CHAPTER X
DODGING THE SNAGS AND THE SNARES
A minute later both motorboats lay anchored in the middle of the swift-flowing Radway, and about sixty feet apart.
"What's the matter?" shouted Jud, taking it upon himself to learn the facts in the quickest possible time, so that signal flags were not used.
"Something's happened to our motor; but Jack thinks he can fix her up, given a little time," came in the voice of Bobolink.
"Well, call on us if we can help out any," Paul shouted; for the slapping of the water against the sides of the boat, as well as over the stones on either hand, made it hard to hear plainly.
"What if they can't fix the motor up?" remarked Phil Towns; "I hope that won't mean we've got to spend the whole night out here in the middle of the river."
"Oh I if it comes to the worst, we can tow her ashore; and then it's camp on the river bank for ours," announced Paul, cheerfully. He always seemed to have plans made up in advance, as though anticipating every trouble that could arise, and getting ready for it.
"Huh! that mightn't be so bad, after all," grunted Joe Clausin; and even Gusty Bellows and Little Billie nodded their heads, as if agreeing that there were things less desirable than camping on the bank.
The minutes dragged along, until half an hour had gone. Even Paul began to show signs of restlessness. He finally made a megaphone of his hands, and called to Bobolink:
"Tell Jack to step up; I'd like to ask him a question or two."
"Ay, ay, sir," replied the other, touching his forelock in true man-o'-war style, and immediately the head of Jack appeared.
"What's the good word, Jack?" asked the Commodore of the expedition. "Can you make the mend, d'ye think; and just about how long is it going to take you?"
"Between five and ten minutes, not more," came the reply; "I've got the hang of it now, and the end's in sight."
"Whoopee! that sounds good to me!" shouted Gusty Bellows, waving his hat.
Five minutes had hardly passed before they heard the familiar pop-pop-pop of the Speedwell's motor exhaust.
"How is it?" called Paul once more.
"Fine and dandy," answered Bobolink, waving his bugle; and giving a few vigorous blasts to indicate that victory was nigh.
"They're hauling in the anchor, which is a good sign," declared Nuthin.
Presently both boats were again breasting the stream. Apparently no serious result had come from the accident, save that more than a good half-hour had been wasted. But still Paul declared that he had hopes of making their destination before darkness set in.
The sun was getting very low, and the river looked desolate indeed. It was bordered by swampy land; and where the ground showed, there seemed to be such a vast number of rocks that farming had never been attempted.
"What d'y'e suppose is in those marshes?" Gusty asked, after they had passed about the fifth.
"I understand that a lot of cranberries are gathered here every Fall, and sent down to the cities for the market," Jud Elderkin replied.
"And seems to me a bear was killed last year somewhere up here," Nuthin' put in, rather timidly. "So I'm glad you brought that gun along, Paul. We are not lookin' for a bear, because we never lost one; but if he did come to camp it'd be nice to feel that we could give the old chap a warm reception."
"Huh! I can see the warm reception he'd get," chuckled Jud. "Seventeen trees would each one have a scout sitting up in the branches as quick as hot cakes. Guess Paul would have to be the reception committee all alone."
"Don't you believe it," remarked Gusty Bellows; "You'd see me making for the axe in a big hurry, I believe in an axe. It makes one of the greatest weapons for defence you ever saw. I've practiced swinging it around, and I know just how to strike."
"Well, we'll remember that; won't we, fellows?" remarked Jud, with a laugh. "Plenty of axe exercise Gusty needs, to keep him in trim for bears; and I can see now how our firewood is going to be attended to."
They kept pushing on all the while; and there was never a time that the lookout did not have to keep his eyes on the alert, because of the traps and snares that lay in wait for the voyagers up the rough Radway.
"Great river, I don't think!" Joe Clausin ventured to remark, after they had done considerable dodging, to avoid a mass of rocks that blocked the way in a direct line.
"Still, you'll notice that there's always a passage around," said Paul. "It's that way with nearly everything. Lots of times we don't see the opening till we get right on it, and then all of a sudden, there's the path out."
