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 IFIP AICT 618
Sujeet K. Sharma
Yogesh K. Dwivedi
Bhimaraya Metri
Nripendra P. Rana
(Eds.)

Re-imagining Diffusion
and Adoption of Information
Technology and Systems:
A Continuing Conversation

IFIP WG 8.6 International Conference

on Transfer and Diffusion of IT, TDIT 2020
Tiruchirappalli, India, December 18–19, 2020
Proceedings, Part II
IFIP Advances in Information
and Communication Technology 618

Editor-in-Chief

Kai Rannenberg, Goethe University Frankfurt, Germany

Editorial Board Members

TC 1 – Foundations of Computer Science
Luís Soares Barbosa , University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
TC 2 – Software: Theory and Practice
Michael Goedicke, University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany
TC 3 – Education
Arthur Tatnall , Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia
TC 5 – Information Technology Applications
Erich J. Neuhold, University of Vienna, Austria
TC 6 – Communication Systems
Burkhard Stiller, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
TC 7 – System Modeling and Optimization
Fredi Tröltzsch, TU Berlin, Germany
TC 8 – Information Systems
Jan Pries-Heje, Roskilde University, Denmark
TC 9 – ICT and Society
David Kreps , University of Salford, Greater Manchester, UK
TC 10 – Computer Systems Technology
Ricardo Reis , Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
TC 11 – Security and Privacy Protection in Information Processing Systems
Steven Furnell , Plymouth University, UK
TC 12 – Artificial Intelligence
Eunika Mercier-Laurent , University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne, Reims, France
TC 13 – Human-Computer Interaction
Marco Winckler , University of Nice Sophia Antipolis, France
TC 14 – Entertainment Computing
Rainer Malaka, University of Bremen, Germany
IFIP – The International Federation for Information Processing
IFIP was founded in 1960 under the auspices of UNESCO, following the first World
Computer Congress held in Paris the previous year. A federation for societies working
in information processing, IFIP’s aim is two-fold: to support information processing in
the countries of its members and to encourage technology transfer to developing na-
tions. As its mission statement clearly states:

IFIP is the global non-profit federation of societies of ICT professionals that aims
at achieving a worldwide professional and socially responsible development and
application of information and communication technologies.

IFIP is a non-profit-making organization, run almost solely by 2500 volunteers. It

operates through a number of technical committees and working groups, which organize
events and publications. IFIP’s events range from large international open conferences
to working conferences and local seminars.
The flagship event is the IFIP World Computer Congress, at which both invited and
contributed papers are presented. Contributed papers are rigorously refereed and the
rejection rate is high.
As with the Congress, participation in the open conferences is open to all and papers
may be invited or submitted. Again, submitted papers are stringently refereed.
The working conferences are structured differently. They are usually run by a work-
ing group and attendance is generally smaller and occasionally by invitation only. Their
purpose is to create an atmosphere conducive to innovation and development. Referee-
ing is also rigorous and papers are subjected to extensive group discussion.
Publications arising from IFIP events vary. The papers presented at the IFIP World
Computer Congress and at open conferences are published as conference proceedings,
while the results of the working conferences are often published as collections of se-
lected and edited papers.
IFIP distinguishes three types of institutional membership: Country Representative
Members, Members at Large, and Associate Members. The type of organization that
can apply for membership is a wide variety and includes national or international so-
cieties of individual computer scientists/ICT professionals, associations or federations
of such societies, government institutions/government related organizations, national or
international research institutes or consortia, universities, academies of sciences, com-
panies, national or international associations or federations of companies.

More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/6102

Sujeet K. Sharma Yogesh K. Dwivedi
• •

Bhimaraya Metri Nripendra P. Rana (Eds.)

•

Re-imagining Diffusion
and Adoption of Information
Technology and Systems:
A Continuing Conversation
IFIP WG 8.6 International Conference
on Transfer and Diffusion of IT, TDIT 2020
Tiruchirappalli, India, December 18–19, 2020
Proceedings, Part II

123
Editors
Sujeet K. Sharma Yogesh K. Dwivedi
Indian Institute of Management Swansea University
Tiruchirappalli Swansea, UK
Tiruchirappalli, India
Nripendra P. Rana
Bhimaraya Metri University of Bradford
Indian Institute of Management Nagpur Bradford, UK
Nagpur, India

ISSN 1868-4238 ISSN 1868-422X (electronic)

IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology
ISBN 978-3-030-64860-2 ISBN 978-3-030-64861-9 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64861-9

© IFIP International Federation for Information Processing 2020

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the
material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation,
broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information
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does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant
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The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are
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 Preface

The IFIP Working Group (WG 8.6) was established in the early ‘90s “to foster
understanding and improve research in practice, methods, and techniques in the transfer
and diffusion of information technology within systems that are developed, and in the
development process1.” The 2020 IFIP WG 8.6 conference on the theme
“Re-Imagining Diffusion of Information Technology and Systems: A Continuing
Conversation” was held at Tiruchirappalli, India, and was hosted by the Indian Institute
of Management (IIM) Tiruchirappalli during December 18–19, 2020. We are grateful
to IIM Tiruchirappalli for providing all required facilities and the IFIP WG 8.6 for
mentoring the successful organization of the conference. The proceedings volumes of
this conference focus on the re-imagination of diffusion and adoption of emerging
technologies.
Developments in blockchain, artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, social media,
mobile computing and applications, agile systems development techniques, cloud
computing, and business analytics have become central to the business and the cycle of
innovation has sped up, platforms provide quick access to infrastructure, and infor-
mation spreads on a 24-h cycle. These developments, in turn, have impacted the way
both organizations and societies, engage with transfer and diffusion of information
technology (IT) systems within and between organizations, in interactions with cus-
tomers, and society in general. The question is no longer how to adopt and diffuse IT
systems, but how to quickly assess and manage those that best serve the broader
purposes of businesses and societies. In addition to the idea of adoption and diffusion
of IT systems, IT teams in organizations and individuals are also working on how IT
systems are contributing to the value creation in both organizations and society.
There is an innate need for understanding the diffusion and adoption of emerging
information technologies and systems (i.e., artificial intelligence, blockchain, Fin-Tech
applications, Internet of Things, social media), which are expected to have a substantial
impact on future economic development of society, organizations, and individuals
(Borus et al. 2020; Dwivedi et al. 2019ab; Hughes et al. 2019; Ismagilova et al. 2019;
Janssen et al. 2019). A review of the role of information technologies, particularly over
the past two decades, clearly shows the vital link between technology adoption and
socio-economic development in many economies (Venkatesh et al. 2016; Williams
et al. 2015). The Gartner report on “Top Strategic Technology” in 20192 lists trends
including blockchain, artificial intelligence, autonomous things (robots, vehicles,
drones, etc.) among others as the game changers that could revolutionize industries and
their strategic models through 2023. These emerging technologies have great potential
to contribute to organizational and societal reforms. Thus, in the recent past, the

1
http://ifipwg86.wikidot.com/about-us.
2
https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterhigh/2019/10/21/breaking-gartner-announces-top-10-strategic-
technology-trends-for-2020/#47dbbb940744.
vi Preface

scholarly body is showing an increased interest in the understanding of adoption,

usage, impact, and potential of aforementioned technologies mentioned on individuals,
societies, and organizations.
This conference brought together scholars and practitioners from interdisciplinary
areas for the enrichment of scholarly deliberations on the adoption, usage, impact, and
potential of emerging technologies. The conference mainly focused on the papers that
addressed questions related to the diffusion and adoption of emerging technologies.
Besides, we were also open and committed to the broader theme of the IFIP WG 8.6.
We created 15 tracks with 2 or 3 track chairs. We received 247 papers, including 214
through EasyChair account and 33 direct submissions through conference email. All
submissions were double-blind reviewed by at least two knowledgeable reviewers.
This process resulted in 122 full and short papers. The acceptance rate of the papers in
the conference proceedings is about 49.4%. We are grateful to all track chairs who
selected reviewers and provided constructive and timely comments to authors to revise
and resubmit their manuscripts.
Due to a large number of submissions, the conference proceedings of IFIP WG 8.6
are divided into two volumes. There are seven sections in Volume I and eight sections
in Volume II.
Volume one includes sections namely:
• Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Systems
• Big Data and Analytics
• Blockchain
• Diffusion and Adoption Technology
• Emerging Technologies in e-Governance
• Emerging Technologies in Consumer Decision Making and Choice
• Fin-Tech Applications
• Healthcare Information Technology
• Internet of Things
Volume two includes:
• Information Technology and Disaster Management
• Adoption of Mobile and Platform-Based Applications
• Smart Cities and Digital Government
• Social Media
• Diffusion of Information Technology and Systems (Conference Theme)
We sincerely thank all authors, reviewers, participants, Program Committee mem-
bers, track chairs, advisory board, IFIP WG 8.6 officials, and IIM Tiruchirappalli staff
who helped in making this conference a grand success.

October 2020 Sujeet K. Sharma

Yogesh K. Dwivedi
Bhimaraya Metri
Nripendra P. Rana
 Preface vii

References
Brous, P., Janssen, M., and Herder, P., 2020. The dual effects of the Internet of Things
(IoT): A systematic review of the benefits and risks of IoT adoption by organiza-
tions. International Journal of Information Management, 51, p.101952.
Dwivedi, Y. K., Rana, N. P., Jeyaraj, A., Clement, M., and Williams, M. D. 2019a.
“Re-Examining the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology
(UTAUT): Towards a Revised Theoretical Model,” Information Systems Frontiers
(21:3), Springer New York LLC, pp. 719–734. (https://doi.org/10.1007/s10796-
017-9774-y).
Dwivedi, Y.K., Hughes, L., Ismagilova, E., Aarts, G., Coombs, C., Crick, T., Duan, Y.,
Dwivedi, R., Edwards, J., Eirug, A., and Galanos, V., 2019b. Artificial Intelligence
(AI): Multidisciplinary perspectives on emerging challenges, opportunities, and
agenda for research, practice and policy. International Journal of Information
Management, p.101994. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2019.08.002
Hughes, L., Dwivedi, Y. K., Misra, S. K., Rana, N. P., Raghavan, V., and Akella, V.
(2019). Blockchain research, practice and policy: Applications, benefits, limita-
tions, emerging research themes and research agenda. International Journal of
Information Management, 49, 114-129.
Ismagilova, E., Hughes, L., Dwivedi, Y. K., and Raman, K. R. (2019). Smart cities:
Advances in research—An information systems perspective. International Journal
of Information Management, 47, 88-100.
Janssen, M., Luthra, S., Mangla, S., Rana, N. P., and Dwivedi, Y. K. 2019. “Challenges
for Adopting and Implementing IoT in Smart Cities: An Integrated MICMAC-ISM
Approach,” Internet Research (29:6), Emerald Group Publishing Ltd., pp. 1589–
1616. (https://doi.org/10.1108/INTR-06-2018-0252).
Venkatesh, V., Thong, J. Y. L., and Xu, X. 2016. “Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use
of Technology: A Synthesis and the Road Ahead,” Journal of the Association for
Information Systems (17:5), pp. 328–376. (https://doi.org/10.17705/1jais.00428).
Williams, M. D., Rana, N. P., and Dwivedi, Y. K. 2015. “The Unified Theory of
Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT): A Literature Review,” Journal of
Enterprise Information Management, Emerald Group Publishing Ltd., pp. 443–
448. (https://doi.org/10.1108/JEIM-09-2014-0088).
 Organization

Conference Committee

General Chairs
Viswanath Venkatesh University of Arkansas, USA
Yogesh K. Dwivedi Swansea University, UK
Deborah Bunker The University of Sydney, Australia
Dave Wastell University of Nottingham, UK

