CHAPTER XII
THE MIDNIGHT VIGIL
"I'M glad to learn we don't have any 'fraidcats in this camp, and thatI'm likely enough to have plenty of company in keeping watch to-night inthe haunted house," Chatz remarked cheerfully, after the last scout hadbeen heard from.
"I've waited to see if it was going to be made unanimous," Elmer toldthem at this juncture; "and now that you've all toed the mark sohandsomely, why of course I'll have to exercise my judgment in pickingout, say a couple of fellows, who will stay to look after the camp herewhile the rest of us are otherwise employed."
"Lassoing ghosts, for instance!" Lil Artha murmured.
Elmer looked around the circle of faces again. All of them knew that hewas selecting the pair of scouts who would be left behind, and whiledoubtless a number of the boys were secretly hoping deep down in theirhearts that they might be one of the lucky number, they tried their bestto appear indifferent.
"Ted, you're one!" said the leader, presently; "and I think I'll appointLandy to keep you company." The latter commenced to splutter a little,when Elmer raised his hand, and continued: "Now, don't get the notionin your heads that because I've selected you for playing the role ofmartyr it was because I thought you'd prove weak-kneed, or in any wayshow up poorly. I've no reason to think anything of the sort; only therehad to be two chosen, and I've taken you for reasons of my own. Landywas complaining a short time ago of feeling squeamish, after gorginghimself with all that honey; and in case he gets sick who could attendso well to him as our Doctor Ted?"
That was explanation enough, and every one had to rest satisfied.Perhaps, if the truth were told, neither of the two scouts had anyregrets coming; and secretly they were envied by some of the lessfortunate ones, who would gladly have guarded the camp stores, if giventhe opportunity.
"One thing good," Chatz informed them, "we're going to have a moonpoking up in a little while. You know it's past the full stage, but fromten o'clock up to daylight it'll hold the fort up above."
"Fine!" exclaimed George, with a half laugh; "I always do like to havebright moonlight whenever I go after ghosts. You can see the whitethings so much better, and watch 'em flit around as soft as silk. I'mglad you've ordered up a moon to help out, Chatz; it'll sure make thingsmore interesting."
"I think myself it will, suh," the Southern boy said, placidly in histurn; "and if any of us feel like we'd want to make a bee-line from thehouse to this camp here, why, the running is better when you havemoonlight, you know."
"Huh! that was meant for me, I guess, Chatz," sneered George; "butyou'll have to take it out in waiting if you expect to see me chasingalong, and hollering for help, because some old owl with a white frontshows up, or the bats begin to fly in and out of that tower. I'm notbuilt very much that way."
"I hope not, suh!" was all Chatz said in reply; but George was seen tocolor up, and look a trifle confused, as though possibly he might not befeeling quite as bold inwardly as his words would imply.
"When ought we start over?" asked Lil Artha, just as carelessly, to allappearances, as though it might be a friendly visit to some neighboringcamp, instead of a thrilling experience in a haunted house.
"In about half an hour or so after the moon rises," Elmer informed him;"that ought to be time enough, don't you think, Chatz?"
"Plenty, suh," came the reply, "because, if there is any truth at all inthese stories they tell about such places, the fun doesn't ever begintill midnight."
"Fun!" muttered Toby, rubbing his chin reflectively; "well, it does beatall creation what some people call fun. Now, so far as I'm concerned,while I'm going along with you, and can't be made to back out, it's alla silly nuisance. I'd rather be climbing up into that same old tower,and getting ready for a drop with my reliable parachute."
"No use of that in the night-time, Toby," remonstrated Ty; "mebbeto-morrow we'll get a blanket brigade to stand below while you make yourfirst jump, so's to let you down easy if the old thing breaks."
"No danger of that, Ty; because I've gone all over it again and again,and right now she could sustain a weight of half a ton, I reckon. Butit's good of you to be interested enough in my invention to lend ahelping hand. Think what it'll mean to all the tribe of aeronauts whenevery flier is equipped with a Jones Life-saving Parachute, that isguaranteed to float him softly to the ground even if he has a breakdownaccident a mile up in the clouds."
