Swiftly sped the boys on their exciting errands, while Mr. Featherstone remained upon the rock, and the other boys with hushed whispers talked together in little groups, or looked into the water-holes with half-averted eyes.
Howard and Martin were the first to return, both flushed with anxious excitement. Then came the Doctor, sadly out of breath, and much distressed.
“But Digby is a good swimmer, is he not?” asked the Doctor.
“Few better in the school,” answered Mr. Featherstone. “I don’t like to think of the worst, but there are strong eddies in the pool this morning, and the river runs at a furious rate after the heavy rain. My fear is that he left the pool, and was caught by an eddy, and swung upon the rocks. In that case he may have been rendered insensible, and so have been drowned.”
The boys returned one after another, and each unsuccessful. The boatmen soon arrived.
“Have you heard or seen anything this morning of Mr. Digby?” asked the Doctor of Mason, the manager of all the boating arrangements of the school.
“No, sir; but my man, who was agoing out to see after his lines, about six this morning, said as how he see something dark floating down the river, but he didn’t pay much heed to it, till he called it to mind when the young gentlemen came down just now, and said as how Mr. Digby were missing.”
“Then, should we not commence the search low down the river?” asked the Doctor.
“’Taint no manner of use,” answered Mason; “with the current runnin’ like this, he’d be ten mile away and more, by this time, if it was him, or more likely out at sea, as the tide would have met the river by this time. But you see, sir, it mightn’t have been him after all, for there’s lots o’ snags and things floating down this morning after last night’s rain.”
But Dr. Brier would leave no stone unturned. Messengers were sent on horseback to every town and village on either side of the river, for twenty miles down; the river was dragged; boatmen were sent out to search; everything that could be done was done. But the afternoon came and no tidings. Messengers were sent early to Mr. Morton. All the towns and villages around were in excitement, but nothing came of it, and by evening the conviction was borne home to every heart, too clearly for hope to set aside, that Digby Morton was dead.