Chapter XXX: Home Again――conclusion

“Gee, suppose the boxes are empty!” murmured Andy while on the way to the yacht.

“If they were they wouldn’t be so heavy,” answered Jack.

“And it isn’t likely they’d be locked,” added Fred.

They were soon aboard the _Firefly_ and then Captain Corning had one of the men bring a cold chisel and a hammer, and with these implements the rusty and worn padlocks on the six chests were knocked off without great trouble.

A cry of amazement and delight burst from the boys when the covers of the various boxes were pried open and thrown back. There before their gaze was revealed a confused mass of gold and silver coins, jewelry, and many golden medals, and also eighteen small cases which when opened in their turn revealed articles set with diamonds and other precious stones. One case contained two strings of beautiful pearls and another a cross set in the finest kind of diamonds.

“This sure is a treasure, and no mistake!” was Captain Corning’s remark as he gazed from one precious object to another.

“Worth real money, I’ll say!” cried Fred, his eyes glistening.

“Worth thousands of dollars!” murmured Randy.

“I suppose those jewels and pearls are worth a small fortune in themselves,” was Jack’s comment. He picked up one of the strings only to have it fall apart, the pearls bouncing in all directions. And then all four of the lads lost no time in getting on their hands and knees to gather the precious objects together again.

It was a happy time and it was shared in by every man on board, even including the two Norwegian sailors who had been friendly with Olesen and Amend, for all of the men had been promised double wages and more by the captain should the quest for the treasure prove successful.

“Do you think we ought to land in Yucatan and telegraph to the folks about this?” asked Fred.

“I don’t think I’d do that,” returned Jack promptly. “If we went ashore, the Mexican authorities might put in some claim for this treasure, and we might have all sorts of difficulties in proving our rights to it.”

“That’s just the way I look at it,” came from Captain Corning. “We’re the finders of this, and nobody else, and it’s ours by right of discovery. The ship was abandoned on the high sea, so to speak, and even Olesen and Amend had no idea where it drifted to. I think the best thing we can do is to set sail for Texas and place the stuff where the Mexicans can’t get their hands on it.”

“Have you any idea what this stuff is worth?” asked Andy.

“No, my lad. But it’s worth a good many thousands of dollars. Why, those pearls alone would foot up to a good many thousands, and so would that diamond cross and the other jewelry.”

Much of the stuff recovered was tarnished and dirty, and while the _Firefly_ was on the way to Galveston the boys spent many hours in sorting out the various things and cleaning them. After this the money, jewelry, and pearls were placed in two trunks and the silver- and goldware wrapped in paper and placed in pillow cases.

“Gosh all gingersnaps!” exclaimed Randy, after this task had been finished. “I’ll say we’re the lucky fellows! First we capture those two bandits and then we discover this treasure!”

“It’s going to mean a lot to our folks, Randy,” answered Jack. “If we get a fair amount from this discovery and also get the rewards for capturing Ditini and Ronombo, we’ll be able to help our folks very much.”

As soon as the yacht arrived at Galveston the boys and the captain had the treasure properly boxed and then shipped to New York City in care of The Rover Company. This done, the diver was paid off and the _Firefly_ was placed in charge of Nat Brooks, who had orders to take the vessel back to Brooklyn. In the meanwhile the boys sent a telegram home, telling briefly of what had been accomplished.

Then another surprise awaited the youths. Less than two hours later came a reply from Tom Rover who had just gone back to New York from the mines in the West, where he had fixed up all the difficulties to his satisfaction.

“Telegram received. Congratulations. Richard Rover at Old
Plantation Hotel Galveston. Great News.”

“Why, my dad is at the Old Plantation Hotel!” exclaimed Jack. “And Uncle Tom says there is great news! Come on, we’ll go to the hotel at once!”

At the old hostelry they ran into Dick Rover as he was about to go out. Jack’s father was more than astonished to see them and delighted when told of their success in locating the _Margarita_.

“I’ve heard already about the capture of Ditini and Ronombo,” said Dick Rover. “And we’ve been able to make Ronombo confess that he and Ditini got half of the loot while Brown and Martell got the other half which they were to divide between themselves, Greene, Koswell, Pelter, Japson, and several others.”

“I suppose the others included Crabtree,” remarked Fred.

“No, the old man was to be left out in the cold, along with another man who has also been rounded up. Those fellows are going to turn state’s evidence if it becomes necessary to use them. But there is still more to tell,” went on Dick Rover, with a smile.

“What’s that, Dad?” questioned Jack quickly.

