“Maybe he has been using the sailboat while you were at home in Cresco,” suggested Uncle Ben. “He didn’t hear us come, and he came down to the dock to take a ride as he had been used to doing. Then he saw Teddy. He thought he might be caught, so he ran away.”
“I guess that’s how it was,” agreed Mr. Martin. “But I’d like to know who the man was. What did he look like, Teddy, boy?”
“Oh, he—he was—he was just a—man!”
“I know,” replied his father. “But was he a man like Uncle Ben or like me?”
Teddy looked first at his father, then at Uncle Ben.
“He was like both of you,” he said. “That’s the kind of man he was.”
“We can’t tell very much from that,” said Mr. Wilson, with a smile.
“No, but we must be on the watch,” said Mr. Martin. “I don’t want strange men hoisting the sails on my boats. They might sail off in one and not come back.”
“Maybe it was a burglar!” exclaimed Teddy. “I guess he looked like a burglar—only I never saw one.”
“No, I presume you never did,” agreed his father. “But we must get back to shore, or your mother will be worried more than she is now. Though she can see that you are all right, I suppose. Anyhow I’ll make sure.”