chapter 19 maggie and dick are annoyed

the boat in which maggie and dirty dick were rowing went this way and that as the two searchedfor the same objects that the children had already spotted. the four watched them, and george puther hand on timmy to stop him barking.

the boat came nearer and nearer. maggie was trying to keep in view two or three of the bearings atonce and her head twisted from side to side continually. the children grinned at one another. it hadbeen hard enough for the four of them to keep all the bearings in view - it must be very difficult formaggie, especially as dirty dick didn't seem to be helping very much.

they heard maggie give sharp orders as the boat swung this way and that. then it headed for them.

dirty dick growled something to maggie, who had her back to them, and she turned round 77sharply, losing the view of the things she was looking for.

her face was full of anger when she saw the raft so near - and in the place where she wanted her boatto go! afraid of completely losing the view of the things she was keeping her eyes on, she turnedback again and hastily looked to see if tock hill, tall stone and steeple were still all to be seentogether. she said something in a furious voice to dirty dick, and he nodded with a sour face.

the boat came nearer and they heard maggie say, 'i think i can see it now - yes - a bit farther to theright, please.'

'she's spotted one chimney now,' whispered anne. 'i expect they've got all the bearings. oh dear- the boat will bump right into us!'

it did! dirty dick rowed viciously at them and the bows of the boat gave them a terrific jolt.

anne would have fallen into the water if julian hadn't grabbed at her.

he yelled at dirty dick. 'look out, you ass! you nearly had us over! what on earth do you thinkyou're doing?'

'get out of the way then,' growled dirty dick. timmy began to bark savagely, and the boat at oncedrew away from the raft.

'there's plenty of room on this lake,' shouted julian. 'what do you want to come and disturb us for?

we aren't doing any harm.'

'we're going to report you to the police,' called the woman, her face red with anger. 'taking a raft thatdoesn't belong to you, sleeping in a house where you've no right to be - and stealing our food.'

'don't talk nonsense,' cried julian. 'and don't you dare to ram us again. if you do i'll send our dogafter you. he's longing to come.'

'grrrr!' said timmy, and showed his magnificent set of gleaming white teeth. dirty dick mutteredsomething quickly to maggie. she turned round again and called to them.

'now look here, you kids - be sensible. my friend and i have come down here for a quiet weekend,and it isn't nice to find you four everywhere we go. go back and keep out of our way and we won'treport you at all. that's a fair bargain - we won't even say anything about your stealing our food.'

'we're going back when we think we will,' answered julian. 'and no threats or bargains will makeany difference to us.'

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there was a silence. then maggie spoke hurriedly to dirty dick again. he nodded.

'is this your half-term?' she called. 'when do you have to go back?'

'tomorrow,' said julian. 'you'll be rid of us then. but we're going to enjoy ourselves on this raft whilewe can.'

there was another hurried conference between the two. then dirty dick rowed round a little, andmaggie began to peer down into the water. she suddenly looked up, nodded at dirty dick, and herowed away again towards the end of the lake! not another word did the couple say.

'i can see what they've decided to do,' said julian, in a pleased voice. 'they think we'll be gone bytomorrow, so they'll wait till the coast is clear and then they'll come and collect the loot in peace.

did you see maggie looking down into the water to spot the boat? i was afraid she would also spotour mark - the cork and the box! but she didn't.'

'i don't know why you sound so pleased,' said george. 'we can't get the boat up, you know that -and i don't feel pleased that we'll have to leave tomorrow and let that horrid pair collect the loot.

i imagine they'll have some clever grown-up way of pulling up the boat from the bed of the lake- which they will do when we've gone tomorrow.'

'you're not very bright today, george,' said julian, watching the boat being rowed farther and fartheraway. 'i told them we'd be gone tomorrow, hoping they would clear off and wait - and leave us timeto get the loot ourselves. i think we can!'

'how?' said three voices at once, and timmy looked inquiringly at julian too.

'well, we don't need to pull up the boat,' said julian. 'we only want the loot. what's to prevent usfrom going down and getting it? i'm quite prepared to strip and dive down to the bottom there andfeel about for any sack or bag or box. if i find one i'll come up for air, borrow a bit of rope from theraft and go down again - tie the rope to the sack and you can haul it up to the surface!'