Conference Chairs
Sujeet K. Sharma IIM Tiruchirappalli, India
Satish S. Maheswarappa IIM Tiruchirappalli, India
Helle Zinner Henriksen Copenhagen Business School, Denmark
Santosh K. Misra CEO and Commissioner of e-Governance, Government
of Tamil Nadu, India

Program Chairs
Sujeet K. Sharma IIM Tiruchirappalli, India
Banita Lal University of Bedfordshire, UK
Amany Elbanna Royal Holloway, University of London, UK
Nripendra P. Rana University of Bradford, UK
Moutusy Maity IIM Lucknow, India
Jang Bahadur Singh IIM Tiruchirappalli, India
Saji Mathew IIT Madras, India

Organizing Chairs
Rajesh Chandwani IIM Ahmedabad, India
Prashant Gupta IIM Tiruchirappalli, India
Arpan Kar DSM, IIT Delhi, India
Sankalp Pratap IIM Tiruchirappalli, India
Sumeet Gupta IIM Raipur, India
Sirish Kumar Gouda IIM Tiruchirappalli, India
Satish Krishnan IIM Kozhikode, India
G. P. Sahu MNNIT Allahabad, India
x Organization

Uthayasankar (Sankar) University of Bradford, UK

Sivarajah
Rajan Yadav Delhi Technological University, India
Shalini Srivastava Jaipuria Institute of Management Noida, India
Zahran Al-Salti Sultan Qaboos University, Oman

Track Chairs

Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Systems;

Ilias Pappas University of Agder (UiA), Norway
Amany Elbanna Royal Holloway, University of London, UK
Kshitij Sharma Norwegian University of Science & Technology,
Norway

Big Data and Analytics;

Patrick Mikalef NTNU, Norway
Anastasia Griva National University of Ireland Galway

Blockchain;
Samuel Fosso Wamba Head of Artificial Intelligence and Business Analytics
Cluster, Toulouse Business School, France
Santosh K. Misra IAS, CEO & Commissioner of e-Governance, Govt of
TN, India
Maciel M. Queiroz Universidade Paulista, Brasil

Diffusion and Adoption of Technology;

Jyoti Choudrie University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, UK
Anand Jeyaraj Wright State University, USA
Harminder Singh AUT Business School, Auckland University
of Technology, New Zealand

Emerging Technologies in e-Governance;

Satish Krishnan IIM Kozhikode, India
G. P. Sahu MNNIT, Allahabad, India

Emerging Technologies in Consumer Decision Making and Choice;

Moutusy Maity IIM Lucknow (IIM-L), India
Sathish S. Maheshwarappa IIM Tiruchirappalli, India

Fin-Tech Applications;
M. N. Ravishankar Director of Internationalisation, Loughborough
University, UK
Barney Tan The University of Sydney Business School, Australia
 Organization xi

Healthcare Information Technology;

Rajesh Chandwani IIM Ahmedabad, India
Jang Bahadur Singh IIM Tiruchirappalli, India

Internet of Things;
Denis Dennehy National University of Ireland, Galway
Samuel Fosso Wamba Head of Artificial Intelligence and Business Analytics
Cluster, Toulouse Business School, France
Samrat Gupta IIM Ahmedabad, India

Information Technology and Disaster Management;

Rameshwar Dubey Montpellier Business School, France
Sirish Kumar Gouda IIM Tiruchirappalli, India

Adoption of Mobile and Platform-Based Applications;

Parijat Upadhyay Institute of Management Technology (IMT), Nagpur
R. Raman Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune
Arpan Kumar Kar IIT Delhi, New Delhi

Smart Cities and Digital Government;

Vigneswara Ilavarasan DMS, IIT Delhi, New Delhi
Endrit Kromidha University of Birmingham, UK

Social Media.
Nripendra P. Rana University of Bradford, UK
Kuttimani Tamilmani University of Bradford, UK

Diffusion of Information Technology and Systems (Conference Theme);

Yogesh Dwivedi Swansea University, UK
Deborah Bunker University of Sydney, Australia
Sujeet K. Sharma IIM Tiruchirappalli, India
 Contents – Part II

Information Technology and Disaster Management

ICT Platform-Enabled Socio-Economic Ecosystem in Himalayan

Villages of India: The Case of a Forest Protection and Renewable
Energy Production Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Gaurav Dixit, Kapil Kumar Joshi, and Vinay Sharma

Protective Security by Online Promotions Paired with Mobile Payments:

Evidence from Covid-19 Crisis Relief Fund Collection in India . . . . . . . . . . 15
Abhipsa Pal and Salamah Ansari

Digital Humanitarianism in a Pandemic Outbreak: An Empirical Study

of Antecedents and Consequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Anup Kumar, Niraj K. Vishwakarma, and Parijat Upadhyay

Information Diffusion for Real Time Resource Planning During Crisis

Leveraging Emerging Digital Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Swarnalakshmi Ravi, T. J. Kamalanabhan, and Thanga Jawahar

From Human Automation Interactions to Social Human Autonomy

Machine Teaming in Maritime Transportation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Carine Dominguez-Péry and Lakshmi Narasimha Raju Vuddaraju

Adoption of Mobile and Platform-Based Applications

Effects of MDM Adoption on Employee in the Context of Consumerization

of IT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Ashis K. Pani, Praveen K. Choudhary, Susmi Routray,
and Manas Ranjan Pani

Information Technology Usage and Cognitive Engagement: Understanding

Effects on Users’ Cognitive Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Himanshu Agarwal and Gaurav Dixit

Mobile Wallet Continuance Adoption Intention: An Empirical Study

in Cameroon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Samuel Fosso Wamba and Maciel M. Queiroz

An Extended Tam Model to Explain the Adoption of Payment Banks

in India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Somya Gupta and G. P. Sahu
xiv Contents – Part II

Assessing Challenges to Mobile Wallet Usage in India: An Interpretive

Structural Modeling Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Nripendra P. Rana, Sunil Luthra, and H. R. Rao

Factors Driving the Adoption of Mobile Banking App: An Empirical

Assessment in the Less Digitalized Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Alex Ntsiful, Michael Adu Kwarteng, Abdul Bashiru Jibril,
Boris Popesko, and Michal Pilik

Antecedents of Digital Platform Organising Visions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

Fábio Neves da Rocha and Neil Pollock

Are Video Resumes Preferred by Job Applicants? Information Technology

in Recruitment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Apoorva Goel and Richa Awasthy

Virtual Platforms for Government Services in COVID-19 and Beyond:

A Sociomaterial Case Study of Passport Service in Ghana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
John Effah

Consumer Resistance to Mobile Banking Services: Do Gender

Differences Exist? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Kayode A. Odusanya, Olu Aluko, and Ayodeji Ajibade

Harnessing the Potentials of Mobile Phone for Adoption and Promotion

of Organic Farming Practices in Nigeria. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
A. Kayode Adesemowo, Adebayo Abayomi-Alli,
O. Oluwayomi Olabanjo, Modupe O. Odusami,
Oluwasefunmi T. Arogundade, and Tope Elizabeth Abioye

The Impact of Personality Traits Towards the Intention to Adopt

Mobile Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Nesa Nabipour Sanjebad, Anup Shrestha, and Pezhman Shahid

Smart Cities and Digital Government

Impact of Disruptive Technologies on Smart Cities: Challenges

and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
Balasubramaniam Krishnan, Seetharaman Arumugam,
and Koilakuntla Maddulety

Developing Indian Smart Cities: Insights from Social Media . . . . . . . . . . . . 209

Naganna Chetty and Sreejith Alathur

Orchestration of an e-Government Network: Capturing the Dynamics

of e-Government Service Delivery Through Theoretical Analysis
and Mathematical Forecasting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
Sayantan Khanra and Rojers P. Joseph
 Contents – Part II xv

Investigating Emerging Technologies Role in Smart Cities’ Solutions . . . . . . 230

Ali Al-Badi, Sujeet Kumar Sharma, Vishal Jain, and Asharul Islam Khan

Trust and e-Government Projects – An Exploratory Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242

Ambuj Anand

Expanding Beyond Technology-Driven Factors: IoT for Smart

City Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
Malliga Marimuthu

Aspects of Digital Urbanism in India and Abroad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

Sriram Rajagopalan and R. Sriram

Citizens’ Participation as an Important Element for Smart

City Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274
Anton Manfreda, Nejc Ekart, Matic Mori, and Aleš Groznik

Social Media

There Is Nothing Real! A Study of Nonuse of TikTok in India. . . . . . . . . . . 287

Imon Chakraborty, Unnati Kapoor, and P. Vigneswara Ilavarasan

Mining the Social Discussions Surrounding Circular Economy: Insights

from the Collective Intelligence Shared in Twitter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
Purva Grover and Arpan Kumar Kar

Studying Online Political Behaviours as Rituals: A Study of Social Media

Behaviour Regarding the CAA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315
Amit Kumar Kushwaha, Subhadeep Mandal, Ruchika Pharswan,
Arpan Kumar Kar, and P. Vigneswara Ilavarasan

Health Fear Mongering Make People More Sicker: Twitter Analysis

in the Context of Corona Virus Infection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
Jayan Vasudevan and Sreejith Alathur

Sentiment Analysis and Topic Modelling of Indian Government’s Twitter

Handle #IndiaFightsCorona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339
Christina Sanchita Shah and M. P. Sebastian

Listen to Your Customers! “A Study About Content Creation on Social

Media to Enhance Customer Engagement” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 352
Arjen Doek, Ton AM Spil, and Robin Effing

Social Commerce Constructs and Trust as Influencers of Consumer

Decision Making With Reference to Fashion E-Tailing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371
Sarulatha Neelankandan and Sasirekha Venkatesan
xvi Contents – Part II

Women’s Political Participation on Social Media: The Case of Tanzania . . . . 384

Banita Lal, Shrumisha Kwayu, and Sajeel Ahmed

What Makes a Social Media Manager? Insights from the Content Analysis
of Job Advertisements in India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
Ruchika Pharswan, P. Vigneswara Ilavarasan, and Arpan Kumar Kar

A Meta-analysis of Social Commerce Adoption Research. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404

Prianka Sarker, Nripendra P. Rana, Laurie Hughe,
and Yogesh K. Dwivedi

Antecedences and Consequences of Customer Engagement in Online Brand

Communities: Multi-national Perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 419
Ali A. Alalwan, Abdullah M. Baabdullah, Yogesh K. Dwivedi,
Nripendra P. Rana, and Rand H. Al-Dmour

Social Media Uses Among Youths and Matured Person . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 428

Shubhendra S. Parihar and Puneet Rai

How Do Consumers Perceive Brand Campaigns on Twitter? . . . . . . . . . . . . 438

Muskan Jain, Angeline Gautami Fernando, and K. Rajeshwari

A Conceptual Framework of Social Media Influence on Mobile Banking

Usage Among Young Indian Consumers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 444
Manisha Sharma and Subhojit Banerjee

Fans’ Attachment to Players in the Indian Premier League: Insights

from Twitter Analytics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 451
Giridhar B. Kamath, Shirshendu Ganguli, Simon George,
and Vibha

Trusting Social Media News: Role of Social Influence and Emotions Using
EEG as a Brain Imaging Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463
Gaurav Dixit and Shristi Bose

Value Creation Through Social Media Marketing: A Threat

to Sustainability Performance? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 475
Adwoa Yeboaa Owusu Yeboah, Michael Adu Kwarteng, and Petr Novak

An Exploratory Study of Twitter Sentiment Analysis During COVID-19:

