THE NIGHT WATCH.
They were finally compelled to give up the search, although they did so
with the greatest reluctance.
"Unless it aids the other fellow to locate the claim first," said Bart,
"the loss of the map cannot be much of a disadvantage to you, Merry. It
could give us no further assistance in finding the claim."
"That's true," muttered Frank. "But the fact that mysterious men have
been prowling around here and one of them has secured the map seems to
indicate there are others who are searching for Benson Clark's lost
claim. If they locate it first----"
"It's rightfully yours!" growled Hodge. "No one else has a real claim to
it. Clark gave it to you."
"But he made no will."
"All the same, you know he gave it to you."
"We have discussed all that, Hodge," said Merry as they returned to the
tent. "If other parties find the claim first and begin work on it, they
can hold it."
Wiley was teetering up and down in front of the tent, apparently in an
uneasy state of mind.
"I have faced perils by sea and land!" he exclaimed, as they approached.
"It doesn't behoove any one to shunt me off onto a lunatic and a cripple
when there is danger in the air. My fighting blood is stirred, and I
long to look death in the mouth and examine his teeth."
Neither Merry nor Bart paid much attention to the spluttering sailor.
They consulted about the wisdom of changing their camping place for the
night.
"I don't think it is necessary," said Frank. "Whoever it was, the
prowler secured the map, and I fancy it will satisfy him for the
present. Something assures me that was what he was after, and we have
nothing more of interest to him now."
After a time they decided to remain where they were and to take turns in
guarding the camp. The first watch fell on Bart, while Frank was to take
the middle hours of the night, and Wiley's turn came toward morning. It
was found somewhat difficult to quiet Worthington, who remained
intensely wrought up over what had happened; but in time Merry induced
him to lie down in the tent.
Little Abe crept close to Frank and lay there, shivering somewhat.
"You have so many enemies, Frank," he whispered. "Who are these new
enemies you have found here?"
"I don't know at present, Abe; but I will find out in time."
"Why must you always have enemies?"
"I think it is the fortune of every man who succeeds to make enemies.
Other men become jealous. Only idiots and spineless, nerve-lacking
individuals make no enemies at all."
"But sometime your enemies will hurt you," muttered the boy fearfully.
"You can't always escape when they are prowling about and striking at
your back."
"Of course, there is a chance that some of them may get me," confessed
Frank; "but I am not worrying over that now."
"Worthington frightens me, too," confessed the boy. "He is so strange!
But, really and truly, he seems to know when danger is near. He seems to
discover it, somehow."
"Which is a faculty possessed by some people with disordered brains. I
fancied the fellow was dreaming when he declared he saw some one hiding
behind those rocks to-day; but now I know he actually saw what he
claimed to see."
"Oh, I hope they don't get that mine away from you! You have taken so
much trouble to find it!"
"Don't worry," half laughed Merry. "If they should locate the mine ahead
of me, I can stand it. I have two mines now, which are owned jointly by
myself and my brother."
"Your brother!" exclaimed Abe, in surprise. "Why, have you a brother?"
"Yes; a half-brother."
"Where is he?"
"He is attending school far, far away in the East. I received some
letters from him while you were in Denver."
"Is he like you?"
"Well, I don't know. In some things he seems to be like me; in others he
is different."
"He is younger?"
"Yes, several years younger."
"Oh, I'd like to see him!" breathed Abe. "I know I'd like him. What's
his name?"
"Dick."
"Perhaps I'll see him some day."
"Yes, Abe, I think you will. By and by we will go East, and I will take
you to see him at Fardale. That's where he is attending school."
"It must be just the finest thing to go to school. I never went to
school any. What do they do there, Frank?"
"Oh, they do many things, Abe. They study books which prepare them for
successful careers, and they play baseball and football and take part in
other sports. They have a fine gymnasium, where they exercise to develop
their bodies, which need developing, as well as their brains. In some
schools, Abe, the development of the body is neglected. Scholars are
compelled to study in close rooms, regardless of their health and of
their individual weaknesses. And many times their constitutions are
wrecked so that they are unfitted to become successful men and women
through the fact that they have not the energy and stamina in the battle
of life, at which successes must be won.
