"Ash Burton shall have the full command, and I won't interfere with him," said Tom; but the two boys on the wharf did not see the wink he gave to Nim Splugger when he uttered the gracious words.
"Some of them will be drowned," reasoned Sam.
"Then I think I ought to go with them!" exclaimed Ash, suddenly crushing his scruples. "I don't know much about a boat, but I know more than any of the rest of the fellows; and I can keep the Goldwing on the top of the water, if nothing more."
"We had better keep out of the scrape," added Sam, but more weakly than before, for he was almost as fond of sailing as his friend.
"The rest of the fellows are on the other side of the water, and we shall have to take them in. If things don't work right when we get across the lake, we can jump out of the boat again; and we shall be nearer home there than we are here," said Ash, almost vanquished by his own logic.
He wanted to go so much, that it was easy for him to persuade himself that it was his duty to do so in order to prevent Tom from drowning himself and his companions. The conflict in his mind ended by his going on board of the sloop, followed, more reluctantly, by his crony.
"I want this thing understood before I go," said Ash, as he walked aft to the standing-room. "The wind has breezed up a good deal while we have been talking about it, and it would be as easy as putting your fingers in the fire to tip the sloop over."
"We understand it well enough: you are to be captain, and all the rest of us will obey your orders—as long as we like," replied Tom impatiently, and uttering the last words so that they were heard only by Nim Splugger.
"But I want it made as clear as day that I am to handle the boat. I know enough about a sailboat to keep her right side up, and I don't want to be spilled into the lake by any fellow that don't know as much about the business as I do."
"We all agree to it," interposed Kidd Digfield. "It's no use to talk all day about it."