THE BOYS MEET AN OLD ACQUAINTANCE.
The boys needed no further urging. Taking to their heels they ran like so
many scared jackrabbits after the engineer. Tubby, his fat, stumpy legs
working like piston rods, was in the lead.
"I knew something was going to bust," he yelled, as he sprinted along,
"and it has!"
Suddenly Mr. Raynor, who was heading apparently for a piled-up mass of
rocks, stopped and glanced back.
"Too late! Duck!" he shouted the next instant.
Down flopped the boys, but as they threw themselves face downward they
felt as if they were being lifted from the ground by a giant hand and
then slammed down again. It seemed almost as if a heavy weight had been
hurled down on them.
Then came a terrific, blasting roar and blinding flash as if a huge gun
had been set off quite close to them.
The fearful concussion and their lack of knowledge of what was happening
scared and shocked them half out of their wits. Gravel and small rocks
fell about them. If it had not been for their broad-brimmed Scout hats,
which protected the back of their heads, they would have been cut and
bruised by the hail of débris.
"You can get up now," came Mr. Raynor's voice presently, "but I don't
mind saying that that was about as narrow a squeak as I've ever
experienced."
"It sure _was_ a test hole," muttered Tubby; "it tested me all right and
I don't want any more of it."
"What on earth happened?" demanded Rob, brushing dirt and dust from his
uniform.
"That's what I'd like to know," said Fred.
"I thought the world was coming to an end," declared Merritt.
"Or a giant cocoanut was blowing up," murmured Tubby.
At that moment Ram came running up. He looked embarrassed and dabbed at a
small cut on his forehead with a handkerchief.
"Him hurte you?" he asked rather anxiously, looking askance at Mr.
Raynor.
"More good luck than thanks to you that we were not all killed," declared
the engineer angrily. "What made you do it, you rascal?"
"Me very sorry. Ram forget," said the man contritely.
But his repentance had no effect on the thoroughly angry engineer. He
told the man that he was too grossly careless to work on the dynamite
gang and ordered him to report at his office that night and be assigned
to some other work.
Tubby nodded sagely as he heard this. He was confirmed, it seemed, in his
opinion that the man had been careless and he felt like telling the
engineer so. But Rob asked a question.
"You haven't told us yet just what it was that happened?" he said.
"Yes, what was it?" put in Fred.
"Oh, nothing to speak of but an explosion of fifteen pounds of dynamite
about as close to us as I'd care to have such a thing happen," said the
engineer grimly.
"Gee whiz! As bad as that!" exclaimed Merritt looking aghast. "Why we
might all have been----"
"Hoisted sky-high. Oh, you don't need to tell me that. That careless
fellow Ram left one of his cans of dynamite lying on the ground not far
from the test hole. I didn't notice it and he didn't either, I guess,
till he shot the well. Then just as that column of stones and stuff was
sky-hooting up, I happened to see that can lying there. It gave me a
turn, I tell you. I figured out what would happen if a rock ever hit and
we standing where we were."
"What would have happened?" asked Tubby innocently, his eyes like two
saucers.
"Happened! Why we'd all have had through tickets to Kingdom Come, that's
what would have happened."
"But you haven't told it all," exclaimed Rob, who had just comprehended
something. "Boys, that weight that fell on us was Mr. Raynor's body. He
just shoved us in front of him and shielded us with his own body. He
saved our lives."
"That's what I call being a real hero," cried Fred.
"Three cheers and a tiger for Mr. Raynor!" yelled Merritt.
"Pshaw! You drop that now!" protested the engineer. "I just fell on you
because I couldn't help it, I reckon."
"We know better than that, don't we, fellows?" cried Rob.
"You bet we do," was the response given with deep conviction and
unanimity.
"Well, say no more about it," begged the engineer. "I promised to take
good care of you and I was almost responsible for getting you injured, so
I guess we're quits."
As Mr. Raynor had to visit other parts of the workings, and also to take
samples of the earth blown up by Ram's unlucky blast, the boys bade him
good-bye soon after.
"Well, so long," he said. "I hope you'll drop in and see me some time if
you are going to be about here long. I may have something else
interesting to show you."
The boys said they would. Then up came Ram Chunda, grinning like a
monkey.
"Me velly solly," he said, "white sahib no be mad. You come see me some
time, eh?"
"Yes, we'll come and see you when you're in your little casket or else
get our lives insured first, you--you anarchist you!" sputtered Tubby.
The engineer had advised them not to climb the ladders but to walk along
the foot of the dam till they reached a place where a flight of steps had
been moulded in the concrete. Accordingly, after leaving him they trudged
along at the foot of the gigantic stone cliff, looking up every now and
then to marvel at its height and massiveness.
They found plenty to look at and were in no hurry. That is, none of them
was in a hurry but Tubby, who was keen to find out if it was not time to
go back to Mr. Mainwaring's bungalow for dinner.
It was hot work walking, and they paused frequently. At length they came
to a place where a small tree at the foot of the dam afforded a patch of
shade.
"Let's sit down and rest a while," said Fred. "I'm tuckered out."
"Wish this was a cocoanut tree," said Tubby as they reclined in the
grateful bit of shade. "I'd climb it and get all you fellows something to
eat."
"Or blow us up," laughed Fred mischievously.
"Say, fellows," said Rob presently, "look up above us on the top of the
dam. There's a big concrete mixing machine up there."
"Hope they don't drop anything down on us," said Fred apprehensively.
"Not much danger of that, I just saw a man peeking down at us. They would
warn us if we were in danger."
"I don't know, those niggers are none too careful. Remember that fellow
Ram; he came pretty near ramming us," punned Fred.
"Look out!" yelled Merritt suddenly.
But he was too late. A bucket full of liquid cement came spattering down
on them, going all over their uniforms and making them sad sights indeed.
Luckily the stuff was almost as thin as water or they might have been
injured.
Rob looked up and gave an indignant shout. A mocking face peered over the
edge of the parapet and grinned jeeringly at him. As he saw this
countenance Rob gave a violent start and fairly staggered backward.
It was the face of Jared Applegate into which he had looked. It was his
hand that had thrown the bucket of liquid cement over them, ruining their
uniforms.
"Fellows!" shouted Rob in high excitement.
But Jared's face had vanished as swiftly as it had appeared.