The Go Ahead Boys and the Treasure Cave

  CHAPTER XXI

  A NEW MEMBER

  "Come on," cried John excitedly. "Let's get up there and see it."

  "How do you suppose he ever did it?" exclaimed Grant. "He's a great one,all right."

  Scrambling and hustling up over the rocks George's four companions viedwith one another as to who should be the first to reach the cave. John'slong legs would ordinarily have won the race for him, but he wasweakened by the effects of his experience in the water, and Grantoutdistanced him. The rest were close behind, however, and all arrivedalmost together.

  "Where did you get it, Pop?" demanded Grant eagerly.

  "Oh, down at the other end of the island," said George evasively.

  His face was wreathed in smiles, however, and he was very proud of hisexploit.

  "I don't see how you did it," exclaimed Fred.

  "I'm clever."

  "Don't get funny," warned Grant. "We'll take it out of you if you getfresh."

  "You can't touch me now," said George loftily.

  "What's the reason we can't?"

  "Because if you do, I'll--"

  He did not finish the sentence. Instead he leaped to his feet andhanging on to one hand howled with pain. His friends, however, insteadof sympathizing with him, all with one accord shrieked delightedly.

  "Whew!" cried George feelingly. "He's a good biter all right."

  "He," in this case referred to a small green parrot which George hadbeen holding in both hands. In some way it had wriggled loose from hisgrasp and twisting its head around had taken a good sized bit of fleshout of the back of his hand. This was the cause of George's pain and hisfriends' mirth.

  "Put a muzzle on him, Pop," advised Fred. "He's dangerous."

  "He certainly is," agreed George. "I'm afraid he'll bite that string inhalf too."

  "How did you catch him?" inquired Grant curiously. "Did you put salt onhis tail?"

  George gave the speaker a scornful look. "I caught him," he replied,"because he has a broken wing and can't fly very well. It wasn't anyeasy job, though."

  "How did he break his wing?"

  "I don't know. I didn't ask him."

  "Say, you're getting awfully fresh," exclaimed Grant, pretending that hewas angry. "Can't you be serious and tell us how you caught him?"

  "Certainly I can, I was walking down around the end of the island when Ispied this fellow on the ground. I went up close to him and he justflopped up and down and evidently could use only one wing. I saw rightaway that it was broken and decided right there and then that he oughtto belong to me. I chased him all around for I don't know how long andfinally I grabbed him by the tail feathers and hung on. It was no easything to do though and I can tell you I nearly gave it up any number oftimes. Just as I'd get up close to him and make a grab at him, he'd hopaway and when I did catch him he tried his best to bite me. He's gotplenty of spunk all right," and George looked ruefully at his bleedinghand.

  "Are you going to tame him?" asked John.

  "I'm going to do my best."

  "Do you think he'll stay around here?"

  "He will as long as he's tied, that's sure. I got that string off thatold tarpaulin; you know the one we had in the life-boat when we left the_Josephine_."

  "You ought to clip his wings," said Grant.

  "I know it and I intend to, too. I was just waiting for some of youfellows to come back and help me. Where have you been anyway?"

  The whole story of John and the shark was related to George, who wasnaturally very much interested in the account.

  "I wish I'd been there to see it," he exclaimed ruefully.

  "No, you don't either," said Fred. "I saw it all, but I can tell you Ididn't enjoy the experience very much."

  "Nor I," agreed Grant. "It was too harrowing for me."

  "I don't suppose John had much fun either," said George. "As far as Ican see Sam was the only one who got any pleasure out of it at all."

  "How about that, Sam?" demanded Grant.

  "Oh, Ah didn't mind it so powerful much," grinned Sam.

  "Would you want to do it every day?"

  "Ah cain't say as how Ah would. One ob dem sha'ks might get mesometime."

  "Suppose the shark had swallowed John," George remarked. "He's so talland skinny that he never could have gotten him down and there he'd stuckright in his throat. He'd been worse than Jonah and the whale."

  "Are you going to stand for that, Spike?" inquired Fred mischievously,hoping to start an argument of some kind.

  "He has to," said George. "He has nothing to say about the matter atall," and he assumed a careless and indifferent air.

  "If I wasn't so weak just now I certainly would make him eat thosewords," exclaimed John.

  "You hear that?" demanded George. "It's always 'if' with him."

  "And you always pick on a man when he's down," retorted John.

  "How about me? Just look at the terrible wound I have on the back of myhand."

  "Yes," said Grant, "the parrot thought you were bird seed."

  "Or a cracker," added Fred.

