CHAPTER VI.
ON THE SHORE OF THE SALTY SEA.
"Tell me about that, will you?" remarked Jimmy, as he carefully steppedashore; "according to my mind it was cleverly done, if I do say it thatoughtn't."
You would certainly have thought the little chap had covered himselfwith glory, and that the success of the whole undertaking depended onhim. But then the other scouts knew Jimmy from the ground up, and seldomtook offense at anything he said, because they realized that much of hisbragging and "joshing" did not "spring from the heart," as he naivelyconfessed many a time.
Ned was wise enough to see that each canoe, before being abandoned thereamidst the friendly rushes, was securely staked, so that it could notdrift away, through the action of wind or current.
"Seems to me that is about all we have to do here," Jack remarked, afterthese matters had been carefully attended to.
"And the next thing on the programme is to hike out in search of awonderful old copper mine that, chances are, doesn't exist at alloutside the minds of that lot of fakirs," Frank observed; for he hadnever taken much stock in the alleged "proofs" shown to Jack's father bythe parties who were exploiting this new and sensational discovery ofamazingly rich ore.
Ned gave a last look around. He was careful at all times to make doublysure; and, since they intended cutting loose from their boats for awhile at least, he wanted to make no mistake that would cost themdearly.
"It's all right," he told his mates, "and we seem to have everythingnecessary. Of course we're going as light as we can, and no blankets areallowed, or tents either; but we've looked after the eating part of thegame; and besides, we've got our guns, in case we have to knock over acaribou or other game to help out."
"Then say the word, governor, and we'll be beating it," Jimmy advised.
So Ned raised his hand, and made a sign that the others easilyunderstood. In the scout language it meant "go ahead!" Even Francois andthe Cree chief so interpreted the sign, for they immediately startedforth.
They left the reed patch in a sinuous line, each stepping directly intothe tracks of the one preceding him. In this fashion their passagecaused very little disturbance amongst the "bullrushes," as Jimmypersisted in calling the thick growth. And Tamasjo, coming now in therear, did much to smooth over the trail, so that it would take a pairof unusually keen eyes to have guessed that one or more persons hadissued forth at this point.
Having left the tall reeds behind them, the little party now found thewoods in front. The ground rose abruptly, and they were standing wherethey could have a fair view of the river.
Ned gave a last look up and down the stream. As far as he could seethere was not a sign of human life in either direction, only the calmpeaceful flow of water moving majestically toward the great bay thatundoubtedly lay not a great distance away.
Thus they started off, Ned having arranged his plan of campaign so as toconfuse the enemy, possibly awaiting their coming further down thestream.
It was no idle saunter through the Northern woods. The leader of theWolf Patrol had conferred with Francois, and arranged matters so thatthey would be able to return this way when ready.
Under ordinary conditions this might be easily accomplished by using acamp hatchet, and "blazing" a tree occasionally. In this manner thepilgrim would be able to always sight a white mark ahead, and pick hisway without difficulty. But for numerous reasons they did not wish toattempt this well-known method now; since it might excite the curiosityof any one chancing to run across a freshly blazed tree, causing him tostart in and follow the cuts all the way to the concealed canoes.
Consequently, Francois picked out certain features of the landscapewhich he occasionally pointed out to Ned, who in turn impressed them onthe attention of his chums.
An odd looking bunch of birches that could not be easily mistaken toldthem in the first place that the reed bed was only a few hundred feetaway. Then, shortly afterwards, it was a rock that had the appearance of"round table," which Jimmy insisted on calling it. They jotted this downon the tablets of their memories, as the second striking feature of thetrail.
So it went on. Scouts as a rule have good memories, because they havebeen shown early in their career when joining the organization howuseful it is to be able to recollect a host of things without confusion.Indeed, one of the requisites to gaining advance marks in the patrol isthe possession of this faculty. A tenderfoot will be given a chance tostand in front of a window containing hundreds of small objects,possibly connected with a hardware establishment in town. Afterimpressing the picture on his mind, after a certain fashion for a fullminute or so, he must walk away, and later on write out a list of everyobject he can remember.
