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14. Jerry briefly related some of their travel adventures, at which
Tommy opened his eyes to their widest extent.
“Cracky! But you have had stunning times!” he exclaimed.
The meal having been finished, they began to think of getting
some sleep. Blankets were brought out, and rolling themselves up in
them the boys and the professor were soon in the land of nod.
It was nearly dawn when Jerry was suddenly awakened by the far
off baying of a dog. At first he could not imagine what the sound
was, and sat up to listen more intently. Then a long, mournful howl
was borne to him on the wind.
“That’s strange,” he muttered. “There are very few dogs about
here. I wonder what it is.”
At the same time Tommy Bell roused up, and he, too, heard the
sound.
“It’s the gang after us!” he exclaimed. “They have a lot of hounds
on the ranch! Hurry up! Let’s get out of this!”
“Hark!” exclaimed Jerry, raising his hand.
Then the boys heard, faint and far off, the sound of galloping
horses.
“They’re coming!” cried Jerry.
His cry awakened the others, who sat up bewildered and heavy
from sound sleep.
“Lively’s the word!” called Jerry. “They’re after us!”
No further explanation was needed, for all knew what Jerry
meant. There was a hasty piling of blankets into the auto; the stove
was packed up, and, while the travelers jumped into the car, Jerry
went in front to crank it up. The cheerful chug-chug told that the
machinery was in good working order, and then, the boy, leaping
into the steersman’s seat, threw in the low gear for the start.
15. As he did so Ned glanced back and saw, coming around the bend
of the forest road a score of horsemen and a pack of dogs.
“Speed her up, Jerry!” called Bob.
“I will!” was the exclamation, as Jerry leaned forward to throw in
the high gear. A mournful screeching of the engine was the only
response.
“I forgot! The high gear is broken!” the steersman cried. “We can
only use the intermediate, and that is not very fast!”
“It’s the best we can do, though!” said Bob. “We may get away
from them!”
On the intermediate cogs the auto made good speed, and, for a
while, distanced the gang, the members of which, with shouts of
rage, put their horses to their best effort.
16. CHAPTER IX
INTO THE CAVE
The sun began to peep up from beneath the eastern hills,
throwing a rosy light over the earth. The woods began to thin out,
and the sides of the “tunnel,” which had been dense, became more
open, so that glimpses of the country could be seen now and then.
The chase was now on in earnest. For some time, however, the
auto kept well in advance of the horsemen, for Jerry used all the
power possible on the differential gear. If the high speed one had
been in working order there would have been no question of the
outcome, but, for once, luck was against the boys.
Nearer and nearer came the gang on horseback. They got so close
that their shouts to halt could be plainly heard. But Jerry was not
going to give up. He gritted his teeth and gripped the wheel with a
firmer grasp.
“We seem to be slacking up,” observed Ned.
“That’s what we are,” spoke Jerry. “The auto is going back on us.”
The car did seem to be dragging, and there was no excuse for it in
the condition of the road, which was a fine level one.
“The car needs repairing,” said Jerry, “and the way I have to run it
isn’t the best thing in the world for it.”
“Do you think they’ll catch up to us?” asked Bob.
“I’m afraid so,” muttered Jerry. “We are going the limit now.”
The thunder of the horses sounded nearer and the shouts of the
pursuing gang came more plainly on the morning breeze. The auto
coughed and wheezed, seeming like a man who has run far and is
17. about to collapse. The explosions became less frequent, and finally
one of the cylinders ceased to work altogether, leaving only three in
commission.
“Now we’re in for it!” muttered Jerry, as, by a hasty glance back
he saw the men spurring their horses on.
“You’d better give up!” one of the gang shouted.
“Not yet, you scoundrels!” cried Jerry, as he advanced the
sparkling lever to the final notch. This seemed to be the last straw to
the auto engine, for with a dismal snort it stopped short.
“This settles it,” muttered Ned grimly. “We are done for.”
Fortunately, however, they were on a slight slope now, and the
car, with the impetus it had gathered, began to glide down the hill
under its own momentum.
But the horsemen were not one thousand feet in the rear and
were drawing nearer. There seemed to be no help at hand and there
was every indication that the boys would fall into the hands of their
desperate enemies.
“How much farther can we go?” asked Tommy suddenly.
“To the foot of the hill,” replied Jerry. “Why do you ask?”
“That’s far enough!” exclaimed Tommy. “I guess we can escape
them.”
“How?”
“Steer straight for that dead pine tree,” replied the young lad,
“and when you get almost to it, make a wide turn to the right.”
“What good will that do?”
