Afloat; or, Adventures on Watery Trails

by John C. Hutcheson

  CHAPTER XI

  A NIGHT ALARM

  Up to then none of them had apparently bothered about figuring how theywould make themselves comfortable, so that Elmer's suggestion was likea bomb thrown into the camp.

  "I should think we had better get busy if we want to have a place tosleep on," Landy exclaimed, for the hard ground did not appeal verymuch to the fat scout, accustomed as he was to a feather bed at home.

  "We have no blankets, remember," said Elmer, "and that is one reasonwhy I laid out to keep the fire burning in a small way through thenight."

  "But luckily," added Mark, who apparently had been looking around moreor less since they came ashore, "there are plenty of spruce and hemlockand fir trees close by. We can make our beds like hunters always usedto do, away back in Daniel Boone's time."

  "Every fellow will have to shift for himself, then," said Elmer; "solet's start in and lay a foundation for a soft and fragrant bed."

  "Hay was good enough for me last night, suh!" declared the Southernboy; "but I've got a hunch I can sleep just as sound on balsam."

  "Hemlock for mine every time!" announced Lil Artha.

  Then there was a bustling time as the entire seven scouts started tobreak off small branches and twigs from the adjacent trees, laying themin piles until it looked as though they had secured enough for theirpurpose.

  The beds were arranged in something like a circle around the fire, andacting on the advice of Elmer, who had been on the cattle range andknew what was right, each sleeper expected to keep his feet toward thefire.

  "Looks a heap like a big cart-wheel," observed Lil Artha.

  "The fire is the hub, and each scout a spoke, that's right, suh," Chatzagreed.

  Landy acted as though he would never get enough of the fragrant browse.Long after the others had stopped gathering it, he continued. Whenthey joked him about being greedy when there was no price to pay, hehad an answer ready.

  "I'm a whole lot heavier than anybody else, don't you know?" he toldthem. "And on that account I ought to have a higher pile under me.Besides, I always did like to gather things in."

  "We'll remember that, Landy," threatened Lil Artha, "the next time weneed a big supply of firewood. You've fixed it up good and tight, andyou'll find us the most obliging lot of scouts east of the Rockies."

  After considerable fussing and joshing, they managed finally to get"fixed." As none of them had slept too soundly on the preceding night,owing to their strange environment, and the wild alarm that soundedwhen Johnny's chicken-thief trap was sprung, the boys were both wearyand drowsy.

  Elmer was really the last to drop off, and he smiled as he raised hishead to glance around at the stretched-out figures of his six chums.Some were breathing pretty loud, but Elmer could forgive that, and sohe also gave himself up to indulging in refreshing slumber.

  He was awakened by a horrible crash that made him instantly sit up.Other figures were bobbing up all around the smouldering camp fire.From the condition of this latter, Elmer knew that he must have beenasleep much more than an hour.

  "What happened?" gasped Landy the first thing, for he was digging hisfat knuckles into his heavy eyes as though trying to rout the last atomof drowsiness from them.

  "It was me," replied Lil Artha, promptly; "I fired my gun!"

  "What at?" demanded Elmer, thrilled in spite of himself.

  "A creeping man!" came the astounding answer.

  "Wow! what's all that, Lil Artha?" Toby exclaimed; "you must have beendreaming, and did it in your sleep. It's a good thing none of ushappened to be in range of your old Marlin scatter-gun, that's all."

  "Rats! I tell you I was wide awake, and sitting up when I fired,"insisted the tall scout.

  Of course, by this time all were on their feet, for the excitement hadgripped hold of them. Elmer realized that Lil Artha was speakingearnestly, and showing no symptoms of having played a practical joke.

  "Now tell us all about it, Lil Artha," he commanded.

  "Why, it was about thisaway," said the other, obediently. "I happenedto wake up and felt a bit thirsty, so I sat up thinking I'd crawl overto our big jug of fresh water and take a swig. But just as I sat up Isaw something moving over in the bushes about twenty-five feet away.Yes, sir, and the fire picked up just then so I could make out whatlooked mighty like a man peeking at me through the same bushes--factis, I _know_ that's what it was, and nothing else."

  "Well, what did you do then?" asked the patrol leader.