Practicing after this manner boys have learned to widen the scope oftheir memories so that they become able to describe an array of thingsnever seen before to an extent that is astonishing.
This was the practice that became valuable to Ned and his chums as soonas they started through that Canadian "bush." Each fellow began in asystematic way to make a list of the various "signs," so that whencalled upon to give his opinion he would be able to repeat the entireassortment, just as a sailor, forward or backward, is able to rattle offthe thirty-two points of the mariner's compass.
There were many other features connected with that hike, which broughtout their knowledge of scoutcraft. They noticed everything around them,as they moved along in a steady fashion. Never an arctic hare sprang upand bounded away, but the eye of every scout was instantly fastened onthe little animal; and each boy mentally figured out how it must havebeen peaceful in this section of the woods, or that timid littlecreature would not have been lying asleep there, to be disturbed bytheir coming.
"We're heading almost due north, ain't we?" Jimmy asked, when sometwenty minutes had elapsed since the start.
"About as near that as we can go," answered Ned.
"I knew it by the lay of the sun, and the way the moss hangs to one sideof nearly all the trees, the northwest, where most every storm comesfrom," was what Jimmy went on to say, as though desirous of letting theleader know he had never forgotten valuable lessons learned long ago.
"You can tell direction from the general slant of the trees, if younotice them close enough," Jack Bosworth ventured; "because in the longrun they are bound to show some deviation from a straight perpendicular,on account of these same storms. There's a good example of what I sayright before you, Jimmy; that big tree standing high up above all therest. See what I mean?"
"'Tis an easy mark you'd be taking me for, Jack, if I couldn't grab thatidea and pull it down," the other remarked.
"Fact is," put in Frank, "a wide-awake scout need never get lost, if onlyhe keeps his wits about him. I've even told direction by using my watch.And there isn't one of the bunch but who carries some sort of a compassalong with him, unless Jimmy here, who forgets so many times, has lefthis with the duffle in the boats."
"You're off your trolley there if you think that, Frank," chuckled thescout in question, as he tapped his pocket suggestively. "I'veexperienced the fun of gettin' lost twice in me life, and I don't meanto ever take chances again. Goin' without a bite of grub from onesunset to the next was a lesson to me I'll not soon forget. I thought Iwas bound to starve to death."
"Well, let's talk less and look more," advised Ned, who knew how easilyJimmy could be drawn into an argument, or be induced to start one of hisstories that concerned strange things experienced in the past.
After that they moved along almost in silence. Once in a while, Nedwould think it the part of wisdom to call their attention to somethingthat was apt to impress itself on their memories, so as to be easilyrecalled later on. He did this in a quiet way, for Ned disliked any showof authority. As the leader of the strange expedition into theseNorthern wilds, he was in complete charge of the little party; but,then, these other young fellows were boon comrades, with whom he hadencountered numerous perils in times gone by, so that he hid the ironhand under the velvet glove as much as possible
.
All of them could speedily see that the character of the country wasgradually changing as they continued to advance. This gave Ned assurancethat his theory was founded on correct lines, and that they must bedrawing very near the shore of the great bay to which his mission haddrawn him.
Up to now they had not discovered the first actual trace of othersbesides themselves in that region; though twice the Indian had hoveredover half-washed-out footprints, showing that at least they were not thefirst ones to pass along under these trees.
Ned was all this time observing the nature of the land, with the designof making up his mind concerning the chances of rich copper depositsbeing found there.
It did not seem altogether unlikely, from what he knew of such things.Before he left home he had been shown all sorts of copper ore; and onthe way the patrol leader had stored up in his mind many minutedescriptions he had read of the famous country north of Superior, wheresuch valuable mines were being worked. Thus, he was pretty well postedon the subject, though, of course, one who had had actual practicalexperience in copper mines might have put him in possession of manyother useful facts.