“There’s a big cave right at the foot of the hill,” replied Tommy. “I
know for I passed it as I was tramping toward the ranch. It is large
enough to take in the auto, and maybe we can hold it against the
gang.”
18. “Hurrah!” shouted Jerry, as he shifted the wheel to conform with
Tommy’s directions. “We’ll beat ’em yet!”
Straight toward the dead pine Jerry aimed, and, as he came to the
bottom of the slope, he saw an opening in the bush-lined side of the
hill, that told him the cave was at hand. Into it, by a skillful turn, he
steered the auto, and the machine, running in about one hundred
feet from the opening came to a stop, just as the horsemen came
dashing up, much surprised by the sudden disappearance of those
they were pursuing.
“We’re safe!” whispered Ned.
“Not yet,” said Jerry. “We must arm ourselves,” and he began to
get out the rifles from the bottom of the car, and hand them around
to his companions.
Outside the cavern, which was a natural one in the rocky side of
the hill, there came confused shouts.
“Where did they go?” they heard a voice ask.
“Must have gone over some ledge and been killed,” was the reply.
“Then that settles it,” said the first one. “That’s just our bad luck!”
Then came a curious cry, and, by it, the boys knew their hiding
place was discovered.
“Here are the tracks of the wheels!” the travelers heard some one
shout. “They turned off somewhere about here.”
“Then they’re in that cave,” was the rejoinder.
“Dismount!” came a sharp order.
The boys could hear the men getting off their horses, and the
animals being led away.
“Get your carbines ready!” was the next command.
“It’s time for us to act!” whispered Jerry. “We must each one take
a gun, and stand at the mouth of the cave. We’ll warn them not to
19. enter. If they persist we will have to fire, but we must try not to hurt
any one mortally. Aim at their legs!”
In the half darkness of the cavern the boys and the professor each
took a rifle and crept to the mouth of the opening. No sooner had
they reached it than they heard the tramp of feet, and shadows told
them the bad men were advancing.
“Halt!” cried Jerry, who had naturally assumed command.
“Who are you?” asked the leader of the gang.
“Never mind who we are,” replied Jerry. “We are in possession of
this cave, and we warn you not to come in!”
“Big words for a kid!” sneered the leader.
“You’ll find we can back them up,” spoke Jerry. Then, in lower
tones, he bade his comrades stand in readiness.
There was a consultation in whispers among the members of the
gang, and then, seeming to feel that they had nothing to fear, they
made a rush.
“Fire!” cried Jerry.
Remembering his instructions, the boys and the professor aimed
low. To the reports of the rifles there succeeded howls of pain.
Several of the gang shot back, but, as it was dark in the cave they
could not see to aim, and they did no damage.
“Give them another volley!” yelled Jerry.
Again the rifles spoke, and this time, to the chorus of howls there
was added a command from the leader to retreat, and the men
rushed from the cave, which was filled with smoke.
“Are—are any of them killed?” asked Tommy.
“I don’t believe so,” replied Jerry. “We fired too low to do much
damage. I only wanted to let them know we were ready for them.”
Waiting several minutes to see if there would be any further
attack, Jerry cautiously advanced to the mouth of the cavern. In the
20. semi-light he saw several blood stains, but the absence of any
bodies told him the battle had not resulted fatally, for which he was
thankful. Though the men were desperate characters, who, perhaps,
would not stop at murder, the boy did not want the responsibility of
killing any of them.
“They seem to have retreated,” Jerry reported when he joined the
others. “But I don’t suppose they have gone for good. This probably
will only make them more anxious to get Tommy away from us, for it
is him they are after.”
“Do you think they want me?” asked the younger lad.
“I am pretty sure, after what you have told us about the mine,
that they would give a good deal to get you,” replied Jerry. “Perhaps
your signature may be as good as that of your father’s in case—in
case—” and Jerry stopped suddenly.
“You mean in case dad is dead?” asked Tommy quietly.
“Yes,” answered Jerry.
“I don’t believe my father is dead,” spoke the boy bravely.
“Somehow I feel that he is alive, and that I will find him. But if the
gang is after me, it is not right for you all to be in danger on my
account. Give me up to them, I’m not afraid—that is, I’ll try not to
be. Let me go out and surrender, and perhaps they’ll go away.”
“I’d like to see myself!” exclaimed Jerry. “You don’t stir out of this
cave, Tommy Bell, until we go! I’m not afraid of that gang. We’ve
been in tighter places than this and gotten out; haven’t we, fellows?”
“You bet!” echoed Bob and Ned.
“Then give me a gun and let me help fight,” begged Tommy.
“Can you shoot?” asked Jerry.
