“Who saw Shadow last? Does anybody know?” questioned Dave, as the whole crowd looked at each other in perplexity.
“He was close to me when we started the race,” answered Phil. “But I soon got ahead of him and turned to one side of some big rocks while he went to the other side.”
“And didn’t you see him after that?”
“No. But I heard him call to some of the others.”
“I think he was close behind me during the first half of the race,” broke in Roger. “But after that I drew away from him.”
“We’ll go back to where we started from and keep calling his name,” said our hero. “He’ll be bound to hear us if he is anywhere around.”
“Perhaps he went down into one of those openings between some of the rocks and was knocked unconscious,” suggested Ben. “Such a thing could easily happen.”
“Oh, I hope he isn’t seriously hurt!” cried the senator’s son.
131Very soberly the four youths climbed back to the summit of the mountain, and then began to retrace their steps toward the other side. They kept calling Shadow’s name continually, but no answer came back.
“Over yonder is the worst opening I had to jump over,” remarked Roger, when they were near the center of the summit.
“Let us look at it, right away,” returned our hero quickly.
All hurried to the place Roger had mentioned. It was an opening between some rough rocks, and was all of a hundred feet long and two to eight feet in width. How deep it was they could not surmise, for the walls curved from one side to the other, so that the bottom of the opening was out of sight.
“Looks to me as if it might be the entrance to some cave,” announced Ben, as all came to a halt on the brink of the opening. “Listen!”
The crowd did so, and at the bottom of the opening they heard a faint splashing of water as it poured over the rocks.
“Must be an underground stream down there,” remarked Phil.
“Perhaps it’s the same stream that furnishes water to the spring at our camp,” suggested Dave. He sent up a shout. “Hello, Shadow! Are you down there?”
132“Help! Help!” came in a low voice from below.
“He’s down there, as sure as fate!” exclaimed Roger.
“Are you hurt?” shouted Phil.
“I’m pretty well scraped up, that’s all. But the rocks down here are all smooth and wet, and I can’t climb up—try my best.”
“You are in no danger just at present, are you?” questioned Dave quickly.
“I don’t think so—unless you fellows roll down some stones on me.”
“We’ll be careful about that,” answered Ben; and lost no time in pushing back a number of stones which lay close to the brink of the opening.
“We’ll have to get a rope or something with which to haul him up,” said Phil. “Dave, did we bring anything of that sort along?”
“Yes, I’ve got a good strong lariat tied to my saddle,” answered our hero. “Frank Andrews advised taking it along; for when you are traveling among the mountains you can never tell when you’ll need such a rope. I’ll go back and get it.”
“Maybe you’d better bring a few straps along, too, Dave,” put in Roger. “Then, if Shadow can’t haul himself up, he can tie himself fast and we can pull him up.”
“Good idea, Roger. I’ll do it.”
133Dave was soon on his way, and in less than twenty minutes he was back to the spot, carrying the lariat he had mentioned and also a number of straps taken from the outfit. The lariat was of rawhide, and more than once had been tested by the civil engineers for its strength. It had been purchased by Andrews from a cowboy in Texas, after the latter had given a very fine exhibition of lassoing steers with it.
“We’re sending down the end of a lariat with some straps,” called down Dave. “Let us know as soon as it is low enough.”
“All right,” answered Shadow, but somewhat feebly, for the tumble had evidently knocked the breath out of him.
Tying the loose straps to the end of the rope, and weighting the whole down with a stone, Dave lowered the lariat carefully over the edge of the opening. It slipped through his hands readily, and soon the end disappeared from sight over a bulge of the wall below. All of the others watched the rope as it disappeared into the opening. They waited for some cry from Shadow, stating that he had hold of the other end, but none came.
“Maybe it caught somewhere on the way down,” suggested Ben.
“Well, here’s the end of it anyway,” announced Dave. “And the other end must be free 134for I can still feel the weight of the straps and the stone.”
“Hello, down there!” shouted Roger. “Can you see the rope?”
“Yes,” answered Shadow. “Please let it down about two feet farther.”
“I can’t do that just now. I’m at the end of the rope,” answered Dave. “Just wait a few minutes, and we’ll fix you up.”
“We’ll have to tie something to it,” said Roger. “Too bad we didn’t keep one or two of those straps up here.”
“Let’s get a stout sapling and tie that to the lariat,” said Phil. “That will be even stronger than the straps.”
On the edge of the summit they had noticed a number of saplings growing, and in a few minutes they had one of these uprooted. It was ten or twelve feet in height, and plenty strong enough for the purpose intended. It was tied fast by the roots, and then they lowered it into the opening, all taking hold of the other end, so that it might not slip from them.
“All right, I’ve got the rope now,” announced Shadow, a few seconds later. “Just hold it as it is.”
“Do you think you can haul yourself up, Shadow?” asked Dave. “Or do you want us to do the hauling?”
135“I guess you had better do it if you can,” answered the youth below. “That tumble made me kind of weak and shaky.”
“Then strap yourself good and tight,” answered Roger. “See to it that the lariat won’t slip from the straps, either.”
It was almost dark at the bottom of the hollow into which Shadow had tumbled. He was in water up to his ankles. But this the unfortunate youth did not mind, for the stream had enabled him to bathe his hurts and obtain a refreshing drink. Now he lost no time in fastening one of the large straps around his waist, and to this he attached the lariat by a firm knot. Then, to make assurance doubly sure, he tied another of the straps to the rope and around his left wrist.
“Now I’m ready!” he shouted to those above. “But do be careful and don’t send any rocks or dirt down on my head!” His hat had fallen off and into the stream, but he had recovered it, and was now using it as a protection for his head.
“We’ll be as careful as we can,” announced Dave. “If anything goes wrong, shout out at once.”
It had been decided that Dave and Roger should haul up on the sapling and the lariat; and while they were doing this, Ben and Phil were to hold fast to them in order to prevent any of the party from going over the brink.
136Soon the sapling came out of the opening, and then the lariat came up inch by inch.
“Are you all right, Shadow?” demanded our hero, when about half of the rope had been pulled up.
“All right, so far,” was the gasped-out answer. “For gracious’ sake, don’t let me drop!”
“Don’t worry,” answered Roger. And then he added to Ben: “Just carry the sapling back and stick it between those rocks, then we’ll be sure that the rope can’t slip.”
As Shadow even though thin, was tall and weighed all of one hundred and thirty pounds, it was no easy matter to haul him up out of the opening, especially as the lariat had to slip over several bends of the rocks. Once there came a hitch, and it looked as if the lariat with its burden would come no farther. But Shadow managed to brace himself and climb up a few feet and loosen the rope, and then the remainder of the haul was easy. Soon he came into sight, and in a few seconds more those above helped him over the brink of the opening and to a place of safety.
“Thank heaven, I’m out of that!” he panted, as he sat down on a nearby rock to rest. “I owe you fellows a good deal for hauling me out of that hole.”
“Don’t mention it, Shadow,” answered Dave readily.
137“We’d do a good deal more for you than that,” added Roger.
“Indeed we would!” came simultaneously from the others.
“After this I’m going to be careful of how I run and jump,” answered Shadow.
“How did you come to go down?” questioned Phil.
