CHAPTER XVI
HOMEWARD BOUND--CONCLUSION
"HELP! Let go of me! Hi! Elmer, he's up here! Come quick, I can't holdhim any longer!"
That was what Toby was shrieking excitedly, as he struggled with thepoor demented Spanish War veteran. Then there came answering shouts fromElmer, now close at hand; but of course Toby could not carry out anydirections that were fired at him.
Presently those below saw the two figures topple over the edge, Tobystill frantically clutching his beloved parachute, which was extended toits fullest dimensions, and the other evidently fiercely trying to holdon to his supposed enemy.
The extended blanket was torn from the grasp of the two boys, despitetheir earnest attempt to hold it taut; but at the same time it must havehelped break the fall of the pair. The parachute had not been built fortwo, and could not be expected to bear their combined weight, in spiteof Toby's boasts about half a ton not being too much.
One of the recumbent figures instantly sprang to his knees. It was Toby,and he still gripped the rod of his parachute with a determined hold.
"Never hurt me a teenty bit!" he shrilled, in his excitement; and thenhe suddenly stilled his ardor, for on looking down he saw the crazyman, dressed in that soiled white uniform brought from Cuba, lying therewith the blood trickling down the side of his head, and the sightshocked Toby into repressing his exultation.
But Elmer was coming on the run, and already Doctor Ted had knelt besideRalph Oxley, with his professional instincts all aroused. He sent one ofthe boys racing to the camp for his medicine case; and Elmer on hisarrival suggested that they carry the unconscious young man to where thefire burned.
Being scouts, and accustomed to making a good litter out of almostanything, they speedily arranged it so that between four of them thevictim of the fall was borne to the camp. On the way they met Lil Arthaand George, hurrying toward the house; but of course these parties nowreturned with them, since the medicine case was needed in camp.
Ted first of all washed the wound in the young soldier's head with coldwater, and then applied a cloth soaked in soothing balm, that wouldassist in stopping the bleeding.
"Oh! I hope he isn't going to die on us," said Toby, who seemed to feelthat in some way his desire to test his parachute life-saving appliancefrom the tower of the old house had brought this near-tragedy about, andhence he felt unusually sorry.
"I don't think tho," Doctor Ted hastened to tell him; "he got a nathtycwack on the head, and it's fwactured it thome, but right now he theemsto be coming out of the daze. There, did you thee his eyeth open andthut again? Next time he'll keep them open, believe me, fellowth."
Imagine the amazement and consternation of the boys when a minute laterRalph Oxley not only opened his eyes, but stared all around at each onein turn, then at the tents and the burning camp fire.
"Where am I?" he stammered, weakly. "What's all this mean? Are we stillat the front? Where's my khaki uniform like the ones you're wearing, andwhy have you put this old white one on me? It's a Spanish suit. I knowbecause I've got one like it home. Who are you? I don't seem torecognize any of you boys."
What seemed next door to a miracle had been wrought! Elmer and Tedstared eagerly at each other as though they could hardly believe theirsenses.
"He's got his mind back again!" exclaimed Chatz, wildly exultant. "Itmust have been the crack on the head did it. I've heard of such things,but never thought I'd ever run up against a case. Why, he's as sensibleas any of us, fellows!"
Elmer rushed forward, and stood over the recumbent man, who looked athim with a puzzled air.
"Your name is Ralph Oxley, isn't it?" asked the scout master, quietly.
"Yes, it is, but--" began the other, when Elmer raised his hand to stophim.
"I'll explain as near as I can to you," he went on to say. "You werehurt on the head a few years ago, and went out of your mind. Ever sinceyour folks have kept you at home because they said you were notdangerous, but there was an attendant employed to look after you. Someweeks ago you escaped, and nobody has ever found where you went. Theyfeared you had been drowned somewhere. But you must have had the ideayou were a Spanish soldier escaped from an American prison, for you havebeen in hiding up here at the old Cartaret house, and getting what foodyou could by raiding the farms all around. We are Boy Scouts belongingat Hickory Ridge, and the other day when we were up here we thought weglimpsed somebody, but a few of my chums believed it was a ghost. Nowwe've come to spend our Thanksgiving holidays in camp. You had a badtumble, striking your head again, and cutting it; but somehow it hasbrought you back to your right mind, Ralph Oxley."
The young man, who could hardly have been more than thirty-five years ofage, though a veteran of the Spanish war, put up his hand, and felt ofhis head, wincing with the pain the contact gave him. A tinge of colorwas creeping back into his pale face, which Elmer was delighted to see.
"It is all a mystery to me," Ralph Oxley told them, shaking his head."I have no recollection of doing anything like you say. In fact, thelast thing I remember seems to be of riding out to look over a new farmmy father had bought, and of my horse running away when some one shotclose by the road. After that it is all a dead blank; and yet you saysome years have passed since then?"
He seemed awed by the thought.
"That must have been where you were thrown, striking on your head,received the injury that caused your mind to become a blank," Elmer toldhim; while Doctor Ted nodded vigorously as though seconding the motion.
"But I'm in a terrible position, with only these thin clothes on, and noshoes or socks on my feet," remarked the man, who, now that he hadreturned to his senses, could apparently feel the sting of the cold air,something that doubtless he may not have been sensitive to before.
