CHAPTER XII.
LOST IN THE MOUNTAINS.
Four persons were lost in the mountains. Three of them were young menwho were scarcely more than youths. All were mounted on broncos.
One was a bright-eyed, apple-cheeked chap, who had an odd manner oftalking, and who emphasized his words with little gestures and flirts ofhis hand that were very peculiar. Another was dark and silent, with aface that was decidedly handsome, although it denoted a person givenmore or less to brooding and morbid thoughts. The third youth was longand lank and talked with a nasal drawl and a manner of speech thatproclaimed him a down-easter.
These three were respectively Jack Ready, Bart Hodge, and EphraimGallup, all friends and former companions of Frank Merriwell.
The fourth one of the party was a red-nosed bummer, known as Whisky Jim,whom they had picked up to guide them from the little railroad-town toFrank Merriwell's mine. Jim had averred that he knew "every squar' footo' Arizony frum the Grand Canon to the Mexican line," and they hadtrusted in his promise to lead them, with the smallest possible delay,to the Queen Mystery Mine.
Jim would not acknowledge that he was lost. They had provided him withthe bronco he bestrode and promised him good pay when they should cometo the mine. He had collected enough in advance to "outfit" with aliberal supply of whisky, and had managed to keep beautifully loadedever since they rode out to the Southwest.
Their horses were wearied and reluctant, while they were sun-scorchedand covered with dust.
"By gum!" groaned Gallup. "I'm purty near pegged! This is too much ferme. I wish I was to hum on the farm!"
"Prithee say not so!" cried Ready. "You give unto me that feeling ofsadness known to those who are homesick. Ah, me! to endure thus to havemy beautiful complexion destroyed by this horrid sun! And behold mylily-white hands! Are they not spectacles to make the gods sigh withregret! Permit me to squeeze out a few salt teardrops."
Hodge was saying nothing.
"'Sall ri', boysh," assured the useless guide thickly. "Jesht you waitan' shee. Whazzer mazzer with you? I know m' bushiness. Who shays Idunno m' bushiness?"
He was able to sit perfectly straight in the saddle, although he wasdisgustingly intoxicated.
"I say you don't know your business, you old fool!" said Hodge, breakingout at last. "It would serve you right if we were to leave you here inthe mountains. A great guide you are! You'd die if we left you! You'dnever find your way out."
Jim looked astonished. This was the first time Bart had broken forththus plainly.
"You don't mean it?" he gurgled.
"You bet your life I meant it! I'm in for leaving you to get back totown the best way you can."
"Oh, don't do that!" exclaimed Jim, sobered somewhat by his alarm."Someshin' might happen t' you, boysh."
"Let's leave him," nodded Jack Ready, amused by the consternation of theold fellow.
"Derned ef we don't!" cried Gallup.
Upon which the "guide" became greatly alarmed, begging them for the loveof goodness not to leave him there in the mountains to die alone.
"But you're a guide," said Hodge. "You would be able to get out allright."
"Boysh," said the old toper, "I got a 'fession to make."
"What is it?"
"I ain't been in the guidin' bushiness for shome time. I'm a leetlerusty; jest a bit out o' practish. That's whazzer mazzer."
"Why didn't you say so in the first place? What made you lie to us?"
"Boysh, I needed the moneysh. Hones' Injun, I needed the moneysh bad.Been a long time shince I've had all the whisky I could hold. Greattreat f' me."
Bart was disgusted, but Jack Ready was inclined to look at the affair ina humorous light.
"I'd like to know the meaning of those smoke clouds we saw," saidHodge. "They looked mighty queer to me."
They consulted together, finally deciding to halt in a shadowy valleyand wait for the declining of the sun, which would bring cooler air.
They confessed to one another that they were lost, and all felt that thesituation was serious. It was not at all strange that Hodge was veryangry with the worthless old toper who had led them into thispredicament.
"We may never get out of these mountains," he said. "Or, if we do, wemay perish in the desert. I tell you, fellows, we're in a bad scrape!"
"Dear me!" sighed Ready. "And I anticipated great pleasure in surprisingMerry to-day. Alas and alack! such is life. I know this dreadfulsunshine will spoil my complexion!"
Gallup looked dolefully at the horses, which were feeding on thebuffalo-grass of the valley.
"We're a pack of darn fools!" he observed. "We'd oughter sent word toFrankie that we was comin', an' then he'd bin on hand to meet us."
The "guide" had stretched himself in the shadow of some boulders andfallen fast asleep.
"I suppose I'm to blame for this thing, fellows," said Bart grimly. "Itwas my scheme to take Merry by surprise."
"Waal, I ruther guess all the rest of us was reddy enough ter agree toit," put in Gallup. "We're jest ez much to blame as you be."
They talked the situation over for a while. Finally Bart rose andstrolled off by himself, Gallup calling after him to look out and not goso far that he could not find his way back.
