CHAPTER XX
"WE MUST CUT AND RUN FOR IT!"
It was surprising to see the effect of the cowboy's announcement.
Frank was in some measure prepared for it. He had entertained a suddensuspicion as he noticed the emotion of the other. But his chums seemedalmost thunderstruck.
"Tell me about that, will you!" said Jerry, feebly waving his hands.
"Did you ever hear of such luck?" ejaculated Will.
"Beats a story all hollow. Here's the prodigal son found at last, eatinghis dinner with the--" began Bluff, when Jerry pounced on him.
"Don't you dare finish that, on your life! Of course, you can callyourself swine, if you please, but I object. But is it really true,Reddy? Are you Hank's long lost brother?" he asked, turning to theother.
"I certainly am, although I ought to be ashamed of the way I've treatedmy folks. All for a measly little matter, too. My eyes have been openin'lately, and I was mighty near headin' Eastways before you came," saidthe cowboy, hanging his head.
"Then perhaps you'll go back with us, and surprise the folks?" suggestedFrank eagerly.
"Well, now, I'd like to do that same, if so be you fellows mean it. Yousee, my folks ain't always lived in Centerville. I thought that lots ofthings you talked about seemed kinder familiar to me, for I was broughtup in that part of the State. Yes, I'll go home, and try and make up forwhat I done to hurt the old folks. Somehow, just the idea of it makes mefeel better."
He eagerly questioned the boys about his people. Of course, they did nothave much news to tell him. Hank was only a year or so older than hisbrother, and the absent one was very much interested in hearing how theyhad met him, and what awakened Hank to a consciousness of the terriblemistake he was making in associating with unscrupulous men.
After that Reddy assumed a new place with the boys. He seemed to becloser to them than ever, and Frank no longer wondered why the other'ssunburned face had seemed partly familiar to him when he first met him.
"You and Hank are very much alike," he said, later on, to Reddy.
"They used to say that at home. I was just big enough to be accused ofmany of Hank's tricks, and once I got a lickin' he deserved."
"And another thing," laughed Frank, "I know now what he was about totell me at the time I was dragged away by my folks. I was asking him howI could ever recognize you, in case we met, and he put up his hand tohis head, but I never heard the rest of it."
"Why, of course, he was going to tell you that I had a mop of beautifulred hair, and that Teddy went with Reddy. I guess you'd have known me ifyou'd heard that," was the good-natured remark of the found one.
On the following day the four outdoor chums determined to set out in abunch to have a grand hunt, following the dense woods far down thevalley. The last words of the old stockman were a caution in connectionwith the dry grass.
"Be careful about a fire, lads. If you make one, be sure the last sparkis out before you leave it. A forest fire would play the mischief justnow, with everything so dry. But somehow, I've got hopes that the rainis coming soon," and he looked into the west, as though the fewlow-down clouds gave him encouragement.
When noon came the boys had put up a couple of elk, but at such adistance that no one but Bluff fired, and he because he knew no better.
"Do you think I wounded him?" he had the nerve to ask, whereat Jerrylooked at Frank and just smiled broadly.
"Anyhow, they ran off faster after I fired," asserted Bluff confidently.
"I should think anything would," was all Jerry said, and if there wasmalice in the remark Bluff did not know it in his innocence.
While they sat down to eat the lunch they had carried along Frank calledattention to the fact that the wind had risen.
"Perhaps Mr. Mabie was right, after all, and there is a rainstorm comingbefore long," suggested Will.
"Then I hope it'll have the decency to hold off until we get home," saidBluff.
"Oh, a little wetting wouldn't hurt us. We're not made of sugar or salt.But perhaps we'd better not go any further. We've come a long way sincebreakfast. This valley seems to have no end, and it broadens out downhere, too."
"Yes; and, Frank, have you noticed how thick the trees grow, too? Why,in some places a fat man would have trouble getting through between thetrunks," said Jerry.
"What ails Frank? He seems to be sniffing the air like a hound," askedWill.