"Perhaps we can fix you up with something to tide over," Chatz told him."Here's Lil Artha, whose feet must be the same size as yours, and Ihappen to know he brought a pair of new extra moccasins along, which hehasn't worn yet."
First one, and then another proposed lending Ralph certain garments,until in the end he was well taken care of. He even sat with them,propped up in a comfortable seat, and ate the dinner the scoutsprepared, asking dozens of eager questions, many of which they were notable to answer, because they concerned his people, and none of thescouts happened to know them.
"I'm going to make a proposition to you, fellows," said Elmer, when theyhad finished their meal; "and here it is. You know Stackhouse is abouteleven miles away from here, though twice that far from Hickory Ridge.My map shows a fairly decent road leading there. Suppose we pull upstakes and start for Mr. Oxley's home? We could make it before sunset, Ishould think. It's true that our camping trip would be cut short a day,but I'm sure I voice the sentiments of every fellow that we'll feelmighty well repaid for any little sacrifice like that when we turn in tothe Oxley place and bring back their lost son, not what he was when heran away, but clothed in his right mind. Everybody in favor of that movesay aye!"
A chorus answered him in the affirmative; why, even that hardenedobjector, Doubting George, shouted with the rest; for once havingapparently chosen to be what Toby called "civilized."
Ralph Oxley had tears in his eyes as he insisted on shaking hands withevery one of the scouts.
"You're a fine lot of boys, let me tell you!" he declared, with deepfeeling; "and I wouldn't accept your sacrifice only for my mother'ssake. They ought to know the happy news as soon as possible. Everyminute that I'm delayed is just so much more suffering for my dearparents; and a sweet girl too that I was going to marry when thataccident came about. But I'll never forget it, fellows; and you'll hearfrom the Oxley family later on."
"Not a word about any money reward, suh!" cried Chatz, sternly; "we'rescouts, and we'd scorn to accept anything in the way of pay for doing athing like this. It's given us a heap more pleasure than anything that'shappened for many moons, believe me, suh!"
"And to think," added Toby, with a beaming smile on his face, "myremarkable parachute came near
holding up double weight. I reallybelieve if only Mr. Oxley here hadn't managed to strike his head on thatcornice when he fell, both of us would have landed without a scratch.And let me tell you that I think it's already shown what a life-saverit's bound to be."
"Hurrah for Jones, the greatest after Edison this country has everproduced," cried Lil Artha, pretending to wave his hat furiously.
They were soon all at work, and the tents came down with a rush, forlong experience along these lines had made Elmer and his scouts cleverhands at anything pertaining to camp life. Nancy was hitched up, and thewagon loaded. They made a comfortable seat with the tents and theblankets for the injured young man; and before an hour had elapsed,after finishing that last meal, they had said good-bye to the hauntedhouse, and were on their way.
It was a long though not uninteresting afternoon ride; because they werepassing over a district that was practically new to them.
Presently they overtook a young woman who was tripping along ahead ofthem. Just as Elmer was about to ask her something about the Oxleys shegave a shriek, and rushing to the tail-end of the wagon commenced toreach out toward the wounded passenger, calling his name in greatexcitement.
It developed, of course, that this was the same girl Ralph had beenabout to marry at the time of his unfortunate accident; and her wilddelight at finding that the missing one had not only been found, but wasrestored to his proper senses as by a miracle, can better be imaginedthan described.
Shortly afterwards they turned in at the fine Oxley farm, and it was notlong before the greatest excitement came about that had been known inthat region for many a month. The mother had her boy in her arms, andwas trying to laugh and cry at the same time; the father came runningmadly to the spot; and what with dogs barking, and people shouting,persons passing must have thought a lunatic asylum had broken loose.
The boys did not linger long after they had seen the family reunited;though everybody wanted to shower them with thanks, and praise for theirhaving brought such happiness to the bereft home of the Oxleys. AndRalph assured them that he and the young woman who was to be his wifewould certainly drive over to see the Hickory Ridge folks just as soonas he was able to be about again.
Well, as they were a long distance from home, with darkness near athand, the boys determined to go as far along the road toward HickoryRidge as Nancy could draw the load, and then proceed to camp somewherefor one night.
It was all a part of the outing, and no one appeared to regret havingfollowed the generous dictates of their warm young hearts.
While their camp that night may not have been as comfortable as before,because of the lack of time to do certain things, they managed to get afair amount of sleep. No doubt the consciousness of having responded tothe demands of scout duty afforded them more or less solid satisfaction;for even George was heard to say, as they drew near the familiar homescenes on that quiet Sunday afternoon, it had been one of the bestlittle outings the Hickory Ridge Boy Scouts had ever enjoyed; and itmust needs be something beyond the ordinary that could coax this kind ofstuff from Doubting George.
But that year was fated not to die out without Elmer and his chums beinggiven another splendid opportunity to show what their scout training wasworth, as the reader will discover upon securing the volume that followsthis, and which is to be had under the title of "The Hickory Ridge BoyScouts Storm-Bound; or, A Vacation Among the Snow Drifts."
THE END