THE COLONEL
"What's the matter, boys?" said a cheery voice behind them, and
they turned quickly to meet the smiling glance of a man who was
sitting on a rock at the edge of the glade.
He was tall, erect, and of military bearing. Quick and alert, in
spite of his snow-white hair and mustache.
"Why, Colonel Snow!" cried Jack in astonishment; "where did you
come from?"
"Oh, I saw you some time ago as you were coming ashore," replied
the colonel, "and I walked down to meet you. What's the trouble,
the enemy been making an attack?"
"Looks that way," answered Rand. "Monkey Rae made a raid on the
commissary and carried off the fish we had cooked."
"That's nothing to be concerned over," continued the colonel. "Why
don't you cook some more?"
"Can't," replied Pepper, "he upset the stove and spilled all the
oil we had."
"Stove!" ejaculated the colonel in scorn. "What do you want with
a stove?"
"Why, you can't cook without a stove," replied Pepper, "and, besides,
he stole our pan."
"Pan!" exclaimed the colonel, "and plates, too. When you are out
on a tramp all you need is a knife, a tincup and a match. Anybody
got a match?"
"Yes, sir," replied Jack, "lots of them."
"We only need one," answered the colonel. "A good scout doesn't
use more than one match to light a fire. Why, when I was out in
Arizona we would make one match do for a whole company."
"Crickets!" exclaimed Pepper, "that was going some."
"Suppose you let me show you how to cook without a stove. Jack,
see if you can't find some dry leaves and small twigs. Rand, you
can get some bigger pieces, plenty of them. That's the kind. And,
Pepper, you and Don bring up a lot of that clay from down there by
the water. That's the stuff. Now wrap your fish up in a coat of
clay. Never mind the scales. Coat them all over and pile them up
here as fast as you get them ready. If we only had some flour we'd
have a dinner in the real scout style."
"I don't see how you are going to cook them in that clay," put in
Jack.
"We are going to bake them," replied the colonel. "Build a good,
hot fire on top of them."
"Like they do with a clam bake?" inquired Rand.
"That's the idea," said the colonel, who, while talking, had been
packing the fish in two layers on a flat rock. "Now put your leaves
on--not too many--lay on your pieces, Rand, pile them up so as to
leave a draught. That's it; now, Jack, touch it off."
Jack struck a match which flickered for a minute and went out.
"Tut! Tut!" cried the colonel, "that won't do!"
"Oh, it doesn't matter," said Jack, "I've plenty more."
"No," corrected the colonel, "you should rely on only one. Now,
suppose we are out on the plains and this is your last match. Let
me show you how to do it."
Stooping down, the colonel waited a moment until there was a lull
in the wind, when he struck the match, shielding it with his hand
until it blazed up, and then touched it to the leaves, which,
catching the fire, were soon blazing fiercely.
"Now, then," went on the colonel, "we don't want the enemy swooping
down on us again. Don't you think it would be a good plan to throw
out a picket to keep guard?"
"I think it would," replied Rand, "although I don't think that he
will come back."
"You mustn't depend upon that," cautioned the colonel. "Always think
he will do the most unlikely thing. A good scout is always on the
alert, especially in the enemy's country."
"We didn't know we were in the enemy's country," said Rand, "but
I guess it is the enemy's country, wherever Monkey is. I'll take
the first turn," going off and circling about the place. "I guess
he's gone," he said to himself, but no harm looking!"
"Now," said the colonel, after a time, "I think our fish must be
pretty nearly cooked. Rake one of them out, Don, and try it, but
don't disturb the others until you find out. How is it?"
"Fine!" cried Pepper, who had assisted in the operation. "Couldn't
be better. Hadn't we better put on some more?"
"You will have to build another fire," replied the colonel. "Now,
see how well you can do it. Do it just as I did and light it from
this fire. We had only one match, you know."
"But what do you do when that is gone?" asked Pepper.
"Oh, that's a different story," laughed the colonel. "We'll come
to that later."
"Now," began the colonel, when they had finished their meal,
unanimously voting it the best dinner they had ever eaten, "I know
you all have been wondering how I happened to be here when you came
along."
"Yes, sir," admitted Jack, "we were talking about you just before
we came ashore."
"Speaking of angels, I see," said the colonel. "The fact is, boys,
I've got a little shack down here in the woods and whenever I get
tired of town I come out here and get a breath of the woods, and
I was out here to-day."
"That was lucky for us," interjected Donald.
"Is that your house above here?" asked Rand, "the one covered with
bark. We saw it as we came along. Pepper was sure an outlaw lived
there."
"And you weren't so far out of the way at that, were you, Pepper?"
answered the colonel. "How would you like to take a look at it?"
"'Twould be most interesting," said Donald.
"Come along then. I see the enemy were out in force," he added when
they had gone part of the way.
"How was that?" asked Rand.
"Monkey Rae," replied the colonel. "There were a number of them."
"Of Monkey Raes?" cried Rand. "Gee! I hope not."
"I mean," laughed the colonel, "there were more with him."
"Yes," said Rand, "he and Sam Hopkins and Red Burns are always
together."
"Who was the man with them?" went on the colonel.
"Was there a man with them?" asked Jack. "I wonder who he could
have been?"
"A man who walked with a limp," continued the colonel.
"Man with a limp," mused Jack. "What was he like, did you see him?"
"No," replied the colonel. "I only see his track. They came along
this way."
"Where do you see that?" asked Rand.
"Here is the trail," replied the colonel, pointing it out as he
spoke. "Here is the print of a foot on the dirt and here is another.
Here is a bigger and a heavier one; a man made those. You can see
one of them is deeper than the other, showing more weight on that
side."
"But, how can you see all that?" questioned Pepper. "You have hardly
looked at them, and I couldn't see them at all until you pointed
them out."
"Practice and observation," answered the colonel. "That trail is
as plain as day. There wasn't any attempt to hide it. Why, out on
the plains a scout would follow it at a gallop. See how far you
can track it."
"'Twill no be far, in my opinion," confessed Donald. "'Tis no over
plain."
But with much care and patience the boys were able to follow the
track for a considerable distance, losing it every now and then and
picking it up again, Rand being the quickest and Donald the most
persistent; ail of them getting a little more expert as they went
on.
"Where does it go now?" asked Jack after a while, when they had
lost it and were unable to pick it up again.
"That's doing very well for a beginning," commended the colonel.
"They went off here, I think to avoid the house, and we are almost
there."
A short walk brought them to the shack, which was set in a little
clearing in the woods. It was one-story high and about sixteen feet
square, with a small kitchen in the back. It was provided with two
doors, numerous windows, and had a small porch in front. It was
ceiled inside and scantily furnished with a few chairs, a couple
of tables and a couch, but the walls were ornamented with the heads
of deer and elk, as well as the skins of smaller animals, and the
floor was covered with bear and panther skins. Over the big fireplace
hung a shotgun with a couple of rifles, and several Indian bows
stood in one corner.