Not long afterward, Toma and two of the outlaws went out in search of the stampeded ponies, while Rand and Dick took the remaining men—with the exception of the uniformed sailor and Murky—and locked them in the warehouse. Then Rand turned to the officer in charge of the yacht:
“You’d better order your vessel in, captain.”
“I’ll try, but I don’t know whether they’ll come,” trembled the sailor.
“They’ll save themselves a lot of trouble if they do. I have the name and description of your vessel. Remember you’re dealing with the Canadian government now.”
But the captain was right. Signalling from the wharf proved of no avail. There came derisive shouts from the men aboard, and not long afterward the sailors hoisted the anchor and the yacht steamed out of the inlet.
CHAPTER XVII
DICK GOES TO THE RESCUE
The escape of the outlaws from the warehouse during the night was one of those regrettable happenings that come occasionally when least expected. On the following morning as Dick opened the door a deep silence greeted him. The prisoners had gone. Investigation showed that part of the flooring had been removed and that the outlaws had dug their way out during the night. The shock of this discovery staggered Dick, who lost no time in reporting to Constable Rand. The policeman received the news calmly.
“Well, there’s no use worrying about it. I’m sorry, but it can’t be helped. We have the ring-leaders—which is much more important. The police will retake the others in the course of time. Right now, I’m worrying more about Toma and the pack-ponies. What has become of the fur? If we lose the fur, we’ll have no direct evidence against Murky.”
“Why,” said Dick in surprise, “I should think you could convict him easily. What about the shooting of Pearly and the assault upon Richardson?”
“True enough. But Murky didn’t commit these crimes.”