THE BOOGIE OF THE TOWER
"LET Elmer go on, and tell us some more," suggested Toby.
"Yes, we can talk it all over after we know the whole thing," added Lil
Artha.
"Once I got that notion in my head," the scout master continued, "and I
began to investigate along those lines. When I heard from two farmers in
the market, who happened to live up this way, that for weeks they had
been missing things off their places, mostly something to eat, I began
to figure it out that the crazy man had to live, and would most likely
forage for his grub, about like Sherman's bummers did in the Civil War,
subsisting on the enemy's country.
"One of the hayseeds told me he had even set a trap for the thief,
thinking it might be just an ordinary hobo; and when the alarm came one
night he had hurried out to the hen-house only to find a couple of
chickens gone, and the trap sprung, but no victim in it, for the thief
had been too smart for him. But he said it beat him all hollow when he
found tracks of _bare feet_ around on the partly frozen ground in the
morning, because it seemed queer that any tramp would be going around
without shoes so near winter time!"
"Whew!" gasped Toby, entranced, and almost held spellbound by this
thrilling recital of facts and fancies.
"The other farmer," Elmer went on to say, "told me that twice when he
had had a visit from the strange thief he managed to glimpse something
white that was making off at top speed, and which he expected was a man,
though he couldn't be sure. He also said he had loaded up his
double-barrel shotgun, and was going to give the rascal a hot reception
the next time he called around. All of which kept making me feel that I
was on the right track."
"You just bet you were, Elmer!" Lil Artha exclaimed.
"A figure in white, remember, fellows; and the one we saw to-night was
dressed that way, as sure as shooting!" said Toby, convincingly.
"The poor Oxley fellow was in Cuba during the Spanish war, and must have
fetched the white uniform of a Spanish officer home with him," suggested
Ty Collins; "when he went out of his mind he imagined himself a Spanish
recruit, and they let him wear that soldier suit to humor him."
"Yes, and right now he believes he has escaped from an American prison,
and is trying to hide from the guard. He has to eat to live, and so he
steals things from the farmers around. Of course it's only a matter of
good luck that he hasn't been shot before now; and it couldn't last much
longer."
"Why, when winter gets here in dead earnest the poor fellow would freeze
to death, like as not," George remarked, showing that he was being
convinced against his will.
"But what gets me is his staying around the old haunted house," remarked
Toby.
"Oh! I don't see what there is queer about that," Lil Artha declared.
"Course he couldn't know anything about all this talk, so it's hardly
likely he's been trying to play ghost on us. We fooled ourselves, that's
what," with a quick look toward Chatz, as though to intimate that
possibly the Southern boy had had considerable to do with their being
hoodwinked; which was a lamentable fact, for a small fraction of yeast
will scatter through the whole pan of dough.
"And when you come to think of it," added Lil Artha, who had something
of a long head when a knotty question was involved, "where could a crazy
man find a better hiding place than in a house said to be haunted, I'd
like to know?"
"The poor fellow!" Ted was heard to say, that being his first utterance.
"Tell you what, we ought to put in all the rest of our time up here
trying to capture him. I'd never feel thatithfied to lie in my comfy bed
at home nighth, thinking of him up here, freezing perhapth. Thay we
will, Elmer, and you too, boyth!"
Ted was tender-hearted, and could never bear to see any one suffer if he
had it in his power to alleviate the pain. He promised to make a fine
doctor some day, for his knowledge along the line of medicine and
surgery was really wonderful; but while the other scouts had been so
deeply interested in figuring things out, and settling the question of
the strange man's identity, Ted had doubtless only considered his
physical sufferings past and present.
"I promise you that, Ted, with all my heart," Elmer assured him,
promptly enough, "because I wouldn't be satisfied to go away and leave a
helpless fellow like that here. I only wonder that he hasn't tried to
steal some of our stores before now; and perhaps we could set a trap
that would catch him, if he ever does come into camp. But we won't
depend too much on that. Sometimes the mountain won't come to you; and
then you've got to go to the mountain. That's one of the sayings the
Mohammedans have about their prophet, you know. Well, to-morrow we'll
get busy looking around, and see if we can locate this Ralph Oxley."
"Oh! is that his full name, then?" asked Toby, and he repeated it to
himself, as though he rather liked the sound: "Ralph Oxley!"