#TravelTomorrow and #UNWTO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 487
V. Senthil and Susobhan Goswami

Preliminary Insights into Social Commerce in the Fitness Industry

of Ghana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 499
Eric Klutse Adevu, Joseph Budu, Walter Dzimey, and Edward Entee
 Contents – Part II xvii

Diffusion of Information Technology and Systems

(Conference Theme)

Digital Transformation of Organizations – Defining an

Emergent Construct . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 511
Ashis Kumar Pani and Himadri Sikhar Pramanik

Opposite Outcomes of Social Media Use: A Proposed Model . . . . . . . . . . . . 524

Rita Rocha-Penedo, Frederico Cruz-Jesus, and Tiago Oliveira

The Effect of Technostressers on Universities Teaching Staff Work

Performance During COVID19 Pandemic Lockdown. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 538
Zainah Qasem, Ali Abdallah Alalwan, Zaid Mohammad Obeidat,
and Raeda AlQutob

Role of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Factors Affecting Continuance Intentions

of Digital Payment Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 544
Anup Kumar, Parijat Upadhyay, Sujeet K. Sharma, and Prashant Gupta

Revisiting the Trust–Commitment and Export Performance Link:

A Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 556
AFM Jalal Ahamed and Ilias O. Pappas

The Influence of Public Service Experience on Adopting Digital

Government Innovations in Ethiopia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 569
Debas Senshaw and Hossana Twinomurinzi

Accessibility Issues in Indonesian E-Commerce Portals: Issues

and Recommendations for Business Improvement and Growth . . . . . . . . . . . 581
Raghuram Balaga

Proposed Model for Effective Implementation of IS Megaproject

in an Emerging Economy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 592
Sharad Sharma, Rekha Jain, and Vishal Gupta

Antecedents of the Barriers Toward the Adoption of Unified Payment

Interface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 608
Sayantan Khanra, Rojers P. Joseph, Amandeep Dhir, and Puneet Kaur

Understanding the Challenges of Mandatory Telework Adoption and Its

Effect on Employee Engagement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 626
Harshit Kumar Singh and Sanjay Verma

Competitiveness, Change Readiness, and ICT Development: An Empirical

Investigation of TOE Framework for Poverty Alleviation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 638
Mukesh Narmetta and Satish Krishnan
xviii Contents – Part II

Implementing ICT at School Level: Factors Affecting Teachers’

Perceived Proficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 650
Chandan Singhavi and Prema Basargekar

Child Online Safety Intervention Through Empowering Parents

and Technical Experts: Indian Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 662
Dittin Andrews, Sreejith Alathur, and Naganna Chetty

Analysing ERP Implementations from Organizational Change Perspective:

An Exploratory Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 674
S. L. N. Raja, Nidheesh Joseph, and Abhishek Totawar

Employees’ Acceptance of AI Integrated CRM System: Development

of a Conceptual Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 679
Sheshadri Chatterjee, Kuttimani Tamilmani, Nripendra P. Rana,
and Yogesh K. Dwivedi

Modified UTAUT2 to Determine Intention and Use of E-Commerce

Technology Among Micro & Small Women Entrepreneurs
in Jharkhand, India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 688
Sraboni Dutta and Shradha Shivani

Author Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 703

 Contents – Part I

Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Systems

Analysis of Factors Influencing the Adoption of Artificial Intelligence

for Crime Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Praveen R.S. Gummadidala, Nanda Kumar Karippur,
and Maddulety Koilakuntla

Organizational Adoption of Artificial Intelligence in Supply Chain

Risk Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Souma Kanti Paul, Sadia Riaz, and Suchismita Das

Language Model-Driven Chatbot for Business to Address Marketing

and Selection of Products. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Amit Kumar Kushwaha and Arpan Kumar Kar

Using Work System Theory, Facets of Work, and Dimensions of Smartness

to Characterize Applications and Impacts of Artificial Intelligence. . . . . . . . . 29
Steven Alter

Visualising the Knowledge Domain of Artificial Intelligence in Marketing:

A Bibliometric Analysis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Elvira Ismagiloiva, Yogesh Dwivedi, and Nripendra Rana

Emerging Technologies and Emergent Workplaces: Findings

from an Ethnographic Study at an Indian IT Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Vinay Reddy Venumuddala and Rajalaxmi Kamath

Learning Environments in the 21st Century: A Mapping of the Literature. . . . 67

Tumaini Kabudi, Ilias Pappas, and Dag Håkon Oslen

Artificial Intelligence in Practice – Real-World Examples and Emerging

Business Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Jayanthi Radhakrishnan and Sumeet Gupta

Determinants and Barriers of Artificial Intelligence Adoption – A

Literature Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Jayanthi Radhakrishnan and Manojit Chattopadhyay

Public Policy and Regulatory Challenges of Artificial Intelligence (AI) . . . . . 100

Santosh K. Misra, Satyasiba Das, Sumeet Gupta, and Sujeet K. Sharma
xx Contents – Part I

Big Data and Analytics

Value Creation from the Impact of Business Analytics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Hari Saravanabhavan, Seetha Raman, and K. Maddulety

Exploring Associations Between Participant Online Content Engagement

and Outcomes in an Online Professional Development Programme . . . . . . . . 126
Ketan S. Deshmukh, Vijaya Sherry Chand, Kathan D. Shukla,
and Arnab K. Laha

Exploring the Students Feelings and Emotion Towards Online Teaching:

Sentimental Analysis Approach. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
T. PraveenKumar, A. Manorselvi, and K. Soundarapandiyan

Blockchain

Blockchain in Supply Chain Management: A Review of the Capability

Maturity Model. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
R. Balakrishnan Unny and Bhajan Lal

Indian MSME’s Sustainable Adoption of Blockchain Technology

for Supply Chain Management: A Socio-Technical Perspective . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Vineet Paliwal, Shalini Chandra, and Suneel Sharma

A Study on Calendar Anomalies in the Cryptocurrency Market. . . . . . . . . . . 166

D. Susana, S. Sreejith, and J. K. Kavisanmathi

Does Herding Behaviour Among Traders Increase During Covid 19

Pandemic? Evidence from the Cryptocurrency Market . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
D. Susana, J. K. Kavisanmathi, and S. Sreejith

Diffusion and Adoption Technology

Investigating the Effect of User Reviews on Mobile Apps: The Role

of Customer Led Innovation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Miriam Erne, Zhiying Jiang, and Vanessa Liu

Education Transformation Using Block Chain Technology - A Student

Centric Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Shankar Subramanian Iyer, A. Seetharaman, and K. Maddulety

Adopting Learning Analytics to Inform Postgraduate Curriculum Design . . . . 218

Denis Dennehy, Kieran Conboy, Jaganath Babu, Johannes Schneider,
Joshua Handali, Jan vom Brocke, Benedikt Hoffmeister, and Armin Stein
 Contents – Part I xxi

User Adoption of eHRM - An Empirical Investigation of Individual

Adoption Factors Using Technology Acceptance Model. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Suryanarayan Iyer, Ashis K. Pani, and L. Gurunathan

Micro-foundations of Artificial Intelligence Adoption in Business:

Making the Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Amit Kumar Kushwaha and Arpan Kumar Kar

Pandemic Pandemonium and Remote Working: An Investigation

of Determinants and Their Contextual Behavior in Virtualization
of Work-From-Home (WFH) Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
Kalyan Prasad Agrawal, Ashis K. Pani, and Rajeev Sharma

Psychological Determinants of Consumer’s Usage, Satisfaction,

and Word-of-Mouth Recommendations Toward Smart Voice Assistants . . . . . 274
Anubhav Mishra and Anuja Shukla

Antecedents to Continuance Intention to Use eGovernment Services

in India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
Brinda Sampat and Kali Charan Sabat

Re-imagining the Use of Data Standards for Retail Products:

The Case of GS1 Through a Service-Dominant Logic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292
Shirish C. Srivastava and Stéphane Cren

Adoption of Digital Innovation in Crop Insurance - A Data Analytics Based

Benchmarking Study of Samrakshane Portal in Karnataka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298
Madhuchhanda Das Aundhe, Jang Bahadur Singh, N. Ramesh,
and M. Vimalkumar

Re-imagining Technology Adoption Research Beyond Development

and Implementation: ITOps as the New Frontier of IS Research . . . . . . . . . . 307
Archimedes T. Apronti and Amany Elbanna

Working from Home During Covid-19: How Do We ‘Do’ Social

Interaction at a Distance? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320
Banita Lal, Yogesh K. Dwivedi, and Markus Haag

CIPPUA: Towards Coherence and Impact in ICT4D/IS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329

A. Kayode Adesemowo

Exploring Causal Factors Influencing Enterprise Architecture Failure. . . . . . . 341

Yiwei Gong and Marijn Janssen

Comparative Study of Nature-Inspired Algorithms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353

Mohammad Abdullah Tahir, Hasan Faraz Khan,
and Mohammad Mohsin Khan
xxii Contents – Part I

Emerging Technologies in e-Governance

“#Government” - Understanding Dissemination, Transparency,

Participation, Collaboration and Engagement on Twitter for Citizens . . . . . . . 365
Purva Grover and Arpan Kumar Kar

An Intention-Adoption Behavioral Model for Open Government Data

in Pakistan’s Public Sector Organizations–An Exploratory Study. . . . . . . . . . 377
Muhammad Mahboob Khurshid, Nor Hidayati Zakaria,
Muhammad Irfanullah Arfeen, Ammar Rashid,
Hafiz Muhammad Faisal Shehzad, and Mohammad Nazir Ahmad

Exploring the Adoption of Multipurpose Community Telecentres

in Sub-Saharan Africa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389
Josue Kuika Watat

Digital Identity Evaluation Framework for Social Welfare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401

Umar Bashir Mir, Arpan Kumar Kar, and Manmohan Prasad Gupta

Exploring Net Benefits in the Context of an E-Government Project . . . . . . . . 415

Ambuj Anand

Emerging Technologies in Consumer Decision Making and Choice

Impact of Digital Transformation on Retail Banking Industry in the UAE . . . 425

Umesh Kothari and A. Seetharaman

Information Seeking Behaviour in Online Shopping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 439

Christina Sanchita Shah and Anindita Paul

Developing a Model for Green IS Adoption in Indian Banking

and IT Industries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 451
Monika Singh and G. P. Sahu

Consumer Insight on Driverless Automobile Technology Adoption

via Twitter Data: A Sentiment Analytic Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463
Michael Adu Kwarteng, Alex Ntsiful, Raphael Kwaku Botchway,
Michal Pilik, and Zuzana Komínková Oplatková

A Study on the Factors Influencing Behavioral Intention of Indian

Consumers in Adopting Voice Assistants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474
Dimple Kaul, Mohak Shah, and Neeraj Dhakephalkar

A Study on Attributes of Websites with Specific Reference to Online

Purchase Intentions of Baby Products in Chennai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484
E. Pradeep and R. Arivazhagan
 Contents – Part I xxiii

Customers Interest in Buying an Electric Car: An Analysis

of the Indian Market . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 493
M. Prabaharan and M. Selvalakshmi

The Impact of Digital Marketing on Exploratory Buying Behavior

Tendencies (EBBT) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 510
K. K. Roshni, T. Shobana, and R. Shruthi

Fin-Tech Applications

Influence of FinTech Companies on Banking Landscape an Exploratory

Study in Indian Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 523
Parvathy Venkatachalam

Is Cash Still the Enemy? The Dampening of Demonetization’s Ripple

Effect on Mobile Payments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 529
U. Mahesh Balan and Abhipsa Pal

Explaining Variation in Adoption of FinTech Products and Services Among

Citizens: A Multilevel Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 541
Ben Krishna and Satish Krishnan