  "That's right," cried George, pretending to be greatly hurt. "You allalways take sides against me. Still it's an even match at that."

  "I guess we'd better take some of that conceit out of him, don't you?"exclaimed Grant slowly advancing towards George.

  "Well, I should say so," cried Fred eagerly, and a moment later Georgewas at the bottom of a pile of four boys, three of whom busiedthemselves with poking him in the ribs, jouncing up and down on hisstomach and in every other way possible making it just as uncomfortableas they could for him.

  Everyone was laughing and in good humor, however. Seldom it was that anyof these boys lost his temper, for they had learned long ago just howfoolish a proceeding that was. The one who gets angry is always teased,but there is no satisfaction in plaguing a boy who ignores it or givesas good as he receives and always keeps his temper under control.

  Finally George was released and all four boys rose to their feetlaughing and good natured. Sam had been a greatly interested spectatorof these proceedings and had enjoyed them greatly.

  "Say," he exclaimed, "dey am jus' about as bad as fightin' sha'ks."

  "You notice it took three of them to do it though, don't you, Sam?"exclaimed George, weak from laughter and loss of breath.

  "Want some more?" demanded Grant.

  "If you'll come one at a time, I'm willing."

  "Dat's de way," exclaimed Sam. "One at a time. Dat's fair."

  "We'll postpone it till to-morrow," said Grant. "I'm winded."

  "You're afraid of me," taunted George.

  "Oh, go and play with your parrot," exclaimed Fred. "You're a birdyourself."

  "Where is he?" demanded George. "I'd almost forgotten him."

  "There he is," said Fred laughingly. "He looks like a little old mansitting up there on that rock."

  "He's all right; don't you worry about him," said George. "He's myfriend."

  "It looked so when he ate the back of your hand off," laughed Grant.

  "That's just the way he shows his affection," exclaimed George. "Hedidn't mean anything by that."

  "Well, if that's the case," said Grant, "I'm certainly glad he doesn'tcare anything about me."

  "Catch him, Pop," urged John, "and we'll clip his wings."

  "Will you help me? I don't want to lose him now after all the trouble Ihad to get him. I think I can tame him, too."

  "Sure you can. Get him over here."

  "How can I do it?"

  "I'll show you," exclaimed John. "Watch me."

  He seized hold of the string that was tied around the parrot's leg andbegan to haul in hand over hand. The poor bird fluttered and struggledindignantly but all to no avail. He was quickly pulled along until hewas at John's feet when George grabbed him and held him securely.

  "Now how can we cut his wings?" demanded Fred. "We have no scissors."

  "We have knives, haven't we?" exclaimed George.

  "But are they sharp enough?"


  "Mine is."

  "So am mine," said Sam. "It suttinly done fix dat sha'k all right."

  "I'm afraid it's a little too big for a parrot though," laughed Grant."Don't you think so?"

  "P'raps it am," admitted Sam. "It's sho' a good knife dough."

  "Spread his wings out on the rock here," directed John. "I'll cut thetips off his feathers so he can't fly away."

  "Don't hurt him."

  "No danger of that. You just hold him still."

  The operation was quickly performed and a few moments later the littlegreen bird was angrily stalking away, shaking his ruffled feathers anduttering indignant squawks at every step.

  "Look at him," laughed Grant. "My, but he's mad."

  "So would you be," said George. "Imagine being treated like that bysomeone about a hundred times as big as you are."

  "It would rouse me a little," admitted Grant. "What are you going toname him?"

  "I don't know. What's a good name, anyway?"

  "Call him Snip," suggested Fred. "He certainly took a snip out of you."

  "That's a good one," exclaimed George. "His name is Snip."

  "You'll have to teach him his name now, Pop," said Grant. "That'll giveyou something to do and keep you out of mischief."

  "I want him to talk, too," said George, "and I want him to get so tamethat he'll ride around on my shoulder wherever I go."

  "And he'll peck your eye out," said John.

  "Oh, I guess not. He'll be all right after a while."

  "How are you going to go about teaching him to talk?" demanded John. "Isuppose he'll have to learn the alphabet first," and he nudged Grant ashe spoke.

  "Oh, yes, of course," laughed George sarcastically. "You're all prettysmart."

  "Why, Pop," said John, soothingly, "it wouldn't take long. There areonly twenty-six letters in it."

  "What did you say?" cried Grant, suddenly springing to his feet.

  "I said there were twenty-six letters in the alphabet."

  "Hooray!" shouted Grant, and he began to dance around like a wild man."I've got it. I've got it," he repeated excitedly over and over again.