'oh julian - it sounds so easy - but is it really?' said anne. george and dick considered the proposalcarefully. they were most impressed by julian's idea.

'well, it may turn out to be much more difficult than it sounds, but i'm jolly well going to try it,'

said julian, and began to strip off his jersey.

anne felt the water. it was very very cold to her warm hand. 'ugh! i'd hate to dive down to thebottom of this horrid cold dark lake,' she said. 'i think you're brave, ju.'

'don't talk rubbish!' said julian.

he was ready to go in now. he dived neatly into the water with hardly a splash. the other three 79craned over the edge of the raft to watch. they could see him down, deep down in the water, aghostly figure. he stayed down such a long time that anne got worried.

'he can't hold his breath all that time!' she said. 'he can't!'

but julian could. he was one of the star swimmers and divers at his school, and this was easy to him.

he came up again at last, and panted hard, trying to make up for holding his breath so long.

the others waited patiently. at last his breathing grew more even and he grinned at them.

'ah - that's better! well - it's there!' he said, triumphantly.

'is it!' said everyone, thrilled. 'oh julian!'

'yes. i dived right down to the boat - almost got there with the force of my dive - had to swim just acouple of strokes perhaps. and there was the poor old boat, rotting to bits. and in one end is awaterproof bag - almost a sack, it's so big. i ran my hands over it, and it's waterproof all right- so the loot must be packed in there.'

'did it feel heavy?' asked dick.

'i gave it a tug and couldn't move it,' said julian. 'either it's wedged in somehow or is really heavy.

anyway we can't fetch it out by diving down for it. i'll have to dive down again, fix a rope to it, thencome up - and we'll give a heave-ho and up she'll come!'

julian was shivering. anne picked up the blazer she had brought and gave it to him to dry himselfwith. dick looked hurriedly over the raft. there were certainly bits and pieces of rope sticking outhere and there; some of it half-rotten, and a short length was tucked into a space between two planksof the raft.

it was much too short though - and surely the other bits and pieces would never join to make a longenough rope?

'the bits of rope we've got won't do, julian,' said dick. julian was drying himself and lookingtowards the end of the lake, where two-trees stood. he was frowning. the others looked too.

the boat had reached the bank there, and had been pulled up. one of the couple, the children couldn'tsee which, was standing up on the bank - and something was glinting in the sun, something he or shewas holding!

'see that glint?' said julian. 'well, that's either maggie or dirty dick using field-glasses. they'regoing to keep an eye on us while we're here - just to make sure we don't suddenly spot the boat, isuppose! they don't guess we've already found it. i bet they were worried when they saw i'd taken aheader into the water just over the sunken boat!'

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'oh - so that's what the flash is,' said george. 'the glint of field-glasses! yes - they're watching us.

blow! that will put an end to us trying to haul up the loot, ju. they'd see it and wait for us!'

'yes. no good trying for that now,' said julian. 'anyway, as dick says, we've not got enough rope.

we'll have to get some from the boat-house.'

'but when do you propose to get the bag out of the sunk boat?' asked dick. 'they'll keep those field-glasses on us even if we go out again this afternoon.'

'there's only one time to go when they won't have their glasses watching us,' said julian, beginning todress himself very rapidly, 'and that's tonight. we'll go tonight! my word – what an adventure!'

'don't let's,' said anne, in a small voice.

'there'll be a moon,' said george, excited.

'smashing idea!' said dick, thumping julian on the back. 'let's go back now so that they won't haveany suspicions of us, and make our plans for tonight. and we'd better keep an eye on them too in casethey row out to this spot themselves this afternoon.'

'they won't,' said julian. 'they daren't run any risk of us spotting what they're doing. they will besure to wait till we've gone.'

'and till the loot is gone!' said george with a laugh. 'i say - i do hope those two wretches haven'tgone and taken our food again!'

'i hid it down in the cellars beyond our room - and locked the door leading there - and here's the key,'

grinned julian, holding up a large key.

'you never told us!' said george. 'julian, you're a genius! how do you manage to think of things likethat?'

'oh - just brains!' said julian, pretending to look modest, and then laughing. 'come on - if i don't getwarm quickly i'll have a most almighty chill!'