Forthe first time in his life, Bob had deceived his mother, and, as may be imagined, he did not feel very happy over it. His first thought was to get as far away from her as possible; and with this determination he bent his steps toward the wharf, where he sat down to think the matter over. He had never been taught to measure every act of his life by a moral standard, but, heretofore, when any thing had been proposed to him, he had always asked himself the question: Is it honorable and manly, or is it mean and cowardly? This test was applied to the matter in hand, and Bob was, of course, compelled to decide that he had been guilty of an act with which he would not like to have every one in the world acquainted. He knew that he ought to pay the five dollars to Mr. Graves, or, what would have been still better, take it back to his mother, make a clean breast of the whole matter, and be governed by her advice. Once he even got up from the coil of rope on which he was sitting, and started off as if he had resolved to follow this course of conduct; but he had made scarcely half a dozen steps before some of Tom's arguments flashed through his mind. He stopped, hesitated, and finally returned to his seat.
We believe that all boys are more or less inclined to build air-castles. They love to go off alone where there will be no one to disturb them, and spend hour after hour picturing to themselves innumerable pleasant things that will be sure to happen if some of their pet schemes can only be carried out. Some boys keep these dreamings to themselves, while others, like Tom Newcombe, can not rest easy until they have communicated them to some of their particular friends; and when there is one such boy in a neighborhood he sometimes does a great deal of mischief. Tom, for instance, had completely upset the fisher-boy. We know what good resolutions Bob made while he was sailing home from his fishing-grounds, on the previous day, and, no doubt, he would have held to them, if he could have avoided that unfortunate interview with Tom Newcombe. But he had listened to his arguments, been carried away by his eloquence, doubted at first, then believed, and finally ended by becoming as certain of success as was Tom himself. This led him to take two steps in the wrong direction. He had gone in debt for a boat, when he knew all the time that his mother would not approve of it, and then, by leading her to believe that he wanted to pay part of the money down, he had got the five dollars to invest in the lottery. It was no wonder his conscience troubled him. It kept him in a very unpleasant frame of mind, and the arguments he made use of to pacify it ought to have made him ashamed of himself.
"I didn't tell mother that I was honestly and truly going to pay this money to Mr. Graves," said the fisher-boy to himself. "I only said thatifI paid some on the boat now, I wouldn't have so much to pay by and by.Wasn't that the truth? Of course it was. I never told a lie in my life, and I never will. I'm in a bad fix," he added, rising to his feet, and walking up and down the wharf, "and this is the only way I can see to get out of it. I must save fifty-six dollars before I can go to sea—twenty-six to pay for my boat, and thirty to support the family while I am gone; and, at the rate I have been making money for the last year, I never will be able to lay by half that sum. I'll have to be a fisherman as long as I live, if I can't find other ways to make something. Now, here's a chance for me to get rich; and wouldn't I be foolish to throw it away? If it fails—but Tom says it can't, and I believe it—I shall be only five dollars out of pocket, and not much worse off than I am now. If it succeeds, and I get half of the five thousand dollars, what can I not do with it? I'll pay for my boat at once; then I'll buy mother a nice house; I'll get some good clothes for myself; I'll send my brothers to school—perhaps the military academy would be the best place for them—then I'll be off to sea. I'll do it; that's settled. I'll find Tom and give him this money before I am five minutes older."
Without stopping to reconsider the matter, the fisher-boy started on a keen run down the wharf, and presently found himself at the door of Mr. Newcombe's office. Tom was seated in his father's arm-chair, his feet upon the desk, a newspaper in his hand, and a pen behind his ear. He happened to be looking out the door as Bob came up, and throwing down his paper, he hurried out to meet him.
"Let's hear what you've got to say!" said he, in a whisper. "Yes or no!"
"Yes," replied the fisher-boy. "Here's the money."
"Hurrah for you," exclaimed Tom, as he took the bills. "Our fortune's made, sure enough;" and catching Bob by the arm, he danced him about the wharf as if he had suddenly lost his wits.
"I knew you wouldn't let this splendid chance slip through your fingers!" he continued, leading the fisher-boy off on one side, so that they might converse without fear of being overheard. "When the money comes I'll divide with you honestly. You are not afraid to trust me?"