"I guess you're right, Paul," observed Joe. "Things do happen to a fellow sometimes, in a funny way, and just when he feels like giving up, he sees the light. You remember a lot of trouble I had once, and how it turned out splendidly? And so I learned my lesson, I sure did. I look at things different now. It showed me how silly it is to worry over things that you can't help."
"But all the same," remarked Gusty, "I wish we had a squint at that same old lake ahead. It's getting sunset, and beyond, Paul."
"I know it, and we must be pretty near the place now," replied the scout master. "Unless we see it inside of ten minutes I'll have to give the word to turn in to the shore at the next half-way decent landing, where there seems to be enough water to float our boats."
"There's a good place right now," declared Joe, pointing; "and we mightn't run across as fine a landing again."
"Ten minutes, I said," repeated Paul, positively; because he believed that there were certain signs to tell him they would come in sight of the big lake, from which the Radway flowed, after they had turned the next bend.
Somehow the others seemed to guess what he had in mind, and all were anxiously watching as they drew near the bend.
As the trees ceased to shut out their view, they gave a shout of delight, for the lake was there, just as Paul had anticipated.
"Whew! she's a big place, all right!" declared Jud, as they looked toward the distant shore, where the trees seemed lost in the shadows.
"I never dreamed there was a lake like this so near Stanhope," declared Joe, as he stared. "That one up by Rattlesnake Mountain could be put in a corner of Tokala, and wouldn't be missed. And say, that must be the island over yonder; don't you think so, Paul?"
"Look and see if you can sight a cedar growing on the top of the hill that they say stands in the middle of the island," suggested the scout master, still busy at the wheel; for the danger was not yet all over, as they had not entered the lake itself, though very near.
"It's there, all to the good!" announced Jud.
"Anybody could see that" added Gusty, who was a little jealous of the superior eyesight of several of his comrades, he being a trifle near-sighted.
"Well, if we are going to make a job of it, the sooner it's over the better," was the queer remark Joe made; but no one paid any particular attention to his words, they were so taken up with watching the island.
And so the leading motorboat left the noisy waters of the Radway, and glided into the smoother lake, much to the satisfaction of the crew; for the boys had grown tired of the constant need of watchfulness in avoiding reefs and snags.
Paul shut off power, and waited to see whether the companion boat succeeded in reaching the calm waters of the big lake as successfully as they had done. As it was now pretty close to dark, in spite of the half-moon that hung overhead, seeing the partly hidden rocks was not an easy task.
And so he watched with not a little concern the progress of the Speedwell during those last few minutes. But Jack was alive to the situation; and managed to bring his boat safely through, being greeted with a cheer from those on board the waiting Comfort.
"Now it's straight for the island!" called out Bobolink, as the boats drew together, and the motors started as cheerfully as if they had not undergone a hard day's work from the time the voyagers left Stanhope.
"We'll have to make camp by firelight, that's plain," grumbled Gusty.
"What's the odds, so long as we get fairly comfortable for the night?" Bobolink retorted, being one of the kind who can make the best of a bad bargain when necessary. "All we want to do is to get the tents up and a fire going, so we can cook something. Then in the morning we'll do all the fancy fixing you can shake a stick at, and try out all the new wrinkles every fellow's had in mind since our last camp. This is what I like. A lake for me, with an island in it that nobody lives on, but p'raps an old wildcat or a she bear with cubs."
"But they say something does live on it, and that he's a terror too; a real wild man that's got hair all over him like a big baboon—I heard it from a man that saw him once, and he wouldn't lie about it either," Joe Clausin called out.
Although the rest of the scouts mocked him, and pretended to jeer at the idea of such a thing as a wild man existing so near Stanhope, nevertheless, as the two motorboats gradually shortened the distance separating them from the mysterious island, they gazed long at the dark mass lying on the still water of the big lake and its gloomy appearance affected them.
Just as Joe Clausin had said, it had a real "spooky" air, that, at the time, with night at hand, did not impress them very favorably.