Those of the police party who did not go with the van soon vanished, all, save Chief Ward.

“Now, Captain Benson,” muttered the chief of police, “I want to congratulate you on your clever wit and sound judgment.  I also want to thank you for enabling me to run down a gang like that.  I fully understand that in the morning, you have to be away on a very important submarine test, and that it would be wholly inconvenient for you to have to appear in court.  So I won’t expect you.  On the testimony that my men and I can give the judge will continue the case until such time as you can appear.  My men already understand that none of the prisoners are to be allowed to communicate with outside friends to-night or to-morrow morning.  So you may be sure that no news of their arrest will leak out.  And now, good-night, boys.  Congratulations, again, and thanks!”

Nor were Jack Benson and his friends long in vanishing, either.  They did not go back at all by the way of the Somerset House.  They went down to the water-front by a different route.  Yet they were fortunate enough to find a shore boat that put them out on board the “Benson.”

“And now, Jack, old fellow,” exploded Eph, as they sat in the snug security of their little cabin, “don’t you dare think of anything else until you tell us how you brought a seeming miracle about.”

“Oh, that was easy,” laughed Jack Benson, gleefully.  “In the first place, it was mighty queer, Eph, that we left you on that corner—­and you vanished.  Then we left Hal on that same corner—­and the earth swallowed him up.  Then two fake sailors stopped me at that very same corner—­”

“How did you know they were fake sailors?” broke in Hal.  “I never suspected their genuineness.”

“Why, see here,” glowed Jack, “a United States Man-of-warsman has respect for an officer’s uniform drilled into him twenty-four hours in the day.  We’re not officers of the Navy, but we wear a uniform that is very much like the uniform of a naval officer, all but the insignia of rank.  What is the consequence?  Every sailor we meet sees the uniform, and says ‘sir’ to us by sheer force of habit.  Why, you both know that a good many sailors who pass us give us the regular salute.  Yet these two fake sailors hailed me as ‘messmate’ and were as familiar in every other way as they knew how to be.”

“Gracious!  When they spoke to me, I never thought of that little point,” confessed Hal.

“So I told the pretended sailors,” continued Captain Jack, “that I’d run down to the hotel, and that I’d be right back.”

“Did you tell anyone where you were going?” demanded Eph.

“No one was there that I knew.  Instead, I slipped into the telephone room, at the side of the lobby, and called up the chief of police.  I happened to get the chief himself on the wire.  He thought I was a drunken sailor, or else that I was out of my head.  But he finally agreed to have some detectives on hand to see the sailors take me away in tow.”