"We haven"t the time to stand for it all," observed Rob; "because such a wonderful man as your uncle must have run across more queer things than we read about in Baron Munchausen or the Arabian Nights, he"s been such a great traveler and explorer. So just strike in where he made up his mind to settle down on a Mexican ranch, and sent to England to import a fine breed of cattle to improve the native stock. That was how long ago, Tubby?"
"From what he told me I guess it might have been six or seven years back; but that doesn"t matter so very much. He bought a big tract of good land, and put up his ranch buildings; after which he got his stock together and started raising the best brand of cattle ever known in Northern Mexico, shipping his beef, on the hoof, of course, over the border to the United States market."
"That was when Diaz was president of Mexico," Rob remarked. "Now, how did your uncle get along with the Government at that time? I want to know, because it"s going to cut a big figure with us when we get down there--if we ever do."
"Why, to tell you the truth, I don"t believe Uncle Mark cared much for President Diaz, because he had lots of trouble at times with the people in power. And later on, when Madero went into Mexico to turn things upside-down, I guess uncle helped him a whole lot. Anyway, I"ve heard him say he admired Madero a heap, and that they were good friends. Why, after Diaz lit out for Spain, Uncle Mark was so dead sure things would run smooth down there that he left his ranch in charge of a man he believed he could trust, and started on the trip to Africa that he"d been staving off for ever so long. And he says he must have just missed the news that Madero had been killed, and that another president was in the chair. If he"d known that, he would never have made his dive into the heart of Africa, but hurried back home."
"Then he looks on Huerta as anything but a friend; is that it?" asked Rob.
"He"s afraid the present Government is following along the same paths Diaz made, and that everybody who was hand in glove with Madero must come under the ban," Tubby went on to say with considerable importance, as though he might be coining some of these phrases himself, when, truth to tell, he only repeated them, parrot-like, after his uncle.
"Now, that"s something we would have to know," said Rob. "But tell us, has your uncle had any word from his ranch since he came back?"
"Not a whisper," Tubby a.s.sured him. "You see, things are in such a whirl down over the border right now that letters never get to their destinations; and as for a wire message being delivered, it isn"t possible in a year."
"Then Uncle Mark doesn"t know whether he has any cattle left on his ranch to-day, or if it"s just a howling wilderness, with every beef run off, and the buildings burned to the ground. Is that the way it stands, Tubby?"
"Er--yes, I suppose it is," admitted the fat scout slowly. "And you see, it"s to find out the truth, for one thing, that he wants somebody to go down there and cross over into Mexico. Then, if everything is lovely and the goose hangs high, that messenger will be given authority to dispose of every head of cattle so as to fetch as big a fistful of money back here as he can."
Rob shook his head, while the other three who were eagerly watching his face looked keenly disappointed. The signs seemed to point to an adverse decision in the matter by the patrol leader.
"It appears to be even worse than what I called it first--a wild goose chase," Rob presently pursued. "For months and months now there have been all kinds of fighting around that section of country, if half we see in the papers is true: first with the Government forces ahead, and then the rebels clearing out everything, so that a hostile army couldn"t live off the land. It was just as Sheridan was ordered to do in the Valley of the Shenandoah, you remember. If the army of Huerta didn"t carry off your uncle"s prize stock, you can make sure the hungry rabble of that rebel general, Villa, must have gobbled it up long ago."
"Oh! but there is where uncle says he has his strongest hold!" exclaimed Tubby, his round face lighting up again with new hope.
"I"m glad to hear he"s got a string out somewhere, then," Rob remarked.
"Suppose you tell us what you mean by that?"
"Why, he knows General Villa real well," Tubby went on. "Fact is, he met him some years ago when he was only a bandit, fighting against the Diaz Government, because they"d gone and set a price on his head. It"s too long a story to tell you now, Rob, but the fact is that my uncle, who used to be a pretty fine surgeon once on a time before he got this exploring bee in his head, saved the life of Villa!"
"He did, eh?" exclaimed the patrol leader, apparently beginning to take new interest in the matter. "That sounds as though there might be a slim chance for those herds to be left alone. Go on and tell us some more, Tubby."
"Villa was badly hurt, and uncle took him to his house and nursed him back to life again, knowing who he was all the while; because, as I said before, uncle didn"t have any too much love for the party that was in power just then. And Villa told him he would never forget what uncle had done for him; that if he could do him a favor any time all uncle had to do was to speak. So that is what he"s hoping will turn out in his favor; that General Villa, remembering how he was treated so well at the ranch, would put a guard over the place and keep his men from raiding it, under the belief that uncle must return home before long. Oh, Uncle Mark is building big hopes on the grat.i.tude of the man whose life he saved long ago!"
"I must say it does look some hopeful," Rob mused, as though trying to convince himself along those lines; for a trip to the South did look mighty alluring to him, if only he could believe it was not a foolish errand that took them to the sorely troubled land of the Montezumas.
"And I forgot to tell you this," Tubby continued breathlessly. "Just as you read so often in stories of the old-time days, the bandit Villa gave my uncle a queer ring which he wears all the time, and told him that if that ring was ever brought to him he would go far out of his way to help the person who fetched it!"
When Tubby burst out with this new bombardment, Rob threw up his hands as if he must capitulate on the spot.
"That seems to clinch matters like a nail driven through a board, Tubby," he went on to say.
"Oh! then you mean you"ll go; is that it, Rob?" exclaimed the fat boy, scrambling out of the easy-chair, and landing on his feet with his short legs spread out as though they were a letter A.
Rob smiled.
