“An’ what is it?” insisted Ezra. “Run after him an’ bring him back?”
“Bring him back. That’s just it.”
“Praise the Lord!” The old man’s eyes were wet. “When? When you goin’ to do it?”
“Very soon, now.”
“You got to hurry, cap’n. We mustn’t let anythin’ happen to our Hal. He’s run kinda wild, mebbe, but he’s everythin’ we got to love. Ef you can git him back agin, we’ll be so doggone good to him he’ll hafta do better. But you mustn’t lose no time. Ef he gits aboard that there Kittiwink an’ tries to make sail out through the Narrers, he’s like as not to git stove up on Geyser.”
The captain smiled as he made answer:
“I sha’n’t lose any unnecessary time, Ezra. But I can’t do it all in a moment. And you must let me do this in my own way.”
The old man peered up at him through tears.
“You know best how to chart this course, now.”
“Yes, I believe I do. To save that boy, I’ve got to make a journey, and I’ll need a little time to get ready. But just the minute I am ready, I’ll go. You can depend on that!”