think
I had better look at his arm," replied the lady.
Conny offered no objection to the examination, and
the initials of his two names were found there, to the
great satisfaction of the rich lady; and she and Jo-
anna examined them with the utmost care.
"C. G. is just what it always was, and the letters
stand for Conny Forbush," said she, very much ex-
cited.
"Hardly, Mrs. Forbush, though they enable you to
identify the young man," laughed the agent.


290
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"The first one stands for Conny, is what I meant to
say."
"Not even the C for Conny; but both letters stand
for the true name of the young man, which is Conrad
Goldson."
The lady looked inquiringly at Cavan.
S


UTTERLY CONFOUNDED
291
CHAPTER XLV.
UTTERLY CONFOUNDED.
Conny Forbush was as much astonished to find that
he had more names than he had supposed as the lady
was to hear the real name of her protégé; but both of
them were silent, waiting for Mr. Cavan to make
further developments of his knowledge.
"You were informed that this boy was an orphan
when he was in Dresden, where you assumed the care
of him, and the statement is true now, as it was then,"
continued the agent thoughtfully, and with the evident
intention of not saying too much. "You have brought
him up so far, and have been very kind to him.
Though he is an orphan, he is not a child of poverty,
and all that you have expended upon him will be paid
back to you.'
99
"Paid back to me!" exclaimed Mrs. Forbush. "I
would not take a penny for anything; and the only
question that troubles me now is whether or not I am
to lose him. The boy got wild, and left me; but I have
always believed he would come back to me, for he has
often written to me for money, and I have sent him
what he wanted. He said he should soon come home."
"He has come back to you," replied Cavan, looking
sharply at the runaway, "and I trust he will remain
with you for the present; if he does not he will make a


292
THE YOUNG HERMIT
bad mistake. Though I am not authorized to say any-
thing about the matter, I think you may reasonably ex-
pect him to remain with you, for he will have no other
home, unless one is made for him;" and the agent be-
gan to move toward the door.
"I have always done well by Conny, and I have be-
come very much attached to him," added Mrs. For-
bush.
"I should like to live with mother," said the young
man, whom the sharp practice of the ex-detective had
plainly brought to his senses.
"Very well, madam; I shall leave Conny here. If
he runs away again, or fails to behave himself like a
gentleman, I desire you to inform me at once," con-
tinued the agent, as he handed her his business card.
"But can you tell me where the other young man
is that looks like Conny, Mr. Cavan?" asked the lady.
"That will have to remain an open question for the
present, and I must take my leave of you now," re-
plied the agent, as he left the room, followed by Conny.
"Am I to be arrested?" asked the returned runaway,
as he closed the door behind him.
"For the present there is not the slightest danger
of it; but if you leave Mrs. Forbush, or communicate
with Roddy, you may be sure that you will share his
fate,” replied Cavan impressively.
"I will not leave her, and I will have nothing more
to do with Roddy."
"If you do either, you may be sure that you will


UTTERLY CONFOUNDED
293
spend the next few years of your life in a prison,"
said the agent, as he hastened away, and Conny re-
turned to his foster mother.
Cavan was in season for the next train, and returned
to Excelsior after an absence of less than two hours,
entirely satisfied with what he had done, and some time
before the Hebe arrived with the passengers from The
Hermitage.
He took a seat on the wharf, and began to examine
some papers he took from his pocket on which he had
doubtless made memoranda relating to the business in
which he was at present engaged; but in due time he
discovered the Hebe approaching the town.
"You will be ready to take us back as soon as we
find the young man who is to spend a week or so with
us, will you?" asked Roddy, as he and Gay came out
of the cabin.
"We won't keep you waiting a minute; and the
sooner you are ready the better we shall like it," replied
Bashy, to whom the question had been addressed.
"We shall not remain long, for if we don't find our
friend, we shall not wait for him," said Roddy, as he
and his companion walked up the wharf.
Cavan kept out of sight still the happy pair had left
the wharf, and then he went on board to hear the re-
port of Captain Greenway in regard to his trip up the
lake, and to the Hotel Lafayette; and Phil did not fail
to describe the changes in the complexion of Mrs.
Goldson and her brother when they recognized Mr.
Westlawn.