"O no!" was the reply. "But are yousurethose men will send you that prize?" (The fisher-boy knew what Tom's answer would be. All he wanted was encouragement.)
"Certainty I am!" said Tom, emphatically. "If I didn't know it, do you suppose I would risk my money in it? Didn't they make the offer themselves, and don't they say that they have agents in every civilized country on the globe? Do you suppose that men known all over the world as they are would dare cheat any body? You need not be afraid. They are business men. I know that, because this letter-paper is printed, just like father's; and they will not injure their reputation by making false promises. They have too much at stake. I knew you would give me a favorable answer, and so I wrote to them."
As Tom spoke he pulled a letter out of his pocket and handed it to the fisher-boy.
It conveyed to E. H. Harris and Company the information that Tom was perfectly willing to act as their agent, and that if they would keep their promise, andsend him the five thousand dollars, he would show it to every man, woman, and child in Newport. He told them that they would find him to be the most faithful and obliging man in their employ. (Tom saidman, because he was afraid the gentlemen might withdraw their offer, if they should learn that he was only a boy fifteen years of age.) He further informed them, that he was clerk in the largest commission house in the village, and that he was well enough acquainted with business to know that an agent could not hope to secure customers, unless he was very polite and accommodating; consequently, they might rest assured that he would always treat their patrons with the greatest kindness. All this, and a great deal more, did Tom say to the proprietors of the lottery; but his letter, besides being pretty well mixed up, was so badly written and spelled that it is doubtful if the men to whom it was addressed ever got at the sense of it.
When the fisher-boy had finished reading the letter he handed it back to Tom, who placed it in an envelope along with the ten dollars—five of his own money, and the five Bob had brought him—and carefully sealed it, saying as he did so, "You see that I put the money in the letter, don't you? Now, come with me to the post-office."
The fisher-boy would have been willing to entrust the business entirely in Tom's hands; but, to satisfy him, he saw the letter dropped into the box, and then took leave of his companion, who hurried back to the office. He found very little to be done there, and after loitering about for half an hour, put on his cap and went out again.
He was highly elated at the success of his plans thus far, and he found it exceedingly difficult to control himself. Sometimes he was tempted to hunt up some of his acquaintances and reveal to them his secret; but he could not forget that they had turned him out of the society of Night-hawks, without giving him an opportunity to say a word in his defense, and refused him admittance into their new organization. In his estimation, these were offenses that ought not to be forgiven. "I told them I would make them sorry for that," said he to himself, "and I wasn't joking. The Storm King will be just the thing for fishing parties and moonlight excursions, but not one of those fellows shall ever put a foot on her deck, until they are willing to apologize for what they have done. I heard one of them say that they would like to visit Block Island and rob some of the melon patches over there, if they only had a boat. Now, perhaps, when they see the Storm King, they will want her! They sha'n't have her; they may look somewhere else for a boat! Won't they be surprised when they learn that I am the captain and owner of the finest little craft in the village? How they will all envy me! That's the way I shall get even with them."
Tom laughed outright as these thoughts passed through his mind, and thrusting his hands into his pockets, he started off with a "hop, skip, and a jump," and finally turned down the street that led to Mr. Graves's boat-yard. He found the proprietor in his office, and, hardly waiting to return his polite greeting, Tom seated himself in the nearest chair, and began business at once.
"Mr. Graves," said he, "you built the Swallow, I believe! What did she cost?"
"Two hundred and fifty dollars!" was the answer.
"Then I suppose the boat I want will cost at least a hundred dollars more?" said Tom.
"That, of course, depends upon circumstances," replied Mr. Graves, who was not at all surprised at these questions, for this was not the first time Tom had talked with him on this same subject. "If you want a vessel finished off in first-class style, with a nice little cabin, two state-rooms finely furnished, a galley forward, with stove and every thing complete, and bunks for three or four hands—in short, a magnificent little yacht—"
"That's just it!" exclaimed Tom, excited by his description. "That's what I want!"
"I know it," said Mr. Graves, "for you and I have talked this matter over before. I suppose your father has at last given you permission to build a boat of this kind?"
