The Boy Scout Treasure Hunters; Or, The Lost Treasure of Buffalo Hollow

by Charles Henry Lerrigo

  CHAPTER VII

  GLEN IS INITIATED

  Strange to say, with the passing of the morning, Glen found himselfunhappy, though he should have been abundantly content. Strange, forwith all these boys to help, his tasks would be greatly lightened, andto join in the fun of this crowd should be joy beyond compare. But Glendid not want fun just now. There was something much more precious tohim, which he felt in danger of losing, and although he himself couldnot have explained its substance, it was none the less real. It was thetrust and dependence of Will Spencer. For the first time in his lifeGlen had been really trusted and really needed by some one. He had takenup the burden like a man and rejoiced in it. Now he felt that hisopportunities would be dissipated among the crowd.

  "What's the matter, Glen?" asked Spencer. "Why are you moping aroundwith a face like the reverse side of a frying-pan? You ought to be rightout with the bunch, egging 'em on."

  "Oh, I guess no one has any use for me," said Glen disconsolately. "Iguess I might as well go back to the school."

  "To the school! And leave me in the lurch?"

  "You don't need me any more. You don't tell me anything."

  "What haven't I told you, boy?"

  "Well, you were telling Apple all about that Indian who came last night,but you didn't tell me."

  "Oh, nonsense, boy. You are peeved too easily. That Indian was just oldJoe Marrowfat, who had followed me up from the farm. Apple is romanticand he wanted a string of stuff about the noble red man's nobleantecedents. I need you, all the time, to be the mainspring of thisbusiness."

  "Tell me what I can do and I'm only too glad to get at it."

  "Well, for one thing you must mix with the boys. Be jolly with 'em.'Laugh and the world laughs with you.' That's my motto. That's the way Iget along. Someone must be around with these boys to keep 'em going, ortheir hunt won't last long. Get them interested in finding the locationof the springs. To-day they are all looking for big stones because ofwhat Joe said. There's enough big stones around here to keep them busy.Tell them the fellow who finds the treasure may get some gold but theboy who finds a spring gets twenty dollars sure. Get them to survey theHollow and search for marks to show where the old stream used to run in.You ought to be up on your toes every minute. I'm sorry you aren't ascout."

  "Perhaps I could be," suggested Glen.

  "Why not? Get Apple to teach you the knots and the scout law, and I'llteach you the rest. I'll speak to the scout master and see if they won'tinitiate you to-night."

  The remainder of the day Glen was too busy to mope. When the camp firecame he was at hand as a candidate for tenderfoot initiation which thescout master had agreed to give. Mr. Newton had ideas of his own aboutinitiation ceremonies. He believed in making them interesting andimpressive to candidate and scouts alike, and he devised a new ceremonyof initiation for special occasions.

  This occasion was unusual, for since none but scouts came to camp,initiations were not needed. It was also unusual in being conducted inthe open, which was necessary because the camp had no assembly tent. Mr.Newton was glad of the diversion, for the day had been very sultry, astorm threatened, and many of the scouts were afflicted with thatuneasy, depressed feeling which seems to be absorbed from the atmosphereat such times.

  "All scouts on tent duty," he announced after supper. "Rain threatens.See that trenches are clear. Slacken tent ropes a little, especiallywhere they are new. See that nothing in the tents touches the walls.Have your beds all ready to turn in. You will then all assemble at thecamp-fire for initiation ceremonies."

  The camp had lanterns and one or two oil torches but Mr. Newtonpreferred to go back to nature for his light at this ceremony. The nightwas cool as the storm drew near, and the camp-fire was allowed to flareup in a crackling blaze which spread its light over the wide open circleand threw mysterious shadows among the big trees beyond.

  Mr. Newton took his stand with his back to a massive elm at the edge ofthe circle.

  "The candidate may present himself," he announced; and Glen marched outand stood before him, with much more of a feeling of solemnity than hehad felt on occasions when he had stood before persons of far greaterauthority.

  "Who desires to bear the lights which shall lighten the way of thiscandidate as he enters the mysteries of scoutcraft?" called the scoutmaster.

  "We desire to bear the lights," came simultaneously from two of thetallest scouts. They stepped to the fire, selected each a blazing torchand ranged themselves under the tree.

  "Who is sponsor for this candidate?" was the next question.

  "I, First class scout Corliss Newton, am his sponsor," proclaimed Apple,stepping forward, his pleasant eyes alight with earnest gravity.

  "It is well. The sponsor may take his stand to the candidate's left. Whodesires to bear the scout law to this applicant."

  Twelve scouts arose as one--the older scouts they were--those not likelyto be confused by bashfulness or to spoil the ceremony by their ownself-consciousness.

  "Let the bearer administer article I. A scout is trustworthy!"

  Forth strode a scout bigger than Glen. Laying his hand on Glen's lips,he said: "No lies proceed from trustworthy lips, no deceit fromtrustworthy tongue, he lives by the breath of honor and his lips aresealed to all but words of truth."

  "The bearer of article 2. A scout is loyal!"

  This scout bore aloft the flag of the camp, which had beenrequisitioned for the purpose. He placed the staff in Glen's hands as hesaid: "Loyal to the flag and to all it represents. Loyal to all scoutsand all officials. Loyal to home, to parents and authorities, and loyalto Almighty God."

  The wind was swirling through the branches of the trees now and the fewstars which had shone were blotted out by the clouds, but the initiationproceeded.

  "The bearer of article 3. A scout is helpful!"

  This bearer, coming forward, took Glen's hands and raised them up as herecited: "These hands and the body they represent are pledged to lift uprighteousness and tear down iniquity. They will do at least one goodturn to somebody every day."

