THE HUNT FOR TENDERFOOT JOE Rob, Merritt, Tubby Hopkins and Captain Hudgins rested, perspiring under the noon-day heat, on a group of flat rocks at the highest point of the island.

Their search had been fruitless, and their downcast faces showed it.
"How ever are we going to break the news to his parents ?" Merritt it was who voiced the question that had been troubling all of them.
Before any one had time to frame a reply the captain, whose keen eyes had been gazing about him, gave a sudden shout: "There's that smoke yonder yer boys were lookin' fer," he exclaimed, pointing.
"Four columns of it," shouted Rob, "hurray, boys, that means news! It's 'Come to counsel.' Come on, don't let's lose any time in getting back." Rapidly the boys stumbled and ran forward over the rocks and pushed on among the dense growth that covered the hillside they had climbed.
They hardly noticed the obstacles, however, so keenly were they bent on getting back to camp and learning the news which they knew must be awaiting them.

They covered the distance in half the time it had taken them to ascend the hillside and were met in the camp by the body of searchers--Andy Bowles, Sim Jeffords and Ernest Thompson--who had swung off to the left or mainland side of the island.
"Well, boys, what news ?" breathlessly exclaimed Rob, "we saw the counsel smoke and hurried down at top speed." "Well, there's not very much, I'm afraid, Rob," began Andy, "but we found something that may give us a clue.

About half a mile down the beach there's the distinct mark of a boat keel where it was drawn up on the hard sand and the marks of three separate pairs of feet." "Good," exclaimed Rob, "that's something and half confirms my suspicion.

Go on, Andy, what else ?" "Well, we examined the marks carefully and found that two pairs of feet wore good shoes and the third a very broken, disreputable pair." "Yes," exclaimed Rob, while the others listened breathlessly.
"Of course that indicated to us that three persons must have carried Joe off--for I don't think there's much doubt now that he was carried off, do you ?" "I don't," said Rob sadly, "but for what possible motive ?" "I have it," suddenly exclaimed Tubby Hopkins, snapping his fingers, "you remember the day of the aeroplane model contest ?" "Yes, but what--" began Rob.
"Has that to do with it," finished Tubby for him.