CHAPTER XX
THE DISCOVERY
Joe Duncan leaped to his chum's side. Eagerly he looked at the bit ofcloth which, caught on a thorn bush, had ripped from some man's garment.The cloth was not weather-beaten, which, to the boys, showed that it hadnot long been hanging there.
"Blake, I believe you're right," assented his chum. "They went this way,and they must have done it for a blind, or else to get to some path thatgoes farther down the beach a different way," for the cloth was caughton a bush toward the landward side of the little clearing.
"We'll follow this," said Blake.
"Of course," agreed his chum.
They pushed into the bushes. There was no semblance of a path, but thisdid not discourage the boys. They realized that the wreckers would wantto cover up their trail, and would take a way that would not seem tolead anywhere.
"This will branch off pretty soon," was Blake's opinion. "This is justa blind, to make us believe they have given up, and gone inland. Comeon, Joe, and keep a sharp lookout for any other signs."
They found none for some time, and then they came to a little open placewhere the soft ground held several footprints.
"We're getting warmer!" exclaimed Joe.
"Hush!" cautioned his chum. "They may hear us."
"Why, you don't think they're around here; do you?"
"There's no telling. It's best to be on the safe side. Keep quiet.Hello! here's something else!" and Blake, moving cautiously, so as notto make any more noise than possible, picked up a bit of metal.
"What is it?" asked Joe.
"Part of their lantern," answered his chum. "It was made of black sheetiron, you remember. This piece may have fallen off when they dragged itthrough the bushes. We're on the right trail, all right."
"I believe you. But I wish it would turn on to a better path. It's nofun forcing your way through these bushes."
"It'll turn soon now," predicted Blake. "They only took this lead longenough to discourage pursuit. They didn't like it any better than wedo."
His surmise proved correct and about five minutes later, having foundother evidences of the passage of the wreckers, they came out on an opentrail.
It was a narrow path, leading along in both directions from where theycame out on it, and following the coast line, but some distance inland.There were evidences that men had passed in both directions, and that atno distant time, for footprints turned to both the left and right, asthe boys emerged from the blind trail in the brush.
"Well, what about this?" questioned Joe, as he looked in silence at thetell-tale marks. "Which way shall we go, Blake?"
"To the right!" came the answer, almost immediately.
"What makes you say that?" asked his chum. "I don't see anything to showthat they went to the right, any more than that they went to the left."
"Don't you?" asked Blake. "Look here, and remember some of the thingsour cowboy guide told us when we were after the Indians. Now you seefootprints going off to the left and right from this point; don't you?"
"Sure."
"Well, do you happen to notice that on the left there are footprintscoming back as well as going."
"Yes, I see that. But what does it mean?"
"And on the right side, counting from this dividing point, there areonly footprints in one direction."
"That's so, Blake. But----"
"Now what's the answer? Why the men got here, and, thinking they mightbe followed, tried a simple trick. They doubled their trail."
"What's that?"
"Why, some of them went off to the left, walked on a little way,doubled, or turned, and came back, joining the others, who had turned tothe right and kept on."
"Why was that?"
"Because they wanted to fool us. Naturally a person, not lookingcarefully, would see both lines of footprints, and would reason that themen might have divided, or that there might have been two separateparties. He wouldn't know which trail to take. He might pick out theright one, and, again, he might select the wrong one."
"And you say the right one is----"
"To the right. We'll follow that. If they think to fool us, or make usdivide our forces, they're going to be disappointed. Another thing."
"What's that, Blake?" asked Joe, as he noticed his chum leaning over andcarefully examining the marks in the dirt.
"Why, naturally they wouldn't go to the left, as that eventually leadsto the lighthouse. They want to keep some distance from that. Of coursethey'd go to the right. And here's where we go after 'em. Come on!"
There was no hesitation now. Joe was as sure as his chum that thewreckers had gone farther down the coast, perhaps to some other highcliff where they could set up their lantern.
They followed the path. The trail was plain now, showing that a numberof men had passed along. Footprints were the only clues, however, anumber overlapping one another.
"What shall we do if we find them?" asked Joe.
"I--I don't know," answered Blake. This was when they had been followingthe new trail for about an hour.
"We can't tackle 'em alone, that's sure," went on Joe.
"No, but we can--Hark! What's that?" whispered Blake, suddenly.
They listened intently. Far off they could hear the roar of the surf onthe beach; but, closer at hand, was another sound. It was the clink ofmetal. And then came the distant murmur of men's voices.
"Joe, I think we've found them," whispered Blake. "Come on, but don'tmake any noise."
Cautiously they crept forward, the sounds becoming more and more plain.
Suddenly they heard a loud voice exclaim:
"There! I guess that will do the business! And those fellows won't findus here!"
"That's them!" whispered Blake in Joe's ear. "I know the voice of HempDanforth. We've found 'em, Joe!"