294
THE YOUNG HERMIT
But Cavan was still reticent, though he had spoken
in the parlor of Mrs. Forbush to some purpose; yet he
said not a word about what he had done during the
absence of the Hebe to the captain, who looked so
much like Conrad Goldson; and the latter had no sus-
picion of what was coming in the near future.
Roddy and Gay were not absent more than a half
hour, for they could not find Chick Gillpool at any of
the hotels, or anywhere about the town, for the very
good reason that he was not there as he had promised
to be, though they took a look at the bank as they
passed.
"You will find me at the Hotel Lafayette when you
come down from The Hermitage," said Cavan, as he
beat a hasty retreat on the approach of Roddy and
Gay. "I am going on the St. Louis, which is now at
the wharf."
"She goes to the Hotel St. Louis on her way up the
lake, and I shall be at the Lafayette almost as soon
as you are," added Captain Greenway, as he returned
to the pilot house.
Roddy demonstrated the fact that he was in the
habit of using profane language when he came on
board of the Hebe; and he did not hesitate to apply
some of it to the friend who had not kept his promise,
in the presence of Bashy.
The happy pair went into the after cabin again as
soon as they came on board, and the engineer cast off
the fasts when the pilot whistled for him to do so, and
the steamer went off on her trip.


UTTERLY CONFOUNDED
295
Bashy knew now that he had a competent pilot at the
wheel, and he did not spare the coal, so that the Hebe
made one of her shortest passages to the head of the
lake, and the passengers were landed in the boat with-
out any incident worthy of note.
The Hebe started on her return trip without any
delay; but off Enchanted Island the colored pilot rang
to stop her, and left the wheel, hastening to the for-
ward cabin, where he procured a basin and some soap,
and proceeded to wash the burnt cork from his face,
with the assistance of the engineer.
"The fun is all over, is it?" asked Bashy.
"I don't know that there is anything more for us
to do in this business; but I have no need to wear this
dark face any longer, for no one will recognize me
now," replied the captain. "Is it all off my face?"
"Every bit of it, and you look like a white man
now," answered Bashy.
"Then I will put on my uniform again;” and in a
few minutes more he came out of the cabin in his usual
dress.
In a short time the Hebe was made fast to the wharf
in front of the Hotel Lafayette, just after the St.
Louis had made her landing, and Captain Greenway
saw Cavan waiting for him.
They walked up to the hotel, where Cavan inquired
for Mrs. Goldson, and they were shown up to her
apartments, which appeared to be among the best in
the house.


296
THE YOUNG HERMIT
The agent knocked at the door, which was opened by
Mr. Blonday, after considerable delay; and it was evi-
dent from the sounds that came from the room that a
somewhat excited conversation had been going on.
"I wish to see Mr. Westlawn, who is here," said
Cavan; and he could not help noticing that Mrs. Gold-
son's brother was not in good humor.
"Mr. Westlawn is engaged at present," replied Blon-
day, in curt tones, as he proceeded to close the door.
"Not so much engaged that I cannot see that gentle-
man," interposed the gentleman from Chicago, has-
tening to the door. "As Mr. Cavan, at the door, man-
ages this matter for me, I shall ask to have him ad-
mitted, with Captain Greenway of the Hebe, who is
also interested in the business before us."
"I object!" exclaimed Blonday, with the sinister ex-
pression on his face which Phil had noticed very much
intensified.
"Then I will retire myself, and proceed in the man-
ner already indicated," said Mr. Westlawn, in a tone
which indicated firmness enough for a martyr in any
cause.
"Don't be rash, Arnold," interposed Mrs. Goldson,
who appeared to be in a state of extreme agitation.
"Let the gentleman and the captain of the Hebe come
in, for we must settle this business in some way."
Captain Greenway wondered what possible interest
he could have in the business, whatever it was, as Mr.
Westlawn intimated; but Blonday stepped one side at


UTTERLY CONFOUNDED
297
the words of his sister, and he followed Mr. Cavan into
the parlor, where a storm was certainly in progress.
"Mrs. Goldson, let me introduce you to your step-
son," said Westlawn, leading the captain of the Hebe
up to her. "This is Philip Goldson, one of the two
own sons, twins, of your late husband."
Captain Greenway was utterly confounded.


