“Maybe he tipped you pretty good,” ventured Dick, with a faint smile.
“He sure did;—gave me fare and a dollar over.”
“And you are dead sure he got on the steamer?” insisted Sam.
“I am. He was almost the last passenger on board and I am sure he didn’t come ashore again.”
“Then he must have gone to Alaska,” said Dick.
The youths had already learned that the ticket Tom had purchased had been for Skagway. At that point, so the agent had told them, a connection could be made for the White Pass and Yukon Route.
“That’s the way Tom would go—if he wanted to get up to where that moving picture was taken,” said Dick. “That’s the land of gold—and also ice and snow.”
“I guess the best thing we can do, Dick, is to get to Juneau and Skagway as soon as we can.”
“It would seem so, Sam. It’s a pretty long journey.”
“So it is, but what else is there to do? We don’t want poor Tom to become hopelessly lost, and in such a far-away country as that.”
“If the travel wasn’t so awfully heavy we’d have a better chance to locate Tom,” went on Dick. “But with the steamers so loaded it is pretty hard to find anybody just by a description.”
As the boys had both left Ashton in a hurry they had but few things with them. In the Hendricks car they traveled around Seattle, purchasing such things as they needed.
“I don’t suppose Tom has much clothing,” said Sam. “Poor fellow, I do hope he doesn’t go away up North where it is so cold!”
“I’ve got to send some word home and to New York,” said Dick, after the shopping was over.
“Dick, can you really spare the time to go to Alaska?” questioned his brother. “If you can’t, I could go alone.”
“I think it is best for us to go together, Sam. I imagine we are going to have our hands full, too. As for Dad’s business, it will have to wait, that’s all. I think I can trust Mr. Powell to do the right thing. The worst of the whole business is, this is going to worry Dad and Aunt Martha and Uncle Randolph a great deal. But that can’t be helped.”
At last came the time for the steamer to leave. The brothers had been fortunate in getting a stateroom together. It was not a very desirable room, but it was much better than nothing. And they would have gone, “if they had to sleep on the anchor,” as Sam expressed it.
Jim Hendricks came down to see them off. He shook hands cordially on parting.
“I’m sure I wish you the best of luck,” he said. “And I’ll write to your chums at Brill, telling them of what is taking place.”
Slowly the big steamer left the harbor and turned her bow towards the North. It was dark, so but little outside of the twinkling lights of the city could be seen. Yet the Rovers remained on deck for over an hour, for neither felt like turning in.
They noticed that the passengers were quite a mixed set. Many were mere tourists, taking a round trip to Alaska for sight seeing. Others were Alaskan merchants and traders, who had been “down to the States” on business. Mixed in with the crowd were many men, young and middle-aged, bound for the North to try their luck in the gold fields. The great rush to the Klondyke was a thing of the past, but new gold fields were being opened continually.
The boys were on their way to their stateroom when they came suddenly face to face with a burly man who wore a heavy beard and mustache. The man was about to pass them when he suddenly stopped short, stared at Dick and then at Sam, and caught each by the arm.
“Say, am I dreamin’, or is this the Rovers!” he gasped.
“We are the Rovers, yes,” answered Dick, and he gave the burly man a closer look. “And this is Jack Wumble, I believe,” he added.
“Jack Wumble!” cried Sam. “Really!”
“Put her thar! Put her thar!” cried the man, and took hold of the hand of each at once. “Ain’t this great! Whar ye bound now anyhow? Goin’ to locate another mine—like thet one we found out in Colorady?”
“No, we are not looking for a mine this trip,” answered Dick. “We are on the trail of something far more important.”
“More important than a gold mine?” demanded Jack Wumble, his eyes opening widely.
“Yes. We are on the trail of my brother Tom, who is out of his mind and has wandered away.”
“Hoss pistols an’ rattlesnakes! Ye don’t tell me! Well, if Tom is missin’ count me in on the hunt fer him,” was the quick and earnest response.
