CHAPTER XXIII THE DRAGON'S LAST STROKE
The sun had barely raised above the horizon on the following day beforethe ranch echoed to the preparations for the treasure hunt. The boys hadslept poorly, looking forward eagerly to the time when they should be inclose contact with the long buried ship in the desert sands. With hurryand bustle and good-natured shouts they prepared to set out.
Now that their minds had been relieved of all anxiety concerning Sackettand his gang their spirits soared as only those of the young adventurouscan. They had spent a jolly evening around the fireplace on the previousday, talking, planning and laughing over some of Captain Blow's humorousstories. It was late before they sought their beds, and the professorhad been compelled to curb some of their animal vigor.
Jim had stood at the foot of his bed, surrounded by Ned, Don and Terry.Captain Blow and Professor Scott were preparing for bed in another roomat the time. There had been some pillow throwing and now Jim was actinga part.
"This is the way Terry kicked the gun out of the overseer's hand," hesaid. He was in his pajamas at the time and the other boys were alsoready for bed. Jim loosed a vigorous kick in front of him, but hisenthusiasm proved his undoing. The force caused him to lose his balance,and amidst the shouts of delight of his companions he thumped to thefloor, knocking the wind out of himself.
"That was some kick!" exclaimed Don, laughing. "No wonder the pooroverseer lost his gun! If the kick had that much force I bet the gunsailed clear into the ocean!"
"I protest," put in Terry, solemnly. "I never cut such a wild figure asthat! Your imagination is running away with you, Jimmie, my boy!"
"Somebody else had better start running away!" puffed Jim, in hugedisgust. "Just wait until I get up!"
Once up he bore down on the grinning Terry and bowled him onto the bed.Don reached for his foot, but received a hearty thrust in the stomachfrom the foot, which Jim declared he had tickled. Don then jumped on thewiggling chums and Ned stood laughing. But in a minute he too was drawninto hostilities. He attempted to pile pillows on the warring factions,who promptly turned upon him, and the four young men were soon engagedin a frantic tussle that overturned one bed and mussed them up royally.
Such was the scene that greeted the eyes of Captain Blow and ProfessorScott as they hastily entered the room. The professor opened his mouthto protest, but the captain, his gray eyes snapping with mischief,whispered something to him. The professor smiled and nodded and they ranforward, the professor seizing the ankles of Terry, who happened to beon top of the pile, while Blow grasped his shoulders.
"Heave aloft!" bellowed the captain, and in concert they heaved.
To his astonishment Terry felt himself lifted bodily from the strugglingmass and tossed through the air, to land with a bounce on the bed. NedScott followed and Jim followed him. Don, seeing what was in the wind,made a frantic scramble to get under the bed, but to the delight of thewatching boys he was switched from under by the active captain andtreated to a ride through the air. When he had finally landed with athud on the bed the two older men promptly sat on him.
"Now," said the professor, with mock severity. "What is the meaning ofall this?"
"Jim was illustrating something," replied Terry, gravely. "And we helpedhim out!"
"By jumping tinder!" cried the captain. "I don't know what in time youcould have been illustrating! Showing your affection for each other,likely!"
"What ever it was," said the professor. "I suggest that you stop it. Wewant to make an early start in the morning and you can save some of thatenergy for digging sand. From the noise we heard we thought that Sacketthad returned and was trying to carry one or all of you off. Who upsetthe bed?"
"All of us," said Don, truthfully.
"I don't doubt it. Well, to bed now, and calm down a bit."
Now, on the morning of the hunt, the boys impatiently ate theirbreakfast and placed blankets and provisions on the horses. There was notelling how long they would linger around the sunken galleon, and theywanted to be sure that it would not be necessary to cut the visit shortbecause of a lack of provisions. It had been decided to take the mestizoalong with them and leave only the cook at home. When all arrangementshad been made they started briskly off.
The day was bright and somewhat cool and they made rapid progress, theboys in their eagerness keeping always ahead of their elders. The oldermen wisely held them in check, realizing that there was a long journeyin front of them and not wishing to run the risk of tiring out beforethey got there. They halted once for a meal and then pushed on, notstopping for a nap in the afternoon, since it was not hot enough to doso, and just as evening drew on they topped a small hill and looked downon the valley in which Jim and Terry had so nearly lost their life.
"There is the wreck!" shouted Jim, pointing to the corner of the galleonwhich they had uncovered. "Looks as though no one had been near it, allright."
