CHAPTER XXV. THE SCOUTS' CAMP FIRE.
It was certainly pretty lively while it lasted. Giraffe, who likedexcitement must have felt quite in his element when turning the tableson those plotting Belgian boys who had figured in taking their car awayfrom them, so as to offer it to the Government, just then so sadly inneed of transportation facilities.
However laudable their ambition may have been Thad and his three friendswere determined that they would block the game. With this purpose inview they commenced to spring a pretty surprise on their assailants.
The three who wielded the whips started to flay the legs of theambushing force, and immediately the shouts that had been intended tointimidate the scouts began to change their tune and become yells.
Giraffe, too, was swinging that club with his old-time vigor. True, hehad no particular animosity against these native boys who thought theywere only doing a patriotic duty; but Giraffe believed he had a right tofight for his property, and he claimed a quarter interest in that car,miserable affair though it was.
Had the Belgian boys been equipped with the same type of weapons as Thadand his chums it might have been a longer battle, for they wouldprobably given as good as they took. Since the advantage was all on oneside, save in numbers, the end was a foregone conclusion.
Some of the astonished boys started to run, then came back and took asecond generous dose, before concluding that the game was up.
A signal was finally given which must have been the recall, forimmediately the wielders of the whips and the club found theiroccupation gone, since their adversaries had retreated in hot haste.
Thad saw that they darted into the brush, and suspected their mainobject was to secure some sort of fighting material for themselves,after which they would likely return to the attack.
He did not want any more of that rough and tumble sort of scramble if itcould be avoided; and a quick "getaway" was the one thing needful insuch a case.
"Clear the road!" he called out, suiting his actions to his words byjumping forward to seize hold of the log, which with a few adroit turnshe sent spinning into the ditch.
The others hastened to do their share, and in less time than it takes totell it a passage had been made through the barricade.
"That's enough!" called Thad, giving his orders with the precision of amilitary commander; "now get aboard, for we're going to start off!"
Bumpus had been expecting something like this. Knowing his faculty forlagging he was already "legging" it for the car when Thad spoke. Thus hemanaged to clamber aboard in good time, and fall on his knees inside thetonneau of the car.
Giraffe came flying after him, landing almost on his back; but a littlething like that was not to be noticed when the main object had beenaccomplished. They had managed to get rid of their tormentors for thetime being, and this gave Thad a chance to start the engine.
There was fortunately no need of cranking, and hardly had Allan clutchedhold of the car to swing himself aboard when it was moving off.
"Duck your heads, everybody; they're going to bombard us with stones!"shouted Giraffe, as a missile struck the back of the car with a bang.
Several came aboard, and one by some freak of fortune took Bumpus squarein the back, causing him to give a loud grunt, though he declared it wasnothing to bother about.
The fusillade continued until the car, increasing its momentum, managedto draw so far away that the stones fell short. When this became acertainty Giraffe, looking back, told them the Belgian boys had given upthe pursuit.
"Ha! guess that was a case of the biter bitten!" said Giraffe, assumingall the airs of a victor expecting to be crowned with the laurel wreath;although if the question had been actually put to him he must haveadmitted that three other fellows had also had a "finger in the pie."
"We got out of the scrape better than I thought we would," said Bumpus,"when I saw how many of them there were. Giraffe, you're a good friendof mine, ain't you? Would you mind rubbing me in the middle of the back?Please not _quite_ so hard, for you see that rock gave me a bit of aclump there, and raised a knob, I guess."
"I'm wondering what's going to strike us next," ventured Allan; "forwhen you come to look at it we've been having some of the queerestadventures on this trip that ever could have happened."
Bumpus shook his head as though he might be ready to pass the puzzlealong.
"It's too deep for me, Allan," he said. "I'd think we'd pretty nearlyexhausted the whole list by now, but still there may be more coming.It's making me believe we're fated not to get through with this car,after all, and that we'll soon run up against a snag so big that it'llsink our craft."
"So long as we don't go down with it I won't kick," asserted Giraffe,who seemed to be feeling much more cheery since that last littleexciting affair. "And Bumpus, after all what does it matter how you getto Antwerp so long as you pull up there sooner or later?"
"Oh! I'm getting reconciled to almost anything," admitted Bumpus,showing that this constant series of happenings was beginning to have aneffect on even his stubborn nature, just as water dripping constantlywill wear away a stone in the course of time.
Thus talking they moved speedily along the river road until finallyGiraffe announced he had sighted the bridge over which they hoped to beable to cross the stream, and head once more for the big city on theSchelde.
There were some Belgian soldiers on guard here also, possibly older menwho had not expected to go to the front, yet had a certain line of dutyto perform in this the latest crisis of their beloved country's history.
Just as Thad expected they had to stop and give an account ofthemselves, as well as show their passports, and the letters with theAmerican stamps. They were again lucky in having one of the Belgiansable to talk with them, for it turned out that he had been in America,and even asked them how Hoboken was getting along.
