CHAPTER XXIII. AN ANCHOR TO WINDWARD.
When Bob White heard Bumpus talk in this way he took notice of the factthat the stout scout was in deadly earnest in what he said. It was nolaughing matter, apparently, because Bumpus had evidently made all sortsof preparations for the expected disaster, besides fastening one end ofthat cord around his body, and asking his fellow scout to hold theother.
His precious silver-plated bugle which, as the accredited musician ofthe troop, he always carried along with him, unless otherwise forbiddenby Thad, he had now made more secure against possible damage byfastening the same about his neck, so that it dangled between hisshoulders. And he was gripping his rifle as though bent on keeping thatalso out of the awful muck, should the accident he anticipated come topass; for once let any of that ooze find a way into the barrel, and itwould be a most difficult task to get the interior "spic-and-span," andshiny again, as Bumpus always wished to keep his firearm.
But Bob White did not smile.
He liked the fat boy too well to give him unnecessary pain, though thefact of Bumpus preparing that heavy cord so that he might be saved intime, should he slip from the narrow causeway and sink into the slime,was really comical; and later on would doubtless elicit roars oflaughter from unfeeling Giraffe and Davy, when they came to talk mattersover, and were free to make as much noise as they felt like.
"That's all right, Bumpus," Bob said, reassuringly, as he accepted thecord, and proceeded to wind it several times around his left hand, forhe was carrying his gun in his right.
"You'll do me the favor, then, will you?" questioned the other, witheagerness.
"To be sure I will, suh, and only too gladly," replied Bob; "but, if sobe you happen to know when you're going, it might be a good thing, Itake it, to give me due warning of the same, because a sudden jerk wouldperhaps pull me over with you; and then, suh, it'd be a case of theblind leading the blind."
"I will, Bob, depend on it, I'll try to," Bumpus assured him. "Course Idon't want to souse in that awful mud, and I'm agoing to try my levelbest to keep on the straight and narrow road all I can; but if it doeshappen, it's always some comfort to know you've got an anchor out towindward."
"Yes, suh, it's sometimes a good thing to have a string tied to things,so they can be jerked back if the conditions don't seem favorable. I'veknown fellows who never made a bargain but they had an 'if' or a'perhaps' fixed to the same. But nobody could say that of you, Bumpus.Don't worry about me; I'll attend to business at the old stand, suh, allright. You won't go down so quick but that I'll manage to draw the linetaut; and if she holds you're just bound to come out, either whole or insections, suh. That's all."
Which intelligence could hardly have been very comforting to poorBumpus; whose face took on a thoughtful look, as though he had begunalready to wonder whether the remedy might not be more dreadful than thedisease.
But there was no time for more conversation in these whispered tonesbetween the two scouts; because Alligator Smith had apparently found theplace for which he was looking, and boldly stepped out from the firmground.
While his feet went under the surface an inch or so, he seemed to havestruck a solid foundation; for he immediately turned, and waved his handto the posse; and then held up his finger suggestively, as thoughwarning them under no circumstances should they make unnecessary noise.
Perhaps the fox they hoped to find in his hole might be sleeping, andnot apt to take the alarm easily; but it was not wise to depend too muchupon that chance. The really keen woodsman never underrates the party oranimal he may be hunting, but always acts as though he must expect theworst. It is better to be too cautious than to lack in this regard, andruin well-laid plans.
Pretty soon there was a long line of men and boys making their way alongthat submerged ledge of solid ground. Thad came immediately after theguide, walking in the footprints of the swamp hunter, if such a thingcould be said where the soft ooze instantly settled back as soon as onewithdrew his foot. Then others of the scouts, led by the sheriff,trailed along, Bumpus being just behind his good friend Bob White, so noone really noticed that there was a connecting link between the two.
By the time the last member of the big posse had entered the bog,Alligator Smith was almost halfway over; and thus far all had gonesmoothly, so that save for a certain amount of soft splashing there hadnothing happened to create a disturbance. Bumpus was going strong. Hemust feel more or less encouraged by the success with which he wasfollowing in the wake of Smithy, who evidently felt this thing ofsoiling his brand new leggings with that black ooze more than any otherscout; because Smithy never could get over being particular in hisappearance, though he had been cured of being a dude, brushing his hairwhen in camp, and other silly ways of trying to imagine that certainduties must be performed when roughing it, just the same as when he wasat home.
Bumpus kept his eyes glued upon the feet of Smithy, knowing that eternalvigilance was always the price of safety and liberty. If the othermanifested signs of wabbling Bumpus was apt to shudder, and standstock-still until he saw Smithy go on again without taking theanticipated tumble into that quaking muck bed that seemed to just yawnexpectantly on either side of the moving line of men and boys.
Some persons declare that when one is anticipating a thing it generallycomes about. Others say a "watched kettle never boils;" so you can takeyour choice. But as events proved, Bumpus' fears were not without afoundation; for when he was all of two-thirds of the way over the bog hesuddenly slipped, and losing his footing, just settled into the oozelike a big balloon might drop down.
Bumpus gave no yelp of alarm, for he had kept schooling himself on thisscore all along, and made up his mind that if the sacrifice must becarried out he would at least prove himself a credit to the training ofThad, and go down in silence.
Bob White came very near being pulled in after him; but Giraffe who camejust behind the Southern boy, succeeded in clutching him in time.
There was poor Bumpus over his knees in the slime, and sinking steadilyall the while on account of his great weight. He knew the futility oftrying to get out by himself, and that the more he moved about the worsehis plight was bound to be; and so he just squatted there like a hugefrog, holding his gun up above his head, and looking appealingly towardthe chum from whom he felt that he had a right to expect help.
