"Perhaps they turned up or down the creek to find a ford," said Frank.
"They couldn"t have done that without leavin" a trail, could they? It was a good hundred yards to the creek, as I told you, an" me an" Bob sarched every inch of the ground, but couldn"t find the print of a single hoof."
"The robbers may have doubled on their trail, for the purpose of throwing you off the scent," suggested Johnny.
"I don"t reckon that men who have hunted wild Injuns an" varmints as long as me an" Bob have, could be fooled by sich a trick as that ar","
replied the trapper. "I have since found out all about it, youngsters.
Them hosses didn"t make no more trail; that"s the reason we couldn"t foller "em."
"Then, of course, they didn"t go any farther," said d.i.c.k Thomas.
"Yes, they did. They went acrost that creek, an" into Don Carlos"
rancho, an" never touched the ground, nor the water either."
"Into Don Carlos" rancho!" repeated Archie in great astonishment.
"And never touched the ground!" echoed Johnny. "Were they carried over?"
"Sartinly not. They walked."
"How could two solid flesh-and-blood horses walk a hundred yards without stepping on the ground?" asked Frank.
"They could step on something else, couldn"t they? _They walked on clouds!_"
As the trapper said this, he settled back on the bench, and looked at the boys, to observe the effect this astounding announcement would have upon them. He expected them to be greatly amazed, and they certainly were. Any four boys in the world would have been amazed to hear such a declaration fall from the lips of a man whom they knew to be strictly truthful, and who, moreover, was not jesting, but speaking in sober earnest. They looked at the trapper a moment, and then at one another, and finally Johnny and d.i.c.k Thomas burst into a loud laugh; while the cousins, who were better acquainted with their old friend, thrust their hands deep into their pockets with an air which said plainly that they did not understand the matter at all, and waited patiently for him to explain.
"You may believe it or not," said d.i.c.k, "but it"s a fact, "cause ole Bob seed it with his own eyes. He watched the hul thing from beginning to end, and it well-nigh skeered him to death."
"What did he see?" asked Frank, growing more and more bewildered. "I didn"t suppose that Bob was afraid of any living thing."
"Nor he aint, nuther," returned the trapper, quickly. "But show him something that can"t be hurt by a rifle-ball, an" he"ll take to his heels as quick as any body. As I was sayin", the trail of them two hosses ended thar on the bank of that creek, an" we couldn"t find it ag"in. Me an" ole Bob puzzled our heads over it fur a long time, an"
we finally made up our minds that that ar" old Spaniard, Don Carlos, could tell us all about the matter if he was a mind to, an" Bob said that we would go back the next night, an" watch his rancho. Wal, when the next night come, we couldn"t both go, "cause your uncle said he wanted one of us to keep an eye on the stables: so I stayed at home, an" ole Bob went alone. He was gone about three hours, an" when he come back I seed a sight I never seed afore, an" one I never expect to see ag"in. Ole Bob"s face was as white as a Sunday shirt, an" he was shakin" all over like a man with the ager."
"What had he seen?" repeated Frank, who was impatient to get at the bottom of the mystery.
"Easy, easy, youngster, I"m comin" to that," replied d.i.c.k. "Now, I"ve knowed ole Bob ever since I was knee-high to a duck, an" I"ve been with him in more "n a hundred fights with Injuns, an" Greasers, an"
varmints--sometimes, too, when we jest did get away with our ha"r, an"
that was all--but I never seed him skeered afore. It made me feel kinder funny, I tell you, "cause I knowed that thar had been something onnatural goin" on; an" I aint ashamed to say that I looked all around this yere stable, to make sure that me an" him were alone. The ole feller didn"t say any thing, till he had filled his pipe an" smoked it about half out; an" then he told me what he had seed. "d.i.c.k," says he, "thar"s been awful things agoin" on about that ar" old Greaser"s rancho, an" if I hadn"t seed it all with my own two eyes, I shouldn"t believe it. I went down thar where we lost the trail last night, an"
arter hidin" my hoss in the bushes, tuk up a position from which I could watch both sides of the creek. I knowed that Don Carlos had gone to bed, "cause thar was no light about the rancho, an" the doors an"
winder-shutters were all closed. I hadn"t been thar in the bushes long, afore I heered the trampin" of hosses; but it stopped all of a sudden, an" fur the next five minutes I lay thar on the ground listenin," an" peepin" through the trees, tryin" to get a sight at the fellers. But I couldn"t see "em, an" finally I begun to crawl up closer.
""Now, the last time I looked at the rancho, it was dark an" still, an" thar wasn"t a sign of a human bein" about it; an" durin" the two minutes I was crawlin" t"wards them hossmen, thar wasn"t even the rustlin" of a leaf to tell me that thar was any thing goin" on. But sich fellers as them that live in that rancho don"t make no noise about their work. They had done a good deal in them two minutes; an"
when I looked acrost the creek ag"in, I knowed how it come that we had lost the trail of them hosses. I seed enough to skeer me wuss nor I was ever skeered afore, an" if I could have got up from the ground, I should have made tracks from thar sudden: but, d.i.c.k, I couldn"t move--something held me fast.