“My father taught me,” was all Tommy said, and Jerry gave him a
rifle, at which Tommy’s eyes sparkled.
21. A cautious glance from the mouth of the cave showed that the
gang had withdrawn some distance away. But that they had no
notion of giving up the fight was evidenced by the fact that they
were constructing a camp so as to command the entrance to the
cavern.
“I guess they’re going to try and starve us out,” remarked the
professor. “Lucky we have plenty of provisions and ammunition on
hand for a siege.”
“Well, I guess we’re just as well off here as anywhere,” observed
Jerry. “We’d have to lay up a few days at any rate, to fix the
machine, and it might as well be in a good roomy cave, where the
rain can’t wet us.”
The boys waited an hour before laying aside their arms. Then, as
the gang showed no signs of renewing the attack, they proceeded to
make themselves more comfortable.
“Might as well get ready to camp out,” said Ned. “I’ll set up the
stove, and we’ll have breakfast, though it is a little late.”
So while he set up the sheet iron apparatus, Jerry instructed Bob
to stand guard at the mouth of the cavern, and to give instant notice
of any activity on the part of the enemy.
“But what will we do about eating breakfast?” asked Bob in a
sorrowful voice.
“Don’t worry about that, ‘Chunky,’” said Jerry. “I’ll relieve you, or
some one will, in time to get a meal. In the meantime keep a good
watch.”
Then Jerry went back to help Ned, and, at the same time, make
ready to repair the machine.
22. CHAPTER X
ATTACKED BY A COUGAR
“I say, Jerry,” called Ned, “we’re in a sort of a pickle.”
“How’s that?”
“Why, I started to make coffee and I got along all right until I
came to the water.”
“Well?”
“No, it’s not at all well. In fact we ought to have a well here.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean there’s no water in the cave!”
“Great Scott! Is that so?” exclaimed Jerry. “I never thought of
such a thing. Are you sure there’s not a spring away in the rear?”
“The professor and I made a good search,” replied the temporary
cook. “The cave comes to an end about three hundred feet back,
and there’s not a sign of water.”
For a few seconds Jerry was silent. Then he gave an exclamation.
“I have it!” he cried. “We can use the emergency water supply on
the auto. It is not very fresh, but it will do for coffee.”
“The very thing!” ejaculated Ned.
It was fortunate that the auto carried an extra tank of water, as
well as one of gasolene. They had often found it useful in getting a
supply of the fluid for the radiator in places far from a supply, and
the reserve tank had been built with that purpose in view. It held
about ten gallons. Drawing on this Ned had a supply for his coffee
23. which was soon boiling merrily on the stove, while some canned
chicken and bacon were put on to fry.
“I say, is anybody going to relieve me?” called Bob from his post
on guard.
He smelled the breakfast in preparation, and it added to his
hunger.
“I’ll go,” volunteered the professor. “I’m in no hurry to eat, and
perhaps I may pick up a specimen or two. This cave ought to be a
good place for them.”
Accordingly he took Bob’s place, and soon the four boys were
eating ravenously, and with as good appetites as if a band of bad
men was not outside, ready to attack them at the first opportunity.
“Now to fix the machine,” said Jerry as he rose from the ground
that served as a table. “Light all the lamps, Ned, and then you and
Bob come and help me. Tommy and the professor can take turns
standing guard.”
It was no easy matter to take the automobile engine apart, and
substitute a new gear for the broken one. It was also found
necessary to insert new spark plugs, which had become covered
with a coating of carbon; and the cylinders also needed cleaning,
while the pistons had to be adjusted.
The afternoon was spent in working at the auto, and by night
such good progress had been made that Jerry said by the next
evening it would be in shape to start.
“That is if the gang let’s us,” spoke Ned.
“We’ll make a dash for it,” replied Jerry. “We needn’t fear them
with the car in good order, for we can leave them behind in less than
half an hour. We’ll try to escape to-morrow about midnight.”
“In the meanwhile let’s eat,” suggested Bob, and his cry brought
forth the usual chaffing about “Chunky’s” appetite.
24. Ned started to get supper. He went to the tank of the auto to draw
some water for the tea, when he gave a cry of surprise.
“What’s the trouble?” called Jerry.
“The water’s gone!” exclaimed Ned. “That’s a leak in the tank!”
They all rushed to the car. There, on the ground under the reserve
tank was a muddy spot, showing where the precious fluid had
dripped away. A quick examination showed there was a small hole in
the reservoir.
“Now we are up against it,” murmured Bob.
“Not quite yet,” said Jerry.
“How can we get water without being shot?” asked Ned.
