The Boy Scouts Patrol
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THE BOY SCOUTS PATROL
BY RALPH VICTOR
ILLUSTRATED BY
RUDOLF MENCL
CHAPTER
I. A MONKEY TRICK
II. FINDING MONEY
III. TWO AND TWO
IV. UP THE RIVER
V. OUT OF THE RIVER
VI. THE ENEMY MAKES A RAID
VII. THE COLONEL
VIII. TALKING IT OVER
IX. THE PURSUIT
X. LOOKING FOR A CLUE
XI. FORMING THE PATROL
XII. ORGANIZED
XIII. A CHALLENGE
XIV. A DEFIANCE
XV. PEPPER TAKES A MESSAGE
XVI. WHERE WAS PEPPER?
XVII. THE MESSAGE
XVIII. IN THE JUDGE'S OFFICE
XIX. A NARROW ESCAPE
XX. A NIGHT ALARM
XXI. A SURPRISE
XXII. THE RACE
XXIII. CONCLUSION
THE BOY SCOUTS PATROL
CHAPTER I
A MONKEY TRICK
"I think--" began a tall, slenderly-built lad of sixteen, speaking
in a somewhat indolent way; then suddenly he paused to look down
through the trees to where the river gleamed below.
"What's on your mind now, Rand?" his companion queried, a boy of
about the same age, nearly as tall, but more stoutly built, and as
light in complexion as the other was dark. The two were standing at
the top of the road that wound down the side of the mountain from
the town of Creston, which was perched, like the nest of some great
bird, in a hollow of the Palisades.
"I think--" repeated the first speaker, pausing again.
"That's right, Randolph," approved his companion briskly, "always
think twice before you speak once."
"I always do, Donald Graeme," retorted Rand; "but what I was really
going to say when you interrupted me with your irrelevant remark,
was--"
"Hurrah!" broke in Donald, waving his cap in answer to the hail of
another boy who was just then seen hurrying down the road toward
them. "Here comes Pepper in a rush, as usual."
It was just after dawn of a June morning that the boys were
assembling. It was still dark and gloomy, for it had rained during
the night and the storm had not yet passed, but the boys having
planned a fishing trip for this morning were not to be deterred by
the fear of a wet jacket.
"Hello, fellows!" panted the newcomer, who was smaller and slighter
than either of the others, but who made up in activity and energy
what he lacked in size. His hair was a glowing red and with it
went a temper so quick that the nickname, Pepper, that some chum
had given him, was most appropriate. It is doubtful if any of his
comrades really knew his Christian name. Certainly he was always
"Pepper" to every one, even at home, although he was christened
Philip.
"I say, I was afraid you'd be gone when I got here."
"Well, we would have been," drawled Randolph, "only we knew you'd
be late, and we took our time."
"Now that isn't fair, Rand," laughed the other, "you know I'm not
always late."
"Well, maybe not ALWAYS," conceded Rand; "but almost always. What
was the matter this morning--breakfast late?"
"Now, you know I didn't wait for breakfast," protested Pepper,
adding rather reluctantly, "though I did stop for a bite. But even
if I am late I'm not last. Jack isn't here yet, and he left home
first."
"Oh, he's out on the trail somewhere, I suppose," surmised Donald.
"He's always chasing for news. He'll be coming along presently
with a whole budget. I believe he thinks the paper couldn't go on
if it weren't for him."
"'That reminds me,' as Dick Wilson says," interrupted Rand, taking
a pamphlet from his pocket and holding it out to his companions,
"speaking of trails, what do you think of that?"
"What is it?" asked Pepper, eying it suspiciously. "Looks as if
the cat had been walking on it." goodness, I hope not. I thought
you were always hungry, but if you are only beginning I foresee a
famine ahead of us. And to think of all the good food that is wasted
on you, Pepper," went on Donald reflectively. "Why, to look at you
any one might think that you never had had enough to eat."
