“I think there was a third one,” observed Randy, “but he must have got away.”
“Well, we’ve got two, anyway,” answered Jack with some pride. “What beautiful creatures they are!”
Each of the minks was over a foot in length, not counting the bushy tail. They were of a soft brown shade, with a ridge of black on the back and patches of white below. Each was quite plump, and gave forth a peculiar strong odor.
The boys were greatly delighted, and viewed the game with much satisfaction. They placed the minks over their shoulders, and then continued the hunt, presently stirring up half a dozen rabbits.
“I guess we had better be starting for the cabin,” announced Jack presently.
“How about going to that other cabin at the south end of the island?” queried Fred.
“Oh, let’s give that up!” cried Randy. “I feel like getting back to where we have all our things.”
The others were inclined to do this, and, somewhat against his will, Fred agreed to return to the north end of Snowshoe Island. Not without some difficulty, they made their way back to the lake shore, and there put on their skates once again and started.
The young hunters had expected to see Uncle Barney awaiting them on their return, and they were a bit surprised when the old lumberman did not show himself.
“He must be putting in a full day sizing up that lumber he spoke about,” observed Jack, as he gazed at his watch. “It’s nearly six o’clock.”
“He can’t see much in this darkness,” observed Randy.
The boys entered their cabin, and after resting a bit proceeded to cook supper. They expected every moment to hear a shout from Uncle Barney, but none came, and at last they sat down to the meal alone.
“I don’t like this much,” was Jack’s comment, when another hour had passed, and the old lumberman had failed to show himself. “If he was going to stay away like this he should have left some word.”
“Let’s take a look around his cabin,” suggested Fred.
This was done, but it shed no light on the unusual occurrence. The boys sat down and tried to amuse themselves as best they could, but, as another hour went by, their anxiety increased.
“Something is wrong, I feel certain,” announced Jack at last.
“Maybe while he was out in the woods he fell down over some rocks,” suggested Andy.
“He’s a pretty old man to be climbing around in dangerous places,” added his twin.
When the time came to go to bed, none of the boys felt like retiring. A lantern was lit and hung up on a flagpole which stood between the two cabins. This was a signal which had been agreed upon when the Rovers had first come to Snowshoe Island.
“There! Now if he can see the light he’ll be able to locate himself,” said Fred.
The boys took a walk around by the boat landing, and also to the edge of the woods back of the cabin, but all to no purpose. Then they finally retired to their own shelter.
“We might as well go to bed,” suggested Handy. “It won’t do any good for all of us to stay up. If you say so, we might take turns in staying on guard, in case we should hear a call for help, or anything like that.”
This was considered good advice, and each youth took two hours at staying awake while the others slept; and thus the night passed.
With the first streak of daylight, the boys prepared a hasty breakfast, and then went outside to view the situation. They soon found the tracks of the old lumberman’s snowshoes, leading into the woods, and presently saw two other tracks close behind them.
“I’m no sleuth, but it looks to me as if Uncle Barney went into the woods and two persons followed him!” exclaimed Jack.
“Just the way it looks to me, too,” answered Fred.
“Let’s go and follow up those footprints at once,” suggested Andy.
The others were willing, and in a short space of time they were on their snowshoes and making their way through the woods in the center of the island.
“Hello! here’s something!” cried Jack presently, and pointed to the old lumberman’s snowshoes, where they still rested among the branches of a tree.
Then the boys saw where he had climbed between the rocks, and, taking off their snowshoes, they followed the footprints.
“A cave!”
“What do you know about that!”
It did not take the lads long to reach the entrance of the cavern. Then Jack, who had brought along one of the flashlights, turned it on and entered, followed by his cousins.
“Hello, Uncle Barney!” he cried out at the top of his lungs. “Uncle Barney! are you here?”
“Help! help!” came feebly from the inner end of the cave, and, guided by the flashlight, the four Rovers ran in that direction. They found the old man sitting on a rock with his head resting on his arm.
“Are you hurt? How did it happen?” questioned Jack quickly.
“They’ve robbed me!” moaned the old lumberman. “They came up behind me, and somebody hit me in the head with a rock! Then they ran away with my tin box!”
“Who was it? Are you badly hurt?” questioned Randy.
“I guess I’m not so awfully bad off, even though my head did bleed some,” answered Uncle Barney. “But the worst of it is, they got away with my tin box—the one that’s got the deeds to this island in it, and all my other valuables, including my dead wife’s jewelry and a thousand dollars in gold.”
By this time the boys were examining the old man’s head. They saw where the rock had struck him, making quite a cut, from which the blood had flowed over one ear. It was much swollen, and over it Uncle Barney had tied a bandanna handkerchief.
“I’ll get some snow and wash it off with that!” cried Fred, and did so. Then the wound was bound up once more, and Uncle Barney said he felt better. He told his story in detail.
“What am I going to do?” he groaned. “Those rascals have got my treasure box!”
“Who were they?” questioned Randy.
“I don’t know exactly. I heard them talk, and faced them with my gun. They were in the dark, so I couldn’t distinguish them very good. Then one of them threw a big rock, and that is all I can remember. As soon as I became unconscious they must have grabbed the box and run away with it.”
