CHAPTER II.
SEEING GIRAFFE THROUGH.
"QUICKSAND!" shrieked Step Hen, who happened to be keeping company withDavy Jones just ahead of the two leaders of the patrol. "Hey! hurry yourstumps, fellers, and get there before poor Giraffe is pulled under.Ain't it lucky he c'n stretch his neck so far? Anyhow he ought to keephis head above water."
Everybody was on the run by now, and as Bumpus kept sounding theassembly on his silver-plated bugle, what with the shouts of theadvancing khaki-clad boys, the picture was an inspiring one.
When they reached the border of the little stream that crossed themountain road, sure enough, there was the tall scout up above his kneesin the water, and looking rather forlorn.
"What had I ought to do, Allan?" he bawled out, naturally appealing tothe one whose practical experience was apt to be of more benefit to himat such a time than all the theories ever advanced. "You see, I wascrossing here, and stopped right in the middle to turn around and saysomethin' to Bumpus. Then I found that both my feet seemed like they wasglued down. When I tried to lift one, the other only sank down deeper.And it came to me like a flash that I was gripped in quicksand. When Itold Bumpus here he squawked, and blew his horn to beat the band."
"Horn!" echoed Bumpus, indignantly; "why can't you ever learn to saybugle. You're the only one I know of that owns to a horn; and you blowthat often enough, I'll be bound."
"Ain't you goin' to get me out?" demanded the now alarmed Giraffe, as hefelt himself slowly but surely sinking deeper. "Say, is that the way totreat a fellow you all have known so long? I ain't foolin', let me tellyou. And if you stand there much longer, grinnin' at me, it'll be toolate! You'll feel sorry when you only see the top of my head abovewater. I tell you there ain't no bottom to this crick. It goes cleanthrough to China, it does, now. Give us a hand, Allan, Thad. One scoutought to help another, you know; and I bet some of you haven't done asingle good deed to-day, to let you turn your badge right-side up."
Among Boy Scouts it is considered the proper thing to invert the badgeevery morning, and not change its position until the owner has somethingworth while to his credit, even though it may only be the helping of anold man across the busy street; or the carrying of a basket for a lamewoman coming from market. This was what Giraffe evidently had in mind,when trying to spur his comrades on to helping him out of the mire intowhich he had fallen.
"What can be done for him, Allan?" asked the scoutmaster, turning to theother.
"Yes, think up something, Allan; and for goodness sake be quick aboutit," called the one in the water. "Just hear how that sucks, will you,when I work my foot up and down? And now, there, the other leg's deeperby two inches than it was. Be quick about it, or you'll be sorry."
"If there was a tree above his head I'd say get a rope over a limb, makea loop at the end, and drag him out that way," remarked Allan.
"And pull my neck longer than it is; I'm glad then there ain't no tree!"snapped the alarmed Giraffe.
"Oh! rats, he meant we'd put the loop under your arms, silly!" calledout Davy.
"Some of you get hold of those old fence rails over there," Allan wenton. "We can make a mattress of them, and get over to Giraffe in thatway. Jump, now, boys, for he is really and truly in a bad fix; and ifleft alone would sure go under."
"Hurry! hurry!" shouted Giraffe, waving his long arms; "don't you hearwhat Allan says? It's sucking like anything. P'raps it'll open up, andpull me under before you can get started. Quick, boys! For the love ofmisery stir your stumps like true scouts!"
They came running up, each bearing one of the old fence rails that hadbeen at some time washed down the stream during a freshet. Allan tookthese as they arrived, and began to make a species of corduroy road outto the boy who was caught fast in the grip of the quicksand.
"Throw yourself forward as much as you can, Giraffe," he said. "Nevermind about whether you soil your uniform or not. You can get a new one;but you never will have another life you know. There, rest your weighton that rail, and begin to work both feet free. When you get to liftthem up, we'll lend a hand, and yank you out in a jiffy. Get busy now,Giraffe!"
And the one addressed certainly needed no second urging. He worked witha vim, and presently called out exultantly:
"She's coming now, boys; I felt both feet give that time. Oh! it's goingto be all right, after all. Bumpus, I promised you my stamp book; but Ireckon I'll need it a while longer myself, so consider the thing off.Please come out, and give me that lift now, Allan. Two of you can do iteasy enough."
Bob White, with his usual promptness, when any one was in need of help,volunteered to assist Allan. Between them they succeeded in dragging thescout who was trapped in the quicksand, out of his unpleasantpredicament; and while about it all of them crossed to the other side ofthe creek, where they were speedily joined by the balance of the patrol;though every boy took advantage of the fence rails that lay scatteredthrough the shallow water, in order to prevent any possibility of arepetition of the disaster that had overtaken their comrade.