No one had apparently been near the place, for there were no traces offootmarks in the sand other than those left by the two boys and thetreacherous overseer. They rode down the incline and picketed thehorses, hastening at once to the few feet of deck uncovered. Theprofessor gazed at the uncovered rail in rapture.
"By George, this is wonderful!" he exclaimed, his face glowing with theenthusiasm of the scholar. "Just think, after reading a story like that,to run across the very ship on which it happened! I hope we can uncoverthe whole ship!"
"Ned," asked Don. "Where was that piece of wreckage found, the piecethat first gave the idea of a sunken galleon?"
"About three miles north of here," replied the engineer. "I guess I seewhat you are getting at. You think that the piece was washed out of thecreek that used to be here, and was found, after it drifted down shore?"
"Yes," nodded Don. "Don't you think so?"
"I surely do," assented Ned, stepping down onto the deck of the buriedgalleon. "Is this the hatchway?"
Terry lifted the hatch, which they had replaced when they had left thegalleon with the Mexican. "Yes, and here is the flight of stairs. Didanyone bring a flashlight?"
"I have one," said the professor, producing it from his saddle bag."Let's be very careful about going down those stairs."
It was now dark and the flashlight was needed. The professor flashed thebeam of light down the stairs and went first, treading with infinitecare, but the steps were apparently solid. The others, with theexception of the mestizo, who would not trust himself in a place whichlooked so much like a trap, followed the savant down into the hold ofthe ancient ship.
"There is the treasure chest," said Jim, and the professor swung thebeam of light on the mouldering chest. Don lifted the lid and the goldwas revealed.
They fingered it and found that it consisted of coins of variousdegrees. The professor did not recognize any of them except some piecesof eight.
"Sorry I didn't study up on ancient coins," murmured the teacher."However, I'm pretty sure that there is quite a fortune here."
"No doubt there is a substantial treasure further down in the sand,"suggested Ned.
"Yes," the professor agreed. "Cups and plate silver and perhaps otherthings. The sailors didn't carry anything away with them, expecting toreturn and gather it all on some other occasion, I presume." He turnedhis light from side to side. "The hold here was filled with water, andall above deck must have been burned. We won't find much of anythinguntil we get down under the sand."
After some more looking around they went outside and made camp close tothe wreck, the boys again hacking firewood from the remains of thegalleon. They ate supper and then sat around the fire discussing plansand waiting for the morrow and daylight.
"It is going to be quite a job digging into that sand," observed thecaptain. "In the first place, it's mighty wet."
"Yes," said the professor. "I'm very much afraid it is too much of a jobfor us to attempt. It will take a whole crew to dig down into thoseruins, and a regular excavating gang will be the ones to
do it. However,we can look around and see what we can pick up ourselves, and then latersee to it that the right sort of a company goes to work on the job."
"We'll have to make a legal claim to it, won't we?" asked Jim.
Ned nodded. "That will have to be our first job. If we don't anybody whocomes along will be able to take it right out of our hands. It is muchthe same as discovering a gold mine, only in this case the gold isalready refined and cast for us."
"I can't wait until morning!" said the impatient Terry.
"I'm glad you said that," the professor spoke seriously. "I want youboys to promise me that you won't go on the wreck at any time during thenight or in the morning before we are all awake and ready to tackle it.We have had quite a bit of trouble so far and we want to avoid any more,certainly any that may turn out to be more serious than any we have had.I don't believe that there are any ghosts or goblins on the thing thatwill hurt you, but we had better not do anything that we'll regret."
"I for one won't," Terry promised. "I remember what that dragon says inthe old manuscript!"
The others promised, and after some further talk they all went to sleepand remained asleep until daylight. After a hasty breakfast they went tothe wreck once more.
"Fine day we have for our treasure hunting party," remarked Don, as theywent down the hatchway.
It was indeed a fine day, with a clear blue sky and a bright sun. Oncedown in the hold, however, all light and warmth was shut out, except fora single shaft that came in from the open hatchway.
"Now," said the professor, who was the leader. "We aren't going to beable to do much with this proposition, but I suggest that we at leastdig out this room. It wouldn't be of any use to dig down into the mainhold of the galleon, for it would take us months and it would bedangerous work. Before anything like that is done all sand would have tobe cleared away from the sides of the ship."
The room in which they stood, and which held the chest of gold, wasabout fourteen feet square. With small trench shovels brought from theranch they went to work on the moist sand, digging it out and by asystem of relays throwing it out on the deck. Don stood on a wide stepwhere the sand was deposited by Ned, the professor and Jim, andshovelled it up to the hatch, where Terry and Blow threw it to one side.They worked on with a will, and although it soon became hard work no onecomplained.
