CHAPTER IV
AMOS GIVES WARNING
“Wonder if he’s alone?” Teddy remarked, in a low voice to Dolph, as hehitched himself along a few inches nearer the spot where his Marlinshotgun rested against a tree.
“But what under the sun can he want, spying on us this way?” asked theother, who was in the Michigan pine woods for the first time, and notso well acquainted with things as the lumberman’s son.
“We’ll soon find that out,” remarked the other, in a louder voice, ashe saw that Dolph could easily reach his own foreign made weapon. “Areyou all ready, boys? Then catch on!”
Each of them snatched up a gun. There was not a sign from the vicinityof the bushes mentioned by Amos. Could it be that the other had made ablunder, after all? Had his eyes been blinded with so much looking intothe fire, that he mistook some stump, or the remains of a log, for aman?
Teddy gained his feet, the others following his example. Three gunswere brought to bear, covering the suspected spot.
“Come out! Show a leg; or we might take a notion to send a shot inthere!” called Teddy, in a belligerant tone, making a threateningmotion with his gun at the same time.
Immediately the bushes stirred. Then a tall and brawny figure cameinto view, that of a red-bearded man, clad in rough attire, as becamea woods nomad. In one hand he gripped an old-fashioned gun, somethinglike that of Amos’. But just then he was busily engaged in holding itup, as he tried to make the Indian “peace sign,” by exposing the palmsof both hands as well as he was able.
“Hold on, boys; I wouldn’t do nawthin’ rash, if I was you. I’m only toowillin’ ter kim into camp. Jest snuck up ter find out who an’ what yewar. Happens that thar be lots o’ hard characters aroamin’ those woodshyarabouts; an’ a decent respectable man hes to be putty keerful who hemakes up with. I jest seen ye was all ter ther good, when ye called me.”
He kept on advancing as he spoke in this strain.
Teddy had seen many just such rough looking men among the scores ofhusky loggers employed by his father. He knew it was never safe tojudge a man by either the clothes he wore, or his general appearance.Some of the hardest looking of them, upon closer acquaintance, wouldturn out to be big-hearted fellows, and as honest as the day was long.Then again, there was just as strong a chance that the same fellowwould prove to be a scoundrel.
In the woods, men have to know each other before they become friends.Looks go for little, and words less. A man is what he proves himself tobe.
Teddy was only a boy, and he had not rubbed up against a hard worldafter the fashion of Amos Simmons. And yet he certainly did not likethe looks of this big man any too well. There was that in the other’sface to tell only too plainly his love for strong drink; and being astrictly temperance boy himself, Teddy had little use for any one whowas addicted to liquor.
Besides, he could not help but think there was something mightysuspicious about the manner in which the man was sneaking about theircamp. Why should he crawl up, and lie there in those bushes, just asthough anxious to listen to what the boys were talking about? If, ashe said, he wished to make sure that they were decent campers, andnot lawless persons, why, a single look at their canoes, and the boysthemselves, must have told him that. There would be no need of all thiscaution; unless possibly the man might be a fugitive from justice,and suspicious of every party he met, thinking it might represent asheriff’s posse come to hunt for him.
The thought was not particularly pleasant to Teddy. He determined tokeep his Marlin within each reach while the giant was in camp; and hesincerely hoped the stranger might not take a notion to remain withthem over night.
Perhaps he had had evil designs on some of their property—thebeautiful green canoes that must look particularly inviting to any onetired of tramping through the endless pine woods; or could it be thatlovely aluminum set of cooking utensils that was piled up in plainsight?
Teddy noticed that the man had his eyes fastened almost greedily on thegun which he himself was holding; why, he did not even seem to waste aglance upon the more expensive weapon which Dolph sported. And thatwould seem to prove that he knew a good thing when he saw it. Indeed,since he himself carried an old-fashioned gun, no doubt a substantialup-to-date weapon must appeal to him, as a hunter.
The fellow saw that they no longer made any threatening motions. Heshowed his cool assurance by dropping down on the ground, not a greatdistance away from the fire; and sniffing the air in a way that couldhave but one meaning. He was hungry, and would like to have somethingto eat.
Woods hospitality is no respecter of persons. If a hungry man comesinto camp and asks for a bite, common decency compels one to feed him,even though later you expect to order him on, at the muzzle of your gun.
So Teddy made a motion to Amos, which the latter easily understood. Hestarted to make a pot of coffee, knowing that the man would never drinktea. Besides, Amos deliberately opened another can of corned beef,which he expected the giant would entirely devour, since he must bepossessed of a tremendous appetite.
There were crackers, and some left-over biscuits which Amos had cookedon the preceding day in a little make-shift oven. All these he beganto set out before the man, before another word had been said.
It was not considered polite to ask any questions before the edge ofthe stranger’s appetite had been taken off. The first thing Teddyinquired was very naturally in connection with his identity.
“Would you mind introducing yourself to us?” he asked, as he watchedthe terrific inroads being made on their stock provisions; while Dolphwas figuring on just how many days their larder could stand such anonslaught.
