CHAPTER VIII
JACK PLAYS SCOUT
"What's doing, Jack?" asked George, carefully, as soon as the whole sixof them were well away from the vicinity of the other camp, and wherethey could safely converse, if only every one spoke in a whisper.
"We ought to talk things over a bit, and arrange what we want to doabout this matter," Jack went on to say.
"But ain't we goin' to jump on that pair of scamps, and make 'em ourprisoners?" complained Buster; and to hear his ferocious way of talkingone might easily imagine that the fat boy was a fighter from the wordgo, when as a rule Buster would walk a mile to escape a rumpus, for hewas by nature very peaceable.
"Wait and see what Jack's got up his sleeve, you fire-eater!" remarkedJosh, scornfully.
"We know where they've gone and buried all the loot, anyhow," remarkedGeorge, as though that fact gave him particular satisfaction.
"And we c'n dig the same up at our convenience," added Herb.
"That is, if they don't change their minds before morning comes, and getthat box up again," observed Jack, dryly.
At that there were several little grunts and exclamations, such as wouldindicate that the others did not relish being tantalized in such afashion having the treasure-trove under their thumbs, only to see itsnatched away again.
"Say, we oughtn't to let that chance slip us, Jack!" urged Josh.
"Them's my sentiments, too!" echoed George.
"Count me in," Herb remarked, quietly.
"Same here, arrah, by the token!" Andy ventured.
"There, Jack," spoke up Buster, exultantly, "everybody is of the samemind, that we just ought to do something or other right away, so's toget that stuff in our possession. It wouldn't matter so much if thethieves did get away, if only we could go sailing up to Lawrence, callthe broken-hearted directors of the looted bank together, and then say:'Here, gentlemen, are your lost securities. Rest in peace! E pluribusunum!' Now Jack, don't say a word against it, but think up some way thatwe can get hold of that box."
"Oh! I've got all that figured out already, Buster," remarked the other,coolly.
"Then tell us who's going to creep up and dig for that box while the tworobbers are sitting beside the fire, playing cards, because that's whatthey started to do when they went back."
"And 'Old Maid' it was, as sure as you live," remarked George, as ifastonished. "Did you ever hear of two ferocious pirates playing such aharmless game as that before? I never did, for a fact, boys. They keepme guessing right along. That boy looks too green to be the rascal theysay he is; but I guess he puts it all on to fool respectable folks. Ithelps him in gaining their confidence."
George could figure things out in fine style once he got going. Theothers, however, were not in any mood just then to try and decide whatsort of a fellow that rather innocent young chap might turn out to be.They were more deeply interested in finding out what could be done aboutsecuring that hidden package in the box.
Already, no doubt, Buster, for instance, was seeing pictures of allmanner of treasure snugly reposing in the box; and he could also imaginehow his manly chest would swell with importance when, with his mates, ofcourse, he entered the stricken town of Lawrence, and astonished thedirectors of the bank by returning their lost securities and money.
And the others were possibly in the same boat, for they had activeimaginations, one and all.
Jack had said the matter was already arranged in his mind; and if hewould only hurry up and take them into his confidence, they would feelgreatly obliged.
But then Jack did not mean to hold back just to aggravate his companions;that would have been too small a thing for him to attempt. He had onlywaited to hear what each one thought of the scheme, and then he went onto say something.
"Now you can see for yourselves," he began, "that it would be uselesstrying to take the whole bunch over there, and scratch that box up. Onecan do the business to a dot, and as I'm accustomed to scouting morethan any of the rest, I hope you won't try to raise any objections if Isay I'll do the job myself."
He waited to hear what they thought before making the first move in thedirection of carrying his plan out. But then he might have known thatnot one objection would be raised against his scheme, for they had thefullest confidence in whatever he proposed at any and all times.
The silence that followed was doubtless intended for consent; but Jackchose to consider it otherwise. He wanted an expression from each of hischums.
"George, how about it?" he asked.
"Why, I haven't the slightest objection," replied that worthy, readilyenough.
"Josh, how about you?"
"Gosh! only too willing," came the answer.
And Jack put it up to each of the others, until every one had signifiedhis readiness to accept the conditions.
"All right, then," said Jack, "that settles it for me. And now, watch meget busy, fellows."
He once more started into the brush. All this conversation had beencarried on, of course, in undertones. From time to time they could hearthe voices of the other pair raised above the ordinary not far away; orit might be a laugh came floating back to where the six boys crouched,quivering in every nerve with intense excitement.
Why, Jack thought, even the laugh of Slim Jim, the cracksman, was verydeceptive, it sounded so boyish and natural; just as though he did nothave a care or a worry in all the world. He must be a pretty cleveryoung chap if he could pretend to be such an innocent, when really hewas such a desperate rascal--so that paper had stated.
Having quitted the company of his friends, Jack began to advance in thedirection of the other camp. He needed no better guide than the glow ofthe fire they had burning over there on the shore; though very carefulas he crept through the bushes to take a little different track thanbefore, because he believed it would be apt to bring him closer to thebush behind which that pretended "grave" that was in reality a cache forstolen wealth, had been so roughly dug.
Once, as he raised himself to glance around, he found it possible to seebeyond the camp fire, to the edge of the river, something that none ofthem had been able to do hitherto; and what should meet his eyes but avery jaunty gasoline launch, of a type that indicated more or lessspeed, since it was of narrow beam, and would doubtless have quite takenthe eye of George Rollins.