Investor’s Perception Towards Mutual Fund Investing on the Rise

of Digitalization in Indian Mutual Fund Industry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 553
K. Pushpa Raj and B. Shyamala Devi

Financial Inclusion via Mobile Banking – A Comparison Between Kenya

and India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 561
M. C. Arthi and Kavitha Shanmugam

The Evolution of Causal Mechanisms that Drive the Diffusion of Platforms:

Investigating Corrective Mechanisms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 570
Abhinay Puvvala, Shane McLoughlin, Brian McLafferty,
Yuliia Yehorova, and Brian Donnellan

Performance Modelling on Banking System: A Data Envelopment

Analysis-Artificial Neural Network Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 581
Preeti and Supriyo Roy

Healthcare Information Technology

Physicians’ and Nurses’ Perceived Threats Toward Health Information

Technology: A Military Hospital Case Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 601
Mansor Alohali, Fergal Carton, and Yvonne O’Connor
xxiv Contents – Part I

Multiple Machine Learning Models for Detection of Alzheimer’s Disease

Using OASIS Dataset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 614
Preety Baglat, Ahmad Waleed Salehi, Ankit Gupta, and Gaurav Gupta

Social Media and Public Health Emergency of International Concern:

The COVID-19 Outbreak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 623
Josue Kuika Watat and Magaly Moukoko Mbonjo

Factors Influencing AI Implementation Decision in Indian Healthcare

Industry: A Qualitative Inquiry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 635
Vranda Jain, Nidhi Singh, Sajeet Pradhan, and Prashant Gupta

Understanding Factors Influencing the Usage Intention of Mobile

Pregnancy Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 641
Brinda Sampat, Ashu Sharma, and Bala Prabhakar

Internet of Things

A Data Driven Approach for Customer Relationship Management

for Airlines with Internet of Things & Artificial Intelligence. . . . . . . . . . . . . 657
Rajesh G. Pillai and Poonam Devrakhyani

IoT Based Climate Control Systems Diffusion in Intelligent Buildings -

A System Dynamics Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 673
Arunvel Thangamani, L. S. Ganesh, Anand Tanikella,
and A. Meher Prasad

Occupant Adoption of IoT Based Environment Service in Office Spaces:

An Empirical Investigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 685
Arunvel Thangamani, L. S. Ganesh, Anand Tanikella,
and A. Meher Prasad

Contribution of Trust Factor Towards IOT Diffusion – An Empirical Study

Using Acceptance Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 694
Reuban Gnana Asir and Hansa Lysander Manohar

Design Space Exploration for Aerospace IoT Products. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 707

Thirunavukkarasu Ramalingam, Joel Otto, and Benaroya Christophe

Author Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 723

Information Technology and Disaster
Management
 ICT Platform-Enabled Socio-Economic
Ecosystem in Himalayan Villages of India:
The Case of a Forest Protection and Renewable
Energy Production Project

Gaurav Dixit1(&), Kapil Kumar Joshi1,2, and Vinay Sharma1

1
Department of Management Studies, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee,
Roorkee, India
[email protected]
2
Forest Department of Uttarakhand, Dehradun, India

Abstract. There is a growing focus on developing ICT-based business

ecosystems to provide an innovative and socially-embedded solution that is
aligned with the UN’s sustainable development goals. However, general
approaches being used to build the ICT-based business ecosystems face sig-
nificant challenges in achieving sustainability, participation, and self-
organization on their own. In this research, we pursue the new conceptualiza-
tion of emergent digital designing to understand these challenges and leverage
the concepts of multi-sided platforms to design and transform an ICT-based
socio-economic ecosystem that enables co-creation of value. Specifically, we
use the activity theory perspective to analyze the required features in the
development of an ICT-based socio-economic ecosystem for forest protection
and renewable energy production. Based on our case analysis, we construct a
typology of various features that an ICT-based socio-economic ecosystem
should imbibe to facilitate value co-creation by various actors of the ecosystem.
This research contributes to the theory of the solution genre by presenting a
feature set related to different aspects of the socio-economic ecosystems. We
also highlight the needed minimalistic view of ICTs in the digital transforma-
tions of societal and environmental initiatives.

Keywords: ICT platform
Platform ecosystem
Activity theory
Forest

Energy
Environment
Sustainability

1 Introduction

Managing forest resources involves dealing with many tough and challenging risks for
forest departments in India. It has become even harsher in this age of global warming
and climate change. Forest fires, devastating floods, and landslides are few such
challenges that are being faced by the Indian forestry in the North-Western Himalayan
regions of India and prominently in Uttarakhand (thehindu.com 2013; indianex-
press.com 2016). Realizing the history of such disasters and the significance of the
Himalayas, the Government of India launched the ‘National Mission on Himalayan

© IFIP International Federation for Information Processing 2020

Published by Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
S. K. Sharma et al. (Eds.): TDIT 2020, IFIP AICT 618, pp. 3–14, 2020.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64861-9_1
4 G. Dixit et al.

Studies (NMHS)’ in 2015 under the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate
Change aligned with the UN’s sustainable development goals. The mission objectives
focused on long-term conservation and sustainable development in the Indian Hima-
layan region for the ecological security of India (nmhs.org.in 2015). To fulfill its goals,
NMHS has set out the call for demand-driven action research and interventions for
innovative solutions.
In this research, our focus is on forest fires, which happens in Uttarakhand every
year during summers. Forest bio-residue layers created by dry and fallen leaves are one
of the primary sources of such a threat due to their highly inflammable nature (Pandey
and Dhakal 2013). Pine tree leaves, also called needles, especially are a significant
cause of forest fires (Brown et al. 2011). Previous studies have recommended manu-
facturing bio-briquettes from waste, dry, and fallen pine needles with the involvement
of villagers (Joshi and Sharma 2014). Further, Joshi et al. (2015) suggested ways to
implement a socio-economic model to manufacture and sell these briquettes as a
greener and environment-friendly energy substitute for wood and coal in the open
market and thereby fostering social-entrepreneurship (Joshi et al. 2015). Such a socio-
economic solution, if successful, will achieve the twin objectives of forest protection
and renewable energy production. Past studies have discussed the development of ICT
platform-enabled business ecosystems to address societal challenges in rural or remote
regions (Li et al. 2019; Jha et al. 2016; Leong et al. 2016). These ecosystems mimicked
the e-commerce platforms and proved to be self-sustainable and achieved societal goals
of poverty alleviation and digital empowerment in the targeted areas. These studies
examined the evolution or development approach of platform ecosystems. However,
the main challenge is to understand how and why these e-commerce ecosystems were
able to create the necessary and sufficient network effects to self-sustain in the first
place. This aspect has not been examined in the studies of ICT platform-based
ecosystems for societal challenges, and it is the focus of our study. We address such a
research question in a complex phenomenon where the design of the socio-economic
ecosystem is entangled with the effort to protect the forest and environment.
We pursued this research question through a case study of an NMHS project, which
is running for more than one year in two villages in the Nainital district, a tourism hub
in the Uttarakhand state of India. It falls in a mountainous region with extensive and
dense coverage of the pine trees forest, one of the leading sources of forest fires in
Uttarakhand. Villagers living in the selected villages have limited income opportunities
and survive on forest resources to meet part of their daily needs (Joshi et al. 2015; Joshi
and Sharma 2014). The villagers who volunteered in the NMHS project were given
portable, manually operated briquette machines to produce briquettes, a renewable
energy substitute for coal and wood. The produced briquettes had higher calorific
content at a substantially lower cost (Joshi et al. 2015). The briquettes were sold to
local and nearby hotel owners. The local and national media have covered the NMHS
project initiative on pine briquettes through their print and Web channels. Under this
project, an ICT platform was developed and used to enable the socio-economic
ecosystem comprising of villagers, micro-entrepreneurs, and hotel owners. The ICT
platform was considered a key contributor to the success of the project and played an
essential role in social and environmental impacts. Unlike the existing approaches of
either private enterprise-driven, community-driven, or local government-driven
 ICT Platform-Enabled Socio-Economic Ecosystem 5

platform ecosystem development, the Nainital case presents a unique experience of a

platform ecosystem development driven by a funded research project.
We used the activity theory to guide and implement our research (Engeström, 2015;
Karanasios 2014, 2018). We also analyzed the findings of an older case, a public-
private partnership, which was tried during 2010–13 (Joshi and Sharma 2014). was also
used. The learnings were helpful during the effort conducted through our funded
research project. We studied the activity system containing the ICT platform as an
artifact. In this research, we document, conceptualize, and analyze the case findings on
how this activity system with ICT platform transformed and realized the socio-
economic solution envisaged in the older case.

2 Theoretical Background

2.1 Forest Protection and Renewable Energy Production

2016 Uttarakhand forest fires were widely covered in Indian news media because of its
severity, administrative failure to tackle the situation in a timely manner, and huge loss
of forest resources (indianexpress.com 2016). Ecologists singled out mismanagement
of forest floors filled with readily combustible pine leaves for this tragic incident. They
also suggested biomass briquette production from the pine needles as the prime
solution (tribuneindia.com 2016).
A program by the government in the form of ‘public-private partnership’ for
manufacturing briquettes was started in 2010 in the Nainital district (Joshi and Sharma
2014). This program followed a strict regulatory mechanism. Each actor in the
ecosystem was allowed to perform a predefined activity, and rates for each activity
were fixed. A local firm Suyas Udyog private limited, was given the responsibility of
manufacturing briquettes. Societal actors like villagers, local NGOs, self-help groups,
women groups, and van panchayats acted as collectors of pine needles and were
financially incentivized. The Forest department levied a fee for issuing a transit permit.
This top-down centric regulatory approach constrained the benefits for the stakeholders
and eventually led to the failure of the pine needle manufacturing project in 2013 (Joshi
and Sharma 2014).
In this public-private partnership model, villagers who were crucial stakeholders of
the value chain were involved as labor. The private firm was conceptualized as the
value creator and was supposed to sustain the ecosystem. However, the approach of
involving a private firm having an industrial approach created significant constraints for
the self-sustainability of the business ecosystem due to the geography of the region and
the peculiar characteristic of pine needles. Transportation costs were a considerable
component in the overall costs because pine needles are lightweight and cannot be
carried in high load in trucks. Transportation of pine needles from the collection spots
to a distant manufacturing plant in the mountainous terrain was not an economic
proposition. Higher transportation costs meant that villagers who were key stakeholders
of the ecosystem could not be financially incentivized to keep them in the ecosystem.
Therefore, for-profit firms can find it challenging to sustain the business.
6 G. Dixit et al.

The second model conceptualized in the research project considered villagers as the
collectors, briquette producers, and micro-entrepreneurs who would sell the produced
briquettes in the local market. It was implemented in the project by providing portable,
manually operated briquette machines to villagers. However, preparing villagers who
lack an understanding of markets, entrepreneurial capability and fall in the backward
and lower strata of the society require external intervention (VanSandt and Sud 2012).