298
THE YOUNG HERMIT
1
CHAPTER XLVI.
A DARK TRANSACTION.
'A' sardonic laugh burst from the lips of Arnold
Blonday when he heard the introduction of the captain
of the Hebe to his sister; but his face was red with
excitement, and his lips quivered as he endeavored to
present this appearance of mirth, and to turn the pro-
ceedings of Mr. Westlawn to ridicule.
Captain Greenway was astonished to find that he had
another name, and "Philip Goldson" certainly cor-
responded to the initials on his arm, which had sug-
gested both the one given him by Mr. Gayland and the
one that he had chosen for himself.
The announcement of the gentleman from Chicago
settled it that Mr. Gayland was not his father by some
secret marriage; and Mr. Cavan had been earlier in-
formed of the fallacy of his suggestion to the captain.
"It is easy to say that this is the son of my husband
by his first wife," said Mrs. Goldson, after a long pause
to digest the extraordinary statement of Mr. West-
lawn, and apparently to allow others to do so. "But it
is quite another thing to prove it."
"Do not for a moment suppose that I make this
claim without abundant means of proving all that I
have said, and a great deal more," replied Mr. West-


A DARK TRANSACTION
299
lawn, with the air of one who felt that he was master
of the situation.
"That my husband left two children by his first
wife, of course I shall not deny," added Mrs. Goldson,
struggling to repress her violent emotion. "All the
world knows that there were two children, and that
they were twin boys."
"I certainly knew it, for they were the children of
my only sister, and I felt as much interest in them as
if they were my own," said Mr. Westlawn, manifest-
ing almost as much feeling of a different kind. “On
her death she commended the little ones to my care,
for she knew that her husband could not live many
years, for even then the fatal malady had fastened
itself upon him."
"Then you are my uncle, sir," interposed Philip
Goldson, as we must now call the captain of the Hebe,
since this appears to be his real name.
"I am your uncle; and you were old enough to call
me 'Uncle David' before your mother died," replied
the active man of the party, as he took his long-lost
nephew by the hand, and bestowed a look of affection
upon him.
"I had no idea things were going to turn out in this
way when you were called from your room at the Ryan
this morning at one or two o'clock," said Philip, hardly
able to realize the strange situation in which he found
himself placed.
"You are a brave young fellow, Captain Greenway,
but you are allowing yourself to be imposed upon," in-


300
THE YOUNG HERMIT
terposed Arnold Blonday, with a sneer on his thin lips.
"This story is all a fraud."
"If you desire it, Mrs. Goldson, I will give you the
whole history of the case, indicating the evidence I
shall bring to prove all that I assert."
"Don't hear it, Janet!" exclaimed her brother. "It
is all a fiction and a fraud."
"But it will do no harm to hear it, for it will amuse
us for a time, if nothing more," replied the lady, strug-
gling to wreathe her handsome face in smiles.
"It is a downright swindle, Janet!" added Arnold
Blonday. "It is entirely transparent, too, as an effort
to extort money from you. Westlawn, what is your
share of the plunder to be?"
"I am not here to settle this matter; the courts will
do that. Now, Mr. Blonday, if you utter another
word like those you have just spoken, I will get out a
warrant, and have both you and your sister arrested
for conspiracy against these twin heirs of my brother-
in-law before the sun goes down to-night," said Mr.
Westlawn calmly, but with a firmness that awed the
conspirators.
"I wish to hear the history of his operations, Ar-
nold, and I must ask you not to interfere again," said
the lady, with a look at her brother which he appeared
to understand, for he retired to the farther corner
of the room and seated himself there.
"I have no desire to force my story upon you, though
I am absolutely sure that justice will be done to my
twin nephews in the end," said Westlawn.


A DARK TRANSACTION
301
"Proceed, if you please, sir," said the lady, with a
show of dignity.
“Let me say in the beginning that Conboie is in
New York, ready to swear to the facts I shall give in
relation to the residence of the boys in Paris," con-
tinued the uncle of the twins.
At the mention of this name Arnold Blonday sprang
out of his chair, and looked like a maniac as he glanced
at the speaker; but he recovered himself and resumed
his seat.
"I have no doubt that Mrs. Londyke Forbush and
her companion, Joanna Barlow, as well as Mr. Ward
Gayland and his wife, of St. Paul, can identify Con-
boie as the man who brought the children to them, one
in Dresden and the other in Nice," the uncle proceeded,
consulting a mass of papers in his hands, some of
which had been handed to him by Cavan since he came
into the parlor.
Mrs. Goldson dropped into a chair, and seemed to
be oppressed for the want of breath, so violent was
the emotion she was trying to suppress.
"Take off your coat, if you please, Philip Goldson,"
continued the speaker; and he rolled up the shirt sleeve
of his nephew when he had done so. "I knew that you,
madam, and your brother were plotting against these
children; how I knew it matters not now. When your
child Sibyl was born, the twins were taken to my
house for two months to get them out of the way; and
while they were there I had the initials of their names


