Читать книгу The Secret Chart; or, Treasure Hunting in Hayti онлайн

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“What do you mean?” Gil asked, in astonishment, and in reply his father held up a small piece of brown paper.

“This was what we found wrapped in a tarred cloth, with a bit of red flannel to attract attention. The cord was a piece of gut, which has swelled until the messenger choked to death.”

Gil took the paper almost reverentially, and, as Nelse looked over his shoulder, read the following:

Shipwrecked men on Walker Key at the northern slope of Little Bahama Banks, dying from thirst.

This message from the sea, brought by a bird, and discovered only by the merest chance, caused the boys the most intense astonishment, and Gil asked, breathlessly:

“Do you believe it can be true, father?”

“People do not do such things for sport. It must have cost them considerable labor and ingenuity to catch this gull, and if they are yet alive, we’ll soon relieve their sufferings.”

“Are you heading for there now?”

“Yes, and it is very nearly a true course for us. We had only to shift the helm a couple of points.”