CHAPTER III
NODDY BEGINS PLOTTING
“Ned, give me a little richer mixture!” cried Jerry, as the motor boatshot down the current, pitching and rolling in the waves caused by theinflux of the mill stream. “I need all the power I can get. Cut downthe air a bit, and turn on a little more gasolene!”
Ned bent over the carburetor, and adjusted it, while Jerry watched hisown steering to see that he did not run the boat into the many floatinglogs and boards that had been carried into the river by the flood.
“Need any help?” sung out Bob.
“Not up here, but I wish you’d sit on the other side, Chunky,” repliedthe steersman, giving Bob the nickname that had been applied to himbecause of his stoutness. “That will trim the boat better, and she’llride easier. Professor, would you mind moving up nearer the stern. Iwant to get the bow as high as I can.”
“Just a moment!” exclaimed the scientist. “I thought I saw a new kindof water spider. Yes, there it is! Hold the boat back a moment, Jerry.”
“Can’t do it!” cried the tall lad. “This current is fierce!”
The professor suddenly made a lunge over the side with outstretchedhands, and the boat careened dangerously.
“Look out!” cried Jerry.
“I’ve got him!” answered the professor. “Oh, it’s a fine specimen!I never had one so good. Where’s my spider-box?” and with one handtightly clasped, holding the water insect, the scientist, with theother, began searching in his pockets for the box to contain his prize.
“I’ll get it for you,” volunteered Bob.
“It’s in my left hand coat pocket,” said the professor.
The insect was soon in captivity and then, as the boat shot ahead underincreased power, due to the change in the gasolene mixture, all onboard gazed at the floating boathouse, and the unfortunate owner of it,who was still rushing about, unable to do anything to help himself.
“Look!” cried Andy. “It’s going to flop over!”
It did seem as if the structure would turn turtle, but a swirl in thecurrent righted it, and once more it floated on a level keel, so tospeak.
“Help! Help!” cried Noddy, waving his hands at the boys in the motorboat.
“We’re coming!” shouted Ned. “Keep cool!”
“Wow! Steady! We’ll save you--don’t jump--it’s all right--not as bad asit might be--hold fast!” excitedly cried Andy Rush.
“Keep still!” ordered Jerry. “You’ll have him jumping overboard next,Andy.”
“All right,” agreed the little lad, sitting down on the cushions, andholding to the rail to keep his nerves in control.
The motor boat was now well down the flooded river, and aided by thecurrent and her engine, was rapidly approaching the floating boathouse.The latter structure was whirling about, careening from side to side,now on one edge of the stream, and now on the other.
“It’ll soon be in the rapids,” spoke Ned in a low voice.
“We’ll get there before that,” said Jerry confidently.
“How you going to get him off?” asked Bob. “Run along side and have himjump, or make fast?”
“I’m certainly not going to make fast to that house,” replied Jerry.“It would pull us over the rocks, I’m afraid. I guess Noddy will haveto jump, and swim for it. Then we can pick him up. Ned, stand readywith that life preserver, and see that it’s fast to the rope.”
“Aye, aye, sir!” answered Ned, seaman fashion.
He made ready the cork ring, with its accompanying line, and took hisplace in the bow, ready to cast it when Jerry should give the word forNoddy to jump. The lad on the boathouse platform was standing, andlooking at the approaching motor craft, waving his hands frantically,and occasionally calling for help.
“Why doesn’t he keep still?” spoke Jerry. “We’re coming as fast as wecan.”
“Better not go much nearer,” advised Ned. “I can hear the roar of therapids. They’re just around that turn.”
“I’m going to tell him to jump now,” said Jerry. “He’s a pretty goodswimmer, and he can keep afloat until we can pick him up. Get readywith that ring, Ned.”
“All ready!”
Jerry stood up, and, bracing one knee against the wheel, to aid hishands in holding it steady, he shouted:
“Jump, Noddy! Jump! We’ll pick you up! Jump!”
“I--I’m afraid to,” whimpered the bully.
“You’ve got to!” yelled the tall steersman determinedly.
“I--I----” Noddy looked as though he were going to slump down on hisknees, but a sudden swirl of the current saved him the necessity ofjumping, for he was thrown off the slanting platform into the water.
“There he goes!” cried Bob.
“The ring! The ring! Throw him the ring!” shouted Jerry.
As Noddy went under the swirling waters, Ned leaped out on the bow deckof the boat, with the ring in his hand, watching for the reappearanceof the bully.
“There he is!” cried Andy Rush.
With sure aim Ned sent the life preserver toward Noddy. It fell true,almost over his head, and, a moment later, he had grasped it with adesperation born of despair.
WITH SURE AIM, NED SENT THE LIFE PRESERVER TOWARD NODDY.]
“Pull him in!” ordered Jerry, and Ned and Bob began hauling on theline. A few seconds later, half unconscious, pale, and with closedeyes, Noddy was pulled on board.
“He’s dead!” cried Andy.
“Nonsense!” exclaimed Jerry, as he began to turn the boat toward shore.“He wasn’t in the water more than three minutes. He’s fainted, I guess.”
“Better get him to shore as soon as possible,” suggested ProfessorSnodgrass. “He may have been injured.”
“I’m heading for that dock over there,” remarked Jerry, pointing toone on the Cresville side of the river. “We can lay him out there, andgive first aid to the injured, and, if he’s swallowed any water, we candrain it out of him. Keep his head low and his feet high, fellows,” hesaid to Bob and Ned, who were holding Noddy. The rescued lad had notopened his eyes.
It was a hard fight against the powerful current of the flooded riverto gain the dock, but Jerry made it, for the engine of our heroes’craft was a fine one.
