"My papers!" he shrieked. "You've been at my papers!"
He made a sudden lunge toward the boys. So quickly did he rush at them that neither Frank nor Joe had a chance to escape. Captain Royal grasped each lad by the collar.
"You've been at my papers! My precious papers! I knew you came here to steal something!"
He shook them roughly.
"I'll teach you to come prowling around my cave!" he roared. "I will teach you to look at my papers."
The Hardy boys struggled to free themselves, but Captain Royal was stronger than he looked, and he kept a tight grip on their collars. Frank almost wriggled free, but the captain tightened his grasp. As for Joe, he told his chums later that "the old lad shook me until my back teeth rattled."
The captain was raging and roaring almost incoherently in a terrible outburst of wrath. There was now little doubt in the minds of the Hardy boys that the man was a lunatic. What would happen to them at the hands of this madman?
At first they had not taken Captain Royal's outburst seriously, but now Frank realized that they might be in genuine danger.
He lashed out with his fists and dealt the captain a blow in the ribs that brought a startled grunt. At the same time, Joe wriggled to one side and tried to trip the old gentleman. But Captain Royal was alert and wary. He would not let go, and although he lost his balance and tumbled to the floor of the cave, he dragged the boys with him.
"Break loose, Joe!" shouted Frank. "He means business."