"I don't know that you understand all this, Abe, but many parents make
sad mistakes in seeking to force too much education into the heads of
their children in a brief space of time. It is not always the boy or
girl who is the smartest as a boy or girl who makes the smartest and
most successful man or woman. Some of the brightest and most brilliant
scholars fail after leaving school. Although at school they were wonders
in their classes, in after life others who were not so brilliant and
promising often rise far above them."
"I don't know nothing about those things, Frank," said the boy. "You
seem to know all about everything. But I want you to tell me more about
the school and the games they play and the things they do there."
"Not to-night, Abe," said Merry. "Go to sleep now. Sometime I will tell
you all about it."
Long after Merry's regular breathing indicated that he was slumbering,
little Abe lay trying to picture to himself that wonderful school, where
so many boys studied, and lived, and prepared themselves for careers. It
was a strange school his fancy pictured. At last he slept also, and he
dreamed that he was in the school with other boys, that he was straight,
and strong, and handsome, and that Dick Merriwell was his friend and
companion. He dreamed that he took part in the sports and games, and was
successful and admired like other lads. It was a joyful dream, and in
his sleep he smiled and laughed a little. But for the poor little
cripple it was a dream that could never come true.
In the night Frank was aroused by Bart, who lay down, while Merry took
his place on guard outside the tent. The night was far spent when Frank
awakened Wiley to take a turn at watching over the camp.
"Port your helm!" muttered the sailor thickly, as Merry shook him.
"Breakers ahead! She's going on the rocks!"
"Turn out here," said Frank. "It's your watch on deck!"
"What's that?" mumbled the sailor. "Who says so? I am cap'n of this
ship. I give off orders here."
Merry seized him by the shoulders and sat him upright.
"In this instance," declared Frank, "you're simply the man before the
mast. I am captain this voyage."
"I deny the allegation and defy the alligator," spluttered Wiley, waving
his arms in the dark. "I never sailed before the mast."
Frank was finally compelled to drag him bodily out of the tent, where at
length Wiley became aware of his surroundings and stood yawning and
rubbing his eyes.
"This is a new turn for me, mate," he said. "It has been my custom in
the past to lay in my royal bunk and listen to the slosh of bilge water
and the plunging of my good ship through the billows, while others did
the real work. I always put in my hardest work at resting. I can work
harder at resting than any man I know of. I have a natural-born talent
for it. Nevertheless, Cap'n Merriwell, I now assume my new duties. You
may go below and turn in with the perfect assurance that little Walter
will guard you faithfully from all harm. Though a thousand foes should
menace you, I will be on hand to repel them."
"That's right, Wiley; keep your eyes open. There may be no danger, but
you know what happened early this night."
"Say no more," assured Wiley. "I am the embodied spirit of active
alertness. Permit rosy slumber to softly close your dewy eyes and dream
sweet dreams of bliss. Talk about real poetry; there's a sample of it
for you."
Smiling a little at the eccentricities of the sailor, Frank slipped into
the tent and again rolled himself in his blanket.
Rosy dawn was smiling over the eastern peaks when Frank opened his eyes.
The others were still fast asleep, and Merry wondered if Wiley had
already started a fire preparatory for breakfast. It seemed singular
that the sailor had not aroused them before this. Stealing softly from
the tent, Merry looked around for the captain. At first he saw nothing
of him, but after some minutes he discovered Wiley seated on the ground,
with his back against a bowlder and with his head bowed. Approaching
nearer, Frank saw the sailor was fast asleep, with a revolver clutched
in his hand.
"Sleeping at your post, are you?" muttered Frank, annoyed. "Had there
been enemies near, they might have crept on us while you were sleeping
and murdered the whole party. You deserve to be taught a lesson."
Making no noise, he drew nearer, keeping somewhat to one side and behind
the sailor, then bent over and uttered a piercing yell in Wiley's ear.
