A CIRCULAR TOUR
Fatigued though they were, the boys lay long awake in the room Mrs.
Rogers provided for them, discussing the situation into which they had
been thrown by the fire, and their plans for the future. They had saved
next to nothing but their clothes. If they were to start another camp a
new tent--almost a complete new outfit--would be necessary. Pratt
suggested that they should accept Mr. Crawshay's offer and take up their
abode with him until the mystery of the island had been solved; but this
idea was opposed by the others, Armstrong in particular pointing out
that they would stand a better chance of success if they remained more
closely in touch with their former encampment.
"We must do our best to throw the beggars off the scent," he said. "If
we rig up barbed wire round our new camp, they'll imagine we're merely
on the defensive, and the longer we keep up that illusion, the better."
"I agree," said Warrender. "There can't be the slightest doubt now that
something is going on on the island that they'll stick at nothing to
prevent our discovering. We've got to make them believe we can't see
farther than the ends of our noses, so we must keep quiet, pretend we
think the fire was caused by our cigarettes--anything to put them off
their guard. But, of course, we must take the first opportunity of
making another search in the ruins. It's as plain as a pikestaff that
that moaning sound is artificial; that is to say, they've got some sort
of an instrument rigged up that catches the wind just when they wish,
and only then. And that signal must have something to do with their
schemes; I'm inclined to think you're mistaken, Armstrong, and it's not
S.O.S. at all."
"Perhaps," replied Armstrong.
"I stick to it that Molly Rogers or Rod is in distress," said Pratt.
"Rogers was a seaman, and there's nothing unlikely in his sister knowing
something of Morse. I had a passion for ciphers at one time, and my
sister Joan was very keen on it, I can tell you. Anyway, we'll ask
Rogers in the morning."
They got up to a late breakfast. Rogers brought them their bacon and
eggs, and they were struck by a peculiarity in his appearance.
"I say, Rogers, what's happened to your beautiful auburn locks?" asked
Pratt.
The innkeeper looked profoundly depressed.
"I begged and prayed the missus, but 'twas no good," he answered. "She
will have me wear a nightcap at night, and my hair by day, no matter how
hot it be. I said as every one will laugh at me, and she said as health
comes afore feelings."
"A very wise woman. Still, as a mere matter of scientific curiosity,
we'd like to know how that brown became apple-green."
Rogers snatched off his wig and held it out with a gesture of
indignation.
"'Tis a trick of some blessed young scug in the village, and if I catch
him I'll give him all the colours of the rainbow. I did but set my hair
on a pea-stick while I was digging yesterday, the missus being out for
the day. I own I forgot it, and when, come night, I thought I'd better
put it on, bless me if I could find it. Half an hour after I'd closed
the door the missus came home. 'Here's a parcel on the doorstep,' says
she, and then she undoes it, and gives a shriek. 'You wicked man!' says
she: 'you've done it just to rile me.' As if the cussed thing warn't
bad enough brown, for one to want it green! Of course I telled her as
how I'd put it down and missed it, and she went on like one o'clock,
said I'd have to wear it, green or blue, and I'd better stand out in the
first shower of rain and see if it'd wash clean, and 'twould be a lesson
to me. Don't you never go bald, young gentlemen: 'tis the way to break
up a happy home."
"Hard luck, Rogers," said Pratt. "But the colour will soon wear off.
You'll be piebald for a bit, I dare say--sort of mottled, you know; but
nobody will think the worse of you. I say, you and your sister were
great pals, weren't you?"
"Till the missus come along, sir."
"And no doubt you taught her how to splice ropes and reef sails, and
make signals, and all that?"
"There you're wrong, sir. The lass don't know more than a babby about
such things; and as for signals, I don't know nothing about 'em myself."
Pratt looked crestfallen.
"One theory exploded," remarked Armstrong.
"Did 'ee signal for help last night?" asked Rogers.
"Well, we----" Pratt began, but Warrender interrupted him.
"No, we hadn't time," he said. "The fire came on us too suddenly. By
the way, we shall have to buy some new things. I suppose Blevins can
provide us with a tent?"
"Surely, sir; he've most everything somewhere about. I always thought
no good 'ud come of camping on that island. There's a fate in it."
"How long has it had this ill name?" asked Armstrong.
"Not so long, sir. You see, nobody bothered much about it after the old
man died years ago. It didn't belong to no one, seemingly; there was
nothing to take any of the folk there; and 'twasn't till a month or two
ago that they began to talk of sperits. Nick Rush came in all of a
tremble one night--he'd been away for a bit--and said he was setting a
snare there when he heard most horrible groanings and moanings. He took
some of the folk along, and they heard 'em too, and ever since then the
village have give it a wide berth. You're well out of it, that's what I
say. Not as ghosts carry matches, though; I reckon 'twas one of you
young gentlemen a-smoking as did the mischief."
"A lesson to us, Rogers," said Pratt, gravely. "Smoking is a very bad
habit, according to our masters at school--who all smoke like
furnaces--they ought to know."
They had hardly finished breakfast when Mr. Crawshay drove down to the
ferry in a light trap, crossing on foot.
"It's true, then," he said, as he entered the parlour. "I knew nothing
about it until an hour ago. A lighted match, they say."
Pratt got up and closed the door.
"Let them say, sir. We were burnt out."
"You don't say so! Upon my word, it's time something was done. Have
you lost much?"
"Almost everything but our clothes."
"Scandalous! Then you'll come up to the house?"
