."

"And they'd have done it, too, if it hadn't been for you, Dolly! I don't
see how you ever thought of it, and how you were brave enough to do what
you did when you did think of it."

"Oh, pshaw, Bessie--it was easy! I knew enough about yachts to
understand that if their screw was twisted up with rope it wouldn't
turn, and that would keep them there for a little while, anyhow. And
they never seemed to think of that possibility at all. So I swam out
there, and, of course, I could dive and stay down for a few seconds at a
time. It was easier, because I had something to hold on to."

"It was mighty clever, and mighty plucky of you, too, Dolly."

"There was only one thing I regretted, Bessie. I wish I'd been able to
hear what they said when they found out they couldn't get away!"

"I wish you'd been there, too, Dolly," said Bessie, laughing. "They were
perfectly furious, and everyone on board blamed everyone else. It took
them quite a while to find out what was the matter, and then even after
they found out, it meant a long delay before they could clear the screw
and get moving."

"I never was so glad of anything in my life, Bessie, as when we saw the
men from Bay City coming while that yacht was still here! We kept
watching it all the time, of course, and we saw them send the sailor
over to dive down and find out what was wrong. Then we could see him
going down and coming up, time after time, and it seemed as if he would
get it done in time."

"It must have been exciting, Dolly."

"I guess it was just as exciting for you, wasn't it? But it would have
been dreadful if, after having held them so long, it hadn't been quite
long enough."

"Well, it _was_ long enough, Dolly, thanks to you! I hate to think
of where I would be now if you hadn't managed it so cleverly."

"What will they do to those men on the yacht, do you suppose?"

"I don't know. Miss Eleanor wants to prove that it was Mr. Holmes who
got them to do it, I think. But that won't be decided until her cousin,
Mr. Jamieson, the lawyer, comes. He'll know what we'd better do, and I'm
sure Miss Eleanor will leave it to him to decide."

"I tell you one thing, Bessie. This sort of persecution of you and Zara
has got to be stopped. I really do believe they've gone too far this
time. Of course, if they had got you away, they'd have been all right,
because in that other state where you two came from what they did was
all right. But they got caught at it. I cer