Ellsworth was up in the bow at the time, with Dick Gray, and immediately began hauling in the line and coiling it up in its place. Dick watched the launch disappear in the distance until it was only a speck upon the water.
“I guess he’s done his good turn for to-day,” said he to Ellsworth.
“Yes,” replied the “B. M.”, “but you can’t trust that sort of fellow; he’s likely to do a half dozen more before the day’s over.”
“That’s right,” assented Dick, “I suppose you get the habit, like—after a while.”
CHAPTER XXI
Disrating and Promotion
The Sea Scouts were drawn up in line as their guests went over the side at Wood’s Hole, a short time afterward, accompanied by Mr. Miller, who saw them off on the train for Boston. As the train was moving out of the station, Jimmie was sitting by the open window and Mr. Miller reached up his jack-knife.
“Here, Jimmie,” said he, “is a souvenir of the Bright Wing. Get a lanyard and put it round your neck and it will bring you luck.”
The next moment the train was out of sight behind the station, and Mr. Miller turned to walk down to the water.
“It’s funny,” thought he to himself, “I feel as if I had known that bunch of men for years, and yet it is only twenty-four hours since they came on board.”
As soon as he had returned to the ship and reported to the Chairman, they weighed anchor and passed between the islands into Buzzard’s Bay on the way to the Cape Cod Canal. It seemed a tame piece of business to tow through the “ditch”, when they might have had a grand old sail around the Cape again, but they were due in Hull on Saturday morning, at the latest, and another ship’s crew was waiting to get aboard the following Monday.