2.2 ICT-Based Socio-Economic Ecosystem for Renewable Energy

Production
In the last decade, we have seen the emergence of ICT platform-based business (or e-
commerce) ecosystems to overcome many societal challenges (Li et al. 2019; Jha et al.
2016; Leong et al. 2016). These studies found beneficial features of the ecosystems,
such as self-organization (Li et al. 2019), self-sustainability & evolvability (Jha et al.
2016), digital empowerment (Leong et al. 2016), and emancipatory (Kanungo 2004).
Here, by ‘ecosystem,’ we mean “a community of interacting firms and individuals who
co-evolve their capabilities and roles and tend to align themselves with the directions
set by one or more central companies (McIntyre and Srinivasan 2017)”. There are
different types of ecosystems, such as the e-commerce ecosystem (e.g., Alibaba.com,
Amazon.com), which typically comprises a network of the ICT platform sponsor,
buyers, and sellers (Tan et al. 2015). Next is the platform ecosystem (e.g., Microsoft’s
Windows, Google’s Search Engine), which typically comprises a network of the
platform sponsor, its complementors, and users (Tan et al. 2015). However, our focus is
on establishing a third type: an ICT platform-enabled socio-economic ecosystem with
mostly similar, but few distinct characteristics to an e-commerce ecosystem.
Now, we discuss the existing strategies which have been adopted in the develop-
ment of e-commerce ecosystems for societal challenges. In a private enterprise-driven
approach, the ecosystem governance aspects related to participation, interaction,
incentives, concerns, and plans are decided and executed by the private firm. This
approach survives on the adequate scope and scale embedded in the potential
ecosystem, which can offer commercially accepted profit margins in the local market
(Joshi and Sharma 2014). The public-private partnership approach is a constrained
version of the private enterprise-driven approach. In a community-driven approach, the
actors collaborate and self-organize themselves to create and govern the ecosystem.
This approach requires enterprising and risk-taking capacity amongst the actors (Leong
et al. 2016). In a local government-driven approach, officers of the local administration
make decisions related to all aspects of the ecosystem based on the policies and
programs formulated by state or central governments. This approach is mostly
dependent on the government. In our study, the situation doesn’t suitably fit into these
approaches. Renewable energy production by manufacturing briquettes of pine needles
using a portable, manually operated machine is a physical labor-based and low-profit
margin activity. The initial volume being produced in the NMHS research project was
not attractive enough for local entrepreneurs or private enterprises. Therefore, the
conceptualization of a novel approach for ecosystem development is required, and it is
the focus of our study.
 ICT Platform-Enabled Socio-Economic Ecosystem 7

We needed a theoretical lens to develop a holistic view to understand the mecha-

nisms which are being used in the novel ecosystem development approach. The
entanglement of forest protection, renewable energy production, and ICT platform
development following the emergent digital designing approach increases the com-
plexity to provide a solution. To develop a theory of solution for a societal challenge of
forest protection and renewable energy production, we opted for the activity theory
perspective as our theoretical lens in all the phases of our research study (Majchrzak
et al. 2016).

3 Research Methods

To study the process of ICT-based ecosystem for forest protection and renewable
energy production, we followed the qualitative research methodology. We adopted the
interpretive case study method based on the following considerations (Walsham 2006).
First, past IS studies suggested its usefulness in applying activity theory perspective to
a complex phenomenon embedded in the societal context (Sam 2012). Second, inter-
pretive case studies allow us to explore a phenomenon in the richness of its setting,
which is essential to study an ICT-based ecosystem with complex social and envi-
ronmental aspects. Finally, the area of ICT solutions for forest protection and renew-
able energy production is a scarcely researched area, where theories are yet to be
developed. Therefore, it demands more qualitative studies for theorization.
Our case is based on a research project which is part of the National Mission on
Himalayan Studies implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate
Change, Government of India. The project objectives included socio-economic value
creation through forest bio-residue based renewable energy production and develop-
ment of an ICT platform for value-chain integration and market access (Dixit and
Panigrahi 2014; Dixit and Panigrahi 2013). Data collection was conducted between
February 2019 and February 2020. Two Himalayan villages of the Uttarakhand state of
India were selected as per the project guidelines. Initial visits to the villages were
conducted by the first author, shortly after the launch of the research project. An
extended study started during March 2019, and three follow-up visits to the field were
conducted by the authors during April-May, 2020. Two field visits were conducted
during January and February 2020 by the first author to finalize the data collection.
Since this was a field-based project, members of the project team regularly visited and
stayed in the villages to supervise the project activities on a relatively continuous basis.
Forest Department of Uttarakhand facilitated access to the research sites and
introduction with the van panchayats, which are locally elected bodies tasked with the
administration of village forests. Van panchayats helped us in discussing the project
objectives and employment and earning opportunities in the project with the interested
villagers. Villagers were selected to work in the project according to the project
guidelines. This type of access eased the project implementation process and provided
a cordial atmosphere to interact with the key stakeholders - selected villagers, van
panchayats, industries, and the forest department. During our preliminary discussions
with them, we were able to create the required comfort and trust among the project
 Another Random Document on
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Dorothy dried her eyes and blew her nose rather violently.
“Thanks—I do feel much better now. Do you mind turning on the
light again? I must be a sight. There—hold it so I can see in my
compact.”
Bill began to laugh as her deft fingers worked with powder, rouge
and lipstick.
“What’s the joke?” she asked, then answered her own question. “Oh,
I know! You think girls do nothing but prink. Well, I don’t care—it’s
horrid to look messy. Is there such a thing as a comb in your pocket,
Bill? I have lost mine.”
“Sorry,” he grinned, “but I got my permanent last week. I don’t
bother to carry one any more.”
“Don’t be silly!” she began, then stopped short. “We’ve got to get
out of here,” she said and snapped her compact shut. “They are
coming after me in a car. Donovan or Peters, I forget which, said so.”
“Who are Donovan and Peters—and where are they going to take
you?”
“Not that pair—other members of the same gang. D. and P. are two
of the crew over at the beach cottage who chloroformed me, then
tied me up and carted me over here in an open motor sailor.”
“Well, I’ll be tarred and feathered!” Bill switched off his torch. “Here
I’ve been following you for over two hours and never knew it was
you! Never got a glimpse of your face, of course—took you for a
man in that rig! Well, I’ll be jiggered if that isn’t a break!”
“So you were the man I thought I saw in the grass clump?”
“Sure. You led me to the house. I knew the gang had a cottage
somewhere along that beach, but I didn’t know which one it was. By
the way, I’ve got your Mary Jane tied to a mooring out yonder—
Couldn’t take a chance on running in closer. That old tub’s engine
has a bark that would wake George Washington.”
Dorothy sprang to her feet. “That’s great! We’ll make for the Mary
Jane, Bill, right now. If those men in the car catch us here there’ll be
another fight. Dorothy has had all the rough stuff she wants for one
night, thank you!”
Bill took her arm.
“O.K. with me,” he returned. “Think you’re well enough to travel?”
“I’m all right. Hanging around this place gives me the jim-jams—let’s
go.”
Together they crossed the yard and hurried along the narrow
planking of the dock to the dinghy. Bill took the oars and a few
minutes later they were safely aboard the motor boat. It began to
rain again and the dark, oily water took on a vibrant, pebbly look.
“Come into the cabin,” suggested Dorothy, watching Bill make the
painter fast. “We’ll be drier there—and I’ve got about a million
questions for you to answer.”
“Go below, then. I’ll join you in a minute.”
Dorothy slid the cabin door open and dropped down on a locker.
Presently Bill followed and took a seat opposite her.
“Better not light the lamp,” he advised, “it’s too risky now. By the
way, Dorothy, I’m darn glad to see you again.”
Dorothy smiled. “So ’m I. I’ve missed you while you were away, and
I sure do need your help now. Tell me—where in the wide world am
I?”
“This tub is tied up to somebody else’s mooring off the Babylon
waterfront,—if that’s any help to you.”
“It certainly is. I hate to lose my bearings. Here’s another: I don’t
suppose you happen to know what this is all about?”
Bill crossed his knees and leaned back comfortably.
“There’s not much doubt in my mind, after tonight’s doings. Those
men in the beach cottage are diamond smugglers and no pikers at
the game, take it from me!”
“Ooh!” Dorothy’s eyes widened. “Diamonds, eh! That’s beyond my
wildest dreams. How do they smuggle them, Bill?”
“Well, these fellows have a new wrinkle to an old smuggling trick.
Somebody aboard an ocean liner drops a string of little boxes,
fastened together at long intervals—the accomplices follow the
steamer in a boat and pick them up. And now, from what I’ve found
out, there’s every reason to believe that this gang are chucking their
boxes overboard in the neighborhood of Fire Island Light.”
Dorothy sat bold upright, her eyes snapping with excitement.
“Listen, Bill! Those men in the cottage—I heard them talking, you
know—couldn’t make anything out of their conversation then, but
now I’m beginning to understand part of it.”
“Didn’t you tell me they were arguing against going somewhere—or
meeting someone—in the fog?”
“That’s right. It was the man they called Charlie—the one who’d
been a physician. Let me see ... he said that there was a rotten sea
running out by the light. That must mean the Fire Island Light!
Then, listen to this. He was sure that by three o’clock the fog off the
light would be thick enough to cut with a knife—and that they would
probably miss her anyway!—Don’t you see? ‘Her’ means the liner
they are to meet off the Fire Island Light about three o’clock this
morning!”
“Good work, Miss Dixon—” Bill nodded approvingly. “And that is
where Donovan and Charlie headed for when they parked you with
Peters,” he supplemented. “On a bet, they’re running their motor
sailor out to the light right now.”
Dorothy glanced at the luminous dial of her wrist watch.
“It is just midnight. Think we have time to make it?”
“Gosh, that’s an idea! But, look here, Dorothy—” Bill hesitated, then
went on in a serious tone, “if we run out to the lightship and those
two in the motor sailor spot us, there’s likely to be a fight.”
Dorothy moved impatiently. “What of it?”
“Oh, I know—but you’ll stand a mighty good chance of getting shot.
This thing is a deadly business. They’re sure to be armed. Now,
listen to me. I’ll row you ashore and meet you in Babylon after I’ve
checked up on those guys.”
Dorothy stood up and squeezing past Bill, opened the cabin door.
“And my reply to you is—rats!” she flung back at him. “Of course I’m
going with you. There’ll be no argument, please. Get busy and turn
over that flywheel while I go forward and slip our mooring.”
Bill made no answer, but with a resigned shrug, followed her out to
the cockpit. They had known each other only a few months, but
their acquaintance had been quite long enough to demonstrate that
when Miss Dixon spoke in that tone of voice, she meant exactly what
she said. Bill knew that nothing short of physical force would turn
the girl from her project, so making the best of things as he found
them, he started the engine.
Bill was heading the boat across the bay when Dorothy came aft
again. She went inside the cabin and presently emerged with a
thermos of hot coffee, some sandwiches and hard-boiled eggs.
“We may both get shot or drowned,” she remarked philosophically,
“but we needn’t starve in the meantime.”
“Happy thought!” Bill bit into a sandwich with relish, “One drowns
much more comfortably after having dined.”
“Hm! It would be a cold wet business, though. Doubly wet tonight.”
She looked at the black water pock-marked with raindrops and shook
her head. “Hand me another sandwich, please. Then tell me how
you came to be mixed up with this diamond smuggling gang, Bill.”
By this time they were well on their way across Great South Bay
toward the inlet. From the bows came the steady gurgle and chug of
short choppy seas as the stiff old tub bucked them. Holding a
straight course, the two by the wheel were able to make out the
grey-white gleam of sand on Sexton Island.
“Well, it was like this,” began Bill. “You remember the Winged
Cartwheels.[1] Well that was a Secret Service job for the
government.”
“I know,” nodded Dorothy.
“Well, as I was saying—because of that and some other business,
Uncle Sam knew that I could pilot a plane. Six weeks ago I was
called to Washington and told that an international gang of criminals
were flooding this country with diamonds, stolen in Europe. What
the officials didn’t know was the method being used to smuggle
them into this country. However, they said they had every reason to
believe that the diamonds were dropped overboard from trans-
Atlantic liners somewhere off the coast and picked up by the
smugglers’ planes at sea. My job was to go abroad and on the return
trip, to keep my eyes peeled night and day for airplanes when we
neared America.”
“Did you go alone?”
“Yes, but I gathered that practically every liner coming over from
Europe was being covered by a Secret Service operative. I made a
trip over and back without spotting a thing. On the second trip back,
something happened.”
“When was that?”
“Night before last. The liner I was aboard had just passed Fire Island
lightship. I stood leaning over the rail on the port side and I saw half
a dozen or more small boxes dropped out of a porthole. They
seemed to be fastened together. Once in the water, they must have
stretched out over a considerable distance. Of course, there are
notices posted forbidding anyone to throw anything overboard: and
there are watchmen on deck. But they can’t very well prevent a
person from unscrewing a porthole and shoving something out!”
“Did you report it?”
“You bet. The skipper knew why I was making the trip. We located
the stateroom and found that it belonged to three perfectly harmless
Y.M.C.A. workers who were peaceably eating their dinner at the
time. Somebody slipped into their room and did the trick.”
“Did you hear or see any plane?”
“I thought I heard a motor, but it didn’t sound like the engine of a
plane. I couldn’t be sure.”
“The motor sailor, probably?”
“It looks like it, now. Well, to continue: I landed in New York and
took the next train to Babylon. Then I got me a room in one of those
summer cottages on the beach. I was out on the dunes for a prowl
when the Mary Jane put in at that little cove. That in itself seemed
suspicious, so I followed you to the house and saw Peters scrag you.
Although, at the time I had no idea who you were. Then when they
tied you up and went off with you in the motor sailor, I knew for
certain that some dirty work was on. So I beat it back to the cove
and came along in this old tub.”
Dorothy finished the last of the coffee.
“Did you see the amphibian tied up to the cottage dock?” she asked.
“Yes. It took off just before the motor sailor left.”
“Just how do you figure that it comes into the picture?”
“I think these people have a lookout stationed farther up the coast—
on Nantucket Island, perhaps. When a ship carrying diamonds is
sighted off the Island, the lookout wires to the aviator or his boss
and the plane flies over to let the men in the cottage know when to
expect her off the lightship. Then when they pick up the loot, he
flies back with it to their headquarters next day. Of course, I don’t
know how far wrong I am—”
“But he’s been doing it every day for weeks, Bill—maybe longer.
Surely they can’t be smuggling diamonds every day in the week?”
“He probably carries over their provisions and keeps an eye on them
generally. I don’t know. What he is doing is only a guess, on my
part, anyway.”
Dorothy smothered a yawn. “Do you suppose the red flag those men
spoke of is a signal of some kind?”
“Guess so. But look here, you’re dead tired. I can run this tub by
myself. Hop in the cabin and take a nap. I’ll call you when we near
the lightship.”
“You must be sleepy, too.”
“I’m not. I had an idea I might be up most of the night, so slept until
late this afternoon. And after those sandwiches and the coffee, I feel
like a million dollars. Beat it now and get a rest.”
Dorothy yawned again and stretched the glistening wet arms of her
slicker above her head.
“Promise to wake me in plenty of time?”
“Cross my heart——”
“Good night, then.”
“Good night. Better turn in on the floor. We’re going to run into a sea
pretty soon. Those lockers are narrow. Once we strike the Atlantic
swell you’ll never be able to stay on one and sleep!”
“Thanks, partner, I’ll take your advice.” She turned and disappeared
below.

