e
I'm on guard. I'm tired of this."

"It must be getting on into the shank of the evening--I see the moon.
What is the hour?" asked Jack from the forward deck.

As if in answer to his query the marine clock chimed two bells.

"Two bells," called Harry. "Nine o'clock for landsmen."

"We'd better be getting over to the fort if we're going," urged Arnold.
"We should not wait around here all night."

"Wait a minute," advised Jack. "I think we'd better deliver to Mr.
Harrison the bundle of dynamite we found aboard the Fortuna at
Pascagoula. We don't want it aboard here and we have no safe place to
put it. He'll know what to do with it, won't you, Mr. Harrison? You
understand these things better than we."

"If I had my way, I'd touch it off in the bay here so it would be out of
harm's way," declared Harrison stoutly.

"But we have no fuse," objected Jack. "If we just drop it overboard the
stuff may cause damage later on. I don't know what to do."

"Let's get a fuse and cap somewhere and take the stuff over to the
fort," suggested Harry. "We can find this place shown on the map where
the treasure lies and dig a ways into the sand, plant the 'soup' and
blow a hole big enough to take out a wagon load of treasure. That's the
best way to get rid of it."

"Let's put it to a vote," suggested Jack. "All in favor say--"

A chorus of "ayes" carried the point. The boys were in favor of anything
that savored of excitement. Their experience with the outlaws for the
past few days had so nerved them up that any adventure would have been
welcomed. The prospect of finding the treasure lent added zeal to the
proposed journey across the bay.

"We'll need a shovel or two anyway," said Frank as the boys hastened to
make ready for the trip. "Where can we get the tools?"

"Sure enough," cried Tom. "I hadn't thought of that before. I would have
been just foolish enough to go on over there and not take a shovel with
me at all. There's an exhibition of brains for you."

"I guess you were no worse off than any of the others," Harry declared.
"We were all in a hurry to get started."

"Will Doright and Carlos go with us?" inquired Tom.

"We may need them," Jack replied. "Do you want to go, Carlos?"

"Maybe I wouldn't be of any help," Carlos ventured hesitatingly. It was
evident that he felt timid about joining with the others.

"You'd be the best kind of help," stoutly asserted Arnold, pushing Rowdy
towards the negro. "Take him, Rowdy