“That was the funniest thing you ever heard about,” was the quick reply. “Just as I came into sight of this opening, I felt one of my shoes getting loose. I bent down to feel of it, and the next instant I stumbled over something and rolled right down into the hole. Of course, I tried to save myself, but it was of no use, and down I went quicker than you can think. I struck the rocks on one side of the opening, and then on the other side, and hit some bushes and dirt. Then, the next thing I knew, I went ker-splash! into a big pool of water.”
“And that pool of water saved you from breaking your neck,” broke in Ben.
“More than likely. I got up out of the pool in a hurry, and then I walked several yards to where the stream of water wasn’t nearly so deep. Then I set up a yell, and kept at it for nearly a quarter of an hour. I had just about given up thinking you would ever find me, when I heard you yelling.”
138“As soon as you’ve rested, we’ll help you back to our camping place,” announced Dave. “Then we can start up the fire again and you can dry yourself;” for he saw that Shadow was soaking wet from his back down.
“I’m thankful this adventure has ended so well,” was Phil’s comment. “What would we have done if anything had happened to you?”
“As it was, enough did happen,” answered Shadow ruefully. Then, of a sudden, his face broke into a smile. “Say, when I was down there I thought of a dandy story! One day two men went to clean a well——”
This was as far as the former story-teller of Oak Hall got with his narrative. The others gazed at him for a moment in wonder, and then all broke out into a uproarious fit of laughter.
“Can you beat it!” gasped Phil.
“I guess Shadow would tell stories if he was going to his own funeral!” came from Roger.
“You’ve certainly got your nerve with you, Shadow,” announced Dave.
“I suppose you thought of the story while you were tumbling down into the opening,” suggested Ben.
“No, I didn’t think of it just then,” answered the story-teller innocently. “It came to me while I was waiting for you fellows to get the rope.”
“Never mind the story now,” said Dave. “If 139you are rested, let us get back to the camp and start up that fire. We don’t want you to catch cold.” For on the summit of the mountain there was a keen, cool breeze.
They were soon on the way, Dave on one side of Shadow to support him and Roger on the other. Phil and Ben ran ahead, and by the time the youth who had taken the tumble arrived, more wood had been placed on the campfire, and it was blazing up merrily, sending out considerable warmth.
“That’s an adventure we didn’t count on,” remarked Phil, while Shadow was drying out his clothing in front of the blaze.
“Well, something is bound to happen when we get together,” answered Roger. “It always does.”
“After this we had better keep our eyes peeled for all sorts of danger,” said Dave. “We don’t want anything bad to happen to our visitors during their stay.”
Half an hour was spent in the camp, and by that time Shadow’s wet clothing had dried out sufficiently to be worn again. The former story-teller of Oak Hall had been allowed to tell several of his best yarns, and now seemed to be in as good a humor as ever. His hands and his shins had been scraped by his fall, but to these little hurts he gave scant attention.
“I came out on this trip with Phil just to see 140what rough life was like,” he announced. “If something hadn’t happened to me I surely would have been disappointed.”
“You’ll see enough of rough life before you get home again, Shadow,” said Phil. “Just you wait till you get to Star Ranch. I’ll have some of the cowboys there put you through a regular course of sprouts.”
Just before the party got ready to break camp, Ben wandered off to get several more pictures. He went farther than he had originally intended, the various scenes before his eyes proving decidedly fascinating. He took a view of some rocks, and then gazed for a long time across to a hill some distance away. Then he returned quickly to where he had left the others.
“Say, fellows, I’ve discovered some game!” he cried.
“Game?” queried Dave. “What kind?”
“I don’t know exactly what they were,” answered the youth from Crumville. “They looked though to be a good deal like a couple of bears. They are off in that direction,” and he pointed with his hand.
“Say, let’s go after them, no matter what they are!” exclaimed Phil. “I’d like to get a shot at something before we return to the construction camp.”
“I’m willing,” announced Dave.
141“Shall we go on horseback or on foot?” questioned Shadow. “For myself, I’d rather ride than walk.”
“Oh, we’ll go on horseback,” answered Roger. “There is no use of our coming back to this place. Come on—let us get after that game right now! Ben, you show the way.”
The campfire was stamped out with care, so that there would be no danger of a conflagration in the forest so close at hand, and then the five lively chums leaped into the saddle once more and started off in the direction in which Ben had said he had seen the game.
“What made you think they were a couple of bears?” questioned Dave, as they rode along as rapidly as the roughness of the trail permitted.
“They looked as much like bears as they looked like anything,” answered his chum. “Of course, they were quite a distance away, and I may have been mistaken. But anyway, they were some sort of animals, and quite large.”
“Were they standing still?”
“No. They appeared and disappeared among the rocks and bushes. That’s the reason I couldn’t make out exactly what they were.”
“Perhaps they were deer,” suggested Phil.
“I think they were too chunky for deer—and even for goats. Besides that, they didn’t leap 143from one rock to another as deer and goats do.”
“Could they have been bobcats?”
“No. They were larger than that.”
The chums soon had to leave the regular trail, and then found themselves in a section of the mountainside sparingly covered with bushes and an occasional tree. The rocks were exceedingly rough, and in many places they had to come to a halt to figure out how best to proceed.
“Say, we don’t want to get lost!” remarked Phil.
“I don’t think we’ll do that, Phil,” answered Dave. “Roger and I know the lay of the mountains pretty well around here. And besides, I brought my pocket compass along. Just at present we are northeast of the construction camp.”
They could not go in a direct line to where Ben had noticed the game, and it therefore took them the best part of an hour to reach the vicinity.
“Now I guess we had better be on the watch,” announced Dave, and unslung the shotgun he carried, while Roger did the same with the rifle. Seeing this, the others looked to their automatic pistols, to make certain that the weapons were ready for instant use.
For fully half an hour the five chums rode up and down along the side of the hill and had Ben point out to them just where he had seen the two animals.
144“It looks to me as if they had cleared out,” said Phil in a disgusted tone of voice. “And if they have, we have had a pretty nasty ride for our pains.”
“Oh, don’t let’s give up yet!” pleaded Shadow. “I want to get a shot at something—even if it’s nothing more than a squirrel.”
“If you don’t watch out, you may have an elephant crashing down on you,” laughed Phil.
“Humph, I suppose you don’t care whether we bring down any game or not!” retorted Shadow. “You put me in mind of a fellow who went hunting. He came back at night, and his friends asked him if the hunting was good. ‘Sure, it was good!’ he declared. ‘I hunted all day long, and not a bit of game came anywhere near me to disturb my fun!’”
“One thing is certain,” broke in Dave. “You’ve got to be quieter if you expect to find any game at all. You don’t suppose a bear is going to come out on the rocks just to listen to stories.”
“That’s right! He couldn’t bear to do it!” cried Roger gayly.
“My, my, but that’s a bare-faced joke!” cried Phil; and then there was a general laugh over the little puns.
After that the youths became silent, and the only sound that broke the stillness was the clatter 145of the horses as they passed over the rocks between the brushwood. Thus another half hour passed, and still nothing in the way of game was brought to view.
“I guess we’ll have to give it up and continue our trip,” said Roger at last.
To this the others agreed, and then all started off in another direction to hit the regular trail where it wound off towards the railroad station.
“I think we can make a sort of semicircle,” said Dave. “And if we don’t lose too much time we’ll be able to get back to the construction camp by seven or eight o’clock.”
