Jack again soon headed off the coast, it being his intention, if the conditions were at all favorable, to drop down on the sea, and float there, waiting until the afternoon was well advanced before heading in to the shore.
After they had passed for many miles up the coast he picked out a spot—after being warned by the lookout that there were two large vessels standing off beyond the twenty-mile line, undoubtedly mother-ships loaded down with fresh supplies of contraband—where they could lie upon the surface of the water undetected by any one passing far above, or at such a distance away as the foreign ships appeared to lie.
Jack could not remember having ever known the restless Atlantic to remain almost perfectly calm for such a long stretch of time—he felt like taking it as a favorable sign concerning the carrying out of their individual great plan—even the elements were apparently in league to render them assistance, which he took it to be most kind and reassuring on their part.
Along about three in the afternoon Perk, again searching everywhere for some sort of discovery, announced that he had picked out a plane ducking in and out of the white battalions of clouds still passing overhead.
“Seems like she might be acomin’ from that quarter where we got aour hunch the landin’ field o’ their airships must lie,” he went on to say, as though his mind was made up along those lines. “Reckon as haow they caint pick weuns off daown hyah, suh, seein’ aour wings air abaout the same color as the sea all ’raound this same spot.”
“Not the least chance of such a thing, partner,” Jack assured him; “I had them colored that way purposely, seeing that we’d be likely to squat down this way when spying on the mother ship further out—not even if they have binoculars aboard, which they undoubtedly must, could any one make us out. Heading for that foreign steamship, isn’t that cloud chaser?”
“Straight away, suh, as sure as shootin’. Course they reckon on loadin’ up with somethin’ that’s aboard, an’ wants to git ashore the wust kind—mebbe a bunch o’ Chinks it might be; or else some sorter stuff like high-toned laces, Cape diamonds, or sech expensive big things as allers come in small packages.”
“At any rate,” Jack went on to mention, “they are heading for one of those two foreign boats further out. You say there were several speed boats and launches fast to the sides of the big freighters, when you glimpsed them? Strikes me things are breaking about right for our making a start in the big racket tonight—of course depending on Jethro’s bobbing up all serene.”
Perk followed the course of the airship dipping in and out of the cloud belt, and after quite some time had elapsed made his announcement.
“They sure is acomin’ daown ashootin’, Big Boss. Reckons as haow there must be a good hand at that ere stick, a lad as knows his business okay—there, he’s flattened aout, an’ takes things some easier, seein’ as haow the ship’s ready to make contact with the sea. Aint this a reg’lar picnic o’ a time, when weuns kin jest lay here like a gull afloatin’ on the water, an’ see haow them smugglin’ devils work things. Little do they suspect that there’s sumpin’ hangin’ heavy over ther heads, an’ liable to crash any ole minit from naow on.”