"But mightn't it just have been snagged or shoaled up above, and
finally worked loose?"

"Sure, I know that. But I know the boat was drifting about as fast
as we were walking, and that being the case, she must have cleared
Lost Island just about three minutes after we talked with that man!"

"You're getting excited, Jerry--over nothing."

"Nothing! You call the water that was _baled_ out of the boat
nothing. It _was_ baled out, I tell you. And look at that rope--it
was _cut_ loose. Somebody was in too big a hurry to untie knots,
that's my guess."

"But, Jerry, what in the world are you driving at, anyway!"

"I don't know. Something about the way that man back there on Lost
Island acted set me thinking away in the back of my head. I didn't
realize what it was that was going on in my cranium until I noticed
this cut rope and say!" Jerry's voice rose in high excitement.
"_Dave!_ Dave--do you remember? The _bucket!_"

Dave only stared at his friend in bewilderment. "Wha--what bucket?"
he at last managed to gasp.

"You remember last week when we were out, and the storm caught us
and pretty nearly swamped the boat? Tod said he'd bet we'd never be
caught without a bailing can again--and he put a lard pail on a snap
hook under the back seat. It's gone!"