He saw Jenks and one of the loggers start to move to the other side of the raft, as though they would antic.i.p.ate the possible coming of the men in that direction and be on hand to meet them.
"Keep clear, so that I can fire!" he called to them, making his voice as vociferous as possible, in order that the hiding men might catch every word, and be more or less affected by the startling intelligence.
"Oh! why didn"t I bring my gun along?" groaned George, who was suffering agonies because he just had to stand there, and watch some one else run things; whereas, did he happen to have a weapon in his hands, he might have taken a much more prominent part in the proceedings.
One good thing about George was that he always wanted to be on the firing line; for he did not have a drop of craven blood in his veins. In baseball, football, hockey, it was all the same; George could be found wherever the play was fiercest, taking and giving knocks without a murmur, if only there was action, action, and then more action.
Jack heard his lament, and was secretly just as well satisfied to have things as they were. George was so impulsive that he might do things to be regretted in calmer moments. Such a hot-headed fellow was dangerous with firearms, especially when there seemed some little excuse for making a use of the same against a law-breaking pair like the bank robbers.
For a couple of minutes nothing happened; but the fire was burning fiercely and crackling at a great rate. Josh looked rather serious as he contemplated the conflagration; perhaps he was remembering George"s absurd threat with regard to setting the river on fire; and thinking that they would surely have to get away before such a catastrophe came to pa.s.s.
Then, just what Jack had been expecting came about.
"There! there! Jack, look! knock "em over!" shrieked George, as two figures started out of the burning shack on the raft, and began to hasten across the slippery logs as fast as they could go.
One of them, the larger, carried the hand bag; and from his determined manner it looked as though he meant to cling to that through thick and thin. Jenks and the two loggers were already trying to cut the fugitives off, and as though they began to fear lest that should really happen the robbers changed their course a little, though still heading for the side of the raft that lay nearest the western bank of the river, so close at hand.
Jack fired one barrel of his gun, but he did not try to hit the fleeing men. It was just intended to let them know he had their range, for chips and water flew close beside the one who carried the bag.
"Drop that bag, or the next shot will lame you for life, do you hear?"
shouted the boy, now fully resolved that he would have to shoot to wound, in justice to all those poor depositors up in Lawrence, for whom he felt so sorry.
Perhaps it was on account of the threat contained in his words; although the nearness of Jenks, and the other two husky men, may have had more or less to do with it; but the escaping burglar realized that it was a case of either letting his plunder go, or else being badly wounded, and then sent to the penitentiary for a term of years. And so, he relaxed his firm clutch, allowing the bag with the stolen funds of the bank to fall upon the logs of the raft.
CHAPTER XXIII
EVERYTHING LOVELY--CONCLUSION
"Hurrah!"
That shout of triumph seemed to break forth from several pair of lips at once, when the taller one of the two thieves dropped the bag he had been carrying, as Jack so plainly threatened to fire upon him at close range.
He was not so much of a fool after all, it seemed. If there was going to be a chance for escaping minus the plunder, why, it would have to go, that was all.
Somehow Jack was reminded of incidents in his own boyish career. He could see himself madly tearing across a field, with a whole bevy of angry b.u.mble-bees chasing after him, and surging about his unprotected ears; and when they started to get busy with their hot little probes, what did he do but dash his hat off, and then his coat in quick succession. This was to attract the attention of the bees to other things, and let him escape. And the manoeuvre was usually successful, too.
Well, this smart rascal, finding himself threatened with trouble, had just done the same sort of trick practiced by the b.u.mble-bee fighters from away back in our great-grandfathers" days, throw something down to attract the attention of the hunters and hold their attention while he escaped.
It succeeded in the work it was intended to do.
Jack did not shoot again, and the others all seemed to think that, since the bag had been recovered, there was no especial need of almost killing themselves closing with the desperate burglars.
They knew that the men were armed, anyway, and would doubtless use their guns recklessly if cornered. Better to let them go, and call it a good riddance of bad rubbish; that was a boy"s idea of the fitness of things.
What was the use of being greedy; they did not aspire to be known as thief-takers; and besides, they owed it to those at home to have some respect for their own safety.
And so the two alarmed rascals, rushing to the side of the raft, sprang hurriedly straight into the river, striking out for the sh.o.r.e with all the haste they were capable of. Indeed, to see the way they fought the water, one would imagine that they fully antic.i.p.ated having the whole bevy of motor boats in swift pursuit, and that every second they could gain in the start was going to count in their favor.
But who cared?