CHAPTER XVIII
AT JUNEAU AND SKAGWAY
Jack Wumble was an old miner and prospector, a man the boys had met years before in Colorado, when they went to that section of our country to locate a mine belonging to their father. As related in detail in “The Rover Boys Out West,” Wumble had been of great assistance to them and he knew them all well. He had, after numerous stirring adventures, located a claim for himself, which, at the time, paid very well. Lately, however, the Rovers had not heard from him, and they had often wondered what had become of the man.
“You’re a sight fer sore eyes, so ye are!” cried Jack Wumble, slapping each on the shoulder. “I never dreamed o’ seein’ ye in this out o’ the way corner o’ the country.”
“We didn’t expect to come here either, up to a few days ago,” answered Sam.
“Maybe ye better tell me the story,” suggested the old miner. “If I kin help ye I will.”
“Come on to the cabin,” suggested Dick, and led the way. They sat down on a corner seat, and there the Rovers told their story, withholding nothing, for they knew they could trust Jack Wumble in every particular.
“Gosh all hemlock! Sounds like one of them theatre plays I see in ’Frisco,” was the old miner’s comment. “To think Tom would wander away in thet fashion! ’Tain’t no wonder ye are scart to deth! I’d be scart myself, thinkin’ he might jump overboard, or sumthin’ like thet. He ought to be put in an asylum.”
After that Jack Wumble told his own story. He said his claim in Colorado had gradually petered out, and then he had tried his fortunes in various other places, gradually winding up in the Klondyke. There he had struck what he hoped would prove a bonanza.
“I’ve been down to the States buying some machinery an’ some supplies,” he added. “They are coming up on a freight boat next week. I find I can do better to go to the States fer things than to buy in Alaska.”
“Have you taken any gold out of your claim yet?” questioned Sam, with interest.
Jack Wumble looked around, to make certain that nobody was listening but the Rovers.
“Don’t ye tell nobody,” he whispered. “I took out about two thousand dollars, in nuggets an’ dust, in less’n ten days!”
“Fine!” returned Dick, and Sam nodded. “I hope you keep it up.”
“It’s the machinery is goin’ to tell the tale,” returned Jack Wumble. “I can’t do much more by hand.”
“Are you working the mine alone?” asked Sam.
“Fer the present. When I came away I left the claim in charge o’ a miner named Allison—Tim Allison. But I told him not to do any diggin’—just keep his eyes on things. When there is any diggin’ to be done I want to be on hand.”
Wumble was bound for Skagway, where he said his machinery and supplies would be sent. He knew that section of Alaska thoroughly, and said he would show the lads where to go and what to do.
“Things is changin’ mightily up there every day,” he remarked. “They are dredgin’ channels an’ buildin’ railroads, and making all kinds o’ roads. Go there one year an’ the next ye won’t ’most know the place, it will look so different.”
“Well, they are developing all parts of the country,” answered Dick.
“Maybe; but nuthin’ to wot they’re doin’ in Alaska,” answered the old miner.
The three sat up for half an hour longer, talking matters ove
r. Of course Jack Wumble wanted to know about Mr. Rover, and was sorry to learn that the boys’ father was not well. He could hardly believe that Dick was married.
“Why, it don’t seem like no time since you an’ your brothers came out to Colorady to locate thet mine,” he remarked.
There was a little wind, but otherwise the night was calm. Now that they could do no more for the present, the Rovers realized how tired they were, and once in their berths both went sound asleep. Nor did they rouse up until well into the morning. The sleep did them a world of good, and when they dressed and went to breakfast they felt quite like themselves once more.
“If we didn’t have to worry about Tom, I could enjoy this trip immensely,” remarked Sam.
Jack Wumble had already satisfied his hunger, for he was an early riser. After breakfast all sat on the deck, and the old miner related some of his experiences while prospecting in various localities, and the boys told how they had finished up at Putnam Hall and gone to Brill.
“I can’t hardly believe thet Dan Baxter has reformed,” said Wumble, shaking his head slowly. “I allers put him an’ his father down fer bad eggs.”
