In a few minutes the Antelope was heading towards the promontory; and soon she passed it, and advanced towards the shore.  On passing the promontory a sight appeared which at once attracted the whole attention of the boys.

Immediately in front of them, in the sheltered place which was formed by the promontory, was a little settlement, and on the bank of the river was a ship-yard.  Here there arose the stately outline of a large ship.  Her lower masts were in, she was decorated with flags and streamers, and a large crowd was assembled in the yard around her.

“There’s going to be a launch!” cried Bart, to whom a scene like this was familiar.

“A launch!” cried Bruce.  “Hurrah!  We’ll be able to see it.  I’ve never seen one in my life.  Now’s the time.”

“Can’t we get ashore?” said Arthur.

“Of course,” said Phil; “and perhaps they’ll let us go on board and be launched in her.”

The very mention of such a thing increased the general excitement.  Captain Corbet was at once appealed to.

“O, thar’s lots of time,” said he.  “Tain’t quite high tide yet.  You’ll have time to get ashore before she moves.  Hullo, Wade!  Whar’s that oar?”

The boys were all full of the wildest excitement, in the midst of which Solomon appeared with the announcement that breakfast was waiting.

To which Bart replied,—­

“O, bother breakfast!”

“I don’t want any,” said Bruce.

“I have no appetite,” said Arthur.

“Nor I,” said Pat.

“I want to be on board that ship,” said Phil.

“We can easily eat breakfast afterwards,” said Tom.

At this manifest neglect of his cooking, poor Solomon looked quite heart-broken; but Captain Corbet told him that he might bring the things ashore, and this in some measure assuaged his grief.

It did not take long to get ready.  The oar was flung on board the boat, which had thus far been floating behind the schooner; and though the boat had a little too much water on board to be comfortable, yet no complaints were made, and in a few minutes they were landed.

“How much time have we yet?” asked Bart, “before high tide?”

“O, you’ve got fifteen or twenty minutes,” said Captain Corbet.

“Hurrah, boys!  Come along,” said Bart; and leading the way, he went straight to the office.

As he approached it he uttered suddenly a cry of joy.

“What’s the matter, Bart?”

Bart said nothing, but hurried forward, and the astonished boys saw him shaking hands very vigorously with a gentleman who seemed like the chief man on the place.  He was an old acquaintance, evidently.  In a few minutes all was explained.  As the boys came up, Bart introduced them as his friends, and they were all warmly greeted; after which the gentleman said,—­

“Why, what a crowd of you there is!  Follow me, now.  There’s plenty of room for you, I imagine, in a ship of fifteen hundred tons; and you’ve just come in time.”