"Nothing at all, sir," says one.
Then the other breaks in with, "Any luck, sir?"
"Sure!" says I. "We saw a swell sunrise."
I'm wonderin', though, why all them hired hands should be givin' us the
merry face.
CHAPTER XV
PASSING THE JOKE BUCK
I don't mind admittin' that this treasure-huntin' stuff does get you.
Course, while I was only an outsider, with no ticket even for a
brokerage bite at the gate receipts, I wasn't runnin' any temperature
over the prospects.
But now it was different. Vee and I had gone out and shown this poor
prune of a Captain Killam where his bloomin' island was, we'd rescued
Auntie and Old Hickory from bein' stuck in the mud, and we'd been
officially counted in as possible prize winners. More'n that, we'd
seen the treasure mound.
"Torchy," says Vee, the first chance we has for a few side remarks
after lunch that day, "what do you think? Is it full of gold and
jewels?"
"Well," says I, tryin' to look wise, "it might be, mightn't it? And
then again you can't always tell."
"But suppose it is?" insists Vee, her gray eyes bigger than ever.
"I can't," says I. "It's too much of a strain. Honest, from what I've
seen of the country down here, it would be a miracle to run across a
single loose dollar, while as for uncoverin' it in bunches-- Say, Vee,
how much of this pirate guff do you stand for, anyway?"
"Why, you silly," says she.
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