The Call of the Beaver Patrol

V >> V. T. Sherman >> The Call of the Beaver Patrol

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"Then, of course, Jamison will want us arrested for piracy?" asked Tommy
tentatively. "I presume that's what it means."

"Well," Boswell replied, "when you take another man's boat and leave him
afloat in a dinghy, you must expect something to come of it besides
kisses. Of course you'll be arrested!"

Frank gave a long, low whistle of dismay.

"Then," he said, "we'll have to go and notify the surgeon of what's
coming off and get him to go on to the cabin alone."

"Yes," Tommy added, "and we can tell him to inform the boys what's going
on here. We may have to remain here for several days if we are actually
arrested."

"But how about the code duplicate?" asked Sam.

"I presume that will have to remain with us unless it comes before the
doctor leaves for the cabin," Tommy answered.

"Look here," Sam said, "you two boys are the fellows Jamison wants. He
won't put up much of a search for me. You go back to the wireless
station and tell the operator to deliver the code duplicate to me and
I'll see that it gets to the cabin."

"It's all right of you to make the offer," Tommy replied, "but there's
no one at the camp that can read it."

"Then why can't Frank slip away and get the message to camp?" inquired
Sam.

"Will certainly ought to have it," suggested Tommy.

"I'll tell you what we'd better do," Frank advised. "We'd better make a
rush for the Cordova dock before that tug gets in. Then we can arrange
with the doctor to go on to the cabin by any conveyance he can secure
while we take a sneak into the wilderness and get back when we can and
as we can. That's better than being arrested."

"I'm for it!" declared Sam. "But how will you obtain possession of the
wireless when it comes if you duck away in advance of the arrival of the
tug? The message won't be here as soon as the tug is."

The boys pondered over this proposition for a moment, and then Frank
came to the front with another suggestion.

"I'll go back to the wireless station," he said, "and arrange for the
operator to leave the message in some secret hiding place where we can
get it after nightfall."

"I don't like this fugitive-from-justice business!" exclaimed Tommy.

"I don't either," replied Frank, "but it's a long ways better than lying
in some dirty old jail. We can arrange here with father's agent to find
out what sort of a case they've got against us, and pick out a good
lawyer to represent us, so we'll be all ready to defend ourselves when
the arrest is finally made."

"Your father has an agent here?" asked Tommy, regarding Frank
suspiciously. "What business is he in?"

"Oh, quit it!" replied Frank. "We haven't any time to talk about private
affairs. What we've got to do right now is to find out how we're going
to escape arrest at this time. I'll go and make the arrangement with the
operator, and we'll all make the arrangements with the doctor, and then
we three boys will start across country to the little old log cabin in
the lane!"

"There ain't no lane there!" grinned Tommy.

"There may be some time, when that part of the country becomes a suburb
of Cordova!" laughed Frank. "But I reckon I'd better be getting back to
the wireless office. That tug's coming in hand over hand!"

The boy was back from the office inside of ten minutes, but by that time
the tug was so near that the motor boat was obliged to shoot ahead at
full speed in order to keep clear of her. The boys saw Jamison standing
by the captain urging him to greater efforts in the speed direction, and
saw him shake a huge, ham-like fist in their direction as the motor boat
left the tug behind.

"I'll tell you why I want to leave the case in the hands of a lawyer
here," Frank said, as the boat shot toward the Cordova dock, "Jamison
doesn't want to prosecute us boys for piracy. He's interested in some
way in this case you are here to handle, and he wants to keep us under
lock and key until something he wants done can be accomplished."

"I'm sure that's right!" Tommy answered.

"I don't know much about this thumb-print case," Frank went on, "but I
believe that this man Jamison is trying to make sure that you boys don't
get hold of the drawings you are looking for. Of course I have no proof,
but I'm sure that, in the long run, you'll find that I'm right?"

The motor boat made such good time in the run for the Cordova dock that
the tug was nearly out of sight when the boys climbed into the main
street of the town.

"Now," Tommy said, as they all stood together at the principal business
place of the town, "Frank can go and make sure that the doctor will
start for the cabin immediately, and Sam and I will go and buy
provisions for the cross country trip. We may be two or three days in
making it, and we'll surely want to eat on the way."

"But we can't get the wireless until night!" urged Frank. "He's going to
bring it to Cordova tonight and leave it in the old blacksmith shop just
back of the line of store buildings."

"Well, we can get all ready to go," Tommy urged. "We don't want to take
any chances on being pinched just as we get ready to leave!"

