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20 - Hardy Boys The Mystery of Cabin Island by Franklin W Dixon · Hardy Boys: The Mystery of Cabin Island

• 0:01
  Speaker 1: Chapter twenty, When Rogues fall Out. Hanley, who had taken
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: up his quarters in a small bungalow at the eastern
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: limits of Bayport, had made an appointment for that evening
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  Speaker 1: with Tad Carson and Ike Nash, the two youths who
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  Speaker 1: had taken him to Cabin Island in their ice boat
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  Speaker 1: on the occasion of his first meeting with the Hardy Boys.
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  Speaker 1: An alarm clock ticking on the kitchen table showed the
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  Speaker 1: hour as eight o'clock. Hannley, listening to the rising wind,
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  Speaker 1: made a gesture of impatience. What's the matter with them,
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  Speaker 1: he growled, Can't they ever get here when I tell them?
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  Speaker 1: He was obliged to wait another ten minutes before the
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  Speaker 1: door of the bungalow opened and Ike Nash slouched in,
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  Speaker 1: followed by his companion. They tossed their caps on the
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  Speaker 1: table and nodded coolly to Hanley. I thought I told
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  Speaker 1: you to be here at half past seven. Tad Carson shrugged.
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  Speaker 1: That's the time you told us. All right, we just
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  Speaker 1: couldn't make it. Keep me cooling my heels while you
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  Speaker 1: shoot another game of pool, I suppose, snapped the man.
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  Speaker 1: You haven't anything else to do? Replied Nash. He sat
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  Speaker 1: down and put his feet on the table. Well, what's
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  Speaker 1: it all about. I want to go over to the
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  Speaker 1: island tomorrow. What island, asked Tad Carson. What island do
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  Speaker 1: you think? The island? Of course, Cabin Island. I want
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  Speaker 1: to go there early tomorrow morning. What's stopping you, asked Nash, insolently. Well,
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  Speaker 1: you know why I sent for you. I can't walk there.
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  Speaker 1: The two youths glanced at one another. I suppose you
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  Speaker 1: want us to take you over in the iceboat again.
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  Speaker 1: A of course, I want you to call here for
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  Speaker 1: me at seven o'clock in the morning, have the iceboat
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  Speaker 1: ready so we can make a quick start. You're giving
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  Speaker 1: orders tonight, ain't you, Hanley said, Ike, what if it
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  Speaker 1: doesn't suit us to go, why shouldn't it suit you?
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  Speaker 1: Neither of you is working. That's all right. Tad and
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  Speaker 1: I were just talking it over as we came up
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  Speaker 1: here tonight. We'd like to know more about this business, Hanley.
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  Speaker 1: We have an idea there may be something crooked about it.
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  Speaker 1: Hanley stared at them incredulously that these allies should be
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  Speaker 1: inclined to back out, and never entered his calculations crooked,
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  Speaker 1: he exclaimed, Of course not. I'm thinking of buying the island,
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  Speaker 1: and naturally I want to look the place over before
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  Speaker 1: I make an offer. Yes, why don't you wait until summer?
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  Speaker 1: The winter is no time of year to inspect an island.
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  Speaker 1: Hanley became angry. Will you two mind your own business?
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  Speaker 1: He blustered, Is it any concern of yours why I
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  Speaker 1: want to go to the island. I pay you well
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  Speaker 1: for carrying me there, and all you have to do
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  Speaker 1: is keep your mouth shut. We won't keep them shut,
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  Speaker 1: remarked Nash, unless we get more money than you have
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  Speaker 1: been giving us. I've been paying you very well. I
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  Speaker 1: think ten dollars each is very good money for a
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  Speaker 1: trip that most boys would be glad to take just
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  Speaker 1: for the fun of it. We don't run the ice
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  Speaker 1: boat just for our health, said Carson. Every time we
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  Speaker 1: go there, we have to hang around and freeze until
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  Speaker 1: you are ready to come back. You won't even let
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  Speaker 1: us go up to the cabin with you. I'd like
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  Speaker 1: to know what there is about that place that interests.
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  Speaker 2: You so much.
