CHAPTER VII
TRAPPED IN THE CAVE
Don opened his eyes, yawned, and then got up from his comfortable bed, shaking himself and stretching to his heart’s content. Trotting over to Jack’s cot, he stood regarding his master, doubtful whether or not to wake him. Finally deciding that it must be time to get up, he stuck his cold nose into Jack’s hand, and uttered his low, good-morning bark, as Jack sleepily opened his eyes.
“Time to get up, old fellow, is it?” he said, pulling Don’s front paws up on his cot, while Don’s plumy tail waved vigorously. “Well, I’m not specially stuck on it, but ‘needs must when the—— ’”; then, turning to Don, he said, reprovingly, “You mustn’t say things like that, Don; it’s not nice.”
Here Tom chimed in, saying with a stifled yawn, “What time is it, anyway? It seems to me as if I had just gone to bed, and here you are talking about getting up!”
“Blame it on Don,” said Jack, cheerily. “He woke me up, and he says it’s about time for us lazy humans to be getting a move on.”
“Well, of course, what Don says goes,” Tom responded, caressingly pulling Don’s ear as the dog went over to him, for Tom came second in the big collie’s regard.
“Say, that was a narrow escape we had yesterday, wasn’t it?” asked Tom, reverting to the overheard plot of the day before. “There’s no telling what those fellows would have done if they had found out that we knew all about their plans of revenge.”
“Whom do you suppose Mr. Durland will pick out to go to the lumber camp to-day?”
“I haven’t the least idea,” Jack replied. “I’d like nothing better than to go myself. After I’d warned Mr. Flannigan of his danger, perhaps he would show me around the camp. It would be great fun, for I’ve always wanted to go over one thoroughly, but have never had the chance. We only got a glimpse of it the other day.”
“If you went, you could count on me to go, too, and old Don, here—he’d never consent to being left behind, would you, boy?” To which Don promptly gave a decided negative.
Although the boys had been talking in whispers, it was just enough to arouse the rest of the Scouts, and in a twinkling the lodge was filled with sleepy boys’ voices.
“I don’t want to get up,” complained one.
“I don’t, either! Nothing would suit me better than to stay just where I am for a couple of hours!”
“I wish I could take a dip and lie in the sun until I was dry, the way Don does. He never has to bother with clothes.”
However, a Scout’s sense of duty is always stronger than his love of ease, so in a few minutes the boys all filed out to take their morning plunge. It was only a few minutes until each Scout, refreshed by a dip in the cold water, and filled with the joy of living, rushed to the mess tent and began his day in a way approved from the beginning of time.
After the bedding had been aired and the cots made up, the boys were called together by the Scout-Master’s shrill whistle. They were then divided into squads, and each squad was assigned some special work for the day that was always play to the wood-loving boys.
“I think,” Mr. Durland said, “that since Jack knows the woods so thoroughly, he had better be the one to warn Mr. Flannigan of the plot. I suppose,” he added, turning to Jack, “that you want Tom to go with you, as usual, and of course Don couldn’t be kept in camp while you were out of it. If I were you, boys, I’d start right away, so that you can get back to camp early.”
With that the boys saluted, and with eager haste went into the lodge to get their things ready for the hike.
“Come on, Tom! Come on, Don!” Jack shouted a minute later as he led the way through the woods. “Let’s see how quickly we can get to the lumber camp. Sure, we’ll break the record. Ouch!” he exclaimed after a minute, turning to look frowningly at the plant that had pricked him.
“What do you suppose that is, Jack?” he asked. “I don’t remember ever studying a plant like that.”
“Guess you don’t! That’s one of the plants that grow near a bog—I forget the name of it now. We’d better look out, though, if we’re anywhere near a bog. I’m not over-anxious to take a mud bath,” Jack replied.
“We’d be mighty lucky if we got off with nothing worse than a mud bath. If we once got mired in one of those swamps, the chances would be two to one that we would never get out alive,” said Tom, and then added suddenly: “Where’s Don?”
“Blessed if I know!” said Jack, while his face began to take on a worried expression. “He can’t be very far off, though. He was here just a minute ago. Here, Don; here, Don—where are you, old fellow?” he called, but no joyous bark answered the well-known voice.