So far as he could tell the rocks looked very like those around theMesauba region, and samples of which he carried along with him forcomparison when the proper time arrived.
If this affair were indeed a gigantic swindle, then those who wererunning the game had been smart enough to pick out as the field of theiroperations a country that at least gave outward evidences of beingcapable of producing a high grade of copper ore. Ned had at one timefancied the whole thing was a myth, but now he realized that thesupposed owners of the new discovery had at least been on the ground.They had carefully selected their site to conform with such conditionsas would at least be required, should an expert secretly visit thescene.
Ned was satisfied with the way things were working. If only he couldfind where the mine was located, and make his investigations secretly,without the others being aware of his presence, he believed he wouldhave no complaint to foster.
An encounter with armed guards who would be hostile to his mission wasthe last thing he wanted to have happen; though, of course, should thiscome about he believed he could depend on his chums to give a goodaccount of themselves. They had in the past stuck to him on manyoccasions through thick and thin. Not one of them but who had done hispart manfully, in season and out. The record of their past achievementshad been one of almost unbroken successes. He had every reason to expectthat this latest enterprise would be along the same order, and that thelittle party of explorers might return again to the metropolis, bearingwith them such a concise and complete report, that Mr. Bosworth, andthose interested in the proposed new mine, would have all theinformation required in order to know just how to act.
Most of the scouts were by this time beginning to look ahead with theidea of being the first to discover the big water that they knew mustlie near by. Ned could have undoubtedly made the discovery some timeback, because he carried his field glasses slung over his shoulder, bymeans of a strap; but he preferred to let one of his chums enjoy thesensation.
Jimmy was craning his neck more or less, for being shorter than any ofhis companions he felt that he labored under a disadvantage. The growthof trees was of a nature to hide what lay beyond, yet all of them couldactually feel the presence of salt water. Besides, if other evidenceswere lacking, their ears told them of waves running up on the shore, togently break there; though the breeze was from a poor quarter to carrythese sounds to them.
All of these lads, living in New York, were accustomed to seeing theocean, and familiar with the "tang" that usually accompanies thepresence of an arm of the sea. For weeks now they had been moving overthe interior, and the prospect of sighting this Northern sea, that hadever been the home of mystery to all mariners, thrilled every boyishheart.
In the course of their various travels they had gazed upon strangescenes. Once not so very long before, fortune had been kind enough totake them to the regions of the Polar ice, in carrying out a missionentrusted to their charge; so that this would not be their firstintroduction to the Northern ocean. But they had heard so much aboutthe unexplained things that took place in Hudson Bay, that one and allgrew more anxious, the nearer they drew to their destination.
Ned had already made a discovery that gave him a thrill. He had foundthat some of the landmarks set down in the description of the wonderfulmine were right before his eyes, and this fact gave him renewedconfidence in his plan of campaign. The climax must be close _at hand_.Before many hours had passed by, he would be in a position to know thetruth; whether this affair were a gigantic swindle gotten up andengineered by the combine, with the idea of loading a worthless propertyon Mr. Bosworth; or, actually what it claimed to be--a rich deposit ofcopper ore that seemed to lie in vast quantities among the rocks abovethe shore of Hudson Bay, and with shipping facilities at the very doorof the proposed mine.
After all it was Teddy, the explorer, who turned out to be the fortunateone fated to be the first to glimpse the water. He happened to see asmall opening to one side and ahead, to which he immediately called theattention of his mates.
"There's the sun glinting on something out there, boys," was the way heput it, "that looks mighty like water to me. Yes, you can see it seemsto move up and down, just like we've often seen the ocean do over LongIsland way. How about it, Ned; do I count first blood?"
"It's the bay, all right, Teddy," remarked the other, quietly, aftergiving one look in the direction Teddy was pointing.
Five minutes later and they stood on the border of the tree line,staring out over the vast heaving salty sea that they knew must be thefar-famed Hudson Bay.