“The men have gone, and I don’t know where,” I replied. “It’s a long story. Did you bring any one with you?” “Yes; here is Pointer, and Captain Harley from Bayport.” “I’ve found him!” he called. And the next instant the Bend constable and the Bayport captain of police appeared upon the scene. I told my story in all its details. It was listened to with close attention, and all joined in asking me a great number of questions. “We have lost much time in hunting you up,” said Pointer. “Those fellows have had the chance of a fine start.” “Have you any idea which way they headed?” asked Captain Harley. “Which way is the wind?” “North-east,” replied Ford. “Then that’s the way they went. Their one idea was to reach shore as soon as possible, and that’s the way to do it.” “I believe that you are right, Reuben,” responded Pointer. “I move we get aboard of the Mary, and steer in that direction.” “I agree,” said Captain Harley. Ford led the way at once to the cove in which the boat lay at anchor. The sail was hoisted, and a quarter of an hour after the party had found me we were on the move. “The question now is, which way did they go?” said Ford, as he took the tiller. “Did they steer for Hammer’s Point or Loadhead?” “One is as near as another,” said Pointer. “My idea is that they steered for some point between the two places,” I ventured to suggest. “They knew better than to sail right for any town on the lake; for the news has spread, and they would be likely to be captured as soon as they set foot on shore.” “That’s so,” said Captain Harley. “Most likely they landed in the woods, and came into town by a back way.” “I advise that we look for the boat at a point equally distant from both places,” I went on. “If we can find the craft, we may get on the trail at once.” This was deemed the best thing to do, and Ford changed the course accordingly. “Perhaps they didn’t go to any town at all, but struck the road for Chester,” said Pointer. “Of course they wish to get away as far as possible.” It took us all of an hour and a half to come within easy sight of the north-east shore of Rock Island Lake. We had hardly done so before Ford uttered a cry. “That is where they landed! See, there is the Catch Me now!” Everybody looked, and we saw that he was right; for there, in an inlet, was the sloop tied to a clump of bushes. In two minutes we had reached the spot, and jumped ashore. “Here are the marks of their feet,” said Pointer; “but see, they seem to spread out, as if the three of them separated.” “That was their intention,” I answered. “Most likely. It is rarely that criminals keep together after having committed a crime,” put in Captain Harley. “To hunt them down, we, too, will have to divide into three parties.” “Suppose I go to Hammer’s Point?” said the constable. “All right,” replied the captain. “I will go to Loadhead, while you, Stone and Ford, can keep a watch along the roads just beyond these woods.” “I am willing,” I said.