CHAPTER XXII
OUTWITTED BY A BOY
Bill Lilly's attention had been called to a slight movement of thebushes behind where Alligator Pete was standing, but he did notunderstand the meaning of the disturbance, nor did he look verysharply until something unusual caused him to flash a quick glance inthat direction.
A writhing, twisting something rose from behind the bushes, wriggledthrough the air, headed directly for Pete. The guide suddenlyrealized that it was a rope, with a great loop at the end of it.
The loop wobbled over Pete's head for a brief instant, then floppeddown over his body. Instantly the loop was drawn taut; then came amighty tug and Pete went down with his arms pinioned to his sides,struggling frantically to free himself from the grip of the rope.Even then he did not understand what had occurred. Perhaps hethought it was a snake that had twisted about him.
In a few seconds, however, he collected his wits. The revolver wasstill in his hand. Pete began pulling the trigger, trying his bestto get a bead on Bill Lilly and put a bullet through him.
"Keep out of range till he gets through shooting!" called the exultantvoice of Tad Butler from behind the bushes. "I can hold him. Hewon't get out of that loop in a hurry."
Lilly took advantage of the opportunity to spring back into theshack, where he snatched up his own weapon, then leaped out.
"Drop that gun, Pete!" commanded the guide sternly, at the same timeleveling his own weapon at the man on the ground. "Drop it, I say!"
Pete, after gazing at the determined face of Billy Lilly for a fewseconds, let go his grip on the butt of his revolver. Billy steppedover and kicked the weapon out of reach. Next he searched theclothes of the roped man, removing a knife.
"Get up!" he commanded.
Alligator Pete did so, his face red with rage, his eyes menacing.
"Who did that?" he demanded.
"I reckon I did," answered Tad Butler, stepping forward, stillkeeping the rope taut so that his prisoner should not run away.
"I'll kill you for that!" raged the prisoner.
"Not just now you won't. Later, perhaps. At present you are not incondition to kill anyone. What shall we do with him, Mr. Lilly?"
Pete was staring, still working and tugging at the rope. He hadrecognized Tad Butler on the instant.
"It isn't a doe this time, Pete," laughed the Pony Rider Boy.
"No, it'll be a dead kid when I get free again."
"I wouldn't make any threats were I in your place. You are in noposition to make threats. Shall I remove the rope, Mr. Lilly?"
"Take it off, but look out that he doesn't grab you. If he tries torun away I'll pink him. Remember, Pete, no monkey-shines."
Tad slacked up on the rope, nodding to the prisoner to let it drop,which the man did quickly, Tad not taking chances by getting withinreach of the fellow's wiry arms.
With his freedom, Alligator Pete's oozing courage in a measurereturned to him, though he was still covered by the guide's revolver.Tad coiled his rope and secured it to his belt, Pete watching theoperation with interest. He had never seen roping in real life. Hehad not seen this time, but he had felt, which was less interestingthan had he been a mere spectator. Lilly was regarding the fellowfrowningly.
"I ought to do it, but somehow I can't," he muttered.
"What shall we do with him now we have him?" asked Tad. "I guess weshall have to turn him loose."
"I reckon we won't do anything of the sort, or he will be sure to beup to more mischief. I reckon we better take him with us. He hasgot to pay for what he has done."
"I haven't done anything. You can't--you don't dare hold me. Youlet me go!"
"See anything green in my eyes?" demanded Lilly. "We have the goodson you. We have trailed your pony, we have identified your dog, weknow the whole story from beginning to end, as I have already toldyou. I'll tell you what we will do, Master Tad. We will put him onhis horse and take him back to camp with us. We can then talk thematter over and decide what we had better do."
Tad was willing, in fact he was rather glad of the opportunity totake Pete back and show him to the boys. Chunky would be pleased toset eyes on the fellow again.
"Get the horse," directed Lilly. "I will hold him here until you areready."
Tad hurried away. First he brought up their own animals, then wentafter Pete's mount. Pete's rifle came in for attention, and Taddecided to empty the magazine and put the rifle back in the saddleboot, which he did. Next he examined the horse's feet. There was ashoe missing on the off fore foot. The horse was a wiry, activelittle animal. The boy looked over him with the eyes of an expert.
"He is a better nag than mine," decided the Pony Rider Boy. "I'llwager he could lope all day without tiring out. I wonder if I couldbuy him? This animal has one shoe off the off fore foot, as I toldyou," announced the lad, leading the animal up to the shack."Always keep your horse well shod and free from hoof or shoepeculiarities if you don't want to be trailed down," advised Butler."How do you propose to keep Pete?" he asked the guide.
"We shall have to tie him," answered Lilly.
"Suppose I place my rope around him, keeping the free end in my handand riding behind him? That will leave you free to use a weapon incase he tries to get away."
"Good idea. Get aboard."
Pete lost no time in obeying the latter command, evidently believingthat on his horse he would find a better opportunity to get away.Tad winked at the guide as the hunter swung into his saddle. Nosooner had Pete felt the touch of the stirrups under his feet than hedug the rowels of his spurs into his horse.
The animal snorted, rising into the air. Then a most unexpectedthing occurred. Alligator Pete was jerked from his saddle. Helanded heavily on his head in the soft muck.
"Catch the horse!" shouted Tad.