“Me? I’m Gabe Hackett,” remarked the giant, with a quick glance towardAmos. “Used to be logger onct; knowed Amos Simmons, too, when I workedfur ther Woodstock Company a cupple o’ years back. I been abouteverything thar is—trapper in winter time, takin’ nigh a thousandmuskrat pelts one season; timber cruiser, a skirmishing through, newfields lookin’ fur wood that cud be bought up by my company; trader;spruce gum collector; honey harvester, whar the bees they lays up astore o’ the sweet stuff in holler trees. Reckon I ’bout near been allthar is for a honest man ter make a livin, at, up hyar in the Michiganwoods.”
“And what are you doing now?” asked Teddy.
The man started slightly, and gave the other a quick look; butevidently he was reassured by the manner of his questioner, whoappeared to be solely seeking knowledge, for the inquiry was made ingood faith.
“Right now I’m tackling a new dodge,” he chuckled. “I wouldn’t telleverybody, ’cause thar be some fellers as’d take advantage o’ me; but Ikin see that you ain’t built that way. Why, I’m hunting roots jest now.”
“Roots!” echoed Dolph, greatly interested because it happened that hewas himself more or less interested in botany, and had even gone outon an expedition in search of medicinal roots with a professor of aCincinnati college, whom his rich father thought a good bit of, andpatronized to the extent of sending him to Europe each summer to study.
“That’s it, younker; wild ginseng, golden seal, an’ all them kinderthings ye know, that brings good money, if on ’y ye happen on whar theygrows. Swamps ain’t too planty up this aways; down in Indiana, now,whar I kim from, why they used to be jest heaps o’ them weeds, but inthem days nobody ever thort they was wuth picking up. I hed an ijee o’hiking back thar; but a letter tole me the place was jest cleaned outo’ every root, and that farmers was aplantin’ ginseng by the acre.”
At least the information was interesting. It might be true, or on theother hand, Gabe Hackett was possibly inventing this plausible excusefor his presence in that neck of the land. Teddy went on to ask a fewmore questions.
“And have you met with any success at all; p’raps you might show ussome of these same roots. I’ve heard a heap about them, but wouldn’tknow one from another, though my chum here, Dolph Bradley, fromCincinnati, knows something about—what is it, botany, or rootology orwhat?”
Gabe shr
ugged his shoulders, as he replied, with his mouth half full ofbeef:
“Reckons ye’d never know what they was like, if so be ye had ter dependon the amount I’ve been able ter pick up, this far. Why, I ain’t neverset eyes on a thing wuth takin’, and that’s the truth. But I got anagreement ter meet up wid a feller by the name o’ Crawley, as sez hekin pilot me ter whar we kin git jest piles o’ that wild ginseng. Hopesas how he ain’t mistook it fur somethin’ else; ’cause I needs thermoney right bad. I gotter try an’ show up at his shack afore mornin’too, wuss luck, else I’d like ter stay with ye, an’ heve another shakeat that prime coffee in ther mornin’.”
Teddy and Dolph could not help exchanging a sly look; they were soglad to hear this last bit of news. It would have been very unpleasanthaving such a guest all night long; and his presence must havenecessitated a constant vigil being kept. Indeed, so far as that went,Teddy was already of a mind that they would be wise to stand guard; forthe very fact of his being somewhere in the vicinity, possibly with aboon companion of the same stamp, was enough to make one uneasy withregard to the safety of their belongings.
Happening to glance toward Amos, who had not been saying a word allthis while, Teddy caught him winking one eye, and making a suggestivemotion with his head. He guessed instinctively that the woods boywished to find a chance to speak with him aside, where the visitormight not hear.
Dolph had taken what the man had said about the roots as Gospel truth.He was trying to squeeze some information out of Gabe; and the otheron his part seemed endeavoring to dodge the same by cautious replies,so as not to expose his blank ignorance in the matter too much.
So Teddy found an opportunity to stretch himself, and get up from hisseat, as if tired of sitting. He had noticed that Amos was no longernear the fire; and on glancing toward the twin canoes, saw him bendingover one of the small, dandy craft, as though examining some scratchthat he had noticed before.
Teddy walked in that direction. He knew that he was followed by theeyes of the visitor, who must have considered it a little odd that theboy persisted in carrying his gun along with him on such an occasion.But however that might be, Hackett did not see fit to express hisdisgust in words, though he may have frowned some, and gritted thosestrong yellow teeth of his in an ugly manner.
Reaching the vicinity of the canoes, Teddy pretended to be as deeplyinterested in the supposed scratch made by a snag as Amos was. But whentheir heads came close together Amos took advantage of the opportunityto say softly:
“A bad egg, that Gabe Hackett, Teddy, believe me! Tell you about himafter he’s shook the roost, and gone about his way. Wouldn’t setanything past him. Watch your gun, and everything else while he’saround. Why, he’d steal a coffee-pot if he had half a chance. Used tobe the cock of the walk once at the lumber camp; but since then he’sslid down the ladder some, I’m telling you. Hunting ginseng, he says;but I’d rather believe he’s bein’ paid by that Woodstock Company tofoller _you_, and find out what the son of the president of the OvertonLumber Company is doing up in the pine forests; and that’s what!”