There was a rather heavy surf rolling up on the abrupt beach, but it was nothing compared with that in which the party had been involved at an earlier hour in the morning. The machinist went below to look at the prisoners, and found them fast asleep still. Probably they had been up all night, besides being charged with beer; and they were not likely to give their captors any trouble.
Dory had carried the painter of the tender to the stern of the schooner; and, as it was a long rope, the boat was held half way between the vessel and the shore. There was nothing more for the captors to do at present; and they seated themselves under the bulwarks, where they could not be seen from the shore, though they kept a sharp lookout in the direction of the place where Mack and Chuck had landed.
They had been in this position for half an hour, when they discovered the two robbers on the beach. They shouted several times to the La Motte, but no notice was taken of them. Dory cast off the painter of the tender, and let it drop into the water.
CHAPTER XVII.
THE STANDING-RIGGING OF A SLOOP.
The picture of a sloop Thad Glovering produced on board of the Goldwing was a drawing which the skipper had hastily made just before he went on board of the boat. He passed it to Ash Burton, who knew more about a boat than any other student of the party. But all of them wanted to look at it, and they had nearly fallen overboard in their eagerness to get a sight of it.
"Hold up, fellows!" called Thad, taking the picture from Ash. "Do you want to make a bear-garden of the standing-room of the Goldwing? Not much! You will all get a chance to see it without upsetting the boat."
"There comes the Marian!" exclaimed Hop Cabright, as the new steam-yacht came shooting across Beechwater as though it had been discharged from a rifle. "I believe she is faster than the Sylph."
"Come to, Thad!" shouted Luke Bennington, the captain of the swift little steamer, from the pilot-house.
"What's up now?" said the skipper of the Goldwing, as he put his helm down.
The boat came up into the wind, with her sail banging furiously in the lively breeze; and the Marian went alongside of her. Luke handed Thad a little bundle of papers, which the principal had forgotten to give to the temporary instructor in sailing. The steamer started her screw again, and dashed into the creek leading to the river. Thad filled away again, and followed her. As soon as he had the boat under way, he opened the package.