It was well known that there were parties in New York
who had, and were still realizing immense sums of money by
cheating the Government of its legitimate revenue.
The Collector of the Port did not care so much about the crews
of the vessels, it was the owners and capitalists he was
seeking to trail down.
The smugglers had given over the search for Spencer Vance, and
in parties of twos and threes, had gathered at Rigby's, until
at least fifteen or twenty men were assembled. They were all
smugglers and members of the crew of the smuggler yacht
"Nancy."
As intimated in our opening chapters, the men ostensibly were
fishermen, and their boat was stated to be a fishing-boat; and
to lend color to the claim, the men did go off between times
on fishing expeditions, and the latter little trick had been
their best "blind" and "throw off."
Again, as intimated in our former chapters, three Government
officers had mysteriously disappeared, and the duty had
devolved upon the Government officials not only to stay the
illegal traffic, but to ferret out and bring to punishment the
murderers of the missing detectives.
There was no actual proof, however, that the men were
murdered; as far as the Government officials were advisedly
concerned, the detectives were merely missing. It was
reported by some "Smart Alec" that the detectives had been put
on outgoing vessels bound for some distant port, and that in
good season they would turn up, and then again there was the
chance that the officers might have met with accidents in
their perilous undertaking.
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