"He must have some sort of hiding-place around here," Toby ventured,
"and who knows but what we might run across the trail of a barefooted
man somewhere, that would lead us to his den."
"These crazy people are pretty slick, let me tell you," George hinted;
"and it ain't going to be an easy job to run him down."
"It mightn't be for some fellows who knew next to nothing about
tracking," Lil Artha spoke up, proudly; "but when scouts have been
through as much as we have it's different. Once we get a sight of his
tracks, and believe me there'll be something doing right away."
"I'm glad to hear you say that, Lil Artha," the scout master told him;
"it shows that you've got a heap of confidence in your knowledge of the
trail. Well, you've a right to feel that way. I can remember several
times when you beat us all out in finding signs, and getting there in
the end. We'll all do our level best to find his lair, and bring back
Mr. Oxley's son in the flesh. They must be dreadfully worried about his
absence by this time, and believe he has been drowned in either Lake
Jupiter or the Sweetwater River. It would be a feather in our caps if we
could restore the poor fellow to his folks."
"You told us he was a soldier, didn't you, Elmer?" pursued Toby; "and
say, p'raps now he thought he was on guard when he kept marching back
and forth dozens of times to-night. How about that, Elmer?"
"No doubt about it at all, Toby," came the reply; "for that was what he
was doing. I remembered what they had told me about his wearing white
clothes, even if they were soiled some by now, and thinking he is a
Spanish soldier. I believe he had a stick held up against his shoulder,
for all the world like a sentry's gun, and if we hadn't frightened him
off he might have kept that thing up for hours."
They continued to talk it over for some further time, and then having
apparently about exhausted the subject made ready to turn in. First
Elmer picked out two others who were to constitute the first watch with
him. They had to sit it out for a certain length of time, and keep
constantly on the lookout for a visitor; but as the limit of their vigil
was reached, and nothing happened, Elmer aroused three other scouts, and
bade them take the places vacated by himself, Toby and Lil Artha.
Morning arrived, and there had been no alarm. It was to be assumed that
those who had fulfilled the duties of sentries during the latter part of
the night had not slept on their posts. Elmer made an examination of the
stores, and found nothing amiss there; so it was settled that the crazy
man could not have mustered up enough courage to invade the camp of
those he considered his enemies.
After breakfast Elmer, accompanied by Chatz and Lil Artha, started out
to take a turn around in the woods, and look for signs of a trail made
by bare feet. Some of the others amused themselves as they saw fit, sure
that if the trail-seekers did make any interesting discovery they would
hear all about the same, and undoubtedly be given a chance to help
follow it.
It was Saturday, and had they been at home no doubt these same boys
might have been kicking the pigskin oval around with their fellows,
since it was still the gridiron season, and most of them belonged to the
Hickory Ridge football squad. They were much happier, however, in having
chosen this last camping trip of the season, for like true scouts their
keenest enjoyment lay in getting in close touch with Nature, and
learning many of her most cherished secrets. Football was all very good
in its way, but there were better things, as they had learned through
experience; and a search after practical knowledge was one of them.
"Now, I'll never get a better time to try it out," Toby up and declared
as he began to gather that bundle of his in his arms; "and I hope a
couple of you fellows will come with me to see my crowning triumph."
"I s'pose that means you're thinking of taking that fool jump off the
tower of the old house, and want us to be parties to the crime?" George
suggested, bitingly.
Toby surveyed him scornfully.
"I'm intending to make a glorious drop, and land on the ground as light
as any chicken feather might," he went on to say, with emphasis. "If
that's all the faith you've got in your chum's ability, George, mebbe
you'd better stay here in camp. It will spare you the sight of my
getting a broken leg, you know. I didn't ask you when I extended that
invitation; but I would like to have Ty and Ted come along; Landy too if
he wants to join us, and shout when I prove the great value of my noble
invention along humanitarian lines."
"Whew! you have got it down pat," chuckled Landy.
"Sure you want Doctor Ted along," sneered George; "you know which side
of your bread's buttered, don't you, Toby? If a cog slips in your
wheels, and you take a hard tumble you'll find his being on hand mighty
acceptable. I'd carry splints and bandages in plenty, Ted. And if I
have time I think I'll start to shaping up some kind of crutch while
you're away. Things like that come in handy sometimes. This is going to
be one of those times, I'm afraid."
