The squire shuddered. It must really be true. Ralph Nelson was dead!
"Very good," he said, in a hoarse voice. "Here is the hundred dollars each I promised you. You shall have the other five hundred when—the body is found."
"All right, but you'll have to do the finding," said Martin. "It's at the bottom of the big cliff on the west side of Three Top Island. His cap is among the rocks close by."
"And his boat——"
"We sent that adrift. If we are traced up we want to shield ourselves by saying we went off hunting and when we got back could find nothing of him and the boat, and had to get a stranger to take us ashore."
"Ah, I see. Very good."
"Now we want to be going. We'll look for you in Chambersburgh inside of a week. Don't fail us if you value your secret."
"I will be on hand."
"You ought to pay us more than five hundred," put in Toglet. "You are going to make a pile out of this."
"How do you know anything about what I am going to make?" asked the squire, in great surprise.