A SHATTERED DELUSION
The burst of derisive laughter that greeted his proposition in no way
disconcerted Randy. He waited quietly until it was over, and then
repeated his request.
"Ho! ho!" cackled Daddy Perkiss; "is the lad tired of livin', or kin he
breathe under water like a fish?"
"He's a stout hearted chap," cried Mose Hocker, "and sense his mind's
bent on takin' a good long dive I reckon he kin have the boat. There
ain't no undercurrent out there as I know of, so he ain't likely to come
to harm, and besides I'm mighty anxious to git my gun back."
Here Mr. Hocker winked slyly at Daddy Perkiss and the fishermen.
The old man failed to appreciate the joke.
"It's temptin' Providence," he cried shrilly, pounding his cane on the
beach. "If you ever sees that weapon agin, Mose Hocker, I'll give you
ten pounds of the best plug terbacker that Bill Smith has in his store."
"That's a bargain," exclaimed Mose. "You fellows can testify to what he
said."
Then turning to Randy he added with a laugh, "Don't fail me now, lad.
Ten pounds of terbacker ain't picked up every day."
"Just give me a fair show and I'll astonish you all before long,"
replied Randy, moving toward the boat. "Ned, will you go with me?" he
added.
Ned willingly agreed, much to the amazement of Clay and Nugget, who
expected him to oppose Randy's project with all his might. The truth of
the matter was that Ned, being a sensible fellow, shared Randy's view,
and was rather anxious to see the tables turned on the credulous
rustics.
He was satisfied from the smooth and sluggish appearance of the water
that a dive would not be attended with danger.
In some unaccountable manner the news seemed to have spread through the
neighborhood, and when Ned and Randy embarked, the crowd had been
augmented by three men and two bare-footed urchins. A wagon containing
two farmers had stopped at the entrance of the bridge, and the occupants
were tying the horse preparatory to coming down.
Mose Hocker's boat was a large, heavy craft, built on the order of a
bateau, and was admirably adapted to Randy's purpose. The boys paddled
up stream a little until they were directly below the rock Hocker had
designated. Then, while the boat drifted down with a barely perceptible
motion, Randy hastily undressed.
"It's a pity we didn't bring a fishing line along," observed Ned. "I
could ascertain the depth for you in a minute."
"We don't need it," replied Randy. "I was never in better wind than I am
now. If there's a bottom at all I'll find it."
The boat was now one hundred feet below the rock, and a stroke or two of
Ned's paddle put it in line with the big buttonwood tree on the right
shore.
"This is just about the exact spot," said Randy, surveying with a
critical eye the rock and then the tree. "Hold the boat steady, Ned.
I'll be ready in a second or two."
This was not a difficult task, for the water was as smooth as a mill
pond and almost as motionless.
Clay and Nugget had by this time paddled out in their canoes to witness
operations, and the little group on the shore were waiting in breathless
silence.
Randy was prepared now, and suddenly he mounted the broad stern seat,
and stood on the outer edge.
An audible murmur came from the shore, and Daddy Perkiss mumbled
shrilly: "They're right over the middle of the Hole."
"Paddle down a little," said Randy in a quiet tone to Clay and Nugget.
"You obstruct the view. Still in the right location, are we?" he
inquired of Ned.
"Yes, as near as possible," was the reply. "Be careful, old fellow!"
Randy smiled and glanced at the expectant crowd on the shore. Then he
drew a long breath, pressed his hands together and dived gracefully into
the cloudy blue water. It was done so quickly and cleverly that no loud
splash followed, nor was the boat violently shaken.
As the seconds passed on not the least sound broke the stillness; every
eye was fixed on the spot where the lad had disappeared, and every heart
was beating tumultuously.
The seconds grew almost to a minute, and still the smooth surface
remained unbroken. Ned's hand trembled as he kept the boat in position,
and Clay and Nugget exchanged frightened glances.
"I knew it," cried Daddy Perkiss in a cracked voice. "That lad will
never be seen again. He's gone down to meet Jonas Rudy."
This ill boding prophecy had scarcely left the old man's lips, when
Randy shot into view a few feet to the left of where he had disappeared.