[1] See Bill Bolton and The Winged Cartwheels.

 Chapter IX

DEEP WATER

The ebb tide soon caught the Mary Jane in the suck of its swift
current and the boat rushed seaward. Presently she struck the
breakers and floundering through them like a wounded duck,
commenced to rise and fall on the rhythmic ground swell.
Dorothy came out of the cabin rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
“You didn’t take much of a rest,” said Bill from his place at the
wheel.
She yawned and caught at the cabin roof to steady herself.
“Mary Jane’s gallop through the breakers woke me up. Sleeping on a
hard floor isn’t all it’s cracked up to be—and the cabin was awfully
stuffy.”
“Are you as good a sailor as you are a sport?”
“I don’t know much about this deep water stuff, but I’ve never been
seasick. Thought I might be if I stayed in there any longer, though.”
“Feel badly now?”
“No, this fresh air is what I needed. Is that the lightship dead
ahead? I just caught the glow.”
“Yep. That’s Fire Island Light. I wish this confounded drizzle would
stop. The swell is getting bigger and shorter. Must be a breeze of
wind not far to the east of us.”
“D’you think we’re in time, Bill?”
“Yes, I think so. The weather is probably thick farther out and up the
coast, and the ship will be running at reduced speed. It’s likely she’ll
be an hour or so late. There is a ship out yonder, but it’s a tanker or
a freighter.”
“How do you know that?”
“Why, a liner would be showing deck and cabin lights. Here comes
the breeze—out of the northeast.”
“It’s raining harder, too. Ugh! What a filthy night.”
Bill nodded grimly in the darkness. “You said a mouthful. It’ll be
good and sloppy out here in another hour or two. Jolly boating
weather, I don’t think! And we can’t get back into the bay until
daylight, I’m afraid.”
The big boat continued to pound steadily seaward and before long
the lightship was close abeam. Bill ran some distance outside it, then
stopped the engine.
“No use wasting gas,” he said, and emptied one of the five-gallon
tins into the fuel tank.
He went into the cabin again and reappeared with two life
preservers.
“It’s lucky the law requires all sail and motor craft to carry these
things. Better slip into one—I’ll put on the other.”
Dorothy lifted her eyebrows questioningly. “Think we’re liable to get
wrecked?”
“Nothing like that—but a life preserver is great stuff when it comes
to stopping bullets.”
“Gee, Bill, do you really expect a scrap? There isn’t a sign of the
motor sailor yet.”
“I know—but they’re out here somewhere, just the same. Neither of
us is showing lights, so in this weather we’re not likely to spot each
other unless our boats get pretty close. And if they do, those hyenas
won’t hesitate to shoot! Here, let me give you a hand.”
Having put on the life preservers over their dripping slickers, they
sat down and waited. The wind was freshening. A strong, steady
draft blew out of the northeast and it was gradually growing colder.
The rain had turned into sleet, fine and driving, but not thick enough
to entirely obscure the atmosphere.
“Good gracious, Bill—sleet! That’s the limit, really—do you suppose
we’ll ever sight the ship through this?” Dorothy’s tone was
thoroughly disgusted.
“Oh, yes,” he replied cheerfully, “this isn’t so bad. Her masthead
lights should have a visibility of two or three miles, at least.”
Dorothy said nothing, but, hands thrust deep into her pockets and
with shoulders hunched, she stared moodily out to sea.
For about an hour they drifted, the broad-beamed motor boat
wallowing in the chop which crossed the ground swell. Twice Bill
started the motor and worked back to their original position. He did
not like the look of things, but said nothing to Dorothy about it. The
wind grew stronger and seemed to promise a gale. The low tide with
the line of breakers across the mouth of the inlet would effectually
bar their entrance to Great South Bay for the next ten hours. And he
doubted if they would have enough fuel for the run of nearly fifty
miles to the shelter of Gravesend Bay.
Then as they floundered about, he heard the distant, muffled bellow
of a big ship’s foghorn. Again it sounded; and twice more, each time
coming closer. Bill started the engine and headed cautiously out in
the direction from whence it came.
Suddenly there sounded a blast startlingly close to the Mary Jane.
This was answered from the lightship, and through the flying scud
and sleet they saw a vivid glare. Bill put his helm hard over and
when the steamer had passed about four hundred yards away, he
turned the motor boat again to cut across the liner’s wake. Faint
streams of music reached their ears emphasizing the dreariness of
their position.
Directly they were astern of the great ship, he swung the Mary Jane
into the steamer’s course. Running straight before the wind, it was
easy to follow the sudsy brine that eddied in her wake. He was by
no means certain, however, that he could keep the dull glow of her
taffrail light in sight. That depended upon the liner’s speed, which
might be more than the Mary Jane could develop. But he soon
discovered he had either underestimated the power of the motor
boat or, what was more probable, the steamer had reduced her own.
Before long he was obliged to slow down to keep from overhauling.
And so for nearly an hour they tagged along, astern, keeping a
sharp lookout on the band of swirling water. Little by little their
spirits sank, as no floating object appeared to reward their
perseverance. The weather was becoming worse and worse, but the
sea was not troublesome; partly because the Mary Jane was running
before it and partly because the great bulk of the liner ahead
flattened it out in her displacement.
“If this keeps on much longer, we’re going to run short of gas,” said
Dorothy, still peering ahead. “Any idea how long it will keep up?”
Bill shrugged and swung the boat’s head over a point.
“Not the dimmest. I’m beginning to wonder if we’ll have to follow
her all the way to the pilot station and then cut across for Gravesend
Bay.”
“We’ll sure be out of luck if we run out of fuel with this wind backing
into the northwest. It will blow us clean out to sea!”
“Take the wheel!” said Bill abruptly. “I’m going to see where we
stand.”
Dorothy, with her hands on the spokes, saw him measure the
gasoline in the tank and then shake his head.
“How about it?” she called.
“Not so good,” he growled, and poured in the contents of another
tin. “This engine is powerful, but when you say it’s primitive, you
only tell the half of it. The darn thing laps up gas like a—”
“Bill!” Dorothy raised her arm—“there’s another motor boat ahead!”
Both of them stared forward into the gloom. For a moment Bill could
see nothing but the seething waters and the faint glimmer of the
liner’s taffrail light. Then in an eddy of the driving sleet he caught a
glimpse of a dark bulk rising on a swell a couple of hundred yards
ahead. At the same time they both heard the whir of a rapidly
revolving motor distinctly audible between the staccato barks of their
own exhaust.
“The motor sailor, Bill!”
“Sure to be. It must have cut in close under the steamer’s stern. Let
me take the wheel again, Dorothy.”
“O. K. Do you think they’ve seen us?”
“Not likely. They’ll be watching the ship and her wake. To see us,
they’d have to stare straight into the teeth of the wind and this
blinding sleet.”
“But they’ll hear us, anyway?”
“Not a chance. That motor sailor’s got one of those fast-turning
jump-spark engines. They run with a steady rattle. There’s no
interval between coughs. Ours are more widely punctuated. Anyhow,
that’s the way I dope it. They’ve probably signaled the ship by this
time, and the contraband ought to be dropped from a cabin port at
any time now.”
“Got a plan?”
“I think I have.”
He gave the boat full gas, then a couple of spokes of the wheel
sheered her off to starboard.
“What’s that for?” Dorothy thought he had decided to give up the
attempt. “Not quitting, are we?”
“What do you take me for? Get out that gun of yours and use your
wits. I’m goin’ to loop that craft and bear down on them from
abeam. If they beat it, O. K. If they don’t, we’ll take a chance on
crashing them!”
“You tell ’em, boy!” Dorothy had caught his excitement. “If they
shoot, I’ll fire at the flashes!”
Bill was working out his plan in detail and did not reply. He felt sure
his scheme was sound. The Mary Jane was heavily built, broad of
beam, with bluff bows and low freeboard. The motor sailor was a
staunch craft, too, but she was not decked and with a load of but
two men aboard she would have no great stability. He was certain
that if he could work out and make his turn so as to bear down upon
her from a little forward of the beam, striking her amidships with the
swell of his starboard bow, she would crack like an egg.
Bill did not dare risk a head-on ram. That might capsize them both.
To cut into her broadside at the speed she was making would
possibly tear off or open up his own bows. The Mary Jane must
strike her a heavy but a glancing blow at an angle of about forty-five
degrees. Such a collision meant taking a big chance with their own
boat. But the Mary Jane was half-decked forward and the flare of
her run would take the shock on the level of her sheer strake.
Quickly he explained his project.
“I’m taking a chance, of course, if I don’t hit her right,” he finished.
“Go ahead—” she flung back. “I’m all for it!”
Bill grinned at her enthusiasm, and with the engine running full, he
started to edge off and work ahead. But he could not help being
impatient at the thought that the contraband might be dropped at
any minute and hooked up by the others. He took too close a turn.
As the Mary Jane hauled abreast about two hundred yards ahead,
the smugglers sighted them. Their motor sailor swerved sharply to
port, and with a sudden acceleration, it dived into the gloom and
was lost to sight.
“Bluffed off!” he shouted triumphantly.
He turned the wheel and was swinging back into the liner’s wake
when Dorothy gave a cry and pointed to the water off their port
quarter.
“Look! There! There!” she screamed.
Staring in the same direction, Bill saw what at first he took to be a
number of small puffs of spume. Then he saw that they were
rectangular. The Mary Jane had already passed them and a second
later they disappeared from view.
Bill nearly twisted off the wheel in an effort to put about
immediately. The result was to slow down and nearly stop their
heavy boat. Gradually the Mary Jane answered her helm and
presently they were headed back in the ship’s path.
And then as the Mary Jane was again gathering speed, the motor
sailor came slipping out of the smother headed straight for the
contraband, her broadside presented toward her pursuers.
“Stand by for a ram!” yelled Bill and pulled out his automatic.
Not fifty yards separated the two boats. Bows to the gale, the Mary
Jane bore down on the motor sailor. If those aboard her realized
their danger, they had no time to dodge, to shoot ahead, or avoid
the ram by going hard astern. They swerved and the Mary Jane
struck full amidships with a fearful grinding crash.
Bill caught a glimpse of two figures and saw the flame streak out
from their barking guns. He felt a violent tug at his life preserver.
Then a yell rang out and the two boats ground together in the heave
of the angry sea.
Steadying himself with a hand on the wheel, he reversed and his
boat hauled away. As she backed off he heard the choking cough of
the other craft which had now been blotted out by the darkness and
driving sleet.
Bill turned about with a triumphant cry on his lips, then checked it
suddenly as he saw that Dorothy had fallen across the coaming and
was lying halfway out of the boat.
 Chapter X

