Instinctively the eyes of nearly all on board the Olivette turned towards the object of the policemen\'s presence. Gregory had spotted the representatives of the Law too. Mr. Graham, regarding him from a distance of about twenty feet, fancied that his jaw dropped slightly and that his face became a darker tint. Beyond that Gregory gave no indication of either fear or defiance.

Presently the crowd parted as the stalwart men in blue advanced towards the quay-side with the obvious intention of crossing the deck of the Unity and boarding the Olivette.

Even then Gregory did not shift his position. Desmond, watching him out of the corner of his eye, wondered what the wanted youth was going to do. It seemed improbable that a hardened young criminal would give in tamely while a chance remained to attempt to escape.

"I think that if I were in his place," soliloquized Desmond, "I\'d jump into the dinghy and scull for the other side of the harbour like blue blazes. Perhaps he\'ll dish the bobbies yet."

Mr. Armitage advanced to the rail to receive the two policemen.

"You know what we\'re here for, sir?" remarked one of the men.

The Scoutmaster nodded.

"What\'s the lad done?" he asked in a low tone.

"Broke into an old woman\'s shop, rifled the till, and well-nigh did for her, sir," was the reply. "He\'s a dangerous chap, seeing he\'s not turned seventeen. Did he give you any trouble, sir?"

"None whatever, Constable."

"That\'s strange, sir."

"When a fellow\'s sea-sick there\'s the bottom knocked out of the universe as far as he\'s concerned," remarked the Scoutmaster drily.

The second constable had meanwhile sauntered for\'ard, keeping the still unresisting but now restless Gregory between him and the bows of the Olivette. At a sign from his companion the policeman laid his hand on the wanted lad\'s shoulder.

"Come on, Greening," he exclaimed. "This is the end of your little stunt. Come quietly now, or there\'ll be more trouble."

"What for?" demanded the youth with sudden energy. "My name\'s not Greening—it\'s Gregory, and I ain\'t done nothin\'!"

"And half a dozen other aliases, I suppose?" rejoined his captor caustically. "It won\'t wash, Greening, so chuck it."

The boy appealed wildly to Mr. Armitage.

"I\'ve done nothin\' wrong, have I, sir?" he exclaimed. "It ain\'t you who\'s given me in charge, is it, sir?"

The Scoutmaster did not know what to reply. It seemed a despicable act on his part to have kept the boy "in the dark" until his captors were upon him. He could only shake his head in a deprecatory way.

Gregory went quietly. With quite unnecessary vehemence the two policemen bundled him off the Olivette and across the deck of the smack. Murmurs of pity rose from the throng of interested spectators, while execrations of no mild form were hurled at the crew of the Olivette and the two Scoutmasters in particular, for their part in surrendering their charge. Clearly the sympathies of the Sutton Pool habitués were strongly in favour of the prisoner.

Suddenly the lad stopped and raised his head.

"Uncle! Uncle Garge!" he shouted.

A short, burly man on the fringe of the crowd, on hearing himself addressed, elbowed his way through the press and planted himself rigidly in front of the leading policeman.

"What you\'m doin\' wi\' my nephew?" he demanded.

"Tell them my name\'s Gregory, Uncle," exclaimed the youth, before the policemen could say a word.

"\'Corse it tes," rejoined the fisherman. "Same as mine, an\' nothin\' for to be ashamed on. What are ye got \'im for, perliceman?"

"Broke out of the Borstal Institution at Portland, day before yesterday," replied the constable laconically.

The little man held his sides, threw back his head, and laughed uproariously.

"Lead on, Joe!" exclaimed one of the policemen to his comrade. "We can\'t stop here arguing the point."

"Get back, man!" said the other constable, addressing the highly amused fisherman. "Get back, or I\'ll run you in for obstruction."

Just then the two Scoutmasters came up. The assertion of Gregory\'s uncle and the policemen\'s replies had been distinctly audible on board the Olivette. Realizing that the............