Toby after that fell into a musing spell. Perhaps in imagination hepeopled the air fairly filled with flitting aeroplanes, and every singleaviator supplied with the remarkable device that was going to make thename of Jones the most famous in all the wide land.
The other scouts chatted, and exchanged all sorts of lively remarks.They even indulged in several songs that sounded very strange when heardamong those whispering pines of the grove, and knowing as they did whatmanner of house stood close by, with a halo of mystery surrounding it.
Just as Chatz had predicted the moon arose close on ten o'clock. It wasno longer as round as a shield, but had an end lopped off; still theflood of mellow light that came from the lantern in the sky was veryacceptable to the scouts, and served to render their intended missionless objectionable.
Finally Elmer arose, and there was a start on the part of those who hadbeen selected to accompany the leader and Chatz on their singularerrand.
"I hope you'll let me carry the gun, Elmer?" Lil Artha remarked,coaxingly.
"Why should you?" replied the other, instantly; "if it is a real ghost abullet wouldn't hurt a bit; and if it should turn out to be some oneplaying a mad prank I don't think you'd feel easy in your mind if youwere tempted to shoot him."
"But it might be some tramp or hard case, and we'd want to subdue him;how about that, Elmer?" questioned Toby.
"Well, we can carry clubs if we like," said Elmer; "and I mean to have apiece of stout rope, so we can tie him up if we overpower him. Sixscouts can put up a pretty hefty sort of fight, it strikes me, if thingsget to that point. No, leave the gun for the defenders of the camp andthe grub."
When presently the six boys stalked forth on their singular errand theydid not seem to be in very merry spirits. True, Elmer was smiling asthough he could give half a guess as to what they were about to run upagainst; and there was Chatz, a satisfied grin on his dark countenance;but the remainder of the investigating party could hardly have lookedmore solemn and melancholy if they had been about to attend the funeralof a dear departed friend.
"Good luck!" called out Ted, after them; while Landy waved his handmockingly, and grinned happily as he remarked:
"We'll expect to see you fetch back at least one full-fledged ghost,boys; and take care he don't bite you. They're apt to do something alongthat order, I'm told, by people who've interviewed some of the species.But you c'n tame 'em so they'll even eat out of your hand."
"Just you wait, that's all," was the sum total of what the departingscouts deigned to reply, as they vanished amidst the mixture of silverymoonbeams and darkening shadows.
Soon they glimpsed the house through the dense vegetation. It stood outboldly in the moonlight, grim and silent. There was not the halfexpected gleam of any inside illumination, only the dilapidated windows,the walls covered in many places by a rank growth of Virginia Creepervine, the broken chimneys rearing themselves up above the ridge, andthat square tower overtopping it all.
As they approached the walls of the house it might have been noticedthat those of the scouts who had been lingering a little back of therest somehow seemed to think they ought to close the gap, for theyhurried their footsteps, and were soon in a cluster, with no laggards.
"I've thought to fetch my little handy electric torch along, Elmer,"said Lil Artha about this time.
"It may come in useful," was the reply Elmer made; "but with all thatmoonlight going to waste I hardly think we'll need it. Still, you nevercan tell, and it's a mighty clever affair. You were wise to think offetching it, Lil Artha."
"Are we going to separate, Elmer; and if we do, wi
ll you let me placethe rest of the boys, suh?" Chatz asked before they reached the yawningdoorway of the deserted building.
"How about that, fellows?" the leader asked them; "do you think we hadbetter split up into several small parties or stand together?"
Toby, Lil Artha, Ty Collins and George heard this announcement with anew sense of consternation. In imagination they could easily picture howdreary and unpleasant it was going to be if each one had to take a postisolated from the rest, there to stand and listen, and perhaps _shiver_as the time crept on, until he must become so nervous that he could givea yell.
"For my part, Elmer," Lil Artha said, hastily, "I think we had ought tostick in a bunch. One couldn't do much against a--er--ghost, you see;while the lot of us might be able to down anything going."
"That's what I think too, Elmer," piped up George, "though of course, ifyou say so, I'm willing to do anything to carry on the game."
