WIGWAGGING FROM THE MOUNTAIN PEAK.
"IANOTHER fine day for a few more tests, and such things, fellows!" sang
out Chatz Maxfield, on the following morning, after they had finished
breakfast.
The night had actually passed without any sign of alarm. Although Chatz
had fully anticipated a return of his stalking ghost, while he stood out
his turn as a sentry, he had met with disappointment, for nothing
happened. Still, he did not wholly give up hope of meeting up with the
"misty white object" again. The jeers of his mates had begun to take
effect, and Chatz really wanted to have the thing settled, one way or
the other, as soon as possible. Either there were such things as ghosts,
or there were not. And he wished to be convinced, declaring that he was
open to conviction, if only they could prove to the contrary.
"Yes," remarked Mark Cummings, who was near by, with others of the
scouts; "and I guess Mr. Garrabrant has laid out a bully and strenuous
old day for the lot of us, barring Red and Ginger, who are to keep camp.
He speaks of sending one bunch to the top of Mount Pisgah, as this peak
is called, while another tries to climb Mount Horab yonder. They ought
to get up there about noon, and for two hours wigwag to each other,
sending and receiving messages that are to be kept in books provided for
the purpose. Then, at night, when we all meet again around the camp
fire, we'll have heaps of fun, seeing just how stupid we've been in our
Signal Corps work."
"Don't you forget, Mark," said Red, who was lounging on a log close by,
"that you promised to let me try a few prints from those negatives you
developed and fixed. I'm a pretty good hand at that work, so they tell
me at home, and I'd like to see how we all look up here in camp."
"All right, Red," replied Mark, cheerfully. "You shall do the job, and
welcome. I've seen some of your work, and it's sure the best ever. I'll
fix up a place in the tent here, where you can hobble if you want to,
after you've done your printing and want to fix the pictures."
"But you want to go easy on that leg, remember," warned Dr. Ted, shaking
a finger at his patient, just as he had seen the old family doctor do
many a time.
"You and Jack are bound over the side of the mountain to visit the Abe
Morris family, I heard?" remarked Chatz, speaking to Ted.
"Yeth, it is a professional visit on my part," replied the other,
pretending to look very dignified. "But Mr. Garrabrant hath promithed
that everyone of you shall have a turn to accompany me day by day, tho
ath to make the acquaintance of those two brave kiddies, as he calls
them, Felix and Little Lou."
"I'm right glad to hear that, suh," remarked Chatz; "from what you all
tell me, I'm quite anxious to meet up with that boy and girl. And if
Jack falls through with his plan of getting Abe employment in his
father's mill, I think I know just where he would fit into a good
position."
The two companies left camp about eight o'clock. Dr. Ted and Jack
Armitage waved them good-by, for they too were getting ready to start on
their errand to the lone cabin in the woods.
Elmer headed one group of scouts, while Mr. Garrabrant had charge of the
other. They carried plenty of lunch along, though it was expected that
they would surely be back before evening had set in.
The scout master was not at all positive about his thorough knowledge of
woodcraft; for as yet it was almost wholly theoretical rather than
practical with him.
"I am not above getting lost, in spite of my book knowledge," he had
laughed, as he selected what boys were to accompany him; "and that is
why I take Matty Eggleston, Mark Cummings, and Arthur Stansbury among my
followers; because next to Elmer, they are known to possess practical
ideas concerning this traveling in unknown timber. So good-by, lads;
we'll look to have a good talk with you across the valley."
So day after day he expected to put the scouts "through their paces," as
Lil Artha called it. To-day it was to be the great hike to the tops of
the mountains, and the wigwagging contest between the two factions.
To-morrow he meant to have Elmer give further lessons along the line of
following a trail, showing just how an experienced woodsman can tell
from many sources how long ago the party had passed; the number of which
it consisted; whether they were men, women or children; white or
Indians; and even describing some of the marked peculiarities of the
members comprising it.
Then later on they would have swimming contests; first aid to the
injured lessons; resuscitating a person who has come near being drowned;
cooking rivalry; athletics; and many other things connected with the
open life.
It proved a long and arduous tramp for Elmer and his companions. He had
had the privilege of choosing which mountain he would attempt to scale,
and just like an ambitious boy, had selected the one he felt sure would
be the more difficult.
Those who followed his lead had many times to beg of him to halt and
take a little breathing spell, for the way was very rough and much
climbing of rocks had to be done in order to mount upward.
"Wow! are we ever going to get up there?" grunted Toby, who had just
hated to come on this expedition at all, when he would much rather have
liked hanging around camp, and examining the deflated balloon; no doubt
dreaming dreams of the time when he hoped to have the chance to soar
away among the clouds in one of those gas bags.
"Seems like that mountain top is just nigh as far away from us as ever,"
complained Larry Billings, who was puffing at a great rate, as he seemed
to be rather short winded, and had to be taken to task several times for
his faulty manner of walking.
"Oh! no, you're greatly mistaken there," laughed Elmer. "Distances are
deceptive in the mountains, to anyone not used to measuring them with
the eye. Just wait a little, and all at once you're going to realize
that we're getting up handsomely. Look across the valley, and see how
high we are right now! That proves it, Larry."
"Hey! what's that moving, away up on that other hill, Elmer?" cried
Jasper Merriweather, the novice and real tenderfoot of the crowd; who,
under the careful supervision of the scout leader of the Wolf Patrol,
was actually doing himself proud, and gaining new confidence in his
abilities with each passing hour.
Elmer followed the line of his outstretched finger.
"You deserve considerable praise, Jasper, for making that discovery," he
declared, presently. "I can see what you mean now; though when I looked
across before I didn't happen to notice. Yes, that's our other squad,
climbing up just like we are, and not making any better job of it
either, I think."
