CHAPTER X.
THE CHASE CONCLUDED.
When Matt came near enough to see Sam Wing, it seemed plain that theCelestial was yielding to the "blows of circumstance." His flightdragged. Time and time again he cast a wild look over his shoulder atthe relentless pursuer, and tried in vain to increase his pace.
His random course crossed a road through the timber with a line oftelegraph or telephone poles on one side of it. After a moment'shesitation, Sam Wing chose the road. It was easier going, no doubt, andfor that reason probably appealed to him in his fagged condition.
But if it was easier for Sam Wing, so was it for Matt. Now, at last,the eventful chase was certainly approaching its finish.
As the pursuit went on, Matt resolutely closing up the gap between himand the Chinaman, the timber suddenly broke away to give a view of afarmhouse and a barn. Between the house and barn stood a farmer with arake.
Sam Wing, at the end of his rope and apparently determined on making alast desperate stand, swerved from the road and ran in the direction ofthe barn.
"Hi, there!" shouted Matt, waving his arms to attract the attention ofthe farmer, "head him off!"
It was not difficult for the farmer to understand enough of thesituation to make him useful in the emergency, and he startedenergetically to do what he could. Swinging the rake around his head,he hurried toward a point which would intersect the path of theChinaman.
Sam Wing, even though he was weary and almost spent, continued "game."A small, V-shaped hencoop stood close to the point where he halted andconfronted the farmer.
"By Jerry," threatened the farmer, "yew stop! Don't yew try noshenanigin with me, or I'll comb out your pigtail with this here rake.What yew---- Gosh-all-hemlocks!"
It was absolutely necessary for Sam Wing to do something if he didnot want to be trapped between the farmer in front and Matt, who washurrying up behind. Calling upon all his strength, Wing stooped,grabbed the small coop, and hurled it at the farmer's legs.
The coop struck the farmer's shins and doubled his lank frame up likea closed jackknife. He went down, rake and all, and Wing passed aroundhim and lumbered on toward the open barn door.
The farmer's ire was aroused. Getting up on his knees, he begancalling, at the top of his lungs: "Tige! Here, Tige!"
Tige, a brindled bulldog, came scurrying from the direction of thehouse.
"Take 'im, Tige!" bellowed the farmer, pointing toward Sam Wing withthe rake.
The Chinaman's Waterloo was close upon him. He had time to give onelast frantic look behind, and then Tige caught him by the slack of hisdripping garments and pulled him down.
"Don't let the dog hurt him!" yelled Matt.
"Watch 'im, Tige!" cried the farmer. "Good dorg, Tige! Watch 'im!"
The farmer got up and gave the hencoop a vicious kick.
"Jee-whillikins, mister," said he, "what's that slant-eyed heathen beenup to, hey? He looks like he'd dropped outen a wet rag bag."
"He's a thief," answered Matt.
"He barked my shins somethin' turrible with that hencoop. But yew gothim now, an' don't yew fergit it. That Tige is the best dorg fer trampsan' sich yew ever seen."
Together they walked to the place where Tige, growling savagely andshowing his teeth, was standing over the prone Chinaman.
Sam Wing dared not make a move. Had he so much as lifted a finger, thebulldog would have been at his throat.
"Order the dog away," said Matt to the farmer. "I want to talk with theChinaman, and we'll take him into the barn where we can both sit downon something and rest a little. We've had a hard chase."
The farmer spoke to the dog and the animal slunk away, still keepinghis glittering eyes on Sam Wing.
"Looks purty meachin', don't he?" muttered the farmer, peering at theprisoner.
"He's a bad Chinaman," returned Matt, "and he knows it. Get up, SamWing," he added, "and go into the barn. Don't try to do any morerunning. You haven't strength enough to go far, and it won't be bestfor you."
With wary eyes on the dog, Wing got up and moved toward the barn door.When they were all inside, Matt took down a coil of rope that swungfrom a nail and started toward the prisoner.
"What yew goin' to do, friend?" asked the farmer.
"Tie him," replied Matt.
"That ain't necessary. Tige is better'n all the ropes that was evermade. All I got ter do is ter tell him ter watch the heathen, an' yewcan bet a pair o' gum boots he'll do it."