A halt was called, to enable Giraffe to wipe some of the mud from thelower portions of his uniform. And of course all sorts of talk passedback and forth, as might be expected among a parcel of lively boys outfor a good time. Even the one so lately in dire danger had apparentlygotten well over his nervous shock, for he laughed with the rest at theludicrous nature of the event.
"Say, what kind of natives do you have down here, Bob White?" askedBumpus.
"The same kind, I reckon, suh, that they raise in all mountain regions,"came the ready reply of the sensitive Southern boy. "Some are prettytough; but then again, I give you my word, suh, that there are othersyou can't beat for being the clear quill. But may I ask why you put thatquestion to me, Bumpus?"
"Sure. There was a feller perched up on that rock stickin' out aboveus," declared the fat boy, pointing his finger upward along the ruggedand rocky face of the mountain side; "I called to him to come and helpget poor old Giraffe out; but he never made a move; just sat there, andgrinned. He had a gun along with him, and I s'pose he was a specimen ofthe Blue Ridge mountaineer. Gee! you ought to a seen the long whitebeard the old feller sported!"
"Oh!" exclaimed Bob White, looking excited, a fact that aroused the keeninterest of all his comrades at once.
"Do you know who he was?" demanded the indignant Bumpus.
"I'm sorry to say, suh, that I think I do," replied the Southern boy,slowly. "If your description is correct, and believe me, I have noreason to doubt it, that man you saw must have been no other than PhinDady!"
"Phew! ain't that the moonshiner we heard so much about over inAsheville?" asked Step Hen.
"The same man," answered Bob White, glancing a little nervously uptoward the rock indicated by his comrade, and which, jutting out fromthe steep face of the mountain; offered a splendid outlook for any onewho wished to see who might be coming along the winding road.
"Well, I don't like his ways, that's all," muttered Giraffe, who wasstill trying to make his uniform look half-way decent after its recentrough usage. "Anybody with one eye could see that I was bein' suckeddown like fun; and for him to just watch Bumpus here, blowin' hisbugle, and shoutin' for help, without offerin' to lend a hand,wasn't--well, decent, that's what. P'raps some day it'll be my turn togrin at him when he's in trouble."
"But you wouldn't do it, you know that, Giraffe," said Thad, smiling."You don't forget that a true scout must return good for evil. And ifthe time ever comes when old Phin Dady needs help that you can give, I'mdead sure you wouldn't hold back."
Giraffe grumbled some more, but the scoutmaster knew that at heart hewas not an ungenerous boy, though a little inclined to hold a grudge.
"What are you thinking about, Bob White; you look as sober as though youdidn't just like the looks of things any too much?" asked Allan, turningupon the other.
"That's just right, suh, I can't say that I do," replied the Southernlad. "You see, I was wondering what old Phin would think about us. He'sthe most sus
picious man in the mountains, and with reason, suh. Fohyears, now, he's been hunted high and low by the revenue agents. They'vedone all sorts of things trying to capture old Phin, and raid his secretstill; but up to now it's never been done. He likes a revenue man likehe does a rattlesnake; and I give you my word for it, suh, the nextthing on his list of hates is the uniform of a soldier!"
Thad uplifted his eyebrows to indicate his surprise.
"I think I get your meaning, Bob White," he remarked, slowly andseriously. "Our uniforms might give this old moonshiner the idea that insome way we must be connected with the army; perhaps a detachment ofscouts sent in here to get him in a corner, and knock his old moonshineStill, to flinders. Is that it, Bob?"
"You hit the nail on the head when you say that, suh," replied theother. "When I lived down this way, I used to hear a heap about OldPhin; and I reckon he'd know who I was if you mentioned my name to him.That's the main reason why he just sat and laughed to see the wearer ofthe hated uniform now used by the United States army stuck in thequicksand. I reckon he only thought that it would mean one the lessenemy for the Blue Ridge moonshiners to go up against."
"It seems to me," spoke up Smithy at this juncture, "that in justice toourselves we ought to seek an early opportunity to secure an interviewwith this gentleman, and explain our position. He should know that wehave no relation with the army, and that in fact the mission of a BoyScout is peace, not war."
"Second the motion, boys!" exclaimed Bumpus; "and I hope our scoutmasterwill appoint a committee of three, Bob White, Allan, and, well, Smithyhere, to hunt up the said gent, and show him--hey, jump out of the waythere, Step Hen; the whole side of the mountain's coming down on top ofyou! Hurry! hurry!"
But as the startled Step Hen hastened to obey, with considerablealacrity, Thad Brewster, looking up, saw a head withdrawn from the pointwhence the round stone that was rolling down the side of the steepincline must have had its start.
Jumping in zigzag curves from one side to another, the rock finallylanded with a great crash in the mountain road not ten feet from wherethe scouts were huddled in a group, watching its coming with staringeyes.