The Forester's Problem
For a moment the two men looked at each other in astonishment. Then, "Keep
that," said the forester. "We'll talk the matter over on our way back."
Mrs. Morton, not comprehending what had happened, also looked astonished.
But like the wise woman she was, she held her peace. Charley tossed the
other pasteboards in the fire, stuffed the green piece in his pocket, and
said good-bye to his new friend. The forester, after telephoning to his
office, followed Charley, and a moment later the two were spinning up the
road toward the fire trail.
"I can't understand it," said Charley. "Here's a package direct from Lew,
with the very clue we're looking for, and Lew never said a word about it.
I can't understand it. I'm certain Lew sent the box. That was his
handwriting on it. And I'm just as sure he never saw that bit of
pasteboard, for Lew would never slip up that way. I just can't understand
it."
They reached the point where Charley was to leave the car and plunge into
the forest. But Mr. Marlin, instead of stopping his motor, turned into a
natural opening in the woods and drove slowly among the forest trees. In
a moment he ran the car into a stand of pines, where it was protected by
the dense tops above and well hidden from sight of the highway.
"You couldn't get in here with anything but a Henry," laughed the
forester. "This old bus has taken me lots of places you would never have
believed possible."
He took the key from the switch on the dashboard, and the two stepped to
the ground. Charley wondered what the forester intended to do, but by this
time he knew enough not to ask questions. The forester started up the
trail with him. When they came to the big battery Charley understood, for
without a word the forester took Charley's little axe and began to chop
poles to carry the battery with. In a few moments these handles were bound
fast. The forester tossed the traps over his shoulder. Charley tied the
amplifier box to his belt. Then they picked up the battery and started
toward camp.
Suddenly Charley stopped. "By George!" he cried. "I forgot all about the
pup. I wonder where he got to."
He whistled and whistled, but apparently in vain. They went on, and at
intervals Charley whistled for the dog while he and the forester were
resting. Still no dog appeared. Charley's face grew long. "Gee! I'll miss
that pup," he said regretfully. "Why didn't I think of him sooner?"
Night was at hand when the two reached Charley's camp. Nothing had been
disturbed. Charley took advantage of the remaining daylight to couple up
the battery and the amplifier to his wireless. He tested the outfit and
found he had a strong spark that cracked like a whip when he touched the
key.
"Look at that!" he cried. "Now I feel better. I can always get into
communication with somebody now."
"You aren't a bit more pleased than I am, Charley," smiled the forester.
"I'll take back all I ever said about the wireless. If Morton can learn to
talk by wireless, the rest of my crew can also. When the dull season
comes, I'll start a radio school with you as instructor and we'll make
every man in the service learn to operate the wireless. The Department
ought to be glad to supply a good outfit; but if we can't get the money,
we can at least make some outfits like yours. We're going on a wireless
basis or my name is not Marlin."
The forester was interrupted by a joyous bark and in rushed Charley's pup.
"You blessed little fellow," said Charley, fondling the animal. "I suppose
you lost our trail when we got into the motor-car and you probably hung
around the battery all day and followed our trail back here. That's pretty
good. You've got great stuff in you, pup. The next thing I teach you will
be to stand guard over things as you probably did over that battery
to-day."
Darkness fell. Supper was cooked and eaten. "Have you heard that cat
lately, Charley?" asked the forester.
"No," replied Charley, "but I think I'll put the traps out anyway."
"We can attract it even if it isn't near by," said the forester. "Have you
a can of salmon that you can spare?"
"Sure."
"Then give me the traps and bring your can."
Charley got the things asked for. The forester, taking the flash-light,
led the way through the thicket to the open forest. At some distance from
the camp the forester stopped and turned the beam from the search-light
upward. Finally he found what he was looking for--a small branch about
seven feet from the ground. Then he cut the top of the salmon can, and
punching holes in the sides near the top, fastened a string to the can and
suspended the can from the limb. Then he set the traps in a circle under
the can, fastening the chains to convenient saplings, and threw two or
three small pieces of the salmon on the ground within the circle of traps.
Then they made their way back to camp.
Charley lighted a little friendship fire in the fireplace the ranger had
made, and the two sat down beside the flames. It was little more than
three weeks since Charley had first entered the forest. During that time
he had really seen very little of the forester. Yet as he sat beside his
chief, Charley felt as though he had known him always. A common emotion
had drawn them close together this day, and somehow Charley believed that
his feeling of affection for his chief was fully reciprocated. For a time
they sat in silence, each busy with his own thoughts.