"Oh, he always declared he had a fine scent, and I've noticed that heknows when dinner is ready, ahead of the rest of us," remarked Jerry.
Frank laughed good-naturedly.
"To tell the truth, I was wondering, fellows, whether we could be nearanother camp," he remarked.
"Did you hear anybody shout?" asked Will.
"No; but when there came a sudden shift to the wind I thought I got ascent of fire. No, it wasn't cooking, this time, Jerry, so don't getready to accuse me of that weakness again; just something burning."
"Say! you don't think it could be the woods afire, do you?"
"Talk to me about your ghost-seers, will you! Will, here, can jump on totrouble quicker than any fellow I know. Why, if the woods were on fire,don't you think we'd have found that fact out before now, Mr. FaintHeart? I guess such a thing couldn't happen without a heap of smoke thatwould look like a pall, and appal us, in the bargain."
"Well, all I can say is, I'm not hankering after any forest fireexperience after what Mr. Mabie told us about those friends of his whowere nearly burned to death seven years ago; and that was a prairiefire, too," observed Will, continuing to cast anxious glances around.
"Amen to that," remarked Bluff.
"Why, you must think I'm just wild to try my legs, with a healthy blazejumping after me; but I'm not, all the same. Come along, Lazy-bones!We're going to have the delightful pleasure of covering those ten milesback again," and Jerry pulled Will to his feet.
"Ten miles!" groaned the other dismally, making a pretense of hobbling,as if his muscles had given out. "How in the world can I ever do it?"
"Well, sing out when you want to stop. We'll hang you up in a tree, safeand sound, just as I did that wolf I got; and later on one of the boyscan come for you with a horse," was Jerry's cheerful remark.
"Oh, I'd hate to put you to any additional trouble, so I'll try my bestto limp along," replied Will, who, of course, was only shamming, in thathe was not half so tired as he tried to make out.
So they turned their faces toward the home camp, and started trudgingalong, now and then calling to one another as something caught theirfancy.
Will had had little opportunity to make use of his picture-takingmachine this trip. His stock of films was beginning to run low, and onlyspecial subjects must claim his attention from now on. Besides, he hadseveral views of the great woods, and the light was so poor under thetrees that it required a time exposure to bring out the details.
"I think it's a mean shame none of you fellows think enough of me to getup some sort of excitement, in order to let me snap you off," he wassaying as he tramped along.
"Tell me about that, will you! The chap really thinks that it's our dutyto do all sorts of remarkable stunts, in order that he may have thepleasure of snapping us off in ridiculous positions!"
"Hear! hear! That was the finest speech I ever knew Jerry to put up. Asa rule, he leaves the heavy talk to me, and is satisfied to just gruntout his ideas. But look here, Frank, I believe you were right," saidBluff, stopping to elevate his nose in a significant fashion.
"Oh! dear me! Do you smell smoke, too?" demanded Will.
"Why, so do I, now that you mention it. And say! just cast your eyesback of us, fellows! Don't it seem as though there was more or lesssmoke in the woods over yonder?" asked Jerry.
The four boys now showed sudden animation.
"Hark to the wind, too! It's beginning to make a sound up there in thetree-tops. Which way is it coming, Frank?" asked Will.
Frank's face began to assume a serious look. The wind was fairly growingstronger with ev
ery passing minute. If the woods should be afire, thiswould whip the flames furiously, and send them speeding along at adangerous pace.
"It begins to look bad for us, boys," he remarked.
"What! Do you really mean it, or are you just trying to play a joke?"
"You know me better than that, Will. There is certainly a brush fireback there. Some camper has left his fire, and the rising wind hascarried it into the dead leaves," said Frank soberly, surveying hissurroundings.
"Could we push forward and put it out before it does any damage?" askedBluff.
"I'm afraid it's too late for that now. See there! The smoke is gettingthicker and thicker all the time. Boys, we might as well look the matterstraight in the face."
"What do you mean, Frank?" asked Will in a trembling voice.
"We must cut and run for it, that's all, for the fire is comingswiftly!"