"We'll meet at the old shop in half an hour," Frank suggested, "and then
we can make all the plans necessary."

Tommy noticed that afternoon that a strange fatality seemed to accompany
all of Jamison's efforts to cause the arrest of the boys. First, there
was no Federal officer in the town. Next, there was no judicial or
ministerial officer before whom a complaint of piracy could be made.
Next, the motor boat owner and his two outlaws accosted Boswell on the
street and made to him insulting remarks concerning his championship of
the boys.

Following this there was a general mixup, in which Boswell was not
permitted to fight alone, and the result was that Jamison and his two
sailors were badly beaten up. However, while the lads knew exactly what
was taking place, and understood the hostility of the town toward
Jamison, they understood, too, that it would be the duty of almost any
officer to arrest them if they should make their appearance on the
public street.

Tommy wondered vaguely at the hostility displayed toward Jamison, but
Frank explained it all by saying that the fellow was a common loafer and
hadn't a friend in town.

The boys might have been arrested a dozen times that day had the
hostility to Jamison and his men not taken such positive form. But while
Jamison, half-intoxicated, roared about the street, the boys kept as
quiet as possible and so escaped general notice.

About two in the afternoon the boys were very much surprised to see a
gentleman who had been pointed out to them as the surgeon walk into the
old blacksmith shop where they sat. He beckoned Frank to one side and
the two engaged in a short but apparently satisfactory conversation, at
the conclusion of which the doctor shook the boy's hand heartily.

"All right," he said on taking his departure, "I'll attend to the matter
at once! I know the operator and it'll be all right there."

"Now, what's up?" demanded Tommy suspiciously.

"I've got a new scheme!" replied the boy.

"Pass it around!" urged Tommy.

"Now, you just wait until I see whether the doctor gets the message or
not!" replied Frank. "If he does, it's us for a ride home!"

"I'd like to steal that old drunkard's motor boat!" Tommy said.

Frank broke into a hearty laugh.

"You just wait and see!" he said. "We've got to be mighty careful to
keep away from the Federal officers, for a deputy marshal has been sent
for. Can you get up a good hot run if you have to?"

"You bet I can!" answered Tommy.

"Well, we may get a signal to make a hot foot to the dock directly," the
boy went on, "and if we do, there mustn't be any mistake about the pace
you set."

"Are you really going to steal the motor boat?" asked Sam.

"I don't know!" replied Frank. "We've been waiting around here all day
for something to take place, and I guess it's about time there was
something doing."

"I thought you were going to wait until night before sneaking out with
the despatch," suggested Tommy, eyeing his friend suspiciously.

"When we made those plans," replied Frank with a grin, "I didn't know
how many friends I had in town."

"Is the doctor going with us?" asked Tommy.

"No," was the reply, "we are going with him!"

"Aw, have it your own way," Tommy exclaimed. "I never could get any
satisfaction talking with you!"

The doctor returned to the old blacksmith shop in an hour and called
Frank outside. The two talked together for a moment, and then the boy
called out the wonderful news that they wouldn't even have to run to the
dock; that a carriage was waiting for them!

"Something mighty funny about this!" mused Tommy. "I'd like to know who
that boy is that has such luck in Alaska! Anyone would think he owns the
town, the way things are shaping themselves here!"

A moment later a wagon drawn by a pair of sturdy horses made its
appearance in front of the old blacksmith shop, and the boys took their
seats. As they did so the sound of a pistol shot came from around the
corner and Jamison dashed into view, hatless, coatless, very red in the
face and very excited as to manner.

By his side appeared a man whom the doctor at once recognized as a
Federal officer. He came to a halt when he saw the boys in the wagon.

"Wait!" he commanded, "I have warrants for your arrest!"

CHAPTER XII

ANOTHER LOST "BULLDOG"

The step outside the cabin door halted, and the boys stood silent for a
moment, hardly knowing whether to dispute the stranger's entrance or to
admit him with a show of courtesy.

While they waited, Will glanced at the window and saw the flutter of a
white hand on the pane.

"That's the Boy Scout salute!" he said.

"Another Boy Scout?" whispered Sandy. "I wonder if it rains Boy Scouts
up here in Alaska!"

"I wish there were a thousand here!" George declared.

"I don't care how many Boy Scouts show up just now," Will argued, "but I
would like to know where they all come from!"

There now came a knock on the door and a gruff voice demanded
admittance.

"Shall I open the door?" whispered Will.