"United we stand, divided we fall!" spouted Ty Collins, who, while a bigblustering good-hearted fellow himself, did not exactly like thethought of being alone in that weather-beaten and half wrecked house, asthe hour drew on toward midnight.
"I think we ought to stick together, Elmer," Toby declared, whichconfession appeared to tickle Chatz, judging from the low snicker hegave utterance to; for, just as he had suspected, while none of thesefellows would admit that they placed the least faith in things borderingon the supernatural, still they did not fancy finding themselves leftalone in a house that had been given a bad name.
Elmer had been talking matters over with Chatz, so that they were agreedas to where the watchers should take up their positions. All talkingexcept in whispers was frowned down upon from that time forward; andthere is always something exciting about a situation when everybody isspeaking in low tones.
They entered the house, and led by Chatz passed up the rickety stairs.This was evidence enough that their vigil was about to be undertaken inthe upper story. George seemed to think that if he could manifest adisposition to joke a little it would be pretty good evidence that he atleast was not afraid; and while as a rule he left this weakness to Tobyand Lil Artha he could not resist the temptation to lean over andwhisper to Ty, so that Chatz also might hear, something to the effectthat it was just as well they were mounting those shaky stairs becausepeople who believed in silly ghosts must be weak in the upper story.
No one laughed, so George did not attempt any more witticisms. Truth totell, he was not feeling as perfectly indifferent as he tried to makeout; and when one of the others slipped a little, George it was whoexclaimed hastily:
"Oh! what in thunder was that?"
When the six scouts had gained the second floor they passed along thewide hall to the place that had been chosen for the vigil. While in thegloom themselves it was easily possible for them to look along themoonlit hall, diversified with shadows, and see any moving thing thatmight attempt to pass that way. At the same time by turning their headsthey could see out of the nearest window, and have a fair view of theopen space between the wall of the house and the dense bushes close by.Beyond arose the thickly interlaced trees, a wild scramble along theline of the survival of the fittest.
Elmer stationed them all as he thought would be best. They were toldthat they could sit down cross-legged, Turkish fashion, if they chose;but under no circumstances was any one to allow himself to beoverpowered by sleep. If a scout had reason to believe the one next tohim were nodding suspiciously he must whisper words of warning in hisear; and should that fail to effect a radical cure he was empowered totry other tactics, if by chance he possessed a pin.
Having been fully awake at the time of their arrival, something likehalf an hour went by with all the scouts apparently on the watch. ThenGeorge had to be admonished by Lil Artha several times, until finally alow gasp, and muttering, as well as quick rubbing of his thigh on thepart of George announced that the radical means had been employed inorder to keep him awake.
There is nothing more reliable as a sleep preventative than the jab of apin; it seems to send an electric shock through the whole system, andeyes that were just about to close fly wide-open again.
Twenty minutes later another low gurgling cry arose; this time it camefrom the elongated scout, and George was heard to whisper savagely:
"Tit for tat, Lil Artha; you gave me a stab, and now we're even."
"'Sh! I thought I heard something moving down there in the bushes!" thescout master told them, cautiously.
Of course every one was immediately quivering with intense anxiety andeagerness. It was very close on the mystic hour of midnight, too, whichadded to the interest of the matter. Could it be that they were about towitness some strange manifestation such as Chatz professed to believewas possible? No wonder that the boys wriggled erect, stiff in theirjoints after sitting there tailor-fashion so long, and pressing towardthe open window stared down toward the bushes to which Elmer hadreferred when he spoke.
So bright was the moon, now fairly high in the sky, that even smallobjects could readily be distinguished. There was nothing in sight thatthey could notice where the rank grass grew, and the trees and busheswere absent; but looking further they could actually see something whitemoving along through the brush.
No one said a single word, but there might have been heard several quickgasps; and a hand that fell on the sleeve of Elmer's khaki coat trembledfiercely. If ever some of those boys were willing to confess to thetruth they would admit that their hearts began to beat furiously aboutthat time, as with staring eyes they watched that mysterious whiteobject pushing through the matted bushes that grew just beyond the openspace near the walls of the haunted house.