“There is quite a bit left in the pipe coils of the radiator,” answered
Jerry. “It will be pretty poor stuff to drink I guess, but it’s better than
nothing.”
There was considerable of the fluid in the big brass radiator on the
front of the car, and, though it was stale, and had been heated many
times, as it circulated about the cylinders, still, it was better than
none. Made into tea, which was served as a change from coffee, it
did not taste so very bad.
But the situation was grave. With only water enough on hand to
last about half a day, the plight of the travelers was a critical one.
“We’ll have to have water for the car, as well as ourselves,” spoke
Ned. “We can’t run the machine without water.”
“That’s so,” admitted Jerry dubiously. “Something will have to be
done.”
After the evening meal Jerry resumed his labors on the car,
working at double speed, in which he was assisted by Ned and Bob.
The professor and Tommy took turns watching at the cavern’s
mouth.
25. But there seemed to be no need of this, as the men showed no
inclination to make a second attack. They appeared to know that the
boys were caught in a trap; a trap that contained no water. So they
evidently felt sure of success sooner or later, and that without the
danger of being wounded.
Jerry and his comrades worked to such advantage that shortly
after midnight the auto was in shape to be used, and with the new
high gear wheel in place. The car was given a good oiling, and was
repacked in readiness for a quick start.
“Now if we only had water,” sighed Jerry, “we could slip out, and, I
believe get away.”
But he knew it was useless to proceed without at least a full
radiator. The extra tank, which had been repaired, could be filled
later. The radiator coils were empty however. What had not been
used for cooking had been made up into weak tea, as it was not
considered healthful to drink the water as it came from the pipes.
“We’ve got to do something,” said Jerry decidedly. “If we stay here
much longer we’ll die of thirst. If we could only make a dash and get
some water we could manage. Two pails full would do.”
“Let me go after them,” exclaimed Tommy. “I’m not afraid. I can
run fast. Maybe I can get out there by the brook, get the water and
come back before any of them see me.”
“No you couldn’t,” spoke Jerry, pointing to where one of the men,
as sentry, could be seen, from the mouth of the cave, walking up
and down near the camp fire. “If any one goes I will, and I think I’d
better start.”
Bob and Ned both offered to make the dangerous attempt, and
the professor insisted that he be allowed to try, as he knew how to
move over ground very silently. But Jerry was firm in his
determination.
“I’m going to make the try about two o’clock,” he said. “They’ll be
sounder asleep then.”
26. As he was very tired he stretched out in some blankets until it
would be time to make the try. He fell asleep soon, and the others
moved away, talking in whispers lest they disturb him.
Almost exactly at the appointed hour Jerry awakened. He sat up,
and, slipping a pair of Indian moccasins over his shoes, to enable
him to move as silently as possible, he cautiously approached the
mouth of the cavern, carrying two water pails with him.
The moon had gone down and it was quite dark, which was
favorable to Jerry’s plans. As he got to the entrance of the cavern
the boy looked toward the gang’s camp. There seemed to be no sign
of life, and Jerry thought perhaps the sentry had fallen asleep.
As silent as a cat the lad made his way toward the stream, which
he could hear gurgling and splashing over the stones. His throat was
dry, for the last of the cold tea had been drunk, and his exertions
had made him very thirsty. As he heard the sound of the brook he
felt a fierce desire for water, so strong was it that he felt he would
brave anything to get it.
Foot by foot he advanced, crouching down as low as he could. He
was beginning to feel that he would be successful, and not be
detected. He could see the sparkle of the water about three hundred
feet away, and his parched mouth and throat seemed to be as dry as
leather. He could hardly swallow.
On and on he went. Now he was about two hundred feet away
and he was getting ready to make a dash for the brook.
Suddenly he heard a clicking sound, and knew it was a rifle being
cocked. Next there rang out on the night air the command:
“Halt or I’ll fire!”
Poor Jerry was detected! He came to a stop, sick at heart at the
failure of his plan.
For a moment there was no other sound. The boy could not see
who had discovered him, though he instinctively felt the eyes of the
man on him. Suddenly there was a shaking in the tree somewhat to
27. Jerry’s left, and about one hundred feet away. Then came a rustle of
the leaves on the ground and the boy made out the figure of a man,
dimly, standing with rifle aimed straight at him.
“Throw up your hands!” was the next order, and, letting the pails
fall to the ground, Jerry obeyed.
Then, all at once, there burst out on the air a most terrifying
sound. It was a blood-curdling yell, a screech as if from some one in
mortal agony. Jerry felt the cold chills go down his back.
