"Oh, I think I do," said the police officer calmly. "I understand a great deal more than you think I do. Come on."
"Wait! I'll explain!" cried the manager. "It's for the moving pictures!" he added. "This is only a pretended attack and pursuit. Ask the young ladies themselves," he said, motioning to Ruth and Alice who were now smiling. Certainly they did not seem to be in any great alarm or distress over their recent adventure. Their appearance must have caused the officer to doubt the wisdom of his course.
"Weren't these fellers chasing you?" he demanded, motioning to the prisoners. "Now don't say they wasn't, for I saw 'em."
"Oh, yes, they were pursuing us," admitted Ruth, "but it was all in the picture."
"The picture?" questioned the officer.
"Yes. We are moving picture actresses and actors," she went on, and her father, coming up then, though he had had no active part in the chase, confirmed what she said.
For a moment the police captain maintained a silence, and then, as he could no longer doubt what was said, since Mr. Pertell exhibited certain credentials, the representative of Jersey justice said:
"Well, this certainly is one on me! We'd better go back, boys," he added to his men, "and we'd better keep quiet about this thing. But I sure thought this was a kidnapping case."
"And you spoiled my picture," groaned Mr. Pertell. "Now we've got to go back to the middle of the river, and do it over from there."
"Hold on a minute!" exclaimed Pop Snooks, who, as property man, was also a sort of assistant manager. "Maybe this will turn out all right after all."