It was soon found that the chest of gold had been upon a table at thetime of the sinking of the galleon, for they had scarcely begun theirwork before they struck the top of the table. It was soon uncovered andproved to be a massive affair of black wood. It was about four feethigh, and when they had cleared away the sand down to the bottom theyfound solid flooring.
From time to time they changed positions so as to give each one a chanceto work inside the buried galleon and also to get a chance at thesunlight. The person who relayed the sand on the stairs had the hardestjob, as he was compelled to stoop down, scoop the sand, straighten upand throw it out of the hatch. Don was not sorry to give up his post andget out on the deck, and later on to get down into the old hold.
When Don got downstairs the room had been almost completely excavatedand some more treasure had been found. Several bars of solid silver hadbeen uncovered in one corner and even the walls held relics, in theshape of several old muskets and knives, along with a rusted sword.There were two heavy chairs in the room also, which were bothoverturned, probably by the force of the shock when the galleon ranaground.
They stopped at dinner time to eat, all of them being profoundlygrateful for the respite. The room in which they had been working wasnow almost empty and they decided to do a little more work and then takethe gold and as much silver as they could carry and go back to theranch, there to put in motion the necessary machinery to make thetreasure theirs. Accordingly, as soon as the noon meal was finished,they went back to work.
"Better not do much more excavating," warned Captain Blow. "That pile ofwet sand on the deck is getting pretty heavy."
They finished excavating that room, finding nothing more of importanceand then held a parley. There was a door in one side of the room andthey were in doubt as to whether to open it. The professor feared thatsomething might happen if they did, but the others disagreed with him,so the door was finally chopped open.
It came out of its frame with a rush, disclosing nothing but a blankwall of sand. Some portion of the deck, as yet under sand, had evidentlybeen ripped off or had burned off, and in that manner the ship hadfilled completely, much as a paper boat that a child buries in the sand.They picked at the wall of sand before them, but it was solid and theygave it up.
"I guess this will be as much as we'll want to do," the professorannounced. "The rest of the job is for a regular crew of excavators, andmoreover, must be undertaken scientifically. We'll be satisfied to goback with what we have and lay claim to the rest of it in the rightway."
"Are you thinking of starting tonight?" asked Terry, looking at hiswatch. "It is five o'clock now!"
"Is it that late?" cried Captain Blow. "By thunder mighty! this dayzipped right by!"
"Yes, it is that late," retorted the professor, consulting his ownwatch. "We've been so busy and interested that we haven't kept track ofthe time. No, we won't start back tonight. We'll stay in camp and startearly in the morning!"
"All right, suppose we get back," suggested the captain. "The bottom ofmy stomach is sunk lower than this fishing smack!"
They went up the stairs, Ned and Don stopping to examine one of themusty guns that was on the wall. The others stepped off of the deck andonto the sand, and seeing that the two boys were not with them, theprofessor called out: "Come on, boys, back to camp."
"We're coming!" Don replied, as he started up the stairs, with Ned astep or two back of him. Don had just thrust his head out of thehatchway when there came a warning shout from Terry.
"Hurry up!" he yelled. "The sand is sliding!"
The wet sand which they had piled up during the day suddenly slid downthe hill with gathering force. Don sprang forward quickly, but was toolate. The sand hit the deck of the galleon, there was a dull report anda sucking sensation, and then the whole room which they had excavatedcaved in. The deck, rotting and weakened, gave way under the descendingweight of the wet and dry sand, and went through with a roar. Don andNed disappeared from sight, buried alive in the wreck of the galleon!
The party on the shore stared dumbly for one minute, appalled by thehorror of the tragedy, and then Captain Blow leaped forward.
"Come on and dig!" he cried. "If we don't dig like fury they'll smotherto death!"
As the others followed him the intrepid captain leaped down on the heapof sand where the boys had last been seen and began to dig frantically.The sand was loose and he sank down in it, but he dug without heedinghis own peril, and the others helped him. Don's hand speedily workedloose from the sand and they caught hold of it.
"Work right around his arm," cried the captain. "Be careful not to hithis head with your shovels."
The scene was one of wildest confusion. By digging with furious energythey got Don's head free and only just in time. He was purple and fairlyclawed for air. They attempted to drag him loose, but failed. He pushedthe sand from his mouth and spoke urgently.
"Get Ned!" he gasped. "He's down around my knees, somewhere!"