""I told you that the last time I looked t"wards the rancho it was all dark, didn"t I? Wal, it wasn"t so now. The walls of the buildin", an"
the bank of the creek, were lighted up by streaks of fire; an" where they come from I couldn"t tell. Howsomever, I didn"t think much about that, fur I seed somethin" else that made my ole "c.o.o.n-skin cap raise up on my head. It was a _bridge of clouds_, which ran from the wall of the buildin" down to the water"s edge. Mebbe you won"t believe that, d.i.c.k, but I seed it with my own eyes. Them streaks of fire, that come from the rancho, lighted up every thing fur a hundred yards around; an" I could see the clouds a rollin" an" tumblin" like the smoke from the mouth of a cannon. More "n that, thar was a small flatboat in the creek, which I hadn"t seed thar afore, an" on it were four hosses an"
three men. Two of the hosses were Roderick and King Jeems. Each one had a feller on his back, an" each feller was holdin" another hoss by the bridle.
""By the time I had noted these things the boat begun to move, an"
then I seed something else that skeered me. That ar" boat, d.i.c.k, was rowed acrost that creek without hands. It"s a fact, "cause I seed it.
I rubbed my eyes to make sure that I wasn"t dreamin", but thar wasn"t no mistake about it. Them two fellers sot thar on their hosses, without layin" a finger on an oar or paddle, the other stood in the starn, with his hands in his pockets, an" yet the boat carried them acrost. It wasn"t no time in reachin" the other bank, an" when it stopped, the hossmen rode out on this bridge of clouds, which seemed to have been put thar on purpose fur them, and went t"wards the house.
I kept clost watch of them, to see which way they turned, but they didn"t turn at all. They kept straight ahead, an" went into the rancho. I rubbed my eyes ag"in, an" when I opened "em the boat wasn"t thar, the bridge of clouds had disappeared, the fire had gone out, an"
the rancho was as dark an" silent as though thar had never been n.o.body about it. I tell you, d.i.c.k, I was skeered when I seed that; but I"ve got a leetle courage, I reckon, an" I made up my mind that I would find out the meanin" of them strange doin"s, or die a tryin". I had seed them two fellers go into the rancho, an" I wanted to know how they got in, an" what they were goin" to do thar. I didn"t stop to think the matter over, "cause I knowed I should back out if I did; but jumpin" to my feet, I ran down the bank of the creek to the water, an"
struck out for the other sh.o.r.e. I wasn"t long in gettin" acrost, an"
presently I found myself standin" clost to the wall where I had seed the fire shinin", an" where them two hossmen had gone in. Was I really awake? Had I seed any body about thar at all? d.i.c.k, thar wasn"t a door or winder on that side of the buildin"! The wall was as solid as the ground--not a single crack or crevice in it. How could them two fellers have gone through a stone wall five foot thick? I axed myself that question, an" then I fetched a little whistle, an" turned an" run fur my life. I swum that creek quicker"n it was ever swum afore, I reckon; an" when I reached my hoss, I put spurs to him, an" come home a flyin". I kept lookin" back all the while, to see if thar wasn"t somethin" follerin" me, an" I didn"t draw an easy breath until I come within sight of this rancho. I"ve seed an" heered of a heap of queer things durin" the sixty years I"ve been knocked about on the prairy, but this yere is a leetle ahead of "em all." That"s the way old Bob told me his story, youngsters," said d.i.c.k, in conclusion. "You may laugh at it if you want to, but I won"t, "cause I know that every word of it is the truth."
For a few moments after the trapper ceased speaking, the boys stood looking at him and at one another in blank amazement. His story reminded them of the tales of enchantment they had read in the Arabian Nights. As strange as it may seem, however, they were not so much astonished at the recital of the singular events that had happened at the old Spaniard"s rancho, as they were to know that Roderick and King James had been seen to go in there. Frank turned the matter over in his mind, and told himself that he had heard something that would, sooner or later, lead to the breaking up of the robber-band. Like the others, he could not explain the "bridge of clouds," nor could he understand how a boat could be ferried across a wide creek without hands, or how a solid stone wall, five feet thick, could open to admit the hors.e.m.e.n; but still he knew that if these things had really happened, they were the results of human agency, and that there was nothing supernatural about them. He did not believe that Don Carlos had any thing to do with the horse-thieves, and yet it did not seem possible that such proceedings as the old trapper had witnessed could go on in his rancho without his knowledge. Don Carlos was a prominent personage in the settlement. He was one of the wealthiest men in Southern California, numbered his cattle and horses by thousands, his money by bushels instead of dollars (Uncle James had once told his nephews that he had seen three barrels of gold in the old Spaniard"s bed-room), and there was no need that he should risk his life by engaging in any such business. Besides, he had lost several fine horses himself, and had been untiring in his efforts to discover the thieves. If he was one of the guilty parties, he certainly had reason to congratulate himself on the skillful manner in which he had avoided arousing the suspicions of his neighbors.