Then Tom put two fingers between his teeth and sent forth a shrill whistle that echoed and re-echoed through the trees. This time, to their great relief, they were answered, and in a moment more Don himself came bounding up to them. His relief showed in his voice as Jack patted his favorite on the head and said, “We thought you might be stuck in the swamp, Don. Don’t go away like that again, will you, old fellow?” And Don readily promised.
They started on again, this time with much greater caution than before. Whenever they came to ground that looked the least bit suspicious, they skirted it very carefully. Don had kept close to his master’s side as he had promised, although at times it was very hard for him to keep from chasing the squirrels and rabbits that looked at him in such an aggravating way. Finally one reckless little chipmunk scurried along almost under Don’s nose, and it was more than dog nature could stand. With a bound he was off after the little fellow, who, frightened by the sudden onslaught, fairly flew to the shelter of his hole and left Don to bark away his vexation.
Suddenly he stopped barking and trotted forward a few paces, then, with ears bent forward and front paw raised, seemed to be listening intently. Suddenly he burst into a chorus of wild barks and then crouched down, growling savagely, with his eyes fixed on a clump of bushes.
The boys, who were just rounding a rock and could not see Don on ahead, started forward eagerly to find the cause of his uneasiness, but stopped abruptly as two men armed with heavy clubs sprang out from the shelter of the bushes with the evident intention of doing for the dog then and there. In a flash it came to Jack that these were the two men whose plot they had overheard. Suppose they had seen the Scouts the day before and, taking it for granted they would warn Flannigan, had lain in wait for them here in this lonely spot?
As the boys were unarmed, discretion was the better part of valor, so, calling to Don, they doubled behind a couple of huge rocks and made for a cave that they had come across on one of their scouting expeditions a few days before.
Meanwhile Don had sprung at the man nearest him, who happened to be Lavine, and had caught him by the leg. Lifting his cudgel high in the air, the man would have felled him if he had not heard Jack’s command to the dog to “come along.” Quickly the dog dodged and started off in the direction his master had taken. By that time the second ex-lumberjack, O’Brien, had caught sight of the boys and had started off hotly in pursuit. Don knew that the boys’ safety depended on the time they had to get away, so he raced off after O’Brien. When he reached him, he snapped at his legs and hands, while the man, cursing and swearing horribly, aimed blow after blow at his tormentor’s head. Dodging the blows easily, Don watched the boys until they disappeared through the trees.
As Lavine came running up—Don’s teeth had only gone through his trousers—the faithful dog thought it was about time he left, so he made off as fast as his legs could carry him in the direction of the camp.
The cave that the boys were bound for had all the characteristics of some wild animal’s home. When the Scouts had come across it first they had been impressed by the fetid odor that filled it and the bones of small creatures that were strewn all over the floor. Now, as the boys rushed along, their one thought was whether or not the animal would be there.
Running, slipping, sliding and stumbling, they made their way down the steep ravine, dodged behind a boulder and came in sight of the bushes that hid the entrance to the cave.
“Quick!” Jack hissed, pulling aside the bushes. “I don’t think there’s anything in there, but if there is, we’ll have to take our chance!”
In less time than it takes to tell, the boys were inside and the bushes were once more in place. With hearts threatening to jump out of their mouths, they listened for the sound of footsteps outside the cave. Pretty soon they came. Heavy, ponderous footsteps they were, and they seemed to be nearing the mouth of the cave.
“I don’t see where the young deevils could have gone,” they heard the Frenchman say, “yet zey have disappear as if ze earth is open an’ swallow zem up.”
“I wish it had!” the Irishman replied, grimly. “More be taken if Oi could oncet get ahold of the spalpeens it wouldn’t be so very long before they’d be kivered with airth.”
The boys shuddered as they thought of the murderous attack they had so narrowly escaped, and it was with a long sigh of relief that they finally realized that their pursuers knew nothing of their hiding-place. After a short time spent in fruitless search, Lavine and O’Brien started off, grumbling and cursing, to scour the surrounding woods.
The boys had been in as much apprehension because of the possible return of the occupant of the cave as they had been because of the presence of the men. So now, when one danger was removed, they had time to think of the other. As soon as they thought the men were far enough away for them to venture out, Tom, who was nearest the opening, looked out to see if the way were really clear.
He sprang back in alarm as a great pile of dirt and stones came hurtling down the mountain side with a roar like thunder and with a force that made the ground tremble. The great mass was piled high before the opening of the cave, shutting out every vestige of light and air.