by Quincy Allen
CHAPTER XXIV
THE TRIUMPHANT RETURN
"Somebody's in trouble!" exclaimed Jerry.
"Makes me think of the time we found Teddy with his foot caught in thebear trap," said Bluff. "But come on, let's make for over there, andfind out what's going on."
With that they started to run. The shouts had ceased. Both boys usedtheir eyes as they hurried along, and pretty soon Bluff cried:
"Hey, what's that jumping up and down over yonder? Strikes me theylook like a pack of dogs or wolves!"
"Oh, Bluff, they've got those men up a tree, don't you see? Perhapsthey've been there all night. I pity them, if that's so."
"Yes; but first let's see if we can pepper the wolves some, so's tomake 'em tired of hanging around. Be ready to blaze away."
The half dozen or more animals had discovered their presence by thistime. They immediately began to display signs of meaning to clear out,for several ran short distances, to turn and snarl, as thoughuncertain whether to show fight or not.
Bluff fired, and one of the gray-coated pirates from the Canadianborder went limping away. The rest decided they would be wise to putconsiderable distance between themselves and the owners of thosesticks that coughed and sent forth unseen missiles that stung.
Jerry managed to get in a couple of parting shots, and always declaredthat he hit one of the running beasts, though if so it could not havebeen a fatal wound since none dropped.
Hurrying forward, the boys discovered a bulky object in the crotch ofa tree.
"Why, it's Bill Nackerson!" cried Jerry.
"Yes, that's who it is, sonny, or what's left of him; because I'mmighty much afraid both my feet are frozen. I've been cooped up herefor hours, while that hungry gang kept watching and jumping andgrowling all the while. I'm glad you came up. It'll cheat 'em out oftheir breakfast, no matter what happens to me."
"Can you drop down?" asked Bluff, touched by the evident suffering inthe man's face.
"I'll do the best I can," the other replied, "but I don't seem to haveany feeling in my feet. If they were a couple of clubs they couldn'tbe more useless to me."
The boys helped him to some extent. Presently Nackerson was sitting inthe snow, with Bluff and Jerry trying to get his leggings and footcoverings off so that they might rub the frozen feet with snow to drawout the frost.
"Where are your two friends?" suddenly asked Bluff, remembering thatthere were three hunters when he and his chum last saw them.
Bill Nackerson groaned.
"I was a fool, and deserve what I got," he declared. "They wanted tomake camp through the storm, and we quarreled. I said I'd stick it outhere by the moose, and if the worst came, I'd have something to fallback on. So in the end they went away, and I started to make a shelterthe best way I could."
"Yes; I noticed that somebody had done that," Bluff told him. "Thenthe wolves came, did they?"
"When I heard their howls getting closer all the time," continued theman, "I knew what was going to happen. My rifle had stuck, so Icouldn't work the pump action. It was no better than a club. I startedoff to see if I could find you boys camping, or come across a biggertree than the ones around where the moose was lying."
He groaned again, as though the recollection gave him pain.
"We're not hurting you, I hope?" asked Jerry; for at the time bothwere rubbing his feet with snow.
"Oh, no; I wish it did hurt," replied Nackerson, "because then I'dknow there was some life left in my feet. I climbed this tree when Iknew the critters were not far away. And here I've had to stay eversince. I tried to move around and slap my arms, but my feet began toget numb in spite of me."
"Don't you begin to feel a little burning sensation?" asked Bluffanxiously.
"Well, now that you mention it, I believe I do, son. Keep rubbingharder than ever, please. Oh, if ever I get out of this scrape aliveit's going to be a lesson to me. I'll sure turn over a new leaf, Ipromise you, and try to do the right thing from now on."
"Glad to hear it, Mr. Nackerson," said Jerry, impressed by what hebelieved to be the man's sincerity.
Bluff did not feel so sanguine. Perhaps he remembered an old rhymethat he had heard long ago about the Evil One, and which ran to theeffect that when Satan was sick he would be a saint; but that thedesire faded out of his mind as soon as he was well again.
By degrees the man told them his feet were beginning to hurt him. Theypersisted in their labors until Bluff decided that the rubbing hadgone on long enough.
"And now, what's the next question?" asked Jerry.
"If you are meaning to try for your home camp," Nackerson told them,as a pleading expression came into his face, "I hope you'll let me goalong. Don't desert me here. You might as soon have left me to thewolves as abandon me now."