"We'd rather keep to our arrangement, sir," said Warrender. "It will
give us a better chance of running the fellows to earth. We think of
making a thorough search on the island. The difficulty is that we can't
do it by daylight; we are sure to be watched, at any rate for a day or
two. There's another difficulty. They're sure to keep their eye on our
motor-boat and dinghy; it will be too risky to use them. Of course, we
could swim the river, but it would be a bit of a nuisance."
"I can help you there. You had better not use my skiff, but I've an old
Norwegian pram in one of my outhouses----"
"A what, sir?" asked Pratt.
"A pram--a sort of abbreviated punt. At one time I used it for fishing
on the river. It's small and very light; two of you could carry it.
You had better fetch it yourselves; my men might talk in the village. I
have set them clearing a camping-place for you, by the way. It's about
half-way between here and the island. But I can't lend you a tent."
Warrender explained that he proposed to buy one of the general dealer.
"Very well," said Mr. Crawshay. "I shall expect you to lunch. We'll
talk over things then more at leisure."
While Warrender went off to do the necessary shopping, Armstrong and
Pratt, in the dinghy, set out for their new camping-place. It lay on
the shore of a little natural bay some fifteen yards deep and about half
that width. Mr. Crawshay's gardeners had already mown the long grass
and lopped some of the lower branches of overhanging trees. A ten
minutes' walk through the wood and across fields brought the two boys to
the house, where Mr. Crawshay had already arrived. Having seen that
none of his men were about, the old gentleman led them to the outhouse
in which he kept his pram; and by the time that Warrender, conveying his
purchases in the motor-boat, reached the new encampment, the others had
carried the odd little craft across the fields, and found a secure
hiding-place for it in the wood a little distance from the bay, almost
opposite to the north end of the island, near a spot convenient for
landing under cover of the trees. With it Mr. Crawshay had lent them a
couple of light oars.
After erecting their new tent--a sorry specimen compared with the one
that had been destroyed--they went up to the house for lunch, discussed
their plans with Mr. Crawshay privately in his study, and returned to
fence the camp with barbed wire and get things in order. So far there
had been no sign of the enemy; but in the course of the afternoon
Armstrong climbed a tree from which, unobserved himself, he could obtain
a view of the opposite bank of the river, and discovered without
surprise that a spy was lurking among the bushes. No doubt all their
ostensible proceedings had been watched, and they congratulated
themselves on the illusion of mere defensiveness which their
business-like activity must have created.
During the remainder of the day they were careful not to depart from
their usual procedure. They had an early supper; when they had cleared
away and washed up, they placed three oddly assorted and shabby
deck-chairs, purchased from Blevins, in front of the tent, and while
Armstrong and Warrender read newspapers, Pratt warbled sentimental
ditties to the accompaniment of his banjo.
Just before dark Pratt and Armstrong went into the tent to go to bed,
while Warrender perambulated the camp armed with a thick club. The spin
of a coin had decided that he should remain on guard while the others
paid a nocturnal visit to the island.
About midnight, when it was quite dark, the two raiders crept out of the
tent, and striking inland for a little, made their roundabout way to the
spot where the pram was hidden. Reconnoitring carefully, to assure
themselves that their movements had not been followed, they lifted the
pram, lowered it gently into the water, and pushed off, floating on the
tide near the bank, and steering with one oar in the stern. They struck
the shore of the island about midway, seized a projecting branch, and
drawing their craft into the bank, pulled it up among the reeds at the
edge. Then they started to cross the island.
It was pitch-dark in the thicket. Spreading roots and trailing brambles
tripped their feet; their faces were lashed by the foliage as they
pushed their way through; thorns caught at their clothes. It was
difficult to avoid noise. Twigs snapped underfoot, branches creaked and
rustled, and every now and again there was a strident shriek of rent
clothing as they tore themselves from the embrace of some clinging
bramble. Heedless of the obstacles, hot and weary, they plodded
doggedly on, and presently, after making unconscionably slow progress,
they emerged upon the bank of the river. The stream looked much wider
than they had expected.
"Whereabouts are we?" whispered Pratt.
"We've come too far south, I fancy," returned Armstrong.
They peered up and down, trying vainly to discover some landmark. They
stood listening; there was breeze enough to cause the moaning, but they
heard no sound except the rustle of the leaves and the gentle gurgle of
the tide. They cast about, taking wary steps up stream and down; hoping
in one direction or the other to come upon the wilderness garden.
Suddenly Pratt whispered: "I say, this isn't a tidal river, is it?"
"No; it always flows down," replied Armstrong. "Why?"
"Because----"
And then he stopped.
"Look here," he murmured to Armstrong behind him.
Armstrong looked, and there, at Pratt's feet, was the dark shape of the
pram, nestling in its bed of reeds.
"Hang!" exclaimed Armstrong. "We've been going in a circle."
"Just so. Everybody does it!" said Pratt, with a chuckle. "I suspected
it when I noticed the way the stream was flowing."
"Nothing to chortle about," Armstrong growled. "We've had all our
trouble for nothing. Absolutely waste time!"
"But look how we've enlarged our experience! I think I'd like to be a
traveller, like my old uncle. I've read about these circular tours often
enough, but never believed in 'em. Why can't one walk straight in the
dark?"
"Ask your grandmother! I'm fed up; scratched all over, too. I'll not
try this again without a luminous compass. Let's get back."
It was nearly two o'clock before they trudged wearily into camp.
"Any luck?" asked Warrender, still doing sentry-go.
Pratt related what had happened.
"Well, I'm glad for once I lost the toss," said Warrender, smiling.
"We'll certainly get a luminous compass, and I fancy we'd be the better
for a few lessons from the Boy Scouts."