Endurance Test Part 13

"It might be worse if the whole lot of us had been there and got our share," remarked Elmer, who could always see things on the bright side, in which he was the exact reverse of Doubting George.

"Dell me vat I must do, Elmer. I promise to carry oudt de plans.

Somedings must pe done right qvick, or I shall pe smothered. It is pad; but I am von scout, und can take der hard knocks mit der good."

"That's the kind of talk, Adam," Elmer hastened to say. "You're all right, even if you do seem unpleasant company just now. Listen to me. Go back into the woods a piece. Then strip off every rag and hide them in some hollow log. I'll follow you when you go to the river, and fetch along what stuff we find we can spare. All told I reckon there'll be a s.h.i.+rt, trousers and shoes for you; and that's all you need this hot weather. Please make a start, for we've got to the end of our endurance.

Turn around; now you're off!"

When the unfortunate German lad had vanished, the trouble was far from being at an end. He left a decided legacy behind him, and Landy was loud in his wails.

"How ever can we stand it, Elmer?" he asked. "All the rest of the time we stay in camp do we just have to endure that rank odor?"

"'What can't be cured must be endured,' you remember we used to write in our copybooks at school, Landy," replied the patrol leader. "Nothing like getting used to things, you know. It isn't pleasant, of course; but there might be worse happen to us. Suppose now our new recruit had run across a rattlesnake instead of a polecat! But get a hustle on you, fellows, and see if we can rig Adam out somehow. I've got an extra s.h.i.+rt he's welcome to."

"And there's that pair of trousers I brought along," said Landy; "he can get into them all right. But I'll say good-by when I hand 'em over; for I just know the perfume will stick always; and I never could stand it, never."

Some one else came forward with shoes, and in this fas.h.i.+on the wretched victim of confiding innocence and curiosity was supplied with an outfit calculated to carry him through.

Taking these things with him, Elmer started forth along the trail of Adam.

"Just follow your nose, and you'll find him!" sang out Landy.

"And look out you don't repeat his sad experience, Elmer," laughed Ty.

The woods seemed to be pretty strong with the powerful odor, as Elmer walked on. He was a fair hand at following a trail, and the German lad had certainly not made any effort to conceal his footprints.

Presently Elmer found where Adam had stuffed his garments into a hollow log, just as he had been told; but as he was no longer in sight, the scout patrol leader took it for granted that he had turned to head for the river again, in order to plunge in.

Accordingly Elmer also turned and walked that way, believing that he would strike the stream a little distance below the camp.

"Goodness! I hope, now, Adam doesn't lose himself in the woods!" he exclaimed, as a sudden startling thought flashed into his mind.

"Wouldn't that just be the limit, though, and with not a bit of clothes along!"

But a minute later he caught sight of the other stalking along ahead.

The river could also be seen in glimpses between the trees, showing that after all Adam had chosen the right course.

"Well, what ails him now?" Elmer asked himself, for as he looked he suddenly saw the German boy bound up into the air, and start to thres.h.i.+ng about with his hands in the wildest kind of way.

Then he started to run madly along, letting out a series of shouts, and finally taking a header from the bank into the river.

Something came buzzing about Elmer's head.

"Hornets!" he exclaimed, making a stroke at the insistent insect that was trying to reach his face, until by a fortunate blow he sent it down.

Then he started off, making a wide detour so as to avoid the spot where the unlucky Adam must have run foul of the nest.

When he finally drew up at the river bank and peeped over, he saw Adam with everything but the upper part of his head submerged. He seemed to be looking for a new a.s.sortment of enemies hovering over him. His introduction to the mysteries of the great American woods bade fair to make a great impression on Adam. Indeed, when finally Elmer induced him to come forth, he discovered that there were three distinct impressions, and each of them as large as a hickory nut, one being behind the ear, another on his right arm, and a third on the calf of his leg, where the angry little hornets had left their mark.

No doubt the new recruit thought he was having a pretty rough time of it all told. But he had a genial nature, and could take things as they came; so that presently he was able to laugh at his misfortunes.

When he was dressed in the borrowed clothes Adam looked a "sight," as Landy declared after he saw him coming to the camp. Of course there must hover around him more or less of the strong odor; but Elmer told the others they must make up their minds to get used to that, as it could not be remedied.

Breakfast had been ready for some little time when the pair reached the camp; and all of them were able to do justice to the meal. Even Adam seemed to have retained his appet.i.te.

"But it's the only thing he did save," chuckled Landy.

When the meal was over, Elmer reminded them of the arrangement they had made on the previous evening.

"Who goes along with me to Brady's?" he asked, getting up.

"Don't you think we'd all better paddle along?" remarked Landy; "because, you see, those fellows are tough characters; and it might be they'd set on our crowd, if they suspected we'd come to tell on 'em."

"Count me out," said George. "You know I got a stone bruise yesterday when on the way here, and I want to let it heal up, so's to be able to toddle back home when we break camp to-morrow."

"Oh, rats! The chances are you don't think there's anything worth while in going over there," declared Ty. "And I meant to show you just where I had all that fun with the old bull, too."

"Fun!" shrieked Landy. "Hear that, will you, boys? He calls that business just fun. But it looked another way, then, you understand, George. Why, Ty's face was as white as paper when he thought that old bundle of beef was going to hook him higher than a kite!"

But Ty declined to argue the matter with him.

"And I think Adam had better thtay at home, don't you, Elmer?" remarked Ted.

"Why, he's that strong he could tackle the hobo crowd alone and single-handed," observed Ty.

"I'm afraid he'd turn all the milk in the dairy," chuckled Landy.

So it was presently decided that two of the scouts were to remain behind to take charge of the camp. The others, four in number, would trail along toward the Brady farm; and if the opportunity presented itself, let the farmer's women folks know the character of the new hands.

The last that Elmer and his comrades saw of those who were to remain behind, George seemed to be endeavoring to coax Adam to try his luck again on the river, for he was holding out the rod of the German.

"He just wants to get him away for a while," laughed Ty.

"It looks like George had run up against something at last that won't stand for any doubts," declared Landy, who had long suffered from this peculiar malady on the part of his cousin.

"If it can't be seen, it makes itself felt in another way," remarked Elmer, who was in the lead of the file that headed through the woods, Ted swinging the tin milk bucket.

Reaching the field where Ty had had so much "fun" with the ugly bull, they failed to see anything of the animal.

"Afraid to come out again, you see, boys," said Ty, pretending to puff out with valor. "I guess the farmer who owns him will keep him shut up till we leave the neighborhood. He'd better, for I was just hatching up some game that would discourage the old fellow from tackling every one that walked through his pasture."

"Perhaps he's loose, and carrying on somewhere else," remarked Elmer, as he lifted his head in an att.i.tude of listening.

"Say, that _is_ somebody shouting, as sure as you live!" cried Landy.

"And hollering to beat the band, too!" echoed Ty.

The whole four of them stood still, the better to listen. There could be no longer the least doubt about the matter; for other voices joined in with the one they had heard at first.

"It's women yelling, too," said Landy. "Whatever can be the matter?

Elmer, do you think it's that bull broke loose?"