Comrades on River and Lake

by Janet D. Wheeler

  CHAPTER XII--THE FIGHT ON THE LAKE

  Fleet was the first to notice a skiff containing two men, well out inthe middle of the lake and making on a tangent for the east shore.

  "Look!" he cried. "What'll you bet that those are not Dave Higgins'robbers?"

  "I don't think that would be a safe bet," said Bert. "What do you think,Chot?"

  "They are too far away for me to judge accurately, but from thisdistance I should say there was a marked resemblance."

  "I wish Higgins were here," said Tom.

  "Well, it's two miles to his place. Too far to go, because the men wouldthen have too great a start," said Chot. "I believe the best plan willbe to overtake them, make sure they are the ones we suspect, and if so,capture them and hold them until we can communicate with Higgins or theauthorities. What do you say?"

  All of the boys expressed great eagerness to do this, so they quickenedtheir gait until the canoes were fairly flying through the water. It didnot matter now if the perspiration ran down their faces, into theireyes, and down their backs inside their shirts; they did not feel theexertion with an adventure in prospect. No real American boy does.

  The figures in the skiff were nearly a mile away, but the comrades sooncut this distance down to three-quarters, and headed for a spot thatwould cross the path of the other craft within the next ten or fifteenminutes, if the men held their present course.

  The men in the boat had evidently not noticed the boys in the canoes,and when they finally did discover them, the canoes were between themand the shore for which they were heading.

  They stopped rowing for a moment and the boys could see them holding aconsultation. There was no doubt now but that the men were thesuspicious-looking characters they had seen on the shore the previousnight.

  "Wonder what they're going to do now," said Fleet.

  "They're trying to decide whether we are interested in them or not,"Chot replied. "I think they are waiting in the hope that we will crosstheir course and continue on up the lake. Shows they don't want to cometo close quarters with us."

  "What will we do--wait for them?"

  "No; for we're apt to find that they can wait as long as we. I think wehad better do away with any deception. They suspect that we are watchingthem, so let's paddle over there and tell them just what we are herefor."

  "Yes," said Tom, "for these are the parties we're after. Look at thesize of that fellow at the oars. He certainly answers the descriptiongiven by Mrs. Higgins, who saw him as he was getting away with themoney."

  So the canoes were turned and the boys paddled easily across theintervening distance.

  "Let's surround them," said Chot in a low tone, and the canoes separateduntil they were approaching the men in the skiff from every side.

  Five boys with determined looks on their faces are no mean antagonists,especially when no matter in what direction you turn you find one ofthem, and the men in the skiff were evidently perplexed.

  "Hello!" said Chot, by way of greeting.

  "Hello, yourself!" returned the smaller of the men. "What do you thinkyou are doing?"

  "We're surrounding you," said Chot, "and now we'll ask you to give anaccount of yourselves."

  "Well, just ask away, sonny."

  "Yes, don't be bashful. If there's anything we can tell you, don't failto mention it," said the big man.

  He was apparently resting easily on his oars, but Chot noticed that hewas in a position where he could send the skiff spinning ahead in aninstant.

  Pod, as if guessing what was passing in Chot's mind, pushed his canoearound until he was directly behind the man at the oars, and straight inthe path of the skiff.

  "To make a long story short," said Chot, "we didn't know who you werewhen you ran into our camp on the lake shore last night."

  "Don't know what you're talking about," said the smaller man. "We'venever seen you fellows before."

  "That tale won't go. We saw you last night, and we'd know you again ifwe met you in China, so there's no use trying to evade the issue. Whatis more, we know you are the men who robbed Dave Higgins' house twonights ago."

  At this the men burst into a laugh, but it was an unnatural laugh, andcould not deceive the keen ears of the boys from Winton.

  "Young man," said the bigger of the men, "if it wasn't so funny, yourtalk would be impertinent. Why, we live at Westport, farther up thelake. This is Henry Skidmore and I am William Truesdale. We aremerchants, and we have been taking a little outing."

  "That being the case," said Chot, "of course you won't object to goingto Westport with us and giving proof of what you say?"

  "That's asking too much. Westport is five miles from here, at least, andwe would be losing too much time. However, you boys can stop off thereas you pass and inquire as to our characters."

  "Yes, we'll do that--I don't think!" said Fleet, rather contemptuously."The best thing we can do with these men, Chot, is to take them to DaveHiggins so his wife can identify them."

  "I think so, too," said Bert. "That's the easiest way out of thematter."

  "Now, look here," said the big man, glowering at them from under hisheavy eyebrows, and speaking in a voice that rumbled like a smolderingvolcano, "this has gone far enough. We're bound for the east shore overthere, and you will follow us at your peril."