“The detectives followed Ken Greene to Galveston after you found out where he was bound, and later they learned that the Martells and the Browns had left Buffalo for this same city. They came down here, and as soon as I heard of what was going on I left the oil fields in the upper part of the state and came down also. After some difficulty we located Greene and then found out where the whole gang were to assemble. We notified the authorities and they set a guard, and as a consequence the whole crowd are now in custody in this city. As soon as we can get the necessary extradition papers we’ll have them taken to New York.”

“And what of the securities?” put in Randy.

“The securities apportioned to Slogwell Brown and Nelson Martell were found in a room at their hotel and are now in my possession. We have also recovered eight thousand dollars’ worth of the ten thousand dollars that Ditini had and about three-quarters of the stuff with which Black Ronombo made off. He had sold some of the bonds, and these we are now trying to trace.”

It may be added here that the search for the missing securities was prosecuted with vigor, and as a result of this all of the valuables taken from the offices in Wall Street were recovered with the single exception of one one-thousand-dollar Liberty Bond. And let us also add that before the year came to a close every one of those concerned in the hold-up but Josiah Crabtree was tried for the crime and sent to prison. Crabtree, old and broken, was allowed to go his way, the Rovers giving him a small amount of money to keep him from starving.

There was some dispute regarding the rewards offered for the capture of Ditini and Ronombo, but the claim of the Rover boys was prosecuted with vigor and in the end they received forty thousand dollars, which amount they divided equally.

Experts had to be called in to inspect the treasure from the _Margarita_, and then the various articles were disposed of, some in a purely commercial way and others as art treasures. The total value of the collection footed up to one hundred and twenty thousand dollars, of which the boys received eighty thousand dollars.

“Gee, we’ll be millionaires before we know it!” cried Andy, dancing around when he heard of this. “I’ll be getting twenty thousand dollars out of this and ten thousand dollars for capturing those bandits. That will give me thirty thousand dollars. Why, I won’t know what to do with so much money!”

“I’m going to invest my money in The Rover Company,” said Jack promptly.

“And so am I,” added Fred.

“Well, I guess we can do that too, even if we aren’t going into the business,” came from Randy, and his twin nodded assent.

In addition to the money received as a reward for the capture of the bandits and the sum received from the treasure the four lads also got back nearly nine thousand dollars of the money advanced to finance the hunt for the _Margarita_.

There was one thing that pleased Jack even more than the finding of the treasure. This was a letter he received from Ruth. In that communication the girl told how her mother had recovered from the illness caused by the hold-up and how sorry her parent was over what she had said concerning the loss. Then Ruth told of how her father, after fixing up his troubles with the contractors who were building his new home, had changed his mind and gone to Sam Rover while Dick and Tom were away on business and offered to assist the Company in every way possible. She added that her father was evidently ashamed of the attitude he had first taken and hoped that Jack would forget it.

A little later in the communication Ruth mentioned some social affairs and said that Joe Sedley had called upon her twice and had wanted her and her mother to go on an extended automobile tour with him, but that she had declined.

“On an auto tour with Sedley!” grumbled Jack. “I like that! I’ll make that fellow keep off the grass!” Thereupon he wrote an eight-page letter to Ruth, telling her of the many things that had occurred and of how he now intended to settle down and go into business with his father and of some things that he hoped would happen afterwards. Then he said he was coming to see Ruth as soon as he could get away.

While Jack was writing this letter to Ruth Fred was equally busy on a communication addressed to May Powell. Andy caught the youngest Rover writing this letter and did not hesitate to poke fun at him.

“Sour grapes, Andy!” returned Fred shamelessly. “You’d fall for a girl like May in a minute if you could only find one.”

“No girls in mine――at least, not yet,” returned the fun-loving Rover. “I’m going to be a happy bachelor, and Randy says he’s going to be the same.”

It must be confessed that Jack’s heart beat as it had never beat before when he took the train to call on Ruth. How would she receive him after all that had passed and after the letter he had written?

But if he had any fears, they were all groundless, for when the train arrived at the town where Ruth lived he found her waiting for him at the railroad station and when she came up she not only shook hands but showed that she expected far more, and after one searching look into her clear and steady eyes, he kissed her.

“Is it all right, Ruth?” he whispered. “Tell me, is it?”

“Why, of course it is, Jack,” she answered softly. “It always was.”

“Then Joe Sedley――――”

“Oh, Jack, please don’t mention that fellow! I’d rather forget him!”

“Then we can announce our engagement?”

“Any time you want to,” and thereupon Ruth led the happiest fellow in the world to the automobile she had waiting.

