The Blind Lion of the Congo Part 11

Burt was just a little puzzled at his uncle's att.i.tude. He said nothing definite, but the boy in some way got the idea that he was watching Captain Mac. At first Burt put aside the thought. Then he resented it, for he had a strong liking for the eccentric Scotchman. Finally he resolved to wait and see what turned up.

That night his suspicions were confirmed. He and Critch slept together in one of the small tents and as they arranged the mosquito nets for the night Howard paused.

"Say, did you notice anything funny about Cap'n Mac lately?"

"No," replied Burt. "Uncle George is acting kind of funny, though."

"You bet he is," nodded Critch. "He's just about got the goods on Cap'n Mac, too!"

"What!" Burt stared at his chum eagerly. "I knew it! Spit it out, old sport."

"It's that compa.s.s business. Anyway, that got your uncle going. When we was ridin' after that hartebeest to-day he comes out with it. This here place ain't on our line o' march at all. We're 'way east of where we ought to be!"

"East!" repeated Burt. "What's that got to do with Cap'n Mac?" He was still ready to stand up for his friend, though Howard's confident air sorely shook his faith.

"Like this. Your uncle says Montenay's been leadin' us wrong. He don't know what for and he's waiting to find out. B'lieve me, I'd hate to be Cap'n Mac when he does find out! Golly, he was mad to-day!"

"Does he think Cap'n Mac swiped our compa.s.ses?"

"You bet! Thinks that business with Mgoro was a put-up job, too. When we were out to-day we found a young eland lying dead. It had two o' the blamedest arrows in it you ever seen. Here's the head o' one."

Critch produced a little bundle of skin from his pocket and very carefully unwrapped it. He laid a long many-barbed iron point in Burt's hand.

"Watch out for it. That black stuff's poison, your uncle says. It's a pigmy arrow."

"What's a pigmy arrow?" asked Burt. "Oh, you mean--" he stared at Critch, who nodded.

"That's what. We're over east near the pigmy country, 'stead of being up in the higher country where we ought to be. We'll be in the jungle in another day, your uncle says."

"What's he going to do about it?" asked Burt. "Here, take this blamed thing back." And he very gingerly deposited the arrow-point in the bit of skin.

"Nothing," replied Critch. "He says to lay low and keep your eye peeled.

He ain't going very far into the jungle either."

Whether Montenay noticed anything in their att.i.tude the next morning or not, he was as gay as ever when they started out after their first elephant. In fact, he had never appeared more open, frank and merry than he did this morning and Burt found himself involuntarily siding against his uncle.

They were accompanied by a large force of trackers from the town. After a stiff two-mile walk into the deep forest toward the denser jungle one of these trackers returned with word that a herd was not far ahead. Soon afterwards the party came upon the spoor. In low places the tracks were big holes three feet in depth. They were always marked by shattered and broken smaller trees and torn branches.

Suddenly an elephant trumpeted close by and the boys jumped. Now they stole along quietly in single file, while they could hear the great beasts feeding and cras.h.i.+ng among the trees not a hundred yards away.

The party moved noiselessly in the tracks of the elephants, for their great weight had left no sticks or leaves to crack. Birds flew up in flocks and monkeys chattered all around. Then as the trail twisted about the boys saw their first wild elephant--a good deal closer than they could have wished.

Without the least warning the bushes and ma.s.s of tangled creepers at their left parted with a tremendous cras.h.i.+ng and a big bull surged out twenty feet away. He was as much surprised as they and stood looking while the blacks fled. Mr. Wallace and Captain Mac fired almost together, one bullet taking him in the shoulder and the other just above the eye. Neither wound was fatal but for an instant the great beast was stunned by the shock and stood reeling. Then as he lifted his trunk, flapped his ears forward with his great in-curving tusks half raised and took a step toward the party, both men fired again and the immense bulk quivered and crashed down dead.

The blacks raised a shout of joy but only for an instant. At the sudden firing shrill trumpeting and cras.h.i.+ng had gone up from the herd in front, and another bull appeared in the path in full charge. Trees, matted creepers and bushes went down before him and for an instant the little group stood paralyzed with the sudden danger. Then Burt raised his rifle and fired. His bullet was wildly aimed but proved lucky, for it struck the elephant in the eye and penetrated the brain. He staggered forward another step and then rolled over just as the others fired.