“It must have been either Asa Lemm and Mr. Brown, or else Slugger and Nappy,” said Randy.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do, now those deeds are gone—not to say anything about my wife’s jewelry and all that gold!” groaned the old lumberman.
“Just you take it easy, Uncle Barney. You mustn’t excite yourself now,” said Jack kindly. “We’ll do what we can toward getting the box back.”
The boys had brought some food along, and they insisted upon it that the old man eat and drink something. This seemed to strengthen Uncle Barney greatly, and he arose to his feet.
“Now we’ll get after those rascals,” he said, with something of the old-time fire in his eyes. “I’m not going to allow ‘em to rob me in this fashion!”
While the old lumberman had been eating, the Rover boys had glanced around the cave curiously. It was a place partly natural and partly artificial. On one side it looked as if a little mining had been done, and Jack, who had studied geology, gazed at the surface of rocks and dirt with much interest.
“Why, Uncle Barney, this looks to me as if it was zinc ore!” he cried presently.
“Hush, hush, boy! I don’t want anybody to know about that!” answered the old man quickly.
“Then it is zinc ore, is it?” queried Randy, who had also been inspecting a side of the cave.
“Yes, if you must know,” was the surprising reply. “Right here, in the middle of this island, is one of the most valuable zinc ore beds to be found anywhere.”
CHAPTER XXIX
THE DISCOVERY
“The tr
ouble is, those rascals have a twenty-four hours’ start of us,” remarked Jack. “For all we know they may be miles away by this time.”
“It’s too bad Uncle Barney didn’t take our advice and either have those deeds recorded, or else place them in some bank vault,” said Fred.
“The thing now is to see if we can trail those fellows, whoever they were,” put in Randy.
“That’s the talk!” cried his twin. “No use of crying over spilt milk, as the cat said when she tipped the pan over into the well,” and at this remark there was a faint smile.
The Rovers had drawn to one side to talk over the situation while Barney Stevenson was preparing to accompany them from the cave. The old man was both excited and worried. He cared little about the wound he had received on the head. All he wanted to do was to get back his treasure box, as he called it.
The little party soon reached the point where all had left their snowshoes. They looked around with care, and presently made out a trail leading toward the lake shore.
“If they went down to the lake, they most likely skated away,” remarked Fred.
It was an easy matter to follow the trail through the snow. It led up to the vicinity of some rough rocks, and here turned southward.
“I guess they reasoned that they couldn’t get over those rocks,” remarked Uncle Barney. “Maybe they were afraid of a bad tumble. I wish they had gone over them and broken their necks!” he added bitterly.
“If only they had dropped the treasure box in the snow!” murmured Fred.
“No such luck for us, Fred,” responded Jack. “I’m afraid that box and its precious contents are far away by this time.”
They continued to follow the footprints, and at the end of a quarter of an hour found themselves at something of a clearing between the trees. Here those who had stolen the box had evidently stopped to rest, for it could be seen where they had been seated on a fallen log, and where they had placed the box.
“Look here!” cried Jack, who was inspecting the ground closely. “Just as I thought—those fellows were Slugger and Nappy, I feel certain.” He pointed to several half-burnt matches, and also a number of cigarette stubs.
“I guess you’re right,” returned Randy. “I’m quite sure Asa Lemm doesn’t smoke cigarettes, and when he was on the island Mr. Brown was smoking a black-looking cigar.”
“Well, if those boys stole the box, they will most likely turn it over to the professor and Brown,” said Uncle Barney. “Oh, if only I could get my hands on them!” and his eyes flashed.
The trail now led through a patch of woods and went into something of a semicircle. Then there was a little loop, which caused the boys some perplexity, but did not bother the old lumberman.
“They lost their way—that’s all,” explained Uncle Barney. “But, after moving around in a loop, they headed in this direction,” and he pointed with his hand. “Come on! Maybe they got hopelessly lost further on and are still in the woods. I hope so.”
The trail led deeper and deeper into the woods and wound in and out among a number of rocks. It was plainly evident that Slugger and Nappy had lost their way, and had made a number of false turns.
“Here is where they rested again,” announced Jack presently, and showed where some rocks had been swept clear of the snow.
“Yes, and they stopped long enough to have something to eat,” added Randy. “Here are a crust of bread and some cake crumbs.”
The trail continued to wind in and out among the woods, and the Rovers and the old lumberman followed it for fully an hour longer. Then they came out on the eastern shore of the island.
“I guess this is the end of it,” announced Uncle Barney dismally. “They probably skated away from this point.”
“No, they didn’t!” cried Jack, who was making an examination of the footprints. “They went down the lake shore.”
“I’ll tell you what I think!” said Randy. “They most likely wanted to get to Rockville, and they were afraid that if they attempted to cross to the other side of the island they would become lost again. So instead of going across, they went down to the lower end.”
“Here come two men!” cried Randy suddenly. He had been peering out on the surface of the lake.
“Maybe they are Professor Lemm and Mr. Brown,” suggested Andy.
