“I haven’t had much experience in that line, but I imagine it is the best kind,” nodded Mr. Farnum.

All hands set to, to devise a list of newspapers to which invitations should be sent.  The stenographer was soon intensely busy with this work.

Down at the new Melville yard affairs went on with a rush.  Two tumble-down houses were rented in a little habited part of the town, and in these a gang of close-mouthed Italian laborers was quartered.  Jabez Holt felt the new increase in prosperity, for Mr. Melville engaged his entire hotel.  Before long there was a constant succession of arrivals at the hotel.  Steel salesmen, motor drummers, salesmen in electrical supplies, and a whole host of miscellaneous representatives came to town, putting up at the hotel, where Mr. Melville had reserved a suite of rooms for temporary offices.  The strangers in town spent money freely, and all the villagers enjoyed their presence.

In fact, so much business did these new happenings bring that Jacob Farnum speedily became sensible of the fact that the villagers looked upon the Melvilles with decided favor.

“The Melville crowd are at their new enterprise in real and bustling earnest,” remarked Farnum, with an air of uneasiness, to his associate, the inventor.

“I imagine those people can control millions of dollars, if they need that much money,” hazarded David Pollard.

“Undoubtedly,” nodded the boatbuilder “And, though I am seeking for capital that will come in on terms fair to us, it’s mighty uphill work.”

This conversation was carried on in young Benson’s hearing.  Captain Jack turned to them with a laugh, to say:  “Wait and see, though, if the exhibition before the newspaper correspondents won’t take a lot of wind out of the Melville sails.”

“It ought to,” nodded the builder, “unless the Melvilles, or some of the experts they’re dealing with, are shrewd enough to figure out how you left the boat and returned to it.”

“Would you have figured that out, Mr. Farnum, if I hadn’t told you?”

“Probably not, Jack.  It’s one of the things that are too simple to guess at easily.”

Passers by the Melville yard were now able to hear the hammering of the riveters daily.  It looked as though the new yard must be pushing a submarine boat to rapid completion.

“There hasn’t been a launching, anyway, so I don’t believe the Melville people will be able to do anything to beat our show to-morrow,” remarked Captain Jack, on the night before the day that had been set for the show before the newspaper men.

Early the next forenoon newspaper correspondents began to arrive in numbers from half a dozen large cities.  As the hotel was monopolized, by the Melville crowd, Mr. Farnum had engaged other quarters at which to entertain the men of the press.  Some of the newspapers sent women writers.

None of these visitors were taken direct to the yards.  Mr. Farnum and Mr. Pollard took the journalistic visitors in charge and finally conveyed them in carriages to the boatyard, arriving at about a quarter before eleven.