“You are sure you were not mistaken, Aleck?  I thought that rascal was miles and miles away.”

“Dat’s jess wot I dun been thinkin’ too.  But it was Dan Baxter, suah.  I knows him too well to make any mistake about his ugly face.”

“Where was he?”

“Dat’s de alarmin’ part ob it, Massah Dick.  Yo’ know yo’ tole me to find de houseboat.”

“Yes.”

“Well, I found de boat wid dat dar Cap’n Starr on board, an’ we made all dem ’rangements wot you spoke about.  Den I started to leave de boat.  Dar was an eleckric light on de dock an’ a man standing near it, a-watchin’ de houseboat.  I almost run into him, an’ den I discobered it was dat good-fo’-nuffin Dan Baxter.”

“He was watching the houseboat?”

“Dat’s it.”

“Did he recognize you, Aleck?”

“Not till I spoke to him.  I said, `Wot yo’ doin’ heah, Dan Baxter?’
When he heard dat he ’most jumped a foot.  Den he mutters sumthing wot
I couldn’t make out an’ runs away.”

“Did you go after him?”

“Yes, but I couldn’t cotch him nohow.  Dar was big piles ob boxes an’ barrels on de dock and he got away befo’ I know wot I was at.  I hunted an’ hunted, but I couldn’t git on his track.”

“This is certainly unpleasant, to say the least,” mused Dick, biting his lip.  “If he is watching us he is doing it for no good purpose.”

“Dat’s de way.  I reasoned.  But I didn’t want de ladies to heah.  Mrs. Stanhope am a powerfully narvous woman.”

“Yes, Aleck, you were wise in keeping them in ignorance.  But I’ll have to tell Tom and Sam and the other fellows, and we’ll have to keep our eyes open.”

“Is you’ goin’ to report dis to de police?”

“I may.  I’ll think it over first.  Now, how about the houseboat?  Has Captain Starr done as directed?”

“Yes, sah.”

“What kind of a man does he seem to he?”

“All right, Massah Dick, only—­”

“Only what?” asked the eldest Rover, as he saw the colored servant hesitate.

“Well, to tell de truf, he seems kind of funny to me.”

“How funny?”

“Here,” and Aleck tapped his forehead.

“Do you mean that he is crazy?”

“Not dat persackly, Massah Dick, but he said sum mighty funny t’ings when we was talkin’ acted like he was t’inkin’ ob sumt’ing else.”

“Humph!  Well, if he isn’t the sort of fellow we want we’ll have to let him go and get another captain.”

Dick returned to the apartment he had left and told the others that Aleck had made the necessary arrangements.  Then he gave Tom and Sam a wink which meant a good deal.  Soon after this the party broke up, and the boys retired to the connecting rooms they had engaged for the night.

“So Aleck saw Dan Baxter!” cried Tom, when told of the news.  “That must mean the rascal is on our trail.”

“Just what I am thinking, Tom,” returned Dick.