* * * * *

And now let me add a few words more and then bring to a close this story of the Rover boys.

As he had said he would do, Jack that winter invested his money in The Rover Company and Fred did likewise. At the same time Ruth’s engagement to the oldest of the Rover boys was announced, and this was followed shortly by the announcement of May Powell’s engagement to Fred. Then the two girls were tendered a reception at the homes on Riverside Drive and the three houses there were thrown wide open to the Stevensons, the Powells, and the many friends and relatives of all the interested families.

“I’m going to buckle down to business first,” said Jack, in answer to a question from his old chum, Gif. “Mrs. Stevenson thinks that Ruth might wait a little bit before we have the knot tied.” And as Fred and May were even younger, it was decided that they should wait also.

“Well, Randy and I haven’t got to wait for anybody!” said Andy gayly. “So we’ll just continue to roam around and have good times.”

And roam he and his brother did for many years, having all sorts of adventures in which Jack and Fred often joined.

“I’ll tell you this is a pretty good old world after all,” declared Jack one day, when talking over their various adventures with his cousins.

“I’ll say it is!” answered Fred.

“I wouldn’t want it any better!” came from Randy.

“It’s all to the merry!” chimed in Andy.

And here, wishing all of the Rover boys the best of luck, we will say good-bye.

THE END

_This Isn’t All!_

Would you like to know what became of the good friends you have made in this book?

Would you like to read other stories continuing their adventures and experiences, or other books quite as entertaining by the same author?

On the _reverse side_ of the wrapper which comes with this book, you will find a wonderful list of stories which you can buy at the same store where you got this book.

_Don’t throw away the Wrapper_

_Use it as a handy catalog of the books you want some day to have. But in case you do mislay it, write to the Publishers for a complete catalog._

THE FAMOUS ROVER BOYS SERIES

By ARTHUR M. WINFIELD

(EDWARD STRATEMEYER)

=Beautiful Wrappers in Full Color=

No stories for boys ever published have attained the tremendous popularity of this famous series. Since the publication of the first volume, The Rover Boys at School, some years ago, over three million copies of these books have been sold. They are well written stories dealing with the Rover boys in a great many different kinds of activities and adventures. Each volume holds something of interest to every adventure loving boy.

A complete list of titles is printed on the opposite page.

FAMOUS ROVER BOYS SERIES

BY ARTHUR M. WINFIELD
(Edward Stratemeyer)

OVER THREE MILLION COPIES SOLD OF THIS SERIES.

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THE ROVER BOYS AT SCHOOL
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE OCEAN
THE ROVER BOYS IN THE JUNGLE
THE ROVER BOYS OUT WEST
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THE ROVER BOYS IN THE MOUNTAINS
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THE ROVER BOYS IN NEW YORK
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THE ROVER BOYS UNDER CANVAS
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THE ROVER BOYS IN THE LAND OF LUCK
THE ROVER BOYS AT BIG HORN RANCH
THE ROVER BOYS AT BIG BEAR LAKE
THE ROVER BOYS SHIPWRECKED
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THE ROVER BOYS WINNING A FORTUNE

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OVER THE OCEAN TO PARIS;
_or, Ted Scott’s Daring Long Distance Flight_.

RESCUED IN THE CLOUDS;
_or, Ted Scott, Hero of the Air_.

OVER THE ROCKIES WITH THE AIR MAIL;
_or, Ted Scott, Lost in the Wilderness_.

FIRST STOP HONOLULU;
_or, Ted Scott, Over the Pacific_.

THE SEARCH FOR THE LOST FLYERS;
_or, Ted Scott, Over the West Indies_.

SOUTH OF THE RIO GRANDE;
_or, Ted Scott, On a Secret Mission_.

ACROSS THE PACIFIC;
_or, Ted Scott’s Hop to Australia_.

THE LONE EAGLE OF THE BORDER;
_or, Ted Scott and the Diamond Smugglers_.

FLYING AGAINST TIME;
_or, Breaking the Ocean to Ocean Record_.

OVER THE JUNGLE TRAILS;
_or, Ted Scott and the Missing Explorers_.

LOST AT THE SOUTH POLE;
_or, Ted Scott in Blizzard Land_.

THROUGH THE AIR TO ALASKA;
_or, Ted Scott’s Search in Nugget Valley_.

