The voice came from the doorway, and the next moment, Alex and Captain Joe, the bulldog, came tumbling into the room.
“Say, my namesake is getting to be some dog,” shouted the Captain, after the greetings were over. “He’s big enough to find a lost channel anywhere. And he looks fierce enough, too.”
“He’s always perfectly willing to do his share of the looking,” Alex grinned. “And we’re perfectly willing to give him a chance to help.”
“Then I’ll take him into partnership,” Captain Joe, the man, said, “and we’ll go out hunting for what you seek. If there is a lost channel anywhere it will go hard if we don’t find it!”
[CHAPTER XV—THROUGH THE FAMOUS RAPIDS]
A special bunk, the softest and springiest that could be made, was fitted up for Captain Joe in the cabin that night. The old fellow so enjoyed visiting with the boys that it was late before they went to sleep, and so the sun was well up when they left their beds in the morning.
“Now,” Clay said, after all had indulged in a short swim in the river, “we’re going to celebrate the arrival of Captain Joe by one of Alex’s beefsteak breakfasts at a restaurant. Captain Joe has traveled so far to see us that we’re not going to take any chances on having him poisoned by Case’s cooking.”
“Now look here, boys,” Captain Joe remonstrated, “I’ve had a good many restaurant meals along the South Branch since you boys deserted me, and a chef has been cooking for me on the Rutland boat, so I propose that we get breakfast right here, on the Rambler. It will be a novelty for me, anyway.”
“What would you like, Captain?” asked Alex.
“Well,” said Captain Joe almost smacking his lips, “you know the kind of pancakes they serve at the Bismark, Chicago? They’re half an inch thick, you know, and as large as the bottom of a milk pan. Cost a quarter apiece, and a fellow doesn’t want anything more to eat all day! Now, you go ahead and make pancakes like we used to get at the Bismark.”