CHAPTER XLI. CONCLUSION.

Will stared curiously at his brother as he pronounced the mystical word “ambergris.”

“I won’t keep you in the dark speculating over what I mean,” said Alan. “Ambergris is a substance found in whales in very rare instances and only under certain conditions. It is used in the manufacture of cologne as the base to hold the perfume, and is almost worth its weight in gold.”

“And how did you find it?” asked the interested Mr. Bertram.

“It was during the cruise of the Albatross. We had came to anchor, and I was strolling down the shore with two members of the crew, when we came across a dead whale. To make a long story short, we examined it and suspected the presence of ambergris. We found enough to fill a cask.”

“And it was valuable, you say?” inquired Mrs. Bertram.

“Yes, indeed. We obtained a cask and brought it on board the ship. We did not tell the crew of it. In all our wanderings I clung to that ambergris, and on our way to Watertown left it at Portland.”

“You sold it?” asked Will.

“Yes, for many thousands of dollars. I divided the money with the crew of the Albatross. The remainder is mine.”

The faces of Mr. and Mrs. Bertram beamed with joy at the good fortune of their son.

Within a week affairs had resumed their wonted serenity with the Bertram family.

Alan and Jack were compelled to visit Portland to attend the preliminary trial of Captain Morris.

It was expected that Will’s evidence would be required in the case, but Jack Marcy’s testimony was sufficient.

One evening they returned, and Will was informed that the case against Morris had been decided.

“He was found guilty of scuttling the ship,” Jack told him.

“What did they do with him?” asked Will.

“He was sent to the penitentiary for a long term of years.”

“And Parker?”

“He was released upon giving his testimony against Morris. The mate of the Golden Moose had disappeared. The three sailors were given light terms of imprisonment.”

“And our suit for the stolen whale-oil was decided in our favor. Morris agreed to give us the money he had and the yacht to prevent being prosecuted for imprisoning you.”

The people of Watertown soon saw a change in the circumstances of the Bertram family, and Alan, who was a favorite generally, was met everywhere with friendly consideration.

The yacht Captain Morris had transferred to him was put in better order, and for a time Will and Jack ran it down the coast, doing a prosperous business.

Hugo, with a generous present from Captain Bertram, went off on another sea voyage.

Willis returned home, and Tom was taken into service on the yacht.

Captain Bertram himself purchased a warehouse in Watertown and entered business on his own account.

One day as Will entered the office he found there his old employer, the menagerie agent, Mr. Hunter.

“I was passing through Watertown and wanted to see you once more,” said Mr. Hunter. “You left us abruptly up in the woods.”

Will explained how he and Tom were lost, and told of his succeeding adventures.

“I never earned the salary you paid me in advance, Mr. Hunter,” he said.

“We won’t quarrel about that, Will,” was the hearty reply.

Will offered the polar bear’s skin to Mr. Hunter for his menagerie, but the latter said:

“No, no, Will. That is a memento of your Arctic experience you must keep.”

A year after his return from his eventful voyage to the frozen north Will Bertram was owner of the yacht he and Jack had sailed for his brother.

Later he left this business to enter the warehouse.

With industry and perseverance as their motto, Alan and Will Bertram soon attained a commercial success, and as partners became representative men in the community.

When Will thought of his life as a castaway it was with pleasure, for that experience had developed many manly qualities.

He shuddered as he thought of the evil course and the punishment of Captain Morris.

His brief imprisonment in Morris’ yacht had shown him the true hideousness of crime, and from its contact he always shrank in after years.

Whenever Hugo came to Watertown he was a welcome guest at the house of the Bertrams.

Willis visited his old companions in exile very frequently, and Jack and Tom, the latter grown to a self-reliant, earnest man, and Will often met with him to talk over their past experiences together.

Mr. and Mrs. Bertram found their declining years the happiest of their life.

Blessed with a competency, they passed a life of happiness and comfort, proud of the sons who cherished their love as a precious boon.

The polar bear skin is still a trophy in Will’s room in the new Bertram mansion.

Often he relates how it came into his possession to visitors.

And whenever he recites the sufferings himself and his companions endured in the far north he gratefully remembers the kind providence which brought them safely through all their perils.

Looking back over the years, that adventurous experience in the Arctic zone is as fresh as if an occurrence of yesterday.

It is like a fairy picture in his memory--the days when he and Willis and Tom were young explorers UNDER THE POLAR STAR.

THE END.

* * * * *

THE GOLDEN LIBRARY.