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  Speaker 1: Hanley gazed at them narrowly, so they were beginning to
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  Speaker 1: suspect him. I've told you he said irritably. I may
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  Speaker 1: buy the place, and naturally I want to look the
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  Speaker 1: cabin over. Well, there wouldn't be any harm in letting
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  Speaker 1: us look it over too. Listen, mister Hanley, you're up
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  Speaker 1: to something and we know it. If you don't want
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  Speaker 1: us to go to mister Jefferson and tell him about
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  Speaker 1: your visits to the island, you had better kick in
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  Speaker 1: with some more money. Tad Carson sat back and winked
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  Speaker 1: at his companion. Hanley was almost speechless with wrath. Why
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  Speaker 1: why you young scoundrels, he spluttered, This is blackmail. Why
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  Speaker 1: it's a hold up? Call it what you like, sneered Nash.
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  Speaker 1: You can't tell Jefferson anything. I have his full permission
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  Speaker 1: to go to the island at any time I want.
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  Speaker 2: Is that? So?
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  Speaker 1: Now look here, mister Hanley. You've been trying to tell
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  Speaker 1: us that you may buy the island. Now we happen
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  Speaker 1: to know that you made mister Jefferson an offer for
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  Speaker 1: the island and he told you he wouldn't sell at
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  Speaker 1: any price. How about that. It's it's false, it's the truth,
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  Speaker 1: said Nash. Who told you, demanded Hanley. Never mind who
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  Speaker 1: told us? We know more about you than you think now.
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  Speaker 1: If you are up to any funny business, we won't
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  Speaker 1: put anything in your way as long as you come
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  Speaker 1: through and treat us fair.
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  Speaker 2: I have treated you fairly.
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  Speaker 1: I have always paid you well ten dollars a trip,
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  Speaker 1: laughed Tad Carson. That's all right if you were just
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  Speaker 1: going there to look the place over, as you told us.
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  Speaker 1: But you've got a bigger game on, and it will
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  Speaker 1: probably be worth a lot of money to you. We
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  Speaker 1: want to be in on it. If you're up to
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  Speaker 1: something crooked, we're running the risk of being arrested for
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  Speaker 1: helping you. We won't take a chance like that for
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  Speaker 1: ten dollars each. I've told you everything is perfectly fair
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  Speaker 1: and above board. Handley insisted, why should you try to
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  Speaker 1: hold me up? If I hear any more of this nonsense,
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  Speaker 1: I'll hire somebody else to take me to the island.
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  Speaker 1: Try it and see what happens, said Nash darkly. What
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  Speaker 1: will happen? Will tell Jefferson tell him. I'm not afraid
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  Speaker 1: that's a pretty good bloff, mister Hanley. But it won't
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  Speaker 1: work with us, said Carson. You have some crooked game on,
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  Speaker 1: and you don't want Jefferson to know about it. Why
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  Speaker 1: were you so anxious to buy the island? Why won't
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  Speaker 1: he sell it to you? That's what we'd like to know.
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  Speaker 1: Hanley became more amicable. Now listen here, boys, he said, smoothly.
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  Speaker 1: It doesn't do any of us any good to quarrel
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  Speaker 1: like this. If you think you're not being paid enough,
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  Speaker 1: I guess I can let you have a little more.
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  Speaker 2: I'll tell you what I'll do.
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  Speaker 1: I'll pay you each twenty dollars to take me to
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  Speaker 1: the island tomorrow morning. That's fair enough, isn't it. Nash
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  Speaker 1: laughed scornfully. Now we know you have some game on.
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  Speaker 1: He said, twenty dollars won't be enough. We want one
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  Speaker 1: hundred dollars apiece.
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  Speaker 2: One hundred. It's an outrage. I won't pay it.
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  Speaker 1: Nash got up, All right, come on, Tad, we may
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  Speaker 1: as well go and see mister Jefferson. Now he'll probably
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  Speaker 1: be glad to pay us well for the information we
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  Speaker 1: can give him. The young men got up and we're
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  Speaker 1: moving toward the door when Hanley sprang to his feet
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  Speaker 1: not so fast. He begged, sit down and let us
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  Speaker 1: talk this over. What's the use of talking when you
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  Speaker 1: won't listen? To reason. Hannley regarded the pair for a moment.