302
THE YOUNG HERMIT
pricked into their right arms in India ink. It was a
cruel operation, but it was necessary.
"They had entirely recovered from the wounds when
you took them home. When the children were six
years old, on the plea that your health did not permit
you to take care of them, you sent them to Paris,
though I protested against such a step. You argued
that they would be well cared for in a private school,
would be educated better than they could be in this
country, and would be able to learn the French language
better than in after years; and as you were the legal
guardian of the little ones you had your own way.
About a year later, both of these children were stolen
from the person in charge of them, and they have
never been heard from since till to-day. The story was
in the papers here and in Europe, and every effort
was used to recover them, without success."
"Both my brother and myself were in New York
at the time the children were abducted; but Arnold
went to Paris, and did all he could to recover them.
He advertised for them in England, France, and Vi-
enna," said Mrs. Goldson.
"The advertisements were shown to me; but I be-
lieved there was treachery to the children. I had to
leave New York, and lost sight of the case for the
time, though I employed Mr. Cavan to look it up; and
his report satisfied me for the time.
"I went to Chicago with my business; but I failed
three years ago, and could do nothing more till twelve
months ago, when I got on my feet again. Then the


A DARK TRANSACTION
303
whole matter came to me with more force than ever,
and I put the case into the hands of my younger
brother, who has talent for such work.
"Frank began by shadowing, as Mr. Cavan calls it,
your house; and through your manservant got a sight
at all the letters you and your brother mailed. Three
were for Jules Conboie, of Paris, and his address was
carefully noted.
"I sent Frank to Paris, where he had the skill to up-
set Conboie entirely by pretending to be your agent,
and in the end he made a full confession that he had
abducted the twins, to save himself from prison. Frank
brought him to the United States, and he has him in
New York where he can put his finger on him.".
To this narrative Cavan added the history of the
twins as he had learned it from Philip and from Mrs.
Forbush.
Mrs. Goldson and her brother had to give it up;
and the lady protested that she would not have done
what she did if she had known that her husband's
wealth was sufficient for the twins and her daughter
Sibyl, for whose benefit the fraud had been committed.
Arnold Blonday wanted to "settle" the difficulty;
but Uncle David would listen to nothing short of the
entire restitution of the shares of the twins in the estate
of their father, as shown by the inventory at the sur-
rogate's office in New York.
The matter was arranged in this manner in the end.


304
THE YOUNG HERMIT
CHAPTER XLVII.
THE LAST OF THE HERMIT.
"Our business seems to be finished, Mrs. Goldson,"
said David Westlawn, rising from his chair. "Of
course I knew how it was coming out if we could find
the twins; and as soon as I had a clue to them, thanks
to my friend Cavan, I telegraphed to Frank to employ
a lawyer to look after the property of their father.
Your other stepson is at the Lake Park Hotel, and
you can see him if you are so disposed."
"I will call upon him soon," added the lady.
The visitors all left the room, and went on board
of the Hebe, where Captain Philip Goldson's tongue
ran at a very lively rate for some time.
There was no
longer anything to conceal, for everything was thor-
oughly ventilated, including the operations and inten-
tions of the happy pair at The Hermitage.
The uncle was greatly grieved when he learned that
Conrad had been the associate of a professional bur-
glar, and he was prepared to send him back to Paris
rather than have him arrested, for it was plain enough
that he had been led away by Roddy, though he had
no right to allow himself to be enticed into evil ways.
The Hebe conveyed the two gentlemen who had
accomplished such a revolution in the affairs of the
captain and others to Excelsior, where they took the


