CHAPTER V--A STRANGE HAPPENING
"Did you see him, boys?" exclaimed Will, who was shivering as if he hadjust run across a ghost.
"Why, to be sure," replied Frank, laughing a little forcedly; for thesight of that hideous face had given him a shock.
"Then it was so, after all. I began to believe I was just imaginingthings. Oh! what a magnificent opportunity I missed. How can I everforgive myself?" groaned Will, showing signs of disgust.
"Opportunity for what--capturing the terrible wild man?" cried Bluff,aghast at what seemed the audacity of his ordinarily peaceable chum.
"Certainly not. But if I had only been ready I could have taken hispicture to show the folks at home. My stars! what a great feat thatwould have been," sighed the disappointed photographer, shaking hishead.
"Tell me about that, will you? There was my uncle laughing at me when Imentioned about this same wild man of the island. He declared it wasonly some innocent animal, or else an old woman's tale. But every one ofus saw him, and we've not been ashore five minutes, either," declaredJerry.
"I foresee some stirring times for us here, what with the snakes, ifthey are to be found, the ferocious wildcats they tell about, and nowthis mysterious wild man," remarked Frank, soberly, as he began to takethe bundles out of his canoe and place them high and dry up on theshore.
"Are we going to stay?" asked Bluff.
"Why, to be sure we are. Talk to me about your brave men, I like to heara fellow speak about being scared away by the first sight of some poor,harmless chap. Perhaps it's another of Mr. Smithson's crazy people,escaped from the asylum over at Merrick, and hiding out here."
On their camping-out trip of the preceding autumn they had met with aremarkable personage who persisted in declaring that he was the famousPrince Bismarck, and who eventually turned out to be an escaped inmateof the asylum at Merrick, some miles away.
A keeper named Smithson had engaged them to help him capture thedemented one, and this was what Jerry was referring to when he spoke.
"I wouldn't wonder but what that may be true," remarked Frank,seriously; "but no matter, we are not the kind to run at a shadow. Welaid out this trip to spend our Easter holidays on Wildcat Island, andit's got to be something pretty threatening that will frighten us off."
"Hear! hear!" exclaimed Jerry.
"That's the stuff!" declared Bluff, thinking that he could not afford tolet his rival take all the credit for valor.
"But I'll never get another opportunity to take his picture," complainedWill.
"How do you know? Man alive, there may be no end of stirring timescoming, with that same old hermit figuring in the circus. Perhaps thescent of our coffee and bacon will bring him back into touch withcivilization; why, he may even walk into our camp, and try to makefriends, when he gets a whiff of onions frying," and Frank slapped hischum on the back as he spoke along this line.
"Oh! well, if you think that way I'll keep up my hopes. And you justremember that if I seem to be hugging this little snapshot contrivancecloser than usual, why, I'm only keeping in readiness for instantaneouswork. A fellow has to be pretty quick on the trigger to get a picture ofa wild man, you know."
They soon had the boats unloaded.
"Pull them out, fellows. I've brought along the chains and padlocksbelonging to each boat. Having a canoe stolen isn't such fun, even on aten-mile lake like Camalot," ventured Frank, as he produced the articlesin question, and proceeded to fasten the canoes together, at the sametime making sure they were chained to the sturdy root of a nearby tree.
"He thinks of everything," admitted Will, in admiration.
"Don't you believe it for one second. I forget many things; but as theysaid a wild man inhabited this bit of island, I wanted to make sure hedid not run off with any of our boats, and perhaps our supplies."
"All the same, it took your long head to think of such a thing, oldchap. Now, I defy any one to hook our boats. Besides, we don't mean toever leave the camp unguarded; and I guess you expect to put up thetents close by here?" said Jerry.
"It looks good to me," replied Frank, casting another glance at thelittle open spot close to the beach, which seemed an ideal place for acanoeist's camp, having a splendid view of the lake, stretching almostten miles away to the north.
The four were soon as busy as beavers.
