“Full speed,” was the reply. “If it was dark we could lose them easily, but it won’t be dark for an hour and a half yet. Well, we’ll give them a good chase of it, anyway.”
“Even if they catch us, what can they do?” scoffed Dan. “I’d just like to see them try to set foot on this boat!”
“Well, I guess they could do it if they got alongside,” answered Nelson dryly. “I noticed about five men on that tug.”
“But they haven’t any right to!” protested Tom.
“I don’t believe they’d care much about that,” said Bob. “So what we’ve got to do is to keep away from them. Watch for her at the mouth of the harbor.”
They watched in silence. One minute passed, another; then the tug stuck her blunt nose around the sandspit and headed after the Vagabond. She was a good half mile astern, but from the way in which she was coming it seemed to the boys extremely unlikely that she would stay at that distance very long.
“Gee!” quoth Tom anxiously. “Isn’t she humming!”
“She certainly is,” answered Bob. “But, then, so are we, for that matter.”
“I’ll go down and have a look at the oil cups,” said Nelson. “I’d hate like thunder to have the engine stop at this stage of the game.”
“Gu-gu-gee! If it did!” muttered Tom fearfully.