All were disappointed that they had not seen any game, and the others began to poke fun at Ben, stating that his eyesight must have deceived him.
“It didn’t deceive me at all,” insisted the son of the Crumville real estate dealer. “I know I saw them as plain as day. But what the animals were, I can’t say.”
“Oh, well, never mind!” cried Phil gayly. “If we can’t bring down any game, we can have a good time anyway. Let’s have a song.”
“All right, boys. Everybody go to it!” cried Dave. “Oak Hall forever!” And then all present began to sing, to the tune of Auld Lang Syne, a song they had sung ever since they had first gone to Oak Hall.
146“Oak Hall we never shall forget,
No matter where we roam;
It is the very best of schools,
To us it’s just like home.
Then give three cheers, and let them ring
Throughout this world so wide,
To let the people know that we
Elect to here abide!”
They sang it exceeding well, Dave and Roger in their tenor voices, Phil and Ben filling in with their baritone, and the long and lanky Shadow adding his bass voice, which every day seemed to be growing deeper. Then, after the verse was finished, at a signal from Roger, all let up the old school cry:
“Baseball!
Football!
Oak Hall
Has the call!
Biff! Boom! Bang! Whoop!”
“Oh, my! wouldn’t it be grand if we were all going back to school to-morrow?” burst out Phil.
“Oh, those good old baseball days!” cried Ben.
“And the skating and snowballing!” burst out Shadow.
“And the football!” added Dave. “Don’t you remember how we used to make Rockville Academy bite the dust?”
“And all those funny initiations in the Gee Eyes!” came from Roger.
“I think if I could do it, I’d like to go back to 147my first days there, even if I had to stand Gus Plum’s insolence,” said Dave, his eyes glistening.
“Yes. But we wouldn’t stand for such fellows as Merwell and Jasniff,” added Roger quickly.
“Oh, let’s forget all those bullies!” broke out Phil. “If we should——”
Phil did not finish, for Dave had suddenly put up his hand as a warning to be silent. Now our hero motioned his chums behind some of the rocks and brushwood beside the trail. Then he pointed to a large, flat rock a distance farther on.
“A bear!” gasped Shadow.
“Two of them!” burst out Ben, in a low tone. And then he added quickly: “I’ll bet they are the two animals I saw when I was taking those pictures!”
“Perhaps so, Ben,” answered Dave in a whisper; “although we are a pretty good distance from where you spotted them. However, that doesn’t matter just now. The question is—what are we going to do?”
“Shoot ’em!” came promptly from all of the others in a breath.
Evidently the horses had either scented or sighted the bears, for they showed great uneasiness. The bears, however, did not seem to be aware of the presence of their enemies. Both were bending down on the rocks, as if examining something intently.
148“They are eating something,” said Roger, a moment later. “See how eagerly they are lapping it up.”
“Maybe it’s some wild honey,” suggested Phil. “I understand bears are all crazy about anything that is sweet.”
The shipowner’s son was right. The bears had come upon the remains of a “bee tree” which had been blown down by the recent high winds. A section of the tree containing a large portion of the honey had struck the rocks, and the honey had spread in every direction. Now the two animals were frantically lapping up the sweet stuff, each trying to get his fill before the other got it away from him.
“I guess Roger and I had better fire first,” said Dave. “I’ll take the bear on the left, and you, Roger, take the one on the right. Then, as soon as we have fired, you other fellows can let drive for all you are worth with your automatics while we are reloading. Then, if the bears are not dead by that time, we’ll try our best to give them another dose of lead.”
So it was arranged, and a moment later the crowd of five dismounted and tied their horses to some trees. Then they crept forward, keeping as much as possible behind the rocks, so that the feeding bears might not see them.
Ordinarily the bears would have been on the 149alert, and their quick sense of smell would have made it impossible for the youths to get within shooting distance. But now both animals were so absorbed in lapping up the honey spread around on the rocks, that they paid absolutely no attention to anything else. It is also possible that the smell of the honey was so strong that it helped to hide every other odor.
“Now then, fellows, are you ready?” whispered Dave, when they had gained a point behind the rocks which was not over a hundred and fifty feet from the bears.
“All ready!” was the whispered return.
It must be confessed that some of the youths were nervous. Shadow’s hand shook as he started to level his automatic pistol. Had he been called on to face a bear all alone, it is quite likely that he would have been struck with what is known among hunters as “buck fever,” and would have been totally unable to do anything.
Bang! crack! went the shotgun and the rifle. And almost immediately came the crack! crack! crack! of the three automatic pistols.
Then, as the bears whirled around and started to run, Dave fired again, and so did Roger, and the others continued to discharge their small firearms as rapidly as possible.
Dave’s first shot had been a most effective one, taking one of the bears directly in an ear and an 150eye. This had been followed up by the second shot, and also several shots from the pistols, and presently the animal raised up on his hind legs and then came down with a crash, to roll over and over among the rocks and brushwood.
“He’s done for, I think!” cried our hero with much satisfaction.
“Don’t be too sure,” remonstrated Ben, who was close behind. “He may be playing ’possum.”
In the meantime, the other bear had leaped out of sight behind some of the rocks. Now, as Dave stopped to reload the double-barreled shotgun, the others went on, intent, if possible, on bringing the second beast low. That he had been hit, there was no doubt, for he had squealed with pain and flapped one forepaw madly in the air.
The youths with the pistols were the first to again catch sight of the second bear. He stood at bay between a number of large rocks, and snarled viciously as soon as he caught sight of them. He arose on his hind legs and made a movement as if to leap directly toward them.
“Shoot! Shoot!” yelled Roger, and discharged his rifle once more. But the shot whistled harmlessly over the bear’s head. Then the other youths took aim with their pistols, hitting bruin on the shoulder and in the thigh.
These wounds were not dangerous, but they 151maddened the beast very much; and, with a roar of rage, the bear suddenly leaped from between the rocks and made directly for the crowd of young hunters.
“Look out there!”
“He’s coming this way!”
“Run for your lives!”
These shouts were mingled with shots from several of the pistols, none of which, however, took effect, for the sudden advance of the wounded bear had disconcerted the aim of the young hunters.
The youths scattered to the right and the left behind the rocks and brushwood, and as the bear came lumbering forward, it looked as if for the time being he would have the place entirely to himself. Then, however, he caught sight of Roger and made a savage leap for the senator’s son.
Fortunately for the youth, the rifle he carried was a repeating weapon, and now he let drive once more, sending a ball along bruin’s flank. But this attack only served to increase the rage of the animal, and with a ferocious snarl he sprang forward and made a pass at Roger with one of his heavy paws.
153Had this blow landed as intended, it is more than likely the senator’s son would have been felled and perhaps seriously hurt. But by a quick backward spring, the young civil engineer dodged the attack. Then he fired again, and this was followed almost simultaneously by discharges from the pistols of Phil and Ben. But all the bullets flew harmlessly over the beast’s head.
“Run, Roger! Run!” yelled the shipowner’s son. “Run, or he’ll knock you down sure and kill you!”
Roger needed no such advice, because he already realized his peril. He turned to retreat, but in his haste tripped over the uneven rocks and went pitching headlong into some nearby brushwood.
