Jarrow ducked his head. Locke had introduced the others more for the purpose of gaining time to study this hulking, limp-kneed man who stood before him like a gorilla crouched for a spring and squeezing a soft straw hat into a shapeless lump in his hands.
"Won"t you sit down?" asked Locke, and took his hat. Jarrow allowed himself to sink carefully into a gold-backed chair of doubtful strength and capacity.
"Perhaps you"ll take a cup of tea," suggested Marjorie.
"No, thanks, ma"am. I don"t eat nothin" much between meals. See you"ve been buyin" some of the old cap"n"s pictures. He"s a oddity, but there"s gold on that island of his, right enough."
"Think so?" asked Trask.
"Know so. Scads of it. He brung back samples in his pockets. I"ve told him time and time again I"d go to his island, and what"s more, I would ha", only I don"t own all my schooner. It"s been busy up to now with gover"ment work--hay for the cavalry posts down south. But now I"m ready, and if I can arrange a charter, I"ll cut the rate to the bone, just to help Dinshaw--say sixty-five a day, gold." He looked at Locke inquiringly.
"I don"t know much about such things," said Locke, vaguely.
"Well, a hundred a day is the usual rate," went on Jarrow, "but I"ll make it special just to help the old man."
"I hope you"re well repaid," said Locke. "If there is gold----"
"Gold!" exclaimed Jarrow. "Mr. Locke, ye"re in on a good thing, if you"ll let me say a word about it."
"I"m a little bit mixed up on this thing," said Locke, with an amused smile at Trask. "You know more about the proposition than I do, captain. Of course, Captain Dinshaw talked with Mr. Trask----"
"I hope I ain"t put my foot in anything," broke in Jarrow. "I thought from what Dinshaw said Mr. Trask here knew all about it."
"Mr. Trask knows as much about it as I do, and more," said Locke.
"Say whatever you like."
"Then it"s all right," said Jarrow, obviously relieved. ""Tain"t a piece of business I"d want to tell Tom, d.i.c.k, and Harry, if I had the weather on it like you have. I"m above board in my dealin"s.
You ask anybody in Manila about Captain Jarrow, the wrecker. But I thought for a minute I"d let the cat out of the bag."
"No damage done," said Locke. "As I understand it, you intend to go to this island of Dinshaw"s."
"We"re so glad to hear it, Captain Jarrow," said Marjorie. "It will surely make the old man happy."
"Thank ye, ma"am. I want to kind o" apologize for jammin" myself in like this, but I"m a frank man."
Jarrow paused, and throwing one foot over a knee, stroked the seams of his new French shoes with the tips of his fingers.
"Of course," he resumed, "Captain Dinshaw and me, we"re thick as three in a bed. Ask anybody in Manila if I ain"t been doin" my best to go to his island. I"ve offered to take him to his island, time and time again, but he wouldn"t hear it, "cause he knew I was makin" money with the _Nuestra_--that"s my schooner, the _Nuestra Senora del Rosario_--me and Peth, my mate, we own it with others.
In the wreckin" business it"s touch and go. You got to be on the spot, and there ain"t been any too many wrecks out this way lately.
Let me go away for a week or two on this island business, and I"d likely lose somethin" good. But with somebody to kind o" go in on the deal, I"d split even at sixty-five dollars a day. I"d be some out of pocket, if there wa"n"t much gold there, but I look for findin" it in a big way. It"s a open and shut proposition."
"It sounds interesting," said Locke, getting more puzzled as to why Jarrow should call on him to take him into his confidence regarding plans about Dinshaw"s island.
"There"s big money in it," said Jarrow.
"May I ask why you think so, Captain Jarrow?" inquired Trask.
Jarrow turned to Trask in surprise. The question was appallingly direct, and Trask"s tone was crisp and business-like.
"I know it," said Jarrow, uncomfortably aware of being pinned down to definite information.
"But I don"t understand why you should take the trouble to tell us about your proposed trip," said Locke.
"How?" Jarrow"s head snapped up suddenly and his eyes opened in a wide stare at Locke.
"What is the purpose of this interview?" demanded Locke. "There seems to be some sort of mistake."
Jarrow put his foot down slowly and sucked his moustache in between his lips. His ears twitched and his head ducked forward as he made a swallowing movement with his throat.
"How"s that again?" he whispered, as if he had lost his voice.
"From what you"ve said, captain, I gather you believe I have something to do with the matter of the island."
Jarrow blew his moustache and gave a suppressed sigh of agony.
"Why--why, Dinshaw--he told me you wanted me and my schooner to go to his island!"
Trask laughed outright in spite of his effort to keep still, and Marjorie gave an exclamation of amazement. Locke could only stare at Jarrow.
"Told you I wanted your schooner! He certainly is crazy! Most absurd thing I ever heard of!"
"Mr. Peth, my mate, he"s below now," said Jarrow.
"Then you are going?" asked Trask.
"Am I goin"?" retorted Jarrow. "No! I can"t go on my own hook. I thought you folks was goin"--that"s what I"m here for."
"It"s all a mistake," said Locke. "We had no intention of misleading the old man."
"It will be a terrible disappointment to him," said Marjorie. "It"s a ghastly mistake if poor old Captain Dinshaw really believes we told him we"d go."
"We bought his picture out of charity," said Locke. "Mr. Trask here is a mining man, and was interested in his story, but we haven"t any more idea of going to this gold island than we have of going to the moon. My daughter and I are leaving the day after to-morrow for Hong Kong to connect with the Pacific Mail. We were going this morning, but missed the _Taming_."
"This"ll just about kill old man Dinshaw," said Jarrow.
"He"s so pathetic," said Marjorie. "I"m sorry if we"ve done anything to disappoint him. I"ll always feel guilty about it. Just what did he say, Captain Jarrow?"
"Why, ma"am, he comes runnin" down to the Cuartel not an hour ago, all excited up about you people. "Jarrow," he says to me, "I"ve got a party who"ll go to my island if they can git your schooner--and yours is the only one to be had for love or money. I know you"ll lose on it, seein"s you got a new gover"ment hay charter comin"
your way, but can"t you strain a p"int for an old friend? If you don"t stand by me, the chance is gone."
""Cap"n Dinshaw," says I to him, "I"ll stand by if I can be any help, lose money or no. If me and my schooner"s what you need, why, she"s lyin" off the breakwater, and I"m your man." And Peth, my mate, he speaks up, and says to him: "Dinny, don"t you fret none, but leave it to Jarrow. He"s the man to tie to if ye need help."
"So we lays a course for up here. When he hears of this, it"ll just about kill him dead, sure. Happened the same way once before, and he was laid up in the Civil Hospital for a month with brain fever.
He ain"t as strong now as he was then, neither. If I had the capital, I"d go in on my own, but I"m up to my ears in debt, and as I said, I"d just about split even at sixty-five dollars a day. But I can"t go it alone. The old man he"ll just fade away and die, if you don"t mind my puttin" in my oar about it. When he gits these idees about somebody goin" to his island, and then it falls through, he moans and moans----"
"Oh, Dad, I wish something could be done!" cried Marjorie. "I"ll never forgive myself if we go away from here and leave that old man grieving!" She looked at Trask and caught a twinkle in his eye.
"Well, I"ll send him back to the States if you feel that way about it," said Locke.