"It"s too soon to settle the thing like that, Tubby; but I want to tell you that after hearing all you"ve had to say, I must admit there"s a chance of my falling in with your scheme. It"s a glorious outlook so far as the trip goes. The trouble will be to get in touch with General Villa with that country fairly swarming with guerillas and bandits of all kinds, not to speak of the rebels themselves."
"What will you do about it, Rob?" pleaded Tubby. "Because you know time is going to count for a whole lot with us. Just as soon as we know for sure that there will not be any school till long after Christmas, we ought to be starting. It"s going to take some days to get down there, and across the Rio Grande."
"Well, first, you must take us all to see your uncle so he can give us more information. We shall need it all, depend on that," Rob told him, laying one finger on the palm of his left hand as he checked things off.
"Then I want to talk it all over with dad, though somehow I don"t seem to fear any serious opposition from that quarter, because he"s so good to me, and has such a lot of faith in my being able to come out of any sc.r.a.pe right-side up. Last of all, I mean to put it up to our scout-master, Mr. Alec Sands, and get his advice."
Hampton Troop of Boy Scouts now had a regular scout master, as the rules of the organization demanded. He was a bright young man of about twenty-five, who, while not very well acquainted with the secrets of the Big Outdoors, as were some of the scouts, did know boys from the ground up; and he was deeply interested in everything that went for the betterment of the rising generation. Some time before, Rob had received his certificate from Headquarters in New York City, and was qualified to serve as a.s.sistant scout master in the absence of the real leader of the troop; for only a first-cla.s.s scout may fill this position, and then only after he has been endorsed by the scout commissioner of the district, as well as the local council.
"Well," said Tubby, scratching his head dubiously, "I only hope, then, that our Mr. Sands don"t put the kibosh on the whole fine game by saying there"s too big a risk about it for us to undertake. I don"t see why that should be, when every day you read about scouts doing all sorts of wonderful things,--rescuing folks from burning buildings, stopping runaway horses at the risk of their lives, and such brave deeds that get them medals from Headquarters. This means a whole lot to my uncle, and to my folks; for whatever he owns will come to us if he should die; and let me say this right now--if the rest of you back out, Tubby Hopkins will make the try all by himself. You hear me talking, don"t you?"
"That sounds pretty strong, Tubby," remarked Rob, smiling, yet in secret admiring the undaunted spirit that caused the stout boy to make this positive declaration; "but suppose you take us right now to see your uncle; that may settle it once and for all!"
CHAPTER X.
HOW THE LAND LAY.
Upon hearing Rob speak so favorably of the scheme, Tubby grinned, and gave both of the other scouts a sly wink, as much as to say: "See how you can get there by keeping everlastingly at it?" That was the fat boy"s best quality: persistence. If he failed to reach his aim twenty times he was apt to proceed to try again and again until success rewarded him.
"Then come along over home with me and have a talk with Uncle Mark!" he told the patrol leader as he began to hunt all around for his hat, which he often mislaid. He was finally informed coolly by Andy that it was perched on his head, as he had forgotten to remove it when entering Rob"s den!
So the four hurried out. Signs of the late storm"s fury could be seen in every direction. Great limbs had been torn from some of Hampton"s finest trees; chimneys had been demolished in several places; and it was not hard to believe that at the climax of the hurricane the new roof of the Academy had been carried off.
First of all, Rob said they should satisfy themselves that this report was true; so they joined the crowds that were heading for the school grounds. When the boys saw what a wreck the storm had made of the building, none of them doubted any longer that a vacation period was bound to result. And strange to say, while some of the town fathers walked around, viewing the damage with long faces, knowing how heavily it would cost to repair the school, n.o.body saw a single boy looking glum!
"That"s one point settled, anyhow," Andy remarked gleefully, as they all turned away, heading for the Hopkins" home.
"And say, Mexico looks a whole lot closer to me, don"t you know?" Tubby chirped, with such a happy look on his rosy face that any one might have thought he was on the eve of starting on a picnic instead of a serious undertaking. But, then, boys never see the dark side of things, such is the enthusiasm and optimism of youth.
"Too bad about one thing, Tubby, if so be you get away on this journey,"
remarked Andy, giving Merritt a wink as he spoke.
"What"s that, Andy, you"re hinting about?" asked the other.
"It"s going to knock your fine plans silly; about searching every tool chest in town, you know, and finding the brace and nicked bit that chawed a hole through the bottom of Rob"s sailboat," the bugler of the Eagles went on to say.
Tubby looked somewhat glum, and shrugged his plump shoulders ruefully.
"Say, that"s a fact, fellers," he remarked dolefully; "and I"d sure set my heart on finding out the miscreant, and exposing him to his face.
Such a smart idea of mine it was, too, finding that shaving with the tell-tale mark! But if I don"t get a chance to spy around between now and the time we leave Hampton, I"ll keep it in mind. And every time I look at that incriminating bit of evidence, I"ll renew my vow to place the guilt on the shoulders where it belongs just as soon as I get back home after a successful trip."
Tubby, when he wanted to, could appear very eloquent, and use some of the longest words in the dictionary. Fortunately these periods did not crop up very often, or his chums would not have stood for such airs.
Andy pretended to feel faint as it was, and begged Merritt to fan him.
"All I can say about the matter is that I"m sorry for the fellow who bored that hole through my boat," Rob remarked; "because when once Tubby sets his mind on anything it"s bound to come, sooner or later. But here we are at your house; and now to meet Uncle Mark."
Three minutes later they were all sitting around a small, dark-featured gentleman, who wore a big pair of goggles and looked as though he might be pretty sick. This was Uncle Mark. The fever he had contracted in the hot depths of the African jungles had taken such a hold upon his system that he began to despair of ever being able to travel again; and he had sought his sister"s home as a haven of refuge in his last days.