“Let’s go to bed at once and get a good night’s rest so that we will be in condition to put forth our best efforts to find him and rescue him in the morning,” proposed Mr. Perry.

This proposal met with indorsement from all, and in a short time they were in their berths, employing their best skill to induce sleep under condition of much mental excitement.

CHAPTER X

The Island-Surrounded Island

Early next morning the Catwhisker left its mooring under the tamarack and started on the new search for the “Canadian Crusoe’s” island.

Guided by the “mathematical chart” prepared with the directions given by the radio-compass amateur, the crew of the motor boat had little difficulty in finding the approximate location of the island prison; but when arrived there, they realized that considerable work was still before them, for they were in the midst of a veritable sea of islands, varying in size from a few car-loads of stone and earth to several acres in extent.

“Well, how are we goin’ to begin?” asked Hal as Cub stopped the engine in a pond-like expanse, surrounded by a more or less regular rim of islands.

“The first thing to do, I should say is to make the best possible reckoning of our bearings and then try to fix the point of intersection of those three lines indicated by the radio compasses,” said Mr. Perry.

“That’s right,” Cub agreed.  “We mustn’t forget our mathematics.”

“It seems to me that we ought to be able to pick this place on the chart,” Bud suggested.

“Yes, especially if we keep in mind the location of some other landmarks, or watermarks, that we passed in the last half or three-quarters of an hour in getting here,” said Hal.

Cub produced the chart, and the study of locations and island arrangements began.  As indicated by expectations in the course of their discussion, they were able to locate a few of the larger islands and with these as bases for further reckoning, they at last picked out what seemed to be the point of intersection of the three pencil lines on the chart.  This necessitated a little more cruising about, but within an hour after their first stop they completed their reckoning.

“There’s the island that seems to come nearest to the intersection,” said Mr. Perry, pointing toward an abrupt elevation, a hundred yards long and half as wide and covered with bushes and a few small trees; “but it doesn’t seem to answer the description very well.  No other islands near it.”

“I don’t see how anybody could be marooned on that place with boats passing back and forth near it every hour of the day,” Hal commented skeptically.

“Neither do I,” Bud agreed.

“Well, let’s do our work thoroughly anyway,” Mr. Perry suggested.

“Shall we go ashore and look that place over?” asked Hal.

“Sure.”