Part 17 (1/2)

Rob, crouched in his craht then and there he detere adventure of his through to the bitter end This resolve was still in his ht to the rascally Barton, and, all unconscious of their secreted passenger, got under way

”If I get out of this alive, I'll be lucky,” soliloquized Rob as he heard the oars and felt the boat ht? At any rate I'h”

CHAPTER XVIII

THE ISLAND HUT

Rob, in his place of conceal as they rowed

Their conversation related, in the ht

Apparently, so far as Rob could gather, the stealing of the plans of the submarine was not yet complete It appeared that Barton was to remain on the island in his capacity as trusted aide to Mr Barr, and to gather up all he could of the details of the new sub to breathe, Rob listened with all his ht to the conversation of the oarsh histhe step he had But the boy pluckilyjust as going on inimical to the plans of the United States Govern the prow of the boat grated on a sandy beach, and the twoup so objects, left the craft, first securing it by an anchor and line

As their footsteps died away, Rob ventured to raise his head above the gunwale of the boat and follow them with his eyes He saw them ascend the beach and enter the hut, apparently a structure once used by fisherht shone from the solitaryof the hut, and Rob ca forward

With this object in view he cla unnecessary noise On hands and knees he then approached the lighted

The night was dark, and, standing at a fair distance fro seen frohted cha on outside

Seated around a rough table in the hut, which consisted of only one room, Rob saw three men Two of them, undoubtedly, were those who had unconsciously rowed hinized with a start as the possessor of the face which had peered through the transoht in Hampton, when plans for the experi formulated In other words, the third hoff, the spy

Instantly ue to Rob crystallized into a clear understanding of the situation The signals fronation of Barton over the presence of the Boy Scouts, and the stealing of the plans andpart of an elaborate plot of which Berghoff was the nation swept over the boy as he contes they had obtained froht; ”so they think they can rob Uncle Sareatest submarines ever invented, and do so with impunity! I don't care what happens, I'll fool them if I can”

With this resolve firmly embedded in hishe was at last almost under the casement In this position every word uttered within the hut was clear to hileefully over the ht's work had been carried out

”Undt not a vun of dose Boy Scouts knew anting aboudt idt,” he exclaimed

”No,” rejoined one of his companions, a swarthy man with a pallid face on which there stood out a bristly beard; ”those kids were out of the game so far as ere concerned That Barton is a slick one, all right”

”Well, he's getting well paid for the job,” struck in the third h, reddish hair and a protruding chin that gave hiedts vell paid,” rejoined Berghoff; ”dis job is vorth de naval supremacy of the worldt to der country vot I represent”

”As if we didn't know that as well as you,” rejoined the red-haired man