The next instant there was a crashing sound, and, from the tree
under which the man stood who had aimed at the boy a dark body
shot downward.
The screech of the cougar, for such it was, mingled with the
terrific yells of the sentry. Jerry dimly saw a confused tangle of man
and beast. He heard the man shout for help. He heard his rifle go
off, and then came sounds that told that the camp had been
aroused.
The attack of the cougar had come just in time. Jerry, taking
advantage of the diversion, grabbed up his pails, and running to the
brook filled them with water. Then, as fast as he could go, he ran
toward the cave.
28. CHAPTER XI
A RUNAWAY AUTO
Behind the boys sounded the yells and shouts of the men in camp,
mingled with rifle shots and the screeching of several of the cougars,
for, it developed, a band of three, grown desperate by hunger, had
made an attack.
“Are you hurt, Jerry?” cried Bob and Ned, as, with his pails of
water, the boy staggered into the cave.
“Not a bit, but I had a close shave,” was the answer. “But we must
be quick! Here! Help fill the radiator with the water.”
“Can’t we drink any?” asked Bob who, like the others, was very
thirsty.
“Not a drop,” said Jerry firmly. “We need every bit for the
automobile. Without it we can’t get away from here, and now is the
only chance we may have to escape. We can drink later.”
While Jerry and Ned filled the radiator the other boys and the
professor made ready for the escape. Everything was packed up and
placed in the car, which, as soon as the coil was filled, would be
ready to start and dash from the cave.
“I’m afraid this is not going to be water enough,” spoke Jerry as
the second of the pails was emptied into the radiator.
“Can’t I make a dash for some more? There seems to be
excitement enough in the camp to keep them from watching me,”
said Ned. “I’m going to try.”
There was considerable activity among the ranch men. The
cougars, though wounded, seemed to have temporarily lost all fear
29. and made attack after attack on the men, who had to fire several
volleys from their rifles.
“Go ahead,” said Jerry. “I’ll start the engine slowly.”
Grabbing up the pails Ned walked from the cave.
“I’m going to help, also,” said Tommy.
“No, you stay here,” commanded Jerry. “Bob can go if he wants
to.”
Bob joined Ned. They ran to the stream and had filled the pails
when, just as they started on the way back, the wounded cougars,
driven from the camp, came dashing after the boys.
“Now we’re in for it!” exclaimed Ned. “Run, Bob!”
And run they did, as they had never run before, and left the
beasts behind.
“Have you the water?” asked Jerry eagerly as the boys came in.
“We have!” exclaimed Bob. “And hard enough work we had getting
it.”
“Good!”
Jerry hurriedly poured most of it into the radiator, though every
one in the cave looked at the fluid with longing eyes.
“I must get a drink soon, or I shall go half crazy!” said the
professor suddenly. “I never was so thirsty in my life.”
“I’m saving just a little bit for each of us,” spoke Jerry. “But it is a
very small quantity, and will only serve to wet our mouths. If all goes
well we shall soon have plenty.”
He distributed about a pint of the water among his companions,
and though each one got only a little it brought welcome relief.
“Now we’re ready to skip out!” announced Jerry as he screwed the
cap on the radiator tank, and increased the speed of the engine.
30. “But first we had better take a look outside to see if any of that gang
are in sight.”
The professor, who had good eyes, went to the mouth of the cave,
and, coming back, reported that he could see a dark mass moving
on the further bank of the stream.
“They have evidently gotten over their scare about the cougars,”
Mr. Snodgrass said, “and are waiting to bag us. What are we going
to do?”
“There’s only one thing to do,” replied Jerry.
“And that is what?”
“We must make a dash for it. The road is fairly good, and I guess
we can speed up enough to get out of the range of their bullets in a
short time. They can’t be very good shots or they would have killed
the three cougars, with all the bullets they fired.”
So it was decided. They all took their places in the car, and Jerry,
who, as if by mutual consent, assumed the place of steersman,
leaned forward to throw in the gear clutches.
“Here we go!” he cried. “Look out everybody!”
Slowly at first, but gathering speed, the auto moved out of the
cave. The lamps lighted up the path, and, though the boys realized
that the lanterns disclosed their position to their enemies, they had
to use them for their own safety. It was too dark to do without
them.
A few seconds later and the car emerged from the cavern. As it
shot out there came a chorus of angry cries from the camp of the
ranchmen, and several shots were fired, though none of them came
close enough to be uncomfortable.
“Here we go!” cried Jerry again, as he increased the speed, and
the auto fairly leaped forward. It swayed from side to side, and
struck several ruts, so that the occupants were tossed about.
