"Yes," replied the scout master with a laugh, "through my glasses, away off toward the south. And, boys, that train is just loaded down with rebel soldiers coming up from Chihuahua to get after the raiding parties of Federals that have been burning bridges and destroying railroad stock on the Mexican Central here!"
"And you didn't whisper a word of it to us, Rob, all this while?" cried Tubby, with a reproachful look on his beaming face.
"Why, you see, I didn't want any one to have false hopes," Rob told him. "How could I tell whether that train would get here in a week? The track might be all torn up on the other side of the burnt bridge. But I fixed it with Lopez that he was to tell the captain when he saw me wave my red bandanna handkerchief over this rock; and you saw me do that a few minutes ago."
"When you first caught the rumble of the train, and knew it must be drawing near on the south side of the river?" interjected Merritt.
"That's what happened," Rob replied.
"But see here," Tubby insisted, "how are they going to help us if that same train can't cross on the steel girders of the burned bridge? You don't reckon it can do that, do you, Rob?"
"Certainly not, Tubby," replied the other, "but that isn't going to keep the men from getting over. You'll find some of them crossing like cats on the remains of the bridge. Others may wade the river, which doesn't appear to be very deep from what I saw of it."
"Yes, I noticed that you walked up that way and took observations, while the rest of us were watching the bridge burn," said Tubby. "And right then chances were you figured it all out in your mind how a feller might wade across if he had to! There never was such a chap to lay out plans ahead of time. No wonder you're always ready to act when things happen in a hurry!"
Rob simply touched the badge that was fastened to his left sleeve at the shoulder. Its position showed that he was filling the part of assistant scout master; and the fact that it was complete, told that the wearer must be a first class scout. Then he repeated the words emblazoned on the badge:
"Be prepared!"