It was at this time, when the matter looked exceedingly serious, that Dave came once more to the front. He had succeeded in reloading the shotgun, and now, advancing rapidly, he took careful aim at the bear and fired twice.
The first discharge from the shotgun took the huge beast directly in the neck, and as he made a leap forward, as if to cover the distance that separated him from our hero, the second dose of shot landed in his stomach. He let out a frightful roar of pain and rage, and then pitched forward with a crash on a rock and rolled over and over down into a nearby hollow.
154“Reload as fast as you can, fellows!” ordered Dave. “Don’t take any chances. Neither of those beasts may be dead;” and he started at once to look after his own weapon.
Years before his Uncle Dunston, who, as my old readers know, was a famous hunter, had impressed upon the youth the truth that an unloaded weapon is a very useless affair.
It must be admitted that Roger’s hand shook not a little while he was looking to make sure that his rifle was in condition for further use. Poor Shadow had gone white, and now sat on a flat rock, too weak in the knees to stand up.
“Maybe we had better give the bears some more shots before we go near them,” suggested the former story-teller of Oak Hall, in a voice which sounded strangely unnatural even to himself.
“It wouldn’t do any harm to give them a few shots from the pistols,” answered Dave. “Then we can all say we had a hand in laying them low.” And thereupon those who possessed the smaller weapons proceeded to make sure that the bears should never have a chance to fight again.
“Dave, I’ve got to hand it to you for coming to my assistance,” said Roger warmly, as soon as he had recovered from his scare. “Gracious! I thought sure that bear was going to jump right on me!”
Dave took careful aim at the bear and fired.—Page 153.
155“Dave is the head hunter of this crowd,” announced Phil.
“He takes after his Uncle Dunston when it comes to shooting,” put in Ben. “Both of them can hit the bull’s-eye without half trying.”
“I—I—don’t think I want to do much hunting after this,” was Shadow’s comment. “That is, hunting for big game. I wouldn’t mind going out after rabbits and birds and things like that.”
“Oh, you’ll get used to it after a while, Shadow,” answered Dave. “I know how I felt when I faced my first big game. I had all I could do to steady my nerves.”
“Not such very big bears, when you come to look them over,” said Ben, who was making a close inspection.
“They certainly looked big enough when they stood up on their hind legs and came for us,” answered Phil. “I guess a bear must shrink after he’s dead;” and at this remark there was something of a laugh. Now that the tension had been removed, some of the youths were inclined to be a bit hysterical.
“What are we going to do with the bears?” questioned Phil.
“Can’t we save the skins and the heads?” asked Ben.
“Yes, we can do that,” answered Dave. “I don’t believe the skins are particularly good at this 156time of the year, but you fellows might draw lots for them and take them home as trophies of the occasion.”
On their numerous hunting trips Dave and Roger, as well as Phil, had seen large game skinned and dressed on more than one occasion, and, consequently, the task before them was not an altogether new one. In the outfit they had brought along there was a hunting-knife, and also a good sharp carving-knife, and with these tools, and the aid of the hatchet they had brought along, they set to work to skin both of the bears and cut each head from the rest of the body. It was no easy job, and took much longer than they had anticipated.
“As soon as we have finished we had better make for the construction camp,” said Dave.
“What are you going to do with the bear meat?” asked Roger. “It’s a shame to leave it here.”
“We can cut out some of the best of the steaks, Roger; and then we can hang the rest of the meat up on the limbs of a tree. Then, if we want to come back for it to-morrow, or any of the others at the camp want to come and get it, why all right.”
One of the saddle-bags was cleaned out, and in this they placed the very choicest of the bear steaks. Then the heads and pelts were rolled up 157and strapped into bundles. After that, by means of the lariat, they hoisted one carcass after the other into the branches of the nearest tree and there fastened them with straps.
The horses were uneasy, evidently scenting the blood of the bears. They did not seem to fancy the idea of carrying the pelts and steaks, and the youths had all they could do to make the animals behave. But all the young men were used to riding, and so, after a little prancing around, they made the steeds steady themselves, and then the journey back to the construction camp was begun.
“I think it is quite a while since a bear was brought down in this neighborhood,” said our hero, while they were riding along. “Old Hixon told me he had been on their trail a number of times, but he could never get close enough to get a shot.”
It was already growing dark, and long before the construction camp came into view, the sun sank over the tops of the mountains in the west and the long shadows began to creep across the valley.
“I hope you are sure of where you are going, Dave,” said Phil, as he rode alongside of his chum.
“I’m not so very sure of this trail, Phil,” was the slow answer. “You see, this is a new bit of territory to Roger and me.” He turned to 158the senator’s son. “What do you think of it?”
“I hope we are on the right way,” was the ready reply. “I think inside of another half hour we’ll strike the regular trail between the camp and the railroad station.”
Soon the shadows had reached the summit of the mountain behind them, and then the darkness of night came on rapidly. As the trail was a most uncertain one, they had to proceed slower and slower, for fear of running into some danger which might lurk ahead.
“It’s a pity one of us didn’t bring a flashlight along,” said Ben. “Then we could make sure of what sort of footing was ahead.” They were passing over some loose rocks at the time, and these occasionally made the horses slip and slide. Once Phil’s animal went to his knees, and made a great splurge and clatter regaining his footing.
“This is certainly some lonely spot,” was Roger’s comment, after they had gone forward another quarter of a mile. “There doesn’t seem to be a cabin or a camp of any sort in sight.”
“Listen! What’s that?” cried Shadow suddenly, and came close up beside Dave.
Far away in the woods they heard a peculiar sound. They listened intently for several minutes, and then the sound was repeated.
“I don’t think it’s anything more than a hoot owl or something of that sort,” said our hero.
159“Just what I think,” answered Roger. “I’ve heard that cry several times since I came to Montana. It’s a bird of some sort.”
They had been going downward, but now the little trail they were following led up over more loose rocks, and then into a thicket of underbrush. Beyond this they came to the edge of the mountain forest. Here Roger called a halt.
“This doesn’t look very good to me,” declared the senator’s son. “The trail is getting worse and worse, and now it seems to lead directly into these big woods.”
“We had better go slow about getting in among trees,” announced Phil. “We might become hopelessly lost.”
“Then what do you propose to do?” demanded Ben. “Go back?”
“I’m sure I don’t know. I am willing to leave it to Dave and Roger. They know a great deal more about this section of the country than we do.”
“We don’t know much about this particular piece of ground we are on right now,” answered the senator’s son. “I can’t remember that I was ever in this vicinity before.”
“Nor I,” added Dave. “Ever since we left the place where we had our lunch this noon, the trail has been a strange one to me. Just the same, I think we have been heading in the general direction 160of the construction camp. For all we know, it may be right on the other side of these big woods.”
Dave brought out his pocket compass, and he and Roger inspected it carefully by the light from a match. Then the two talked the matter over for several minutes.
“I’ll tell you what I think about it,” declared our hero finally. “I think the best thing we can do is to skirt the woods instead of going through them.”
“I’m sure it would be safer,” added Phil.
To skirt the edge of the forest, they had to leave the trail entirely and pick their way as best they could among the rocks and brushwood. Soon the horses hesitated about going forward, and then they had to dismount and lead the animals.
“If we can’t locate the camp after we get around the edge of the woods, what are we going to do?” questioned Roger of our hero in a low voice, so that the others who were coming on behind might not hear.