"I have told you the story, youngsters," said d.i.c.k, "an" you can do what you think best. You can bear one thing in mind, howsomever, an"
that is, if you"re goin" to be keerless, like you allers are, an" try to find out what"s been goin" on at that rancho, you can look to the settlers for help, if you want any. Ole Bob says that thar aint money enough in Californy to hire him to go back thar; an" if he won"t go, you"d better believe that d.i.c.k Lewis won"t go nuther. I don"t want to see any thing that ole Bob is afeared of."
"I think we had better let the matter rest until Uncle James returns,"
said Frank. "He will know what ought to be done. Now let us go out and look at that trap."
"You had better keep away from thar," said d.i.c.k. "If Ole Davy happens to be prowlin" about in the woods, he"ll larn you more of the nater of grizzly bars than you ever knowed afore."
"O, we"re not going to trouble him," replied Johnny.
"And if he knows when he is well off he won"t trouble us either," said Archie. "I"ve wanted to fight somebody ever since I lost that horse; and I"m just as willing it should be Old Davy as any one else."
The cousins had a good deal of trouble in selecting their horses; but, with the trapper"s a.s.sistance, they were finally mounted to their satisfaction, and after securing their weapons, and a couple of axes, with which to repair the trap, they whistled to their dogs, and galloped toward the mountains.
CHAPTER IV.
"OLD DAVY."
It was a long time before the boys ceased to wonder at the singular story they had just heard. They discussed it while they were riding toward the mountains; but after they had all expressed an opinion, they were as much in the dark as they had been before. They could not understand it at all. d.i.c.k Thomas declared that old Bob must have fallen asleep while he was watching the rancho, and that the bridge of clouds, the streaks of fire, and the boat that was ferried across the creek without hands, were things which he had seen only in his dreams.
Such incidents, he said, might have happened in feudal times, and in some old castle which had been built with secret doors and dungeons and pa.s.sage-ways; but no one need try to make him believe that they could take place at that late day, in a civilized country, and in a house that had been erected simply for a dwelling. It was ridiculous.
Johnny said that was his opinion, too; but Frank and Archie, who knew that the old trapper was not the man to fall asleep while watching for an enemy, were confident that something unusual and exciting had been going on at Don Carlos" rancho. Bob was a very ignorant man, and of course he was superst.i.tious. He believed in signs and omens, and any thing he could not account for was sure to frighten him. This may have led him to exaggerate the occurrences at the rancho, but, for all that, they knew that he had been a witness to some strange scenes.
"Old Bob didn"t make up that story," said Archie, decidedly, "and he never dreamed it, either. He saw something, and I"ll know what it was before I am two days older. It"s my opinion that that old Spaniard has got my horse: and if he has, he must give him up, or there"ll be a bigger fuss in this settlement than there was when the Indians attacked it years ago."
But all thoughts of Don Carlos and his rancho, and the mysterious things that had happened there, were soon driven out of their minds; for, by this time, they had reached the spring near which Frank, Archie, and Johnny had been captured by Pierre and his band, and there they found the trap of which they were in search. It was built of heavy logs, with a movable top, like the lid of a box, to which, when the trap was set, a "trigger" was adjusted, in such a manner that, when the bait was removed, the top would fall down, confining the bear in the pen. The boys thought that Old Davy must have possessed immense power of muscle to work his way out of that trap. He had left the marks of his great claws and teeth on the logs, and there were the prints of his feet where he had pa.s.sed along the muddy bank of the spring into the woods.
Frank and his companions sat in their saddles looking at the trap, while the dogs, with all the bristles on their backs sticking straight up, ran about in a state of intense excitement. The boys were all thinking about the same thing: and that was, if they dared to send on the dogs, and could find and shoot Old Davy, what a feather it would be in their caps! That would be doing something that d.i.c.k Lewis and Bob Kelly and all the best hunters in the settlement had tried in vain to accomplish. There was one of their number who was reckless enough to believe that they could do it, and that was Archie Winters.
"Hi! hi!" he yelled, so suddenly that he startled all his companions.
"Look to him, dogs. Hunt him up!"
No sooner were the words spoken, than the dogs uttered a simultaneous yelp, and disappeared in the bushes. There were five of them in the pack--Marmion, and four splendid hounds, which belonged to d.i.c.k. Their young masters had often declared that they should never follow Old Davy"s trail, for he was a famous hand to destroy dogs, and during his numerous fights, he had killed nearly all the finest animals of this species in the settlement. A few months before, every farmer in that section of the country had pointed with pride to his pack of fifteen or twenty hounds, to which he gave as much care and attention as he bestowed upon his horses; but Old Davy had thinned them all out, and now some of the settlers had only two or three remaining. Frank and d.i.c.k had, thus far, kept their favorites at a safe distance from the grizzly, but Archie had sent them right into his mouth. When the dogs came up with him, they would of course attack him, and that would be the last of them. A bear that could demolish twenty fierce hounds in a single fight, would not wink over five antagonists. However, it was too late to recall them. They were already out of sight, and yelping fierce and loud as they swept up the mountain in pursuit of the grizzly.
"I"ve seen my hounds for the last time," said d.i.c.k.
"And I"ll never put eyes on Marmion again," chimed in Frank. "What made you send them on, Archie?"