The Young Firemen of Lakeville; Or, Herbert Dare's Pluck

by Frank V. Webster

  CHAPTER X

  MYSTERIOUS ACTIONS

  "Where is it?" asked Bert, of Tom Donnell, whom he joined, almost assoon as he came out of the house.

  "I don't know. I heard the four bells. Old Stickler is ringing yet. Hedidn't lose any time."

  "No, he didn't. Say, Vincent, do you know where it is?"

  "I heard Simon Pierson say, as I ran past his house, a few minutesago, that he thought it was the Stockton mansion. He can see it fromhis third floor."

  "The Stockton mansion! If that gets going we can't put that out withour little engine."

  "Maybe it's only a small blaze."

  "I hope so," replied Bert. "But come on. We must run faster thanthis."

  They found quite a crowd of the young firemen at Cole's barn when theygot there. Cole had jumped out of bed at the first signal from thebell, and had lighted the lamps on the engine.

  "Run her out!" he cried, as Bert and his chums came in sight.

  "No, wait a few minutes," directed the captain. "We will need a fewmore fellows to haul her up the hill, and there's no use going offshort-handed.

  "But the fire will get too much of a start."

  "Can't help it. Might as well not go at all as to go with not enoughto work the engine. The bucket brigade would only laugh at us then."

  "There's some of 'em now!" exclaimed Cole.

  Out in the village street could be heard the tramp of running feet,and a man's voice crying:

  "Come on, bucket brigade! We'll beat the new department!"

  "Why don't the fellows hurry!" exclaimed Cole. "We'll get left!"

  "Here they are!" shouted Tom Donnell, as about ten lads rushed intothe barn. They lived on the far side of town, and had come in a bunchto respond to the alarm.

  "Grab the rope, boys!" cried Bert. "Don't let the bucket brigade beatus!"

  The long double line was run off the reel, and a two-score of readyhands grasped it. Cole, as was his privilege, jumped on the engine tosteer, for he had rigged up a tiller wheel on it, since it had been inhis barn, and this made it easier to pull, even with his added weight.

  "Let her go!" he called, and with a rumble over the barn floor, theapparatus was hauled out, the bell on the engine clanging out awarning.

  In the street in front of Cole's house, were several members of thebucket brigade, trying to catch up with the foremost men, who, underthe leadership of Moses Sagger, were running toward the blaze.

  These stragglers the young firemen shortly left behind, and soon theywere almost up to the head of the line of the older fire-fighters.

  "It's the Stockton mansion, all right!" cried Cole, as they got to thefoot of the hill on which the big house stood. It could be plainlyseen now, and flames were shooting from a side window.

  "It hasn't got much of a start yet," shouted Bert. "Maybe we can putit out, boys, and save the house. Come on, for all you're worth!"

  The lads needed no urging. They reached the burning house almost assoon as did the first contingent of the bucket brigade. Out in theyard was an old woman, wringing her hands, and crying:

  "Oh, dear! Oh, dear! We'll all be burned up! The house will bedestroyed! Oh, dear! Oh, dear!"

  "Where is a well or cistern?" asked Bert, as he signalled his companyto halt the engine.

  "A cistern? Oh, dear! Here's one! But be careful you don't fall in.It's very deep. Oh, dear! This fire is terrible!"

  The flames were gaining headway, but seemed to be only in one part ofthe house, on the east side.

  "Run the engine close to the cistern," directed Bert. "Tom, you andJohn cut down the clothes line. Fasten some lengths to the buckets.We'll have to dip up the water from the cistern, and pour it into theengine tank. Vincent, you take charge here, and see to the buckets.Cole, get your fellows to the handles! Tom, you and Charlie Sanderstake the nozzles! Lively now!"

  His orders were promptly executed. In a short time several buckets hadlong pieces of rope attached to them, by which they could be droppeddown into the cistern, when the cover was removed. They could then bepulled up full, and the fluid emptied into the tank.

  The hose was unreeled, and with the nozzles in charge of Tom andCharlie, Bert hurried into the house.

  "Show us the way to where the fire is," he said to the oldhousekeeper.

  "Right this way! Right this way!" she cried, hurrying into the sidedoor of the house as fast as her tottering legs would carry her. "Thefire's in an unused part of the mansion. It's near a chimney flue. Oh,dear! It's awful!"

  Bert and his two chums followed her. Meanwhile, the bucket corps wasrapidly dipping up water and filling the tank. The boys had not yetbegun to work the handles, as Bert had arranged to give a signal, on awhistle he carried, when he wanted the water to begin to flow.

  The tank was almost full, and Cole was beginning to wonder when theyoung captain would signal for the streams. The flames were becomingbrighter and brighter, and were now shooting from windows on the sideof the house, a big chimney, built up from outside, jutting outbetween the casements.

  "Here, you boys git away from here, and let us git some water!" criedMoses Sagger, as, followed by several men he pushed his way to thecistern. He had been searching all about the premises for a well whichthe bucket brigade might use, but had not been successful.

  "We were here first, and we're going to stay!" declared Vincent.

  "That's what!" added Cole. "Besides, you men can't dip up any waterunless you put some ropes on your buckets."