"May as well," answered George.

When the door swung open, a stout man of middle age presented himself in
the opening. After casting a keen glance about the interior he stepped
inside and closed the door.

"You boys seem to have taken possession of my home!" he said.

"We found the cabin unoccupied, and took the liberty of using it," Will
answered in a conciliatory tone.

"Oh, it's all right!" returned the other. "That's the way I took
possession of the place! I found the cabin deserted and just moved in."

"We can vacate if necessary," Will suggested.

"Oh, there's room enough for all of us, I take it!" answered the
stranger. "My name is Cameron, and I spend only a day or two here
occasionally. I was hoping when I saw your light that you were having a
midnight supper. How about something to eat?"

"There's plenty in the cabin!" George replied. "We can give you either
fish or bear steak for supper."

"Then I'm glad to find you here!" laughed the other, "for I've been
traveling all day and I'm as hungry as a wolf!"

The visitor threw himself into a chair and began a careful survey of the
interior, far more searching than the one made from the doorway.

"My name is Cameron, as I said before," he said, "and I'm prospecting
for gold."

"Prospecting for gold on a glacier?" asked Will.

"Young man," Cameron replied, "there is plenty of gold in this vicinity.
The ice brought it here. I'm being laughed at by my friends," he
continued, "because I'm searching for the mother lode. But, all the
same, I've every prospect of discovering it!"

"The mother lode in a glacier?" asked Sandy.

"It is my theory," Cameron went on, "that the range of mountains to the
north holds gold in large quantities. It is a part of my theory, too,
that the drifting ice brought tons of it down to the moraine. If I find
any gold here at all, I'll find it in quantities sufficient to clog the
money markets of the world!"

Cameron looked from face to face as he spoke, apparently anticipating a
burst of enthusiasm from his listeners.

"Up on the Yukon," he went on, "the gold was found under the ice, where
it had been deposited by glaciers which are now dead. The same
conditions exist here. For all we know, there may be tons of the
precious metal at the bottom of the first layer of ice."

"That's very true!" replied Will. "And if you don't mind, we'll stick
around a short time and see what you discover."

"Remember," Cameron said then, "that this is my claim!"

"Of course," Will answered, "we wouldn't attempt to rob you of any
legitimate discovery."

In the meantime George and Sandy were preparing a supper for the
visitor. With their heads bent low over the gasoline "plate," they
discussed the personality of the man and his theory in low conversation.

"How tall should you say that fellow was?" asked Sandy.

"About five foot six!" was the reply.

"And he's stout!"

"Decidedly so."

"And he wears a leather hunting shirt, and leather leggings, and he took
off a pair of serviceable leather gloves when he entered?"

"I see what you're getting at," George replied, "Can you see whether
there's a buckle missing from his leggings?"

"There is!" answered Sandy.

"And a patch missing from his hunting shirt?"

"Just as sure as you're a foot high!"

"Did you ever see such nerve?" whispered George. "He comes here and
steals a sick boy, and then has the nerve to return and claim the
cabin!"

"Well, I'm glad he came," Sandy whispered back. "All we've got to do now
is to play the sleuth when he leaves the cabin."

"You mean that if we follow him in his journeys over the country we'll
be apt to find Bert?" asked George.

"That's just the idea!" replied Sandy. "I wonder if his mug is sore
where Bert extracted the whiskers?"

"I wonder if he expects to get a good night's sleep, with Bert lying in
some uncomfortable hiding place?" George asked. "I'd like to poke him in
the mug, just for luck!"

"That wouldn't help us find Bert," Sandy cautioned. "We've just got to
be good to him and follow him wherever he goes."

"Watch me put him off his guard," George suggested.

"How long have you been in this neighborhood?" he asked, turning to
Cameron. "I ask," the boy continued, "because one of our chums wandered
away from the cabin while we were out fishing and hasn't returned."

Cameron's eyes sought the floor for a moment.

"I have just returned from the coast," he said, "so, unless your friend
strayed off in that direction, I wouldn't have caught sight of him. Do
you mean that he strayed away in the darkness?" he asked.

"No," replied George, "he strayed away this afternoon while temporarily
out of his mind. My friends were out fishing, and I was asleep at the
time. He received a slight wound on the head, from a fall, not long ago,
and that is probably the cause of his aberration of mind."

The boys thought they saw a sudden expression of satisfaction creep over
Cameron's face as George finished his explanation.

