CHAPTER XXIV -- "The Latchstring Was Inside!"
The meeting was a joyous one. Alvin and Chester sprang to their feet andgrasped in turn the hand of their astonished friend, while Zip, neverforgetting his dignity, looked on as if he understood it all, as quitelikely he did.
"I didn't leave Uncle Wilson's until after dinner yesterday," saidBurton, "and as Zip and I were in no hurry, it was growing dark when wegot here. Somehow or other, I fancied the looks of this old-fashionedinn and decided to stay over night, but what is it brings you here?"asked the young man as all three sat down to the table.
And then Alvin told his astounding story, to which Burton listened withbreathless interest.
"How dreadful!" he exclaimed; "it distresses me more than I can tell. Itwas fortunate indeed that I decided to stop here, for I may not returnto Mouse Island for several days. I reckon we shall do some talltraveling to Gosling Lake."
They did not linger over their breakfast. Burton tossed a few mouthfulsof meat to the dog, which sat on the floor beside his chair. As a rule,when off on one of his tramps, the hound shared his room, though he didnot do so at the bungalow, which explained why Alvin and Chester sawnothing of the animal when they arrived several hours before.
"It isn't any use to theorize," remarked Burton, as the three paid theirbill and hurried out of the inn, "for at such times you are more likelyto be wrong than right. Ruth may have fallen into the lake and beendrowned, without her body being found for several days; it may be thatthose tramps belong to an organized gang and have stolen and hidden her,but in that case," added the young man with a flash of his eyes, "theyforgot to reckon with Zip; and if so, they will soon learn theirmistake."
"The general belief when we left last night," said Chester, "was thatshe had simply wandered off in the woods until tired out, when she laydown and fell asleep."
"That sounds reasonable, but I can't shake off the fear that it is notthe right explanation."
It need not be said that while the three boys were hurrying over thehighway and along the rough path with the eager Zip, who knew thatsomething was in the air, keeping them company, the Boy Scouts andDoctor Spellman and his wife were busy.
Their aimless groping through the wood was kept up until far beyondmidnight, when the physician compelled his wife to return with him tothe house and lie down for a brief rest. Scout Master Hall suggested tothe members of the troop to return to the bungalow, he accompanyingthem, where they too secured sleep, and ate their morning meal atdaylight. The agreement was that all should assemble at an early hour atthe doctor's home, where a decision would be made as to what was next tobe done.
If the child, as all prayed was the case, had simply gone astray in thewoods, she would awake at an early hour and renew her effort to find herway home. With so many persons wandering here, there and everywhere shemust hear their calls and her rescue could not be long delayed. If suchproved not to be the case, and she had not been drowned, it would meanthe worst. She was the victim of the most atrocious miscreants wholived,--for no crime is more merciless and unforgivable than thekidnapping of the pet of a household, and giving its parents the choiceof paying an enormous ransom or never seeing it again.
Now, it may have struck you as strange that no reference has been madeto Uncle Elk in the consternation which followed the discovery that RuthSpellman had been lost or stolen. In knowledge of woodcraft none of thesearchers could be compared to him, and yet no one had asked his help.The reason was simple. With all his skill in the ways of the forest, hecould do no more, so long as the night lasted, than the youngest memberof the Boy Scouts. He could join in the aimless groping and shouting,but with a score already doing their utmost, he would simply be oneamong them.
Although morning brought a change of conditions, it would seem that theywere still unsurmountable, for what Apache, or Sioux or Shawnee (unlesshe were Deerfoot) could trail a little child through the forest, whenher almost imperceptible footprints had been repeatedly crossed by otherfeet?
"I think we ought to appeal to Uncle Elk," said Scout Master Hall to theparents, after the scouts assembled at the Doctor's home had scatteredto press their hunt harder than ever. "None of us can equal him."
"You know that for some cause which I cannot fathom, he has formed anintense dislike for my wife and me," said the perplexed father.
"But it is impossible that it should include the little one. At such atime as this no heart has room for enmity, no matter what fancy may havedictated."
"I am willing to be guided by your judgement," replied the doctor, afterhis wife had joined in the plea. "If Ruth has slept alone in the woods,she must have awakened an hour or two ago and ought to have been found.I don't see how the old hermit can help us, but we must neglect nothing.Come on."
But Mike Murphy had anticipated their action. We know what unboundedfaith he held in Uncle Elk, and more than once he had felt inclined togo to his cabin. With the coming of morning he decided to do so.
Consulting with Patrol Leader Chase, Mike found that he had formed thesame decision. Accordingly the two withdrew from the others withoutattracting notice and made their way together to the cabin of their oldfriend. This was so far removed from the zone of active search that noneof the other Scouts was met.
"If he can't help us, no one can," said Chase.
"There's only one cratur that can thrack Sunbeam through the woods, andhis name is Zip," replied Mike. "If I hadn't seen with me own eyes whathe can do, I wouldn't belave the same. Wal, here we are!"
They had reached the little clearing in the middle of which stood thefamiliar cabin, as silent and devoid of all signs of life as ever.Without hesitation, Mike led the way up the path, placed his foot on thesmall steps, and was about to reach up to draw the latch, when herecoiled with a gasp.
"Do ye obsarve that?" he asked in a startled whisper.
_The latchstring was inside!_
Never since the leathern thong was first shoved through the littleorifice above the tongue of iron had this occurred, by day or night.
The two boys stood for several minutes staring at the blank door, andthen looked in each other's face. Not the slightest sound was heard fromwithin.