  "Where are the ropes?" asked the butcher, as he saw the truth of thatstatement.

  "You'll have to find 'em, same as we did," replied Vincent, as he andhis chums continued to dip and fill. But the clothes line was all cutup, and there was no more rope in sight, save that by which the enginewas hauled.

  "Take that rope," suggested one member of the bucket brigade.

  "Don't you dare touch that!" cried Cole. "Reel it up, boys, and ifthey try to take it, douse 'em with water."

  "No, we haven't any right to take their rope," spoke a cooler-headedmember of the men's fire department. "Come on to the lake, men. We'vegot enough men to make a long bucket line. There's plenty of waterthere."

  Just then there came a blast from the whistle Bert carried.

  "Pump!" yelled Cole. "Pump, boys!"

  The lads, who had mounted to the top of the engine tank, began to workthe handles with vigor, the flat hose bulged out, and, from the soundof the pumps, the young firemen knew they were sending out twovigorous streams.

  "Now, boys, lively!" cried Vincent. "Give 'em all the water they canuse!"

  Thus it became a good-natured race between the two divisions of thedepartment, one trying to pump as much water as possible, and theother seeing to it that the tank did not become empty. Because of thecloseness of the engine to the cistern, and the fact that there wasplenty of water in it, the tank was kept more than half full all thewhile.

  Meanwhile, the bucket brigade had been formed, and was passing waterfrom the lake. But, as it had to go, hand by hand in the buckets, up aflight of stairs, very little of the fluid reached the blaze. The firehad been gaining headway. Bert and his two chums had entered a longhall with their hose, and they saw where the floor and woodwork,adjoining the chimney, were on fire.

  "Douse her out, boys!" cried Bert, as he signalled for the water. Amoment later two big streams spurted from the brass nozzles, and fellwith a hiss on the leaping flames.

  "I'll take a look around and see if it's breaking out anywhere else,"said Herbert. "One stream is almost enough there."

  He turned aside, and started to run down another hall, that was atright angles to the one where the fire was. Suddenly a man confrontedhim, and, even in the excitement, Bert knew him for the individual whohad been in the motor boat that nearly ran the boys down.

  "Where are you going?" the man asked.

  "To look and see if there is a blaze anywhere else," replied Bert.

  "Who are you?" inquired the man, who appeared very much excited, moreso
than the occasion called for, since, as yet, the fire was notbeyond control.

  "I'm captain of the Boys' Volunteer Fire Department," replied Bert."Who are you?"

  "I'm Mr. Muchmore. I'm in possession of this house, and you can't passhere!"

  "But I only want to see if there's another place on fire. We have twolines of hose, and one is enough back there."

  "I don't care! You can't pass here!"

  Bert wondered at the man's mysterious action, but the boy had no rightto dispute the peremptory orders.

  "Put out that fire back there," went on Mr. Muchmore, motioning towhere Bert had come from. "That is all there is in the house. Anddon't you dare pass into this hall."

  "Very well," replied the young captain, quietly, as he returned to Tomand Charlie.

  Just then he thought he saw a flicker of flame beyond where Muchmorewas standing. He started forward to investigate.

  "Keep back, I tell you!" cried the man, and he thrust Bert to one sideso violently that the young fireman hit the wall with considerableforce.

  "There's no need for you to do that!" Bert exclaimed, highlyindignant. "I only want to help put out the fire!"

  "You can't come in this hall!" declared the man, and then, before Bertcould answer, he turned and ran along it at full speed.

  "Well, he certainly acts queer," thought the boy, but, as a secondlook convinced him that there was no blaze in that part of the house,he returned to his chums.

  In spite of their efforts the fire seemed to be gaining.

  "See if they can't give us a bit more water!" cried Charlie.

  Bert leaned out of a window, and whistled a signal that had beenagreed upon, whenever more pressure was needed. The boys at thehandles, who had lagged a bit, increased their strokes, and more waterwas available. A few seconds later Vincent, who had turned hissupervision of the bucket corps over to John Boll, came into thesmoke-filled hall.

  "Can I help you, Bert?" he asked.

  "Oh, yes!" exclaimed Mrs. Blarcum, the aged housekeeper, as she stoodsome distance back, out of the smoke. "There are some valuablepaintings in that room, and they ought to be saved. Can you boys getthem out?" and she pointed to the door of an apartment just back ofwhere the two lads, with the hose nozzles, stood.

  "Sure we will!" replied Vincent. "Come on, Bert. That will be easierthan saving horses."

  The flames seemed to be eating back, in spite of the efforts of theyoung firemen, and the aid given by the bucket brigade, which last wasnot much. They had run up ladders on the outside of the house, nearwhere the flames were, and were throwing water on in that way.

  "Why, the door's locked!" exclaimed Vincent, as he tried the knob."Where's the key?"

  "Locked!" repeated Mrs. Blarcum. "I didn't know that. The paintingswill be burned, and Mr. Stockton was very fond of them. They cost alot of money."

  "We can break the door in!" cried Bert. "Come on, Vincent!"

  The boys prepared to rush at the portal.

  "Stop!" cried a ringing voice, and they looked up to see Muchmorehastening toward them. "Don't you dare go into that room!"