If possible the red-faced man got even more rosy than usual.  He fairly puffed up, he was so angry.

“Listen to that, will you, Snuffin!” he cried.  “Listen to that!  He says he blew his whistle to tell us he was going to turn in.”

“That’s what I did!” said Tom, calmly.

“Preposterous!  Did you hear it, Snuffin?” puffed the important man.

“Yes—­yes, I think I did, sir,” answered the machinist, in a hesitating voice.

“You did?  What!  You mean to tell me you heard their whistle?”

“Yes—­yes, sir!”

“Why—­why—­er—­I—­” the big man puffed and blew, but seemed to find no words in which to express himself.  “Snuffin, I’ll have a talk with you when we get home,” he finally said. most significantly.  “The idea of saying you heard a whistle blown!  There was nothing of the kind!  I shall make a complaint against these land-lubbers myself.  Do you know who they are, Snuffin?”

“Yes—­yes, sir,” was the answer, as the man glanced at Tom.  “At least I know one of them, sir.”

“Very good.  Give me his name.  I’ll attend to the rest.”

Tom looked at the big man sharply.  He had never seen him before, as far as he could recall.  As for the machinist, the young inventor had a dim recollection that once the man might have worked in his shop.

“Go ahead, Snuffin!” said the big man, mopping his face with a large silk handkerchief, which, even at that distance, gave out a powerful perfume.  “Go ahead, Snuffin, and we will settle this matter later,” and, adjusting a large rose in his buttonhole, the self-important individual took his place on the cushioned seat at the wheel, while the big red motor boat drew off down the river.

“Well, of all the nerve!” gasped Ned.  “Isn’t he the limit?”

“Never mind,” spoke Tom, with a little laugh.  “I’m sorry I lost my temper, and even bothered to answer him.  We’ll let the lawyers do the rest of the talking.  Take the wheel, Ned.”

“But are you going to let him get away like this, Tom?  Without asking him to pay for the damage to your boat, when he was clearly in the wrong?”

“Oh, I’ll ask him to pay all right; but I’ll do it the proper way.  Now come on.  If we stay here chinning much longer the Kilo will go down.  I must find out who he is.  I think I know Snuffin—­he used to work for me, I now recall.”

“Don’t you know who that big man is?” asked Ned, as he took the wheel, while Tom again started the motor.  The water was now almost up to the lower rim of the fly wheel.

“No; who is he?” asked Tom.

“Shallock Peters.”

“Well, I know as much as I did before,” laughed Tom.  “That doesn’t tell me anything.”

“Why, I thought everybody in the town knew Shallock Peters,” went on Ned.  “He tried to do some business with our bank, but was turned down.  I hear he’s gone to the other one, though.  He’s what we call a get-rich-quick schemer, Tom—­a promoter.”