“Well, they were pretty bad at one time,” answered Dick. “But Dan found out that it didn’t pay to be bad. And his father is old and, I guess, well satisfied to behave himself and take it easy.”
“Mr. Baxter might have been a wealthy man if he had done things on the level,” returned the old miner.
The journey up the coast of Canada to the lower point of Alaska was full of interest to the boys. In due course of time, the bow of the steamer was turned into Chatham Strait, and soon they were running past Admiralty Island.
Both Sam and Dick had expected to see quite a city at Juneau, and they were disappointed when they beheld only a scattered town, lying on a strip of land, bound on one side by what is called the Lynn Canal and on the other by the mouth of the Taku River. In the distance were some high mountains, which the boys looked at with interest.
Fortunately the steamer was to remain at Juneau for two hours, and in that time the Rovers hoped to make certain whether or not Tom had landed there. They lost no time in getting ashore, and Jack Wumble went with them.
At first there was so much confusion at the dock that the youths could learn little or nothing. But as the crowd cleared away they were enabled to make some inquiries of officials and others. But nobody had seen Tom, or knew anything about him.
“I think he must have remained on the steamer,” said Sam. “If he was after those nuggets he’d want to get right up into the land of gold.”
“Thet’s the way I reason it out,” put in Jack Wumble. “Better stick to the trip, lads. I think ye’ll be able to learn somethin’ in Skagway.”
So when the steamer left the dock they were on board.
The trip to Skagway was a decidedly interesting one, and the youths listened closely to all the old miner had to tell them about the country and its inhabitants.
“It’s changin’ amazingly fast,” said Jack Wumble. “They are clearin’ out ship channels an’ buildin’ railroads, and towns spring up like magic. Now whar I’m located—a place called Black Run—thar wasn’t a house thar three years ago. Now we got a store an’ a dozen shacks, an’ more buildin’ every day! I tell you, I think Alaska is one o’ the greatest countries in the world!”
There was a greater bustle and confusion than ever when the steamer tied up at Skagway. Here a connection can be made with the White Pass and Yukon route, and other routes. About ten miles away, up the Lynn Canal, was Dyea, also a town of importance.
The boys followed Jack Wumble ashore and waited until some of the bustle and confusion was over, and then commenced a systematic hunt for Tom.
The hunt lasted until nearly midnight, and then, utterly worn out, the Rovers and the old miner had to give it up. They had met just one man who remembered having seen a person who looked like Tom on the steamer, and who said the fellow had landed at Skagway. But where the unknown had gone the man could not say.
“Yes, that’s the fellow,” said the man, when shown Tom’s photograph. “But he didn’t look quite as nice as that. He looked—well, wild like.”
“He is wild,” answered Dick. “That is why we want to find him.”
Jack Wumble knew of a fairly good hotel, and the three put up there for the night. The boys were so tired they slept “like logs,” as Dick said afterwards. But they were up bright and early, along with the old miner, and directly after breakfast set out on another search for Tom.
“I hate to waste your time, Jack,” said Dick to Wumble. “So if you want to go ahead—”
“Stop right thar, Dick!” cried the old miner. “I ain’t in sech an all-fired hurry I can’t try to do ye a good turn. I like Tom, an’ I’m going to stay with ye fer a few days an’ see if we can’t locate him.” And thus the matter was settled.
Two days were spent in Skagway and Dyea hunting for the missing one. Late in the afternoon of the second day the boys and the old miner separated, to make inquiries in different places.
Sam and Dick came back to the hotel at supper time much discouraged, having heard nothing to their advantage. Half an hour later Jack Wumble came in, his face showing his excitement.
“I’ve got on the trail!” he cried. “Come on, we’re goin’ to git after Tom right away!”
CHAPTER XIX
FROM ONE CLUE TO ANOTHER
“What have you learned, Jack?”
“When did he leave here?”
“Is he all right?”
“I’m ready to go after him right now.”
Such were the words that came from the Rover boys after Jack Wumble had announced that he had located their missing brother.
