AT LAKE TAHOE.
Poised like a sparkling gem in a grand and glorious setting of
mountain peaks, lies Lake Tahoe, the highest body of water on the
American continent.
The sun was shining from a clear sky when Frank Merriwell and Harry
Rattleton reached a point where they could look down upon the bosom of
the lake, from which the sunlight was reflected as from the surface of
a mirror.
"There it is, old man!" cried Frank, enthusiastically--"the most
beautiful lake in all the wide world!"
"That is stutting it rather peep--I mean putting it rather steep,"
said Harry, with a remonstrating grin.
"But none too steep," asserted Frank. "People raved about the beauties
of Maggiore and Como, and thousands of fool Americans rush over to the
old world and go into raptures over those lakes, but Tahoe knocks the
eye out of them both."
"I think you are stuck on anything American, Frank."
"I am, and I am proud of it, too. Rattleton, we have a right to be
proud of our country, and we would be blooming chumps if we weren't.
It is the greatest and grandest country the sun ever shone upon, and a
fellow fully realizes it after he has been abroad and traveled around
over Europe, Asia and Africa. I've been sight-seeing in those lands,
my boy, and I know whereof I speak."
"You are thoroughly American, anyway, Frank."
"That's right. I love my native land and its beautiful flag--Old
Glory! I never knew what it was to feel a thrill of joy that was
absolutely painful till I saw the Stars and Stripes in a foreign land.
The sight blinded me with tears and made me feel it would be a
privilege to lay down my life in defense of that starry banner."
"Well, you're a queer duck, anyway!" exclaimed Harry. "I never saw a
chap before who seemed cool as an iceberg outside and had a heart of
fire in his bosom."
Frank laughed.
"Every man is peculiar in his own way," he said "I never try to be
anything different than I am. I am disgusted by affectation."
"We have found Lake Tahoe, but that is not finding the 'buried
heiress,' as you call her."
"But we will find her."
"I scarcely think it will be an easy task."
"Nor do I think so, but I gave George Morris my word, and I am going
to keep my promise to him, poor fellow!"
"You never seem to consider the possibility of failure, Frank."
"The ones who consider the possibility of failure are those who fail,
old fellow. Those who succeed are the ones who never think of
failure--who believe they cannot fail. Confidence in one's self is an
absolute requisite in the battle of life."
"There is such a thing as egotism."
"Yes. That consists in bragging about what you can do. It is most
offensive. It is the fellow who does things without boasting who cuts
ice in this world. The other fellow often spends his time in telling
what he can do, but never does much."
"I think you are right; but let's get down nearer the lake. I've heard
that the water is marvelously clear."
"It is so clear that a small fish may be seen from the surface, though
the fish is near the bottom where the lake is the deepest."
"Then it can't be very deep."
"It is, nevertheless. In many places it is thirty or forty feet--even
more than that."
"Then who invented the fish story?"
"The fish story is all right," laughed Merriwell. "I know."
"How do you know?"
"I've been here before."
"Here--at Lake Tahoe?"
"Sure."
"Well, say!" cried Rattleton, in astonishment, "I'd like to know where
you haven't been!"
"Oh, there are lots of places where I haven't been, but this is one of
the places where I have been. That's all."
"What brought you here?"
"I came here in pursuit of a young lady in whom a friend of mine, Bart
Hodge, was interested."
"I think I have heard you speak of Hodge."
"Yes, he was my chum when I was in Fardale Military Academy. We were
enemies at first, and Hodge did his best to down me, but we became
friendly after that, and Hodge turned out to be a very decent fellow."
"Where is he now?"
"Give it up. Haven't heard from Bart in a long time. Last I knew he
was out here in the West somewhere."
The boys had reached Tahoe on their wheels, there being a road to the
lake. The road was not a very good one for bicycle traveling, but they
had ridden a portion of the way.
Now they had left the road and pushed down to the lake by a winding
path, along which they had been forced to carry their wheels at times.
They made their way down to the edge of a bluff, from the verge of
which they could look over into the water.
"Say! it is clear!" cried Harry.
"I told you so," smiled Frank.
"But--but--why, it almost seems to magnify! I can count the pebbles on
the bottom. Look at those tiny fishes swimming around there."
In truth the water was marvelously clear, and things on the bottom
could be seen almost as plainly as if they were not beneath the
surface.
"Why, it don't seem possible that a boat can float on it!" broke from
Harry.
"It is something like floating in the air."
"Are there boats to be obtained near here?"
"There are a number of boats on the lake. There once was a man near
here by the name of Big Gabe who owned a boat."
"Let's get it, if he is here now. I want to take a sail on this lake.
How do we find Big Gabe?"
"I don't know that we'll be able to find him at all. He was a
consumptive."
"Oh, then he may be dead?"
"Not from consumption. He came here to die, but in less than a year he
was stronger and heartier than he had ever before been, and he was so
lazy that he didn't care to do anything but lay around and take life
easy. He said he was going to stay here till he died, but there seemed
little prospect that he'd ever die. He----"
At this moment there was a sudden wild snarl behind them, and, before
they could turn, each lad received a powerful thrust that sent him
whirling from the bluff to fall with a great splash into the water
below.
Both lads had pulled their bicycles over the brink, so the wheels fell
with a loud splash into the water which washed against the base of the
steep rock.