THE LAST OF THE HERMIT
305
next train for St. Paul. It was understood that noth-
ing was to be said to Mr. Gayland, and especially not
to his wife, till final action in the affairs of the happy
pair had been taken.
When they had gone the captain proceeded to re-
late to the engineer the astonishing story of the events
of the day, which took him till bedtime, including a
visit to a hotel for supper.
"You are a big bug and a rich fellow now, and you
will not want the Hebe long," said Bashy, laughing.
"Just remember that I have made you an offer for
her."
"Being a big bug and rich will not alter me in the
least, Bashy," replied the captain, as they turned in.
"I
may not want the Hebe, and when I do not, she shall
be yours."
The next morning the steamer went up to take a
look at The Hermitage, after Philip had blacked his
face again; and the interesting couple there hinted that
they should like to visit Excelsior again, to look for
their expected friend; and, of course, under the circum-
stances, the Hebe was at their disposal.
They did not find their friend, though they spent
a good deal of time in the vicinity of the bank, accord-
ing to Bashy, who kept watch of them; but they re-
turned disappointed, though it was difficult for Philip
to understand why they were so anxious to have “Chick
Gillpool" with them, unless he had been delegated to
examine the bank building, as he had done.
The unhappy pair, as they now were, were landed;


306
THE YOUNG HERMIT
and soon after dinner on board of the steamer, which
had gone to her moorings, the two villains went off
together, and as the Hebe went out of Cape Cod Bay,
Philip discovered them in their boat, pulling across
Halsted's Bay.
When the steamer came to the narrow neck of land
which separates Halsted's Bay from the main body
of the lake, the captain saw them through his after
window, drawing their boat across the neck, and he
concluded that they were going for the tools which
had been hidden on some island.
Philip was afraid to excite their suspicions, and he
kept the Hebe on her course till she had passed the
Narrows, where he waited a couple of hours, and then
returned to his moorings.
"I should like to know what those scamps are about,"
said Bashy.
"So should I," replied the captain.
"But I want to hear what they are talking about;
and if you say the word, I will put myself under the
bed in one of the chambers, where you did, for they
are going to do something soon, or they would not
want their tools."
"They haven't got back yet, and you may try it, if
you like, but at your own risk," said Philip.
"They have not come back yet, and if you will put
me ashore, I will take my chances."
Bashy was put ashore, and the captain returned to
the steamer; but it was quite dark when the boat of


THE LAST OF THE HERMIT
307
the happy pair came to the inner landing on the little
bay.
Nothing had been seen or heard of Bashy at nine
o'clock the next morning, when the occupants of the
shanty brought two valises and a bag to their boat,
which the captain examined with his glass; and he was
relieved of his anxiety for the safety of the engineer by
their appearance.
The baggage was put into the boat, and the pair
pulled out to the steamer, saying that they were going
down to get some washing done, and for some things
they needed, and would like to be carried down in the
Hebe.
The colored pilot explained that the captain had
gone over to the Chapman House, and he had a party
to take from there at noon, so that the steamer could
not be had.
They decided to go in their own boat, and as soon
as they were out of sight, Philip went for Bashy, who
had shown himself on the shore. He had astounding
news, for the burglars were to do their job that night;
and all day long the steamer followed the boat that
had left The Hermitage, but kept a mile or less away
from her.
At the Lake Park he had telegraphed to Mr. Cavan,
and he found him and Mr. Westlawn at the wharf
when the boat arrived; and at midnight, when Roddy
had his tools at the door of the bank vault, and his
work begun, he and Gay were suddenly nipped in the
bud by the officers concealed under the counter.


308
THE YOUNG HERMIT
An extensive and valuable kit of tools was secured,
and the happy pair were taken to the county jail before
morning; and the papers had a full account of the at-
tempted robbery when people read them at breakfast
time.
Mr. Cavan had arranged to have the affairs of the
twins finally settled as soon as the nephew of Mr.
Gayland had fully committed himself, and in the mid-
dle of the forenoon the capitalist and his wife arrived
at Excelsior, where they were taken on board of the
Hebe.
"Paul!" exclaimed Mr. Gayland, as soon as he saw
him.
"Paul!" repeated his wife, when she looked at his
full uniform.
"This young man, who is the captain of the Hebe, is
Philip Goldson, and he has been in command of this
steamer for the last month," said Cavan.
"Whoever he is, I am afraid he will soon have to
leave his steamer," said the lady, who was not at all
pleased to see him again.
"Why so?" asked Cavan, in his blandest tones.
"He will have to answer for the robbery of our
house," replied Mrs. Gayland, with not a little malice
in her tone and manner.
"We shall be able to prove that he was not there,
though it will be shown that Sparks Gayland was
there, and gave the information which led to the rob-
bery," added the agent.


