don't think so."

"Can they be from the _Josephine_?" asked Sam.

"That remains to be seen."

"If they are from the _Josephine_ what shall we do?"

"I think the best thing we can do is to keep out of sight and watch
them."

"But they may locate the cave and take the treasure away," said Tom.

"We have got to run that risk--unless we want to fight them."

"Oh, if only we could get our crowd here to help us!" murmured Sam.

"We may be mistaken and they may be strangers to us. Come, let us
hide."

Losing no time, the three Rover boys stepped into the bushes beside the
trail. As they did so the other party came closer, and the lads saw
that they carried not only an acetylene gas lamp, but also a ship's
lantern and several other things. The party was made up of Sid Merrick,
Tad Sobber, Cuffer and Shelley.

"It's mighty rough walking here," they heard Tad Sobber complain. "I've
got a thorn right through my shoe. Wait till I pull it out, will you?"
And he came to a halt not over ten yards from where the Rover boys were
hidden.

"You didn't have to come, Tad," said his uncle, somewhat harshly. "I
told you to suit yourself."

"Oh, I want to see that treasure cave as well as you do," answered
Sobber.

"I'd like to know if this is the right trail or not," came from
Shelley. "You ought to have brought that Spaniard along, to make sure."

"Doranez is no good!" growled Sid Merrick, who was by no means in the
best of humor. "He likes his bottle too well. If he would only keep
sober it would be different."

"Why don't you take his liquor from him?" asked Cuffer. "I'd do it
quick enough if I was running this thing."

"He says he won't tell us a thing more if we cut off his grog. He is
getting mighty ugly."

"Maybe he wants to sell out to those Rovers," suggested Shelley.

"He wouldn't dare to do that--I know too much about him," answered Sid
Merrick. "No, it's because he wants too big a share of the treasure."

"Do you suppose the fellows on the steam yacht have landed here yet?"
asked Tad, as he prepared to go on.

"I don't know. They are laying-to outside of the reef. I reckon they
don't know anything of the landing on the other side of the island,"
answered his uncle. "Come on, we haven't any time to waste if we want
to head them off. I didn't dream they'd get here so quickly."

"I guess that fellow Wingate was no good," came from Cuffer. "He didn't
delay the steam yacht in the least."

"Maybe he got cau