"Do you think you could manage to hobble along with us?" asked Bluff.
"Sure I can; watch and see how well I'm able to walk," the sportsmanhastened to say.
He did the best he could, and if his gait was uncertain, the outdoorchums knew that he would walk better after he had become limbered up.
Accordingly, they started, heading back along their trail, so as tocome upon the spot where the horns of the big moose lay. Theirintention to carry these all the way to the cabin had not changed.
It did not take long to separate the horns from the skull. They feltpretty heavy, once Jerry started to hoist the burden on his back.
"We'll tote them as far as we can, anyhow," Bluff declared, "and thenif they get too heavy we will find some hiding place, where they willbe safe till we come back after 'em."
With this understanding, they pushed on. Nackerson was gritting histeeth and summoning all his grit to the fore, in order to keep hislower limbs moving. As Bluff had anticipated, he began to improve ashe went along.
When an hour or two had passed and they knew they were far on the roadtoward home, the boys became more determined than ever to save thetrophy. They wanted to see the look of astonishment on the faces ofthose in the camp when they came marching in.
That would be much more satisfactory than simply telling the story ofthe successful hunt, that had been followed by such stirring events.
First one boy assumed the load and after a certain time, when he foundit was telling upon him, he would fix it upon the other's back.
"We're going to earn this thing twice over, you know," grunted Bluff,after he had in turn disposed of it and Jerry was staggering alongunder the burden.
"Well, everything tastes all the better when you've had to go to a lotof trouble to get it," the other chum replied, as he buckled to histask.
These spells were growing shorter, which told plainly enough that theboys were drawing closer to the point of exhaustion. Still they keptencouraging each other by remarking that it was only another mile orso now, because of a certain landmark they recognized, or something ofthat kind.
"Just think what the boys will say when they see us lugging thesehorns into camp!" Jerry observed, as well as he could, considering thefact that he was panting with the exertion his burden compelled him toput forth.
"And at seeing who we've got towing along behind us, too," mutteredBluff; for to him the gathering in of Bill Nackerson in the way theyhad was more remarkable than any other happening that had befallenthem.
"Every step counts," added Jerry hopefully.
"Whenever you're feeling tuckered out, don't hesitate to say so,"Bluff told his chum, "and shove her right along this way. By makingthese changes frequently we'll keep things going."
"I don't believe Bill can stagger along much farther," whisperedJerry. "Perhaps you'd better offer to lend him a hand."
All feeling of animosity toward the big sportsman had died out oftheir hearts by this time. He looked so forlorn as he limped along,trying to repress the groans welling to his lips, that they could onlyfeel pity where once had been disgust and distrust. Bitterly had BillNackerson paid for his evil deeds. Both boys only hoped the lessonwould be remembered.
Bluff insi
sted on giving the man a shoulder, and after that Billseemed to get along better. He even brightened up some, and wonderedif his feet could be saved to him, after all.
"Half a mile, about, and we'll be there," said Bluff, to bolster uptheir spirits.
Presently both boys began to recognize landmarks that had been noticedon previous occasions. Bluff brought these features of the landscapeto the attention of his comrade.
"I want you to take the horns just when we come in sight of the cabin,Jerry," he declared, with self-denial that the other appreciated.
"That's mighty good of you," Jerry said feelingly, "'specially sincethey belong just as much to you as to me. I'm not going to be greedy.I insist that from this place on we carry them between us."
That pleased Bluff very much, for he liked to know he had a chum whocould match his own generosity. So it happened that from that pointforward they carried the horns of the giant moose between them, spreadout in the most conspicuous way possible.
"There, I can see smoke coming up out of the chimney, which meansthere's somebody home!" remarked Bluff suddenly.
"Yes, and, oh, Bluff, seems to me I can get a whiff of cooking awayoff here!" Jerry gasped. "I don't think I was ever so hungry in mylife. I hope they've cooked an extra supply, because here come threemighty savage fellows to dinner."
"Ready now, to give a shout!" cried Bluff.
A minute later, at a signal from Bluff, the boys raised their lustyvoices in a series of whoops that created no end of bustle within thecabin. The door was flung wide open to give egress to three excitedboys. How they stared at those massive moose horns carried so proudlybetween the pair of successful Nimrods; but most of all were theirwondering eyes fixed on the shuffling figure of Bill Nackerson, as hecame limping dolefully in the rear!