For some reason Brad took them down further than before, so that they even drew near the sharp bend before he gave the signal to stop rowing.
The boat continued to glide along with the current, though gradually easing up.
And it was just at that moment, when the young oarsmen of Riverport were breathing hard after their recent exertions, that they heard a sudden crash as of splintering wood, immediately accompanied by a conglomeration of shouts, all in the plain, unmistakable voices of boys.
Startled, they stared at each other, as if not knowing what to make of it; and thrilled by the knowledge that danger must be threatening some fellows around the bend just below.
CHAPTER XVII
SNAGGED AND WRECKED
"What in the world"s that?" exclaimed Dave Hanshaw.
"Sounds like some fellows might be in a pickle. Listen to "em howl; would you?" cried Corney Shays.
"Isn"t one of the lot whooping it up for help?" asked Fred.
"You"re right, Fred; and we"ve got to get a move on, and turn that bend yonder, when we can see what"s what. Ready, boys!" called out Brad, at which every young oarsman dropped back into his place; for they had been turning half around at the time, desirous of seeing what it all meant.
"Must be that Buck Lemington bunch!" sang out Sid, who perhaps had recognized one of the loud voices; for he and the bully of Riverport had been in conflict so often in the last twelve years, that it would be very strange if the excited tones of the other might not be known when heard.
"Then it"s good-bye to that old college sh.e.l.l," declared Corney.
"You"re right," a.s.serted d.i.c.k Hendricks; "because that smash must have ended its days of usefulness forever."
As the signal to drop oars and pull was given, the boat once more took on new life, and rushed down upon the nearby bend. When they shot around this, of course the c.o.xswain was the only one who immediately saw the exciting scene presented. And it certainly spoke well for the discipline under which that novice crew labored that not a single one of them tried to twist his head around, in order to gain advance information.
They left details to Brad, knowing that they would quickly be upon the scene, and able to see for themselves, without a breach of discipline.
What Brad saw was just what he antic.i.p.ated, but all the same it must have given the boy a thrill. Sure enough, the delicate boat which had once won a big college race, and had been kept for some years by the gentleman over in Grafton, simply because his dead son had rowed on the winning crew, was piled up on some sort of a hidden snag, or concealed rock, at a point where the swirling water must have warned any cautious c.o.xswain to keep away.
Several boys were clinging to the wreck. Others were swimming around like rats deserting a sinking ship, two being already on the way to the nearest sh.o.r.e. And about every fellow was letting his lungs give full vent to his feelings; so that the racket was tremendous.
"Help! help! I can"t keep up much longer! This way, fellers! Get hold of me!" one of those in the river shouted; spluttering over the words, as though he might already have swallowed a considerable quant.i.ty of water.
"Aw! let up on that squawk, Clem Shooks; can"t you?" shouted Buck angrily, as he swam toward the fellow who declared that he was exhausted, and sinking. "Want any of that bunch to give you a hand? I"d see myself asking favors of Brad Morton or his crowd. We"ll get you ash.o.r.e, all right, never fear. Hi! there, Whitey, this way, and you too, Oscar. Give this ninny a helpin" hand and tow him to dry land."
Apparently Buck was in a towering rage. He had been steering the boat when it struck the snag, and hence must be held responsible for the accident that would deprive the outlaw crew of a racing craft for the remainder of the season.
There was not one of Brad"s chums, however, but who felt sure that sooner or later the bully would try to put the blame on one of his companions. That seemed to be the natural way with him; a scapegoat was as necessary to Buck"s manner of doing things as it was for him to take all the credit when success came along.
Some of those who clung to the wreck were, however, not averse to accepting a.s.sistance from the regulars of the Boat Club. Brad directed them how to hang on, and in this way towed them close to the sh.o.r.e.
When the water shoaled enough to admit of their standing up, with it only waist high he stopped the boat.
"That"ll do for you, fellows," Brad said, pleasantly; "and we"ll go back now for the other pair."
"Aw! you needn"t bother yourselves about them," broke out Buck, who had managed, with the a.s.sistance of Whitey and Oscar, to get the weak-kneed Clem Shooks in the shallow water; "they"re on the way right now."
It turned out to be as Buck said. The last pair, realizing that they would be apt to incur the anger of their leader if they waited to accept favors from those Buck hated so bitterly, had indeed abandoned the wreck, and were even then swimming toward the sh.o.r.e.