"Good for you!" cried Mr. Wallace. He gripped Burt's hand and shook it heartily, as did Captain Mac. Critch pounded his chum on the back in an ecstasy of delight. The herd had crashed away and was gone, and as one of the bearers was carrying the camera, Burt and Critch got some views of the dead elephants, after which the hunters took out their knives.

The hides were disregarded as not worth the effort of preparing. The tusks were cut out and the feet were taken off to be served up by John as the most delicate of jungle dishes. Then the local blacks fell to work and cut up the rest of the carca.s.ses for home consumption. It was about noon, so Mr. Wallace decided that they would return to their camp and follow the herd another day.

"This is good country," he said as they walked along. "Between hunting and trading we ought to get a nice lot of ivory together pretty soon. I think I'll make a permanent camp just outside the town and not go in any farther, Montenay."

Captain Mac merely nodded. He remained very silent, however, on the return trip. When they got home the tusks were weighed and it was found that the smaller bull, the first to appear, carried one hundred and ten pounds of ivory. The larger, which Burt had killed, was a good deal older and his tusks weighed twenty pounds more.

"That's big ivory, lad," said Montenay as they sat down to their postponed lunch in the afternoon. "It ain't often ye'll get beasts carryin' more'n a hundred thirty. 'Cept, o' course, some old chap who's wandered off by himself an' kept the blacks too scared to be huntin'

him. I mind once I dropped just such an old bull down south an' got a hundred seventy--nigh to bein' a record."

"It was a mighty lucky shot," laughed Burt. "I just threw her up an' let go 'cause I was too scared to aim. Goin' out to-morrow?"

"Since ye're goin' to camp here permanent," returned Captain Mac, addressing Mr. Wallace, "I'm thinkin' I'll be takin' a little hike into the woods. I'll take a score o' the boys an' be back in a week."

"No, you won't." Without the least trace of excitement in his voice Mr.

Wallace whipped out his revolver and covered the other. "Keep your hands on the table, Montenay! Burt, remove the captain's gun."

CHAPTER IX

THE WHITE PIGMIES

As Burt obeyed it seemed to him that the Scotchman was taking the situation very coolly. The little thin man sat silently with his eyes on those of Mr. Wallace and only his quivering nostrils denoted the emotion that must have consumed him.

"Now, Captain Montenay," resumed Mr. Wallace when Burt was again seated, "let's have a little explanation." Burt saw that his uncle's face looked as he had seen it on the night when his compa.s.s disappeared. "In the first place you stole our compa.s.ses."

"I did not!" Captain Mac gave a harsh little laugh. "Ye have yer own, or what's left of it. I've got the other two in my pocket. I removed 'em temporarily so to speak. Be more choice in yer use o' words, man."

"Secondly, you've been leading us astray."

"Aye," retorted Captain Mac, "but I didn't give ye the credit for findin' it out so quick."

"Now you propose to leave us here, on the edge of the jungle country,"

continued Mr. Wallace. "There are three things that are open to explanation, Captain Montenay. I am sorry to use this method of persuasion but it seems to be necessary." The little man's face lost its look of half-malicious mockery and for a moment he did not answer but stared over the head of Mr. Wallace at the afternoon sun.

"If I'm not wantin' to tell, man, I'm thinkin' ye'd have a hard job to make me," was his answer at last.

"If you won't tell," snapped out Mr. Wallace, "I'll tie you up here and now and carry you back to Boma. You know what you'd get there."

"Aye. Is that yer final deceesion?"

"It is. Explain or go to Boma."

"Vera good. Gi' me the gun, lad." To Burt's vast surprise his uncle nodded and replaced his weapon. As Captain Mac quietly buckled the restored revolver about his waist his face broke into a wrinkled smile.

"It'll be a longish yarn, Wallace." There was no trace of animosity in his tone. "Let's finish eatin' an' when I get the old pipe between my teeth I'll feel like talkin'."

Their meal was finished in silence. Before Captain Mac gave his explanation, however, a startling event happened. It seemed that a dozen men of the village had remained with the bodies of the elephants to remove more of the meat. Just as Captain Mac was filling his ancient and evil-smelling pipe a native rushed into camp shouting something that sent the pipe to the ground and the captain to his feet.