“That’s a shame,” said Ossie sympathetically.  “When will you have to go?”

“He wants me to meet him in New York Sunday.  He sails early Monday morning.  I suppose I’ll have to go tomorrow.  Guess I’d better get a time table and see how the trains run.”

“Gee, I’m sorry,” murmured Ossie.

And so, for that matter, was every other member of the Adventurer’s company for Neil was well liked.  And the Follow He’s crew were scarcely less regretful.  A study of the railroad schedule showed that the next train for Boston left at five-fifty-five in the morning and that the only other train was at two-forty in the afternoon.

“Five-fifty-five’s a perfectly punk time for a train to leave anywhere, even Provincetown,” objected Neil.  “And the two-forty will get me to Boston too late for anything but a midnight train to New York.”

“Bother trains,” said Steve.  “We’ll run you to Boston tomorrow in the boat.  We can do it in four hours or so.  If the Follow Me crowd want to stay here another day we’ll wait for them at Boston, or we’ll go on and meet them further up the shore.”

“But I don’t want to hurry you chaps away from the Cape,” expostulated Neil.  “You were going to Plymouth, weren’t you?”

“Yes, we were, but there’s nothing important about that.  Hold on, though!  I say, look up the Plymouth trains, Neil.  There must be more of them from there and we can put you across to Plymouth in a couple of hours.”

They found that a train leaving Plymouth at ten would put Neil in Boston shortly after eleven, in plenty of time for the one o’clock express to New York, and so it was decided that the Adventurer was to leave her present port at seven in the morning.  The Follow Me was to follow more leisurely and the boats would spend the next night at Plymouth.  Neil and Ossie went off to send telegrams and the others roamed around the town until it was time for supper.  Afterwards Neil packed his belongings in two pasteboard laundry boxes, having no bag with him, and constantly bewailed his ill-fortune.  Later the Follow Me crowd came over and they had quite a jolly evening and Neil cheered up vastly.

The next morning dawned clear and hot and, after an early breakfast, the Adventurer weighed anchor.  The Follow Me’s whistle signalled good-bye until they were half-way to Long Point and the Adventurer replied.  Once around the point the boat headed across the wide bay for the mainland at a good sixteen-mile clip.  The voyage was uneventful and Manomet Hill was soon sighted.  Then Plymouth Beach stretched before them and presently they were rounding the head and pointing the Adventurer’s nose for the town.  There was still the better part of an hour left after the anchor was dropped and they all tumbled into the dingey and found a landing and spent the next three-quarters of an hour rambling around