“Get him out now!” cried the tall lad, as he made the boat fast on thelower side of the dock, where the swirl of the river would not affectit. “Use artificial respiration.”
The motor boys knew how to do this, and in a little while they sawthat Noddy was breathing more strongly. It developed later that he hadbeen hit on the head by a piece of driftwood, rendering him partlyunconscious, so that he swallowed more water than he would ordinarilyhave done.
“I guess he’s coming around all right now,” said Ned, as he noticed afluttering of Noddy’s eyelids.
“Here comes Dr. Preston!” added Bob, as he saw a young man, accompaniedby a small throng of persons, racing toward the dock. “He’ll know whatto do.”
Dr. Preston, who had been summoned by some one of the crowd who hadwitnessed the rescue, was soon working over Noddy.
“He’s out of danger now, though he’s not fully conscious yet,” said thedoctor, after a few minutes. “It’s a wonder he had strength enough tohold on to the ring as you pulled him in.”
“Well, when Noddy gets hold of a thing, he hates to let go,” remarkedNed. “Say, fellows,” he added to his two chums, “a lot has happenedsince we started to talk about that radium deposit on Snake Island, inthe Colorado canyon; hasn’t there?” he asked. “It seems like a week,but it hasn’t been half an hour.”
“That’s right,” agreed Bob. “I want to hear more about that radium.Let’s go back home, and the Professor can tell us. Noddy’s all rightnow. If we could go to Snake Island and get some radium----”
“Hush!” suddenly exclaimed Jerry, nudging his chum.
“What’s the matter?” demanded the stout youth.
“No use talking about that, where every one can hear you,” went onJerry in a low voice. ?
??Besides, Noddy is coming to, now. His eyes areopen.”
The rescued lad was much better now, and was sitting up, held by thedoctor, who was administering a stimulant.
“That’s so, I guess I had better keep quiet,” admitted Bob in a lowvoice.
Quite a crowd had collected on the dock, and one man, who had acarriage, offered to take Noddy home. This was decided on, and soon,in the care of the physician, the bully was taken away. He had notrecovered sufficiently to thank his rescuers, but the motor boys feltthat the less they had to do with Noddy the better for them. They haddone their duty, and were content to let it go at that.
“Think we can go up against the current?” asked Ned of Jerry.
“I’m not going to try it. The river will soon go down, for the waterin the mill pond will all be out by night. We’ll just leave our boattied up here. No use taking any chances on hitting a floating log, andstoving a hole in the _Dartaway_. We’ll come down and get her to-night.”
The motor boys made their way out of the crowd, from the members ofwhich came murmurs of praise at the plucky act of our heroes. Noddy’sboathouse disappeared around the bend of the stream, and, a littlelater, was pounded to pieces in the rapids.
The three chums, with the professor and Andy Rush, made their way backto Ned’s house, talking on the way of what had happened.
“Well, it’s all over,” remarked Ned, as they came opposite the brokendam. “See, the pond is almost emptied. They can mend the break now.That was an exciting time while it lasted.”
“That’s right,” agreed the others.
“Let’s get that lunch we were starting on when Andy interrupted us,”suggested Bob.
“Chunky, you’re hopeless!” cried Jerry. “You’d eat if the world wascoming to an end, I believe.”
“I would if I had time,” admitted the fat lad. “But there’s no useletting the lunch spoil; is there, Ned?” and he appealed to his otherchum.
“No, I guess not,” agreed the merchant’s son. “Come on, Andy, have abite with us, but don’t you get excited or you may choke on a piece ofcustard pie.”
“And while we’re eating maybe Professor Snodgrass will tell us moreabout the radium on Snake Island,” suggested Bob.
“I think I’ve told you all that I know,” replied the scientist, “butyou may ask me any questions you like,” and, shortly afterward, whilestill at the table, the little man was fairly bombarded with inquiriesabout radium, its general properties, and in particular about the kindthat was to be found on Snake Island.
Meanwhile, Noddy was taken home, and nursed. He was weak and ill,but this did not prevent him, as he lay in bed, from doing some hardthinking.
“Radium; that was what those motor boys were talking of,” he murmuredto himself, as he felt of the bandage on his head. “Radium on someplace in a canyon. Canyon--canyon--Grand Canyon. I wonder wherethat is? Radium; I know that stuff. It’s worth millions--but thatcanyon--Oh, I know--the Grand Canyon of the Colorado! That’s it. SnakeIsland! That must be a place in the river. I wonder if I could find it?”
Noddy dozed off for a moment. Suddenly he sat up in bed.
“I’m going to do it!” he exclaimed. “There’s no reason why they shouldhave it! I’ll get ahead of them! I’ve got as good a right to it as theyhave!”
He was in deep thought for a minute.
“That college professor knows about it,” he resumed. “And if he knows,other scientists know too. Radium is used in colleges for experiments.I’ll do it! I’ll get Bill Berry, and we’ll find some other collegeprofessor, and start after that radium ourselves. I’ll get ahead ofthe motor boys for once in my life! Radium! It may be worth millions!”and Noddy’s eyes gleamed as he unfolded to himself the plot he washatching against our heroes.
“I’ll start as soon as I can,” he went on. “It isn’t very far to thatColorado canyon. That’s what I’ll do. Me and Bill will get that radium.I guess I can find Snake Island as well as Jerry, Ned or Bob. Theydidn’t think I heard them, but I did. I just kept my eyes shut. Oh,I’ll fool ’em!”
And, mean bully that he was, forgetting that the motor boys had savedhis life, Noddy Nixon began making plans for going to Snake Islandafter the deposit of radium, which was worth such a fortune.