“I’m sure I don’t know, Roger,” was the unsatisfactory reply.
“We’ve got to do something, Dave. We can’t stay out here all night.”
“Oh, yes, we can if we have to. If it becomes 161necessary to do so, we can go into camp, light a fire, and broil some of those bear steaks.”
“Yes, we could do that. And bear steaks wouldn’t be half bad, seeing how hungry I am getting,” returned the senator’s son. “But just the same, I’d rather get back to our camp to-night.”
The five chums continued on their way around the edge of the forest. All were in a sober frame of mind, for each realized that, for all they knew, they might be hopelessly lost on the mountainside. Presently the sharp decline came to an end, and then all of them leaped once more into the saddle.
“Look!” exclaimed Dave presently. “Am I right? Is that a light ahead?”
All gazed in the direction he indicated, and presently made out a small light which was swinging to and fro as it seemed to draw closer.
“I believe that’s some one with a hand lantern!” cried Roger. “Maybe it’s a man on horseback with a lantern to light his way.”
The five chums noted in what direction the light was headed, and then turned the horses toward the same point. Soon they came so close that they could call to the other party, and they set up a shout.
“Hello, Porter! Hello, Morr! Is that 163you?” came an answering hail. And then the light seemed to come to a halt.
“It must be one of the fellows from our camp!” exclaimed Dave. “And if that is so, we can’t be very far from one of the regular trails.”
He urged his steed forward with the others following, and soon they came face to face with a man named Dan Morrison, who had charge of one of the section gangs at the camp. To this individual our friends explained the situation, and received the information that they were on a side trail which, half a mile farther on, ran into the regular trail leading to the construction camp.
“This trail is one of several that leads to the railroad station,” explained Dan Morrison. “It’s something of a short cut, but it isn’t quite as good as any of the others. But I’m used to it, so I don’t mind it, even in the darkness. I carry the lantern more for company than for anything else.”
Mr. Morrison was much surprised to hear about the shooting of the two bears, but the youths did not wait to go into details, being anxious to get back to the construction camp, where they hoped a good hot supper would be awaiting them.
“And if they haven’t got anything cooked for us, we’ll make Jeff broil some of these bear steaks,” announced Dave.
“They’ll certainly be something in the way of a 164novelty,” said Phil. “Although, as a matter of fact, I never yet ate a bear steak that could compare to a beefsteak. The meat is usually coarser and tougher.”
It was not long after this when they discerned the welcome lights of the construction camp in the distance. Then they set off on something of a race, and rode into camp in great style.
“Well, lads, what kind of a day did you have?” questioned Frank Andrews, as he came out to greet them.
“Fine!”
“The best ever! We shot two bears.”
“Shot two bears!” repeated Frank Andrews incredulously. “You can’t string me that way. Why don’t you say you brought down half a dozen elephants while you’re at it?”
“We certainly did bring down two bears,” announced Roger with pardonable pride. “And one of them might have killed me if it hadn’t been for Dave.”
“What’s this I hear about shooting two bears?” demanded another voice, and Mr. Obray stepped into view from the semi-darkness.
“It’s true, Mr. Obray,” answered Dave. “Just wait, and we’ll show you the skins and the heads. We cut them both off to bring along. And we’ve got some fine bear steaks in our saddle-bags too.”
165“And anybody who wants to, can go back and get the rest of the carcasses,” added Roger. “We hung them up in a tree to protect them.”
“It doesn’t seem possible!” exclaimed the construction camp manager. “One bear would be something worth talking about. But two! Are you sure you’re not fooling?”
“It’s the plain truth,” answered Phil.
“But I never want to go out to shoot any more bears,” vouchsafed Shadow. “One bear hunt in a lifetime is enough for me.”
The news soon spread throughout the construction camp that two bears had been killed, and it was not long before every man in the place came up to view what the hunting party had brought in. Old John Hixon seemed to be particularly interested.
“Pretty big critters—both of ’em,” was his comment. “Of course, I’ve seen ’em bigger, but these fellows were large enough for anybody to wrassle with.”
Of course the youths had to tell their story in detail—not only about the fight with the two bears, but also how Shadow had fallen into the opening on the mountain summit and had been rescued.
“You’ve certainly had a strenuous day of it,” was Ralph Obray’s comment. “I’m glad to know that all of you got back in safety. After this I 166guess I had better keep my eyes on you,” and he smiled faintly.
“I hope we are in time for supper, Jeff!” cried Roger to the cook. “I’m altogether too hungry to miss that.”
“You all ain’t goin’ to miss nothin’,” answered the cook, with a good-natured showing of his ivories. “Come right down to the dinin’-room and git all you wants. If you wants me to broil some of dem dar bear steaks, I’ll do it fo’ you.”
“Well, I’m mighty glad we’re not going to miss anything in the way of supper,” remarked Ben.
“Oh, say, speaking about missing something puts me in mind of a story!” burst out Shadow eagerly, as the chums made their way toward the dining-room of the camp. “Once there was a miserly old man who was inveigled into buying a ticket for a charity concert. He found it impossible to get there on time, and so found the concert in full blast when he arrived. ‘Say, what are they playing?’ he asked of an usher as he came in. ‘Why, they just started the Twelfth Symphony,’ was the reply. ‘You don’t say!’ groaned the miserly old man. ‘It’s too bad I’ve missed so much of the concert, after paying for that ticket!’”
It might go without saying that all of the youths enjoyed the repast which Jeff and his assistant provided. At first they thought to have some of the 167bear steaks; but then concluded to leave those until the morning, when every man in the camp who cared to do so might have his share of the meat.
On the following morning all of the visitors, as well as Roger, were so tired that they decided to remain in camp and take it easy. Dave, however, after consulting with Mr. Obray, took two of the men with him and went back to where the carcasses of the bears had been left, and brought the meat back to camp. Here the steaks and the other portions fit to cook were enjoyed by all, and served to put Dave and his chums on better terms than ever with the others.
Phil, Ben, and Shadow remained at the construction camp two days longer, and during that time the chums went fishing, as well as riding, and enjoyed every moment of the time. Ben was particularly pleased, and in private confided to Dave and Roger that had he not promised to go on to Star Ranch with Phil he would willingly have put in the rest of his vacation with them.
“Oh, you’ll like it at Star Ranch just as well as you like it here,” announced Dave. “It’s a splendid place, and the Endicotts will be sure to give you the time of your life.”
The days passed all too quickly for all of the young men. Even Shadow complained of the shortness of the time, he stating that he had not 168had an opportunity to tell one half of his best stories.
“Never mind, Shadow, you’ll have to come back some day and tell us the rest of them,” said Roger consolingly.
At last came the hour when the visitors had to depart, and Dave and Roger saw them off at the railroad station.
“Give our best regards to the Endicotts!” cried Dave, when the long train rolled into the station and Phil and the others climbed on board.
“And don’t forget to remember us to Sid Todd!” added Roger, mentioning the foreman of Star Ranch, a man who had proved to be a good friend.
“Don’t go after any more bears!” sang out Ben.
“Oh, say, that puts me in mind of a story!” cried Shadow. “Once three men went out to hunt, and——” But what the story was about, Dave and Roger never heard, for the vestibule door to the car was closed, and in a moment more the long train rumbled on its way.
