CHAPTER THIRTY SIX.
IN DIRE STRAITS.
"Done with the boat?"
"I haven't done anything with the boat."
"Then where is it?"
"Fastened up to that old tree."
"Oh, is it!" cried Bob derisively. "I should like to see it, then.Come and show me!"
Dexter ran to the water's edge, and found the place on the bark wherethe chain had rubbed the trunk, but there was no sign of the boat.
"Now then," cried Bob fiercely, "where is it?"
"I don't know," said Dexter dolefully. "Yes, I do," he cried. "Thechain must have come undone, and it's floating away."
"Oh, is it?" said Bob derisively. "Then you'd better go and find it!"
"Go and find it?"
"Yes; we can't go to sea in our boots, can we, stoopid?"
"But which way shall I go, Bob? Sometimes the tide runs up, andsometimes it runs down."
"Yes, and I'll make you run up and down. You're a nice un, you are! Ijust shet my eyes for a few minutes, and trust you to look after theboat, and when I wake up again you're fass asleep, and the boat gone."
"I'm very sorry, Bob, but I was so tired."
"Tired! You tired! What on? Here, go and find that boat!"
Dexter started off, and ran along the bank in one direction, while Bobwent in the other, and at the end of half an hour Dexter came backfeeling miserable and despondent as he had never felt before.
"Found it, Bob!" he said.
For answer his companion threw himself down upon his face, and beganbeating the ground with his fists, as if it were a drum.
"I've looked along there as far as I could go," said Dexter sadly."What shall we do!"
"I wish this here was your stoopid head," snarled Bob, as he hammeredaway at the bare ground beneath the tree. "I never see such a chap!"
"But what shall we do?" said Dexter again.
"Do? I dunno, and I don't care. You lost the boat, and you've got tofind it."
"Let's go on together and walk all along the bank till we find somebodywho has seen it."
"And when we do find 'em d'yer think they'll be such softs as to give itto us back again!" This was a startling question.
"I know 'em," said Bob. "They'll want to know where we got it from, andhow we come by it, and all sorts o' nonsense o' that kind. Say we ain'tno right to it. I know what they'll say."
"But p'r'aps it's floating about?"
"P'r'aps you're floating about!" cried Bob, with a snarl. "Boat likethat don't go floating about without some one in it, and if it does someone gets hold of it, and says it's his."
This was a terrible check to their adventurous voyage, as unexpected asit was sudden, and Dexter looked dolefully up in his companion's face.
"I know'd how it would be, and I was a stoopid to bring such a chap asyou," continued Bob, who seemed happiest when he was scolding. "You'velost the boat, and we shall have to go back."
"Go back!" cried Dexter, with a look of horror, as he saw in imaginationthe stern countenance of the doctor, his tutor's searching eyes, Helen'slook of reproach, and Sir James Danby waiting to ask him what had becomeof the boat, while Master Edgar seemed full of triumph at his downfall.
"Go back?" No he could not go back. He felt as if he would rather jumpinto the river.
"We shall both get a good leathering, and that won't hurt so very much."
A good leathering! If it had been only the thrashing, Dexter felt thathe would have suffered that; but his stay at the doctor's had broughtforth other feelings that had been lying dormant, and now the thrashingseemed to him the slightest part of the punishment that he would have toface. No: he could not go back.
"Well, whatcher going to do!" said Bob at last, with provoking coolness."You lost the boat, and you've got to find it."
"I will try, Bob," said Dexter humbly. "But come and help me."
"Help yer? Why should I come and help yer? You lost it, I tell yer."
Bob jumped up and doubled his fists.
"Now then," he said; "get on, d'yer hear? get on--get on!"
At every word he struck out at Dexter, giving him heavy blows on thearms--in the chest--anywhere he could reach.
Dexter's face became like flame, but he contented himself with trying toavoid the blows.
"Look here!" he cried suddenly.
"No, it's you've got to look here," cried Bob. "You've got to find thatthere boat."
