"Precisely so, and we will provide for that doubt on their part. Now we will set that reefed foresail, and run down a little nearer to the point. The water will float this vessel a hundred feet from the shore," continued Dory with energy. The foresail was hoisted, and the anchor weighed. Dory steered to a certain part of the point, near the outer extremity of it. Both of them kept a sharp lookout for the two robbers on the shore, but nothing was seen or heard of them. The La Motte was run as near the shore as it was prudent to take her; and when she was thrown up into the wind, the machinist let go the anchor, while Dory hastened to lower the sail. The wind was fresh, and the sea was heavy; but the schooner did not bump on the bottom, though she was inside of a hundred feet from the shore. Dory found the lead and line, and directed the machinist to sound over the stern when the vessel had brought up to her cable. As he did so, Dory let off the cable, allowing the schooner to approach still nearer to the shore. When he secured the cable, the stern was hardly more than fifty feet from the land. There was a rather heavy surf rolling up on the abrupt beach, but it was nothing compared with that in which the party had been involved at an earlier hour in the morning. The machinist went below to look at the prisoners, and found them fast asleep still. Probably they had been up all night, besides being charged with beer; and they were not likely to give their captors any trouble. Dory had carried the painter of the tender to the stern of the schooner; and, as it was a long rope, the boat was held half way between the vessel and the shore. There was nothing more for the captors to do at present; and they seated themselves under the bulwarks, where they could not be seen from the shore, though they kept a sharp lookout in the direction of the place where Mack and Chuck had landed. They had been in this position for half an hour, when they discovered the two robbers on the beach. They shouted several times to the La Motte, but no notice was taken of them. Dory cast off the painter of the tender, and let it drop into the water. CHAPTER XVII. THE STANDING-RIGGING OF A SLOOP. The picture of a sloop Thad Glovering produced on board of the Goldwing was a drawing which the skipper had hastily made just before he went on board of the boat. He passed it to Ash Burton, who knew more about a boat than any other student of the party. But all of them wanted to look at it, and they had nearly fallen overboard in their eagerness to get a sight of it. "Hold up, fellows!" called Thad, taking the picture from Ash. "Do you want to make a bear-garden of the standing-room of the Goldwing? Not much! You will all get a chance to see it without upsetting the boat."