Certainly not Jack, who, pouncing upon the precious hand bag, opened it just far enough to see that it was crammed with money and papers, just as they had been hastily pushed into it at the time of the raid on the Lawrence bank.
Some of the others came crowding around, anxious for a look; but Jack, with a wisdom that did him credit, remembering that there were a couple of big rough lumbermen present, whom he knew nothing about, not to mention Jenks, was smart enough to close the bag quickly.
"Is it all right, Jack; everything there?" asked George, eagerly; and then, as he caught the low word of warning which the other muttered he understood; for as quick as that he went on to say: "All our stuff recovered in fine style, eh, fellows? Let the scamps go; we ought to be only too glad to wash our hands of them."
"Hurrah for us!" shrilled Josh, br.i.m.m.i.n.g over with excitement.
All at once Buster, who had gained a footing on the logs when Herb brought his big Comfort to an anchorage there, alongside the raft, was seen to be wildly rushing toward the edge, and waving his arms. Then he started to shouting after the pair of precious scoundrels who were battling with the waves of the river, and by this time almost half way to the nearer bank.
"Hey, bring back that sweater, you! That"s my blue moon sweater you"re wearing, and I want it, I tell you! I"ll have the law on you for stealing, d"ye hear that, you sneak? Jack, why don"t we start right out, and chase "em with the Tramp or the Wireless? Seems like none of you fellers care a whit whether I ever get my bully old sweater back again.
How"d you feel if it was yours, now, and a birthday present at that?"
But Buster"s wild grief was suddenly turned into great joy; for Andy came running out of the shack, into which he had darted despite the fact of its being on fire, and he was waving something over his head as he advanced.
"Troth, phat do ye call this same, Buster? "Tis a sweater, and sure there"s a blue moon on the front, in the bargain. Don"t ye say, the omadhaun sthripped it off so that he could swim better."
Buster clasped it to his heart, and actually kissed the precious garment, which doubtless he had come to value more than ever, since he lost it, for we "never miss the water till the well runs dry."
And so, after all, the wonderful sweater came back to its own. Buster had it on right away, and seemed to feel that luck had marked him for its especial favors.
"Here, let"s get busy!" cried George, "perhaps we can save the best part of this cabin after all. I see an old tin bucket that"ll do to scoop up water with. Everybody work to put out the fire, fellows!"
That was just like George, who could be the most generous chap any one ever met. Those two loggers had been of considerable a.s.sistance to the boys in baffling the burglars and forcing them to give up their ill-gotten gains; so that it would be only right in their trying to remedy things as much as possible.
Well, the fire was soon gotten under control.
Meanwhile Jack had gone aboard the Tramp, where, un.o.bserved, he could again open the hand bag, and extract some of the money; for he did not happen to have twenty dollars about him at the time, since they had not expected finding any use for so much cash on their simple little Easter cruise.
This he handed over to the two loggers, calling upon the others to witness the transaction, for he might want to prove it later on.
After that the boys began to think of returning up the river, and reaching their camp on Bedloe"s Island. Algernon concluded that, since his boat was in fair running order, and he had the chance to elude the other "chappie," with whom he was playing a game of hide-and-seek while on the way to St. Louis, he had better take advantage of the opportunity, and keep right on down-stream.
Jack and his chums promised to care for what Algernon had left behind; and on the way up later he would drop in at the island to recover the same. If the motor boat boys were not in camp, having departed for home, he promised to see them there.
And so Jenks having gone aboard and started the engine, the Saunterer glided off down the Mississippi, Algernon shaking hands with each of the others in turn, and declaring that it had all been the greatest bit of excitement he had ever experienced; a remark, which caused Jack"s crowd to grin, for, as we happen to know, the boys had been through some remarkable events in their time.
The three boats were soon on their way up river; and reached the island before dawn. It was a pretty tired lot that crept into the tent, and slept for several hours. And later in the day Jack told them that in consideration of the forlorn condition which he knew the good people of Lawrence must be in, he would have to take a run over to a town which lay about eight miles above. Here he could send the precious bag and its contents, securely wrapped and sealed, by express; and at the same time dispatch a long message at night rates that would tell the directors of the stricken bank how all their valuable papers as well as the money that had been taken were on the way to them, particularly later when the motor boat boys got back from their little cruise down the Mississippi.
To this message Jack signed the names of the whole six chums, his own last of all. Then he and Josh managed to get back to the island before evening set in; and a great load had been taken from Jack"s mind, when he no longer had to worry about that bag containing nearly all of the visible a.s.sets of the plundered Lawrence bank.
CHAPTER XXIV