The result was astonishing. With an answering yell, the sailor bounded
into the air like a jack-in-the-box popping up. As he made that first
wild, electrifying leap he began shooting. When his feet struck the
ground he started to run, but continued shooting in all directions.
"Repel boarders!" he yelled. "Give it to them!"
Frank dropped down behind the bowlder to make sure that he was protected
from the bullets so recklessly discharged from the cap'n's revolver.
Peering over it, he saw Wiley bound frantically down the slope toward
the spring, catch his toe, spin over in the air, and plunge headlong. By
a singular chance, he had tripped just before reaching the spring, and
he dived into it, splashing the water in all directions. This
termination of the affair was so surprising and ludicrous that Merry was
convulsed with laughter. He ran quickly out, seized the sailor by the
heels, and dragged him out. Wiley sat up, spluttering and gurgling and
spouting water, very stupefied and very much bewildered.
This sudden commotion had brought Hodge leaping from the tent, a weapon
in hand, while Abe and Worthington crawled forth in alarm.
Merry's hearty laughter awoke the echoes of the valley.
"Why do you disturb the placid peacefulness of this pellucid morning
with the ponderous pyrotechnics of your palpitating pleasure?" inquired
Wiley. "Did it amuse you so much to see me take my regular morning
plunge? Why, I always do that. I believe in a cold bath in the morning.
It's a great thing. It's a regular thing for me. I do it once a year
whether I need it or not. This was my morning for plunging, so I
plunged. But what was that elongated, ear-splitting vibration that
pierced the tympanum of my tingling ear? Somehow I fancy I heard a
slight disturbance. I was dreaming just at that moment of my fearful
encounter with Chinese pirates in the Indian Ocean some several years
agone. Being thus suddenly awakened, I did my best to repel boarders,
and I fancy I shot a number of holes in the ambient atmosphere around
here."
"You did all of that," smiled Merry. "I found it necessary to get under
cover in order to be safe. Cap'n, you certainly cut a queer caper. It
was better than a circus to see you jump and go scooting down the slope;
and when you plunged into the spring I surely thought you were going
right through to China."
"Well," said the sailor, wiping his face and hands on the tail of his
coat, "that saves me the trouble of washing this morning. But I still
fail to understand just how it happened."
"You were sleeping at your post."
"What? Me?"
"Yes, you."
"Impossible; I never sleep. I may occasionally lapse a little, but I
never sleep."
"You were snoring."
Wiley arose, looking sad and offended.
"If I did not love you even as a brother I should feel hurt by your
cruel words," he muttered, picking up an empty pistol that had fallen
near the spring. "But I know you're joking."
"You just said you were dreaming, Wiley," reminded Frank. "Is this the
way you are to be trusted? What if our enemies had crept upon us while
you were supposed to be guarding the camp?"
"Don't speak of it!" entreated the marine marvel. "It hurts me. In case
I closed my eyes by accident for a moment, I hope you will forgive me
the oversight. Be sure I shall never forgive myself. Oh, but that was a
lovely dream! There were seventeen pirates coming over the rail, with
cutlasses, and dirks, and muskets, and cannon in their teeth, and I was
just wading into them in earnest when you disturbed the engagement.
"In that dream I was simply living over again that terrible contest with
the Chinese pirates in which I engaged while commanding my good ship,
the _Sour Dog_. That was my first cruise in Eastern waters. The _Sour
Dog_ was a merchantman of nine billion tons burthen. We were loaded with
indigo, and spice, and everything nice. We had started on a return
voyage, and were bound southward to round the Cape of Good Hope. I had
warned my faithful followers of the dangers we might encounter in the
Indian Ocean, which was just literally boiling over with pirates of
various kinds.
"One thing that had troubled us greatly was the fact that our good ship
was overrun with rats. I set my nimble wits to work to devise a scheme
of ridding us of those rats. I manufactured a number of very crafty
traps, and set them where I believed they would be the most efficacious.