"That shows how deceiving looks are," replied Pepper. "Though I
never did have enough," he added plaintively.
"Of course not," returned Donald, "there isn't as much as that
anywhere."
"As much what?" asked Rand.
"Food, grub, provisions, victuals," replied Donald, setting off
along the road at a pace that put a stop to any more talk.
They had gone perhaps about halfway down the hill toward the
boathouse when a big bay horse, drawing a light wagon in which were
three boys, came quickly around a turn in the road. It bore down
on them so suddenly that only by a rapid scramble up the bank by
the side of the road did Rand and Donald save themselves from being
bowled over.
The newcomers would have driven on with a jeering laugh only that
Pepper, angry at what obedience, neatness and order are Scout
virtues. Endurance, self-reliance, self-control and an effort to
help some one else are Scout objectives."
"Ah, cut it out!" protested Pepper. "As Alphonse says 'that makes
me the ennui.' It sounds like a boarding school prospectus. Tell
as what it's about."
"Well, then," replied Rand, "in words adapted to your comprehension,
it is about hunting, scouting, camping, tracking; and Colonel Snow
is interested in the organization. He says that it is fine."
"Speaking of tracking," interjected Donald, "in my opinion it were
no bad plan to be making tracks toward the boathouse if we are going
to get anywhere the day. It is getting bright in the east and it
looks like a clear day, after all. And I may also take occasion
to remark that I haven't had my breakfast yet, and this Boy Scout
business doesn't sound inviting on an empty stomach. We can discuss
it with more comfort when we have had a bite."
"That's the talk!" approved Pepper. "That suits me down to the
ground. I'm beginning to get hungry myself."
"Beginning!" exclaimed Donald. "My
"That isn't a bad guess," laughed Rand. "It is supposed to represent
the track of a bear."
"What are you going to do, Rand?" questioned Donald, "hunt bears?"
"Not at present," answered Rand, "though I should like to well
enough. This is a booklet about the Boy Scouts."
"The Boy Scouts!" demanded Pepper; "what's them?"
"Shades of Lindley Murray!" exclaimed Rand, "do I hear aright?
What's them! And you a graduate of number one. Really, Pepper Blake,
I don't believe we can let you in on this. What do you think about
it, Don?"
"I have my doubts about it," replied Donald gravely.
"But what is it?" persisted Pepper. "It sounds good to me."
"That is better," drawled Rand. "It not only sounds good, but it
is good, as you elegantly express it. IT, according to the pamphlet
that I have here, is an organization for boys between the ages of
twelve and eighteen to train them in self-reliance, manhood and
good citizenship. The movement is not essentially military," went
on Rand, "but the military virtues of discipline, looked like
a deliberate attempt to run over them, sprang to the horse's head
as it was passing, catching the bridle, and with a loud "whoa" he
brought the outfit to a stop.
"What are you t-t-trying to do, Jim Rae!" he shouted to the youthful
driver, "run over us?"
"Aw, g-g-go on, kiddie!" retorted Jim, a stout lad of about Rand's
age, with a freckled face and a shock of aggressive red hair,
mimicking Pepper, who, when excited, sometimes stuttered. "Aw,
g-g-go on. Little boys shouldn't play in the road."
"If you can't d-drive without getting all over the road," went on
Pepper, "why d-don't you let somebody d-drive that knows how--"
"Aw, g-g-go chase yourself," cried Jim. "You ought to bring youse
mamma along to take care of youse. Get up, Bill!" with a flourish
of the whip and a jerk on the lines.
The horse made a jump, but Pepper held firmly to the bridle and
brought it to a stop.
"Let go that horse!" shouted Jim.
"Hit him with the whip, Jim," urged one of the boys in the wagon.
"D-d-don't you dare hit me with that whip," warned Pepper as Jim
snapped the whip close to him, "or you will wish you hadn't."
"Aw, what would you do?" retorted Jim, tauntingly flourishing the
lash dangerously close to Pepper's face. "You ain't big enough to
scare me baby brother."
