That supper tasted wonderfully good. Jack was a clever camp cook and the way that two-pound piece of steak was cooked and the way the potatoes almost fell to pieces at the touch of a fork showed it. Perhaps the tea was a little bitter; anyhow, condensed milk doesn’t seem to go with tea as well as with coffee; and Hal said uncomplimentary things about the butter, but no one could find fault with the rest of the repast. They sat on the ground between the front of the tent and the fire and ate to repletion. And afterward they heaped more fuel on the dying blaze and snuggled back contentedly while the afterglow dimmed and a half moon grew from frosty silver to mellow gold and threw a broad pathway across the quiet water. They talked for an hour or more, but the fresh air and the exertions of the day soon began to tell and long before nine Hal was snoring frankly, his head propped up on Bee’s shoulder and Bee and Jack were nodding. Finally the lanterns were found and Jack managed to fill them from the gallon oil-can, spilling a good share of the oil on the ground in the darkness, and then lighted them and hung them from the tent poles. Hal was somehow awakened and, yawning and stumbling, got his clothes off and tumbled between his blankets. Bee and Jack speedily followed and soon all was still on Nobody’s save for the lapping of the waves on the beach and the healthy snoring of the members of the Treasure Hunters’ Company, Limited.
CHAPTER X
Bee Digs For Treasure
The next morning dawned fair, with a little southeast breeze blowing from where, afar off on the horizon, lay a bank of haze. The adventurers were up early. The sunlight beat on the wall of the tent and made sleep almost impossible after seven o’clock. There was a chill in the air though, as the three, with towels flying from their hands, scrambled down to the beach and plunged, shouting and laughing, into the water. The sea was several degrees warmer than the air outside and Hal was for remaining there and having his breakfast brought to him on a life-belt. But he got little encouragement from the others and so followed them out and rubbed his body to a glow with a towel in the faint warmth of the early sunlight. After that, although Jack worked as quickly as he knew how, it seemed hours and hours before the bacon and fried potatoes and fragrant coffee were ready. Hal occasioned merriment by trying to toast a slice of bread on the end of a stick and having to rescue it from the fire a half-dozen times before it was ready for eating. Bee regretted the lack of eggs and explained innocently that the reason he had not brought any was because they could find sea-gulls’ eggs on the rocks. “They always do that on desert islands,” he added. He was visibly disappointed when Jack informed him that the gulls didn’t nest on Nobody’s and that, anyhow, he didn’t think Bee would care much for gulls’ eggs if he tried them.
They cleaned the dishes by the simple expedient of carrying them to the beach and rubbing sand on them, afterwards rinsing them off with salt water. Then Bee was, he declared, ready for business.
“You fellows can do what you like for awhile. I’m going to look around and decide where to begin operations.”
Hal groaned. “Look here, Bee,” he protested, “you aren’t really going to waste time and break your back digging are you?”
“Waste time! What did we come here for, I’d like to know? I’m going to find the likeliest spot and then we’re going to dig for that treasure chest. Meanwhile, why don’t you fellows see if you can catch some fish for dinner?”
Hal sighed and shrugged his shoulders. “All right. Come on, Jack. We’ll go fishing. If you find anything, Bee, fire a cannon and we’ll come back.”