Part 15 (1/2)

”Humph!” grunted Chess. ”You don't suppose they would welcome any spies if they are smugglers, do you?” he asked.

”But what do they smuggle? Diamonds? Precious stones?”

”Don't know. Maybe. There is a heavy internal revenue tax on diamonds,”

Chess said.

”Goodness! wouldn't Helen like to be here.”

”She'd want to go ash.o.r.e and take a hand in it,” grinned Copley. ”I know her.”

”Yes, Helen is brave,” admitted Ruth.

”Humph! She's foolish, you mean,” he declared. ”Whatever and whoever those fellows are, they would not welcome visitors I fancy.”

Their launch had been drifting by the island, the upper ridge and trees of which they could see quite plainly. Suddenly a breath of wind--the forecast of the breeze that often rises toward daybreak--swooped down upon the river. It split the mist and revealed quite clearly the upper end of the island where Ruth had interviewed the queer old man, and which Copley's launch had now drifted past.

A light showed suddenly, and for a few moments, close to the water's edge. It revealed enough for the two in the drifting launch to see several figures outlined in the misty illumination of the light.

There was the bow of the mysterious boat close against the landing place.

At least three men were in the boat and on the sh.o.r.e. Ruth could not be sure that either of them was the old man she had spoken with.

But she and Chess Copley saw that they were unloading something from the boat--square, seemingly heavy boxes, yet not so heavy that they could not be pa.s.sed from hand to hand. One was about all the weight a man might easily lift.

”What do you suppose those boxes are?” whispered Ruth, as the Copley launch drifted into the mist again and the end of the island and the other boat were blotted out of sight.

”Give it up. Provisions--supplies. Maybe they are going to camp there.

Lots of people camp out on these smaller islands.”

”The King of the Pipes will have something to say about that,” laughed Ruth. ”One thing sure about it,” she added the next moment, as Chess started his engine again. ”Those boxes don't contain diamonds.”

”I should say not!”

”So if we saw smugglers they are smuggling something besides precious stones,” said the girl gaily. ”Won't Helen be interested when I tell her!”

CHAPTER XIV

A DEMAND IS MADE

Helen had gone to bed when Ruth went into their bedroom that morning, and either she was asleep or did not want to speak to her chum. Ruth felt that, after what had gone on at the ball at Alexandria Bay, she had better not wake Helen up to tell her about the strange launch that had landed at the Kingdom of the Pipes.

And in the morning the att.i.tude of both Helen and Tom closed Ruth's lips on all subjects. The twins were plainly offended. Why? Because Ruth had shown ordinary interest in other people besides themselves!

At least, that is how Ruth saw it. She thought it very silly for Helen to be jealous. Tom's jealousy was another matter; but he had brought the situation on himself.

For once Ruth was determined not to give in, as she so often did when Helen showed spleen. Fortunately, Ruth was busy with her picture work, so she had good reason to excuse herself from much a.s.sociation with the Cameron twins during the next two days.

Then something happened to give them all an entirely different topic of thought and conversation. That day had been spent in taking close-ups and scenes under the canvas and gla.s.s roof of the make-s.h.i.+ft studio that had been built at the camp. The great pageant of historical times along the St. Lawrence was moving swiftly on its way. The scenes of a picture are seldom taken in any sequence at all, but Mr. Hooley had gone so far now that the bulk of the scenes had been filmed; and as they had been run off in the little projection room, both Mr. Hammond and Ruth had expressed their approval of almost every finished length of celluloid.