"Nemesis, ship-keeper!" exclaimed the Patrol-leader. "Never mind. Basking on deck and watching the boats go by is preferable to the cinema and a jolly sight more healthy."
At half-past nine the rest of the crew came back, and after supper turned in. So tired were they with the long day in the open air that they all slept like logs, until Mr. Armitage bawled in nautical style into the fo'c'sle: "Show a leg, show a leg, and shine! Sun's over the fore-yard!"
"Can we bathe, sir?" asked Roche.
The Scoutmaster gave a glance at the swift-flowing current.
"I don't think it's advisable," he replied. "There's too much run of water. We'll put into a quiet backwater farther down stream, and all hands can have a swim. Besides, there's none too much time. We must have breakfast cleared away, and have everything in readiness for Mr. Murgatroyd."
"'Fraid you won't!" exclaimed the owner, with a boisterous laugh, as he stepped on board. "Caught you Sea Scouts napping, or nearly so. Carry on and get breakfast. It will be a treat to watch you youngsters eat. Remind me of the days when I had an appetite. Don't worry, I'm an hour before my time; but all Nature seemed to be calling, so I got up early."
While the engine was being started up—an operation that Mr. Murgatroyd made a valiant and determined attempt to carry out but without success—Stratton went up to his Scoutmaster.
"I can't find one of our Manila ropes, sir," he reported. "It was coiled up on the fore-deck last night all right."
"Has anyone taken it below?" asked Mr. Armitage.
Inquiries of the rest of the crew resulted in the statement that none had touched the rope, although several affirmed that it was there when they turned in.