“Yes; my young brother was with Rollitt that day, and told me about it as a secret. But as it’s out now, there’s no good keeping it.”
“Dangle has a spite against Rollitt. If any one else had told you this, there might have been something in it.”
“And if it had been any one but Rollitt bought the boat, it would have been nothing. But he’s so frightfully poor. He’d no time to write home, even if he could have got money from there, and there was no one here he could borrow of. Why, he must have gone off very first thing in the morning and bought the boat.”
“And are you quite certain you had all the money collected by that Saturday?” asked Yorke.
“Yes; and what’s more, I’m almost certain I counted it and made it come right. That’s the last time it has come right.”
The captain drummed his fingers on the table and looked very miserable.
“I wish, Fisher,” said he, “I hadn’t advised you to take that treasurership. If we could only be quite sure there wasn’t some mistake in the accounts, it would be different. It would be a frightful thing to suspect Rollitt unless it was absolutely certain.”
“You’re welcome to round on me,” said Fisher, looking quite as miserable as his chief. “I was a fool to take your advice. I’d much sooner make the money up myself, and not say a word about it to any one.”
“You can’t do that now. You may be sure Dangle won’t let it drop.”
“What shall you do?” asked Ranger.