“Oh, if they only see,” she breathed as she sent forth the message: “Woods on fire! Come quick!”
She could see boys walking about on the island, some busy with the boats, some going in or out of the tents.
For a little time she felt that her signals were of no use, but presently she saw a boy standing still, and evidently looking in her direction, then she saw him gesticulating and pointing. Next she saw a number of boys running to the boats, and in another moment, to her great relief, she read the answering message from one of them: “We understand. We’re coming.”
For a moment she was undecided whether to wait on the cliff or to go down to the spot where they would be likely to land and which was some distance below. “We’ll gain time if I meet them there,” she said to Chico. “We must make it, Chico; I trust to you. I believe you will take me safely.” Chico, who had not moved since she dismounted, gave a little whinny as Joanne turned him toward the brink of the cliff. There was a little winding path which led down to the river. It was steep, oh, so steep, rocky and forbidding. For the breadth of a second, Joanne held her breath and pressed her teeth hard against her lower lip, then she summoned up all her courage. “You can make it, Chico; you are a mountain boy,” she said encouragingly, and began the descent.
Down, down the sure-footed little pony went, picking his way among scrubby underbrush, over rocks, around bare gnarled roots, but never once did he falter and never once did Joanne lose her faith in him. The first boat was just coming in when pony and rider reached the foot of the cliff. First the boys stared, then with one accord they gave a wild cheer.
“Good for you, Jo!” they cried. “That was some stunt! Where’s the fire?”
“Over here in the woods. I didn’t want to lose any time by coming around. I’ll go ahead and show you where it is. I thought you boys would know best how to put it out, besides there are more of you than there are men on the nearest farm. Just follow me.”
She trotted along on Chico, the boys following at as smart a gait as possible, and before long they saw the fire ahead of them. From creeping along it was beginning to mount to the trees above which the smoke curled in a steady column. In a few minutes the second boat-load of boys arrived, having been directed to the spot by the arrow sign left by the first boys as they went along. They all consulted together for a moment.
“Water’s not much use,” declared Hal Fosdick; “what we should do is to plough up or dig a ditch so the fire can’t go beyond a certain point. Some one should go to the nearest farm and notify them so they can bring the tools we need; the rest can stay here and do what can be done to put out the fire.”
“I’ll go,” offered Joanne. “Chico can take me in a jiffy.”