"You had better not try it, Jim Rae," asserted Pepper, "or I'll
pull you out of there so quick that you will think a cyclone struck
you."
"You mean a wind bag, don't you?" sneered Jim, aiming a blow at
Pepper, who now loosened his hold upon the horse's bridle to jump
toward the wagon, whereupon Jim changed his purpose and struck
the horse with the whip. With a loud "giddap" they started with a
bound, missing Pepper by a hair's breadth, and driving on down the
road at a rattling pace.
"That's a regular m-monkey trick, Jim Rae, all right!" shouted
Pepper. "but I'll get even with you yet!"
The only answer of the boys in the wagon was a taunting laugh
as they drove away. Randolph and Donald had taken no part in the
controversy, not exactly approving of Pepper's disputing with the
enemy, but they had stood at hand ready for any emergency should
one arise.
CHAPTER II
FINDING MONEY
The three boys stood for a moment looking after the rapidly
disappearing wagon, then, stooping down, Rand picked up something
from the road.
"It isn't worth trying, Rand," advised Donald. "You couldn't hit
him if you wanted to, and you wouldn't want to if you could. You
can get even with him some better way."
"Right as usual, Donald," laughed Rand, "but I wasn't looking for
anything to throw at him. I just happened to see this lying on
the ground and picked it up." Holding out a coin he had found, he
added: "What do you make of it?"
"W-w-what is it?" stammered Pepper, all excitement. "It l-looks
like an old-fashioned cent."
"You have got me," replied Donald. "I never saw any money like
that."
"Let's have a close look at it," put in Pepper.
The boys studied over the coin, which was of the size of the early
copper cent, for some time without being much the wiser.
"See, there is a representation of a ship under full sail," remarked
Rand, "with the name Constitution on it. I wonder what it means?"
"And it has the words 'Webster Credit Current' around it," added
Pepper.
"And on the other side is shown the ship wrecked on some rocks.
Something about wrecking the Constitution, I suppose," added Rand.
"This side says, 'Van Buren Metallic Current,' with the date '1837',"
put in Donald.
"I have it!" suddenly ejaculated Rand.
"Of course you have," admitted Donald, "but do you know what it
is?"
"I see I must speak by the book, as Hamlet says," laughed Rand. "I
mean I know what it is."
"What is it, then?" demanded Donald.
"It is some kind of a token, I think," replied Rand, "but I will
ask Uncle Floyd about it. He will sure know."
"I w-w-wonder if there are any more of them," stammered Pepper,
looking along the road. "Yes, here is another one."
"Is it like this?" asked Rand.
"It looks very similar," replied Pepper, still hunting about.
"Find any more?" called Donald.
"Not yet."
Nor were there any more found, although they looked long and
carefully up and down the road for some time.
"What is the difference between them?" questioned Pepper, when they
had finally given up the hunt and sat down by the side of the road
to compare the two coins.
"Why, instead of a ship this one shows, on the one side, a man in
a chest with a sword in one hand and a bag of money in the other,
and around the edge are the words, 'I take the responsibility.'
The other side has the wreck like the first one," concluded Rand
after he had examined them.
"It's a very curious thing," he continued, handing the one coin
back to Pepper.
"I don't see anything very curious about them," demurred Donald.
"I mean it is very curious how they got here," explained Rand.
"I don't see anything very curious about that, either," went on
Donald. "Why shouldn't they be here as well as anywhere?"
"I don't know, I am sure," laughed Rand, "only I don't see why they
should be here, or anywhere, for that matter."
"Oh, I don't know," replied Donald. "Somebody probably dropped them
as they were going along."
"Undoubtedly," agreed Rand. "I don't believe that they grew here.
But who dropped them and how did they happen along here?"
"Ask Jack," suggested Donald, "he'll make a whole story out of it."
