The Hickory Ridge Boy Scouts: Under Canvas Part 11

"Saves a heap of water lugging, and that counts," admitted Lil Artha.

"That oughtn't to bother you much, Lil Artha," said George; "when you're built to cover half a mile at every step. All you'd have to do would be to take one look-in, fill your pail, and then turning around, come right back again."

"Our camp, then, will be pretty close to the old house, won't it?"

ventured Chatz; and there was an eagerness in his voice that betrayed how much he had been thinking of his luck at being in the vicinity of a building said to be haunted, for two full nights.

"That's what it will," Toby called out over his shoulder, for he was following the pilot of the expedition, Elmer, who strode on all by himself away in the van; "and you'll have a chance to sc.r.a.pe up an acquaintance with that old hobgoblin, Chatz. You're welcome to all the fun; I haven't lost any ghost that I know about, and you don't ketch me hanging about in there half the night, waiting for something white and clammy to stalk around. Ugh! I should say not. Oh! what was that?"

Nancy, up to then behaving very well, because quite tired after the long pull, began to prance at a lively rate; and every one of the four scouts craned their necks and stared in one particular direction; it was in that quarter George had just said the haunted house lay; and what had come to their ears was the strangest sort of a cry they had ever heard, a mingling of pain and rage it seemed.

CHAPTER X

IN FOR A GLORIOUS TIME

"A WILDCAT!" exclaimed Ty Collins, excitedly.

"Mebbe only an old owl," Lil Artha ventured; "because I remember you fellows told us there were some whoopers up here; and when an old house has got bats in its belfry it's likely to have owls too."

"The house is over that way, ain't it?" questioned Landy Smith, showing a mild interest in the matter; but his indifference was more than made up for by the excitement on the part of the Southern scout, whose dark eyes fairly danced with eagerness.

"I should say it was," he told Landy, "and if you think that's only an owl, or even a wildcat, suh, I reckon you've got another guess coming to you."

"Listen to that, would you?" broke from Ty; "our chum from Dixie here believes in ghosts, and he even thinks that was one warning us away from the haunted house. It'd take a dozen of the same to scare _me_ off. I may light out before an enraged bull, but you don't find me sneaking away when there's a white thing waving up and down in the road. Had a lesson once, when I found it out to be just a rag hangin' from a branch, and since then nothing spooky ever faizes Ty Collins."

Chatz looked keenly at the speaker, and nodded his head. Although he made no remark, his manner was that of a prophet, and Elmer, noticing it, could imagine him saying: "Just wait, and we'll see what sort of nerve you've got, Ty Collins. Things seem different at high noon from what they do when it's midnight. And if I have my way you'll get a chance to see a real ghost, for once in your life; because I just believe in the things, make all the fun you want to."

Whatever the strange thrilling cry may have been, at least it was not repeated. Nancy was quieted by Toby, and the other scouts stood there, listening earnestly, for fully five minutes, but nothing developed worth noticing.

Finally Elmer called out to them:

"Here, get a move on, Toby, and come along. We've got lots to do before we can cook our first dinner; and I don't know how you fellows feel, but I'm as hungry as a wolf. Make a sharp turn here, Toby, because we want to push straight into the woods, and reach that spring."

Of all the scouts, George was really the only one who, as they walked on, turned his head and glanced back several times toward the region from which that strange sound had come.

Chatz noticed it, and smiled grimly, as though making up his mind that perhaps he might find a convert in his belief in George, especially if anything remarkable did come to pa.s.s, as he felt almost sure would be the case.

Presently they came to the running water, and by following this up a short distance found the spring.

"Hurrah! here we rest! Alabama for mine!" cried Lil Artha, as he turned and surveyed his surroundings, with the eye of one who had camped on numerous previous occasions, and might be expected to know something about such things.

Then ensued a bustle, as the scouts began to unload the contents of the wagon, stake out the mare, and start to get things arranged.

Every fellow had his share of the work apportioned to him, so that there was little real confusion, or getting in each other's way; and it was wonderful how things seemed to almost grow like magic.

Two khaki-colored waterproofed tents soon stood there, facing toward the south, and with the spring only twenty feet away. Inside these the scouts began immediately to arrange their blankets, though the beds would not be made up until after the coming of night.

Another pair attended to the very important duty of making the cooking range, on top of which they would spread the metal top that was to serve as a gridiron, to hold such utensils as were necessary for cooking purposes.

When this had been constructed to their satisfaction a fire was quickly kindled, for the air was still rather sharp, even for a November day, and all of them felt they would be much better for a warm lunch.

Amidst more or less good-natured chaffing the meal was prepared. There was no lack of a.s.sistant cooks to help Ty, who had taken upon himself the duties of _chef_ for the occasion, since long ago he had proved his capacity in that line; everybody seemed only too willing to help, such is the potent effect of genuine hunger.

