But Tommy was saying:
"We're awfully sorry, you dear old manatou; we'll miss you, take my word for it."
"You boys dare do this," he sprang to his feet, too angry for further protest.
"Sit down, sir," Tommy spoke now in a different tone. "Of course, I don't believe it, nor does Jack; but others will if we take you to the Key West hospital tied up in ropes and say you've got that blowing-up bug in your bonnet. Get the point?"
"I get no points," he furiously pounded the table.
"Well, here it is, and its name is Compromise! Either compromise, or the wow-wow house. We won't force the issue; you must decide nicely, without being pressed one way or the other. But these are the facts: you're sailing on an American yacht; Jack's the owner, Gates is captain, I'm the boss. We're hoping to overhaul the Orchid, board her, capture the princess, and all that. Then for one entire week Jack's to have an uninterrupted tête-à-tête while you make yourself invisible. Come along if you want to and turn the old rascal over to your consul when we get home, plead with the princess after Jack's week is up, recover a hundred good bucks for your bad ones—but he has to have his chance first, and we sign articles of agreement right now!"
"Children," he cried, with a great show of disgust. "Should you return to Key West, how would you ever find the Orchid again! Ah-ha, you have tripped yourselves!"
"Not on your life, we haven't. We'll keep on now and locate her hiding place, then deliver you to a guardian, and come back."
The professor thought a moment, breathing fast and blinking.
"What are those bucks you spoke about?" he asked.