WRECKED

The engine gave a grunt and stopped. But Bill scarcely noticed it.
Hauling desperately to get Dorothy inboard, he thought his heart
would burst. Suddenly he heard her cry:
“Don’t pull! Just hold me by my legs.”
She squirmed farther across the coaming and he gripped her by the
knees.
“That’s it,” she panted. “There—I’ve got it! Now haul me in.”
Bill gave a heave and just then the boat, caught by a huge wave,
rolled far over and landed Bill on his back with Dorothy sprawled
across him. As they struggled to their feet he saw that she was
laughing.
“Aren’t you hurt at all?” he asked, rubbing a bruised elbow.
“Only—out of—breath,” she gasped. “They—are all—fastened
together. Haul them in.”
Glancing down, he saw that she was holding one of the white boxes
toward him. He made no motion to take it, but stared to windward,
listening.
Dorothy could hear nothing but the wind and the waves and the
swirling sleet.
“What is it?” she jerked out, striving to regain her breath.
“Wait a minute.” Suddenly Bill snatched up his electric torch and
dove into the cabin.
Dorothy dropped down on a thwart with the box in her hand. After a
short rest, she renewed her endeavors to get the remainder of her
haul overside. When Bill clambered out of the cabin she was tugging
at the strong line to which the boxes were tied.
“It’s jammed, or caught, or something,” she announced.
Bill looked overside.
“Yes, dash it all!” he growled. “We fouled the line and wound it
round the tail shaft when I backed off just now. That’s what stopped
the motor, of course. Let me see what I can do. You’re blown.”
He picked up another box bobbing alongside and started to haul in
the line. One end of this he found was jammed under the stern,
while on the other length a box appeared every thirty or forty feet.
“Ten, in all,” he told her and drew the last aboard.
“Hooray! We’ve done it!” cried Dorothy exultantly.
“We sure have. You just said it all—” His tone was sarcastic. “The
boat is leaking like a sieve. That lateral wrench started it. The
propeller’s jammed. It’s beginning to blow a gale and there isn’t
enough gas to run us out of it. Three cheers and a tiger! Also,
hooray!”
Dorothy’s enthusiasm evaporated. “Gee, I’m sorry. I’m always such a
blooming optimist—I didn’t think about our real difficulties.”
“O. K. kid. I apologize for being cross. That water in the cabin kind
of got me for the moment. Let’s see what it looks like here.”
He wrenched up the flooring and flashed his torch.
Dorothy gave a gasp of dismay. The boat was filling rapidly.
“I’ll get that bucket from the cabin,” she said at once.
“Good girl! I’ve just got to get this coffee mill grinding again, or we’ll
be out of luck good and plenty.”
Dorothy fetched the bucket and began to bail. She saw that Bill was
trying to start the engine.
“The shaft wound up that line while we were going astern,” he
explained. “It ought to unreel if I can send the old tub ahead.”
Switching on the current, he managed to get a revolution or two.
Then the motor stopped firing.
“No go?” inquired Dorothy.
“Not a chance!”
He ripped off his life preserver and slipping out of his rubber coat,
pulled forth a jack-knife and opened it.
“What are you going to do?” Dorothy paused in her bailing.
“Get overboard and try to cut us loose. Don’t stop! Keep at it for all
you’re worth. It’s our only chance of safety!”
Wielding her bucket in feverish haste, she watched Bill lower himself
over the stern. The water pounded by this unseasonable sleet must
be freezingly cold. She wished it were possible to help him.
Fortunately, the Mary Jane was light of draft. He would not have to
get his head under, but that tough line must be twisted and plaited
and hard as wire. What if his knife broke, or slipped from his
numbed fingers? Dorothy shuddered. Meanwhile, the storm was
getting worse and the heavy boat drifted before it.
“Hey, there, Dorothy! Give me a hand up!”
She dropped the bucket and sprang to his assistance. Then, as his
head came in sight, she leaned over and gripping him under the
arms, swung him over the stern.
“My word—your strength’s inhuman—” he panted.
“Don’t talk nonsense. Get busy and start the engine. The water’s
gaining fast.”
“Confound!” he exclaimed. “I’d no idea the cockpit flooring was
awash. Another six inches and it will reach the carburetor.”
While Bill talked he was priming the cylinder. A heave of the crank
and the motor started with a roar. Then he flashed his light on the
compass and after noting the bearing of the wind, laid the Mary
Jane abeam it.
“Take the wheel,” he said to Dorothy. “And steer just as we’re
heading now.”
“What about the bailing, Bill?”
“My job. You’ve had enough of it.”
“But I’m not tired—”
“Don’t argue with the skipper!”
“But you’re soaked to the skin!”
“Of course I am—what I need is exercise—I’m freezing!”
“Oh, I’m so sorry—here—turn over the wheel, skipper.”
Dorothy grabbed the spokes and Bill hastily slipped into his rubber
coat and adjusted the life belt over it.
“How are we headed?” she inquired. “I can’t see the compass
without a light.”
“Straight for shore, and we’ll be lucky if the old tub stays afloat that
long. The whole Atlantic Ocean’s pouring in through her seams.”
“Maybe the pump would be better?”
“No-sir: not that pump. I’ve seen it!”
“Mmm. That’s why I chose the bucket. Say, I hope you won’t get a
chill.”
“I’ll hope with you,” returned Bill and kept his remaining breath for
his labors.
A heavy wave broke against the Mary Jane’s bow and swept them
both with a deluge of water. Dorothy paid off the boat’s head half a
point.
“Lucky that didn’t stall the motor for good and all,” she observed
grimly. “One more like it, and we’ll be swimming.”
“Tide’s on the ebb,” grunted Bill. “Wind’s barking around—it’ll be
blowing off the land in half an hour, I guess.”
“Do you think the old tub will last that long? She’s getting terribly
sluggish. Steers like a truck in a swamp!”
“Listen!” he cried. “There’s your answer.”
From somewhere ahead came the unmistakable booming roar of
breakers. As they topped the next wave Dorothy saw a white band
on the sea. She steadied the wheel with her knee and tightened her
life preserver. She knew they could not hope to reach the beach in
the Mary Jane. Low and open as she was, the first line of breakers
would fill her. The motor was still pounding away when she leaned
forward and raised her voice to a shout.
“Stop bailing, Bill! Stand by to swim for it!”
“O. K., kid.”
Bill dropped the bucket and dove for the cabin. A second later he
was back in the cockpit with a three fathom length which he had cut
from the anchor line. He fastened one end about Dorothy’s waist
and took a turn about his own body with the other. Then, catching
up a bight of the line which secured the boxes he made it fast to his
belt with a slip hitch.
The Mary Jane was forging strongly ahead, her actual weight of
water being about that of her customary load of passengers. The
swells began to mount, to topple. Searching the shore, Dorothy
could see no sign of any light or habitation.
“If I’d known we were so nearly in, we might have raised the coast
guard with the flash light.” Bill groaned his self-contempt. “I ought to
have kept an eye out—and the Navy said I was a seaman!”
“Don’t be silly! It was my fault, if anyone’s. You were busy bailing.
Chances are the light couldn’t have been seen from shore, anyway.
Gosh, what weather! Who ever heard of sleet in August!”
“Look out—behind you!” yelled Bill.
A moment later she felt herself snatched from the wheel and was
crouching below the bulwark with Bill’s arm around her waist. Then
as a brimming swell lifted them sluggishly, its combing crest washed
into the boat. The next wave flung them forward and crumpled over
the gunwale.
The Mary Jane’s motor gave a strangled cough and stopped. The
boat yawed off and came broadside on her stern upon a line with
the beach.
“This is what I hoped for,” he shouted in her ear. “Gives us a chance
to get clear.”
She saw him gather up the boxes and fling them overboard.
“Keep close to me. We’ll need each other in the undertow!” she
yelled back at him, as he pulled her to her feet.
Then as the next big comber mounted and curled, they dove into
the driving water and the wave crashed down upon the sinking boat.
Dorothy felt her body being whirled over and over, sucked back a
little and driven ahead again. The water was paralyzingly cold, but
she struck out strongly and with bursting lungs reached the surface.
A second later, Bill’s head bobbed up a couple of yards away.
Blowing the water from her nose, she saw they were being washed
shoreward. Her life preserver, new and buoyant, floated her well—
almost too well. She found it difficult to dive beneath the curling
wavecrests to prevent another rolling.
Bill was swimming beside her now and as a great wave caught them
up and carried them forward he grasped her under the arm.
There came a last crumbling surge and the mighty swirl of water
swept them up the beach and their feet struck bottom. Fortunately,
the beach was not steep. The tide was nearly at the last of the ebb
and there was but little undertow. Together they waded out and
staggered up the shingle to sink down on the sand breathing heavily.
The boxes were washing back and forth at the water’s edge and
Bill’s first act was to haul them in.
“Well, the government’s precious loot is safe,” he said grimly. “Are
you able to walk?”
“I—I guess so.”
“Then, let’s get going. We’ll freeze if we don’t.”
He gathered up the boxes and looped them from his shoulders, rose
to his feet and held out a hand. Dorothy took it, scrambled up and
stood for a moment swaying unsteadily.
“The end of a perfect d-day—” she tried to grin, her teeth chattering
with cold.
“I don’t think!” replied Bill unenthusiastically, and helped her to get
rid of the heavy life belt.
“Know where we are?” she inquired when he had dropped the belts
on the sand.
“Not precisely. But if we keep going we ought to strike a lifesaving
station or something—come on.”
Dorothy groaned. “I suppose I must, but—gee whiz—I sure want to
rest.”
Bill, who knew that physical exertion was absolutely necessary now,
got his arm about her and they started unsteadily down the beach
assisted by the gale at their backs.
They had walked about half a mile when he felt her weight begin to
increase and her steps to lag. He stopped and peered into her face.
As he did so, she sank to the sand at his feet. Bending over her, he
was surprised to see that she was asleep—utterly exhausted.
The outlook was anything but pleasant. They had apparently struck
upon a wild and desolate strip of sand—an island, he thought, cut
off by inlets at either end and flanked by the maze of marshes in the
lower reaches of Great South Bay. Without doubt they were
marooned and to make matters worse, Bill knew he had just about
reached the limit of his own strength.
 Chapter XI