Billy Lilly aroused himself from his stupor caused by the quickaction of the Pony Rider Boy, and, running out, captured the whitehorse, leading it back to the scene. Pete was getting up slowly,rubbing the ooze from his head and face.
Tad had suspected the hunter would make the very move he did. Theboy was ready for him and while Pete was getting into his saddle,back half turned to them, Tad was swinging the big loop of his lariatover his own head. The instant he saw what the hunter was up to, theboy sent the rope twisting through the air. It fell neatly over thehead of Alligator Pete with the result already known to the reader.
Lilly was grinning broadly when he returned with the hunter's horse.
"That was the slickest thing I ever saw in all my life, boy. Didn'tknow what you had met up with when you stole the doe from this kid,eh, Pete? Now, do you think you can be good, or do you want somemore of the same medicine?"
The prisoner did not reply.
"Leave the rope where it is," directed Butler. "I don't take anymore chances with you. You ought to thank me for having roped you.If I had not, the chances are that Mr. Lilly would have shot you."
"I reckon I would have done it," grinned the guide.
At a nod from Tad the guide led up the boy's horse. He then orderedPete to mount again, after which the guide and the boy leaped intotheir saddles, with Tad riding close behind the prisoner, Lilly alittle to one side. In this order they started for camp. They hadnot gone far before Butler observed the prisoner's hand resting onthe butt of his rifle. This brought a grin to the face of the PonyRider Boy.
"To save you trouble, Pete, I will say that I drew the shells fromthe magazine. Your gun is empty. Lilly doesn't know this, so if youtry to draw the gun you may get shot."
The prisoner promptly withdrew his hand from the butt of his weapon.For the first time he seemed to realize that he had been outwitted atevery turn, and his courage began slipping away from him. Pete'shead drooped until his chin was almost to his chest. Tad Butlerrecognized the sign of surrender. He felt pity for the man, for Tadwas tender-hearted and he did not like to see others suffer.
"Hadn't we better let him go, Mr. Lilly?" h
e asked in a low voice,nodding toward the prisoner.
_"No!"_
Tad shrugged his shoulders. They continued on in silence for a longtime, Tad keeping his eyes on the prisoner, now jogging faster, nowslower, to keep the lariat at about the same degree of tautness.Pete felt a gentle pressure about his body all the time. He knewthat the other end of the rope was secured to the pommel of hiscaptor's saddle and that any attempt to get away would land him onhis back on the ground. This not being a cheerful prospect,Alligator Pete rode on as docile as a whipped cur.
It was just supper time when they rode into the camp on SunflowerRiver with their prisoner. Stacy Brown was the only one of the partyexcept Ichabod who recognized Alligator Pete.
"Hello!" greeted the fat boy.
The prisoner did not answer.
"I am glad to see you. I owe you something. After you have had yoursupper I'm going to beat you," announced the fat boy.
"He is pretty well subdued as it is, Chunky," answered Tad soberly."Don't humiliate him. Can't you see that the fellow is suffering?Never kick a dog after he is down and helpless."
"He isn't a dog. The dogs wouldn't own him as a member of theirtribe."
In the meantime, Lilly had ordered the prisoner to get down, afterwhich the guide tied the man to a tree. The boys pressed about Tadto hear the story of the capture. Butler told them briefly what hadtaken place, without making any special point of his own part in theaffair. But if Tad had been modest about it, Lilly was not. He toldthem plainly that Tad Butler was the cleverest little roper andtrailer who ever had come into the Louisiana canebrake, and that ifit hadn't been for Tad there might have been all entirely differentstory to tell.
"What do you propose to do with the man, now that you have him?"asked the Professor after the story had been fully told.
"Keep him till we go back to Jackson. I'll have him locked up, andyou had better believe the judge will give him all that's coming tohim. Pete won't be hitting the canebrake trail right smart again, Ireckon."
Supper was given to the prisoner, then later he was made comfortablefor the night. Lilly announced that they would take the trail forbear again in the morning. He said he felt it in his bones that theywere going to have the sport for which they had come into thecanebrake. He felt that there were bear waiting for them out there.They had enough reserve dogs to take the trail and they might be surethat Alligator Pete would not be on hand to bother the trail.
At a late hour they turned in, Tad Butler not as well satisfied overhis achievement as most lads would have been.
It was late in the night when Tad crawled from his tent and creptcautiously towards the spot where Alligator Pete lay sleeping. Hereached the prisoner without awakening him, so cautious had been hismovements. The first Pete knew of his presence was when Tad shookhim lightly by the shoulder.
The "Alligator" started up, but was too good a woodsman to utter asound.
"It's Butler," whispered the boy. "Have you a family?"
"Yes."
"How many?"
"Wife and some kids."
"Where are they?"
"Just over the line in Mississippi."
"Do you think, if you were let go, that you could go home toMississippi and behave yourself?"
"I reckon it wouldn't take me long to get home."
"And you will keep away from Bill Lilly and not try to take revengeon him?"
"I don't want to set eyes on him again."
"It isn't a question of your setting eyes on him, but of his settingeyes on you. If he does, he will shoot you on sight, Pete. Do youpromise to get over to your own state and behave yourself?"
"I promise."
Tad without further parley untied the knots that held the prisoner tothe tree.
"Your horse is about ten rods down the bank that way. Your rifle isin the boot and you have plenty of shells. I have also put some foodin your saddle bag. Now--get!"