meanwhile the other boys, having disposed of their lunch, and hearing nothing from joe and david, became more anxious, and set off for the lighthouse.
there they learned from mrs. kramer that john had reported walter and ned surrounded by the tide, and that the boat was to be launched to go to the rescue.
in great excitement the crowd of boys rushed down over the rocks to the place where the men had just pushed off in their boat.
there were two pairs of oars and two strong boat-hooks in the skiff, and the three men were ready to do all they could for the castaways.
the boat was soon out of sight beyond the spur of the cliff that helped to form the trap in which walter and ned were caught, and the crowd rushed back to their lunch-place, to see if they could get a glimpse of the boat there; but another spur, around which the boys had gone to hide, shut off the view.
when they reached their fishing-ground, they found, to their disgust, that the tide had risen over much of their lunch, and had carried off many of their nice, jointed rods, that were still floating provokingly near, but just out of reach.
the baskets had been tipped over by the waves, spilling all the fine fish they had caught in the morning.
"did you ever see such luck?" cried clifford davis--"everything at sixes and sevens."
"this is the result of too much freedom, eh?" asked don.
"that's so, don," said joe. "i wish we were all safe out of this scrape."
some of the boys had taken the precaution to throw their rods well up on the rocks, and with these they tried to rescue the floating baskets and rods, but with a limited success; only a few could be recovered.
it was a great temptation to joe and dave, knowing of the look-out on the edge of the cliff and yet keeping away from it; but they understood too well the risk that would be run by a crowd of careless, venturesome boys, who would never believe that they could come to harm by just looking over the edge of the cliff, however steep it might be.
the time seemed very long as they waited for mr. kramer's return, or some tidings from the missing boys.
"pretty near high tide," exclaimed joe soberly, as he held his watch for dave to see.
"the boat is around there by this time, and the question is now whether they are to be taken off that way or left to wait for the tide to get as low as it was when they dodged around that place."
"why, isn't mr. kramer going to take them off anyway?" asked lewis germaine.
"not if he finds they are safe without it. he won't risk his boat in there if they can be saved any other way. the water rushes in there like a mill-race, and sweeps out again the same way."
"then we may have to wait two or three hours yet before we can see the boys!" exclaimed don.
"yes," said joe, "all that time."
he presently whispered to david, "i can't stand it, boy. you stay here, so the others won't suspect. i am going to look, if i can steal off without their knowing it. don't you say that i'm gone."
"all right," said dave. "get back as quick as you can."
joe began skipping stones lazily, and, moving slowly away from the rest of the party, disappeared behind some rocks, beyond which he dropped suddenly, and crept on hands and knees up the bank where the bushes were thickest.
once out of sight of his companions, he arose and hurried out to the point on the cliff overlooking the prison-house of his two friends. there he crept carefully to the edge and looked over.
"good! they are safe, and there's the boat."
"how are you there? all right?" he heard the mate of the wrecked vessel shout.
"all right! no, sir--not by a good deal. the water is still coming up," shouted walter.
as the boat was pulled within speaking distance the frightened boys became more and more alarmed, it plunged about so wildly on the rough water; and they thought, perilous as their position was, it was preferable to a change to the boat.
"we'll drown getting into that skiff, walt," said ned, paler than ever at the dilemma.
"yes, if there is any chance here, i would rather stay till the tide goes down; wouldn't you?"
"yes, i would."
"say, mr. kramer, just lie off there, and wait; perhaps the water won't come up here."
"that's just what i'm doing. you don't catch me risk my boat in there unless you are ready to go under."
"when is it high tide?" shouted walter.
"five minutes before twelve."
walter looked at his watch eagerly. "i believe it won't reach us, ned. it is ten minutes off high now, and unless the last few waves are extra high we will have a standing-place in this cleft in the rock."
ten minutes dragged slowly away, and the angry waves had not reached them. they waited a little longer, to be sure, and then cried joyfully, "it is twelve o'clock and after, and we are all right."
"good! then all you've got to do is to wait, and learn wisdom against another time. the tide will be down low enough to let you out of that trap in about two hours and a half, or three, at most."
the boys groaned, and then ned said dolefully, "we'll starve to death. i didn't know i was hungry until the danger was over."
"you'll be hungrier before you get off," shouted the hard-hearted kramer, laughing provokingly.--"a good lesson for the young scamps. it seems they made a fuss about having a teacher go along with 'em to look after them, so the head man, mr. bernard, let 'em off alone to-day. that little chap, joe, he owned they'd got enough of it."
"i'll lower them something with a line when we get ashore," said the mate, glancing up at the perpendicular face of the cliff. "it isn't long ago that i was wrecked myself and wanted help."
joe had seen enough to gladden his heart as he lay looking over the edge of his high perch. the boys were safe at high tide, and the boat was coming back without them, so he went back toward his companions, and when within hailing distance, cried, "come on, boys; let's go over to the boat-landing, and wait till mr. kramer gets back."
the boys were ready for anything that would help to pass away the time, and they rushed away in time to see the boat rounding the rocky point that had hidden it from view.
"whew! there they come, but no walt or ned," exclaimed cliff davis.
"what did you find out, joe?" whispered david, locking arms with his friend.
"the boys are all right: the water won't come any higher. but won't it seem a long time before they get back?"
when the boat reached the landing the mate called cheerily, "boys, your messmates are all right, but very hungry; have you got any dinner with you?"
"yes; we saved some for them, but the tide carried off a lot."
"well, bring it along, and i'll get a line and lower it to them."
"hurrah for you, sir!" shouted the boys. "oh how glad they'll be!"
joe and dave ran for the lunch, while john scampered to the house for a long line.
going out on the cliff, the mate tied the basket to the line, and prepared to drop it over.
"stand back," he shouted, as the boys crowded forward. "i shan't do it unless you all stand back."
"are they down there? can you see them?" asked the boys eagerly.
"yes, i see them."
"my! just think, we might have been here watching them just as well as not," exclaimed lewis.
joe and dave exchanged wise glances at this, and mr. kramer said, "lucky you didn't know it, for a crowd of you boys jiggling and pushing and fooling, as boys do, would have gone over. stand back there!"
"hullo, below!" shouted the mate. "here's some food for you."
walter and ned, looking up, saw the basket slowly descending, and the boys listening heard a faint cheer above the roar of the sea.
"got it?"
"yes, all right!" shouted walter, taking the basket from the line.
"there! that's all i can do for them," said the mate, reeling in the line. "now, boys, i'll give you some advice for nothing: go back to a safer place, and wait for your friends. they will be prisoners for over two hours yet, and if you stay here some of the rest of you will be pretty likely to tumble over to keep them company; only i reckon your company wouldn't be good for much after you got down there."
"all right, sir," said joe, glad to have some one speak authoritatively.--"come on, boys! let's go back and lie around on the rocks and tell stories."
"agreed, if you will be the teller," cried several, knowing that he had robinson crusoe and the arabian nights at his tongue's end.
away went the crowd back to the fishing-place; and mr. kramer and the other two men returned to the lighthouse.
