WHAT THAD FOUND OUT
"That sounds good to me, Thad," remarked Allan.
"Hold on before you say that," the other went on to say, significantly.
"What about it?" demanded Allan.
"Because we don't know who they may be, if there are men out here,"
answered the cautious scout-master.
The other gave a low whistle that stood for surprise.
"I see now, what you mean," he observed; "but what makes you think there
are others here, when they never lifted a hand to help us, and haven't
as much as dropped in to sit at our fire?"
"Well, perhaps they don't want to see us," Thad told him.
"Oh! yes, we were talking about smugglers, and then we ran across that
Mr. Stebbins who knew all about us, and he was one of a party looking up
the slick men who fetch things over from Canada to escape the heavy
duties. But Thad do you, really believe there could be a bunch of that
stripe hiding out on Sturgeon Island?"
"I don't know anything yet, Allan, except that I've reason to know we're
not alone out here, that's all."
"Well, what did you see, or hear?" asked the other.
"This is what happened," Thad went on to say, in a low tone, though the
storm was still making such a racket that he had to put his mouth close
to Allan's ear in order to allow him to catch what he said. "While the
rest kept up their talking I came out here to see how things looked, and
make up my mind whether we were going to have any wet with this gale or
not."
"Yes, and it don't look like it now, Thad, because it's gone so far;
reckon it must be what they call a dry storm; but go on and tell me the
rest."
"Well, I was standing about here, in the dense shadow, you see,
thinking, when all at once I discovered that there was something moving
between me and the fire!"
"Whew!" murmured Allan, deeply impressed.
"Of course, at first I thought it might be only a fox, or something like
that, curious enough to want to creep up, and learn what sort of
intruders had landed on Sturgeon Island; I could see that the bushes
were moving softly, and that soon the thing, whatever it was, would come
in sight of where stood here."
"And it did?" Allan demanded.
"That's right," replied the other, softly; "and it turned out to be a
man's head!"
At that the other scout again gave one of his low whistles, to show that
he was listening, and duly impressed by the startling information
conveyed.
"Of course," continued Thad, "I couldn't make out what he was like, very
well, because his face was turned away from me; but as near as I can say
he was a big man, a rough looking chap, and ugly in the bargain. More
than that, he struck me like he might be a half-breed, or else an
Italian, for his skin was very dark."
"Well, what did he do?" inquired the other.
"Just lay there watching the rest of you for several minutes, Allan. I
could see him elevate his head at times, and then duck like a flash when
he thought some one might be looking his way; which showed pretty
plainly that he didn't want to be seen, and that he didn't mean to step
forward and join the crowd."
"Then he went away, did he?" continued the other.
"Yes, backed off, and I lost track of him among the rocks and the
bushes," Thad went on to say, impressively. "It struck me as a queer
proceeding, and I didn't lose much time in getting you out here, so I
could talk it over."
"Perhaps there's only one, all told, and he might be some fellow who's
escaped from prison, and is in hiding away off here, where he thinks no
one will ever take the trouble to look for him," Allan suggested.
The scout-master shook his head.
"I can't say just what he is, or whether there's a dozen here," he
observed; "but I do know that all his actions were suspicious, for no
honest fisherman would do what he did."
"We'll have to be on our guard, then, Thad?"
"That goes without saying, until we know more about who our neighbors
are," the scout-master replied.
"It sort of complicates the situation some, too, don't it?" Allan asked.
"Yes, and perhaps we'd better not say anything to the rest until we
learn something more about this thing," Thad told him.
"How are you going to do that, when this man seems disposed to give us
the cold-shoulder?" inquired the other.
"I had about made up my mind to go off for a little stroll, and see what
I could run across near by," the scout-master continued. "This island
isn't so very large but I could find my way around; and while that storm
is howling I'm not anxious to cross over to the other side. This is the
sheltered part, and like as not these people, whoever they turn out to
be, will have taken up their camp somewhere about here. But I wanted to
warn you so you might make sure none of the other fellows wandered off."
"I'll see to it, though I don't think they're apt to do anything of that
sort, as they're a tired bunch right now," Allan assured him.
"And while you're about it," continued the other, impressively, "you'd
better keep your hand on that shotgun of ours all the while, until you
see me beckon to you again."
"That sounds like you expected we'd be up against it good and hard
before this game came to an end," remarked Allan.