“A nice bunch, all right,” was Roger’s comment, as he and Dave turned their horses back in the direction of the camp.
“No better fellows anywhere, Roger. I’ll tell you, when we went to Oak Hall we made some friends that are worth while.”
169“Right you are!” The senator’s son drew a deep breath. “Well, now that they have gone, I suppose we have got to pitch into work again.”
“Sure thing, Roger! It doesn’t do to be idle too long.”
“Oh, I’m not complaining, Dave. I love my work too much.”
“That’s exactly the way I feel about it. The more I see of civil engineering, the deeper it grips me. I’m hoping some day we’ll be able to get together and put over some piece of work that is really worth while,” answered Dave earnestly.
Two weeks slipped by without anything unusual happening. Their brief vacation at an end, Dave and Roger plunged into their work with vigor, just to show Mr. Obray and Frank Andrews that they appreciated all that had been done for them. During that time the weather was far from fair, and the young civil engineers were more than once drenched to the skin while at work on the mountainside. Then the numerous storms brought on a small landslide, and some of the results of what had been accomplished were swept away.
“That’s too bad!” cried Dave.
“Oh, it’s all in the day’s work, Porter,” answered Frank Andrews philosophically. “Mr. Obray is mighty thankful that none of our men was caught in that landslide.”
Two days after this the storms cleared away, 170and the sky became as bright as ever. As soon as things had dried out a little, the engineering gangs went forth once more, and Dave and Roger became as busy as ever. They worked their full number of hours, as did the others, and in addition spent one or two hours every evening over their textbooks. Frank Andrews continued to aid them, and often explained matters which puzzled them.
The two youths had received letters from home on the day after their former Oak Hall chums had left. But since that time no other communications had arrived.
“It’s queer we don’t get some more letters,” grumbled the senator’s son one day.
“Were you looking for a letter from your folks?” questioned Dave slyly.
“You know well enough what I was looking for,” answered Roger, his face growing a bit red. “You didn’t get any letter from Jessie, did you?”
“Not since the day you got one from Laura, and the day that one came from your mother.”
“What do you make of it, Dave? They must have gotten our letters.”
“Maybe not, Roger. Just the same, I think the girls would have written even if they didn’t get our letters.”
“Do you suppose anything has gone wrong?”
171“I don’t know what to suppose.”
“Maybe we ought to send a telegram,” suggested the senator’s son, after a pause.
“Oh, there’s no use of scaring them with a telegram, Roger. Let us wait a few days longer. We may get some letters to-morrow.”
But the morrow passed, and so did several more days, including Sunday, and still no letters were received from Crumville. Roger got a letter from his folks in Washington, and Dave received a brief communication from Phil, stating that he and the others had arrived safely at Star Ranch. But all of these did not satisfy the young civil engineers.
“Something must be wrong somewhere,” announced Dave at last. “I guess after all, Roger, we had better send a telegram to Crumville and find out what it means.”
On the following day the two young civil engineers were sent with the rest of the gang under Frank Andrews to do some work located along the line about half way to the railroad station.
“That will give us a chance to send off a telegram,” said Dave to the senator’s son. “We can ask Andrews to let us off an hour earlier than usual and ride over to the station and get back to camp in time for supper.”
So it was arranged; and as soon as they quit work, the two young men hurried off on a gallop so that they might reach the station before the agent, who was also the telegraph operator, went away.
“We want to send a telegram to the East,” announced Dave, as they dismounted at the platform where the agent stood looking over some express packages.
“All right, I’ll be with you in a moment,” was the reply. “By the way, you are from the construction camp, aren’t you? I just got a telegram for one of the fellows over there.”
173“Who is it?” questioned Roger.
“I forget the name. I’ll show it to you when we go inside. Maybe you wouldn’t mind taking it over for the fellow.”
“Certainly we’ll take it over,” declared Dave readily.
When they passed into the office, the agent brought the telegram forth from a little box on the wall, and gazed at it.
“David Porter is the name,” he announced.
“Why, that is for me!” cried our hero quickly.
“You don’t say! Well, there you are. It’s paid for.”
Hastily the young civil engineer tore open the flimsy yellow envelope and gazed at the message inside. It read as follows:
“Do you or Roger know anything about Jessie and Laura? Answer immediately.
“David B. Porter.”
“What is it?” questioned the senator’s son eagerly; and without replying our hero showed him the message. Then the two youths stared at each other blankly.
“What in the world——” began Dave.
“Something has happened!” burst out his chum. “Dave, this looks bad to me.”
“They want to know if we know anything. 174That must mean that Jessie and Laura are away from home, and they are without news about them.”
“It certainly looks that way.”
Each of the youths read the telegram again. But this threw no further light on the mystery.
“And to think we didn’t get any letters! That makes it look blacker than ever,” murmured Roger.
“I’m going to answer this at once and see if we can not get further information!” exclaimed our hero. He turned to the station agent. “How long do you expect to remain open?”
“I generally shut down about seven o’clock, but to-night I expect to stay open until the five-forty gets here, which will be about seven-thirty.”
“You haven’t got to go away, have you?” continued Dave. “The reason I ask is that I want to send an important telegram off, and I’d like to wait here for an answer for at least a couple of hours. Of course, I am perfectly willing to pay you for your time.”
“I haven’t anything very much to do to-night after I close up, and if you want me to stay here I’ll do it,” announced the agent, who was not averse to earning extra money.
The two young civil engineers held a consultation, and soon after wrote out a telegram, stating they had heard nothing since the receipt of 175the last letters from home, the dates of which were given. They asked for immediate additional information, stating they would wait at the telegraph office for the same.
“Nothing wrong, I hope?” ventured the station master, after the telegram had been paid for and sent.
“We don’t know yet. That is what we wish to find out,” answered Dave. And then, to keep the man in good humor, he passed over a dollar and told the agent to treat himself from a small case full of cigars which were on sale in the depot.
After that there was nothing for Dave and Roger to do but to wait. The agent sat down to read some newspapers which had been thrown off the last train that had passed through, and even offered some of the sheets to them. But they were in no humor for reading. They walked outside, and a short distance away, and there discussed the situation from every possible angle.
“If we don’t get any news, what shall we do?” queried the senator’s son. “I’m so upset that I know I won’t be able to sleep a wink to-night.”
“Upset doesn’t express it, Roger,” returned Dave soberly. “When I read that telegram it seemed fairly to catch me by the throat. If anything has happened to Jessie and Laura——” He could not finish.
“Dave, do you suppose those gypsies——”
176“I was thinking of that, Roger. Such things have happened before. But let us hope for the best.”
Slowly the best part of two hours passed. Then the station master, having looked through all the newspapers, came out of his office, yawning and stretching himself.
“How much longer would you fellows like me to stay?” he questioned. “You know I open up here at six in the morning, and I live about a mile away and have to hoof it.”
“Oh, don’t go away yet,” pleaded Roger. “The message may come in at any minute. They’ll be sure to send an answer as soon as they get what we sent.”
“Wait at least another half-hour,” added Dave.
“All right;” and the agent went back into his office, to settle himself in his chair for a nap.
Ten minutes later the telegraph instrument began to click. The station agent jumped up to take down the message.
“Is it for me?” questioned Dave, eagerly, and the station master nodded. Then the two youths remained silent, so that there might be no error in taking down the communication that was coming in over the wire.
