“And the golden island, occasionally; eh, Cap’n?” returned Uncle Naboth, shrewdly. “I’ve heard from Sam here how you lost the paper containing your observations; but, I suppose you could find the place again, if you wanted to.”
Captain Gay flushed a deep red.
“Sir,” he answered, “you wrong me with your suspicions. I shall never revisit that island under any circumstances. Nor do I wish anyone else to do so. That is the true explanation of why I lost that paper.”
“Did you lose it?”
“I threw it overboard.”
Uncle Naboth whistled.
“I’m free to confess, sir, that I’m all at sea,” he said.
The Captain arose and paced the room with unusual agitation.
“Mr. Perkins,” said he, “I once had an older brother, who, when a boy, robbed my father and ran away from home. I never saw him again until we reached that island, where I recognized my erring brother in the man who called himself Daggett.”
Uncle Naboth scratched a match, and relit his pipe.