The greatest excitement reigned aboard the houseboat, when it was
realized that while they were talking about their former experience,
here a fire had broken out on board some other boat just below them.
"Shall we go and help put it out, Frank?" asked Bluff, who seemed quite
anxious to have an affirmative reply. "Looks like we're just bound to be
called on for any little old job along this river. Fire fighters, get
busy!"
"We can't all go," said Frank, remembering their former experience; "and
as Jerry was complaining of having hurt his foot on that nail a little
while ago, why, he will have to stay, and watch the boat. The rest come
with me!"
No one thought to question Frank's authority, because he had long ago
been elected as the chief of the club: and his word was law; though, as
a rule, he tried to make his comrades feel that they had as much voice
in settling ordinary matters as he did.
Bluff and Will jumped ashore after their leader. Jerry grumbled a whole
lot, not at Frank's decision, but the unfortunate freak of Fate that
made him suffer from stepping on a nail in his bare feet, just when he
wanted to have an equal chance with his chums about going to the help of
those in danger of being burnt out.
Frank and his two companions ran as fast as they could. The bank
happened to be fairly open, so they quickly reached the point of land
that jutted out. Below here there seemed to be some sort of beach, and
over this they could make quick time.
Before now they had discovered that, sure enough, a boat was afire, and
Bluff called out that it seemed to be some sort of shantyboat, too.
Perhaps they imagined they were about to render assistance again to some
poor family, such as the one that had been rescued from the floating
treetop, at the time of the adventure with the savage panther.
"I don't hear any children hollering, though," panted Bluff, as he kept
close to Frank's heels.
"That's so," spoke up Will; "but there's a heap of yelling going on all
the same. Listen to 'em; will you, boys."
And just then a single voice, filled with excitement, came easily to
their ears:
"It's gaining on us, Ossie, I tell you! There isn't enough of a crowd to
keep the flames back. Didn't I say that gasolene stove'd do us some day?
and it has. The whole thing's going under!"
"Ossie!" said Will, as they somehow came to a sudden stop.
"Shucks! it's only _that_ crowd, after all," remarked Bluff; "let their
boat go up in fire and smoke, for all it matters to us, fellows."
"Well," said Frank, who knew the speaker better than Bluff did himself;
"you can both go back, if you feel that way; but these fellows are in a
bad fix; and even if they don't thank me for lending a hand, I've just
_got_ to try and help put that fire out, if I want to look at myself in
a glass without blushing."
With that he rushed off again. And hearing the patter of two pair of
willing feet close behind him, Frank had to chuckle. Of course neither
Will nor Bluff could be left out when there was anything exciting going
on.
Two minutes later, and they were on the scene. They found a pretty
serious situation, with the flames pouring out from one end of the
houseboat, that must have cost the millionaire father of Oswald
Fredericks some thousands of dollars to outfit.
And the boys, while they seemed to be working desperately in the
endeavor to extinguish the fire, did not go about it in the proper way,
so that their efforts were about as good as wasted.
Frank took in the situation at a glance. He knew that the wind just then
was coming from down the river; and as it was the upper end of the
_Lounger_ that was afire there was some chance to gain the mastery of
the hungry flames.
Seeing a couple of buckets where one of the others had dropped them upon
finding the fire getting too hot for him, Frank stooped over them.
Rapidly he gave his chums directions how to keep these in constant play.
They were to do the dipping into the river, handing the filled buckets
up to him; when he would dash the water on the fire in a certain spot,
until he had overwhelmed its hold there; and be in a condition to move
on a little further.
They worked like beavers. Indeed, once aroused to the work, and
determined to win out, Bluff could not have done better service had it
been the _Pot Luck_ that was in danger of being wiped out.
Again and again did those buckets come into Frank's hands, and the
contents sprayed over the spluttering fire. It had met with a new enemy
now, and one against which its most desperate efforts seemed to avail
little. System had been brought into the game, a concentration of
energies upon one spot. Ossie and his comrades had doubtless thrown
plenty of water in the time they were laboring; but it had been so
widely scattered that its strength was lost.
Pretty soon Frank found that someone was working side by side with him,
taking full buckets from other hands, and following his example in
casting the water in a particular spot.
It gave him something like a thrill when he realized that this was no
other than Ossie Fredericks himself. For the time being the rivals of
the Mississippi were working side by side, as though the very best of
friends, and animated by a single purpose, which was the saving of the
fine power houseboat from destruction.
