CHAPTER IX. THE MEAN TRICK OF THE TIMBER CRUISERS.
"A land-slide!" exclaimed Giraffe, as he sat up, and began twisting hislong neck around, as though doubtful whether he should dodge to the rightor to the left, since it was difficult to locate the direction fromwhence the furious racket seemed to come.
"Better say an earthquake!" Step Hen managed to articulate, though he wasshaking all over, with the excitement, that he would hardly haverecognized his own voice. "I c'n feel the old ground shake! Listen, wouldyou, to that smash! Must be volcanoes around here."
"Keep still, and listen," said Thad, in that tone of authority which boththe talkers recognized as belonging to the scoutmaster, rather than theirChum Thad.
So they held their tongues, and strained their ears to listen.
There was no trouble in hearing, for the racket still kept up. There wereheavy thuds, crashes, and a breaking of bushes. No wonder the scouts weremystified. No wonder one thought it a land-slide, while another believedsome supposed extinct volcano had burst into action again, and that therain of stones that followed, produced these weird sounds.
All at once the racket stopped, just as suddenly as though a command hadbeen given to "cease firing."
"Well, I declare, if that ain't funny, now," remarked Step Hen, butbecause of the order for silence which Thad had issued, he dared notbreathe a word above a whisper.
"Hark!" said Allan.
Surely that sounded like a hoarse laugh. The boys crouched there, andstrained their ears to hear more. Once or twice they thought they caughtvague sounds. It was as if some one might be moving along the rockyelevation that formed one side of the near-by little basin in which theyhad made their small fire, and finished their once interrupted supper.But the sounds were moving further away, as though the unknown partiesmight be retreating.
Then silence, deep and profound, brooded over the immediate vicinity ofthe spot where the four startled scouts sat.
"May we talk now, Thad?" asked Giraffe.
"Yes, but let it be in a low voice," replied the patrol leader.
"Jerusalem!" exclaimed Step Hen, just as though he had to let the pent-upsteam escape, one way or another, and it took the form of thisexpression.
"What does it all mean?" asked Step Hen, plainly confused, and unable toclearly grasp the truth.
"I think I know," remarked Thad.
"Then tell us, please," quickly asked Giraffe. "Sounded like a laugh tome."
"Just what it was, too," Thad went on.
"But who'd want to act funny when all that racket was going on, Thad?"continued Giraffe, who seemed unusually thick headed just then, possiblyon account of being aroused in such a startling manner.
"The men who made all the row," replied the scoutmaster.
"Men who made the row--great governor! d'ye mean these rowdies, Hank andPierre?" burst out Giraffe.
"No other," said Thad, positively. "They must have located our littlefire in some way, and supposed that we were sleeping close by. So theycrept up along the side of that bare ridge, where the stones are sothick, and just started to heave a few dozen down. That's why it soundedlike thunder and hail combined."
"The cowards!" hissed Giraffe, whose honest blood seemed to almost boilwith indignation; "the sneaks! Afraid to face four boys because theybelieved we could shoot some, they had to crawl around to the back door,and play a trick that you'd think would be about the size of the meanestboy in our home town of Cranford, Brose Griffin."
"They laughed over it, too," burst out Step Hen, almost as angry as hislong-legged chum, "and that shows what kind of fellows they are."
"Altogether, it was a lucky escape for us," remarked Allan.
"That's what," added Giraffe. "And we owe a heap to Thad's long head.Never sleep where you eat--that was a pretty good rule for the old hunterto have, when painted Injuns were all around him. And by George! it seemsto be all right, even in these modern days."
"Wow! just think what a time we'd a had," observed Step Hen, "if we'dbeen sleepin' there just as sweetly as--as the babes in the woods, andall of a sudden them rocks began to smash around us. I can just see thewhole blessed outfit scrambling in the dark, trying to get behind trees,and yet not knowing which side of the trunk was the safe side."
Step Hen actually chuckled a little, as though a gleam of humor had begunto light up the serious nature of the situation.
"It was a game just in keeping with such a precious pair of rascals,"declared Thad. "They might have injured some of us badly; and that wasjust what they hoped to do."