THE LAST OF THE HERMIT
309
"Sparks engaged in a robbery! Don't tell me that!"
exclaimed the lady, almost savagely.
"Not only in your house, but at the bank in this
town," said Cavan, who really enjoyed the defeat of
the lady. "Just now he is in jail on the latter charge,
and is likely to spend some time in prison for it. The
local officers here can tell you all about it.”
"Can it be possible?" groaned the uncle of the guilty
young man.
The steamer started up the lake, and on the passage
to the Lafayette, where she was bound, Cavan told
the whole story of the robbery, and the discovery of
the parentage of the twins.
At the hotel they were met on the wharf by Conrad
Goldson, and both the capitalist and his wife were will-
ing to admit that it might have been he whom they
had seen in the hall of the elegant mansion on the night
of the robbery; they could not tell which of the twins
it was, and they could testify to neither.
The party met in the parlor of Mrs. Goldson; but
there was nothing new to be unfolded, though the
strange history of the remarkable fortunes of the twins
was the subject of the conversation till the middle of
the afternoon.
For the first time Captain Goldson saw his twin
brother, and in half an hour they were as good friends
as though they had never been separated, and Philip
took his brother down to see the steamer.
On this occasion it was decided that Philip should
return to Mr. Gayland's house, while Conrad should


310
THE YOUNG HERMIT
"
remain in Philadelphia with Mrs. Forbush, who was
made happy by this decision.
Arnold Blonday had already departed for New
York, with instructions to attend to the transfer of the
property of the twins to David Westlawn and Ward
Gayland, as their guardians and trustees, and Mrs.
Goldson proved that she was a woman of the world
by acting as though nothing derogatory to her char-
acter for honesty had transpired.
At the invitation of the captain the entire party em-
barked in the Hebe for the upper end of the lake, to
see The Hermitage, which was duly inspected, and the
party went on board for the return.
"Bashy, I don't think I shall have any further use
for the Hebe, and I accept your offer," said Captain
Goldson, when they arrived at Excelsior, where the St.
Paul party were to take the train. "I will give you a
bill of sale when I come over in a day or two."
"All right, Captain Goldson. But she shall be at
your service whenever you come over here, though I
suppose you will want a steamer on White Bear Lake
now," replied Bashy, as he grasped the hand of Philip.
That night Philip Goldson slept in his former cham-
ber in the elegant mansion. Sparks Gayland was not
in his, and the six thousand two hundred dollars, which
the agent had handed to the rich man, was again in the
safe in the library.
Mrs. Gayland mended her ways after her terrible
defeat in sustaining her favorite, and as Philip did his
best to conciliate her, they became passable friends,


THE LAST OF THE HERMIT
311
for Sparks, sentenced to the State prison for a short
term while Roddy had a long one, was no longer in
the house to make trouble between them; and the lady
ceased to trouble herself about her husband's will.
Philip Goldson is happy in the improved relations
of the elegant mansion on the hill, and Uncle David
was a guest there for a week after the events nar-
rated.
But the hero of the lake has still a lingering delight
in cruising in the Hebe, now under the management of
Captain Wingstone. Though he is not sorry that he is
no longer called "The Hermit of Minnetonka."
THE END.





FIVE CHUMS SERIES
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Winning His Shoulder Straps
WINNING HIS
SHOULDER STRAPS
NORMAN BRAINERD
of life in a school
by one who thoroughly knows all its features.
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HE hero not only works his way at Chatham
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price by the publishers
LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO., BOSTON


U. S. SERVICE SERIES
By FRANCIS ROLT-WHEELER
Illustrations from photographs taken in work for U. S. Government
Large 12mo Cloth $1.50 per volume
THE BOY WITH THE U. S. SURVEY
THE BOY WITH THE
U.S.SURVEY.
FRANCIS ROLT-WHEELER
PPEALING to the boy's love of excitement,
different branches of United States Government
work little known to the general public. This
story describes the thrilling adventures of members
of the U. S. Geological Survey, graphically
woven into a stirring narrative that both pleases
and instructs. The author enjoys an intimate
acquaintance with the chiefs of the various
bureaus in Washington, and is able to obtain at
first hand the material for the books.