The farmer spoke to the dog, that had followed them into the barn, andthe animal drew close to Sam Wing and sat down within biting distance.Matt, satisfied with the arrangement for the time being, dropped therope and seated himself on the tongue of a wagon.
"Sam Wing," said the king of the motor boys severely, "you're a mightybad Chinaman."
"Me savvy," answered Wing, whose English was far from being as good asthe mandarin's.
"You stole the ruby from Tsan Ti," went on Matt.
Sam Wing had strength enough left to show some surprise.
"How you savvy?" he inquired.
"I know it, and that's enough. You're a treacherous scoundrel to turnagainst the mandarin as you did."
"All same," answered Sam Wing, in extreme dejection. "Ten thousanddemons makee heap tlouble fol Wing. Me plenty solly."
"You ought to be sorry. Tsan Ti trusted you with his money and had alot of confidence in you. And you betrayed that confidence."
Sam Wing groaned heavily and caressed his numerous bruises. One of hishands finally reached the breast of his torn blouse, and he fished fromit a very wet alligator-skin pouch.
"Here Tsan Ti's money," said he, offering the pouch to Matt. "Me vellybad Chinaman. You takee money, lettee Sam Wing go?"
"I'll take the money," and Matt suited his action to the word, "but Ican't let you go until you give up the ruby."
"No gottee luby," came the astonishing assertion from Sam Wing.
"You took it from the mandarin, didn't you?" demanded Matt.
"My takee las' night, no gottee now."
"Where is it?"
"Me losee when me makee lun flom spling. No savvy where melosee--p'laps where me makee fall down bank, p'laps on load, p'laps incleek--no savvy. Luby gone, me no gottee Eye of Buddha."
It seemed strange to Matt that Sam Wing could carry the alligator-skinpouch safely through all his varied adventures and yet not be able toretain the most valuable part of his cargo--the part which, presumably,he would take care to stow safely.
"Don't tell any lies, Sam Wing!" said Matt sternly.
"No tellee lie--all same one piecee tluth!" protested the Chinaman.
"I'll have to make sure of that," went on Matt.
He searched carefully through the Chinaman's torn and waterloggedapparel, but without discovering anything of value--much less themissing gem.
"Where did you have it?" he asked.
Sam Wing showed him the inside pocket where the ruby had been placed.
"Where have you been since you took the ruby?"
A wave of emotion convulsed the Chinaman's features.
"Evel place," he murmured. "My stay in Galdenville one piecee time,makee tly keepee 'way flom Tsan Ti. Bymby me makee lun fol countlee.Tsan Ti makee see, makee lun, too. My makee hide in hills, foolee TsanTi so he no ketchee. My heap hungly, heap thirsty. Findee spling totakee dlink. You come."
Sam Wing shook his head sadly.
"You had the ruby when you were at the spring?" inquired Matt.
The Chinaman nodded.
"And you lost it while I was chasing you?"
Another nod.
Matt, oppressed with what he had heard, and which he felt instinctivelywas the truth, resumed his seat on the wagon tongue.
The ruby might be lying anywhere over the wild course Sam Wing hadtaken in his flight. Perhaps it was mixed with the loose earth of theside hill where the Chinaman had fallen, or it might be under theleaves in the woods, or in the dust of the road, or in the bottom ofthe creek.
O
f one thing Matt was sure, and that was that to retrace the exactline of Sam Wing's flight would be impossible; and, even if it werepossible, finding the red gem would be as difficult as looking for theproverbial needle in a haystack.
The Eye of Buddha seemed to be lost irretrievably. This was like toprove a tragic event for Tsan Ti.
It was strange what ill luck had attended upon all in any way connectedwith the idol's eye; and doubly strange was this final loss of theprecious stone.
While Matt was busily turning the catastrophe over in his mind, thefarmer suddenly gave a shout and pointed through the open barn door andalong the road.
"Great sassafrass!" he exclaimed. "I never seen sich a day ferChinamen! Look there, will yew?"
Matt looked, and what he saw staggered him. Two motor cycles werecoming down the road. Bunce was riding one and Tsan Ti the other. Herewas another flight and pursuit, for the sailor was pushing hard uponthe heels of the mandarin.
For only a moment was Matt at loss. Gathering up the coil of rope whichhe had taken from the nail in the barn wall, he called to the farmer towatch the prisoner and ran out of the barn and toward the road.