"Perhaps killed us in the bargain," Allan added. "Some of the rocks theyheaved into that little basin were just fierce. They came down likecannon balls. It was like what Rip Van Winkle heard, when the little oldmen of the Catskills were playing ten pins with big rocks."
"But Thad," remarked Giraffe, "when they get to thinking it over, don'tyou reckon now they'll guess they didn't do any damage?"
"Just what was in my mind," replied the leader of the patrol. "They mustknow that even men would have yelled, and shown all sorts of excitement,when bombarded in that way. But let 'em think what they please. I hopewe'll never cross their trail again."
"Second the wish," said Allan.
"That's where I differ with you," declared the aroused Giraffe, "I'd justlike to pay the cowards back for that dirty trick; and I will, too, ifthe chance ever comes along."
"I'm only bothering about one thing," observed Step Hen.
"And what's that?" Thad inquired.
"What if they run across our innocent chum, poor old Bumpus?" Step Henwent on to say, "Why, he's so confiding, and so straight himself, that hecouldn't believe wrong of anybody. Why, they'd rob him of his gun, andeverything else he had; and then turn him loose like that, in the bigtimber. Oh! I hope they just don't find Bumpus before we get to him. Itwould be a shame!"
"Like taking candy from the baby," added Giraffe.
"Well, let's go to sleep again! We can talk it over in the morning,"suggested Thad.
"Don't believe I c'n sleep another wink," declared Step Hen.
But in spite of his gloomy prophecy, he did drop off again soon afterstretching himself out on the ground, in the softest spot he could find;and knew nothing more until some one shook him. Looking up, Step Hendiscovered that the dawn was stealing through the timber, and that Thadbent over him.
The other two were already astir. Giraffe was busying himself, as usual,in getting a little fire underway; for Thad had given it as his opinionthat after playing such a dastardly mean trick, Hank and Pierre, thelawless timber cruisers would not feel like venturing over in thisquarter again, lest they be greeted with a warm fire from the guns of theboys.
All of the scouts felt more or less chilled, as the early morning air waspretty cool, and consequently the fire proved acceptable.
As they munched their breakfast Thad announced that he had found thetrail of Bumpus again. This meant that when they were ready to start out,there would be little delay.
Of course, pretty much all the talk was about the event of the precedingnight, and the fortunes of their lost comrade.
"When I shut my eyes," said Giraffe, "I c'n just see that blessedinnocent awalkin' through these here woods, awhistlin' for his bear tocome out and be shot."
"And I'm wonderin'," remarked Step Hen, "whether Bumpus, if he does runacross a cinnamon bear, just through the luck greenhorns seem to have,would climb his tree _first_, and then begin shooting; or just bang away,like he did before, and make for a tree afterwards."
"Oh! well, I guess Bumpus learned his little lesson that time, allright," declared Giraffe, with the superior air of one who had alreadygotten _his_ bear, and could afford to look down on those not sofortunate.
"He was scared, good and hard," Step Hen went on. "Why, his face lookedlike pie paste, and his goggle eyes fairly stood out of his head when hecouldn't get up in that tree, with the old grizzly a comin' for him,growlin', and champin'
his teeth."
Thad only smiled as he heard these remarks that had an undercurrent veinof condescending pity for the tenderfoot chum. If he rememberedcorrectly, Bumpus was not the only frightened scout about the time thatwounded grizzly charged the camp. He had plenty of company.
When they had finished eating, the fire was put out; and after that theymade for the spot where Thad had found the trail of the lost scout.
It was as plain as day just there, even though some twenty-four hoursmust have elapsed since the fat and ambitious Nimrod passed that way.
Giraffe and Step Hen were suspicious of the two rascally timber cruisers,and persisted in keeping their eyes constantly on the alert, searchingevery possible spot for an ambuscade, and holding their guns ready forquick work.
The patrol leader did not attempt to interfere, although he and Allanwere of the opinion that the men would not bother trying to look them up.It gave the boys more or less practice, and did no harm.
And so the little bunch of scouts started to once more lift the trail oftheir missing chum.