"They certainly are not common," went on Rand, "and people don't
usually carry them in their pockets. I'd like to know the history
of these and how they came here, but I don't suppose I ever shall.
But, speaking of curious things, what do you suppose Monkey Rae
was doing with that horse and wagon?"
"Driving them," drawled Pepper. "What do you think he was doing
with them, using them for an aeroplane?"
"No," returned Rand, "I thought maybe he was using them to dredge
for clams. But, speaking of clams, which would you sooner do or go
a-fishing?"
"Go a-fishing!" cried Donald and Pepper, starting off on a run down
the hill to the boat-house.
"Well," began Pepper as soon as they were fairly inside the house,
"didn't I hear somebody say breakfast?" at the same time starting
to get out of the locker the various utensils that the boys kept
at the house to cook with on their fishing trips.
"Hold on there, Pepper," remonstrated Donald, as Pepper continued
to pull out one pan after another. "We don't need ail that stuff.
What do you think you are going to do, get up a banquet? If you are
going to use ail those pots and pans, son, you will have to wash
them by your lonesome."
"Huh!" replied Pepper, "there wouldn't be any novelty about that.
The dish-washing seems to gravitate my way anyhow."
"That's because you use so many more of them than the rest of us,"
explained Donald.
"Why, I don't use any more of them than you do," expostulated
Pepper. "Well, maybe you don't use any more," admitted Don with
a judicial air, "but you use them more."
Pepper was about to retort in kind when there was a quick step
outside the door and an alert-looking, brown-haired, brown-eyed
boy, with his cap perched upon the back of his head, dashed into
the room.
"Hello, fellows!" he cried, "I thought I wasn't going to get here
in time, but I see I struck it at the psychological moment. I am
as hungry as a bull pup."
"Hello, Jack!" responded Rand, "we began to think you weren't
coming. What's the latest in Creston?"
"Oh, there is something worth while to-day," replied Jack, drawing
a box up to the plank that served as a table. "Pass me some of
those biscuits, Pepper, if you don't mind sparing a few, so I can
eat while I talk."
"Better not try it, Jack," cautioned Rand, "for if you eat as
fast as you talk or talk as fast as you eat you will either starve
yourself or choke."
"All right," laughed Jack, "if that is the case I'll eat first
and talk afterwards," and this he would do, notwithstanding the
pleadings of the others, anxious to share in any exciting news.
CHAPTER III
TWO AND TWO
While the boys are finishing their breakfast it may be well to
introduce them to the reader. The four, who were known among their
acquaintances as the "inseparables," had been classmates for several
terms at School No. I, of Creston, from which they had graduated
the previous year and were now students of the Hilltop Academy,
where they were preparing for college.
Rand--Randolph in full, surname Peyton--who was slightly the eldest
of the four, was the nephew of Mr. Scott, president of the Creston
National Bank. He was a native of Virginia, having come to Creston
after the death of his father some two years before this time, with
his mother and sister. He was bright, but inclined to be indolent,
except when aroused, when his energy knew no limit. He was slow
in speech, having the soft Southern drawl with a tendency to slur
his r's, and was a natural leader among his companions, both in
their sports and their studies.
Donald Graeme, sometimes nicknamed Old Solomon, was the son of the
chief engineer of the Creston Paper Mills, and one of a considerable
family of boys and girls. He was of Scotch descent and inherited
many of the characteristics of his ancestry as well as many of their
superstitions. Something of the burr clung to his tongue, and he
was given to the occasional use of a Scotch word or phrase. He had
also the Scotch canniness and never committed himself by a positive
opinion. Although not as quick as Rand, he was more persistent and
usually carried out, to the end, anything that he entered upon.
Jack Blake was the oldest son of Mr. Blake, editor and publisher of
the Crest, the newspaper of the town. Brought up in the newspaper
atmosphere, Jack had early developed a nose for news and was the
best reporter, although unofficial, on the paper. He was always
on the lookout for items and always putting two and two together,
sometimes with most surprising results.
