The superintendent of the Salem Fraternity happened to be absent at the time, and a well-known scout master, Mr. Shallack, from an adjoining town was organizing the boys for service. The first thing he had done was to requisition food and other supplies, such as kitchen utensils, etc., from a number of business men, and then he had organized an efficient soup kitchen to supply food to the many who would soon be in need.
Mr. Miller immediately offered the services of his ship’s company, and they were sent out in groups of two or three to find people who needed immediate help, and to give them whatever service was in their power.
It was not until he was arranging these groups of boys that Mr. Miller noticed Tom Sheffield’s absence and inquired of each of the other boys where they had last seen him. Ellsworth Randall was his boatswain’s mate and was really responsible, but could give no explanation.
“I don’t understand it, sir,” said he, “but I think he must have stopped to look at something, and then lost his way before he could catch up.”
“H’m,” said Mr. Miller, “that doesn’t sound like Sheffield; he’s no wool-gatherer!”
Meanwhile Dick had come up and begged that he might be allowed to go and hunt for Tom, but just then the telephone bell in the office rang.
“Some one to speak to Mr. Miller,” said the attendant, and to his intense relief, Mr. Miller heard Tom’s voice, talking over the wire from the Beverly Hospital.
“I’m sorry, sir,” he heard him say, “but I had to run and lend a hand. I’ll explain it all to you as soon as I can get there.”
CHAPTER IX
Scouts to the Rescue
After Tom had returned and reported to Mr. Miller, he, Chippie, and Dick were ordered off in quest of good turns. They had been directed toward a certain street which was on the very edge of the fire; and, after they had walked ten minutes in this direction, they heard cries proceeding from a house on the opposite side of the road. They crossed over and entered the house, which was an old-fashioned single dwelling turned into a building with a tenement on each floor. Two women—one elderly and the other comparatively young—were carrying down-stairs, with some difficulty, a large trunk containing all the household goods and clothes they had managed to scrape together, while a little girl was crying passionately at the foot of the stairs: