Mr. Pierson was staying on the island now, and for the next few days he was with the boys considerably, giving them valuable advice. They kept at practice, setting aside certain hours for it, and manfully withstanding the temptation of going off on little excursions with the girls.
So far as solving the mystery of the missing jewelry was concerned, no progress was made, though the boys talked about it often. The faint suspicions against the Mexican and Boswell were still maintained, but that was all.
As for Boswell, he and his English friend and his “trainer,” as he called the athlete, kept pretty much to themselves. Mendez was the same over-polite Mexican as before. He opened his store, and did a good business, our friends patronizing him to some extent—partly to get a look inside his place. But, though their eyes were used to the best advantage, they saw nothing that would aid them in their quest.
“But I’ll get Ruth’s brooch back yet!” declared Tom, to himself.
[CHAPTER XVIII]
“SENOR BOSWELL”
“Shoulders back a little more! Heads up! Don’t feather quite so high. That’s all right to do when there are little choppy waves, that would cause splashing, but in calm water the lower you feather the less you have to raise the spoon of the oar. Of course don’t do any ‘riffling.’ That holds back the boat. When I see you in an eight, with a coxswain, so you don’t have to think about steering, I can tell better how you will do.”
This was Mr. Pierson giving some coaching advice to the four boys, who were out in the shell. He was following them in the launch owned by his friend, at whose cottage he was visiting.
“I’m wondering if I’ll have wind enough for a four-mile race, pulling even thirty to the minute?” said Sid.