Lastly, Pepper Blake, Jack's younger brother, who was of a quicker,
more nervous, disposition than the others and given to stammering
when excited. Impetuous and quick-tempered, he was always getting
into difficulties, but always finding a way out. Romantic and
imaginative, but with a streak of hard horse-sense beneath.
"Well," observed Rand, when Jack at last rose from his box with a
sigh of satisfaction, "what is the exciting thing you have got to
tell us this morning? Whose barn is being painted now?"
"Judge Taylor's office was robbed last night," replied Jack
laconically.
"What's that!" cried Rand.
"Judge Taylor's office was robbed last night," repeated Jack,
enjoying the sensation his news had made.
"W-w-what!" stammered Pepper. "Who did it?"
"That's what we all want to know," answered Jack.
"What did they get?" asked Donald.
"How did they get in?" went on Pepper.
"One at a time, boys," put in Rand. "Come, Jack, tell us the whole
story."
"Well, all I know is, Officer Dugan found a window open this morning
and the place all upside down. The judge hadn't come down yet, so
they don't know what's missing. From the tracks around it looks as
if some boys were mixed up in it."
"That's queer," commented Rand. "I wonder who it could have been,
and what they were after?"
"Money, of course," said Pepper.
"I don't think so," returned Jack. "If it was money I think they
would have picked out a more likely place. I guess it must have
been papers, or something like that."
"Pooh!" criticized Donald, "what would anybody in their senses want
to steal papers for?"
"There are more unlikely things than that," replied Jack. "I have
read of such things."
"Pshaw!" retorted Donald, "that's nothing. I've read of robbers'
caves and all that sort of thing, but I've never seen any."
"Which proves there never were any," retorted Jack sarcastically.
"Have you got any dues, Sherlock?" asked Rand laughingly.
"Not yet," replied Jack seriously, "but I am looking for them. They
sometimes turn up in the most unexpected places."
"Huh!" sniffed Donald, "your turnips run mostly to tops."
While talking thus, the boys had been putting their supplies and
tackle into the boat which they had run out into the river.
"Which way do you want to go?" asked Rand when they were ready to
start.
"Up," said Pepper.
"Down," said Jack.
"What do you say, Don?" continued Rand. "Either way," replied
Donald. "Let them toss up for it."
Taking the coin he had picked up in the road from his pocket Rand
tossed it into the air. "What do you say, Jack?" he asked.
"Heads!" responded Jack.
"Tails it is," announced Rand as he picked it up. "Pepper wins.
Up, we go."
"What have you got there, Rand?" asked Jack, who had been eying
the coin Rand had tossed; "something new?"
"It's something that I found in the road this morning," replied
Rand, handing the coin over to Jack. "Pepper found one, too."
"Found it in the road!" cried Jack, instantly on the alert. "That's
serious. Tell me about it."
"There isn't much to tell," replied Rand. "Monkey Rae tried to run
us down this morning and we had a near-fight and after he had gone
we found them."
"Well?" questioned Jack.
"That's all," replied Rand.
"Now I wonder," mused Jack, when the story of the encounter with
Monkey Rae and his companions had been gone over in detail for his
benefit, "what Monkey Rae has to do with these things," jingling
the coins in his hand.
"Not as much as you or I have," announced Donald. "I can no see
any connection between the two."
"Of course you can't, old wisdom," returned Jack. "You lack
imagination, but I think it is there just the same. Whose horse
and wagon was it?"
"That's another strange part of it," replied Rand. "I never saw them
before. I was wondering whose they were, and where he got them."
"That's so," agreed Pepper. "I never thought of that; the truth
is, I was so busy with Monkey that I didn't look at them."
"Well," broke in Don, "if you ask my opinion I think it would
be more to the purpose if we went on our own business instead of
wasting time in speculating on what is no concern of ours."
"All right, Solomon-Donald," said Rand; "it sounds wise."