  "I always keep my faithful Marlin handy when I sleep out in the woods,you remember, Elmer," continued the other, with a touch of boyish pridein his voice; "so all I had to do was to grab up the gun and blaze awayas quick as I could throw the same to my shoulder."

  Elmer caught his arm in a fast grip.

  "Not aiming at a man in the bushes only twenty-five feet away, LilArtha--don't tell me you were silly enough to do that?" he asked,somewhat hoarsely.

  The tall scout chuckled, and Elmer's fears were instantly dissipated.

  "I'm not a fool, Elmer," he said, loftily. "I aimed away up in theair, and shot to scare not to hurt!"

  "Good enough, Lil Artha," the scout master went on to say in a relievedtone; "I couldn't believe you'd be so reckless. A charge of bird shotat that distance goes like a bullet, because it hasn't a chance toscatter."

  It was apparently Toby's turn to appear skeptical now.

  "Huh! I s'pose he lit out then like a streak, after you'd wasted agood charge of shot in the air, and knocked leaves from the branches oftrees--is that what you want us to believe, Lil Artha?"

  "Didn't you hear the row he made rushing away?" demanded the other,severely; "but then all of you started talking at once, and I guess youdidn't take much notice."

  "I heard some sort of noise off that way," asserted Elmer, pointing.

  "Correct, Elmer, for that's where he was kneeling, right over there inthose thick bushes. You see I mightn't have noticed him at all only hehappened to move just when a little flame shot up along that piece ofpartly burned wood."

  "Oh! I admit that you may have seen _something_," persisted Toby; "butthe chances are ten to one it was a white-faced heifer that had hit onour camp, and was looking to see who and what we were. We happen toknow there's a stock farm not a great ways off, and I reckon their cowsget into the swamp once in so often."

  "Think you've laid it down pretty pat, don't you?" sneered Lil Artha;"but I'm going to show you where you're away off your base. Guess I'vegot eyes, and know a human from a white-faced heifer. Watch my smoke,that's all."

  With that the indignant scout handed his gun to Chatz, and steppingover to the fire picked up the half-burned brand which he had mentionedbefore. This Lil Artha whirled briskly around his head several timesuntil he had it crackling and taking fire afresh, so that it promisedto make a very fair torch, if used for only a brief time.

  Elmer made no objections to the programme. Indeed, he was deeplyinterested in the outcome, whatever it might prove to be.

  After having made sure of sufficient light, Lil Artha boldly strodedirectly toward the spot he had indicated as the scene of thenear-tragedy.

  "Go slow, Lil Artha," warned cautious Landy; "he might be laying foryou there. Keep him covered, Chatz, with the gun, won't you?"

  "Oh! give us a rest, Landy; didn't I tell you he hoofed it like funafter that shot gave him a scare? Who's afraid?"

  With that Lil Artha reached the bushes indicated, and the others wereclose on his heels, every fellow eager to find out whether what he hadtold them was in fact true, or if the apparition had only been afigment of Lil Artha's imagination, the tail-end, as it were, of astirring dream.

  Bending down, the long-legged scout began to scan the ground. Hisdiscoveries started almost immediately, as his excited words announced:

  "Here's where he pushed back the brush, as you c'n see for yourselves.Yes, and there's aplenty of footprints besides. Looky where he kneltdown, because here's the mark of his knees as plain as anyth
ing. Nowwhat do you say, Toby Jones? Is the laugh on me, after all?"

  Toby had to confess that it did not look that way.

  "Oh! I'm ready to own up you did see a man snooping around our camp,Lil Artha," he confessed, frankly; "and when you let fly with that loadhe lit out like all possessed. Elmer, of course the chances are it was_that man_, don't you think?"

  "We know of no other in this region," said the patrol leader. "He musthave discovered our fire, and was creeping up when our vigilant comradesaw him, meaning to steal part of our food supply. We happen to knowthey're short of grub, and now that the country is being roused againstthem this man is beginning to be more or less afraid to venture out ofthe swamp to secure another lot of fowls, or anything else along theeating line."

  "But it looks as if he came here alone, Elmer, seeing we can find onlyone set of footprints," remarked Lil Artha.

  "Oh! mercy! I certainly hope now he hasn't done anything _ter_rible toour chum, Hen Condit," quavered Landy, in a panic.