31. But the main thing was that they went ahead, and away from their
enemies. Jerry, peering as best he could into the darkness ahead,
made a course for the stream, intending to go close to it, and then
run along the bank, or near it, as he had noted in the afternoon that
there was a fairly good road there.
Gradually the shouts of the men, and the firing of their guns died
away, and the travelers began to breathe more freely. They had
made their escape, and, for the present, were safe.
“Oh do let’s stop and get a drink!” pleaded Bob.
“Not yet!” exclaimed Jerry. “Five minutes more will not kill you,
and it may save all our lives,” for he did not want to slack up while
there was any danger of the ranchmen coming after them.
The five minutes seemed like an hour to Bob, and the others, too,
were impatient. But at last Jerry shut off the power and the machine
came to a halt not far from the creek. Out scrambled the boys and
the professor, and then, in spite of the danger of drinking snakes
and lizards in the darkness, they all made for the stream, where they
quenched their thirst from small collapsable cups which each one
had been holding in readiness for just that chance.
“That’s better than an ice cream soda!” exclaimed Ned.
“You bet!” agreed Bob heartily. “I never tasted such fine water.”
“Very good!” said the professor.
“I guess we can stop long enough to lay in a supply now,”
remarked Jerry. “We can start off again in five minutes, and in that
time they can not catch up to us.”
So the radiator was filled to the top, and the auxiliary tank
likewise, while the boys indulged freely in the liquid, thinking,
perhaps, they might have some of the characteristics of the camel,
and could drink enough at one time to last a week or more.
Then they started forward again, and the auto soon carried them
beyond the possibility of capture that night. They camped out in the
32. open, and, in spite of their rather exciting adventures they slept
soundly, awaking as the sun rose.
Ned was given a chance to run the machine, and he took the front
seat with Tommy, who was delighted to be there for the first time.
They had not been going long before they found the land was rising.
“We’re coming into the mountains now,” said Jerry.
Up a long hill, with a gradual assent, puffed the auto. On either
side were broad fields where tall Pampas grass was growing, amid
which thousands of grasshoppers, or some similar insect, were
singing.
“Better be sure your brake is in good working order,” suggested
Jerry, as they came to the steep descent on the other side. “We
don’t want any more accidents.”
Ned tried the ordinary brake. There was a clicking sound, followed
by a snapping one.
“Brake’s busted!” exclaimed Jerry. “Try the emergency!”
Ned did so. That, too, gave out only a faint screech, and did not
grip the axle as it should.
“Look out now!” yelled Jerry. “We’re in for it!”
An instant later the auto began to move forward at a rapid pace.
All Ned’s efforts to check it were in vain.
“We’re running away!” cried frightened Tommy. “I wish I’d stayed
in back!”
“Keep to the middle of the road!” Jerry cried above the noise of
the auto rushing down the steep hill. At the bottom the road took a
sharp turn, and the hearts of all beat rapidly with fear as they
beheld it.
33. CHAPTER XII
TOMMY FINDS A FRIEND
So rapidly did the machine shoot down the descent that it almost
seemed the curved road was rushing to meet the travelers. Again
and again Ned tried the brakes, but without avail. He had shut off
the power at the first indication that something was wrong.
“We can never make that turn!” exclaimed Bob.
“I’m afraid not,” agreed Jerry.
They were all clinging to the sides of the car, while Ned gripped
the steering wheel with a desperate hold.
“Look out for the turn!” cried the professor as they came to the
sharp curve.
But, to the surprise of all, Ned, instead of shifting the wheel in at
least an attempt to swing around the half circle kept straight on the
course. The boy had resolved on another plan.
Directly in front of him, and to the left of the road was a big field
of tall waving Pampas grass, the plumes nodding eight feet above
the ground. It was shut off from the thoroughfare by a frail wooden
fence.
“I’m going to steer into the grass!” cried Ned. “It’s our only
chance!”
The next instant there was a splintering sound as the auto crashed
through the fence, which offered no more resistance, because of the
great speed, than a paper hoop does to a circus performer. Then it
seemed to the travelers as though they had been plunged into a
tossing, waving sea of grass.
34. The tall Pampas plumes and the stems wrapped themselves about
the boys and the professor, almost choking them by the pollen that
was shaken off. The feathery-like tops tickled them in the eyes, nose
and mouth as, carried by the runaway auto, they were dashed
through them.
But the grass had just the effect Ned had intended and hoped for.
It clogged the wheels of the machine, and though soft, offered so
much resistance that the machine soon began to slow down, as does
a locomotive when it runs into a snow drift.
After plowing through the field for about two hundred feet the car
came to a final stop, with a little jolt.
