Pee-wee was a young dictionary--pocket size.

Pretty soon we reached the house and, good night, it wasn't any house
at all; it was a house boat. And I could see the fixtures for a wireless
on it, only the wires had been taken down.

Then Mr. Donnelle said, "Boys," he said, "this is my old workshop and I
have spent many happy hours in it. But I don't use it any more and if
you boys think you could all pile into it, why you are welcome to it for
the summer. It has no power, but perhaps you could tow it behind your
launch. Anyway you may charter it for the large sum of nothing at all,
as a reward for foiling a spy."

"I--I kind of knew you were not a spy all the time," said Pee-wee.

Well, I was so flabbergasted that I just couldn't speak and even Pee-wee
was struck dumb. We just gaped like a couple of idiots, and after a while
I said, "Cracky, it's too good to be true."

"So you see what comes from collecting books for soldiers and for keeping
your eyes open," Mr. Donnelle said; "you have caught a bigger fish than
you thought. N ow suppose I show you through the inside."

Now here is the place where the plot begins to get thicker and, believe
me, in four or five chapters it will be as thick as mud. We were just
coming up to the house-boat to go aboard it, when suddenly the door flew
open and a fellow scampered across the deck and ran away.

I could see that he had pretty shabby clothes and a peaked cap and I
guess he was startled to hear us coming. In just a few seconds he was