“Yet if these rifles and cartridges were intended for use in a revolution,” Harriet broke in, “doesn’t it seem odd to land them on this short strip of New Hampshire coast?”

“Not at all odd when you understand the reason,” Captain Rupert went on.  “These rifles are intended to be used in another projected uprising of the blacks in Cuba.  The blacks there are always ready to fight, provided some selfseeking white man offers them the weapons, and a prosperous time, without work, in the event of victory.  Such another uprising of the blacks in Cuba has been planned.  The secret service men of the Cuban government got wind of the affair and trailed some of the plotters to this country.

“Now, the United States is the place where nearly all of the supplies for these revolutions are bought.  So our government, watching, discovered that the arms were being slyly shipped to Portsmouth, instead of being directly shipped from New York to Cuba.  It was, of course, quite plain that Portsmouth was the port from which the arms and ammunition were to be shipped.  So the cutter that I command was ordered to Portsmouth.  As soon as the plotters there found the ‘Terrapin’ cruising off that port they knew they must find some other way of getting the goods out of the country, for it is against the law to ship arms from this country for use against any other established government.

“So the plotters hit upon a new plan.  They engaged the skipper of a regular fishing smack to carry small lots of arms out to sea, there to transfer them to a sloop.  Captain Billy was the man selected to receive the arms and ammunition at sea.  He brought them in here, hiding them, with the intention of putting out some dark night, making several short trips, and transferring all the rifles and cartridges—­eight thousand rifles and three million cartridges, to a small steamer that would be waiting in the offing.  The steam vessel would then carry the cargo to Cuba, landing the goods at some secret, appointed place.  Captain Billy, as our government learned, was to receive one thousand dollars for his share in the work.  It was a bit risky, as he faced prison if caught—­as he surely would have been imprisoned had he lived.”

“Poor man!” sighed Harriet sympathetically.

“I agree with you,” nodded Captain Rupert gravely.  “Captain Billy was a good fellow, as men go; but he had passed his fiftieth year with fortune as far away as ever, and he caught at the bait of a thousand dollars, though he knew he was breaking the laws of his country.  But he’s dead,” added the revenue officer, uncovering his head for a moment; “therefore we won’t discuss his fault further.”

When the “hidden treasure” in the woods was unearthed it proved to be a large consignment of rifles and cartridges.  These had been hidden in a cleverly concealed artificial, sod-covered cave in the woods.  Its existence had been so well hidden that Camp Wau-Wau girls had scores of times passed over the cave without suspecting its existence.