CHAPTER VIII
REPULSING THE ENEMY
"Wow! go slow, fellers!" called the first boy who pushed into thebasement, urged on by the pressure of his comrades in the rear.
"It's as black as a bag of cats, that's what!" exclaimed another, as hefloundered among the ashcans.
"Oh! I'm nearly smothered! Help me out, somebody!" wailed poor Bud, whomanaged to receive a full peck of ashes over his head as he scrambled onthe floor.
"A light! Hold up till we get the glim goin'!" called Ted Slavin, whohad after all managed to twist around at the end, so that when the doorfinally opened he could push others ahead of him into the unknown depthsof the gloom.
That was often Ted's way. He liked to bluster and rage, but frequentlycame out of a scrimmage in far better physical condition than those whohad said less. Some boys can always keep an eye out for the main chance;and Ted seemed to belong to the number.
Now, the church was usually lighted by electricity. Of late there hadoccurred some serious trouble with the insulation, and the main part ofthe structure had to go back to ancient lamp illumination, when anyoccasion arose. As this was Summer, the night services had beendiscontinued until repairs could be made.
Paul, however, chanced to know that the little circuit in this rearbasement had escaped the general slaughter. He had even tried turning onthe light at one time when poking about curiously.
And when he had taken up his location just now, it was close to thebutton which governed the two electric lights in the furnace room.
Paul thought that the time was about ripe to give these intruders thesurprise of their lives. Up to this moment they had been having thingstheir own way; but why should he wait until some one managed to draw amatch out of his pocket, and faintly illuminate the apartment?
While the followers of Ted were groping about among the scattered cans,and Bud was sneezing violently as he tried to gain his feet there wassuddenly a flash of dazzling light that almost blinded every one.
At exactly the same instant there sounded the eager barking of what, tothe alarmed intruders, seemed to be a small dog. But it was the signalof the Fox Patrol, and possessed a positive significance for everymember of Stanhope Troop.
"Oh! look!" almost shrieked Bud, as, having managed to recover hisbalance, he saw the figures of four active boys shoot up into view frombehind as many tall ash receivers.
The Boy Scouts never halted to count their foes. It was an occasioncalling for speedy action. Indeed, if they wished to take full advantageof the surprise, and complete the demoralization of the intruders, theymust follow up their appearance on the scene with prompt measures.
"At 'em, fellows!" cried Paul, suiting the action to the word by smitingthe nearest of the Slavin crowd with the padded club he wielded.
Scissors Dempsey promptly bowled over among the ashes, surprised, if notseriously hurt.
"Sweep 'em out!" exclaimed Jack, whirling his instrument of torturearound his head, and sending at least two of the intruders reeling.
Immediately a regular pandemonium ensued. Ted saw that he had run into ahornet's nest, and like the wise general that he was, concluded that itwas no place for a fellow who had any self respect. Their little gamewas spoiled, that seemed evident, and it would be the height of folly tothink of conducting a fight in the church basement, especially sincepunishment of a worse nature must follow when their parents learnedabout the disgraceful proceedings.
Accordingly Ted gave the order to retreat.
"Skip out, every duck of you, Tigers!" he called, hoarsely; "Hey! get amove on you, Scissors, Bud,--everybody run!"
The spirit was willing with his followers; but the flesh proved weak.The trouble was, they found themselves kept so busy dodging thedescending padded clubs of Paul and his friends, that they had littletime for maneuvring toward the lone exit.
William was in his glory. Long had he been deprived of his favoriteamusement; and he meant to take full advantage of this gloriousopportunity to let the red blood in his veins have free swing. The wayhe whacked at the ducking followers of Ted was certainly marvellous, andevery time he made a hit he let out a series of gratified barks such asmust have astonished any real red fox of the timber.
One by one, however, the badly-used intruders sped out of the rear door,pursued by a parting volley of vigorous strokes, and breathing threatsas they ran off.
From the interior of the gymnasium came a series of noises that couldmean only one thing--despairing of escaping in the same manner as hiscompanions, who were lucky enough to be nearer the exit, Scissors haddarted through the connecting door, and that was him banging headlonginto posts, or tripping over the various stacks of camping material onthe floor.
The furnace room was hazy with dust, occasioned by the tilting over ofseveral ashcans; but Paul could see that the enemy had been almostwholly expelled.
Among scouts a peculiar custom often prevails. Each boy makes up hismind to do some sort of good turn to somebody during the day. In orderto remind himself of this he frequently turns his badge upside-downuntil he has found an occasion to even the score. No matter how smallthe service, it must be something that brings a little pleasure orprofit to another.
Well, Paul grimly thought, as he drew out his handkerchief to wipe theperspiration from his face, if any of his chums had failed to find achance during the day just past, to perform a service entitling them toa sense of self satisfaction, after this little excitement they could goto bed with clear consciences. For had they not shown several boys thetruth of the old proverb, that the "way of the transgressor is hard,"and would not this lesson be valuable in after life?
"Oh! shucks!" lamented William, as he leaned on his war-club, and lookedas forlorn as one of his merry disposition ever could, "whatever didthey run away for? I wasn't half through, yet. Why, I don't believe Igot in more than three decent licks at all! It's a shame, that's what!"
Paul was shutting and fastening the door again. He did not wish to havea volley of stones hurled through the opening by the vindictive boysthey had put to flight. Past experiences served to warn him as to whatmeasures of retribution Ted Slavin and his kind usually undertook.