Nor was Bob White slow to get busy on that line. Fortunately it was anew and strong cord that Jasper had used in his man-trap which failed towork because of the vigilance of the scout-master; and when severalothers had laid hold of the same no doubt they could assist Bumpus toclamber out again.
It was rather difficult to accomplish anything while on such a narrowfooting, because in the first place they could not bunch together; andthen again there was always a chance that one of the other scouts mightalso lose his footing, and slide into that soft bed; for the muck was norespector of persons, neither did Bumpus have a monopoly of the same,because there was plenty of room for others.
But by dint of judicious handling, and a sort of swinging pull theymanaged to start the heavy scout coming.
"Get a move on, and help yourself, can't you?" fretted Giraffe, uponseeing how Bumpus was just content to let himself be hauled out by mainstrength.
"Shall I, Bob?" asked the object of all this solicitude, as thoughrecognizing the Southern boy as the one in command, because it had beenin his charge he had submitted his case when the prospects lookeddubious.
"Yes, it would help some, I take it, suh, if you did make motions likeyou-all might be a frog swimming in there," the one appealed to madeanswer.
And so Bumpus, who had doubtless often watched a frog swimming sogracefully in the water, started to give them his conception of what itwas like. Giraffe nearly doubled up with silent laughter, and only forthe proximity of Allan might have made more or less of a noise; but hesucceeded in restraining his exuberant spirits, and even did somehauling on the faithful cord that did not fail Bumpus in
this greatemergency.
They got him out presently, and while Bumpus was a sight, with all thatblack mud clinging to his legs, so that the rest had to keep away fromhim, Davy had the temerity, instead of giving thanks over the successfulrescue of his chum, to go and mutter something that sounded like:
"Anyway, now, he'll just _have_ to throw away that old suit, and therest of us'll be able to breathe easy again. Blessings lots of timescome along in disguise, my ma says, and this must be one of 'em. And soI'm real glad we had to creep along this slippery ridge after all,because it's going to make a change in things when we get back to ourduffel."
"Keep quiet, can't you, Davy!" warned Giraffe, who all the time waschuckling to himself as though he really enjoyed every word he heard theother scout say, because Davy was voicing his own sentiments exactly.
When that suspicious "plunk" had warned them all that some one was inthe mire, Thad and the guide had come to a full stop, to wait until therescue had been effected. While they were strung out in that waveringline, what was the interest of one concerned them all; and there wouldbe little use in a few of them getting safely over the bog if the mainbody were held up out there; because none of those in the rear couldpass by until Bumpus had been saved.
The fat scout gave Bob White many thankful looks, and insisted upon theother retaining hold of that friendly piece of thin rope, because, asoften happens, history might choose to repeat, as one good turn deservesanother, and he did not like that oozy bed any better after testing itscapacity, than he had before his slip-up.
As for that line, Bumpus would treasure it most religiously, as one ofhis most valued possessions; for had it not saved his life?
The forward march was resumed, with everybody hoping that clumsy Bumpuswould be much more careful of his footing now, so that the solid groundmight be reached without more trouble.
Nobody was more anxious than the stout boy that such a thing mightcarry; and quite naturally he exercised all the caution he could musterup in order to keep from doing that sliding trick again.
When finally he reached solid ground, and actually felt something firmunder his feet, Bumpus gave a great sigh of thanksgiving and relief.Others did the same, it may as well be confessed.
First of all, Bumpus restored his bugle to its customary place at hisside. Then, having deposited his gun on the ground, leaning up against atree, he next proceeded to coil up that valuable cord, and stow the sameaway inside his khaki jacket.
"Why don't you get busy, and scrape some of that mud off?" asked StepHen, in the ear of the one who had so recently been saved; whereuponBumpus sat him down deliberately, picked up a stick, and began to reducethe amount of bog which he was carrying on his person; which operationsome of the others watched in more or less amusement, particularly Davy,who shook his head, and grinned as he caught the eye of Giraffe, as muchas to say:
"Here's where luck came our way in great big chunks, Giraffe, because,don't you see, he's just bound to throw that suit away after getting itin such a horrible mess, for Thad won't allow him to tote it along,nohow. Our time is near at hand, thank goodness; and I say again we'relucky; because it'd almost take an earthquake to make such a stubbornmule as Bumpus to change his mind, he's so sot in his ways."
The others had better luck than the fat scout; several may have slippeda little on the way over, but no one actually fell in far enough to makea rescue necessary.
By degrees they came ashore, until presently it was seen that every onein the expedition had landed.
The sheriff deemed it a wise piece of precaution to leave a couple ofhis men at this point to act as a guard. If, as Alligator Smithbelieved, this was the only means of crossing the fearful muck bed,then, should they have the misfortune to do anything that would startthe fugitive to action, he might still be nabbed in the act of trying toget over to the mainland at this point.
And this having been duly attended to, the rest of the posse, togetherwith Alligator Smith and the Boy Scouts, prepared to leave the vicinityof the quaking bog, and start in among the trees with which this queerisland, looking like an oasis in the midst of a desert, was pretty wellcovered.
Every fellow just knew that they must be very close to the place wherethe man they were hunting had his "hang-out;" and the knowledge causedthem to experience a succession of odd little thrills that seemed tochase all over their bodies, as though some one might be pouring icewater down their backs. But at the same time there was a delightfulsense of expectancy in the air that caused most of the scouts to feelthat the climax to their long journey must now be at hand.