You should have seen the way I gathered in those rats. Every morning I
had thirty or forty rats in those traps, and soon I was struck with a
new scheme. Knowing the value of rats in China, I decided to gather up
those on board, put about, and deliver them as a special cargo at
Hongkong. With this object in view, I had a huge cage manufactured on
the jigger deck. In this cage I confined all the rats captured, and soon
I had several hundred of them. These rats, Mr. Merriwell, saved our
lives, remarkable though it may seem to you. Bear with me just a moment
and I will elucidate.
"We had put about and set our course for the Sunda Islands when an
unfortunate calm befell us. Now, a calm in those waters is the real
thing. When it gets calm there it is so still that you can hear a man
think a mile away. The tropical sun blazed down on the blazing ocean,
and our sails hung as still and silent as Willie Bryan's tongue after
the last Presidential election. The heat was so intense that the tar in
the caulking of the vessel bubbled and sizzled, and the deck of the
_Sour Dog_ was hot as a pancake griddle. Suddenly the watch aloft sent
down a cry, 'Ship, ho!' We sighted her heaving up over the horizon and
bearing straight down on us."
"But I thought you said there was no wind," interrupted Merry. "How
could a ship come bearing down upon you with no wind to sail by?"
"It was not exactly a ship, Mr. Merriwell; we soon saw it was a Chinese
junk. She was manned with a great crew of rowers, who were propelling
her with long oars. We could see their oar blades flashing in the sun as
they rose and fell with machine-like regularity. I seized my marine
glasses and mounted aloft. Through them I surveyed the approaching
craft. I confess to you, sir, that the appearance of that vessel
agitated my equilibrium. I didn't like her looks. Something told me she
was a pirate.
"Unfortunately for us, we were not prepared for such an emergency. Had
there been a good breeze blowing, we could have sailed away and laughed
at her. As there was no breeze, we were helpless to escape. It was an
awful moment. When I told my crew that she was a pirate they fell on
their knees and wept and prayed. That worried me exceedingly, for up to
that time they had been the most profane, unreligious set of lubbers it
was ever my fortune to command. I told them in choice language just
about what I thought of them; but it didn't seem to have any effect on
them. I told them that our only chance for life was to repel those
pirates in some manner. I warned them to arm themselves with such
weapons as they could find and to fight to the last. We didn't have a
gun on board. One fellow had a good keen knife, but even with the aid of
that we seemed in a precarious predicament.
"The pirate vessel came straight on. When she was near enough, I hailed
her through my speaking trumpet and asked her what she wanted. She made
no answer. Soon we could see those yellow-skinned, pigtailed wretches,
and every man of them was armed with deadly weapons. Having heard the
fearful tales of butcheries committed by those monsters, I knew the fate
in store for us unless we could repulse them somehow. Again I appealed
to my men, and again I saw it was useless.
"The pirate swung alongside and fastened to us. Then those yellow fiends
came swarming over the rail with their weapons in their teeth, intent on
carving us up. The whole crew boarded us as one man. Just as they were
about to begin their horrid work a brilliant thought flashed through my
brain. I opened the rat cage and let those rats loose upon the deck. As
the Chinamen saw hundreds of rats running around over the deck they
uttered yells of joy and started in pursuit of them.
"When they yelled they dropped their cutlasses and knives from their
teeth, and the clang of steel upon the deck was almost deafening. It was
a surprising sight to see the chinks diving here and there after the
rats and trying to capture them. To them those rats were far more
valuable than anything they had expected to find on board. For the time
being they had wholly forgotten their real object in boarding us.
"Seeing the opening offered, at the precise psychological moment I
seized a cutlass and fell upon them. With my first blow I severed a
pirate's head from his body. At the same time I shouted to my crew to
follow my example. They caught up the weapons the pirates had dropped,
and in less time than it takes to tell it that deck ran knee-deep in
Chinese gore. Even after we had attacked them in that manner they seemed
so excited over those rats that they continued to chase the fleeing
rodents and paid little attention to us.