"There is abundant charm and vigor in the narrative
which is sure to please the boy readers and will do
much toward stimulating their patriotism by making
them alive to the needs of conservation of the vast
resources of their country."-Chicago News.
"This is a book one can heartily recommend for boys, and it has life
enough to suit the most eager of them."-Christian Register, Boston.
THE BOY WITH THE U. S. FORESTERS
THE
HE life of a typical boy is followed in all its
adventurous detail-the mighty representa-
tive of our country's government, though young
in years a youthful monarch in a vast domain of
forest. Replete with information, alive with
adventure, and inciting patriotism at every step,
this handsome book is one to be instantly
appreciated.
"It is at once a most entertaining and instructive
study of forestry and a most delightful story of boy life
in the service."-Cincinnati Times-Star.

"It is a fascinating romance of real life in our
country, and will prove a great pleasure and inspiration
to the boys who read it."-The Continent, Chicago.
"No one beginning to read this book will willingly
lay it down till he has reached the last chapter."
Christian Advocate, Cincinnati.
THE BOY WITH THE
U.S.FORESTERS
FRANCIS ROLT-WHEELER
For sale by all booksellers, or sent postpaid on receipt of
price by the publishers
LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO., Boston


THE BOYS OF BROOKFIELD ACADEMY
By WARREN L. ELDRED
Illustrated by Arthur O. Scott Large 12mo Cloth
THIS
HIS story tells of a boys' school, with a
glorious past, but an uncertain future,
largely due to the wrong kind of a secret
society, a vital problem in hundreds of schools
to-day.
The boys, after testing his patience in every
way that youthful ingenuity can suggest, come
to rally about an athletic and brainy young
graduate in the splendid transformation of the
society, and soon of the entire academy, in one
of the best school and athletic stories yet written.
"Things are doing all the way through the story,
which is clean, manly and inspiring." Christian
Endeavor World.
THE
LOOKOUT ISLAND
CAMPERS
-
$1.50

WARREN L ELDRED
OF
THE BOYS
BROOKFIELD
ACADEMY
THE LOOKOUT ISLAND CAMPERS
By WARREN L. ELDRED
Illustrated by Arthur O. Scott Large 12mo Cloth $1.50
THIS
HIS is a story of active boys of fifteen or so.
They are very fortunate in the friendship of
the principal of their school and his friend, an
athletic young doctor. Under the care of these
two they go into camp on an island well suited
to the purpose, and within easy distance of a
thronged summer resort. A series of exciting
ball games and athletic contests with the boys
at the hotel naturally follows, and the boys display
as many varieties of human nature as could their
elders.
WARREN L.ELDRED

"Mr. Eldred's book is almost certain to meet with
a ready response from young readers, for not only are
the boys filled with life and vigor of a true youthful
and appreciable variety but their experiences are
entertaining in themselves and may perhaps give the young readers ideas for
summer plans of their own."-Chicago Tribune.
For sale by all booksellers, or sent postpaid on receipt of price by the publishers
LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO., BOSTON


Raymond Benson Series
By CLARENCE B. BURLEIGH
Illustrated by L. J. Bridgman Large 12mo, Cloth
$1.50 per volume
The Camp on Letter K
THE
HE story deals with two active boys in Aroostook County close to the
northeastern boundary of our country, and where smuggling across
the Canadian line has been prevalent. Equally ready in athletics, hunting,
or helping their families on the rich farms of that section, these good
chums have many exciting adventures, the most important of which
directly concerns the leading smugglers of the district, and an important
public service is rendered by the boys.
"There is an atmosphere about the whole book that is attractive to boys, and it
will be read by them with enthusiastic delight."-Democrat and Chronicle
Rochester, N. Y
Raymond Benson at Krampton
RAY
AYMOND BENSON and his friend, Ned Grover, go to Krampton
Academy, which is no other than the noted school at New
Hampton, N. H., where Mr. Burleigh was fitted for college. We have
had good books telling of the larger and more aristocratic preparatory
schools, but never before one that so well told of life at a typical country
academy of the sort that have furnished the inspiration for so many
successful men.
"It is interesting from start to finish, and while rousing and full of enthusiasm,
is wholesome in spirit, and teaches lessons of purity and justice and manliness in
real life."-Herald & Presbyter.
The Kenton Pines
"KE
ENTON COLLEGE" is Bowdoin
College, beautiful in its location and
famous in its history. Raymond's athletic
abilities insure him immediate and enduring
prominence as a student, and the accounts of
athletic contests will stir the blood of any
one. But the book is far more than a tale of
these things; it is a wonderful picture of life
at a smaller college, with all its fine hard
work, "grinds," and triumphs. It is a book
that rings true on every manly question.