The professor's face was white and he silently kneeled beside Don's headand dug with all his strength. Terry and Jim held the slippery sand backas the two men shovelled it away, and in a few seconds, which seemedlike hours to them, one of Ned's shoulders was uncovered. Dropping theirshovels the men wormed their hands beneath his armpit and tore him loosefrom the sand.
"Here, water, senor," said Yappi, appearing beside them with a canteen.
Ned was blue and unconscious, and they were forced to dig the sand fromhis nose and mouth before he could catch his breath. When he had becomeconscious he drank some water, and Don followed his example. They bothwere free to breathe but were still buried and sinking, for the sand wassi
fting down into the room below.
"This fight has only just begun," said the captain, grimly. "We've gotto get them out of here as fast as we can."
Then began a spirited battle between the men and the sand, the humanbeings putting every ounce of strength into the battle to keep theircompanions from being engulfed again and the sand exerting its power toentomb them once more, with a persistence that was perfectly amazing.The muscles of the friends ached, for they were tired from the events ofthe day, but they knew it was a race of life and death. They dugceaselessly, throwing sand as far away as possible, baffled and maddenedby the steady stream of the soil that returned to the charge.
It grew steadily darker and at last the captain, who had assumed chargeof the rescue operations spoke briefly to the professor. "Tell your manto light a big fire," he commanded.
When this was done they labored on, and after an hour had gone by theywere down as far as the boys' waists. They were working in a hollow thathad been made even more of a hole than normally by the collapse of thedeck, and so the sand proved to be a persistent foe. As fast as theythrew it up it slid back, and there was no way to keep it up.
"Now," said the captain, briskly. "Tell your man to back the horses downhere, throw out a hawser, grapple onto those lads, and tow 'em out!"
When this had been put into the kind of language that Yappi couldunderstand he quickly ran the horses into position, threw out a rope,and it was passed under Don's armpits. Yappi sprang into the saddle gavethe horse the pressure of his heels, his hand steady to check him atmoment's notice.
The rope tightened, and the boys pushed Don's body, with the result thathe was hauled out of the treacherous hole. Nothing was said at the time,and Don made all haste to scramble to safety, shaken by his experience.It was now an easier task to get at Ned, for the freeing of Don had lefta bigger hole, and they tied him up securely. This time the horsestrained, the boy gritted his teeth as the rope cut into his body, andthe others pushed with a will. With a final rush he came up and out ofthe hole.
"Hurrah!" shouted the captain, dropping his shovel. "The battle is won,mates! By tunket, let's get out of here."
They made haste to leave the place and then had a happy reunion. Theprofessor's lips moved as he pressed Ned to him and Jim's eyes were notsteady when he hugged Don. Terry addressed the remains of the wreck,while the mestizo patted the head of the horse.
"Pretty smart, you old mud scow!" the red-headed boy said. "That was thedragon's last stroke, and he nearly made good on it."
CHAPTER XXIV NED TAKES A NEW OVERSEER
They were all glad enough to rest that night around the campfire. Themuscles of the party were stiff and sore, and Don and Ned declared thattheir bodies ached from head to foot.
"Got enough sand in me to build a new bunkhouse at the ranch," Ned,declared.
They told their sensations as the wall of sand closed over them,sensations by no means pleasant. Smothering in sand was not an enviablemeans of ending one's life, according to Ned, who had been closest toit. Don had felt that he had a good chance for his life, for he had beennear the surface, but his chief worriment had been for his friend, whomhe knew to be lower down.
"All things considered, I rather think we earned that treasure," theprofessor remarked, and the others agreed with him heartily.
Yappi could not be persuaded to go near the place again. He was firm inthe belief that an evil spirit had tried to punish them for meddlingwith the gold of dead men. During the time they had needed his help hehad been brave enough, but now that there was nothing to fear he wasmore frightened than he had ever been. More than all the others, helooked forward to going home in the morning.
They slept the sleep of the utterly exhausted that night and were latein getting up on the following day. When all their things were packedand the treasure which they had taken placed on the horses they left theplace and started for the ranch.
"That place isn't the best place in the world for us," laughed Don, asthey paused on a rise and looked around. "Jim and Terry were nearlykilled near there and then Ned and I got a sand bath. That guardiandragon doesn't appear to like young men!"
"Maybe he doesn't object to the professor and me," observed the captain,with a broad smile. "We both have beards and are more nearly his age!"
The journey back to the ranch was made without incident and they wereglad to arrive. After remaining there for a day the professor and thecaptain took the treasure and set out with it to the coast, there to goto San Diego and claim legal right to it. The boys accompanied them toQuito, where Blow's own schooner, which was fortunately lying at anchor,took them to their destination. The boys left them in the town andreturned to the ranch.