  "We're going to hand you over to the authorities, and it may as well beon the east shore as anywhere," said Chot.

  "Then look out for us," warned the man at the oars. He sent the skiffshooting ahead as he spoke, rammed squarely into Pod's canoe, upsettingit and throwing the little fellow into the water. The skiff shudderedfrom the force of the impact, careened to one side, righted itself, andsped on.

  "After them!" shouted Fleet, "I'll attend to Pod."

  Following his suggestion, Chot, Tom and Bert started in pursuit of theskiff, which they had no difficulty in overtaking, because they couldpaddle all around any man with a heavy skiff and an ordinary pair ofoars.

  Fleet ran his canoe over to where Pod, grinning good naturedly, wasclinging to the bottom of the upturned craft.

  "Got me that time," said the little fellow, "but I guess a bath won'thurt me."

  With the aid of Fleet the canoe was righted. Then Pod swam to where hissuitcase and paddle were floating on the surface of the lake, and pushedthem toward the canoe. Then, climbing aboard while Fleet steadied thecraft, the boys set out in pursuit of their chums.

  In the meantime the other boys had come up with the men in the skiff,and keeping out of their way, ran alongside so that they could landfirst, and intercept the suspects as they came ashore.

  Finally, the man at the oars grew angry, and pulling a revolver from hispocket, leveled it at Bert, who was the nearest the skiff.

  "Now you drop that paddle or I'll plug you, kid," he said. "Thisfoolishness has gone far enough."

  So interested were the men in finding out what Bert would do in the faceof such an argument, they forgot Chot who was on the other side of them,and who, with his usual quick-wittedness, lost no time in acting.Dropping his paddle, he seized his suitcase, and standing erect in thecanoe, threw it with all his might straight at the head of the man withthe revolver.

  An earthquake could not have been more surprising or more destructive atthat moment. True to its aim went the suitcase. It contained Chot's bestsuit of clothes and other wearing apparel, but this did not enter intothe argument at that time. The case struck the big man on the side ofthe head. His grasp on the revolver loosened and the weapon fell with asplash into the lake. The big man, stunned by the blow, after a futileattempt to regain his balance, followed, capsizing the skiff andthrowing his companion into the water.

  "Hurrah!" cried Tom.

  "Hurrah! Hurrah!" echoed Fleet and Pod, who came up at this moment.

  The boys now had their adversaries where they wanted them--at a decideddisadvantage.

  "Take that skiff, Fleet, and tow it out of the way," ordered Chot. "You,Pod, pick up my suit case. Now, boys, let's attend to our
friends."

  The men were swimming around in an effort to keep afloat, afraid toapproach the canoes for fear of further violence.

  "You'll have to help me, boys," cried the smaller of the men, suddenly."My friend's losing his strength. Guess that blow on the head sort o'queered him."

  At first the boys thought this was merely a feint to gain time, but onelook at the big man made them change their minds. His eyes were closed,his face was pale, and he was gasping for breath.

  Fortunately, they were not far from the east shore now, and a sandybeach stretched out into the lake. With the help of the boys in thecanoe they towed the apparently unconscious man into shallow water, andhelped get him up on the grass under some trees where an effort was madeto revive him.

  On the side of his head was a big lump, caused by the blow from the suitcase. A feeling of pity stole over Chot that he had been forced to adoptsuch measures, but with Bert threatened by a revolver, he felt that hehad been fully justified.

  Fleet brought a cup of water from a well in a nearby pasture and theboys bathed the temples of the big man, and forced some of the coolwater down his throat. After a few minutes he gasped and opened hiseyes, and a little later was able to sit up against a tree.

  As soon as Chot found that the injured man was coming around, he sentPod to a farmhouse which could be seen in the distance, to find if theyhad the rural 'phone service, and if so, to communicate with DaveHiggins and ask him to come at once with some officers and take chargeof the prisoners. Pod found the 'phone and after some little troublesucceeded in getting his man. He explained the adventure on the lake,and Higgins agreed to come right up with Hank and a couple ofconstables.

  In the interval, the boys made the injured man comfortable, bathing hishead with witch hazel. Both he and the other man, as well as Pod, tookthis occasion to shed their clothes and spread them in the sun to dry,wrapping themselves in blankets in the meantime.

  It was nearly noon when Higgins arrived with the officers. The men weresearched and in the big man's pocket most of the Higgins' money wasfound contained in the little sack in which Higgins had always kept it.The men confessed to the robbery, pleading hard luck and starvation.They said good-bye good-naturedly, as Higgins and the officers led themto the boat and started with them for Chimney Point.

  The boys ate their lunch on the shore, after which they pushed offagain, touched Westport in the middle of the afternoon for ice creamsoda, and camped on the west shore near Split Rock Mountain for thenight.