Even George was bustling around, trying to hurry things along, picking out all the best wood in order to make a hotter fire, and occasionally peeping in under the covers of the two kettles to learn if the contents might not be sufficiently cooked.

It was about an hour after noon when dinner was ready, and all of them admitted the result was well worth waiting for. That frosty November air had given them an enormous appet.i.te, and everything tasted better than it could possibly do at home; so for a certain length of time little was said, since they were too busy in disposing of the meal to talk.

When the edge had been taken from their appet.i.tes they fell into a disjointed conversation, and almost every subject under the sun was discussed from the standpoint of scouts.

Afterwards they lounged around for a while, being really too full to think of doing anything strenuous. As this was not supposed to be a regular camping trip of the whole troop, Elmer had not laid out any particular programme looking to their practicing the various "stunts"

which scouts are interested in. Under ordinary conditions there would have been all manner of events underway, such as wigwagging cla.s.ses, tracking advocates, new wrinkles in nature-study unfolded; photography of wild animals and birds in their native haunts undertaken, and many other educational features that make the camping out experience of Boy Scouts so vastly superior to those of other lads who simply go to the woods to loaf away the time, swim, and fish, and eat.

Of course each fellow was at liberty to employ himself as best he thought would give him the most pleasure, only there was no authority brought to bear, and no one felt constrained to do anything that he did not particularly care for.

"Where's Chatz gone?" asked Lil Artha, after they had been knocking around in this fas.h.i.+on for nearly an hour after eating, and several of them showed signs of wanting to be on the move.

"Oh! I saw him slip away a while back," remarked Toby, "and chances are he's prowling in and out of that old shebang over beyond the trees, the haunted house that Judge Cartaret built fifty years or so ago. Chatz is clear daft on the subject of spirits, you know. And from what I've seen of him, it wouldn't surprise me a little bit if the fellow before we left here, tried to get us to make some sort of a ghost trap, to grab that wonderful spook in."

"If he ever did that," Elmer remarked, "it would show that deep down in his heart Chatz didn't believe in any such notion; because if there was such a thing as a real ghost no trap we could manufacture would ever hold it. If Chatz proposed that to us he'd be as much as saying he believed the ghost to be a man, playing a game for some reason or other."

"But," interposed Ty Collins, "what sort of a game would make anybody prance around here night after night, with a sheet wrapped around him, and p'raps luminous paint on his face, like I remember a ghost once did.

But in that case there was a good reason, for he wanted to give a bad name to the property so he could buy it in for a song. That wouldn't be the case here with the Cartaret place, you know."

"Well, it's foolish trying to guess a thing when we haven't even seen the ghost," George interrupted the others to say; "and I've got to be shown such a thing before I'll take the least stock in it; though I must say that as a rule Chatz is a long-headed chap, and not easy fooled."

When Elmer heard George say this he fancied that it would only take one mysterious ghostly manifestation to make the doubter an ardent believer in supernatural things. Scoffer that George was, once he saw with his own eyes, he went to the other extreme, and became firmly convinced. It was just like the swing of the pendulum with him every time.

"Oh! let's forget all that stuff about white-sheeted things that walk in the middle of the night!" exclaimed Landy Smith, "and pick up a more cheerful subject. Now just yesterday I chanced to be reading an account that told how three scouts in this very state made a study of hunting for the hives of wild honey bees up in the hollow limbs of trees in the woods. Elmer, do you think we could run across a hive filled with delicious honeycombs around here?"

"Whee! you make my mouth water just to hear you talk about it," Lil Artha arose to say, "and if so be any of you make the try for a hive just count me in, will you?"

"You bet we will," Landy hastened to a.s.sure him, "and right now consider yourself appointed commissioner-in-chief, whose princ.i.p.al duty will be to climb the honey tree, after we locate the same, and cause the warm-footed little innocents to vacate, so that we can gather in a store of the nectar. Wow! I'm going right away to see if I can't find the tree. Who'll be my backer? Don't all speak at once!"

Lil Artha and Ted proved to be the most eager for the adventure. Upon making inquiries it was found that Landy had read all about how to locate a bee tree, if by good luck any such happened to be in the neighborhood, and was ready to show his chums how the thing ought to be done.

His talk concerning the subject proved to be so interesting that when a start was made he had gained another convert, being Ty Collins.

"I rather think I'd like to see how that thing's done, myself," this worthy admitted, "so with your permission, Landy, I'll tag along, and if you need any help in carrying the stock of honeycomb home count on me.

Right now I feel like I could tackle a few big wedges myself, and enjoy the same."

"All right, come along with us, Ty," Landy told him, cheerfully; "but I'd feel a whole lot easier in my mind if you'd take off that red sweater, and wear something else."

"What for?" demanded Ty, who could be pretty stubborn when he chose.

"This is going to be a bee hunt, not a bull fight, that I know of. Why should you object to me going warmly clad, I'd like to know?"