Mrs. Tremaine was a bride of a year, being her husband’s second wife. Ida Silsbee was an heiress, the daughter of one of Mr. Tremaine’s friends, now deceased, and was now Mr. Tremaine’s ward. Oliver Dixon was the cousin of a schoolgirl friend of Miss Silsbee’s. The Tremaines, having met him at St. Augustine, and being pleased with the young man, had invited him to join them on the present cruise.
As for Dixon, he had been greatly attracted to Ida Silsbee from the first moment of meeting.
Captain Tom had understood that Mr. Tremaine owned some sort of winter home along the Caloosahatchee River.
There were but two staterooms aboard the “Restless.” One of these was occupied by the ladies, the other by Mr. Tremaine and Mr. Dixon. At night, Captain Tom, when not on deck, converted one of the cabin seats into a berth. Joe slept, when he could find time for sleep, in one of the bunks of the motor room, not caring to be far from his engines.
A third member of the crew, for this run only, was Ham Mockus, a negro in his twenties, who served as cook and steward. He had shipped only in order to reach his home near Oyster Bay.
“Going to turn in, Joe?” asked Halstead, as the two chums stood together on the bridge deck.
“Not so close to supper,” laughed Joe. “I may get a little nap afterwards. But——”
Dawson paused, as though almost ashamed to voice his thought.
“You think it’s going to be a case of all hands on duty all through the night, eh?” laughed Halstead.
“Pretty likely,” nodded Joe. “And I guess I’d better tumble Ham out of his bunk. It’s time he was going to the galley.”