"Now, never mind my father," said Tom, impatiently. "Isn't it enough for you to know that your money will be ready the moment the boat is finished? What will a craft like that cost?"
Mr. Graves looked intently at the floor for a moment, stroked his whiskers, and replied: "Four hundred dollars!"
"Whew!" exclaimed Tom. "That's rather steep, I should say. However, I must have a vessel, and I don't care what she costs. Now listen to me! In the first place, I want this boat called the Storm King. She must be sloop-rigged, carrying as much canvas as can safely be put on her. Her hull must be painted black on the outside, and the cabin must be finished off with black walnut, and supplied with the finest kind of furniture;and, last of all, she must be warranted to beat every vessel of her size about the village."
"Exactly!" exclaimed Mr. Graves, who, believing that he had got a paying customer this time, listened attentively to all Tom had to say.
"And remember, also," continued Tom, "that I want her finished as soon as possible—the sooner the better. As I told you before, your money will be ready the moment I accept the vessel. If she doesn't suit me, I shall not take her."
"Of course not!" said the boat-builder. "But what are you going to do with her, Tom?"
"I'm going to be a trader. I expect soon to make my fortune."
"Certainly you will! What's to prevent it, I'd like to know? A boat of that description would make any man independently rich. I have a strong force," added Mr. Graves, as Tom arose to go, "and I'll promise to have her finished alow and aloft in fine style, by three weeks from to-day. Will that suit you?"
Tom replied that it would. He then took leave of the boat-builder, who, true to his promise, called in one of his workmen, and gave him some instructions in regard to building the sloop, which he intended should be the finest little vessel that had ever been launched at his yard. He had not the slightest suspicion that every thing was not just as it should be, for Tom had more than once assured him that some day he would gain his father's consent to a certain little plan, and that then he wanted a boat that would throw all the other yachts about the village completely into the shade. The boat-builder never imagined that Tom would dareenter into such an agreement without the permission of Mr. Newcombe, for what could a boy of his age do to earn four hundred dollars in three weeks? But then Mr. Graves knew nothing about the lottery.
Meanwhile the fisher-boy was loitering about the wharf, scarcely knowing what to do with himself. If the loss of the Go Ahead had occurred two days before, Bob would not have been long in deciding how he ought to pass the time away, for he would have employed himself in doing odd jobs about the village, and thus earned a few dimes to increase his little fortune. But now, he had no idea of doing any thing of the sort; for when Mr. Henry asked him if he did not want to earn a quarter of a dollar, by carrying in a cord of wood, that was piled on the wharf at the back of the store, Bob replied that he did not, that he was not looking for work. It is true he regretted his decision a moment afterward, but then it was too late, for Mr. Henry had hired some one else.
"Never mind," said the fisher-boy to himself. "I haven't lost much. Twenty-five cents for two hours' hard work is small pay. I've seen the day that I would have been glad to take all such jobs, but I'm better off in the world now; at least I soon will be."
All that forenoon, Bob walked up and down the wharf, watching the men at work about him, wishing that five o'clock would come, so that he might take possession of his new boat, and all the while wondering why it was that he was so miserable, while every one around him seemed to be so supremely happy. Again and again did he try to silence his conscience by saying to himself that his mother would never know any thing about the deception of which he had been guilty. Tom's plan would certainlysucceed, and when he had his twenty-five hundred dollars in his pocket, he would pay for his boat, and then he would never go in debt or deceive his mother again. But these promises of better behavior in future did not quiet his feelings, for, in spite of all he could do to prevent it, the knowledge of the fact that he had abused the confidence his mother had reposed in him, would force itself upon his mind, and when twelve o'clock came the fisher-boy had become so thoroughly disgusted with himself that he did not want to go home to his dinner. He felt like an outlaw; and he could almost bring himself to believe that, if he should make his appearance at the door of his home, he would be refused admittance. But, knowing that if he remained away all day it would occasion surprise, and might arouse suspicion, the fisher-boy endeavored to dismiss all his unpleasant thoughts, tried hard to assume a cheerful look, and rather reluctantly started for home. To his surprise, he found that the cloud had vanished from his mother's face, and that she appeared to be as happy and contented as ever. She made no allusions to any thing that had transpired that morning, and Bob began to gain courage.