They already knew how to erect the tents, which had a fly that could belowered in front in severe weather, and a ground cloth of waterproofmaterial, quite an addition to the comfort of the interior.
Jerry worked just as hard as the rest, although every now and thenpretending to laugh at all this fuss, when a humble shack of branchesought to serve any fellow who called himself a true sportsman.
By the time the fireplace had been built of stones, over which severalstout steel bars rested, upon which the cooking utensils would set, theSpring afternoon was drawing to a close.
"What will we have for our first supper?" Bluff asked; for he did notmean to let Jerry carry off all the honors in the cooking line thistrip.
Secretly Bluff had been getting the hired girl at his home to teach himsome of the kitchen lore, and he had a few surprises up his sleeve whichhe intended to spring upon his unsuspecting chums when the occasion camearound that he was left alone in charge of the camp.
"Nobody thought to bring a steak this time," ventured Frank; "so ifyou're all agreeable, I say that we begin our cooking with a littlecanoeist's menu something along this order: Tea, succotash, a can ofcorned beef, fresh bread and butter, and finish with a jar of preservesand cake from home. How does that strike you?"
"It suits me. And as the sun is sinking low, the sooner we get to workthe better," declared Bluff, readily enough; for he was fairly ravenous,and kept wetting his lips like a hungry dog that scents a rich, juicybone.
"Talk about your feasts, what could equal that programme? Me for thecorned beef every time. Why, it's my best hold, and I just worshipit--hot, cold or medium. How do you stand, Will? Any furthersuggestions?"
"Well, I brought some imported Switzer cheese along, and you know,fellows, I'm particularly fond of it; so if it's just the same to you,I'll add that to the list," replied the one addressed.
"Oh, my! that's what I get for speaking too hastily. Now I shallcertainly be punished. I suppose as long as that cheese lasts myappetite will vanish at every meal. I only hope that gay old wild mantakes a fancy to it, and elopes with the whole blessed bunch. Why didn'tyou fetch limburger and kill us outright, instead of our dying byinches? But it will help draw the wildcats around, that's one comfort,"groaned Jerry.
Preparations for supper went on apace.
They had set the tents at the base of a little bluff; for Wildcat Islandwas a singular formation, being quite hilly in parts. Indeed, somepeople were fond of comparing it to the volcanic islands that suddenlyrise up out of the sea in regions like the Alaska coast; and asfrequently vanish in a night. It was moreover heavily wooded, and therank vegetation made it anything but an easy task to do any exploring.
Frank had calculated that this steep bluff overhanging the camp would beof considerable benefit to the expedition should a severe storm set infrom the west.
As the boys busied themselves with various tasks they chatted and jokedafter their custom.
The stew of succotash and corned beef, which Frank had called theCanoeist's Delight, was now ready. He set it aside on a stone to cool atrifle while the table was being prepared.
"How's the coffee getting on, Jerry?" asked the chief cook of theevening; for they usually changed around, and gave each fellow a chanceto show what he knew along the line of preparing appetizing dishes, orof exposing his ignorance, which method of procedure naturally createdsome rivalry.
"Just about ready. I've allowed it to boil furiously three times, andsettled it with a dash of cold water on each and every occasion. Talk tome about the nectar of the gods, this suits me all right."
"Oh! please hurry up. I'm almost trembling with eagerness, after sittinghere
and sniffing those delicious odors for so long a time," pleadedWill, who happened to have nothing to do with the supper on thisoccasion, his time coming on the morrow.
But they gave him no heed, those unfeeling wretches.
The one who camps out must expect to prove himself a hero daily byconquering his appetite and holding it in check with a firm hand untilthe head chef declares that all is ready for the feast to begin.
Frank had just finished placing the aluminum plates and cups, and wasabout to reach out for the kettle of steaming stew, when to hisastonishment he found the stone, where he had laid it, empty.
Thinking that one of the others might be playing some trick, he openedhis mouth to remonstrate, when a cry from Will caused him to turn hiseyes upward.
There he saw the little kettle swinging in mid-air, and being drawnhastily upwards by some unseen mysterious agency!