“The kid is right,” he finally declared. “This is a good dog, and we’ll keep him with us. Took a piece out of your leg, did he?”
The big fellow placed his hands on his mammoth hips, threw back his head until his hairy throat rose like a sturdy column of strength, and poured forth such a torrent of laughter that Teddy came out of the cabin to see what new sport was being prepared for his amusement. Sam struck at the cub, but the other pushed him away before he had done any mischief.
“That’s a good one!” roared the giant. “Took a piece out of your leg, did he? If he ain’t pizened, and lives after that, I’ll keep him. There’s a heap of pizen snakes down my way that need looking after. Took a piece out of your leg! That’s too good for anything! Ho! Ho! Ho! Took a piece out of your leg!”
“I hope he’ll some day take a piece out of that throat of yours!” roared Sam.
“No doubt, no doubt!” replied the giant. “He may be a doin’ of it when the hangman is busy puttin’ a new hemp tie about that weazen of yours! Now let the kids and the dog and bear alone, and help work the boat out into the current. We’ve got to be getting out of this!”
“You’ll have to put the motors together before you move her,” Sam replied.
The giant looked thoughtfully at the scattered fragments, then at Clay, still in the bunk, and scratched a thatch of red hair which looked like a hayrick.
“It seems to need puttin’ together,” he said, beckoning to Clay.
Then the boy saw that it was the intention of the outlaws to take possession of the Rambler and shift her down stream before any of the boys returned. He thought of Alex. and Jule, marooned on that desolate point of land where the old house stood, of Case, trudging back from New Madrid with the repairs to find the boat gone!
He glanced about hopelessly, searching the shores of the bayou on the faint chance of seeing Alex. and Jule returning. Captain Joe was now regaining consciousness in the cabin, and Teddy was trying to interest him in a boxing match! Mose sat in a corner motionless, except that his eyes rolled about in anger or panic, the boy could not determine which.