"Even if it is mostly sound," growled Jack.
CHAPTER IV
UP THE RIVER
"Are you all ready?" called Rand, who was stroke. "Pull!"
The boys bent to their work in earnest, and but few words were
spoken while they sent the boat along, mile after mile, until they
had gone some half dozen miles up the river.
"Phew!" exclaimed Pepper at length, "what is the matter with stopping
here?"
"Tired?" asked Donald.
"Well, I feel as if I had been doing something," replied Pepper,
resting on his oar.
"I suppose there isn't much choice in the matter," remarked Rand;
"one place is probably as good as another."
"Only some of them are better," put in Jack.
"And this is one of them," asserted Pepper, "and there is a nice
green place over there on the shore where we can put in and cook
some fish for dinner."
"If we have any to cook," suggested Donald. "You know you have
first to catch your fish before you can cook them."
"We'll do that, too, old Solomon the Second," returned Jack, who
was in the bow. "That's what we came out for. Shall I let go the
anchor, Rand?"
"All right, let it go," ordered Rand. "Easy now, if you don't want
to scare all the fish away. What are you trying to do?" as Jack gave
the anchor a swing and, failing to let go of the painter, promptly
went overboard with it.
"I just went down to see if the anchor got to the bottom," explained
Jack a moment later, as he scrambled over the side.
"We thought you were going to dive for the fish," said Pepper,
"like the hawks do."
"Maybe I will try that later," replied Jack, shaking himself like
a dog to get rid of some of the water. "Now, then, who is going to
get the first bite."
For the next few moments the boys were busy getting their tackle
in order and into the water, after which they settled down to await
results.
"I had almost forgotten," broke in Jack after a pause, as the fish
did not seem eager to be caught. "I met Colonel Snow this morning--"
"Indeed," said Rand sarcastically, "that's news."
"Now you needn't go off at half-cock," retorted Jack, "wait until
I get through."
"Well, what about it?" asked Donald.
"Why, he said--Hurrah, I've got a bite!" cried Jack, pulling in
his line.
"He did!" exclaimed Rand. "That was a queer thing for him to say."
"No, the colonel didn't say that," explained Jack, as he landed a
good-sized perch in the bottom of the boat, "there's one for luck.
That was a comment of my own. Wait until I put a fresh bait on and
I will tell you what he did say. He said--"
"Hurrah, I've got one!" interjected Pepper, pulling in his line
and landing another fish.
"Why, that's the same thing he didn't say before," commented Donald,
referring to the colonel.
"He said--" began Jack again, but the fish were now biting freely
and the boys were so busy pulling them in that, for a time, they
quite forgot the colonel and what it was that he said.
"If you haven't forgotten," began Donald, a little later, when there
came a lull in the biting, "I would like to know just what it was
that the colonel did say."
"Why, he said," resumed Jack, "that he wanted us to form a patrol."
"A patrol!" repeated Donald. "For what? Ain't there enough police?"
"This isn't a police patrol," laughed Jack, "this is a patrol in
the Boy Scouts. It's a company of from six to eight boys. Two or
more patrols form a troop under a scoutmaster who teaches them a
lot of things."
"What kind of things?" asked Pepper.
"All kinds of things about woodcraft and how to hunt and fish and
follow trails and camp out and--and--all the rest of it."
"That's a pretty comprehensive programme," said Rand. "We were
talking about that very thing this morning."
"Gee!" cried Pepper. "T-t-that would be fine. Let's do it--"
"There's quite a lot of things we have to do first," went on Jack.
"Maybe Rand can tell you more about that part than I can."
"For the first thing," said Rand, "we have to get at least six boys
to start with."
"That's two more than us," interjected Pepper; "that's easy."
"And form a tenderfoot patrol," went on Rand.
"Why tenderfoot?" put in Donald.
"Because we are all tenderfeet until we learn to be scouts," continued
Rand. "Then if we pass the examinations we become second-class
scouts."
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