CHAPTER XVI
HOT POTATOES
Bobby and Fred had already become leaders to a degree, with the boys oftheir own age at Rockledge School. This suggestion of the red-hairedone about building a hut was accepted with enthusiasm by the fifteenothers in the present crowd.
They trooped up into the thick grove that crowned the summit of therocky island. Bobby and Fred had been on many camping expeditions athome, along the banks of Plunkit Creek. They wasted no time indiscussing _how_ they should build a shelter with the materials at hand.
"Leave it to us, and we'll go ahead and show you how to make a niceshack," promised Bobby, when the others began to gabble as to how itshould be done.
"Good idea!" cried Pee Wee. "Let's elect Bobby Blake, captain.
"And Fred Martin, lieutenant," said Shiner. "They both know what to doand we don't."
This was agreed to without a word of objection from any of the fifteen.Bobby took charge at once.
"Here are four trees," he announced, pointing to four that stood almostin a square, some twelve feet apart, and with nothing but saplings inthe square made by them. "These will be our posts. First we want toclean out all the small trees and brush inside these big trees, and forsome feet around the outside--so we can work."
"Wish we had more axes," said Fred.
"We all have knives. Those with knives can cut off the smaller brush.Skeets is really our only woodsman. Come on, Skeets, and let's findfour good trees for the cross-timbers."
They were all soon very busy. Bobby did little but show the others whatto do and make measurements with a piece of fishline. Fred gave hisattention to cutting spruce boughs for walls and roof.
Skeets cut the four trees needed, they were measured and notched at theends and then lifted into place--each end in a crotch of the lowbranching trees Bobby had selected for the corner posts of the hut.
The roof would not be exactly flat, for one crotch was somewhat higherthan the others, but the four timbers lay firm, being lashed togetherwith black-birch withes.
Soon the other boys began to bring the spruce boughs; but first Bobbylaid several good sized saplings across the string-pieces, to strengthenthe roof.
They worked so hard and with such enthusiasm that they really forgot thepotatoes under the bonfire. In two hours a heavy roofing of boughs layupon the poles, and the boys could all stand up under it and besheltered.
Suddenly Fred exclaimed: "Crickey! Let's see if those potatoes aredone. I'm as hungry as a hound right now."
This set them all on a run. It does not take much to put an edge on aboy's appetite. Just the suggestion of the potatoes was enough.
"First at the fire!" yelled Howell Purdy, as he hurried down through thegrove, and over the rocks.
"Bet you I make it first!" declared Shiner, vigorously following theleader.
It was a stampede. With whoops and shouts the seventeen scrambled downthe descent to the shore.
Suddenly they halted. Shiner and Howell, who had been wrestling to puteach other behind, looked, too. There was a crowd of boys around theircampfire on the shore.
"Who are they?" demanded Bobby, in amazement.
"Say! they're raking out our potatoes!" gasped Fred Martin.
"They're Beldenites!" declared Pee Wee, panting, and on the high groundbehind. "There's their boats. And there's half as many more of them asthere are of _us_."
"I don't care if they're two to one!" cried Fred in anger. "Those areour potatoes."
"Suppose they beat us and take away our boats?" demanded Howell Purdy,falling back. "You know--those Belden fellows can fight."
"Well! can't _we_?" demanded Fred Martin, panting and doubling hisfists. "What are we--babies?"
"We won't fight--yet," put in Bobby, calmly. "Perhaps they don't realizethat that is our fire and our potatoes."
"What'll we do?" asked Pee Wee, by no means anxious to advance.
"Come on," said Bobby; feeling dreadfully shaken inside, but too proudto show it. "Let's talk to them."
"Better get some clubs and _go_ for them," growled Fred.
"No. They haven't clubs," declared Bobby. "Let's not start any fight."
He and Shiner and Mouser proceeded along the beach. They saw the Beldenfellows scrambling for the hot potatoes, and shouting and skylarking.
"That's Larry Cronk--that fellow with the curly hair. Don't youremember, Bobby? He pitched for their club when we went over to beatthem that day."
"I remember. And that's their first baseman--Ben Allen." Then Bobbyraised his voice so the Belden crowd could hear him: "I say! that's ourfire and those are our potatoes. We were just coming down to get them."
"Is that so?" sneered Larry Cronk, standing up and laughing at theRockledge boys. "Well, you came too late--do you see?"
"I'll throw a rock at him!" growled the belligerent Fred.
"Keep still!" commanded Bobby. Then to the Beldenites he said: "That'snot fair--or honest. Those are our potatoes--"
Larry swung back his arm, and poised one of the potatoes. The nextmoment he flung it with all his force at Bobby. The latter just escapedit by dodging.
"Mean thing!" yelled Fred, and he picked up a stone on the instant(there were plenty of pebbles on the beach) and flung it at the Belden'scaptain.
"That's right! let's drive them off!" cried Pee Wee, from the rear.
Fred's stone was flung true and Larry Cronk received it in the shoulder.He yelled and dodged, and at once the Belden boys let go a flight of_hot potatoes_!
The potatoes burst wherever they struck--and not a few of them landedupon the boys who had hoped to feast upon the tubers. This was addinginsult to injury, and the Rockledge boys were greatly enraged.
"They're spoiling all our 'taters!" cried Pee Wee--almost wailing, infact. "There! there's another busted."
He had turned just in time to get the potato in the back instead of inthe chest. Mouser and Howell were jumping about and rubbing theircheeks. The hot potatoes burned as well as stung, and although theywere mealy enough to fly all about when they burst--like miniaturebombs--when flung by a vigorous arm, they hurt more than a little.
The Rockledge crowd broke before the flight of hot potatoes, and seemedabout to run back to the woods. But Bobby and Fred could not stand_that_.
"Hold on, fellows!" yelled Fred. "We can lick those chaps--I know wecan! Get some stones! They can't hurt more than hot potatoes."
Bobby did not delay in joining in the return fusillade of stones. Someof the pebbles landed heavily. Although outnumbering the Rockledge boysby considerable, the Belden crowd began to retreat toward its boats.
"Come on! push them!" yelled Fred, running ahead.
The others, thus encouraged, ran after him. They reached their own boatsand felt safe, then. The Beldens could not get their craft away fromthem.
At the fire there were a lot of the potatoes scattered about andtrampled into the sand. Pee Wee began yelling:
"Use the stones! use the stones! Don't fling those potatoes--we wantthem!"
This brought about some laughter, and the Rockledge boys did not throwtheir missiles so viciously thereafter. The Beldens had gotten enough,anyway. Two of them were nursing bad bruises on their heads, and werecrying. Bobby was glad the battle was so soon over, for he was afraidsomebody would be seriously hurt.
The Belden youngsters scrambled into their boats and pushed off from theisland, while the Rockledge boys collected all the potatoes they couldfind, that had not burst, and enjoyed their delayed feast with the sauceof having won it by force of arms.
They did not finish the hut on the island that day, but agreed to comeback to complete it the next half holiday--if they could gainpermission.
Bobby Blake at Rockledge School; or, Winning the Medal of Honor Page 16