Of course Jack chuckled a little when he saw the very significant factthat the boat was painted snow white, and had a nice red line along thegunwale that gave the craft a rather distinguished look.
Again into his mind came the description which he had read out aloudfrom the fragment of paper, concerning the boat in which it was positivethe robbers of the Lawrence bank had fled down the river. A whitelaunch, nobby in appearance, and decorated with a red line. Why, whatcould be plainer than that? White launches were not so very common onthat part of the Mississippi; and Jack could not remember ever havingset eyes on one before that was marked with red as this one appeared tobe.
He kept creeping along, making no more noise than an Indian warriormight; or perhaps one might say, a snake that can glide swiftly, yetwith hardly the faintest rustle of the dead leaves.
If he did make an occasional little slip, they were not on the alert, asred braves might have been. Doubtless they had not the remotestsuspicion that such a thing as peril threatened, or that an enemy waswithin miles of the island retreat to which they had come to hide, andmake preparations for deceiving the posse of the sheriff, should theychance to meet later on the river.
No doubt the other five boys had climbed trees or done something elseso that they would be in a position to see him when he reached thatparticular bush, back of which the hole had been dug. They would not behuman if they were going to allow this chance to witness the unearthingof the treasure pass without an effort to become spectators.
Jack found that the two beside the fire were making merry. He eyed themclosely, and then shook his head, thinking that perhaps they mightappear like desperate rogues to an expert sheriff, accustomed to dealingwit
h rascals of every kind; but for his part he rather thought the boywas a spoiled son of a rich man, and Jenks some humble mechanic outcruising with the other. But of course, not being well posted incriminal matters, how could he, a mere tyro, be expected to be able tojudge what people were, just because they laughed in such a care-freeway. Slim Jim they said feared nothing on earth; slender and young as hewas, he had laughed more than one sheriff to scorn; and snapped hisfingers when traps were sprung only to find that he was missing.
Now Jack was drawing closer and closer to that bush. He had marked itwell on the previous occasion, so that there could be no such thing asmistaking it. Yes, he recognized every twig almost, so closely had hemade a mental photograph of the bush when the two were planting their"swag" back of it, and talking about making it appear as though it werea grave.
If they just kept up that riotous game of "Old Maid" for ten minuteslonger, Jack felt positive that he could have accomplished his errand,and left the mound nicely smoothed over as he found it.
Jack guessed that they would hardly feel so merry when they discoveredthat the treasure-trove had been opened, while they were not thirty feetaway, and the box containing the stolen securities and the bank billscarried off; or if they did laugh it would be on the "other side oftheir mouths," as Buster might have expressed it in his humorous way.
Now he was doing even better, for he had to pass a little patch wherethe cover was rather slim and in order to successfully negotiate it hewas compelled to flatten himself very much on the order of a flapjack ora pancake.
But then, they seemed to have no eyes for anything except the cardsthey were handling. Two more unsuspicious rascals it would be indeeddifficult to find; at least that was Jack's idea.
There was a piece of great good luck, for his hand had actually fallenupon the identical stick with the sharp point which Jenks had used sosuccessfully when he was digging the hole in which to bury the treasurebox.
Of course Jack picked this up, for he believed he could make good use ofit in his line of business just about that time.
And now he had gained the bush, so that his hand actually rested on thelittle mound of fresh earth. It gave Jack something of thrill to realizethat he was so very close to all that amount of loot which these twoscamps had taken from the poor depositors of the Lawrence bank; for ifthe institution failed the loss would fall partly on poor people.
But he lost no time in getting to work with that odd spade, fashionedfrom a stick. When he found that he had loosened the top earth, hestarted to dragging it away with his hands, boy fashion; using the palmsas scoops.
So he quickly got down to where he could touch the flat top of thelittle box; and then burrowing alongside, he managed presently tounheave the same, dragging it out of the cavity.
Then Jack set to work to place several stones that he had noted closeby, in place of the box, so that the mound would still be as high asever and look as it though it still contained the chest.
Once in every little while as he did this work, Jack would glancethrough the lower part of the bush in order to make sure that the twocard players were still as much interested in their innocent game of"Old Maid" as before. But really he had little need to do this, becausetheir loud laughter told the fact as plainly as anything.
Then followed the most difficult task of creeping back over the route hehad taken to reach the place. It had been hard enough when he couldwatch those whom he looked on as enemies; but as now he had to gobackwards part of the time, so as to know when to stop moving, and liestill, when he thought one of them glanced that way, it became doublydifficult.
But Jack had not been making an idle boast when he claimed to be a muchbetter scout than any one of his five companions. Circumstances hadallowed him in the past to have a certain amount of experience in thisline, such as none of his boatmates could claim; and that was how Jackmade such a success of his venture.
Now he had passed the crisis in his retreat and was able to move alongfaster, even getting to his feet, and in a couching attitude leavingthe hostile camp behind.
When he reached the spot where the dull-colored khaki tent stood underthe tree he found his five chums awaiting him; and every one of them wasbubbling over with both a desire to squeeze Jack's hand, while tellinghim in whispers what he thought of such clever work and at the same timefilled with a burning curiosity to know if the securities and the stolenmoney could all be in that humble little box.