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  Speaker 1: Then he said, you are both very much mistaken. There
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  Speaker 1: is nothing crooked about my visits to the island. Still,
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  Speaker 1: I wouldn't want you to be running to mister Jefferson
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  Speaker 1: and bothering him with a silly story. That would only
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  Speaker 1: cause a lot of trouble. Now I've changed my mind
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  Speaker 1: about going to the island tomorrow. I'll go the day
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  Speaker 1: after tomorrow instead. How about our one hundred dollars. It's
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  Speaker 1: an outrageous price. Fifty dollars, No one hundred or nothing,
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  Speaker 1: Hanley sighed, I haven't got that much money with me.
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  Speaker 1: You boys seem to think I'm made of money. You
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  Speaker 1: were willing to spend a good fat some to buy
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  Speaker 1: the island. Nash reminded him, there's something fishy about the
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  Speaker 1: whole affair. Is there a gold mine on that island?
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  Speaker 1: Hanley laughed uneasily. You're worrying yourselves about something that doesn't
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  Speaker 1: concern you in the least. Give me a day to
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  Speaker 1: raise the money and you shall have it. Nash glanced
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  Speaker 1: significantly at his chum. Now you're talking sense, he said, approvingly.
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  Speaker 1: You pay us one hundred each and will take you
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  Speaker 1: there the day after tomorrow, just as you say. But
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  Speaker 1: we must have the money before we start. And you
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  Speaker 1: won't say anything to Jefferson, not a word. But if
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  Speaker 1: you don't come across with the money, I'll pay it
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  Speaker 1: to you. Meet me here tomorrow night.
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  Speaker 2: All right.
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  Speaker 1: Nash and Carson went toward the door. You've saved yourself
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  Speaker 1: a lot of trouble, mister Hanley. They went away no
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  Speaker 1: sooner the door closed behind them. Then Hanley laughed sardonically.
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  Speaker 1: One hundred dollars, he exclaimed. The young pupps thought they
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  Speaker 1: could make a fool out of me. Well, they'll have
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  Speaker 1: to get up in the middle of the night to
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  Speaker 1: get ahead of me. By the time they get wise
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  Speaker 1: to themselves, I'll be at the island and back, and
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  Speaker 1: I won't pay for the privilege either. Next morning, Hanley
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  Speaker 1: was up early. It was snowing heavily and it was
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  Speaker 1: a bitter wind, but he meant to go to Cabin
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  Speaker 1: Island that day. He knew where Tad Carson and Ike
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  Speaker 1: Nash kept their ice boat, and he made his way
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  Speaker 1: down to the little building unobserved. The door was protected
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  Speaker 1: by a stout padlock, but Hanley picked up a heavy
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  Speaker 1: iron bar that stood against the side of the building
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  Speaker 1: and attacked the lock. He smashed it with a single blow,
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  Speaker 1: opened the door and went inside. He brought out the
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  Speaker 1: iceboat and unfurled its sails. There was snow on the ice,
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  Speaker 1: but the craft moved across the surface under the impetus
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  Speaker 1: of a strong wind. Hanley sat at the tiller. Within
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  Speaker 1: a few moments the boat was scudding down the bay.
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  Speaker 1: Hanley chuckled to himself as he thought of the way
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  Speaker 1: in which he had outwitted Ike Nash and Tad Carson.
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  Speaker 1: The ice boat sped on down the bay into the
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  Speaker 1: driving snow. The storm was increasing in fury. The wind
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  Speaker 1: hurtled the craft along at terrific speed. Hanley, although he
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  Speaker 1: had no experience in managing the boat, got along very well,
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  Speaker 1: and within a short time he saw the dark mass
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  Speaker 1: of Cabin Island looming out of the storm.
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  Speaker 2: A good day for it, he chuckled. I won't let.
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  Speaker 1: Those boys on the island make a monkey out of
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  Speaker 1: me as they did the last time.
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  Speaker 2: End of Chapter twenty