"Ho! they ain't near as far up, for a fact," said Nat Scott, with
pardonable pride, since he had developed into a pretty good climber.
"Well, that mountain is not so tall as ours; but then it may be even
rougher, for all we know," observed Elmer. "I picked out this one
because it was so high, and I always want to tackle the hardest job, if
I've got any choice. It makes you feel all the better if you win out.
But come on, fellows, let's pitch in. Given one more good hour's work,
and I think we ought to be pretty near the crown."
"I hope so!" sighed poor Larry, who was puffing still, and rubbing his
leg where he had hurt it a little on the previous day; though it was
nothing so bad as Red's injury, aggravated as it had been by his
stubborn determination to return to the lone hut and accompany the
relief party.
Once more they struggled upward. Sometimes they found the going so very
difficult that they were obliged to give each other a helping hand.
Of course the view grew finer the higher they went.
"Say, Elmer," remarked Toby, as they halted later on to get their
breath; "d'ye suppose now we'll be able to glimpse dear old Hickory
Ridge when we get up to the top of this mole hill?"
"Sure we will," replied the leader, cheerily. "And that alone ought to
pay us for all our trouble. We've only been away a couple of days or so,
but I reckon it seems an age to a lot of us, since we saw the home
folks."
There was an ominous silence after that remark. Doubtless every scout
was allowing his thoughts to roam tenderly back to that beloved home
which he knew sheltered those who were so dear to his heart. And
possibly, unseen by his fellows, a tear may even have rolled unbidden
down more than one cheek. For they were but boys, after all, and same of
them had never even been so far away from the home nest before.
Elmer proved to be a true prophet, for ere the full hour was up even the
doubting Larry was obliged to confess that they had gained a point not
far from the summit.
This seemed to inspire the laggards to renewed efforts, so that
presently, with loud cries of delight and admiration, the whole bunch
struggled to the apex and had the view of their lives around them.
"Ain't this just too grand for anything?" gasped Larry, as he squatted
down on a stone and tried to pick out the distant village on the ridge
where home lay.
The others were doing the same; and all manner of exclamations followed,
as this one or that discovered familiar landmarks, by means of which
their untrained eyes could find the one particular spot about which
their thoughts clustered just then.
It was not far from noon, and when Elmer declared that they had well
earned the right to eat the hearty luncheon carried along, he was
greeted with cries of joy: for it was a jolly hungry batch of scouts
that gathered on that mountain top.
While they ate they discovered that their mates had also managed to
reach their goal. But no communication was attempted until they had
thoroughly rested.
Then Mr. Garrabrant started operations himself, after which he probably
handed the flags over to the scout who was to make the first test of his
knowledge along the line of wigwagging a message, and receiving a reply.
It proved to be interesting work, and all the boys with Elmer declared
that it held a peculiar fascination and charm about it. Of course, in
war times, such business must carry along with it more or less danger.
They could easily picture how an operator must take great risks first of
all to mount to some exposed position, where his flag could readily be
seen, and then keep up a constant signaling with another flagman far
away, while the enemy would doubtless be making every effort to break up
the serious communications that might spell disaster for their cause.
"Anyhow, it won't take us near so long to go down the mountain as it did
to climb up here," remarked Larry, with satisfaction in his voice.
"All the same," remarked Elmer, "every fellow has got to be mighty
careful just how he goes. No rushing things, you understand. It's easier
to take a tumble going down than coming up. And we want no more cripples
on this trip."
About three o'clock they started to descend from the peak. Every boy had
to just tear himself away, after one last look at the distant ridge that
lay bathed in the warm sunshine. And no one had a word to say for quite
a time.
The descent was made in safety, though several times one of the boys
would slip on a piece of loose shale; and once Larry might have had a
severe fall only that Elmer, happening to be close beside him at the
time, shot out a hand and clutched him as he was plunging headlong,
after catching his heel in a root.
They all breathed a sigh of relief when the bottom of the mountain was
reached. After that the going was much easier, and they soon drew near
the camp.
"Wonder if the other fellows made as quick a getdown as we did?"
remarked Toby, who was hobbling along, footsore, and with his muscles
paining from the many severe strains they had been compelled to endure
during the day; but only too glad to realize that he would soon arrive
where he could once more be in touch with that wonderful sky traveler
that had so fortunately dropped into their hands.
"I think it will be pretty near a tie," laughed Elmer; "for just a bit
ago I had a glimpse of them, where the timber opened up, and I judged
that they were as close to home and supper as we are. Put your best leg
forward, boys, and don't let on that any of you are near tuckered out.
Where's your pride, Larry? Brace up, and look as if you felt as fresh as
a daisy!"
Larry tried to obey; but it was hard to smile when he felt as though he
had been "drawn through a straw," as he declared.
"Listen!" cried Elmer, five minutes later, throwing up his hand for
silence.
"It's Ginger, and he's yelling to beat the band!" exclaimed Toby.
"Oh! I wonder what's happened!" gasped Jasper.
"Run for all you're worth, fellows!" said Elmer, starting off himself at
full speed.
Quickly they broke cover, and neared the camp, to see the other party
close by, also on the run. Ginger was dancing up and down, still
whooping things up, while Red stood just outside of a tent looking
startled and puzzled.
"What's that Ginger's yelling?" called Toby, and it thrilled them as
they heard.
"'Twar de debble dat time nigh got me! He's gwine tuh grab us all away
in de chariot ob fire! I'se a gone coon, I is! Runnin' ain't no use;"
and Ginger threw himself on his knees with clasped hands and rolling
eyes.