EVERYTHING LOVELY--CONCLUSION
“Hurrah!”
That shout of triumph seemed to break forth from several pair of lips at
once, when the taller one of the two thieves dropped the bag he had been
carrying, as Jack so plainly threatened to fire upon him at close range.
He was not so much of a fool after all, it seemed. If there was going to
be a chance for escaping minus the plunder, why, it would have to go,
that was all.
Somehow Jack was reminded of incidents in his own boyish career. He
could see himself madly tearing across a field, with a whole bevy of
angry bumble-bees chasing after him, and surging about his unprotected
ears; and when they started to get busy with their hot little probes,
what did he do but dash his hat off, and then his coat in quick
succession. This was to attract the attention of the bees to other
things, and let him escape. And the manoeuvre was usually successful,
too.
Well, this smart rascal, finding himself threatened with trouble, had
just done the same sort of trick practiced by the bumble-bee fighters
from away back in our great-grandfathers’ days, throw something down to
attract the attention of the hunters and hold their attention while he
escaped.
It succeeded in the work it was intended to do.
Jack did not shoot again, and the others all seemed to think that, since
the bag had been recovered, there was no especial need of almost killing
themselves closing with the desperate burglars.
They knew that the men were armed, anyway, and would doubtless use their
guns recklessly if cornered. Better to let them go, and call it a good
riddance of bad rubbish; that was a boy’s idea of the fitness of things.
What was the use of being greedy; they did not aspire to be known as
thief-takers; and besides, they owed it to those at home to have some
respect for their own safety.
And so the two alarmed rascals, rushing to the side of the raft, sprang
hurriedly straight into the river, striking out for the shore with all
the haste they were capable of. Indeed, to see the way they fought the
water, one would imagine that they fully anticipated having the whole
bevy of motor boats in swift pursuit, and that every second they could
gain in the start was going to count in their favor.
But who cared?
Certainly not Jack, who, pouncing upon the precious hand bag, opened it
just far enough to see that it was crammed with money and papers, just
as they had been hastily pushed into it at the time of the raid on the
Lawrence bank.
Some of the others came crowding around, anxious for a look; but Jack,
with a wisdom that did him credit, remembering that there were a couple
of big rough lumbermen present, whom he knew nothing about, not to
mention Jenks, was smart enough to close the bag quickly.
“Is it all right, Jack; everything there?” asked George, eagerly; and
then, as he caught the low word of warning which the other muttered he
understood; for as quick as that he went on to say: “All our stuff
recovered in fine style, eh, fellows? Let the scamps go; we ought to be
only too glad to wash our hands of them.”
“Hurrah for us!” shrilled Josh, brimming over with excitement.
All at once Buster, who had gained a footing on the logs when Herb
brought his big Comfort to an anchorage there, alongside the raft, was
seen to be wildly rushing toward the edge, and waving his arms. Then he
started to shouting after the pair of precious scoundrels who were
battling with the waves of the river, and by this time almost half way
to the nearer bank.
“Hey, bring back that sweater, you! That’s my blue moon sweater you’re
wearing, and I want it, I tell you! I’ll have the law on you for
stealing, d’ye hear that, you sneak? Jack, why don’t we start right out,
and chase ’em with the Tramp or the Wireless? Seems like none of you
fellers care a whit whether I ever get my bully old sweater back again.
How’d you feel if it was yours, now, and a birthday present at that?”
But Buster’s wild grief was suddenly turned into great joy; for Andy
came running out of the shack, into which he had darted despite the fact
of its being on fire, and he was waving something over his head as he
advanced.
“Troth, phat do ye call this same, Buster? ’Tis a sweater, and sure
there’s a blue moon on the front, in the bargain. Don’t ye say, the
omadhaun sthripped it off so that he could swim better.”
Buster clasped it to his heart, and actually kissed the precious
garment, which doubtless he had come to value more than ever, since he
lost it, for we “never miss the water till the well runs dry.”
And so, after all, the wonderful sweater came back to its own. Buster
had it on right away, and seemed to feel that luck had marked him for
its especial favors.
“Here, let’s get busy!” cried George, “perhaps we can save the best part
of this cabin after all. I see an old tin bucket that’ll do to scoop up
water with. Everybody work to put out the fire, fellows!”
That was just like George, who could be the most generous chap any one
ever met. Those two loggers had been of considerable assistance to the
boys in baffling the burglars and forcing them to give up their
ill-gotten gains; so that it would be only right in their trying to
remedy things as much as possible.
Well, the fire was soon gotten under control.
Meanwhile Jack had gone aboard the Tramp, where, unobserved, he could
again open the hand bag, and extract some of the money; for he did not
happen to have twenty dollars about him at the time, since they had not
expected finding any use for so much cash on their simple little Easter
cruise.
This he handed over to the two loggers, calling upon the others to
witness the transaction, for he might want to prove it later on.
After that the boys began to think of returning up the river, and
reaching their camp on Bedloe’s Island. Algernon concluded that, since
his boat was in fair running order, and he had the chance to elude the
other “chappie,” with whom he was playing a game of hide-and-seek while
on the way to St. Louis, he had better take advantage of the
opportunity, and keep right on down-stream.
Jack and his chums promised to care for what Algernon had left behind;
and on the way up later he would drop in at the island to recover the
same. If the motor boat boys were not in camp, having departed for home,
he promised to see them there.
And so Jenks having gone aboard and started the engine, the Saunterer
glided off down the Mississippi, Algernon shaking hands with each of the
others in turn, and declaring that it had all been the greatest bit of
excitement he had ever experienced; a remark, which caused Jack’s crowd
to grin, for, as we happen to know, the boys had been through some
remarkable events in their time.
The three boats were soon on their way up river; and reached the island
before dawn. It was a pretty tired lot that crept into the tent, and
slept for several hours. And later in the day Jack told them that in
consideration of the forlorn condition which he knew the good people of
Lawrence must be in, he would have to take a run over to a town which
lay about eight miles above. Here he could send the precious bag and its
contents, securely wrapped and sealed, by express; and at the same time
dispatch a long message at night rates that would tell the directors of
the stricken bank how all their valuable papers as well as the money
that had been taken were on the way to them, particularly later when the
motor boat boys got back from their little cruise down the Mississippi.
To this message Jack signed the names of the whole six chums, his own
last of all. Then he and Josh managed to get back to the island before
evening set in; and a great load had been taken from Jack’s mind, when
he no longer had to worry about that bag containing nearly all of the
visible assets of the plundered Lawrence bank.