"And you will surely believe the ladies." "How is you all happen to know him so well ?" demanded the captain curiously.
"We know him because we all went to school together," answered Dick.
"These young ladies lived in the vicinity of the school.

We had trouble with Baxter at school and later on out West, and ever since that time he has been trying to injure us.

We met him in San Francisco in the hotel lobby and at night he went to our room, cut open a traveling bag and unlocked our trunks and robbed us of two hundred and seventy-five dollars in cash, some diamond studs, a pair of cuff buttons, and some clothing." "I've got an idea!" almost shouted Sam.

"Maybe he has some of the stolen stuff in his stateroom." "Yes, yes, let us search the stateroom: by all means!" exclaimed Tom.
"You shall not touch my room!" howled Baxter, turning pale.

"I have nothing there but my own private property." "If that is so, you shouldn't object to having the stateroom searched," observed Captain Blossom.
"If we get back our money we may be able to pay you something, captain, for our passage," said Dick.
This was a forceful argument and set Captain Blossom to thinking.