  "The bearer of article 4. A scout is friendly!"

  Glen was glad to see Chick-chick coming forward with a cheerful grin onhis face. He stood between Glen and Apple and around the shoulders ofeach he placed an arm, while he and Apple shouted aloud: "All friends!All brothers!" And immediately every scout rose to his feet and togetherthey echoed: "Brothers all!"

  But the first rain drops were spatting among the leaves and Scout MasterNewton raised his hand.

  "We must abbreviate our ceremony," he announced. "The remaining bearerswill repeat their sections of the scout law after me as I read. Thetwelve will then form an inner circle around us, and all other scoutswill make strong our defenses with an outer circle as we give thiscandidate the scout oath."

  In their order the remaining eight advanced with their salutations:

  A scout is courteous.

  A scout is kind.

  A scout is obedient.

  A scout is cheerful.

  A scout is thrifty.

  A scout is brave.

  A scout is clean.

  A scout is reverent.

  They formed the inner circle and around them all the scouts arose andjoined hands to form the outer guard. The lightning became more vivid inits flashes and the mutterings of thunder changed to rumbling androaring as they stood there. The big drops of rain began to thicken butthey paid no heed.

  "The candidate will hold up his right hand, palm to the front, thumbresting on the nail of the little finger, and the other three fingersupright and together, which constitutes the scout sign."

  Glen stood at attention with his hand raised as directed.

  "The candidate will now repeat after me the scout oath."

  "'On my honor I will do my best:

  "'To do my duty to God and my country and to obey the scout law;

  "'To help other people at all times;

  "'To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morallystrai
ght.'

  "Scout you are now admitted into our ranks as a tenderfoot, which is ourfirst step and one from which you may go on to acquire merit and honor.We are brothers all. The skies may be heavy above us, the storms maythreaten, the thunder roar and the lightning flash but we extend to youthe cheer of scout fellowship and the welcome of scout comradeship. Andas you meet the inevitable storms of life we believe that yourremembrance of this law and oath will help you to weather them alltriumphantly."

  The rain was beginning to fall in earnest now.

  "Dismiss troop!" called the scout master; and the boys, a second beforein impressive order, made a wild scramble for their tents. Glen ran tothe assistance of Will Spencer, who had been an interested spectator ofthe ceremony, seated in his "billy-cart" at the edge of the circle, butMr. Newton waved him to his tent.

  "I will look after this man," he declared. "He is my guest and I am rainproof."

  Glen turned into his blankets that night a Boy Scout of America. Heawoke to a sunny morning and discovered that he was still Glen Mason.Almost the first thing, he was in trouble with his patrol leader, MattBurton. It is only fair to Glen to say that Burton's treatment was of acharacter sure to antagonize a boy of Glen's nature. From the firstthere had been a feeling of ill-will between them, a feeling that hadbeen manifest in looks and silent expressions as well as in one sharpinterchange of words. Now, to Glen's disgust, he found himself assignedto Burton's patrol, and the very first work for which he was detailedwas that of camp cleaning.

  Glen went at his detail with poor spirit; picking up old papers,fragments, trash of every kind, a hateful work to him. Perhaps he wouldhave made open rebellion but for Apple Newton, who though not in thesame patrol was helping in the work.

  "Get busy at it, Glen," Apple counseled. "It isn't a ten minute job ifyou hustle. Beats washing dishes all to pieces. Every scout has to takehis turn. Get busy."

  But, filled with the thought that Burton had put him to this work tohumiliate him, Glen did not carry through his task to great advantage.He was glad that the morning swim came immediately after, and glad to beable to make a cleaner dive and a longer swim than Burton, who washimself among the best. Therein lay the trouble, Glen was a born leader,and although his opportunities for leading had been few he was quick toassert himself. Burton was also a leader and one who had been givenample opportunity. Neither boy had yet learned that the first element inleadership is the ability to serve; neither had learned that thegreatest leader is the one who counts no service too mean for hispersonal attention.

  When the treasure hunt began there were no further restrictions for themorning, and Glen's spirit was rejoiced at Apple's invitation that hebear him company. The sunny-faced, open-hearted boy won the love ofeveryone, but in Glen Mason he had stirred a real worship.

  "We'll have to call you something, Glen," he said. "Your name's allright, but the boys are sure to name you over so we may as well do itnow. Let's ask Chick-chick. He's good at names."

  "What's his real name?" asked Glen.

  "His real name is Henry Henry. His father liked Henry so well for asurname that he had him christened Henry, too. We began by calling himHen Hen, but that didn't go very well so we call him Chick-chick."

  "I don't mind s'long as y' don't call me Biddy chick," explainedChick-chick, who had just come up. "Now what kind o' Mason areyou--Stonemason, Brickmason or Mason Fruit Jar."

  "Brick's the best," declared Apple. "Matches his hair, too. Let's callhim Brick."

  "Right it is. Brick for Mason. Where ye goin' to find treasure?"

  "You can come along, Chick. We're going to look for signs ofwater-courses running into the Hollow."

  "I won't come, then. I'm going with Goosey to look for a heap rock.We're after gold, we are."

  All the morning the two boys explored the Hollow. Many times they traceddeceptive depressions in the earth's surface which gave some intimationof having served at some time as a waterway, but never was there anyreward for their efforts. At noon, hot and dusty, they made their wayback to the camp. A great group of excited boys stood theregesticulating and shouting, and in the center of the group stood MattBurton.

  "What's the excitement?" asked Apple of the first boy they reached.

  "Excitement isn't the word," he replied. "Matt Burton has found thetreasure!"