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THE X BAR X BOYS ON THE RANCH
THE X BAR X BOYS IN THUNDER CANYON
THE X BAR X BOYS ON WHIRLPOOL RIVER
THE X BAR X BOYS ON BIG BISON TRAIL
THE X BAR X BOYS AT THE ROUND-UP
THE X BAR X BOYS AT NUGGET CAMP
THE X BAR X BOYS AT RUSTLER’S GAP
THE X BAR X BOYS AT GRIZZLY PASS
THE X BAR X BOYS LOST IN THE ROCKIES

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A dying criminal confessed that his loot had been secreted “in the tower.” It remained for the Hardy Boys to make an astonishing discovery that cleared up the mystery.

THE HOUSE ON THE CLIFF

The house had been vacant and was supposed to be haunted. Mr. Hardy started to investigate――and disappeared! An odd tale, with plenty of excitement.

THE SECRET OF THE OLD MILL

Counterfeit money was in circulation, and the limit was reached when Mrs. Hardy took some from a stranger. A tale full of thrills.

THE MISSING CHUMS

Two of the Hardy Boys’ chums take a motor trip down the coast. They disappear and are almost rescued by their friends when all are captured. A thrilling story of adventure.

HUNTING FOR HIDDEN GOLD

Mr. Hardy is injured in tracing some stolen gold. A hunt by the boys leads to an abandoned mine, and there things start to happen. A western story all boys will enjoy.

THE SHORE ROAD MYSTERY

Automobiles were disappearing most mysteriously from the Shore Road. It remained for the Hardy Boys to solve the mystery.

THE SECRET OF THE CAVES

When the boys reached the caves they came unexpectedly upon a queer old hermit.

THE MYSTERY OF CABIN ISLAND

A story of queer adventures on a rockbound island.

THE GREAT AIRPORT MYSTERY

The Hardy Boys solve the mystery of the disappearance of some valuable mail.

GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers, NEW YORK

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By VICTOR APPLETON

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TOM SWIFT AND HIS MOTOR CYCLE
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TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIRSHIP
TOM SWIFT AND HIS SUBMARINE BOAT
TOM SWIFT AND HIS WIRELESS MESSAGE
TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC RUNABOUT
TOM SWIFT AMONG THE DIAMOND MAKERS
TOM SWIFT IN THE CAVES OF ICE
TOM SWIFT AND HIS SKY RACER
TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC RIFLE
TOM SWIFT IN THE CITY OF GOLD
TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIR GLIDER
TOM SWIFT IN CAPTIVITY
TOM SWIFT AND HIS WIZARD CAMERA
TOM SWIFT AND HIS GREAT SEARCHLIGHT
TOM SWIFT AND HIS GIANT CANNON
TOM SWIFT AND HIS PHOTO TELEPHONE
TOM SWIFT AND HIS AERIAL WARSHIP
TOM SWIFT AND HIS BIG TUNNEL
TOM SWIFT IN THE LAND OF WONDERS
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TOM SWIFT AMONG THE FIRE FIGHTERS
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TOM SWIFT AND HIS FLYING BOAT
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TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIRLINE EXPRESS
TOM SWIFT CIRCLING THE GLOBE
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TOM SWIFT AND HIS HOUSE ON WHEELS
TOM SWIFT AND HIS BIG DIRIGIBLE

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By VICTOR APPLETON

Author of “The Tom Swift Series”

Every red-blooded boy will enjoy the thrilling adventures of Don Sturdy. In company with his uncles, one a big game hunter, the other a noted scientist, he travels far and wide――into the jungles of South America, across the Sahara, deep into the African jungle, up where the Alaskan volcanoes spout, down among the head hunters of Borneo and many other places where there is danger and excitement. Every boy who has known Tom Swift will at once become the boon companion of daring Don Sturdy.

DON STURDY ON THE DESERT OF MYSTERY
DON STURDY WITH THE BIG SNAKE HUNTERS
DON STURDY IN THE TOMBS OF GOLD
DON STURDY ACROSS THE NORTH POLE
DON STURDY IN THE LAND OF VOLCANOES
DON STURDY IN THE PORT OF LOST SHIPS
DON STURDY AMONG THE GORILLAS
DON STURDY CAPTURED BY HEAD HUNTERS
DON STURDY IN LION LAND
DON STURDY IN THE LAND OF GIANTS

GROSSET & DUNLAP, _Publishers_, NEW YORK

Transcriber’s Notes:

――Text in italics is enclosed by underscores (_italics_); text in
bold by “equal” signs (=bold=).

――Printer’s, punctuation, and spelling inaccuracies were silently
corrected.

――Archaic and variable spelling has been preserved.

――Variations in hyphenation and compound words have been preserved.