THE KENTON
PINES
CLARENCE B.BURLEIGH
"This book, like the other of the series, is of a very high character, and should
be an inspiration to all boys contemplating a college career."
"-Interior,
For sale at all booksellers or sent postpaid on receipt of
price by the publishers
LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO., BOSTON


NORMAN CARVER SERIES
By C. B. BURLEIGH
Cloth Large 12mo Illustrated $1.50 each
All Among the Loggers
NORMAN CARVER is a bright, vigorous youth, whose father feels
that a winter of practical affairs will be better for his son than getting
into scrapes at school, where, though clean and honest, his social position
and active nature make other things easier than hard, old-fashioned study.
So he is sent to the deep woods of Maine, where his father owns lumber-
ing interests, and set to work as company's "clerk." An eventful winter
follows which does much for him.
With Pickpole and Peavey
NORMAN CARVER, having had a winter as a clerk in a lumber camp,
is given a somewhat similar position with a crew of river-drivers, and
with him is his faithful friend, Fred Warner. The athletic, well-educated
city boy and the earnest rural youth, "a born woodsman" as he is called,
share in some very exciting adventures, and they bear themselves in a way
that is a pleasure to read about.

THE YOUNG
GUIDE
CLARENCE B.BURLEIGH
The Young Guide
NORMAN accompanies his father on a vacation
trip to the deep woods in the "open" season.
In addition to the natural excitement of hunting,
further adventures are supplied by a band of
undesirable citizens who steal deer left hanging
in the woods and sell them to "yarding crews."
Norman Carver, and friend, Fred Warner,
who wins laurels as a guide, are instrumental in
having some of these villains brought to justice.
For sale by all booksellers or sent postpaid on receipt
of price by the publishers
LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO., BOSTON


THE BOY CRAFTSMAN
Iactical and Profitable Ideas for a Boy's
Iieure Hours
Ε
VERY real boy wishes to design and make
things, but the questions of materials and
tools are often hard to get around. Nearly all
books one subject call for a greater outlay of
money than is within the means of many boys,
or their parents wish to expend in such ways.
In this book a number of chapters give sugges
tions for carrying on a small business that will
bring a boy in money with which to buy tools
and materials necessary for making apparatus
and articles described in other chapters, while
the ideas are so practical that many an indus-
trious boy can learn what he is best fitted for in his life work. No work
of its class is so completely up-to-date or so worthy in point of thorough-
ness and avoidance of danger. The drawings are profuse and excellent.
and every feature of the book is first-class. It tells how to make a boy's
workshop, how to handle tools, and what can be made with them; how
to start a printing shop and conduct an amateur newspaper, how to
make photographs, build a log cabin, a canvas canoe, a gymnasium, a
miniature theatre, and many other things dear to the soul of youth.
We cannot imagine a more delightful present for a boy than this book. -
Churchman, N.Y
Every boy should have this book. It's a practical book-it gets right next to
the boy's heart and stays there. He wil! have it near him all the time, and on every
page there is a lesson or something that will stand the boy in good need. Beyond
a doubt in its line this is one of the cleverest books on the market. - Providence
News.
THE
BOY
CRAFTS
MAN
By A. NEELY HALL
Illustrated with over 400 diagrams and
working drawings 8vo Price, $2.00

ANEELY HALL
If a boy has any sort of a mechanical turn of mind, his parents should see that
he has this book.- Boston Journal.
This is a book that will do boys good
Buffalo Express.
The boy who will not find this book a nine of joy and profit must be queerly
constituted.-Pittsburgh Gazette.
Will be a delight to the boy mechanic. Watchman, Boston
An admirable book to give a boy.-Newark News.
This book is the best yet offered for its large number of practical and profitable
ideas.- Milwaukee Free Press.
Parents ought to know of this book. - New York Globe.
-
For sale by all booksellers or sent postpaid on receipt of
price by the publishers,
LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO.. BOSTON








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