"What does it mean, Mike?" asked the Patrol Leader in a still lowerwhisper.
"It maans 'no admittince'; this is no place for us. I can't guess whatraison Uncle Elk has for shutting ivery one out, but he's done it, andwe must respect it."
They turned away, hurrying in the direction of Doctor Spellman's house,and had almost reached it when they met the physician, his wife andScout Master Hall, to whom the two boys told the astounding news. Inother circumstances they would have theorized as to the cause of UncleElk's unaccountable action, but there was only one theme that filledevery mind.
"It shuts us off from any aid by _him_," remarked the doctor; "we canonly keep up the search and wait for the coming of my nephew and hisdog,--but," he added bitterly, "that may not be for days, when even hecan do nothing."
A ringing shout caused all to turn their heads and look along the beachtoward the northern side of the lake. Three boys were coming toward themon a run, and a few paces ahead of them, as if he were their leader,galloped a black dog.
"God be thanked!" exclaimed the mother clasping her hands. "It's Georgeand Zip!"
"Not forgitting Alvin and Chest, the two best boys that iver lived,barring only mesilf."
The next minute the parties were mingling, and greeting one another.Alvin, Chester and young Burton were panting, for they had not let thegrass grow under their feet on the way from Bovil to Gosling Lake, butthey were still good for much more of the same kind of work.
"Zip is ready," said his master, "and we are near the house. Let's makea start, for we are soon to learn the truth."
The news of the arrival of Zip quickly spread by means of shouts andcalls to the scattered Boy Scouts, who began flocking to the quarters ofDoctor Spellman, until very nearly the whole troop were gathered there.In answer to the request
of Burton for some article of wearing apparelrecently worn by Ruth, the mother with a calmness that impressed everyone, brought forward a pair of chubby shoes, which the little one in aneffort to "break them in" had kept on her feet until late in theafternoon, when they irked her so much she changed them for an old pair.Burton held them out to Zip, who sniffed several times and then turnedhis head away to signify that he had learned enough.
"Now, get to work!" commanded his master.
The scent was perhaps fourteen hours old when the Boy Scouts assembledin front of the wooden structure, saw Zip begin trotting to and fro withhis nose to the ground. Suddenly he bayed slightly, and started down theslope in the direction of the lake.
"He's hit the trail!" said the excited Burton, dashing after him; "nottoo fast, Zip."
The youth never used a leash. The hound wore a handsome collar with hisname and the address of his master engraved on it. His voice wassufficient to restrain Zip if he traveled too rapidly.
But the dog at his slowest traveled so fast that the boys had to trot tokeep pace with him. His master by common consent took the lead, withAlvin, Chester, Mike and the others at his heels. Zip would have drawnaway from them all had not his master sharply restrained him. The doctorwas well to the rear, in order to keep company with his wife.
The hound went straight toward the water, but a few paces away turned tothe left, taking a course which if continued would lead him to thebungalow. This was kept up for more than a hundred yards, when heabruptly stopped and throwing up his head looked off over the lake,without emitting any sound.
The mother with a moan staggered and would have fallen had she not beencaught in the arms of her husband.
"That means she is drowned!" faintly whispered the stricken wife. "OWilson! I cannot bear it!"
"No, my dear; he has gone forward again; be brave; hope is still left."
Zip now led the company along the beach, at the same steady trot, withhis master almost near enough to grasp his collar, and checking him nowand then when he went too fast. There could be no doubt that he wasfollowing the scent, from which nothing could divert him.
But whither was it leading?
The run was a long one, always within a few paces of the water, until apoint was reached opposite the path which led to the cabin of Uncle Elk.Here, to the astonishment of every one, the dog turned off and went upthe slope.
"What can that mean?" was the question which each one asked himself.
And with more amazement than before, the procession of pursuers saw Zipfollow the path across the clearing to the door of the cabin, where hestopped, threw up his nose and bayed. It was notice that he had reachedthe end of the trail.
Ruth Spellman was inside the log structure.
In a twinkling the whole company was grouped around the front of thebuilding.
"Why don't you go in?" demanded the Doctor, pressing impatientlyforward.
"You forget the latchstring is inside," reminded Scout Master Hall.
"What difference does that make? Is this a time to hesitate? Let's breakin the door! Make room for me and I'll do it!"
Mike Murphy, Alvin Landon and Chester Haynes ran to the little window afew paces beyond the door and peered through the panes.
"Sunbeam is there!" shouted Mike, "and nothing is the matter with her!"
Before he could explain further, there was a crash. The impact of DoctorSpellman's powerful shoulder carried the staple which held the latchfrom its fastenings and the door swung inward. Through it swarmed theBoy Scouts, the physician and his wife in the lead.
In front of the broad fireplace, where the embers had long died, satUncle Elk in his rocking chair, silent, motionless and with head bowed.Seated on his knees, with her curls half hiding her pretty face andresting against his massive chest, was Ruth Spellman, sleeping assweetly as if on her cot at home.
With a glad cry, the mother rushed forward and flung her arms about thechild, sobbing with joy.
"O my darling! Thank heaven you are found!" and she smothered thebewildered one with kisses and caresses.
Suddenly Doctor Spellman raised his hand and an instant hush fell uponall. He had lifted the limp arm of the man and placed his finger on thewrist. The professional eye saw that which escaped the others. He saidin a solemn voice:
"Uncle Elk is dead!"