There they passed several happy days, riding, visiting the mines, goingonce or twice to visit the senorita, and generally having a good time.Ned went several times to the senorita's and Terry wisely nodded hishead.
"Big doings pretty soon," he observed, wisely.
"What do you mean?" asked Don. They were out near the barn and Ned wasnot with them.
"Wait and see. The young man is going over the hill quite frequentlynow, and you wait and see if something exciting doesn't happen."
"Getting married isn't exciting," said Jim.
"Don't know, my boy," drawled Terry, trying to throw a lasso. "Neverbeen that way, myself! Look at that for a throw, will you! Aimed it atthe fence post and got the corner of the barn!"
When the professor and the captain returned they reported success. Theirclaim was legal and they had authority to recruit a gang of men toexcavate the ancient ship.
"That's the end of the phantom galleon," observed Don. "It won't be aphantom any more."
"You pretty nearly joined the phantoms yourself," Jim reminded him.
Terry's surmise regarding the state of affairs at the Mercedes ranchturned out to be correct. In a few days Ned announced that they were tobe married.
"There is no use in allowing her to stay over there and try to run thatlittle ranch all by herself," he said, as they sat in the living roomone night. "So we are going to combine and form one big ranch, after weare married. That will end all of her troubles about getting help andoverseers."
"I see," said Terry, dryly. "You are doing it so as to help her run herranch. Funny way to get married."
Ned made a pass at him and the red-headed boy dodged. The professorsmiled.
"That's the easiest way of saying it," he said. "Ned wouldn't want youto suspect that he loves the young lady!"
"Ned spoke about her difficulty in getting an overseer," remarked Don."Another way to look at it is that Ned himself is getting an overseer!"
"Yes, he'll have to behave himself now," said the captain, as they alllaughed at Ned's red face.
In the days that followed an excavating crew came down from SanFrancisco and went to work on the wreck of the galleon. In a remarkablyshort time it was unearthed and systematically cleaned out. A treasureestimated in value at something like fifty thousand dollars was found inthe wreck, a treasure that consisted of gold and silver plate, goldcoins, silver coins and several gold chains. There was also some silk,but it had been spoiled. The wreck itself, when uncovered, showed thatit had been burned to the water's edge before being covered with thesands of the plains.
"Well, when that is all divided, up, we'll have plenty, each one of us,"said the professor.
"At last my mother will get a few of the things in life that she hasreally needed," said Terry, to whom the fortune meant most.
Not long after that there was a simple wedding in the Scott ranch. Aminister came to the ranch from Quito and Ned and the senorita weremarried in the living room of the ranch which was now to be her home.Ned was quietly happy and the senorita brilliantly so. All the lonelyyears of living alone were now over, and she looked forward to a life ofhappiness with the American boy whose simple manliness had alwaysappealed to her. Don was Ned's best man.
"By golly," said Terry,
when it was all over. "If getting married makesyou feel as happy as Ned and his lady friend looked, I think I'll tryit!"
"That'll be fine, Terry," responded Jim. "By the way, who is the lady?"
"What?" asked the red-headed boy, blankly.
"Who is the lady that will look so happy when you marry her?" Jimanswered.
"Gee, I don't know!" was the reply. "You have to have a lady friend,don't you? I hadn't thought of that!"
"You had better give it some thought," retorted Don. "Most people haveone when they get married."
After a few more days the boys prepared to return home, along with theprofessor, who was eager to return to his classes in school. The boyswere looking forward to their second year at Woodcrest, to the study andthe sports of the coming season. Captain Blow left them a few daysearlier, expressing his pleasure at having met them once more.
"I hope I fall in with you Mercer boys again sometime," he said, as heshook hands at the dock. "I always have a barrel of fun when I'm withyou. Makes me young again. If you ever sail past old Mystery Island,think of me, will you?"
A few days later they all said goodbye to the new Mr. and Mrs. Scott,wishing them well and promising to come and see them if they were everin that part of the world again. Before long they were back in SanFrancisco and on the train, bound for home and school. Terry was withthem, having had "Jumpiter" shipped by rail.
"Well," remarked Don, as they rolled past long fields of grain. "That'sthe end of one of the best vacations we ever had. Now we'll go back toschool, to settle down and take things easy for a change."
But if Don could have seen the events that awaited them in the comingschool term in the form of a baffling mystery he would not have been sosure that they would settle down. In the next volume, entitled TheMercer Boys' Mystery Case, or the '13 Class Trophy Riddle the excitingthings which befell them will be related.
THE END
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