CHAPTER XV.
WILD TURKEYS.
Without delay the Rover boys dropped behind the bushes, and John Barrowdid the same. All kept as quiet as possible, for they knew that on thefirst alarm the wild turkeys would be off.
The game was not over six feet from the ground, sitting in three rows onas many branches of a hemlock that overhung the stream. There were overa dozen in the flock, each as plump as wild turkeys ever get.
"How shall we fire?" asked Dick. "There is no call for all of us toshoot at the same bird."
"I'll take one on the left," answered John Barrow. "You take one on theright. Tom can take a middle one sitting high, and Sam a middle onesitting low. All ready?"
"Yes," came the answer, from one after another.
"Then fire when I say three. One, two--three!"
Bang! bang! went the firearms, and as the reports echoed through theforest, two of the wild turkeys were seen to drop dead under thebranches upon which they had been sitting. One, that was badly wounded,fluttered down and began to thrash around in the brush. The rest of theflock flew away with a rush and were lost to sight between the trees.
"Three! That isn't so bad!" cried Dick, as they all started on a runforward. Soon they had the turkey on the ground surrounded, and JohnBarrow caught up the game and wrung its neck.
"I guess I missed my mark," came rather sheepishly from Tom.
"You!" exclaimed Sam, in surprise. "I was just going to say I hadmissed."
"Nobody missed," put in the guide.
"Nobody?" came from the three Rovers.
"Somebody must have missed," added Tom. "We fired four shots and onlygot three birds."
"One of those that flew off was wounded. He dropped a lot of feathersand went up in a shaky fashion. Of course, he got away, but just thesame, he was hit."
"Well, I thought I missed clean and clear," said Tom doubtfully.
"And I thought I missed," laughed Sam. "I guess we'll have to dividethat third bird between us, Tom."
"We've got all the wild-turkey meat we'll want on this trip," came fromJohn Barrow. "Before this is gone, you'll want a change, I'll warrantyou."
While the guide was caring for the birds the boys went back for thesleds. Soon they were again on the way, and they did not stop until thevicinity of the falls was left far behind and they had again reached apoint where skating would be good for several miles.
"Reckon we can stop here and have dinner," observed the guide. "Feelin'kind o' hungry, aint you?"
"Just guess I am hungry," declared Tom "But I didn't want to sayanything till the rest did."
Some of the cooking utensils were unpacked, and while the boys got woodfor the fire, John Barrow brought out some coffee and other things. Itwas decided that they should not take time to cook a turkey until theywent into camp for the night.
Soon a fire was blazing merrily. They built it under the outer end of along tree limb, and from the limb suspended a pot full of water by along iron chain they had brought along. As the ground was covered withsnow, there was little danger of spreading a conflagration. Soon thewater was boiling and the guide made a steaming pot of coffee, which waspassed around in tin cups, with sugar and a little condensed milk. Theyhad brought along bread, cheese, chipped beef, and boiled eggs, andalso a mince pie which Mrs. Barrow had baked the day before, and thesemade what Tom declared was a famous dinner.
"No sauce like hunger sauce," laughed John Barrow, as he saw the ladsstow the food away. "Once I was trampin' the mountains all day without amouthful when I chanced to look in a corner o' my game bag and found aslice o' bread, at least two weeks old. I ate that bread up, hard as itwas, and nuthin' ever tasted sweeter."
"You're right," returned Dick. "The folks in the city who don't knowwhat to get to tickle their appetite ought to go hungry a few times.Then I'm sure they'd appreciate what they got."
The midday meal finished, they lost no time in repacking the sled loadand starting up the river once more. The stream was now wider thanbefore, and presently spread out into a small lake.
"This is known as Tillard's Pond," said John Barrow. "Feller named GusTillard built his cabin over yonder, about ten years ago. He went outbar-huntin' one day, and Mr. Bar came along and chewed him up."
"Gracious! Then there must be pretty ugly customers in this vicinity,"exclaimed Sam, with a shiver.
"Not so many as there used to be. After Tillard's death the boys over tothe Run organized a b'ar hunt, and we brought in six o' the critters.Reckon thet scart the others--leas'wise no b'ars showed up fer a longwhile after."
Out on Tillard's Pond a stiff breeze was blowing, and consequently theirprogress was not as rapid as it had been, nor were any of them as warmas formerly.
"We're going to have a cold first night, I can tell you that," saidDick, and his prediction proved true. By the time the sun sank to restbehind the mountain in the west it was "snapping cold," as Tom expressedit. The wind increased until to go forward was almost impossible.
"I know a pretty good place to rest in," said the guide. "It isn't overquarter of a mile from here. If we can make that we'll be all right tillmornin'."
John Barrow led the way, pulling one of the sleds, and the boysfollowed. Poor Sam was getting winded and skated only with the greatestof difficulty.
It was dark when they reached the location the guide had in mind--arocky wall on one side of the river. At one point there was a split inthe rocks. This was overgrown at the top with cedars and brushwood,forming something of a cave, ten or twelve feet wide and twice as deep,the bottom of which was of rock and fairly smooth.
"I camped here two winters ago," said John Barrow, as he called a halt."I laced up the cedars above and they formed a fust-rate roof."
"I guess they are pretty well laced still," observed Dick. "They seem tohold the snow very well. But we won't dare to make a fire in there."
"We'll build a fire in front, in this hollow, Dick. That will throw agood deal of hot air into the place, and if we wrap ourselves in ourblankets we'll be warm enough."
Everyone in the party was anxious to get out of the nipping wind, andthey lost no time in entering the "cave," as Sam called it. The entrancewas low, and by placing the two sleds in an upright position on eitherside they left an opening not over a yard wide. Directly in front ofthis the boys started a roaring fire, cutting down several dwarf cedarsfor that purpose.
"I don't much like the looks o' the sky to-night," observed John Barrow,after preparing one of the turkeys for cooking.
"Do you think there is a storm coming?" asked Tom.
"Looks to me like snow, an plenty of it."
"I hope it doesn't come until we reach Bear Pond," said Dick, "I don'twant Dan Baxter and his crowd to get ahead of us."
"They won't have no better time o' it than we'll have," was the guide'sgrim comment. "Aint no fun trampin' over the mountains with the snowcomin' down heavily; I can tell you that."
The wind continued to increase, and after the supper was cooked andbrought into the shelter, the guide took it upon himself to bank thefire with great care, that it might not blow into the forest and start abig conflagration.
"We've had some terrible fires here," he said. "One threatened my barntwo years ago, and we had to stay out two days an' a night a-fightin'it. It would be a bad thing a night like this."
To keep out the cold, Dick crawled to the top of the opening and boundin the cedar limbs closer than ever. He also got some brush-wood andsome vines, and on these placed a thick layer of snow.
"That's fine!" cried Sam, from below. "It's almost as tight as the roofof a cabin."
Tightening the roof made a big difference inside, and when they had hungup a blanket behind the upright sleds, and placed some cedar brush onthe floor, it was very cozy. They had brought along some candles, andone of these was lit and placed in a lantern which was in one of thepacks. It was not a bright light, but it was better than sitting in thedark, and it seemed to make the shelter warmer than ever.
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