CHAPTER XXI. THE CALL FOR HELP.
"Giraffe, would you mind bending over and pinching me?" asked Bumpus,sweetly, after they had been going on for a short time, leaving thewatch-hill behind them, with all its dreadful memories.
"Sure I will, Bumpus, as many times as you want me to. I'm the mostaccommodating fellow you ever knew, and I can give a nip equal to one ofthose dobsons we use for catching black bass in the good old summertime."
Giraffe evidently was as good as his word, for there was an immediatelow screech from the fat chum.
"Hold on, Giraffe, that's enough!" he hastened to exclaim. "You'll haveme all black and blue if you keep that going. I'm sure of it now."
"Sure of what?" asked Allan, chuckling, for this was not the first timehe had seen this interesting little circus play come off between the twochums.
"That I'm awake, and didn't just dream about that awful battle!"
Bumpus shuddered as though he had suddenly been taken with a chill thatforetold a visitation of the ague or malaria. They knew from this thatthe sights he had recently witnessed must have made a tremendousimpression on his mind, and would probably haunt him for many a longday.
"I guess all of us feel pretty much the same way you do, Bumpus," Thadinformed him. "We're sorry to have seen such sights, and yet glad at thesame time. It was an opportunity that few American scouts could everexpect to have come their way. And if we could have done any good we'dhave been only too glad of a chance to offer our services."
"They'd have laughed at us if we'd risked it," asserted Allan.
"And like as not bundled us all into a dungeon for suspects," addedGiraffe, although he immediately added, "but say, did you ever see suchdauntless bravery as those same Germans showed when they marchedstraight up to that bridge, and every time a hole was torn in theirranks closed in as if on dress parade."
"Oh! I don't know," spoke up Bumpus, "it struck me that handful ofBelgians showed the real stuff in the way of bravery, holding out withten or twenty times their number against them. The German brand ofcourage seems to be different from some others I know of. They are partsof a big machine, and have to touch elbows when they fight."
Giraffe was up in arms at once, but Thad poured oil on the troubledwaters.
"Listen, Giraffe," he said, "this is what Bumpus means, and I've readthe same thing more than once; even high German generals have admittedit. Germans soldiers are not trained to take the initiative like our menand the French are. They are educated to obey orders as a unit, and acompany of them will walk directly into the jaws of death with a couragethat couldn't be beaten. But there's little of that hurrah and dash andsingle-handed work we're accustomed to associating with heroic actions."
Perhaps there was food for thought in what the scout leader said.Giraffe may not have looked at matters in this light before. He becamepensive as though revolving the theory over in his mind. Then he brokethe short silence by saying:
"Here's the fork of the road, Thad, and we can make a start in the otherdirection. After all the longest way around is sometimes the quickestway to the fire. But for one I'm glad we took the other. I've seen areal battle, and that's talking some."
There was good reason for Thad to be thoughtful. Troubles seemed to bemultiplying as they proceeded. He was beginning to believe that youngBelgian gunner with whom Giraffe had talked must have known what he wassaying when he declared they had but one chance in three to get throughthe country that seemed to be a network of war trails, with hostileforces moving in every direction.
Secretly Thad was rapidly coming to the conclusion that they would showtheir wisdom by turning back and making for the Dutch border again. Oncein Holland they could take a train for Rotterdam, and in some way securea passage to Antwerp.
The more he considered this the better it looked to him. He was evensorry now he had not insisted on such a course at the time they wereacross the border. In fact he had given up mostly on account of the pleaadvanced by Bumpus, who after all was a poor one to make suggestions.
So Thad determined that should they meet with another backset, he wasbound to put the matter before his chums in its true light. He knew hecould count on the support of Allan, and also that Giraffe was open toconviction, even if a little set in his way.
For a few miles the car moved along the second road fairly well, thoughThad was chagrined to find that he could not speed it up at all.
"What ails the old shebang, Thad?" demanded Giraffe, impatiently, whenit crawled along with sundry groanings and complainings.
"It's tired out, and creaks in the joints, don't you know," said Bumpus,with one of his old-time grins.
"But shucks! we're on level ground right now, and she ought to spinalong like fun!" mentioned Giraffe, with a snort of disgust. "Why,honest, I could keep out of your way walking, and never feel it. Talk tome about an ice-wagon, this goes it one better. It's like thoseharvester engines we see creeping along the country roads up our way,slow but sure."
"What do you figure can be the matter, Thad?" asked Allan.
"I'm in a fog," came the reply. "The only thing I can think of is thatsome of that petrol we bought at double price is mighty poor stuff."
"You mean it's been weakened to make it seem more," said Giraffe. "Ididn't know oil and water could be mixed, but mebbe these smart Belgianshave found a way to do it. And Thad, now that you mention it I reckonyou've about hit the right nail on the head."
"Well, there's nothing to be done," ventured Allan; "so we'll have togrin and bear it. But let's hope we'll strike a chance before long tobuy a new lot of gas, and this time get a decent quality with push init."