“We ain’t got no time to spare,” cried the old miner. “Let us pay our bill here an’ git out, an’ I’ll tell ye all I know while we are on the way.”
The lads lost no time in packing up as directed, and Dick settled at the hotel desk. Jack Wumble led the way down to the docks and ordered them into a small river boat.
“This here ain’t no regular boat,” he explained. “But I’ve hired passage on her, so it’s all right. We’ll save fourteen hours by not waitin’ fer the regular boat.”
“But where are we going, Jack?” questioned Dick.
“To a jumpin’-off place called Lindy Falls. That is whar the party Tom was with was goin’ to start from.”
Soon the boat, a large craft of its kind, was on the way up the river. As they sped along, the boys and the old miner drew into a corner of the cabin and Jack Wumble told his story.
“By the merest accident I fell in with a man named Rabig I used to know in ’Frisco,” said the old miner. “He’s interested in the Golden Sunset mine an’ the Beggar’s Chance. Well, I told Rabig about you an’ Tom an’ he got interested an’ asked me how Tom looked an’ I told him. Then he told about how he fell in with Tom on board thet steamer an’ how Tom had told him he was bound fer the Lion Head gold fields. He had it in his head, so Rabig said, that he could pick up nuggets at the Lion Head.”
“The Lion Head?” repeated Dick. “Where is that?”
“It’s a good distance from here, Dick, I can tell ye that. It’s to the northwest o’ the Klondyke. A wild place. It’s called the Lion Head acause thar’s a mountain thar thet looks like a lion’s head. I was thar onct, prospectin’ around. But I didn’t find any gold thar. But some have found gold,” added the old miner.
“How will Tom get there?” questioned Sam.
“Thet’s the strangest part o’ it,” resumed Jack Wumble. “It appears as how he fell in with a miner named Furner—Ike Furner. Rabig says Furner is a bit touched here.” Wumble tapped his forehead. “Well, the two made up their minds to go to Lion Head. Furner told Tom he was sure they could pick up nuggets, if only they could hit the right spot. Furner had some kind o’
an outfit an’ he got Tom to buy some more things, and away they started. Rabig thought they was both crazy.”
“And so they must be!” murmured Dick. “Poor Tom! I hope we catch him before he gets too far into the mountains.”
“Did this man Rabig say what name Tom was traveling under?” asked Sam.
“Yes. A mighty queer name, too. Brill Thomas. How do ye account fer that?”
“Brill Thomas!” repeated Dick. “Oh, that’s easy. Brill is the name of the college he attends and Thomas is his first name in full. He is out of his mind, but he still retains snatches of names and things, I suppose, and that’s how he hit on Brill Thomas for a name.”
“He told Rabig he was from the land of Hope—the Valley Brook of Hope,” went on Jack Wumble. “Rabig never heard tell o’ the location.”
“Valley Brook is the farm we live on, and Hope is a school near Brill,” said Sam. “Poor, poor Tom! Who would have imagined such a thing as this could happen to him!”
“How far is Lion Head from here?” asked Dick.
“As the crow flies, about five hundred miles.”
“Five hundred miles!” exclaimed Sam.
“Yes, an’ it’s nearly six hundred by the way they’ll have to travel,” went on Jack Wumble.
This news almost stunned the Rover boys. Was it possible that Tom was undertaking a trip of six hundred miles into the little-known portion of Alaska?
“He’d never do such a thing if he was in his right mind,” said Dick. “We must catch him just as soon as we can!”
“That is why I hired passage on this boat,” said the old miner. “I’m calkerlatin’ we can head him off. Thet is, if the weather stays good.”
“It looks like rain and is getting colder.”
“Right ye are, Dick. An’ when it gits cold up here, it gits cold, I kin tell ye thet. Last winter I ’most froze to death up in my shack,” added Jack Wumble.
The trip on the boat to Lindy Falls was without special incident. There were about a dozen passengers, all miners and prospectors, who did not care to wait for any of the regular boats. They were a rather good-natured set, and whiled away the time by swapping stories and arguing about the best way to locate paying claims and getting out the gold.
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