He wasn't on the house--boat, that was one sure thing, because we looked everywhere and couldn't find him.

Wig said he remembered somebody speaking to him when he was lying there, and he guessed it must have been Artie.

He didn't know what he said though.
The fellows were all excited about it, especially because the boat was just beginning to float, and we didn't know whether we'd better anchor there and wait to see if he turned up.

Two of the fellows climbed down and swam around and the rest kept caning.

It wasn't very deep yet and they could even feel around the flats, but they couldn't find him anywhere.
I went around and looked at the window and even then the cabin was filled with smoke, but not so thick.