“Here you are,” said the agent at last, handing over the slip upon which he had been writing. “I’m afraid there is trouble of some kind.”
177Like the other message, this was from Dave’s father, and contained the following:
“Laura and Jessie left on visit to Boston four days ago. Thought them safe. They did not arrive and no news received. Suspect gypsies. Everybody upset. Mrs. Wadsworth prostrate. Will send any news received.”
Dave’s heart almost stopped beating when he read this second telegram, and he could not trust himself to speak as he allowed his chum to peruse the communication.
“Oh, Dave, this is awful!” groaned the senator’s son.
“So it is,” responded our hero bitterly. He read the message again. “I wonder what we can do?”
“I don’t see that we can do anything—being away out here.”
“Then I’m not going to stay here—I’m going home,” announced Dave firmly.
“What!”
“Yes, Roger. I’m going home. Why, you don’t suppose I could stay here and work with such a thing as this on my mind! This looks to me as if Jessie and Laura had been abducted—or something of that sort.”
“Well, if you go, Dave, I’ll go too!” cried the senator’s son. “If anything has happened to 178Laura——” He did not finish, but his face showed his concern.
“Do you want to send any more telegrams?” questioned the station agent. “If you don’t, I’ll lock up.”
“I think I will,” answered Dave. “They’ll want to know whether this telegram was received.” And then, after he and Roger had consulted for a moment, they sent the following:
“Second telegram received. Both too worried to remain. Will come East as soon as possible.
“Dave and Roger.”
Having listened to the operator sending the message off, the two young civil engineers lost no time in leaping into the saddle and setting off for the construction camp. They rode at as rapid a gait as possible, and on that stony trail there was but little chance for conversation.
“It must be the gypsies,” said Roger, when he had an opportunity to speak. “I can’t think of anything else.”
“The gypsies certainly promised to make trouble for them,” answered Dave bitterly. “But to go so far as kidnapping——Why, Roger! that’s a terrible crime in these days!”
“I know it. But don’t you remember what they wrote about the gypsies—how that Mother Domoza and the others were so very bitter because they had to give up their camp on the outskirts 179of Crumville? More than likely your Uncle Dunston, and Mr. Basswood, and Mr. Wadsworth, didn’t treat them any too gently, and they resented it. Oh, it must be those gypsies who have done this!” concluded the senator’s son.
When they arrived at the construction camp, they found that most of the men had gone to bed. But there was a light burning in the cabin occupied by Ralph Obray and several of the others, and they discovered the manager studying a blue-print and putting down a mass of figures on a sheet of paper.
“What do you want?” questioned the manager, as he noted their excited appearance. “Have you struck more bears?”
“No, Mr. Obray. It’s a good deal worse than that,” returned Dave, in a tone of voice he tried to steady. “We’ve got bad news from home.”
“You don’t say, Porter! What is it? I hope none of your relatives has died.”
“My sister is missing from home, and so is the daughter of the lady and gentleman with whom my family live,” announced our hero. And then he and Roger went into a number of particulars, to which the construction camp manager listened with much interest.
“That certainly is a strange state of affairs,” he declared. “But I don’t see what you can do about it.”
180“I can’t stick here at work with my sister and Jessie Wadsworth missing,” declared Dave boldly. “I’ve come to ask you to give me a leave of absence. I want to take the very first train for home.”
“But what can you do after you get there, Porter? If anything has really gone wrong, you can rest assured that your folks and the others have notified the authorities and are doing all they possibly can.”
“That may be true, Mr. Obray,—more than likely it is true. Just the same, unless I get word by to-morrow morning that they are found or that some word has come from them, I want to go home and join in the search.”
“And I want to go with him!” broke out Roger.
“I might as well explain matters to you, Mr. Obray,” said Dave. “For a number of years Jessie Wadsworth and myself have been very close friends, and now we have an understanding——”
“Oh, I see. That’s the way the wind blows, does it?” And the camp manager smiled.
“Yes, sir. And the same sort of thing holds good between Roger here and my sister Laura. That’s the reason he wants to go with me.”
“Oh!” The construction manager nodded his head knowingly. “I understand. Well, I suppose 181if I were situated like that, I’d feel just as you do.”
“Please understand we’re not going away to shirk work or anything like that,” declared Roger. “You ought to know me well enough by this time, Mr. Obray, to know that I am heart and soul in this thing of making a first-class civil engineer of myself.”
“And that’s just the way I feel about it, too,” affirmed Dave.
“Oh, I understand. I have been very well satisfied so far with the showing both of you have made. It has been very creditable. I know you haven’t shirked anything.”
“Of course, it’s too bad we have got to go right on top of having that vacation when our friends came to visit us,” was Dave’s comment.
“That is true, too, Porter. But some things can’t be helped. I take it that you would rather know that your sister and that other young lady were safe, and stick at work, than you would to lay off on account of such an errand as this.”
“You’re right there, Mr. Obray!”
“I’d give all I’m worth this minute to know that Dave’s sister and Jessie Wadsworth were all right!” burst out the senator’s son.
“Well then, if you think you ought to go back home, you may do so,” announced Ralph Obray. 182“But I sincerely hope that by the time you get there this matter will have straightened itself out. And if that proves to be true, I shall depend upon your coming back immediately.”
“We’ll do it,” answered Dave readily. “We’ll come back the very first thing after we find out that everything is all right.” And Roger promised the same.
It can easily be imagined that the two chums did not sleep much that night. They spent the best part of an hour in packing some of their belongings and in informing Frank Andrews of what had occurred. The head of their gang was even more sympathetic than Mr. Obray had been, and said he would do anything in his power to help them.
“I suppose you would like to take the eight o’clock morning train East,” he remarked.
“That’s our idea,” answered Dave.
“Then I’ll tell you what I’ll do,” went on Frank Andrews. “I’ll order up an early breakfast for you, and I’ll have old Hixon ride over to the station with you to bring back your horses.”
And so the matter was arranged.
“Well, boys, I certainly wish you luck.”
It was John Hixon who spoke, as he shook hands with Dave and Roger at the railroad station on the following morning.
As arranged, the party of three had had an early breakfast and had lost no time in riding over to the railroad station. They had found the train half an hour late, and Dave had lost no time in sending a telegram to Crumville stating that he and Roger were on the way, and asking that if there was anything of importance to communicate, to send them word either at St. Paul or Chicago.
The two youths had no accommodations on the train, which was made up of sleeping-cars, an observation-car and a diner. They had made up their minds that they would journey on the train even if they had to sit up in a smoking compartment. But the cars proved to be less than three-quarters filled, and they had but little trouble in obtaining a section. Then they settled down as best they could for the long journey to Chicago, 184where, of course, they would have to change for the train to the East. They paid for their passage only as far as St. Paul, so that they might leave the train at that city if a telegram was received assuring them that everything was all right.
“But I’m afraid we won’t have any such luck, Roger,” observed Dave, in speaking of this possibility.
“You can’t tell,” answered the senator’s son hopefully. “It’s just possible that Laura and Jessie may have returned home and explained their disappearance.”
“They’d never stay away so long without sending some word, I’m certain of that,” answered our hero emphatically. “They are not that kind of girls.”