None of Brad"s crew laughed, though the aspect of the wrecked ones was most forlorn, and doubtless they wanted to make merry.
"We"re sorry for your accident, Buck," Brad ventured to say, in as pleasant a tone as he could ever use when addressing the boy he detested so much deep down in his heart.
"n.o.body wants you to be sorry!" grated the other, in an ugly humor.
"We"ve been talking about that race your bunch gave us yesterday, and honestly we hoped it would be repeated," Brad went on to remark; for he fancied he could understand how such a disaster must upset any fellow; and he tried to make excuses for the surly temper Buck was displaying.
"Oh! let up on that sort of talk; won"t you?" growled the other. "I s"pose you"d just want to use us as a practice crew; hey? Well, it"s off, anyhow; and all owin" to Clem Shooks here taking a crab, just when I was starting to steer clear of that nasty snag!"
"Why, I nev----" the astonished Clem started to exclaim, though he had swallowed so much water that it was difficult for him to get his breath as yet; when the irate bully turned on him like a flash, and shook his big fist threateningly.
"Don"t you go to denyin" it, now, Clem Shooks!" he roared, furiously.
"I ought to know, hadn"t I, when I saw the whole thing? And didn"t you get throwed further than any of the rest? That was because you didn"t have any oar left to hold on to. You ought to be made to pay for the boat, that"s what. No back talk now, or else I"ll show you who"s boss here. b.u.t.ton up your lips, d"you hear, Clem Shooks?"
And poor Clem, who was doubtless as innocent as he claimed, dared not speak further. By degrees the blame would be settled on his shoulders, without his venturing to protest in the hearing of the bully.
Fred and his chums exchanged significant looks. It was as much as saying: "Didn"t I tell you Buck would fix it all right?" They knew the ways of the bully to perfection. And if Buck noticed the nods and sly grins, he thought it good policy to pay no attention to them just then.
"Well, since we"re not wanted here any longer, let"s be going, boys,"
remarked Sid, as usual thoroughly disgusted with the actions of the bully.
"Good-bye then!" sneered Buck, and Bristles noticed with a sudden thrill that he looked at the trim boat belonging to the regulars with a malicious gleam in those black eyes of his.
They once more backed into the deeper water, and were soon alongside the wreck.
"Shall we tow it ash.o.r.e for them, boys?" Asked d.i.c.k.
"What say?" Brad remarked.
"Better leave it alone, if you know what"s good for you," Sid spoke up.
"Once you touch it, and there"s no telling what Buck will try to tell people. Perhaps he"d even say we ran into him, and did the damage. But I reckon some people ash.o.r.e saw it all; for there"s Judge Colon"s auto, standing up yonder; and they"ve got their field-gla.s.s leveled this way.
It"s Flo Temple, too, who"s doing the looking."
"Better leave it alone then, fellows," Brad went on to say, being convinced by the logic of Sid that it was dangerous business meddling with anything belonging to Buck Lemington, even in a spirit of sporting fairness. "It"s so smashed anyway, that it"ll never again be worth fixing up. Too bad, too, for it was a boat with a history."
"How d"you reckon it happened?" asked Colon; "for of course Clem Shocks never caught that crab, or some of the other fellows would have jumped on him? Didn"t you all see how silly they looked when Buck was accusing Clem? They knew, as well as he did, that it wasn"t so, but not a single fellow had the grit to declare the truth."
"Oh!" Brad went on to remark, "Buck may have heard us coming around the bend, and forgot for a few seconds to keep as bright a lookout for snags as he ought. So they ran on this one at full speed. Say, wasn"t that a fierce crash, though?"
Once more rounding the bend that shut out all sight of the wreck, and the forlorn members of the outlaw crew, who would have a walk of five miles and more before they could get to town with their sad news, the regulars put in some time in diligent practice.
"You"re rounding out in fine shape, fellows," Brad declared enthusiastically, as they finally started up-river, bound for home.
"To-morrow we"re promised the valuable a.s.sistance of Mr. Shays, who knows the ropes from beginning to end. He"ll be apt to give us a heap of valuable information, and correct a lot of our blunders; for I know we can do better work than this, once we get on to the right swing."