Besides, their coming seemed to invigorate those already on the ground, and who, by reason of long service, were nearly exhausted.
"'Everybody's doin' it,' fellers!" gasped Landy, as he staggered forward with his sixteenth bucket, and gave the contents a fling.
"It'th a burning thame, what we're doing to that old fire, don't you know?" laughed Ted, who followed close on the fat boy's heels.
"Keep it going another round, boys," shouted Elmer; "and by that time, I reckon, there won't be any more need of water. We've saved the house, even if it is damaged a little with water and smoke and fire. That's the ticket, Ty; you're making a record worth while to-day, old fellow! Once more to the breach; then it's rest for yours."
"All out!" cried Landy, in another minute, as he dropped his bucket and sank in a limp heap on the ground, a sight that would have caused his good mother to throw up her hands in horror.
But Landy was proud of having had a chance to prove his right to the name of a Hickory Ridge Boy Scout. He grinned, and looked particularly happy; for he knew that when the history of the saving of the Brady home was written, his name would surely have a place of honor among those who participated in the good work.
By this time there were fully forty people present. How the news got abroad it would be hard to say. Some of the farmers in that neighborhood had telephones, and in this way it may have been passed along the line; but there were many other methods in which the fire could have made itself manifest.
New people kept arriving every few minutes; while a few went away again to attend to the urgent business of getting in their late crops.
The four scouts remained in a bunch, talking matters over, and trying to recover a little from their tremendous exertions before returning to the camp.
"Thay, how d'ye thuppothe the old thing got thtarted?" Ted asked, with the natural curiosity of a boy.