as
thrust into his ribs. Without opening his eyes, he muttered, "You quit
that, or I'll get up and pound you," and immediately dropped asleep
again. Somebody then kicked him so sharply that he roused himself up,
and, opening his eyes, was dazzled by the gleam of a bull's-eye lantern.
He could not at first imagine where he was; but as he presently found
that a big policeman had him by the collar, and was calling him "an
impudent young thief," he began to imagine that something was wrong.

"I've got you this time," said the policeman, "and the whole gang of
you. Where did you steal that property in your boat from, you precious
young river pirate?"

"We're not river pirates," replied Tom. "We're Moral Pirates, and we
brought those things in the boat with us from New York."

"Well, I like your cheek!" said the officer; "owning up that you're
pirates. Now just you and your gang take everything out of that boat and
let me see what you've got. If any of you try to escape, I'll put a
bullet into you. You hear me?"

The other boys had been awakened by the loud voice of the policeman, and
were staring at him in utter astonishment.

"He thinks we're river thieves," said Tom. "Harry, we'll have to show
him what we've got in the boat, and then he'll see his mistake."

Harry eagerly assured the policeman that they had come from New York on
a pleasure cruise, and had nothing in the boat except provisions and
stores. "That's a pretty story," said the officer. "You can tell that to
the court. Your boat's full of junk that you've stolen from somewhere;
and you'd better hand it out mighty quick."

The boys were thus compelled to unload their boat, while the policeman
stood over them with his club in one hand and his lantern in the other.
He was not a stupid man, and he soon perceived that the boys had told
him the truth; they were not the gang of river thieves for whom he had
mistaken them. He therefore apologized, in a rough way, and even helped
the boys repack the boat.

"What I can't understand," said he, "is why you boys come here and sleep
in a lumber-yard, when you might be sleeping at home in your beds. Now
if you were thieves, you couldn't get any better lodgings, you know; but
you're gentlemen's sons, and you ought to know better. Why don't you go
down to the hotel, and live like gentlemen? Where's the fun in being
arrested, and taking up my valuable time?"

The boys assured him that they had never enjoyed themselves mo