Part 44 (2/2)
”I would,” Hawkins cut in ”Anybody would who stopped to think” He slapped Gregory affectionately on the shoulder ”Didn't I tell you, Cap, that I'd have old Dupont eating out of your hand in less than a week?”
he challenged ”Old leather-face has an ear to the ground He's heard the ruet to cover”
His face lighted with enthusiasins to play around so to the city to-ot a sneaking hunch that I'”
CHAPTER XXVII
TO SOLVE THE MYSTERY
The days that followed the return of the victorious cannery fleet froory The effect of Mascola's defeat was far-reaching, and, onia Fish Cannery a place of proe of the growing popular interest, Winfield & Can on behalf of Gregory's product The brands of the local firencies Whole states were placarded
Newspapers featured the cooperative enterprise of the serviceterms A current-news company took several hundred feet of filnal victory achieved by the A in the reflected liht on like ”wild-fire” and taxed the fisher dean to mount The financial sky was unclouded
Success looht upon the horizon
In the hey-day of prosperity, no one noticed the faint clouds which crept upward fronals fluttered feebly and were passed by unheeded Then Mr Dupont, of Winfield & Cah fish,” he exclai up a de national The way things are going now, you will not be able to supply it Then I'll be out of pocket forinto your surplus every day In teeks you'll be down to bed-rock What are you going to do about it?”
As Gregory considered the question, Mr Dupont answered for hiot to have ht now, I'll back you and take ato stick by you and back you to the lioryhis ith a rush What was the use of losing all he had gained by pursuing a policy of playing safe and ”shooting nickels”? Men who rayed their hair and seamed their faces with preaht,” he said ”Let's get down to business I'll go back to the city with you and we'll fix things up I know of so the others Let's go”
Froreater cannery fleet,was universally poor The boats were forced to cruise wide areas in order to supply fish enough for the cannery and Service Market Areas which placed theave Mascola his chance The Italian struck without warning Angered by the loss of his prestige, strengthened by his augan to hector the extreme outposts beyond reach of the wireless
Then ensued a long period of stor to new and inexperienced crews and the increasing interference of Mascola's ory's vessels recked on the island shores and salvaged with great difficulty and expense With the extended radius of his operations, overhead expensesto thecannery-owner in countless ways
At the close of one particularly trying day he sat alone in the cannery office and stared moodily at a wireless despatch which lay on the desk before him It came from Diablo and reported the arrival of a portion of his fleet off the hell-Hole
The e was phrased in the most optimistic terms Fish appeared to be plentiful The weather was fine, the sea sn of interference froory's forehead deepened It had been that way often of late at devil island No matter how clear the sky appeared, the shadow of El Diablo bulked dark and sinister across the sunlit horizon Soht He felt sure of it He should have gone with the fleet But how could he? He was far down the coast with the new boats when they left
Diablo, he realized sharply, was getting on his nerves Were the obstacles which he had encountered about the island due to sorounds? It was not the first ti wrong at El Diablo He could not shake off the feeling As he sat down to wait for the evil tidings he felt sure would come, he took up an unopened letter from Hawkins which had been on his desk two days A part of the letter caused hi around and incidentally tu which I think may be of interest to you
Would it surprise you to know that Mascola does not own a single fishi+ng-boat? It did ht have known it if I had remembered the federal statute which prohibits any but A in American waters
”Rock and Bandrist own the alien fleet Mascola, you see, is an alien Bandrist apparently is not I wish by the way you'd tellup Silvanus ood story, Cap, if it works out all right Shouldn't be surprised if I ht not drop in on you any tio over to Diablo Keep this all under your hat It isn't censored”
For soleaned froht upon El Diablo Bandrist and Rock were in cahoots Both were interested in keeping hi on the island It was Mascola's job to keep strange craft froe craft, his ent To his half-closed eyes cah the water toward them like a destructive shadow Bronson had said it looked like the _Gray Ghost_ What was the _Gray Ghost_? Where did she clear fro in in the dark to hell-Hole?