"If was not more than ten minutes before I finished the last wretch of
them and stood looking around at that horrible spectacle. With my own
hand I had slain forty-one of those pirates. We had wiped out the entire
crew. Of course, I felt disappointed in having to lose the rats in that
manner, but I decided that it should not be a loss, and straightway I
began shaving the pigtails from the Chinamen's heads. We cut them off
and piled them up, after which we cast the bodies overboard and washed
the deck clean.
"When I arrived in New York I made a deal with a manufacturer of hair
mattresses and sold out that lot of pigtails for a handsome sum. It was
one of the most successful voyages of my life. When Congress heard of
the wonderful things I had done in destroying the pirates, it voted me a
leather medal of honor. That's the whole story, Mr. Merriwell. I was
dreaming of that frightful encounter when you aroused me. Perhaps you
may doubt the veracity of my narrative; but it is as true as anything I
ever told you."
"I haven't a doubt of it," laughed Frank. "It seems to me that the most
of your wonderful adventures are things of dreams, cap'n. According to
your tell, you should have been a rich man to-day. You have had chances
enough."
"That's right," nodded the sailor. "But my bountiful generosity has kept
me poor. In order to get ahead in this world a fellow has to hustle. He
can't become a Rockefeller or a Morgan if he's whole-souled and generous
like me. I never did have any sympathy with chaps who complain that they
had no chance. I fully agree with my friend, Sam Foss, who wrote some
touching little lines which it would delight me to recite to you. Sam is
the real thing when it comes to turning out poetry. He can oil up his
machine and grind it out by the yard. Listen, and I will recite to you
the touching stanzas in question."
In his own inimitable manner Wiley began to recite, and this was the
poem he delivered:
"Joe Beall 'ud set upon a keg,
Down to the groc'ry store, an' throw
One leg right over t'other leg,
An' swear he'd never had a show.
'O, no,' said Joe,
'Hain't hed no show;'
Then shift his quid to t'other jaw,
An' chaw, an' chaw, an' chaw, an' chaw.
"He said he got no start in life,
Didn't get no money from his dad
The washing took in by his wife
Earned all the funds he ever had.
'O, no,' said Joe,
'Hain't hed no show;'
An' then he'd look up at the clock,
An' talk, an' talk, an' talk, an' talk.
"'I've waited twenty year--let's see----
Yes, twenty-four, an' never struck,
Altho' I've sot roun' patiently,
The fust tarnation streak er luck.
'O, no,' said Joe,
'Hain't hed no show;'
Then stuck like mucilage to the spot,
An' sot, an' sot, an' sot, an' sot.
"'I've come down regeler every day
For twenty years to Piper's store;
I've sot here in a patient way,
Say, hain't I, Piper?' Piper swore.
'I tell yer, Joe,
Yer hain't no show;
Yer too dern patient'----ther hull raft
Just laffed, an' laffed, an' laffed, an' laffed."
"That will about do for this morning," laughed Frank. "We will have
breakfast now."
That day Frank set about a systematic search for some method of getting
into the Enchanted Valley, as he had called it. Having broken camp and
packed everything, with the entire party he set about circling the
valley. It was slow and difficult work, for at points it became
necessary that one or two of them should take the horses around by a
détour, while the others followed the rim of the valley.
Midday had passed when at last Merry discovered a hidden cleft or
fissure, like a huge crack in the rocky wall, which ran downward and
seemed a possible means of reaching the valley. He had the horses
brought to the head of this fissure before exploring it.
"At best, it is going to be a mighty difficult thing to get the horses
down there," said Bart.
"We may not be able to do it," acknowledged Merry; "but I am greatly in
hopes that we can get into the valley ourselves at last."
When they had descended some distance, Frank found indications which
convinced him that other parties had lately traversed that fissure.
These signs were not very plain to Bart, but he relied on Merry's
judgment.
They finally reached a point from where they could see the bottom and
look out into the valley.
"We can get down here ourselves, all right," said Hodge. "What do you
think about the horses?"
"It will be a ticklish job to bring them down," acknowledged Merry; "but
I am in for trying it."
"If one of the beasts should lose his footing and take a tumble----"
"We'd be out a horse, that's all. We must look out that, in case such a
thing happens, no one of us is carried down with the animal."