"If you'll serve Mr. Cameron's supper," Sandy said, giving George a sly
wink, "I'll go with Will, and we'll take different directions so as to
cover more ground. We are getting anxious about Bert."

Of course the object of the boys in leaving the cabin was to meet the
Boy Scout who had signalled to them from the window. When they turned
the corner of the cabin, they found a thin, pale lad in a torn and faded
khaki uniform leaning against the outer wall.

"Why don't you come in?" asked Will.

"Is the miner in there yet?" asked the boy.

"Yes, he says the cabin belongs to him, and he's going to remain all
night! What do you know of him?"

"Nothing at all!" replied the boy, "except that I've been following him
for half a dozen miles in the hopes that he would lead me to some place
where I could eat and sleep."

"Did you call out to him?" asked Will.

"No," was the answer. "I was afraid he would send me back if I did.
Miners in this section are not fond of leading strangers to their
claims."

"Where do you belong?" asked Sandy pointing to the Bulldog badge
displayed on the boy's ragged coat.

"Bulldog Patrol, Portland," was the reply.

"How'd you get out into this country in such a plight?" asked Will.

"My chum and I," was the reply, "started out to seek our fortunes. We
got to Katalla and couldn't get a thing to do. Sam--his name is Sam
White--insisted on remaining in town, but I made a break for the
country."

"How long since you've had anything to eat?" asked Sandy.

"About twenty-four hours," was the reply.

"Well, come on in, then, and we'll feed you up."

"Of course I'll go, now that I know that you are running the camp,"
replied the boy. "I suppose I should have gone in anyway, directly, for
just as I came up I heard the man knocking at the door. I was still
afraid I'd get kicked out if I put in an appearance at any miner's cabin
and asked for food, but I should have risked it."

"I didn't know that miners did such things," Sandy observed.

"Some of them do, and some of them don't," replied the boy.

"You haven't given us your name yet," suggested Will.

"Ed Hannon," was the reply.

"Well come on in the cabin, Ed Hannon," laughed Sandy, "and we'll fill
you up, but you mustn't say a word about having seen that miner, and if
he talks to you about the route by which you approached the cabin lie
like a thief! Which way did he come from, anyway?"

"He came from the west," was the reply. "I plumped into him not far from
one of the little rivulets which joins Copper river not very far away."

"There!" said Sandy. "Now I guess we've got something tangible."

CHAPTER XIII

THE BEGINNING OF THE TRAIL

When Will and Sandy entered the cabin with Ed Hannon, Cameron sprang up
to meet them. There was a show of excitement in his manner as he
exclaimed:

"So you found the lost boy, did you?"

"No," Will replied, "this is not the lost boy, but it is a lost boy!"

"Where did you come from?" asked Cameron hastily, regarding Ed with a
pair of bold, black eyes. "How long have you been in this district?"

"I came from Katalla today," answered the boy.

"Tonight, you mean," corrected Cameron.

"I started early this morning," replied Ed, "but I guess I've been
wandering around the country a good deal. It seems that I came up to the
cottage from the north."

Cameron sank back into his chair with a look of satisfaction on his
face. The boys now busied themselves getting a substantial meal for Ed,
and the boy was soon attacking a generous slice of bear steak.

If Cameron had the plans bearing the thumb marks, he was certainly the
man to keep them concealed if he believed them to be of any value
whatever to any one. If he did not have charge of the plans, then the
chances were that Vin. Chase, the crooked clerk, had them and that any
reference to them in the presence of Cameron would be communicated as
soon as possible to the actual holder.

Will was certain that Cameron was the man who had given the name of Len
Garman by Mr. Horton in the interview in which he had received his
instructions. At that time he did not believe that Cameron, or Garman,
whichever his name was, knew anything whatever of the thumb prints on
the plans.

He did believe, however, that the fellow would fight to the death for
the drawings, not because he believed them to be of value as evidence,
but because he believed them to be of great value to one in quest of
mining machinery suitable for that section of the country.

Directly Cameron began pacing to and fro in the cabin and occasionally
glancing out of the window. There were only a few stars in sight and no
moon, but for all that the fellow appeared greatly interested in the
landscape outside.

"Are you expecting some one?" Will finally asked.

"Certainly not," was the reply. "Why do you ask such a question?"

"Because you seem anxious about something."

"I am anxious about something," replied Cameron seating himself by Will
once more. "I don't like the idea of this boy coming in here with his
story of being lost on the moraine.

"You think he came here for a purpose?"

"I must say that I do!"