"Whew! what a mess! We'll have to get brooms, and a sprinkler busy here,so Peter won't complain," he said, laughing as he looked around.
"Hello! look there! Get next to the ghost, will you?" cried William,pointing to a wretched and forlorn figure that was emerging from themidst of the assembled ashes.
It was the fore-runner of the Slavin clan, the miserable Bud Jones. Hehad been tumbled over so many times during the excitement, by bothfriends and foes, that he must have lost all count.
"Oh! what a guy!" shrieked Bobolink, holding his sides with laughter, asthe disconsolate Bud trailed out from his place of concealment.
Covered from head to feet with ashes, and minus his hat, he certainlypresented a most comical appearance. But it was serious enough to Bud.He judged others by what he knew of Ted Slavin's ways; and consequentlyfully expected that Paul and his crowd would surely proceed to venttheir ill humor on his poor head.
"Oh! please let me go, Paul!" he whined, addressing himself to the onehe recognized as the leader of the opposition; "I've got all I deserve,you see, and the worst is yet to come; for when my dad looks at this newsuit I'm in for the most dreadful lickin' you ever heard about. Don'tkick a feller when he's down, will you, Paul? Please open that dooragain, an' let me scoot!"
He knew what he was doing in addressing himself to Paul Morrison.Perhaps another, like William or Bobolink for instance, might think hedeserved even more severe handling, to pay him for his share in the meanprank that had been nipped in the bud. But Paul had a reputation forbeing fair, and was also known not to allow such a thing as a desire forrevenge to take root in his heart.
When Paul surveyed the forlorn figure before him, with a thought as towhat might await Bud at home, for he had a stern father, he agreed withthe other that apparently he had been already well punished.
So he stepped over to unfasten the door again.
"I hope this will be a lesson to you, Bud," he remarked, while so doing.
"Oh! it sure will," Bud responded, eagerly, "I'll know better than tocrawl in a window, and let other fellers have the snap of waitin' tillthe door's swung open. I'll be mighty careful about that, after this,give you my word, Paul."
And that was all Bud had learned from his experience. After this hewould let Ted snatch his own chestnuts out of the fire. Small use tryingto show such a chap the real significance of his wrong-doing. Paul didnot try, but opened the basement door.
William and Bobolink hastened to line up on either side. From thethreatening manner in which they swung those terrible lookinginstruments of torture over their right shoulders, it seemed as thoughthey wished to get in one last whack at the enemy before the incidentwas called closed.
Bud saw these dread preparations with renewed terror. He had alreadyexperienced several painful connections with those padded clubs, and wasnot sighing to renew his acquaintance.
"Please, Paul, call 'em off! Don't let 'em get a chance at me again! I'mall black an' blue now from tumbling around on the floor, with thefellers stampin' on me. Boys, have a little mercy, won't you, now?"
William looked at Bobolink. Then they exchanged winks, for it had reallynever been their intention to turn loose upon Bud again.
"Well," said Bobolink, "seeing that you've made up your mind to reformafter this, p'raps we might let you off easy, Bud. But the next time youget caught, oh! but you're going to get it. Better quit that crowd, andtry another tack. Ted and Ward have all the fun, and you fellows takethe drubbings. Think it over, Bud!"
It was not often Bobolink talked like this. It happened, however, thatonce upon a time he and Bud had been good friends. That was, of course,before they reached the parting of the ways, the latter choosing tothrow in his fortunes with the Slavin crowd, because he thought they hadthe most fun.
"I'm going to, Bobolink," responded the wretched fellow, a grain ofthankfulness in his voice, "I'm beginning to get my eyes open. P'raps mydad'll make me promise never to go with Ted again."
But Paul did not believe that Bud had reached the point of seeing thefull evil of his ways. Had he done so he would never have made thatremark about simply being tired of proving the scapegoat; and that thelesson he had learned would only make him wiser about acting as Ted'sscout.
So Bud hastened to leave the scene of his recent humiliation; and nosooner was he gone than Paul again secured the door against intrusion.
"Are we going to get busy now?" asked William, as he fondly caressed thenovel weapon with which he had recently harassed the would-be destroyersof the camp equipment, as though loth to lay it down for a broom.
"Wait a bit," remarked Paul; "for unless I'm mistaken there's anotherTiger loose in the den of the Fox!"
As if to emphasize the truth of his words there came, just at thatmoment, a tremendous crash from the dark gymnasium near by. Groans, andangry words testified to the fact that Scissors Dempsey was having histroubles of his own in trying to navigate that abyss of gloom, seekingto find the door, and escape by that means.
"Wow!" exclaimed William, once more tightening his grip on thatwar-club, while the light of battle glowed in his eyes; "I clean forgotthat pilgrim in there. Oh! for one last good belt at a Slavin Tiger.Paul, get a lamp, won't you, and turn us loose in there. Oh my! oh me,what luck!"
"I suppose he's just got to be chased out of the place; and the soonerwe do it the better," Paul responded, advancing toward the connectingdoor.
He knew just where to find the nearest lamp. It was close beside thedoor, and Paul had stamped its location in his mind.
Accordingly, he struck a match and passed the portal. Jack was at hisheels, trying to hold the impetuous William and the equally belligerentBobolink in check; but unable to wholly do so.
When the match was applied to the wall lamp it gave a dim light. Thepresence of electricity in the furnace room only made the contrast morepositive. Still, those eager boys possessed sharp vision, and almostinstantly both William and his fellow scout discovered a moving figureat the other side of the gymnasium crawling out from under a wildernessof blankets and tents that had fallen upon him.