“Good thing it’s calm,” Sam remarked, “we can get close up, and, perhaps go aboard.”
“There’s nobody to stop us,” replied the sailor. “The ship is abandoned. True, we can’t take anything away, but we can pick up anything we see floating, and claim salvage on it, and, by the looks there’s a lot of cargo gone overboard.”
By this time they were quite close to the wreck. On one side the waves were breaking against the steamer in a way that made it dangerous to approach. The motor boat was sent around, however, and Sam saw a place protected enough to allow the _Dartaway_ to go up close.
It required a nice bit of seamanship to get aboard, but here was where Sam’s long years of service served him and the boys in good stead. They made their boat fast to some dangling ropes, and soon were on the sloping deck of the after part of the wrecked steamer.
All about were evidences of the haste with which the crew and passengers had departed. On the deck were scattered articles of clothing; boxes and trunks had been broken open and the most valuable things taken.
The boys ventured to the edge of the deck, where it had been almost completely separated from the forward part. They could look down through the various holds and into the engine room.
“Pity to see all this gone to waste,” remarked Jerry. “Can’t they save any of it?”
“Don’t look so,” replied the sailor. “It’s about as bad a wreck as I ever saw. They’ll have hard work lightering the cargo off here. Maybe it’s well insured.”
It was a new and novel experience for the boys to be aboard a big wrecked steamer. They went below, though it was anything but easy, considering the condition of the companionways which were at all angles. They went through the cabins, into some of the staterooms, and saw many valuable articles, but Sam advised them not to touch any.
“I’m not clear on the law,” he said. “I know it’s all right to pick stuff out of the sea, but it may be piracy or worse to take it off a vessel so near shore. We’ll get enough as it is. I see the stuff is fairly tumbling from the hold in the forward part of the ship.”
“Hark! What’s that noise?” asked Jerry suddenly, holding up his hand for silence.
Above the splash of the waves against the side there sounded a long, drawn-out cry.