“Santa Maria! Caramba!” yelled a voice and then followed such a
string of Spanish that the boys thought they had run down a whole
camp of Mexican herders.
“Did we hit any one?” asked Jerry, peering forward as well as he
could through the tall grass.
“Caramba! Hit any one! The Americano pirates have killed Don
Elvardo!” exclaimed the unseen one. “You have broken—!” and then
followed such a confusion of words that the boys could not
understand.
“Have we broken your leg?” asked Jerry, speaking in Spanish this
time.
“Santa Maria! No! You have broken the cigarette I just rolled!” and
with that the grass parted in front of the auto, and a little Mexican,
wearing a suit profusely trimmed with silver braid, showed himself.
The boys felt like laughing as they beheld the woe-begone face of
Don Elvardo. In his hand he held the remains of a cigarette.
“Behold!” he went on tragically. “I am peacefully walking in my
field, looking over my crop of Pampas, when I feel a desire to
smoke. I sit me down and roll a cigarette. I am about to light it,
when—Santa Maria! There is a rushing sound of ten thousand imps
of darkness. My grass is mowed down as if by a sickle in the hands
35. of a giant. I turn in fear! I see something coming! I can not tell what
it is, for the tall grass hides it! I turn to flee! The infernal thing keeps
after me! Presto! Caramba! It hits me so—”
Don Elvardo illustrated by slapping himself vigorously on the thigh.
“Then I fall! I am crushed! I am killed! I die in pain and fear! I
arise! Behold, senor Americanos, my cigarette is broken!”
“We’re very sorry, of course,” said Jerry politely. “But you see our
auto ran away on the hill, and as the brakes would not work, the
only thing to save our lives was to steer into this field. We did not
know you were here, or we would have sent around to your house
to ask permission to enter,” added the lad sarcastically.
“But I am here!” snapped the Mexican.
“So we see,” admitted Jerry. “We are willing to pay for any
damage we have done.”
The Mexican’s eyes sparkled, and he rubbed his hands as if in
anticipation.
“That alters the case,” said Don Elvardo. “The Americano senors
are welcome ten thousand times to my field. I bid you welcome. I
salute you. Pay. Oh, yes! It is but right that you should pay!” Again
he rubbed his hands together.
“About what would you say it was worth?” asked Ned.
“I am no miser,” replied the Mexican. “I do not wish to insult my
friends the Americanos. I will only charge them for the damage to
the grass. The broken fence is of no moment. Pay me one hundred
dollars and I will say no more about the affair.”
“He’s a robber!” said Jerry in a low voice. “We haven’t done five
dollars’ damage to his crop and the fence combined.”
“I guess he will whistle for his one hundred dollars,” said Ned.
Don Elvardo heard him.
36. “So!” he exclaimed. “You will not pay me one little hundred dollars
for the damage. Caramba! Then it is I who shall at once lodge a
complaint with the authorities. We will see if there is a law in the
land, or if crazy Americanos can spoil a poor man’s crop and pay
nothing. We shall see!”
“Offer him ten dollars,” suggested Bob. The boys consulted
together a minute or two. They wanted to be fair, but they did not
care to be robbed. The professor had taken no part in the
discussion. He seemed to be intently examining the tall grass on
either side of the machine.
Suddenly the scientist stepped from the side of the car, and rapidly
made his way to the front, where Don Elvardo stood. Mr. Snodgrass
gazed intently at the Mexican. Then he gave a leap toward the Don,
exclaiming as he did so:
“There it is! Right on your hat! Don’t move an inch or it will jump
away! I have it now! This is indeed a lucky day! Just a second and
I’ll have it!”
With that the professor made a leap toward the Mexican with
outstretched hands.
“Santa Maria! Diavolo?” screamed Don Elvardo as he saw the
scientist coming for him. “Caramba! It is to murder me that you
come!”
Then, calling for help at the top of his voice, the Mexican turned
and fled in terror, his course being marked through the tall grass by
the wave-like motion he imparted to the plumes in his haste.
“Why—why what in the world ails him?” asked Mr. Snodgrass.
“He probably thought you were going to choke him to death,” said
Jerry with a laugh. “In fact your actions were not so very far from
giving that idea.”
“Why bless my soul!” ejaculated the professor. “All I wanted was
to get a fine specimen of a blue grasshopper from his big hat, where
the insect had alighted. It was worth about forty dollars.”
37. “I saw some just as good in a city once for twenty dollars,” put in
Tommy, “and they had more silver braid on.”
“What! A grasshopper with silver braid on?” cried the scientist.