“It certainly would seem so, Dave. But you must remember they may have sent some kind of word, and it may not have been received. They may have met some friends, sent a message, and gone off on an automobile tour or a motor-boat voyage.”
Dave shook his head. “It won’t do, Roger. I know Laura and Jessie too well. They would want to make sure that the folks at home knew where they were. And they would send us word too. Besides that, they wouldn’t go off on any extended trip, such as you mention, unless they had permission from my father and Mrs. Wadsworth.”
185All through the morning the two young civil engineers discussed the situation from every possible angle, but without arriving at any satisfactory conclusion. At noon they partook of lunch in the dining-car, making this repast last as long as possible, “just to kill time,” as Roger expressed it.
“It’s going to be a long-winded trip,” sighed the senator’s son, after they had finished their meal and had walked back to the end of the observation car.
“Well, we’ve got to make the best of it, Roger,” was Dave’s reply. “Ordinarily such a trip as this would be fine. Think of what grand scenery there is to look at!” and he pointed out with a sweep of his hand.
The long train rumbled onward hour after hour, and the two youths passed the time as best they could, talking, looking at the scenery, and reading the various papers and magazines contained in the car library. At seven o’clock they had dinner, and then sat outside once again until it grew so dark that nothing could be seen.
“Well, we might as well go to bed,” remarked Dave finally. “Which berth do you want, Roger—the upper or the lower?”
“It is immaterial to me, Dave,” was the answer. “To tell the truth, I don’t think I’m going to do much sleeping.”
“We’ll toss up for it,” was the answer. And 186the toss of the coin gave Dave the lower berth.
It proved to be a long, wearisome night for both of them. Dave tumbled and tossed on his pillow, trying in a hundred ways to account for the mysterious disappearance of his sister and Jessie. Were they captives of the gypsies? Or had some other dreadful fate overtaken them? Then, at a sudden thought, Dave sat up in his berth so quickly that he hit his head on the bottom of the berth above.
“I wonder if it’s possible,” he murmured to himself.
He had suddenly remembered how he had lost the two letters from home at the time he had been robbed by Nick Jasniff of the contents of his pocketbook. If Jasniff had read those letters he had learned much about the trouble in Crumville with the gypsies, and he had also learned from Jessie’s letter that she and Laura were contemplating a trip to Boston.
“Jasniff is bitter against Mr. Wadsworth for having had him sent to prison,” Dave reasoned; “and he is equally bitter against me and my family for what I did in capturing him. He took a train for the East. Can it be possible that he is mixed up in this affair?”
This thought sent Dave off on a new chain of reasoning, and he became so restless that, instead of trying to go to sleep, he pulled up the shade 187of one of the windows, propped his pillow close against the glass, and lay there thinking and looking out on the star-lit landscape. But at last tired nature asserted itself, and he fell into a fitful doze, from which he did not awaken until it was about time to get up.
“I’ve got a new idea,” he announced to his chum, after the two had washed and dressed and were on their way to the dining-car for breakfast. And thereupon he related his suspicions against Jasniff.
“It may be so,” mused the senator’s son. “It would be just like that rascal to go in with those gypsies and try to do your folks and the Wadsworths harm.”
On the train the two young civil engineers met several very agreeable people, but they were in no frame of mind to make friends just then. Though they did their best to be pleasant, they were glad enough when the train, after a stop at Minneapolis, finally rolled into the station at St. Paul. Here, with only a few minutes to spare, they rushed out to the telegraph office. There was a message for them, and Dave tore the envelope open eagerly. One glance at the contents, and his face fell.
“No news of importance,” he announced. “Come on. We’ll have to go on to Chicago.” And then the journey to the great City of the Lakes was renewed.
188At Chicago another message awaited them. This was a little longer than the other had been, but gave them scant satisfaction, reading as follows:
“Strong suspicions against gypsies who have disappeared. Demand for fifty thousand dollars.
“Dunston Porter.”
“That settles one thing. The girls have been kidnapped,” remarked Roger.
“Yes. And the kidnappers want fifty thousand dollars,” added Dave. He drew a long breath. “Well, there’s one satisfaction about this, Roger. We know the two girls must be alive.”
“Yes, Dave. But think of them in the hands of those dirty gypsies!”
“I can hardly bear to think of it, Roger. I wish I had those rascals by the neck! I think I could willingly shake the life out of them!”
“So could I! But come on, let us see if we can’t get on the next train bound for Albany. There is no use of our going down to New York City.”
The chums were fortunate in getting two upper berths on a train to leave in less than an hour. The run to Albany would take less than twenty-four hours, and there they would be able to change to a local train running to Crumville.
On the train a surprise awaited them. They 189ran into two of their old school chums, Buster Beggs and Sam Day. Both of these lads were fat and full of fun, and, having been close chums at school, had gone into business together in the city.
“We’re in the book and stationery line,” announced Buster Beggs, after a cordial handshaking all around. “We’re doing fine, too. Aren’t we, Sam? But say, I thought you fellows were learning to be civil engineers and were away out West.”
“We have been out West,” answered Dave. “But we are going home on a special errand just now.” And then there was nothing to do but to acquaint Buster and Sam with what had occurred.
“You don’t mean it!” burst out Buster in excitement. “Why, that reads like a regular old-fashioned novel!”
“I thought kidnappings like that were a thing of the past,” was Sam Day’s comment. “I certainly hope you round up those gypsies and rescue the girls.”
“We’ll do it or else know the reason why,” answered Roger determinedly.
From Buster and Sam the two young civil engineers learned much concerning a number of their other school chums. In return, they told a great deal about themselves; and thus the hours passed a little more quickly than they would otherwise 190have done. The four former Oak Hall students dined together, and managed to make an exchange of berths with some others on the train, so that they were all together in opposite sections that night.
“We’re certainly getting some touches of old times,” remarked Dave. “First Phil, Ben, and Shadow, and now you two!”
“I’ll tell you what—we ought to organize that Oak Hall club we once talked about,” said Buster Beggs. “Then we could hold a reunion once a year.”
“It certainly would be fine,” answered Roger, his eyes lighting up with pleasure. “We’ll have to remember that, Dave.” And to this our hero nodded approval.
Buster and Sam left the train at Utica, while the two young civil engineers continued on their way to Albany. Here they had a wait of an hour and a half, and during that time they purchased a couple of newspapers.
“Hello, here’s an account of the affair now!” cried Roger, pointing to the top of one of the pages.
There was an account nearly a column long, telling of how a search was being instituted for the missing girls and how it was supposed that a demand for money had been made upon Mr. Wadsworth and Mr. Porter. It was added that neither 191of the gentlemen would affirm or deny the report.
“That looks to me as if they were warned to keep quiet about the demand for money,” announced Dave.
“Possibly they were told that if they did not keep quiet something would happen to the girls,” added Roger. He closed his teeth with a snap. “Oh, I just wish I had my hands on those rascals!”
“It’s maddening, isn’t it, Roger, to stand around here and not be able to do anything?” groaned Dave. In his mind’s eye he could picture the misery endured by Jessie and his sister while they were being held captives.
At last the train for Crumville came in, and they lost no time in jumping on board.
“Thank heaven, we are on the last leg of this journey!” breathed Roger, as they settled down in a seat.
“Right you are, Roger!” answered Dave.
But then their faces grew exceedingly thoughtful. What dire news might await them at their journey’s end?