police so long in coming? he asked himself. He had
expected them at the island in two hours at the most, and still they
were nowhere in sight. He was getting very impatient sitting there,
keeping the captives under such strict guard. He determined to have
something to say later about the slowness of the police. He would
write an article for the paper, that was what he would do. If that was
the way they always acted, was it any wonder that crimes were so
frequent?

Another hour passed, and when the captain's patience was strained to
the utmost, a large motor-boat suddenly rounded the lower end of the
island, and slowed up right in front of where the capture had taken
place. A number of men were on board, who looked curiously upon the
strange scene before them.

An officer, with several of his men, came ashore, when the two robbers
were at once hand-cuffed, and hustled on board the boat. Rod now
brought down their clothes, which were thoroughly searched, and
everything taken from the pockets.

"It took yez a mighty long time to come from the city," Captain Josh at
length blurted out.

"It was the fog which delayed us," the officer explained. "We couldn't
see a foot ahead of us."

"H'm, so that was the trouble," and the captain gave a grunt of
disgust. "Why didn't ye bring some one along who knows the river?
I've been holdin' them chaps down fer three solid hours. I guess the
lad here and me have earned our money this time all right."

"What money?" the officer sharply asked.

"The reward, of course; the hundred dollars offered fer the capture of
them chaps."

"Oh, we'll look after that," was the nettled reply.

"Ye will, will ye? I guess ye'll git up earlier than ye did this
mornin' if ye do. I'll stand by my scouts, and don't let me catch ye
tryin' any tricks on me. There, ye'd better git off now, fer I want to
go home. Take good care that them chaps don't git away. Come, Rod,
let's be off."

CHAPTER XXII

A NEW ADVENTURE

There was considerable excitement in Hillcrest over the capture of the
two robbers. Never before had such a thing happened in their quiet
community, and it formed a choice subject of conversation for many
weeks. The city papers made much of it, and commended Captain Josh and
the scouts upon what they had done. One morning paper which was very
favourable to the Scout movement, had a special editorial on the
subject, under the heading of "The Lone Patrol." It poi