FROM OUT THE SEA

Bill stared down at Dorothy sleeping the sleep of exhaustion on the

cold, wet sand. Her clothes, like his, were soaked with sea water and
with rain. He realized that something must be done at once, or they
would both be in for pneumonia. So stripping off his rubber coat and
covering the unconscious girl, he started for the dunes.
Day was breaking as he left the shingle and commenced to plow
through the loose sand. The storm was abating somewhat. Although
the wind still blew half a gale, the sleet had turned to a fine, cold
rain which bade fair to stop altogether once the sun was fully up. By
the time Bill Bolton worked his painfully slow way to the top of the
dunes it was light enough to see for a considerable distance.
At first glance the prospect was anything but alluring. His point of
vantage was in the approximate center of an island of sand and
shingle, a mile long, perhaps, by half a mile wide. Inlets from the
white-capped Atlantic effectually cut off escape at either end of the
outer beach on which a fearsome surf was pounding. Along the
inner shore of this desolate, wind-swept islet a complicated network
of channels intertwined about still other islands as far as the eye
would reach. Nor could Bill make out any sign of human habitation.
“Water, water, everywhere, and not a gol-darned drop to drink,” he
misquoted thoughtfully and wondered if by chewing the eel grass he
would be able to get rid of the parched feeling of his mouth and
throat.
He pulled a broad blade and chewed it meditatively. Then spat it out
in disgust. The grass was as salty as the sea. It made him thirstier
than ever. Turning seaward he swept the pale horizon with a
despondent gaze.
Not a sign of a craft of any description could be seen. Wait a minute,
though. Bill caught his breath. What was that—bobbing in the chop
of the waves, just outside the bar of the eastern inlet? Could it be a
boat? In this gray light a proper focus was difficult. It was a boat,
open; a lifeboat, by the look of it. Waiting no longer for speculation,
he hurried down the low hill toward the sea.
Once he struck hard sand, Bill raced into the teeth of the wind, with
the boom of the surf on his right, and dire necessity lending wings to
his tired feet. Forgotten were his thirst, the clammy cold of his wet
clothes and his weariness. Every ounce of strength, the entire power
of his will centered in the effort to come close enough to the boat to
signal her assistance.
With his heart pumping like a steam engine, he passed Dorothy, who
was lying exactly as he had left her. Then he got his second wind
and running became less of a painful struggle. He could see the boat
more plainly now. Surely it was an open motor sailor. Could it be the
one belonging to Donovan and Charlie, he wondered. What irony!—
to be rescued by the smugglers—and to lose liberty and the
diamonds after all this storm and stress!
But the motor sailor was drifting—into the surf off the bar—without
a soul aboard.
Coming to a halt at the inlet, he watched the tide pull the boat
through the breakers on the bar to the smooth water. Off came his
jacket and flinging it behind him on to the sand he waded into the
water and swam for the boat. He reached her at last and with
difficulty pulled himself aboard.
For a moment or two he rested on a thwart in a state of semi-
collapse. As he had thought, it was the smugglers’ boat. But there
was no sign of Donovan or Charlie. However, except for six inches or
so of water that sloshed about his feet, the motor sailor seemed to
be in good condition.
When he felt better, he started the engine and ran her ashore on the
island. Then after inspecting the boat’s lockers, he buried her anchor
in the sand and trudged back along the beach to Dorothy.
She was still sleeping, tousled head pillowed on her right arm, and it
was some time before he could bring her back to consciousness.
“Let me alone,” she moaned drowsily, “I’m too tired to get up this
morning, Lizzie. I don’t want any breakfast—go away and let me
sleep!”
Bill raised her to a sitting position. “Wake up—wake up! You aren’t at
home. And this isn’t Lizzie—it’s Bill—Bill Bolton! We’re still on the
island.”
Dorothy opened her eyes, and looked at him wonderingly.
“The island—” he reiterated. “We were wrecked—had to swim for it.
Don’t you remember?”
Suddenly she gained full control of her waking senses.
“I know. I know now, Bill. Guess I’ve been asleep. Ugh! I’m soaking.
What did you wake me for? At least, I was comfortable!”
“Come to breakfast and dry clothes. You’ll get pneumonia if you stay
here. Do you think you can walk? You’re a pretty husky armful, but I
guess I can carry you to the boat if I must.” He grinned at her.
Dorothy was stiff and weary but she fairly jumped to her feet.
“What boat? Where is it?”
Bill told her.
“But you said ‘dry clothes and breakfast’—”
They were hurrying along the beach.
“That’s right. She’s got plenty of food aboard—and one of the
lockers is packed with clothes. There are even dry towels, think of
that! Those guys had her provisioned and equipped for a long trip.”
“What’s happened to them, do you think?”
“I can’t make it out. The boat has shipped some water, but nothing
to be worried about. The motor’s O.K. and there’s plenty of gas.
They may have got into the surf, thought she was going to founder,
perhaps, and swam ashore like we did.”
“But they’re not on the island?”
“No. If they made the beach, it was somewhere else along the
coast.”
“We should worry,” said Dorothy. “If they don’t want her, we do—and
she certainly looks good to me.”
They walked down the shingle and Bill got aboard the boat.
“You wait on the beach,” he directed. “It’s pretty wet underfoot. I’ll
pass the things overside. I think the best plan is for you to go up in
the dunes and change there. Meanwhile, I’ll start in with the
handpump and get rid of the water. I’ll have her good and dry by the
time you get back. Then you can rustle a meal while I put on dry
things. Catch!”
Dorothy found herself possessed of a bundle knotted in a large bath
towel. Upon inspection it proved to contain dungaree trousers, a
jumper, a dark blue sweater, woolen socks and a pair of rubber-soled
shoes.
“They may be a trifle large,” said Bill. “But at least they’re dry and
the clothes seem to be clean.”
“Nothing could be sweeter,” was Dorothy’s comment. “See you in ten
minutes—so long!”
“O.K.,” replied Bill and turned to the handpump.
Quarter of an hour later he was completing his labors with the aid of
a large sponge when he heard footsteps on the shingle and looked
up to see a young fellow in blue dungarees and sweater coming
toward the boat, carrying a bundle of clothes.
“Dorothy! Gee—what a change! For a minute I thought you were a
stranger.”
“Somebody’s younger brother, I suppose,” she laughed. “These
things are miles too big for me—but they’re darned comfortable and
warm. You go ahead and change your own clothes. I’ll finish bailing.”
Bill stepped overside and on to the sand, carrying his dry rig and a
towel. Dorothy was spreading her sodden clothing on the sand.
“Bailing’s over for today,” he told her, “don’t forget about breakfast,
though. I could eat a raw whale.”
“Don’t worry, young feller,” she retorted. “Your breakfast will be
ready before you are. Just let me get these things drying in the nice
warm sun that’s coming up now, and you’ll see!”
With a wave of his hand he disappeared over the brow of the sand
hills, and Dorothy clambered aboard the beached motor sailor. Much
to her delight she found a small two-burner oil stove, already
lighted, standing on a thwart. Nearby had been placed a coffee-pot
and a large frying pan. The lid of the food locker lay open, as did the
one containing the water keg.
“Bright boy,” she murmured approvingly. “You’re a real help to
mother! Now let’s see what smugglers live on.”
She had set a collapsible table that hinged to the side of the boat
and was busy at the stove when she heard Bill’s halloo.
“Breakfast ready?” he called from the beach.
“Will be in a jiffy,” she answered without looking up. “How do you
like your eggs?”
“Sunny side up, if it’s all the same to you.”
“O.K. Spread your wet clothes on the sand and come aboard.”
She was serving his eggs on a hot plate when Bill’s head appeared
over the side.
“My, but that coffee smells good,” he cried, and swung himself
aboard. “How did you manage to cook all that food!”
“Come to the table, and see what we’ve got.”
He sat down and inspected the various edibles, ticking them off on
his fingers.
“Coffee, condensed milk, bread and butter, the ham-what-am, fried
eggs, marmalade and maple syrup! Say, Dorothy, those guys
certainly lived high. Some meal, this!”
Dorothy turned about from the stove, smiling. “And here’s what goes
with the maple syrup!”
“A stack of wheats!” He shouted as she uncovered the dish. “You’re
a wonder, a magician, Dorothy. How in the world did you manage
it?”
Dorothy laughed, pleased by his enthusiasm.
“Found a package of pancake flour in the locker. They’re simple
enough to make. Now dig in before things get cold. Help yourself to
butter—it’s rather soft, but this lugger doesn’t seem to run to ice.”
Bill set to work as she poured the coffee.
“Like it that way,” he replied, his mouth full of ham and eggs, while
he plastered his pancakes with butter. “Well, we’ve sure put it over
on Messrs. Donovan and Charlie this trip, not to mention your friend
Peters. Got their diamonds and their boat and their clothes. Now
we’re eating their breakfast,—the sun is shining once more—and all
is right in the world.”
“Where are those diamonds, by the way?” exclaimed Dorothy
suddenly, having taken the edge off her ravenous appetite.
Bill laid down his knife and fork. For a moment he looked startled,
then burst into a great roar of laughter.
“We’re a fine pair of Secret Service workers!” he cried derisively. “But
it’s my fault. You were all in.”
Dorothy’s jaw dropped. “Don’t tell me you left them on the beach!”
“Surest thing you know. I left them beside you on the sand and
forgot all about the darn things when I spotted the motor sailor.
Never thought of them again until this minute!”
Dorothy nodded sagely. “Which only goes to show that diamonds
don’t count for much when one is tired and wet and hungry, not to
mention being marooned on a desert island!”
“Ain’t it the truth! Another cup of coffee, please. I’ll fetch them when
we’ve finished eating.”
“After we’ve washed up?”
“O.K. with me.”
Bill drank his third cup of coffee and leaned back with a sigh of
content.
“Well, the old appetite’s satisfied at last,” he admitted comfortably.
“And I don’t mind telling you that was the best meal I ever ate.”
“Thank you, kind sir. Though I think it is your appetite rather than
the cook you should thank.”
Bill shook his head. “When it comes to cooking, you’re a real, bona
fide, died-in-the-wool, A-1 Ace! How about it—shall we wash the
dishes now?”
“I can’t eat any more, and if I don’t get busy soon, I’ll go to sleep
again.”
“Pass the dishes and things overside to me. I’ll sluice ’em off in the
water. We should worry. This will be our last meal on this boat. I’ll
bet a rubber nickel those smuggler-guys wouldn’t have done this
much if they’d got the Mary Jane.”
“Poor Mary Jane,” sighed Dorothy as they tidied up. “She was a
staunch old thing. I wonder what Yancy will soak Dad for her?”
“Nothing. Uncle Sam pays for that boat. She went down on
government service, didn’t she?”
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