"Consequently, if you will promise that you will not leave the boat until we reach St. Louis, I shall put no restraint upon you," added the captain.
"I promise; I am as anxious to have this matter looked into as you are; more so, for I have more at stake."
"Very well. Now, gentlemen, we will go below," said the captain, addressing himself to the clerks. "I shall consult with some of the officers, and be governed by their advice."
George's visitors went out, and the boy set to work to repack his trunk and make up the bunks. When this was done, he walked leisurely up the steps that led into the pilot-house, and found the captain and the chief engineer in consultation with Mr. Black and his partner.
"George!" exclaimed Mr. Black, seizing the boy's hand in both his own and shaking it heartily; "these fellows mean to ruin you, don't they?"
"I am afraid they have done it already," replied George, with a sickly smile.
"Not by a long shot," said the other pilot, who stood at the wheel. "I know that the evidence is against you, but your friends have not all turned their backs on you. Has Murray any reason to be down on you?"
"Well, I'll tell you something, and then you can answer that question for yourself," answered George, who then went on to describe how Murray had acted when he saw him pick up Mr. Black's lost pocket-book. His auditors opened their eyes and looked significantly at one another when George explained how it came that he had been so intimate with the chief clerk ever since the Telegraph left St. Louis.
"It's a put-up job," said the chief engineer, decidedly. "I heard that Murray lost a good deal of Clayton's money at cards when he came up on the Quitman a few months ago, and that Clayton discharged him for it. That shows that he is not honest. You asked my advice, captain; I should say, let the matter rest until we reach the city, and then set the law at work. I'll promise that George will not run away," added the engineer, poking the young pilot in the ribs with his finger. "If you want to watch anybody, watch Bill Murray."
This was the captain's idea too, and after some discussion it was decided that the engineer's advice should be followed.