Satisfied with being permitted to cross the bridge and pursue theirjourney the four scouts waved good-bye to the guards and started on.
"Well, that was a hard river to cross let me tell you," said Giraffeafter they reached the other side. "Just stop and think how many timeswe've been knocked out of our calculations. There was the battle we sawthat blocked us; then the bridge that had been fixed to trap some of theraiding Uhlans when they came galloping along, and tried to rush things;after that there was the one that was being built in the village, andwhich of course we couldn't use; and at last we struck oil up here, manymiles out of our way."
"Seems to me we've been pushing backwards part of the time, Thad,instead of advancing," ventured Bumpus. "Makes me think of the boy whowas late to school and told the teacher that every time he took a stepforward he slipped back two; and when the teacher asked him how he evermanaged to get there he said he just turned around and headed the otherway; so mebbe that's what we're doing. Where do you figure we are now,Thad?"
"As near as I can find out," replied the scout leader, "we're not farfrom the town called Moll, which is on the railroad. There's a canalsomewhere nearby, that swings around to the city of Turnhout, and thenstill on to Antwerp. I should say that we're not more than seven milesor so from the Dutch border."
"And how far from Antwerp?" asked Bumpus, anxiously.
"As the crow flies not more than thirty miles, perhaps," Thad explained;"but the way things are upset here in Belgium, that stands for hardsledding."
"Here's the canal right now, after we cross the railroad," venturedGiraffe, to whom it was all getting very interesting.
"But the sun is going down before a great while, you notice," saidBumpus, because they had been held up for nearly two hours while Thadtinkered with that horrible engine again, and deemed himself lucky toget it started even then.
"Yes, and as we've settled on staying outdoors to-night," said Allan,"let's be on the watch for a decent place to make camp."
"Just think of our having a chance to do that over here in Belgium, withbattles going on all around us," Giraffe r
emarked. "We'll make thoseother scouts turn green with envy when we relate all our adventures onthis trip. It was fine enough coming down the Rhine, but then nothingqueer happened to us like we've been up against the last few days."
A short time later they struck what looked like an ideal place forstopping overnight. Just here there were no houses in sight, though ofcourse the boys did not know what lay beyond, perhaps a village or atown. Belgium is so thickly populated that very little ground is allowedto remain idle, or be planted in trees, but just here there was a stripof woods that had a most inviting look.
So the car was run in and they started to make themselves comfortable,as scouts of long experience might be expected to do when surrounded bysimilar conditions.
"I hope that when we're just sitting down to supper, after cooking thesame," Bumpus remarked, pensively, "some old gruff Belgian farmerdoesn't come hurrying up, complaining because we've trespassed on hisproperty, and making us clear out bag and baggage."
To Bumpus that represented the sum total of depravity; it meant acatastrophe without limit, and something to cause a shudder, even in thebare contemplation; for it meant hunger, and that was always a calamityin his eyes.
"Not much danger," Allan told him, "because you may have noticed I'mmaking this fire small, and out of extra-dry stuff. Scouts know that ifyou take green wood you'll always get a smoke that can be seen far off.That's what we use it for when we want to communicate by smoke signals.But Bumpus, if you were fifty feet away I don't think you could noticesmoke from this wood."
"But I warrant you he could sense cooking going on, all right," Giraffelaughingly observed. "You never can fool Bumpus on that. He can scent anonion frying half a mile away, can't you, Bumpus?"
"I couldn't deny the soft impeachment, for I know I've got a splendidnose for grub," admitted the good-natured scout.
Although the means for cooking supper were somewhat primitive becausethese boys had always been accustomed to having a full kit along withthem, still they knew how to manage. Consequently in good time, just asit was getting dusk, the meal was pronounced ready, and all of themgathered around to share in its disposal, a duty that no one evercomplained of.
They were hungry, and somehow the familiar odors seemed to give an edgeto their appetites that nothing else had done.
For a little while talking ceased, because every one was too busilyengaged to bother making any remark. Then as the edge was taken offtheir appetites they commenced to exchange comments on the doings ofthat particular day, which could always be marked with a white stone intheir memories.
Suddenly and without the slightest warning there came a terrific sneezethat startled them all. It came from the bushes close at hand, that mucheven Bumpus knew. Of course every eye was turned in that direction,being focussed on a certain spot where the bushes seemed to be moving.
As they stared, hardly knowing what to expect, there arose the lankyform of a man. He made no hostile move, but stood there looking at them;and Bumpus even fancied he was sniffing the air, just as a half-starveddog might, when approaching the spot where a feast was being devoured.
"Don't shoot, gents!" this singular being called out. "I'm not dangerousat all, only as hungry as a wolf. From what I've heard you saying Iopine that you're American the same as myself; and I'm sure hopingyou'll invite me up to join you in a snack."