Will saw that Cameron was fearful that Ed had brought in a message of
some kind, and so talked to the point for some moments in the hope of
drawing the miner out. But the miner only stared at Ed with his evil
eyes and said nothing of importance.

"I know what's eating you, old fellow," Will thought to himself. "You
think that there's a gang of Boy Scouts scattered over the moraine
looking for Bert, and you're afraid they'll find him!"

Sure enough this prognostication seemed to be the true one, for directly
Cameron drew on his head net and leather gloves and walked to the door.
He paused there a moment and turned back to say to Will:

"It will soon be morning, and I desire to get to the point of my
investigation before daylight. I have been very courteously entertained
and shall return to your cabin at night, with your permission."

"I guess it's your cabin rather than mine!" replied Will with a smile.
"I think you are acting very decently about our taking possession of it.
Of course you'll always find food here as long as we remain."

With a wave of the hand at the group of boys gathered about the table,
Cameron went out and closed the door. They heard him moving heavily
along toward the east and then came silence.

"He's stopping to see if he's watched," suggested Sandy.

"He'll be watched all right!" George declared.

"But how?" asked Sandy.

"I'm the original sleuth!" George replied with a grin. "I can follow the
fellow by the sound of his footsteps, even if he is wearing moccasins!"

"Does any one doubt that Cameron is the man formerly known as Len
Garman?" asked Will.

The boys all shook their heads, but Ed turned an inquiring face toward
the speaker.

"He gave the name of Cameron here, did he?" he asked.

Will nodded.

"Well, that isn't the name I heard him called by at Katalla," Ed
declared.

"So you saw him at Katalla, did you?" asked Sandy.

"Yes, I saw him at Katalla two days ago. He seemed to have a lot of
business with a young fellow who appeared to be a stranger in the town."

"What name did he give there?"

"Brooks!" replied Ed.

"Well, we mustn't stand here chinning while the fellow is getting out of
sight," suggested George. "I'm going to take after him right now!"

"Wait," Sandy suggested, "and I'll go with you."

"Do you think he will go straight to Bert?" asked Will.

"I have no doubt of it!" was the reply.

"It's just this way," George went on, "Cameron is suspicious that a
great effort is being made to discover the whereabouts of the kidnapped
boy, and he can't rest easy until he knows that he is safe. Besides, the
fellow would like to know whether Bert had regained consciousness."

"Yes, I presume he is anxious to learn what the code despatch he stole
contains," Will answered.

"There was some talk," Sandy said, directly, "about Bert regaining
consciousness before he left the cabin. Do you think that possible?"

"No, I don't!" replied George. "I should have heard a struggle had
anything of the kind taken place. The fact of the matter is," the boy
went on, "that Cameron thinks some one is after the drawings he values
so greatly. He found Bert here with the code message and naturally
concluded that the cipher referred in some way to his plans."

"Well, come on, then," Sandy urged. "We'll have to be moving if we
follow Cameron. I think we've talked too long already."

"Don't you worry about that," Will declared. "Cameron will hang around
the cabin for half an hour or more in order to see if any one leaves.
Before any one goes out, we'll turn off the light and make a noise like
going to sleep. Then, when all is good and dark, you two can slip out
and locate the miner if you can."

"Locate him?" repeated Sandy. "We've got to locate him. He'll go
straight to Bert and that's exactly where we want to go."

The boys made a great commotion in the cabin as if preparing for bed,
and finally the lamp was extinguished, leaving the room in complete
darkness.

"Now, be careful when you open the door," whispered Will.

For a wonder the door opened noiselessly on its hinges, and was closed
without the slightest jar. Directly Will heard a soft tap at the window
and pressed his face against the pane.

"Cameron is still in sight," Sandy's voice said, "and not very far away.
He seems to be satisfied that we've all gone to bed, and is heading for
the west. Looks like he was following the trail we followed when we went
out after fish."

"Go to it, then," Will said. "Don't expose yourselves by being too rash,
and don't come back in the morning without bringing Bert with you."

"You watch me!" Sandy replied, and then he was gone.

CHAPTER XIV

THE LAD WITH THE "DRAG"

When the federal officer appeared in front of the spirited team,
announcing that he had a warrant for the arrest of the boys, Tommy and
Sam both whispered to the driver to cut loose with the whip.

"Run him down!" Tommy insisted.

"Jump the rig over him!" Sam advised.

The doctor, however, stretched forth a detaining hand and the driver
held in the horses.

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