They returned to the place where Wiley, Worthington, and little Abe were
waiting. When Frank announced that they could get into the valley that
way, the deranged man suddenly cried:
"There's doom down there! Those who enter never return!"
"That fellow is a real cheerful chap!" said the sailor. "He has been
making it pleasant for us while you were gone, with his joyful
predictions of death and disaster."
They gave little heed to Worthington. Making sure the packs were secure
on the backs of the animals, they fully arranged their plans of descent
and entered the fissure. More than an hour later they reached the valley
below, having descended without the slightest mishap.
"Well, here we are," smiled Merry. "We have found our way into the
Enchanted Valley at last."
"Never to return! Never to return!" croaked Worthington.
"It's too late to do much exploring to-night, Merry," said Hodge.
"It's too late to do anything but find a good spot and pitch our tent."
"Where had we better camp?"
After looking around, Merriwell suggested that they proceed toward the
northern end of the valley, where there was timber.
"It's up that way we saw smoke, Frank," said Hodge.
"I know it."
As they advanced toward the timber they came to a narrow gorge that cut
for a short distance into the side of a mighty mountain. The stream
which ran through the valley flowed from this gorge, and further
investigation showed that it came from an opening in the mountainside
itself. Beside this stream they found the dead embers of a camp fire.
"Who built it, Frank?" asked Bart, as Merry looked the ground over. "Was
it Indians, do you think?"
Merriwell shook his head.
"No; it was built by white men."
Hodge frowned.
"It makes little difference," he said. "One is likely to be as dangerous
as the other."
"We will camp here ourselves," decided Merry.
The animals were relieved of their packs, and they busied themselves in
erecting a tent and making ready for the night. Little Abe was set to
gathering wood with which to build a fire. Darkness came on ere they had
completed their tasks, but they finished by the light of the fire, which
crackled and gleamed beside the flowing stream.
Wiley had shown himself to be something of a cook, and on him fell the
task of preparing supper. He soon had the coffeepot steaming on a bed of
coals, and the aroma made them all ravenous. He made up a batter of corn
meal and cooked it in a pan over the fire. This, together with the
coffee and their dried beef, satisfied their hunger, and all partook
heartily.
"Now," said Wiley, as he stretched himself on the ground, "if some one
had a perfecto which he could lend me, I would be supinely content. As
it is, I shall have to be satisfied with a soothing pipe."
He filled his pipe, lighted it, and lay puffing contentedly. Bart and
Merry were talking of what the morrow might bring forth, when suddenly
Worthington uttered a sharp hiss and held up his hand. Then, to the
surprise of all, from some unknown point, seemingly above them, a voice
burst forth in song. It was the voice of a man, and the narrow gorge
echoed with the weird melody. Not one of them could tell whence the
singing came.
"Where dead men roam the dark
The world is cold and chill;
You hear their voices--hark!
They cry o'er vale and hill:
'Beware!
Take care!
For death is cold and still.'"
These were the words of the song as given by that mysterious singer.
They were ominous and full of warning.
"That certainly is a soulful little ditty," observed Wiley. "It is so
hilariously funny and laughable, don't you know."
Frank kicked aside the blazing brands of the fire with his foot and
stamped them out, plunging the place into darkness.
"That's right," muttered Hodge. "They might pick us off any time by the
firelight."
A hollow, blood-chilling groan sounded near at hand, and Wiley nearly
collapsed from sudden fright. The groan, however, came from the lips of
Worthington, who was standing straight and silent as a tree, his arms
stretched above his head in a singular manner.
"The stars are going to fall!" he declared, in a sibilant whisper that
was strangely piercing. "Save yourselves! Hold them off! Hold them off!
If they strike you, you will be destroyed!"
"Say, Worth, old bughouse!" exclaimed Wiley, slapping the deranged man
on the shoulder; "don't ever let out another geezly groan like that!
Why, my heart rose up and kicked my hair just about a foot into the air.
