Thus bidden, John read the following letter,—
Dear Sir:
I enclose you an envelope with my address. Send my your answer as soon as you possible this afternoon. I will get it in Macinac tonight or tomorrow morning and will immediately come to see you.
To deliver you this gang which rob United States of thousands of dollars each year. I only want two things. 1st. My ticket to Montreal and back. 2nd. My passage to Europe by way of the Azores Isles. I do not want money. You will pay me when the gang is in your hands. You will get it this afternoonday. Do not fail to send me your answer quick. If you do so I will have the gang in your lands in 2 weeks. They are 2 men and 1 woman and they smuggle by ways you are not at all suspicious.
Truly yours,
“Mr. Button certainly has a good many friends and they are trying to keep him well informed. What do you make of this anyway, Fred?”
“I don’t make much of anything,” said Fred thoughtfully. “What’s the use of going any farther? Let’s go back and take our skiff and see if we can’t get somewhere. The lake is smooth this morning and we may be able to get back as far as Drummond or Cockburn Island.”
When the boys returned to the shore the motor-boat had disappeared from sight. This strange disappearance, however, was not so confusing to the boys as the discovery they speedily made concerning the skiff which they themselves had left on the shore of the cove.
CHAPTER XV
A SIGNAL OF DISTRESS
“Where did that sail come from?” demanded John, as he stopped abruptly and looked in astonishment at the little skiff. Thrown carelessly across it was a sail and small mast.