Dexter had had what he thought was a bright idea, but it was only aspark, and it died out, leaving his spirit dark once more, and he seemednow to be face to face with the greatest trouble of his life. All hiscares at the Union, and then at the doctor's, sank into insignificancebefore this terrible check to their adventure. For without the boat howcould they get out of England? They could not borrow another. Therewas a great blank before him just at this outset of his career, and tryhow he would to see something beyond he could find nothing: all wasblank, hopeless, and full of despair.
Had his comrade been true to him, and taken his share of the troubles,it would have been bad enough; but it was gradually dawning upon Dexterthat the boy he had half-idolised for his cleverness and generalknowledge was a contemptible, ill-humoured bully--a despicable youngtyrant, ready to seize every opportunity to oppress.
"Are you a-going?" cried Bob, growing more brutal as he found that hisvictim made no resistance, and giving him a blow on the jaw which senthim staggering against one of the trees.
This was too much; and recovering himself Dexter was about to dash athis assailant when he stopped short, for an idea that seemedincontrovertible struck him so sharply that it drove away all thought ofthe brutal blow he had received.
"I know, Bob," he cried.
"Know? What d'yer know?"
"Where the boat is."
"Yer do?"
"Yes: that man followed us and took it away."
Bob opened his mouth, and half-closed his eyes to stare at hiscompanion, as he balanced this idea in his rather muddy brain.
"Don't you see?" cried Dexter excitedly.
"Come arter us and stole it!" said Bob slowly.
"Yes: he must have watched us, and waited till we were asleep."
"Go on with you!"
"He did. I feel as sure as sure," cried Dexter.
There was a pause during which Bob went on balancing the matter in hismind.
"He has taken it up the river, and he thinks we shall be afraid to goafter it."
"Then he just thinks wrong," said Bob, nodding his head a good deal. "Ithought something o' that kind a bit ago, but you made me so wild Iforgot it again."
"But you see now, Bob."
"See? O' course I do. I'll just let him know--a thief. Here, come on,and we'll drop on to him with a policeman, and show him what stealingboats means."
"No, no, Bob, we can't go with a policeman. Let's go ourselves, andmake him give it up."
"But s'pose he won't give it to us!"
"We should have to take it," said Dexter excitedly.
"Come on, then. He's got my fishing-tackle too, and--why just look atthat! Did you put them there?"
He darted to where his bundle and rough fishing-rod lay among the trees.
"No; he must have thrown them out. Let's make haste. We know where theboat is now!"
The boys started at once, and began to tramp back along the side of theriver in the hope of finding the place where the boat was moored; butbefore they had gone far it was to find that floating down with thestream, or even rowing against the tide, was much easier work thanforcing their way through patches of alder-bushes, swampy meadows,leaping, and sometimes wading, little inlets and ditches and the like.
Their progress was very slow, the sun very hot, and at least a dozentimes now they came upon spots which struck both as being the muddy bankoff which they had captured the smelts.
It was quite afternoon before they were convinced, for their furtherpassage was stopped by the muddy inlet up wh
ich they had seen the manrow, and not a hundred yards away was the bank under which they hadfished.
"Sure this is the place?" said Bob, as he crouched among some osiers andlooked cautiously round.
"Yes," said Dexter; "I'm certain this is the place. I saw him row uphere. But--"
"But what?"
"He'd be quite sure not to take the boat up here."
"Why not?"
"For fear we should come after it."
"Get out! Where would he take it, then?"
"He'd hide it somewhere else; perhaps on the other side. Look!"
Dexter pointed up the river to where, about a couple of hundred yardsfurther on, a boat could be seen just issuing from a bed of reeds.
Bob seized Dexter's arm to force him lower down among the osiers, but itwas not necessary, for they were both well concealed; and as theycontinued there watching it was to see the boat come slowly toward them,and in a few minutes they were satisfied that it was the man theysought, propelling it slowly toward where they stooped.
The fellow came along in a furtive manner, looking sharply round fromtime to time, as if scanning the river to see if he was observed.
He came on and on till he reached the creek at whose mouth the boys werehidden, and as he came so close that they felt it impossible that theycould remain unseen he suddenly ceased rowing, and stood up to shade hiseyes from the sunshine, and gaze sharply down the river for someminutes.