“I thought you said his hat was worth forty dollars,” went on
Tommy, somewhat embarrassed.
“I was speaking of the blue grasshopper,” explained Mr. Snodgrass.
“My, I am sorry to have missed that one.”
“But you did a good service in scaring this Mexican away, as you
did the chap with the ox cart,” spoke Ned. “He might have made
trouble for us.”
“And we had better get out of here while we have the chance,”
said Jerry. “He may come back any minute.”
Accordingly the auto was turned around, and run over the same
course by which it had entered the field. Otherwise it would have
been almost impossible to have advanced, so thick was the grass.
The road regained, the machine was sent along it at good speed, for
fear Don Elvardo or some of his friends might appear.
“We had better stop and fix the brakes,” suggested Ned, after an
hour’s run.
“And get dinner at the same time,” put in Bob. “We’ll kill two
stones with the same automobile, as the poem says.”
“I guess you’re a little twisted,” remarked Ned, “but your
intentions are good.”
A halt was made under a big tree, near a little stream, and soon a
good fire was built and dinner was being cooked.
It was found that some nuts had become loose on the brakes, and
this trouble Jerry soon remedied. After the meal they sat about and
talked a while.
“We’ll soon be in New Mexico,” remarked Jerry, consulting a small
map.
38. “Will we?” asked Tommy. “I’m so glad.”
“Why?”
“Because there’s a man who was once a friend of my father at a
place called Las Cruces. It’s near the Rio Grande river. If we could go
there I know Mr. Douglass would take care of me.”
“Then we’ll go there,” said Jerry. “It will be right on our route.”
They all agreed this would be a good plan. That night the travelers
stopped in a small village where they had good beds and meals.
They resumed the journey next day, and for several days thereafter
met with no mishaps as they speeded toward Las Cruces. They had
left the lowlands and were well up among the hills by this time.
One day, just at dusk, they rolled into Las Cruces and, after a little
inquiry found Mr. Douglass, who was very glad to see Tommy.
“I will be glad to take care of him for the present,” he said.
39. CHAPTER XIII
THE COLORED MAN’S GHOST
The travelers found the town where Tommy’s friend lived such a
pleasant place that they spent several days there. It was a thriving
place, and the auto was a source of endless wonder to most of the
inhabitants, who had never seen one.
Had the boys wished they could have made considerable money
taking parties out in the car for short trips, but they knew they had a
long journey before them and they wished to save the machine all
they could. It needed some repairs which were made by the local
blacksmith, and then the travelers were ready to move forward
again.
“I don’t know how to thank you for all you did for me,” said
Tommy, as the boys were leaving. “You saved my life. Maybe I will
have a chance to do you a good turn some day. If I have, you can
bet I’ll do it.”
“We know you will, Tommy,” said Jerry. “Well, good-by. I hope we
see you again.”
“Same here!” exclaimed Bob and Ned.
They did not know how soon they were to meet their friend again,
nor in what a peculiar manner he was able to aid them in return for
what they had done for him.
For several days the auto skimmed along through a somewhat
lonely country. The roads were not very good and a number of times
progress was so slow that only a few miles were made between
sunrise and sunset. Now and then the travelers would come to a
lonely cabin, where they could replenish their food supply or get a
40. night’s lodging. But, in the main, they had to depend on their own
resources.
Occasionally they would reach a little settlement, where their
arrival never failed to produce as much excitement as a fire and
circus combined. Every day brought them nearer their gold mine,
concerning which they were very anxious, as they had heard nothing
further from Jim Nestor.
“The mine may have been taken away from him for all we know,”
chafed Jerry as he fretted at the delay caused by bad roads.
“We’ll hope for the best,” said Ned. “No use crossing a bridge until
you come to it.”
The travelers were well up among the lower mountains now,
though compared with the heights they had still to scale the range
was one of mere hills. One evening just at dusk, after a particularly
hard day of travel, during which the auto had broken down several
times, necessitating minor repairs, the Motor Boys came to a place
where two roads divided.
“I wonder which we had better take?” asked Bob, who was at the
wheel.
“The right,” said Jerry.
“The left,” advised Ned.
“Toss up a cent,” suggested the professor. “Make it heads right
and tails left.”
They did so. The coin came down heads up, and Bob turned the
machine to the right. It had not proceeded far on this road when,
about a mile ahead, the travelers saw a couple of log cabins.
“Well, there’s shelter for to-night, at all events,” Jerry remarked,
“and, I hope, supper as well. I’m getting a little tired of bacon and
coffee.”
They found one of the cabins occupied by a negro, his wife, and
seven children, the oldest a boy of sixteen and the youngest a little
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