I thought all the ghosts, and spooks, and things of the unseen world had
broken loose at one break. You ought to take something for that. You
need a tonic. I would recommend Lizzie Pinkham's Vegetable Compound."
"Keep still, can't you!" exclaimed Hodge, in a low tone. "If we hear
that voice again, I'd like to locate the point from whence it comes."
"Oh, I will keep still if you will guarantee to muzzle Worth here,"
assured the sailor.
The deranged man was silent now, and they all seemed to be listening
with eager intentness.
"Why doesn't he sing some more, Merry?" whispered Bart.
After some moments, the mysterious voice was heard again. It seemed to
come from the air above them, and they distinctly heard it call a name:
"Frank!"
Merry stood perfectly still, but, in spite of himself, Bart Hodge gave a
start of astonishment.
"Frank Merriwell!"
Again the voice called.
"Great Cæsar's ghost!" panted Hodge in Merry's ear. "Whoever it is, he
knows you! He is calling your name. What do you think of that?"
"That's not so very strange, Bart."
"Why not?"
"Since we came into the valley, either you, or Wiley, or Abe have spoken
my name so this unknown party overheard it."
"Frank Merriwell!" distinctly spoke the mysterious voice; "come to me!
You must come! You can't escape! You buried me in the shadow of Chaves
Pass! My bones lie there still; but my spirit is here calling to you!"
"Booh!" said Wiley. "I've had more or less dealings with spirits in my
time, but never with just this kind. Now, ardent spirits and _spritis
fermenti_ are congenial things; but a spooky spirit is not in my line."
"I tell you to keep still," whispered Hodge once more.
"I am dumb as a clam," asserted the sailor.
"Do you hear me, Frank Merriwell?" again called the mysterious voice. "I
am the ghost of Benson Clark. I have returned here to guard my mine.
Human hands shall never desecrate it. If you seek farther for it, you
are doomed--doomed!"
At this point Worthington broke into a shriek of maniacal laughter.
"Go back to your grave!" he yelled. "No plotting there! No
violence--nothing but rest!"
"Now, I tell you what, mates," broke in Cap'n Wiley protestingly;
"between spook voices and this maniac, I am on the verge of nervous
prostration. If I had a bottle of Doctor Brown's nervura, I'd drink the
whole thing at one gulp."
Having shouted the words quoted, Worthington crouched on the ground and
covered his face with his hands.
"What do you think about it now?" whispered Bart in Frank's ear.
"Whoever it is, he knows about Benson Clark and his claim. He knows you
buried Clark. How do you explain that?"
"I can see only one explanation," answered Frank, in a low tone. "This
man has been near enough at some time when we were speaking of Clark to
overhear our words."
"This man," muttered Wiley. "Why, jigger it all! it claims to be an
ethereal and vapid spook."
"Don't be a fool, Wiley!" growled Hodge. "You know as well as we do that
it is not a spook."
"You relieve me greatly by your assurance," said the sailor. "I have
never seen a spook, but once, after a protracted visit on Easy Street, I
saw other things just as bad. I don't think my nerves have gained their
equilibrium."
"What will we do about this business, Merry?" asked Hodge.
"I don't propose to be driven away from here by any such childish
trick," answered Frank grimly. "We will not build another fire to-night,
for I don't care to take the chances of being picked off by any one
shooting at us from the dark. However, we will stay right here and show
this party that he cannot frighten us in such a silly manner."
"That's the talk!" nodded Hodge. "I am with you."
"Don't forget me," interjected the sailor.
"You!" exclaimed Frank sharply. "How can we depend on a fellow who
sleeps at his post when on guard?"
"It's ever thus my little failings have counted against me!" sighed
Wiley. "Those things have caused me to be vastly misunderstood. Well, it
can't be helped. If I am not permitted to take my turn of standing guard
to-night, I must suffer and sleep in silence."
Having said this in an injured and doleful manner, he retreated to the
tent and flung himself on the ground.
Frank and Bart sat down near the tent, and listened and waited a long
time, thinking it possible they might hear that voice once more. The
silence remained undisturbed, however, save for the gurgle of the little
brook which ran near at hand.