"Charley," said the forester, after a time, "this accident to Jim hits me
pretty hard. It not only leaves the finest piece of forest under my care
without a direct overseer at the most dangerous time of the year, but
there were so many things we had planned to do this spring that cannot be
done without a ranger to supervise them. To be sure, I could transfer a
ranger here, but I have work for every man in his particular district.
Besides, nobody knows this territory like Jim. I believe you know it
better than anybody besides Jim. I only wish you were old enough to take
his place for a time.
"We're away behind with our planting, and there are trails to be brushed
out, new ones to be cut, roads to be built, camp sites to be selected,
timber to be cruised, a big lumber operation to be watched and the trees
to be marked for cutting and the lumber scaled, improvement cuttings to be
made, camp sanitation to be enforced, a fire-tower to be built on the
mountain here where your watch tree is. There's a tremendous lot of work
that Jim and I had mapped out for the spring and summer.
"Now it looks as though we should not be able to get any of it done. We
can't do a thing without a ranger to direct operations. Part of the
timber to be cut is in Lumley's district. He joins you here on the north.
He will look after all the lumbering in his territory, and I may have to
let him take charge of it all. It's a big operation and will have to be
watched closely. I just wish I knew where I could find a man capable of
taking Jim's place for a while."
"What will the ranger have to do in looking after this operation?"
"He'll have to mark the trees to be cut and see that only those marked are
cut; and he'll have to make sure the regulations are observed in felling
the trees and disposing of the tops; and finally he'll have to scale the
lumber and make sure that the state gets paid for all that is cut."
"What is there so difficult about that?" demanded Charley. "Tell me what
sort of trees are to be cut, and I can select and mark them as well as the
next man. And if you give me a copy of the regulations, I can tell whether
or not the lumbermen are observing them. If I can't make them live up to
regulations, I can easily report to you. And as for scaling timber, that's
a mere matter of arithmetic. I could learn to do that in five minutes.
Couldn't I help you with the lumbering? And as for the other jobs, Mr.
Marlin, give me some books that tell about them and let me study up on
them. I could put in several hours here every night in study. You don't
know how much I could learn in a week. And then you could give me some
practical lessons after I had studied up the theory of things. I'm sure I
can do lots of the work you were counting on Mr. Morton to do. Won't you
let me help you?"
"Bless your heart, Charley! I know you mean every word you say. But you
don't realize the difficulties you would encounter. Your chief job would
be in handling men, tough men some of them, too. You could never do it,
never. But I certainly wish you were old enough to attempt it. There's
nobody I'd trust sooner than you, Charley. You've got a good education,
and you think quickly and clearly. You've been equal to every emergency
you've faced yet."
"Then why isn't that a pretty good reason to trust me further?"
"Trust you, Charley? I trust you absolutely. But you are too young. You
could never do it."
Charley said no more. The hope that had sprung up in his heart died as
suddenly as it had been born. In his heart he believed that with all the
study and effort he was willing to put into it, he could do a ranger's
work all right. But he saw it was not to be.
"Anyway," he muttered to himself, "I'm going to be a ranger some day, and
I'll show the chief now that I'm the best fire patrol he ever had. That's
the best way to qualify for promotion."
He turned to his wireless, threw over his switch and flashed out the call
signal of the Wireless Patrol. In his delight at the power of his new
battery he almost forgot his disappointment. In a very short time he got
a reply from Henry.
"Don't say anything about that pasteboard," cautioned the chief.
"I don't intend to," answered Charley. "I'm going to write to Lew about it
and let you take the letter out in the morning. You never can tell who
will pick up a wireless message."
For several minutes Charley chatted briskly with Henry, who said the new
battery carried the signals to him as clear as a bell. Charley told Henry
about Mr. Morton's accident, omitting reference to his own part in the
affair, and then through Henry got into touch with both Mrs. Morton and
the assistant forester at headquarters. Mr. Morton was getting along all
right, though he suffered very great pain. The forester's assistant
reported everything quiet in the forest.
Charley turned away from his wireless key, and got out pencil and paper.
By the light of the candle lantern he began his letter to Lew, and had
almost finished it when the pup, his hair bristling, ran to the door of
the tent, growling savagely. An instant later both the forester and
Charley leaped to their feet as the stillness of the forest was broken by
an awful scream that rang through the dark and was thrown back by the
mountain in a magnified echo even more terrifying than the original cry.