"That's my idea, Sanborn," went on Malvoise, "come, shall I put her about and sail back?"
"Let's circle the ship first," exclaimed Sanborn. "So far as we know we are here ahead of those Boy Aviator cubs, but we can't tell positively unless we make an examination."
Frank's heart stood still. If they circled the ship there was little doubt they would spy the Golden Eagle floating alongside; in black shadow though she was. His fingers closed on his revolver. But fortunately there was no need to use weapons then, for Sanborn's idea was overruled, and from the position in which the air-ship hovered she could not spy the aeroplane.
"No; come on, let's get back," urged Malvoise; "there is something wrong with one of the cylinders and I want to fix it before we tackle the job of taking off the treasure."
"Very well then," said Sanborn, yielding to the will of the majority. "We'll get back, but I want to be here first thing in the morning and make a thorough overhauling of the ship. There ought to be enough gold aboard her, from what I overheard Bluewater Bill say, to make us all kings."
"Ah, then I can invent more dirigibles, large ones to carry passengers across the Atlantic," the boys heard Constantio say—though of course, till Ben told them, they were not aware of the speaker's identity.
To their great relief the engine of the dirigible, which had hovered stationary above the galleon during the men's talk, was once more set in motion and the big air-ship drove off at a rapid pace.
"Phew! that was a narrow escape," exclaimed Frank. "I don't want many more like that, I can tell you."
"If they had only gone round the galleon they could not have escaped spying the Golden Eagle," said Harry.
"Fortunate for them they didn't," said Ben grimly, fondling his blue magazine revolver; "they'd have got some indigestible leaden pills, I'm thinking."