The men were at a great distance, but skating rapidly toward the island. As they came closer, Jack saw that they were strangers, and he waved his cap and shouted at them.
“They may have seen Slugger and Nappy, or else they may have some news for us,” he said.
As the two strangers came closer, Uncle Barney looked at them curiously. Then he drew himself up and his face stiffened.
“Don’t you know those two men?” he questioned rather sharply, turning to the boys.
“No,” answered Jack, and the others shook their heads.
“The man ahead is Fred Stevenson, and the other is Mr. Powell.”
“Oh, is that so!” exclaimed Jack; and then without further ado he ran out on the ice to meet the newcomers.
“So this is Jack Rover, eh?” said Mr. Stevenson, shaking hands warmly. “I’m glad to know you; and I must thank you for sending me that telegram.”
“I sincerely hope you can patch up your differences with old Uncle Barney,” answered Jack quietly. “He’s in a peck of trouble just now.”
“Why, what has happened?” questioned Ruth’s father. “But excuse me,” he added. “This is my friend, Mr. Powell.”
By this time the other Rovers had come forward, and all told the two men of what had taken place. In the meantime, Uncle Barney remained behind on the lake shore, resting on his gun and eyeing the visitors speculatively.
“I wish you would all do me a favor,” said Mr. Stevenson, in a low tone of voice, so that the old lumberman might not hear. “I wish you would give me a chance to speak to Uncle Barney alone.”
“Certainly we’ll give you that chance, Mr. Stevenson,” answered Jack readily. “We are after the two rascals who stole that treasure box. Tell Uncle Barney that we are going to continue the hunt while you are doing your talking. Maybe Mr. Powell would like to go with us.”
“Certainly. I don’t want to interfere with this affair between these other men,” was the quick reply.
Leaving Ruth’s father to talk matters over with the old lumberman, the Rover boys and Mr. Powell began the journey down the side of Snowshoe Island. As they proceeded, the boys told the man many of the particulars of how Professor Lemm and Mr. Brown, accompanied by Slugger and Nappy, had come to the island to take possession, and then how the old lumberman had been attacked in the cave and how the precious blue tin box had been stolen.
“That’s certainly carrying matters with a high hand,” was Mr. Powell’s comment. “I sincerely trust the old man gets the box back. If he doesn’t, it may cause him a great deal of trouble, especially if those deeds have not been recorded since the old courthouse burnt down. I remember well that that fire caused a great deal of trouble among property owners in this county.”
He told the boys that he and his wife and daughter May had been visiting the Stevensons at the time the Rovers’ telegram arrived. He had left his wife and daughter to continue the visit, and had accompanied Mr. Stevenson on the trip just for the sake of a little outing.
“This quarrel between old Uncle Barney, as he is called, and the Stevensons is all nonsense,” he declared flatly. “It could have been cleared up years ago if the old man would only have listened to reason. But he was much upset by his financial losses, and more upset when his wife died, and he wouldn’t listen to a word. Now that he is willing to talk I am sure they can patch it up.”
About a mile was covered, and then the Rovers and Mr. Powell found where Slugger and Nappy had gone ashore again at a point where the island was quite low.
“I’ll wager they thought they
could cross here with ease, and thus save themselves the trouble of going around the south point,” said Jack, and in this surmise he was correct.
Once again the trail led into the woods, and now it was fairly straight up to a point where the ground became rougher. Here they found the snow scattered around some rocks, and rightly guessed that one of the youths had had a tumble.
“And I guess the tumble must have hurt some,” announced Randy. “Look at those footprints further on, will you? One of the fellows did a lot of limping.”
“Maybe he twisted his ankle, or something like that!” cried Andy.
“It’s too bad he didn’t hurt himself so severely that he couldn’t go any further,” grumbled Fred.
“It won’t be long now before we come out near that cabin where we stayed during that awful snowstorm,” said Jack.
It was now well along in the middle of the afternoon, and the Rovers rightly concluded that this point had not been reached by Slugger and Nappy until late the day before.
“If one of them was hurt, they wouldn’t want to skate away over to Rockville in the dark,” said Randy. “Maybe they stayed on this island all night.”
“There is that old cabin!” exclaimed Fred, as they reached a cleared space and could see some distance ahead.
The little cabin was thickly surrounded by snow, and looked very much as it had when they had left it. But to their surprise, not to say delight, they saw a thin wreath of smoke curling up out of the chimney.
“Somebody is there as sure as fate!” exclaimed Jack.
“Come on, let’s see who it is!” burst out Randy.
All hurried forward, making no noise in the snow, and soon reached the side of the cabin. Then Jack, who was in advance, peered in through a corner of the broken-out window, pulling aside the nailed-up blanket for that purpose.
The sight which met his gaze filled him with surprise and satisfaction. On a rude couch at one side of the single room of which the structure boasted, rested Slugger Brown, his ankle tied up in a rude bandage. In front of the fire sat Nappy Martell with the old lumberman’s treasure box on his lap. Nappy had a knife in one hand, and, with the file blade, was trying to file apart the padlock to the box.
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