After that the fire was quickly gotten under control, though Frank would
not stop in his labor until the very last spark seemed to have been
smothered. As the boat had been fastened with the bow up-stream, all the
damage was away from the motor, and would not amount to so serious a
thing after all. A hundred dollars might cover the bill for repairs; and
doubtless Ossie and his friends could continue their cruise on the
morrow, making out the best way possible, with a partly burned cabin,
until they pulled up in the Crescent City a short time later.
"All out, Frank?" asked the perspiring Bluff.
"Yes, every spark, so far as I can see," was the reply; "and I guess
we'd better be heading back to our own boat as fast as we can, because I
felt a drop of rain just then, and we're going to get a deluge pretty
quick now."
"Hold on, please, Frank!"
It was Ossie himself who said this. He was coming toward them, his
friends following at his heels. Frank had heard them arguing over
something, and he imagined that several of the boys were holding back in
connection with something that Ossie himself seemed determined to do.
"I'd like to shake hands with you, Langdon," said the millionaire's son,
as he approached, holding out his now grimy palm. "When you did me a
good turn that other time I acted like a bear, and I've been sick about
it ever since. This settles the whole thing. I've been foolish to try
and stand out against as fine a fellow as you. The crowd at college that
stood up for you knew what they were doing. I'm ashamed of the way I
acted, and I'm going to ask your pardon right here."
"Glad to hear you say that you've changed your mind about me, Ossie,"
said Frank, as he took the extended olive branch in the shape of
Fredericks' hand, and gave it a hearty squeeze. "And I hope that when we
go back to college again we'll be the best of friends. As to the little
job we joined you in this night, why, it's been a snap for us; eh,
Bluff?"
So Bluff and Will in turn had to take the hand of Ossie. Then the other
called out to his comrades to step up and ratify the new compact of
peace. Perhaps neither Raymond Ellis nor Duke Fletcher liked the way
things were going; but under the conditions they could not hold back. As
for the St. Paul fellow, young Benedict; and the heavy-set chap who
played the part of engineer and general assistant, not having any
particular reason for hating Frank and his chums, they only too gladly
followed suit in shaking hands.
The rain began to come down a little harder, and Frank did not care to
stay longer. So, followed by the good luck wishes of Ossie, and a hope
that they might meet again in New Orleans, to which city he meant to
hasten, now that his boat was badly damaged, the three boys from the
_Pot Luck_ hurried up the bank again.
They did get wet to some extent before gaining the shelter of the cabin;
but to such hardy cruisers that was a small circumstance. Frank would
have taken ten times the amount of soaking for the privilege of winning
over so persistent a rival as Oswald Fredericks had been during the last
year in college, and while upon the Mississippi voyage.
Great was Jerry's surprise when he heard the story; and his disgust was
sad to see when he realized that he had been cheated out of all this
fun. As for Will, although he professed to having enjoyed the adventure
immensely, still he never referred to it in later days without a regret
that he had not been able to snap a few pictures of himself and chums,
working like volunteer firemen to save the houseboat of their bitter
enemy and rival from destruction.
The _Lounger_ was gone at daylight, from which fact Frank judged that
Ossie must have been exceedingly anxious to get the boat to some place
where it could be repaired quickly, in order that he and his friends
might finish their vacation aboard, before the time came to have it
hauled all the way back to St. Paul; which only a man rolling in money
could afford to have done, Bluff said.
"Well," remarked Will, when they saw this, after starting forth
themselves; "perhaps after all, it's better that way. Oil and water
can't mix very well; and while Ossie was feeling pretty warm toward us
last night, those cronies of his might set his mind against us again.
Why, that Ellis has a hand that feels like a snake, or a cold-toad, when
you take hold of it. I always despise a fellow like that. Seems to me
he's just made for trickery and cunning."
Frank thought the same way, but did not express his opinion. Secretly he
too was satisfied that they would not have to see more of the others
during the voyage.
And so they went on, enjoying themselves day by day, meeting such
troubles and difficulties as might arise from time to time with the same
brave spirit that had always been a motto of the Outdoor Chums; and
finally finding themselves safely tied up in a boatyard on the river
front of the great city of the South, that seems to stand at the gateway
of the Mississippi like a sentinel, guarding the entire valley against
some threatening foreign enemy.