"No. Nothing to do with him."
They reached the main road and drove on toward the village. There they found that the one and only doctor had been called out on a case and would not be back until the following morning.
"Bayport it is, then," said Joe.
It was plain that the fisherman did not relish the idea of the long trip to Bayport. It was equally plain that he felt it his duty to bring the unconscious man to a doctor. On the other hand, the chums did not like the idea of using his battered car, not only because of the trouble it would give the fisherman but because the car would not go more than thirty or thirty-five miles an hour. The motorcycles were invariably far ahead.
The difficulty was soon solved, however. A heavy touring car pulled up in front of the village general store and when the driver stepped out the Hardy boys gave a cry of delight.
"Mr. Jacobson!" exclaimed Frank.
"Why, hello there, Frank Hardy!" said the man. "What brings you away out here? Hello, Joe. And who have you with you? Chet and Biff, or I'm a Dutchman. What's up now?"
The man was a Bayport merchant, a close friend of Fenton Hardy.
Swiftly, the boys explained the situation to him. Jacobson soon realized the importance of the matter, and readily consented to take Captain Royal to Bayport with him.
"Absolutely!" he said. "It's no trouble to me. I was going to Bayport, anyway, and it won't hurt if I put on a little extra speed. How about you chaps?"