Half a dozen strokes brought him to the boat, and with Ned's assistance
he scrambled over the side.
His hands were empty.
A burst of laughter came from shore, and Daddy Perkiss cried
triumphantly: "Where's the gun, lad? Did you find bottom?"
Randy only waved his hand in reply. He was panting a little for breath,
but his face wore a very peculiar smile--a smile that quite baffled the
three eager boys.
"What luck?" queried Ned excitedly. "How far down were you? Did you find
anything?"
"You will know before long," replied Randy with aggravating calmness.
"Keep the boat in the same place, Ned. One more stroke. There, that's
it Here goes for another."
He quickly mounted the seat again, and drew in his breath.
"Hold on, young fellar," cried Mose Hocker in a loud voice, "Don't risk
your life a second time. I kin stand the loss of that terbacker."
Randy laughed, waved his hand, and went under head foremost.
The suspense was now greater than on the previous occasion. Ned began to
count, and when the half minute expired his face grew pale.
Thirty-five--forty--three-quarters of a minute! No sign of the reckless
diver. Had some undercurrent dragged him far down in those blue depths?
When the forty-ninth second had expired a loud murmur rose from the
people on shore, and just a second later it changed to a deafening burst
of applause as Randy shot above the surface holding in his right
hand--_Mose Hacker's gun_.
His face was fairly purple for want of breath, and he had scarcely
enough strength to gain the side of the boat. He threw the gun over
first and then, with Ned's aid, rolled into the bottom, where he lay for
a moment, panting for breath.
Cheer after cheer came from shore, and the boys joined in heartily.
Randy was all right in a moment, and as Ned paddled across the creek, he
hurriedly pulled on his clothes.
When the boat landed by the rocks such a scene ensued as no pen can
describe. The men crowded about Randy with eager congratulations, and
fairly pumped his arms off.
Mose Hocker snatched the gun and waved it triumphantly before Daddy
Perkiss.
"What do you think of that?" he cried. "The lad brought it clean up from
the bottom of Rudy's hole. I'll take that ten pounds of terbacker,
Daddy, as soon as you please."
"Shoo, now! thar's some trick about the thing," mumbled the old man
petulantly. "You can't make me believe that Rudy's Hole ain't two or
three hundred feet deep."
"But here's the gun to prove it," said Mose, "an' we all saw the lad
bring it up. Let him speak for himself, and say whether he touched
bottom or not."
"Of course I touched bottom," returned Randy with a slight shiver at the
recollection. "It was the biggest dive I ever made. The water must be
fifteen or twenty feet deep. It's not any more than that, though. I
thought I'd never come to the top the second time. I was just ready to
burst when I found the gun, and the weight of it kept me from coming up
rapidly."
Daddy heard the lad through, and then, with a contemptuous sniff, he
rose and hobbled up the path.
"Don't forgit the terbacker," Mose Hocker shouted after him.
The old man made no reply, and was soon out of sight.
"It's a hard blow for Daddy," said one of the fishermen, "an' the same
in fact fur all of us, I reckon. I've been brung up from a lad in the
full belief that Rudy's Hole were well nigh bottomless."
"And I," "and I," cried half a dozen voices.
"It will be most amazin' news to the whole community," said Mose Hocker,
"an' mebbe it'll teach folks to investigate things. I'm kinder sorry for
Daddy Perkiss. It was his chief delight to tell that story to every
stranger what come along, an' now he won't dare to open his lips about
Rudy's Hole. When I get the terbacker I'll give you fellows a plug
apiece."
Three or four of the men laughed at this, as though they had their
doubts on the subject.
"Oh, I'll keep Daddy to his word," resumed Mose. "He kin easily afford
it." Then turning to the boys he said abruptly, "I want you boys to come
down the creek and spend the night at my place. I'll try to treat you
well. The recovery of that gun means a good deal to me, and I want to do
what I kin in return."
Several other invitations of a similiar nature were extended to the
Jolly Rovers, but they accepted Mose Mocker's without hesitation. A few
moments later they paddled down the creek, cheered loudly by the
admiring spectators.