"Yes," added Giraffe, "just now it looks as if we had need of all thepush going; in fact I was going to offer to step out and put my shoulderagainst the car to help along."
"Oh, you'll get all that pleasure right away," Bumpus told him, "becauseI can glimpse another of those rises ahead there, and we'll never make athird of it under this low pressure, worse luck."
Just as he had prophesied they were compelled to work their passage tothe top of the rise, though coasting down the other side with a fineburst of speed. About a mile beyond this point Thad was noticed tolisten attentively, and immediately work the car over to one side of theroad.
"Something coming!" announced Giraffe, "and listen to the row, will you?Makes me think of a fire engine going on the run. But it's an automobileat that, believe me. Give 'em all the room you can, Thad, because, myword! they're coming to beat the band."
Already they could see the dust rising above the trees, and all sorts ofvague speculations took form in the minds of the boys. Then suddenlythere burst into view a strange contraption, the like of which none ofthem had ever seen before.
In one way it was a large car, but it had been boxed in with some sortof metal, so that it looked like a "battering ram," as Giraffe declaredafterwards.
Rushing at a rapid pace along the road it quickly reached the car andsped past. The staring scouts heard loud voices, and even saw wavinghands over the top of the barricade. Then it was lost to view in thecloud of dust.
"Whew! That's going some!" gasped Giraffe.
Bumpus was coughing from the dust he had inhaled, but he managed to giveexpression to his astonishment in a few jerky sentences:
"Oh! whatever was that! I thought a goods van had skipped off therailroad track and was raging along the road. Thad, can you guess it?Please enlighten me. Schew!" and he ended up in a tremendous sneeze.
"Yes, I think I know, though I never saw anything like it before," Thadobligingly told him. "I remember reading that some Belgian had beenexperimenting with what he called an armored motor-car, and which it wasclaimed would be a terror in war times. I think that must have been it."
"Well," admitted Giraffe, scratching his head, "it was all of that, letme tell you. And Thad, there was a hole in the armor plating on ourside. That must be where they use the quick-firing gun that mows things
down, just as the farmer cuts the wheat with his machine."
"If that war engine struck a regiment of the enemy it would make holesin their ranks, all right," Allan remarked, with a shake of his head.
"I'm glad I saw it," ventured Bumpus, "but they're sure a reckless lotaboard, from the way they rushed along this road."
"It takes that sort of men to use an armored car, I should think," saidThad. "They expect to drop down on the enemy wherever they can find him,and never stop to count heads, but just run the gantlet, firing as theygo. If they're lucky, and get through without an accident, they go backhome laughing over a good day's hunt."
"This war is bound to show up some queer freaks," remarked Allan. "Now,d'ye know that armored car makes me think of the war chariots theancient Romans used, with sharp knives fastened to the wheels, and asthey dashed through the crowded ranks of the Goths and Vandals thesemowed them down. This scheme is only a little more up to date, that'sall."
"Nothing new under the sun, when you come to look into things," declaredBumpus.
"This mad pace gives me a shiver," said Giraffe. "As I didn't sleep goodlast night I think I'll cuddle down right here, and take a few winks. Ifanything exciting comes along just give me a jolt, will you, Bumpus?"
"It's more than likely to be a hill," was the reassuring answer returnedby the stout chum. "All I'm hoping for now is that we strike a villagepretty soon, where we can find some decent petrol for sale, and loadup."
"Huh! one word for the petrol and two for your dinner," chuckledGiraffe. "Now, don't say anything more to me, Bumpus, because I'm bookedfor a nap. The warm sunshine, the drone of the bees, the grunting of ourelegant car, and a lot of other things combined make me feel _aw_-fullydrowsy."
He was really meaning it, too, for he had closed his eyes, and seemedabout ready to let his senses slip away. Bumpus looked down at him asthough he might not object to a little of the same sweet slumberhimself. With Thad and Allan on guard there could be no harm in givingway to this feeling. And should they come to one of those nuisances inthe way of rises, which would stall the engine, of course all of themstood ready to drop out and do their duty.
But it was not to be.
They happened to be passing a small cottage just then. It sat back fromthe road, and there were flowers in the front yard, yes, and a wellalso. Thad was almost tempted to stop and ask for a drink, but hethought better of it. Further on, when they came to a town, and made aneffort to secure a supply of petrol it would be time enough to think ofquenching their thirst, aggravated by the dust they were forced tobreathe most of the time.
And it was at that instant they heard wild shrieks ring out, in awoman's voice. Looking toward the cottage and half expecting to see itin flames they discovered a woman at the well. She was wringing herhands frantically, now leaning over to peer into the depths, and thenrocking to and fro as if in the very abandon of grief over something.
Thad stopped the car instantly. Both Giraffe and Bumpus were on theirfeet, and staring with might and main at the spot.
"Oh! whatever has happened?" the latter was exclaiming in horrifiedtones. "She acts like a child had fallen down the well!"