“Did you try to find him at the Snark?” Penny questioned.
“Sure, but there they just raise their eyebrows, and say they never heard of such a person. So far as anyone aboard that tub is concerned, no one ever fell into the brink either!”
“Ben, why not report to police?”
“I considered it, but what good would it do?” Ben shrugged. “The watch is gone. That’s all I care about.”
“But those men aboard the Snark must be criminals! We know they pushed Webb off the boat.”
“Probably had good reason for doing it too,” Ben growled. “But we can’t prove anything—no use to try.”
“Ben, you’re just discouraged.”
“Who wouldn’t be? I had planned on pawning that watch. It would have kept me going for a couple of weeks at least. I’d join the Army, only they’ve turned me down three times already.”
Penny and Louise had not expected to stay long, but with the reporter in such a black mood, they thought they should do something to restore his spirits. Entering the dingy little shack, Penny talked cheerfully of her newspaper experiences, and told him that she had spoken to her father about adding him to the editorial staff.
“What’d he say?” the reporter demanded quickly.