The boys themselves had been sent whirling still farther out, and they
sank like stones when they struck the water.
But they came up quickly, wondering what had happened.
"Blate glisters--no, great blisters!" gurgled Harry, as he spurted
water like a whale. "Where are we at?"
"Christmas!" said Frank. "What struck us?"
And then, on the top of the bluff, they saw a creature that was
dancing and howling with rage and satisfaction.
It was Apollo, the dwarf.
"May I be hanged!" exploded Rattleton. "It's that thing!"
"It is!" agreed Frank; "and I supposed that thing must be hundreds of
miles from here."
"Going East."
"Of course."
"Belmont didn't let any grass grow under his feet before he got out."
"Not much."
The creature on the bluff danced and screamed and waved its long arms,
while its hideous face was convulsed with expressions of rage.
"Oh, I'd like to get at him!" grated Frank.
"Thank you, I'd much rather keep away!" exclaimed Harry.
Then the boys started to swim ashore.
Suddenly the dwarf began throwing stones at them. He picked up huge
stones from the ground and sent them whizzing through the air with
great force and something like accuracy.
"Well, this is getting rather hot!" exclaimed Frank, as a huge jagged
stone shot down past his head and sank in the water.
"Hot!" gurgled Rattleton. "I should say so--some!"
"Look out!"
Another huge stone struck between them.
"If that had hit either of us, it would have fixed us!" came from
Frank.
"You bet!"
"Swim, old fellow! We must get away."
But as they swam, looking for a place to go ashore, the dwarf followed
along the top of the bluff, still pelting them with stones, while he
uttered those savage cries.
One of the smaller stones struck Merry and hurt him not a little.
"Wait!" he muttered. "I'll get a chance at you yet!"
Then, regardless of the shower of stones, he started to swim in toward
the shore where he saw a place that they could get out of the water.
But another stone whizzed down, and there came a broken, strangling
cry from Harry.
"What happened, old fellow?" asked Frank, who was now a bit in
advance. "Did the cur hit you?"
No answer.
Frank looked around, and found Harry had disappeared from view.
The dwarf on the bluff danced and howled with fierce delight.
As quickly as he could, Frank turned about, swam back a little and
dived. It did not require a great effort to go down, for now his
clothes were thoroughly wet, and he sank easily.
As soon as he was below the surface, keeping his eyes open, he saw his
friend lying on the bottom. The water was so clear that there was not
the least difficulty in this.
Down Frank went till he reached Harry, whom he grasped. Planting his
feet on the bottom, he gave a great leap and shot upward.
The water was not more than eight feet deep, and he quickly reached
the surface, immediately striking for the shore.
But his watersoaked garments and Harry's weight dragged on him, and it
was a desperate battle to keep from going down again.
"You must do it, Merriwell!" he told himself. "It's your only show!
Pull him out somehow!"
Several times his head was forced below the surface and it seemed that
the struggle was over; but he would not give up, and he would not let
go his hold on Harry.
"Both or none!" he thought. "If I can't get out with him, I'll not get
out without him!"
The dwarf had disappeared from the bluff, which was a fortunate thing,
as he would have been given a fine opportunity to pelt them with rocks
as Frank slowly and laboriously swam ashore. Just then, if Merriwell
had been struck on the head by a stone, it must have ended the whole
affair.
"Oh, if my clothes were off!" panted Frank. "Then I could do it. I
must do it anyway."
He wondered how badly Harry was hurt, but it was impossible to tell
till the shore was reached.
The water did not seem so buoyant as it should, and he almost felt
that there was a force dragging him down.
Purely by his power of determination he succeeded in reaching the
rocks and dragging himself out with his burden, when he sank down
utterly exhausted.
"Thank goodness!" he gasped. "I did it!"
He had not been there many moments when he heard a cry above, and,
looking upward, saw the dwarf had returned to the edge of the bluff.
The dwarf seemed astonished when he saw the boys had reached shore,
and he sent a stone whistling down at them.
Frank dodged the missile, and then, with a fresh feeling of strength,
hastened up the rocks toward the top of the bluff.
Apollo saw the boy coming and immediately took to his heels, quickly
disappearing from view.
Finding the dwarf had escaped, Frank turned back, lifted Harry in his
arms, and again mounted the rocks.
He reached the top and bore his friend to a place where he could rest
on some short grass where he was sheltered from the sunlight.
Then Frank looked for Harry's injury.
Rattleton had been struck on the head by a stone, which had cut a
short gash in the scalp, and from this blood was flowing.
"It doesn't seem very bad," said Frank, as he examined the wound. "I
rather think it stunned him, and that is all. He was not under water
long enough to drown."
Frank took a handkerchief from his pocket and wrung it out, intending
to bind up Harry's head with it.
At that moment, happening to glance up, he saw a pale, horrible face
peering out from a mass of shrubbery.
It was the face of Apollo, the dwarf.
"That creature still here!" grated Merriwell, as he sprang up. "If he
isn't driven away, he may find a way to injure us further."
Then he ran after Apollo, who quickly disappeared.
Frank pursued the dwarf hotly, hearing the little wretch crashing
along for some distance, but Apollo succeeded in keeping out of sight,
and, at last, he could be heard no more.
Merry was disgusted. He spent some time in searching for Apollo, and
then returned to the spot where he had left Harry.