Nothing occurred to disturb the slumbers of the Rambler’s crew that night. The cool wind made the cabin of the boat comfortable, and the street lights of Montreal winked down upon the craft with friendly eyes. The afternoon of the following day found them at Quebec.
“I’ve been thinking,” Clay said as the boat tied up at the pier they had occupied on the occasion of their former visit, “that we ought not to keep this stolen canoe. Of course Max stole it.”
“Perhaps he’ll come down here and claim it again,” suggested Jule.
“If he does,” Alex exclaimed, “I’m going on shore to find him and get even with him. He’d no business to bring that gang of wharf rats onto us. I hope he’s under arrest somewhere.”
“There’s an idea!” suggested Case. “Suppose we telephone to the chief of police and find out. We can leave the canoe in the care of the chief, too, if we want to. He might be able to find the owner.”
“It seems to me,” Captain Joe interrupted, “that you boys may as well keep that canoe until we return to Quebec, on our way to the Great Lakes. It will come in mighty handy when we’re prowling around those two rivers you’ve been talking about. The owner won’t miss it for a few days.”
“That’s another good notion,” Clay agreed. “We’ll use the canoe and return it when we get back. And now I’ll go and telephone to the chief of police and see if he has discovered anything additional about Max.”
Clay was gone only a short time. When he returned, he looked a trifle anxious. When he spoke, it was in an excited tone.
“Look here, boys,” he said, “the chief of police advises to us to give up that hunt for the lost channel. He says that Fontenelle has just returned from Cartier island leaving a wrecked launch and a lot of perfectly good stores stacked on the bottom of the river.”
“I had an idea,” Captain Joe suggested, “that things would be moving about the time we got down here. Why, do you know, boys,” he went on, “that this lost channel matter is creating about as much excitement in Quebec province as the coronation of a new king ought to?”