"Rats! you old croaker, nothing would ever be accomplished in this world
if everybody was like you. They'd be afraid to take a chance. Things
that their ancestors used 'd be good enough for them, like the Chinese.
But thank goodness there are _some_ progressive people livin' these
days, like Edison, Marconi, and a few others."
"Jones, f'r instance!" chuckled George. "Well, if I don't show up at the
exhibition good luck to you, Toby. I hope it won't be anything worse
than a leg, or your collarbone, or five teeth knocked out. I wish you
great success. Tell me all about it when you get back. And I'm in dead
earnest about that crutch, too. I think I know how to shape one out of a
thick wild grapevine, if I can only find the right sort."
There was no use trying to talk George down, once he got started, and no
one knew this better than Toby, who had been worsted in many a verbal
encounter before now, so he only jerked his head contemptuously, and
lifting his burden, called out to the others:
"Come along, boys, if you've decided to be witnesses to my triumph.
Mebbe your names will go ringing down the ages too, as being present
when the glorious test was made that marked the end of aviators'
perils."
"One thing I think we'd better do, Toby," suggested Ty.
"Well, name it," the other threw over his shoulder as he tramped
sturdily along, carrying his wonderful parachute ready for business.
"When you say you're all ready for the jump I'm going to give the wolf
call, so Elmer, Lil Artha and Chatz can have a chance to come around,
and share the honor with us of being living witnesses of your work."
Toby seemed to ponder this for half a minute; and then remarked:
"I guess that would only be fair, because Elmer might feel huffed if I
jumped into glory, and him not there to see it. Yes, I'll get up on the
tower and when I say the word you give the '_how--oooo_' call that'll
fetch 'em running."
"Consider that a bargain then, Toby," Ty told him; "and remember, don't
you go to making your jump till they come up. Elmer might be provoked,
and believe you sneaked off unbeknown to him to try the same. They're
likely somewhere close by, I reckon, and we're apt to run across the
trackers hard at work while we're on our way to the haunted house right
now."
But they did not, although they caught the sound of voices through the
aisles of the dense woods, and knew that Elmer with his comrades must be
somewhere, not far away.
The old building stood there just as they had seen it before. Landy and
Ty had not been along when the nutting party met with their first
adventure here; but on the preceding afternoon they had surveyed the
wreck of a house, so that their only experience had not been the one at
midnight.
Besides, now that the halo of mystery had been removed, so that they
knew the white object they had seen was only a poor crazy fellow and not
a ghost from the other world, the boys experienced far less timidity
about approaching the house.
"We'll stay down here, Toby," said Ty, as he took up a position that was
directly underneath the tower.
Ted had carried a burden along with him also. This he now threw upon the
ground, and it proved to be one of the stout camping blankets. Toby only
chuckled when he saw that.
"Please yourselves, fellows," he assured his comrades, "but you won't
need anything like that. I'm going to float like a thistledown. It'll be
the triumph of the age, and don't you forget it. Watch what I do, now,
everybody!"
With that Toby boldly entered the house, and started to make his way up
to the tower. Apparently he must have noticed how one could reach that
elevated region, though as yet none of them had thought to go there.
Inside of five minutes the boys below saw him looking down at them from
far above.
"Wait till I get my parachute ready, fellows!" he called; "and there's
Elmer and the rest hurrying up, waving their hands like they wanted me
to hold on till they got here. Mebbe I will; the more the merrier!
Stretchin' out your old blanket, are you? Well, take my word for it you
won't need to grab me any. I'm staking a heap on this thing to hold me
up easy. Wow! what's this? Let go, there, you don't get that precious
thing away from me! Hey! fellows, here's that crazy man tackled me! He's
wantin' to grab everything! Quit pushin' or you'll have us both tumblin'
over the edge! Whoop! somebody come up here and help, or he'll get me!"
The two boys below heard all this shouted at the top of Toby's voice;
although of course they had but slight glimpses of the struggling
figures above. A desperate wrestling for the possession of the parachute
was evidently going on, for they could hear the sound of scuffling feet;
and besides, Elmer and the others who were fast coming on the run,
seemed to be shouting at the top of their voices, as though under the
impression that by the noise of their yells they might alarm the man who
was out of his mind and had attacked the scout, believing him an enemy.