CHAPTER XXIII A WILD GOOSE CHASE
The announcement that Jack made filled the Ritter crowd with alarm, andthey showed it.
"Have us arrested?" cried the bully, and he grew somewhat pale.
"That is just what he said," broke in Pepper. "Fun is fun, but to steala launch is another story."
"We didn't steal the boat," came from Coulter. "We--er--What do you knowabout it anyway?" he demanded suddenly.
"We know all we wish to know," said Andy. "You took Mr. Fales's boat anddid not return it. You can well imagine how angry he is. He looked allaround Butterfly Island for it, but with no success."
"We didn't leave it at Butterfly Island," said Paxton. We left it--" Hestopped short and looked at his cronies questioningly.
"How did you get away from the island?" asked Ritter.
"A party came along in another launch, the _Spray_," said Jack, and didnot attempt to explain further.
"We--er--we hid the _Emma_ on the shore of another island," saidCoulter. "We didn't hurt the boat in the least."
"Well, you better return her before morning, or Mr. Fales may get outwarrants for your whole crowd," said Andy. "After we found the hornets'nest he wanted to know who you were."
"Humph! I suppose you told him too," sneered Ritter.
"Why not? You put us in a hole. But you'd better get the boat. Don't youknow that there are some thieves on this lake? They wouldn't hesitate totake that launch if they found it, and paint it over and change thename--and then you'd never find the craft."
"Yes, you'll get into serious trouble if you don't return that boat bymorning," said the young major, and then he motioned to his chums andall walked away. Looking back they saw the Ritter crowd get together andcommence an earnest conversation.
"I'll wager they go out after the launch," said Andy, with a broad grin.
"Won't they be surprised when they find the boat missing from HullIsland!" came from The Imp. "They'll think she drifted away or wasstolen!"
"If they go out they may get wet," said Jack. "It certainly looks likerain."
The chums joined the other cadets, and pretended to pay no furtherattention to the Ritter faction. But on the sly Dale watched them andafter taps saw Ritter, Coulter, Paxton and Sabine steal away in thedirection of the lake. They took one of the rowboats with two pairs ofoars and rowed away in the darkness.
"There is a wild goose chase for you!" cried Jack, and he and his chumslaughed heartily over the matter. The young major was right--it wasindeed a wild goose chase. The row to Hull Island was a hard one, andwhen the spot was reached the search for the launch in the darkness wasdifficult. To add to the discomfort of the crowd it commenced to rain,and as they had no covering each of the cadets got wet to the skin. Theyall spent over an hour looking for the _Emma_, but all in vain.
"She must have drifted away, or else she was stolen!" groaned BillySabine. "Oh, if we don't find her, will they really lock us up?"
"She couldn't drift away, for she was tied up," said Ritter. "I tied hermyself, and I did it good, too."
"Nobody was around here when we brought the launch in," came fromPaxton. "I looked around good. And I don't know how any thieves couldlocate her."
"Do you know what I am beginning to think?" cried Ritter. "I think theyplayed a trick on us."
"How?"
"They got the boat back, but made up a plot to get us out on the hunt."
"We might row down the lake to where they usually keep the launch andfind out," said Paxton. "We better do it. I wouldn't sleep a wink if Ithought I was going to be arrested in the morning."
"Nor I," added Sabine, with a shiver. "Let's have a look."
"It's over three miles from here," grumbled Ritter. Nevertheless, he wasas much disturbed as anyone, and in the end the four took up the oarsand commenced the tedious task of rowing down the lake in the rain. Itwas an hour before they reached the dock where the launch was usuallykept. They came in rather awkwardly and bumped loudly against thestringpiece.
"Here she is!" cried Ritter, as he made out the _Emma_ tied securely tothe dock. "She's all right, too."
"Then that Ruddy crowd played a trick on us--getting us to look for herin this rain!" grumbled Coulter.
"Hi! hi! what does this mean? Who are you?" came a call from thedarkness.
"Shove off! We don't want to meet anybody!" said Ritter in a low voice.
The rowboat had drifted in and was now between the launch and the dock,and it was hard work to shove the craft out into the lake. They heardfootsteps and a man showed himself.
"Stop!" he called loudly. "Stop, or I'll fire!" And now he pointed apistol at the cadets.
"Don't shoot!" screamed Sabine. "Don't shoot! We haven't done anything,mister!"
"Then stop," called the man. He was a watchman, employed by Able Falesand a number of others, to look after the various craft in thatvicinity.
"It's all right," Ritter endeavored to assure the watchman. "We onlystopped in here to see if a certain boat was safe."
"Fine time to do it, I must say!" returned the watchman. "It's half-pastone o'clock! What boat were you looking for?"
"The--er--the _Emma_," stammered Coulter, as Ritter paused beforereplying.
"Oh, I know now!" said the watchman, and his face took on a grin. Hesprang aboard the _Emma_ and so got closer to the quartet of cadets."You are from that military school, ain't you? You run off with theboat, and Able sent word he'd have you locked up if you didn't returnher! Ha! ha! Able got the boat all right, and you've had a fine timelooking for her! It's a nice night for a long row! No dust, nor nuthin'like that!" And the watchman laughed again.
"Aw, you dry up!" said Ritter, in deep disgust, "Come on back to camp,"he added to his cronies.
"Don't you dare to touch any of these boats ag'in!" shouted thewatchman. "If you do you'll git shot!" And then the rowboat started upthe lake for the encampment. Ritter and his cronies were wet through andthrough and thoroughly tired out when they got back, and a moredisgusted crowd it would be hard to imagine.
On the following Monday came a tug-of-war between two teams composed often cadets each. Dale, Hogan and Andy were on one team, and their sidewon, after a tug that lasted sixteen minutes. The tug-of-war wasfollowed by a game of hare and hounds, or, as some boys called it, apaper chase. In the paper chase Andy and Pepper were the "hares" andDale the leader of the "hounds," which numbered about thirty cadets. The"hares" carried big bags of paper cut into fine pieces which theyscattered on the ground as a trail, so the "hounds" could follow them.
"The hares will have just ten minutes start," announced Jack, who hadbeen chosen umpire and referee. "Now then, Andy and Pepper, are youready?"
The two cadets looked to their shoe laces, their belts, and their bagsof paper, and then announced that they were.
"Then go!" shouted the young major, and off Andy and Pepper bounded,across the camp and into the woods. They took to a road leadingwestward, but presently came to a trail running southward and switchedoff to that.
"We ought to get a good start in ten minutes," remarked Pepper, as theymoved along on a dog trot, dropping the fine bits of paper on the way.
"Well, don't forget that those other fellows can run too," returned theacrobatic youth. "Say, but it's a fine day, isn't it!" he added, andthen, coming to a cleared space, his spirits arose and he turned severalhand-springs in quick succession.
"Hi, stop that!" called Pepper. "Save your wind for running, Andy."
"Oh, I couldn't help it," was the reply. "I've got to do a stunt once ina while or I'll bust!"
The two cadets presently came to a hill and climbed this and thendropped from a cliff to the gully below. They left paper everywhere, sothe trail would be plain.
"They'll have to get down the cliff one at a time," said Andy. "Thatwill retard them a little--if they want to keep in a bunch."
Presently they came to another road and followed this for over a mile.Then they left t
he road and took to another trail through the woods.
"Here is a river!" cried Andy, presently. "Hark how the water roars!"
"I know this stream," said Pepper. "It is the Caboy River, and what youhear are the Falls. This is the place where that haunted mill islocated."
The Putnam Hall Encampment; or, The Secret of the Old Mill Page 24