  "There's no reason why we should believe such a thing," announcedElmer, decidedly; "we've already agreed that he possesses some sort ofstrange power over poor Hen, and I suppose the boy is waiting in theircamp away from here, for the man to come back with provisions."

  They walked back and the fire was revived, for since no one felt justlike trying to sleep again they concluded to sit up a while and talk itall over. This attempted visit on the part of the unknown man hadapparently put a new face on the whole matter. It might change theirplans considerably, too, some of the scouts feared.

  "I don't see why that should be," Elmer explained. "Of course, afterthis we'll have to keep a watch every night, so as to hold him up if hetries to get away with any of our stuff. It may hurry things along inthe end. If they have little to eat, and the man is really afraid togo outside of the swamp thinking the police are waiting to arrest him,he may make up his mind to surrender to us."

  "Then you believe he knows why we're here, do you, Elmer?" demandedToby.

  "It seems possible, although, of course, we have to jump atconclusions, because we really don't know," came the answer.

  "Whew! but this is all a dark mystery," confessed Landy; "and I neverwas much account at guessing the answer to riddles. Who is this man;what is he holding over Hen Condit's head; why should our chum do thatawful thing, and then leave such a silly letter behind to convicthimself? I'm all in a whirl, and if anybody can straighten me out I'dbe a heap obliged."

  Apparently, nobody could, at least there was no effort made in thatdirection. In fact, to tell the truth, all the boys felt that theywere groping in the gloom, and even their best guesses had only aslender foundation.

  "We've enlisted in the war, though," said Lil Artha, grimly, "and wewon't be kept back by any little thing. If that chap comes snoopingaround any more he stands a mighty good chance of getting hurt, that'sall I'm going to say about it."

  "And we'll run across Hen, sooner or later, you can put that in yourpipe and smoke it," asserted Toby Jones, firmly.

  When they had discussed the subject from every side, without picking upmuch additional information worth while, the boys began to feel sleepyagain. So Elmer told them off in watches, two scouts being assigned toduty at a time. Landy was left out, because he was the odd fellow, andperhaps for other obvious reasons.

  He pretended to be quite indignant over the slight, and vowed that hewould certainly sit up through one of the watches with the pair whoseturn it happened to be. But none of them took his threats seriously,because they knew full well when Landy Smith once got asleep itrequired something like a young earthquake to arouse him. Elmer hardlyanticipated another visit from the mysterious unknown that night. Hefancied the fellow must have imagined Lil Artha really shot point-blankat him, and that it was only his good luck which enabled him to escapedisaster.

  Being too good a scout to take unnecessary chances, and not wishing tolose the main part of such supplies as they had fetched along forseveral days' use, the patrol leader took all due precautions.

  The fire was kept up the balance of the night in the bargain, for theyfelt as though the illumination helped to guard them. Completedarkness might have tempted a raiding thief to try again, while hewould be afraid to attempt such a risky move while the flames crackledand lighted up the immediate surroundings.

  After all, nothing happened to disturb them. The sentries stuckdiligently to their duties, and changed at the time appointed. Thishad been laid out by Elmer, as the sky had cleared and the stars couldbe plainly seen in places. He figured time from the position ofcertain bright planets, and their setting would mean the differentchanges in guard mount. Scouts who have been in camp have learnedthese methods of telling time by the use of the heavenly watch, and fewof them after once mastering the interesting method find a need forIngersols.

  When daylight sifted in through the treetops overhead, the boys gavesigns of arousing. Landy, of course, was the last to awaken, and heprofessed to be quite heart-broken because no one had called him intime to help stand out that watch. The gleam of humor in his eyes,however, told Elmer that the fat boy was not quite so much disappointedas he made out to be. In fact, the patrol leader was beginning to fearthat Landy had latterly shown signs of developing a new trait in hiscomposition, and started to play the part of a deceiver, in return forconstant badgering on the part of his fun-loving mates.

  It was while they were eating breakfast that Elmer propounded a newscheme, and after placing it before his comrades asked them what theiropinions were.

  "The question now is," was what he said, seriously, "whether we mean tokeep on poling our skiff along the waterways; or shouldering our packstake the shore from now on; and as our rule always has been, majorityvotes carry the day."