The press, the pulpit, the parents, and the general public cry out for bright, pure, and attractive reading for boys and girls. Juvenile literature of the demoralizing kind only has heretofore been sold on the news-stands at cheap prices. The GOLDEN LIBRARY comes to the rescue of a long-suffering community. Its pages are full of interest, its stories are original, full of life and brave endeavor for the right. It is not a goody-goody Sunday-school series. It will not cater to cant, hypocrisy, or vileness of any kind. It is for the right, the bright, the pure, the honest, first, last, and all the time. It has no other mission than to supplant the bad with _something good_ that shall be equally as attractive to the young of both sexes and of all conditions. Examine it and read it. The publishers believe it is just the thing, and intend that it shall make a brave fight for recognition on its _merits_. Give us a good word, _if we deserve_ it, whenever you can.

CATALOGUE.

=1= =ONE CENT CAPITAL=; or, A Young Clerk’s Adventures. By Archie Van. =2= =HONOR BRIGHT=; or, The Young Surveyor of Green River. By Henry L. Black. =3= =UNDER THE POLAR STAR=; or, The Young Explorers. By Dwight Weldon. =4= =BOUND TO WIN=; or, Jack o’ Lantern, the Ferry Boy. By Dwight Weldon. =5= =TWENTY CRUSOES=; or, The Grammar School Castaways. By Henry L. Black. =6= =BAREFOOTED BEN=; or, The Boy who Built a Railroad. By author of “Honor Bright.” =7= =TRUE TO HIS COLORS=; or, Bert Noble, the Young Reporter. By Henry L. Black. =8= =WORKING HIS WAY=; or, The Brookville Boys’ Club. By Dwight Weldon. =9= =CLEAR GRIT=; or, A Young Emigrant’s Adventures. By Archie Van. =10= =CLEAR THE WAY=; or, The Boys of Bear Hollow. By John Gordon. =11= =SENT ADRIFT=; or, Around the World on Eighty Cents. By Henry A. Wheeler. =12= =WHEEL AND WHISTLE=; or, The Young Pilot of Lake Linden. By Archie Van. =13= =TRUE AS STEEL=; or, The Anvil-Boy of Bessemer Forge. By Henry L. Black. =14= =LINK AND LEVER=; or, The Boy Railroader of Rushville. By John Gordon. =15= =TWO BRAVE BOYS=; or, The Mystery of the Great North Woods. By Dwight Weldon. =16= =ROUGH AND READY=; or, A Young Hero in Tatters. By Henry A. Wheeler. =17= =CAMP AND CANOE=; or, Cruise of the Red Jackets in Florida. By St. George Rathborne. =18= =BLOWING A BUBBLE=; or, The Bardstown Boys’ Stock Company. By Captain Castleton. =19= =FIGHTING TO WIN=; or, The Crusoe Boys of Treasure Island. By John Gordon. =20= =PURE PLUCK=; or, A Telegraph-Boy’s Adventures. By Dwight Weldon. =21= =OUT WEST=; or, The Pioneer Boys of Sun Prairie. By Henry A. Wheeler. =22= =AFLOAT WITH A CIRCUS=; or, The Diamond-Seekers of Natal. By Henry L. Black. =23= =TRIED AND TRUE=; or, The Locksmith Boy of Frankford. By Archie Van. =24= =MAIL-BAG AND MONEY=; or, The Boy Postmaster of Brimfield. By Captain Castleton. =25= =UP NORTH=; or, Making a Man of Himself. By John Gordon. =26= =BOY MILLIONAIRE=; or, The Lost Mine of the Sierra Madre. By Henry A. Wheeler. =27= =RIFLE AND ROD=; or, A Cruise Down the Lake. By J. M. Merrill. =28= =BRIGHT AND EARLY=; or, The Boy Who Became a Detective. By John Tulkinghorn. =29= =ALWAYS ON DECK=; or, Making a Start in Life. By Archie Van. =30= =WESTWARD HO!= or, The Cabin in the Clearing. By Henry L. Black. =31= =ALL ABOARD!= or, The Rival Boat-Clubs. By Weldon J. Cobb. =32= =UP IN A BALLOON=; or, The Gas Well of Mont Clare. By Captain Castleton. =33= =TOM BERKLEY’S LUCK=; or, A Brave Boy’s Fight for Fortune. By Weldon J. Cobb. =34= =THE BOY MILL-OWNER=; or, Doing His Level Best. By J. M. Merrill. =35= =HIS OWN MASTER=; or, Young Samson of the Iron Mills. By Henry A. Wheeler. =36= =PLUCKY NAT=; or, A Bright Boy’s Adventures in Texas. By George Henry Morse. =37= =BEN BLY’S BIRTHRIGHT=; or, The Boy Farmer of Fox Valley. By John Tulkinghorn. =38= =DICK FARLEY’S GRIT=; or, A Diamond in the Rough. By Dwight Weldon. =39= =ALMOST A MAN=; or, The Boy Pilot of the Mississippi. By Captain Castleton.

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Address

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Transcriber’s Notes:

Illustrations have been moved to paragraph breaks near where they are mentioned.

Punctuation has been made consistent.

Variations in spelling and hyphenation were retained as they appear in the original publication, except that obvious typographical errors have been corrected.