"Oh! not necessarily," replied his chum. "It's only following out our
motto, 'be prepared.' You know there are a whole lot of sayings along
that line, such as 'fore-warned is fore-armed,' and as the old pilgrim
fathers used to say: 'trust in the Lord; but, keep your powder dry!' We
want to keep our ammunition ready. But while you go back to the rest of
the boys I'll take a sneak."
"Don't think you'd better take that gun along with you, Thad?"
"Not at all," was the quick reply. "I'll depend on the darkness, and
the noise of the storm, to keep from being seen or heard. But I'm bent
on trying to find out whether there's any sort of shack or cabin built
here on Sturgeon Island.
"Well, take good care of yourself," warned Allan, a little uneasily; for
it was almost on his lips to ask why he might not be permitted to keep
the scout-master company, for he did hate so much to see Thad pull out
alone.
He insisted on gravely shaking hands before he would leave his partner,
to return to the camp under the rocky shelf. They had been so much
together of recent years that these two boys were exceedingly fond of
each other, more so than brothers could ever have been; which was one
reason why Allan disliked seeing the other moving away into the
darkness, and taking voluntarily upon himself the dangers such a scout
involved.
Obeying orders he himself made his way back to where the other sat.
Giraffe was holding out, and explaining something that he had advanced;
but evidently he must have noticed the absence of the others, for he
soon asked:
"What's the good word, Allan; because I reckon you and our scout-master
have been taking a squint at the weather? I was just telling the rest
here that we won't get any wet with this blow, because all the signs
point that way, and as I said before. I'm getting to be an authority on
weather now-a-days.
"That was about what we thought," Allan told him.
"You mean that Thad is with me in my assertion, do you?" demanded
Giraffe; and when the other had nodded in the affirmative the tall scout
turned to Davy, Bumpus and Step Hen triumphantly, to add: "There, didn't
I tell you I could hit these weather changes on the handle every time.
When I warn you next time there's going to be a storm, better hurry to
get in out of the wet."
"I think it's a great pity you waste your precious time bothering about
what the weather is agoing to be, when we can't help it; and you might
be racking that really stupendous brain of yours adoing other things
worth while," Bumpus went on to remark.
"Huh! as what?" Giraffe wanted to know.
"Well, famines in the eating line, for one thing," spoke up the fat
scout, instantly. "S'pose now you'd told us we was going to run up
against hard times, in the way of a scarcity of grub two days back,
couldn't we just as well have dropped in to some town along the shore,
and stacked up with heaps and heaps of good things? Seems to me,
Giraffe, you've gone and wasted your talent on the wrong thing. What
good is it ever agoing to do you, to pretend to tell what sort of
weather we'll get next week, when it's only a guess after all? Better
make a change, and predict famines and such things, so we can take the
alarm, and buy out some country grocery."
Giraffe had not one word to say in reply. He must have recognized the
force of Bumpus' philosophy, and wished in his heart he had been gifted
with the spirit of prophecy, so that he might have given warning in due
time as to the need of replenishing their stock of provisions.
The conversation ran on, other subjects being taken up. Giraffe wanted
to know what kept Thad away so long, and was told that the scout-master
had concluded to take a little look around.
At that the other suggested that perhaps he too might stretch his legs;
whereupon Allan informed him that he was under orders to keep them all
close to the ledge under which they had found shelter; and that Thad had
told him no one must be allowed to stray away a single yard.
After that the boys did not talk quite so volubly; possibly some
suspicion may have entered their minds that perhaps things were not
quite so peaceful as they appeared on the surface; and that Thad might
know of some reason for expecting a new batch of troubles to descend
upon them.
Allan kept sitting there, gun in hand. He was waiting to receive some
sort of sign from Thad, to tell him his presence was desired once again
out there beside the tree where they had previously conferred.
It seemed a very long time before he caught a movement there, and then
saw the hand of the scout-master beckoning to him.
"Stay here, as Thad wants to talk with me," he told the rest, after
which he strode forth to join the other.
"Well, did you find out anything?" he asked, the first thing.
"Only this," replied Thad, solemnly, "the island is occupied by a party
of several rough men, who have a boat in a sheltered cove over there,
and a cabin half hidden among the rocks and brushwood; but the mystery
of it all is, what they may be doing here, and why they look on us as
enemies!"