Then giving a grunt as of satisfaction he reseated himself, and rowedslowly up the creek, till he disappeared among the osiers and reedswhich fringed its muddy banks.
As he passed up he disturbed a shoal of large fish which came surgingdown, making quite a wave in the creek, till they reached the river,where all was still.
"The boat's up there, Bob," said Dexter, after a long silence, so as togive the man time to get well out of hearing.
"Yes, but how are we to get to it?"
"Wade," said Dexter laconically. "'Tain't deep, only muddy."
To cross the creek was necessary, and Bob softly let himself down fromthe bank till his feet were level with the water, then taking hold of astout osier above his head he bent it down, and then dropped slowly intothe water, which came nearly to his waist.
"Come on!" he said, and after getting to the end of the osier he usedhis rod as a guide to try the depth, and with some difficulty, and thewater very nearly to his chest, he got over.
Dexter did not hesitate, but followed, and began to wade, feeling hisfeet sink at every step into the sticky mud, and very glad to seize holdof the end of the rod Bob was civil enough to hold to him from thefurther bank, up which they both crept, dripping like water-rats, andhid among the osiers on the other side.
"Come on," whispered Bob, and with the mud and water trickling from themthey crept along through quite a thicket of reeds, osiers, and thered-flowered willow-herb, while great purple patches of loosestrifeblossomed above their heads.
Every step took them further from the enemy, but they kept down in theirstooping position, and a few yards from the bank of the river, feelingsure that they could not miss their way; and so it proved, for afterwhat seemed to be an interminable journey they found themselves stoppedby just such another creek as that which they had left, save and exceptthat the mouth was completely hidden by a bed of reeds some of whichshowed where a boat had lately passed through.
Whether their boat was there or not they could not tell, but it seemedeasy to follow up the creek from the side they were on, and they creptalong through the water-growth, which was thicker here than ever, butkeeping as close as they could to the side, the scarped bank being abouteight feet above the water.
The creek was not above twenty feet wide, and, from the undisturbedstate of the vegetation which flourished down its banks to where thetide seemed to rise, it seemed as if it was a rare thing for a boat topass along.
They stopped at every few yards to make sure that they were not passingthat of which they were in search, looking carefully up and down, whilethe creek twined so much that they could never see any extent of waterat a time.
They must have wound in and out for quite three hundred yards, when, allat once, as they stooped there, panting and heated with the exercise,and with the hot sun beating down upon their heads, Dexter, who was infront, stopped short, for on his right the dense growth of reedssuddenly ceased, and on peering out it was to see a broad opening wherethey had been cut down, while within thirty yards stood a large stack ofbundles, and beside it a rough-looking hut, toward which the man theyhad seen rowing up the other creek was walking.
They had come right upon his home, which seemed to be upon a reedyisland formed by the two creeks and the river.
The boys crouched down, afraid to stir, and watching till they saw theman enter the rough reed-thatched hut, when, moving close to the edge ofthe bank, they crept on again after a few moments' hesitation, connectedwith an idea of making a retreat.
Their perseverance was rewarded, for not fifty yards further on theylooked down upon what seemed to be a quantity of reeds floating at theside of the creek, but one bundle had slipped off, and there, plainlyenough, was the gunwale of the boat, the reeds having been laid acrossit to act as a concealment in case any one should glance carelessly upthe creek.
"Come on, Bob," whispered Dexter; and he let himself slide down into themuddy water as silently as he could, and began to tumble the bundles ofreeds off into the creek.
Bob followed his example, and, to their great delight, they found thatthe sculls and boat-hook were still in their places, while theboat-chain was secured to a stake thrust down into the mud.
This was soon unloosed after they had climbed in, dripping, and coveringthe cushions with mud, but all that was forgotten in the delight ofhaving found the boat.
"Now, Bob, you row softly down and I'll use the boat-hook," whisperedDexter, as he stood up in the stern, while Bob sat down, seized theoars, and laid them in the rowlocks, ready to make the first stroke,when high above them on the bank they heard a quick, rushing noise, anddirectly after, to their horror, there stood, apparently too muchdumbfounded to speak, the man they had seen a few minutes before goinginto the reed hut.