"But they might have grown there since you were on the island," Bob suggested.
"Perhaps," his uncle agreed slowly, "but it's not usual for new trees to spring up out of the sand on these islands. You can see that the island's pretty sandy."
"I'll say it is," Jack agreed.
"Can you see the trees where you got the cocoanuts?" Captain Ole asked.
"No, I can't, and that's another thing that bothers me."
"Maybe someone has cut them down," Jack suggested.
"Maybe," his uncle said doubtfully.
It was now about nine o'clock and, after a short discussion, it was decided to pay a visit to the island at once and settle the matter. The captain ordered a boat lowered and, leaving the Valkyrie in charge of the new second mate, the four together with the first mate, were soon on their way.
"We'll go up to the top of that hill, though it isn't much of a hill, and see if we can find any trace of that grove that ought to be there," Mr. Lakewood said as the boat pushed its bow on to the sand.
It took them but a few minutes to reach the top of the rise and they all began to look eagerly for marks which would identify the place. But those marks they failed to find. There was no indication that a cocoanut tree had ever graced the spot.