Hodge was gone almost an hour. His friends were growing alarmed, when hecame racing back to them, his face flushed with excitement and his eyesflashing.
"Come, fellows!" he cried, his voice thrilling them. "I've got somethingto show you! We're wanted mighty bad by a friend of ours who is introuble!"
They were on their feet.
"Who in thutteration be you talkin' abaout?" asked Gallup.
"Perchance you mean Frank?" said Ready.
"You bet your life!" said Bart. "Make sure your rifles are in workingorder! Leave the horses right where they're picketed. Leave Jim withthem. He'll look after them, if he awakes."
For Whisky Jim continued to sleep soundly through all this.
So they seized their weapons and prepared to follow Bart.
As they ran, Bart made a brief explanation. He had climbed to a pointfrom whence he looked down into a grassy valley, and there he discoveredsome horses and men. The horses were feeding, and the men were recliningin the shade, with the exception of one or two. While Bart looked herecognized one of the men, and also saw a girl. At first he thought hemust be deceived, but soon he was satisfied that the one he recognizedwas the comrade he had traveled thousands of miles to join, bringingwith him Ready and Gallup.
As he watched, he saw the encounter between Merry and Brazos Tom, andthat was enough to satisfy Hodge that his friend was in serious trouble.Then he hastened back to get Jack and Ephraim.
When Bart again reached the point where he could look into that valleyhe was astonished to discover that another struggle was taking placedown there.
Frank was engaged in a knife-duel with Red Sam, having been forced intoit. And Red Sam meant to kill him.
The watching ruffians were gathered around, while Gonchita, a pistol inher hand, was watching to see that the youth had fair play.
Without doubt, the sandy ruffian had expected to find Merriwell easy,and finish him quickly in an engagement of this sort. But FrankMerriwell had been instructed in knife-play by a clever expert, and hesoon amazed Red Sam and the other ruffians by meeting the fellow'sassault, catching his blade, parrying thrust after thrust, leaping,dodging, turning, charging, retreating, and making such a wonderfulcontest of it that the spectators were electrified.
It was Frank's knife that drew first blood. He slit the ruffian's sleeveat the shoulder and cut the man slightly.
Gonchita's dark eyes gleamed. More than ever she marveled at thiswonderful youth, who seemed more than a match for any single ruffian ofBill's band.
"He is a wonder!" she told herself. "Oh, he is grand! They meant to killhim. If he beats Red Sam they shall not kill him."
Sam swore when he felt the knife clip his shoulder.
"I'll have your heart's blood!" he snarled.
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Frank smiled into his face in a manner that enraptured the watchinggirl.
"You are welcome to it--if you can get it! But look out for yourself!"
Then he began a whirlwindlike assault upon Sam, whom he soon bewilderedby his movements. He played about the man like a leaping panther. OnceSam struck hard at Frank's breast, and Merry leaped away barely in time,for the keen knife slit the front of his shirt, exposing the clean whiteskin beneath.
But again and again Frank cut the big ruffian slightly, so that soon Samwas bleeding from almost a dozen wounds and slowly growing weaker inspite of his efforts to brace up.
The knives sometimes flashed together. The men stood and stared intoeach other's eyes. Then they leaped and dodged and struck and struckagain.
Little did Frank dream of the friends who were watching him from above.
Bart Hodge was thrilled into silence by the spectacle. He knelt, withhis rifle ready for instant use, panting as the battle for lifecontinued.
"Great gosh all hemlock!" gurgled Ephraim Gallup, his eyes bulging."Did you ever see anything like that in all your natteral born days?Dern my squash ef I ever did!"
"It is beautiful!" said Jack Ready. "Frank is doing almost as well as Icould do myself! I'll have to compliment him on his clever work."
Twice Bart Hodge had the butt of his rifle against his shoulder, butlowered it without firing.
"He's gittin' the best of the red-headed feller!" panted Gallup.
"Of course!" nodded Ready. "Did you look for anything else to happen?"
"Them men don't like it much of enny."
"They do not seem greatly pleased."
"I bet they all go fer him if he does the red-head up."
"In which case," chirped Jack, "it will be our duty to insert a few leadpills into them."
Bart was not talking. He believed Frank in constant danger of a mostdeadly sort, and he was watching every move of the ruffians, ready tobalk any attempt at treachery.
As Sam weakened Frank pressed him harder. The fellow believed Merrymeant to kill him, if possible.
At length Merriwell caught Sam's blade with his own, gave it a suddentwist, and the fellow's knife was sent spinning through the air, to fallto the ground at a distance.
At that moment one of the ruffians suddenly flung up a hand that held arevolver, meaning to shoot Frank through the head.
Before he could fire, however, he pitched forward on his face.
Down from the heights above came the clear report of the rifle in thehands of Bartley Hodge.
Bart had saved the life of his old friend.