The Pioneer Boys of the Columbia; or, In the Wilderness of the Great Northwest

by St. George Rathborne

  CHAPTER XXV

  THE OASIS

  "I'M sorry now I allowed myself to go to sleep at all," said Dick, ashe heard what had happened.

  This was the first Roger knew of his suspicions, for Dick had felt thatit was hardly worth while taking his chum into his confidence.

  "Do you mean you didn't like the way that Indian acted, and that youmeant to stay awake to keep an eye on him?" demanded Roger.

  "I did at first, but I was very tired, and he seemed to be soundasleep; so I gave it up. Perhaps, if I had kept awake for just anotherhalf hour, I might have caught him in the act."

  All of them were feeling depressed over the incident. It was not somuch the horse they regretted, though the animal might prove valuableto them later on; but having their supply of drinking water cut shorttold heavily.

  They started on with heavy hearts, and the future looked dismal,indeed. Still, it was not the nature of such a man as Captain Lewis todespair when, after all, there might be no occasion for trouble. Hisgood nature presently infected the remainder of the party, and hopeagain found lodgment in their hearts.

  By being careful, the water could easily be made to cover two days, andby that time it was believed they would have found a fresh supply.

  It had been only recently that the two boys had learned certain factsthat gave them considerable cause for worry. One of the trappers, whohad been out hunting just before the caravan reached the foot of themountains, had discovered two men who wore the garb of whites.

  They were armed with guns and had horses in the bargain. He had notbeen able to creep close enough to hear anything they said, but, fromthe description which he gave of the strangers, both Dick and Rogerfelt sure they knew who they must be.

  The one with the black hair and beard was the vindictive French trader,Francois Lascelles; while his companion could be no other than thetreacherous Andrew Waller, who had been kicked out of the camp when hisduplicity became known.

  The two rascals had evidently joined forces, and continued to followafter the explorers, bent on having a sweet revenge for the indignitiesthat had been visited upon their heads, though rightly, by CaptainLewis.

  Alexis, the grown son of Lascelles, must have returned to civilization,since he had not been seen with his father. The knowledge that theseevil men were bent on following them across mountain and plain, anddetermined on punishing the boys because their plans had been ruined,was something calculated to take away much of the pleasure Dick andRoger would otherwise have enjoyed.

  From time to time their thoughts naturally went out toward Lascellesand his unscrupulous ally. They often wondered whether the two men hadactually crossed the mountain range, and if they would even attempt thepassage of this burning desert.

  Roger in particular was indignant over the prospect of such a thing.

  "It would serve them right," he declared, as he talked matters overwith Dick, "if they lost their way out here on the desert, and paid thepenalty with their miserable lives. I wish that would happen to them,even if it does sound wicked; but of what use are they in the world,except to bring trouble to others who never tried to harm them in thebeginning?"

  "And the chances are," pursued Dick, frowning, "that, after we do getacross this sandy stretch, if they follow us, it will be to spread someof the same lies about our being the sons of the Great White Father atWashington. They plan to have the Indians seize us, and hold us for theransom that would never come. It might mean we would be kept all ourlives among the Indians, and never see our families any more."

  "All I can say, Dick, is that I'll be a happy boy when we get acrossthis terrible desert. When we happen on the white bones of animals thathave perished here, sticking out of the sand, they make me think offinger posts pointing to our finish. To tell you the honest truth, Idon't think I have ever shivered before when burning up with fever; butit's the prospect that does it."

  "Oh! there's no use feeling that way," Dick assured him, seeing thatreally the other was very much depressed in his spirits; "we are goingto pull out of this scrape, just as we always do. Before a great whilethings will look cheery again, take my word for it."

  "If only there was any chance to find game I wouldn't feel so bad,"complained Roger, touching his gun, which was fastened behind hissaddle.

  "Well, there is a little patch of scrub trees beyond us right now," hiscomrade told him. "Suppose we ride ahead and see if we are lucky enoughto find a stray antelope there. Sometimes there is moisture in one ofthose oasis, and some grass manages to grow. It can do no harm, andwill serve to take our minds off a disagreeable subject."

  Roger began to show a little animation at that. Anything touching onhunting was apt to engage his attention, and raise his spirits.

  "I'm with you, Dick, every time!" he hastened to exclaim; "and, if wecould only strike a deer, even one of those little antelopes you spokeof, it would be worth while. Our fresh meat has given out, but we couldfind plenty of wood to make a fire if we needed it. That sun, though,is hot enough to cook meat by itself, I think."

  After mentioning their plan to Captain Clark, who was nearby, the twolads urged their horses to increase their slow pace. This the jadedanimals were not much inclined to do, but the will of their mastersprevailed, and they left the plodding caravan behind.

  Dick suggested that they divide their forces, in order to approachthe patch of scrubby-looking dwarf trees from two sides. This was thepolicy of an experienced hunter. In case there happened to be anythingworth shooting among the trees, the hunters stood a double chance ofgetting a shot, no matter which way the deer ran.

  Dick did not entertain much hope of meeting with success. From the lookof the miserable timber he felt it was hardly probable that grass wasgrowing in its midst, or that a deer should have been attracted by thepromise of food. Still, it would not do to neglect any precaution; and,as he rode forward, he held his gun ready in his hand, meaning to jumpto the ground before firing, so as to be more certain in his aim.

  When he had reason to believe that Roger must have come up on theopposite side of the patch of trees, Dick felt that it was time to turnhis horse's head, and ride directly toward his goal.

  Just then he caught some sort of movement amidst the trees, thoughhe could not tell the nature of it. Some living creature must havesought refuge there, though it might after all prove to be only a lonebuzzard, pecking at a bone, or perhaps one of those larger birds whichCaptain Lewis had told them were vultures.

  He kept watching the spot as his horse advanced. The animal snortedonce or twice, which Dick considered a sign worth noticing, for itmight mean that some ferocious beast lay concealed on the border of theoasis.

  A moment afterwards Dick gave vent to a grunt of disgust. After all, itturned out to be a sneaking wolf of that small species which they hadfound to be as cowardly as it was ugly. Yes, now he had a good glimpseof the animal, running along the edge of the timber, and evidentlyexpecting to make off in the other direction.

  Dick hoped Roger would not be tempted to waste a shot on the cowardlybeast, for its death could not be of the least advantage to them. It'spresence there settled the last lingering hope he had felt concerningthe finding of game. No antelope was apt to stay long when one of thosehungry coyotes came around, Dick imagined.

  He rode slowly on. The patch of trees was really larger than he hadimagined, and, while about it, Dick felt he should make doubly sure.Perhaps they might run on a small spring there in the oasis, though theappearance of things did not inspire him with much confidence.

  "It would be even better than finding game, if we did come across awater hole," he was telling himself as he pushed on.

  He heard Roger give a loud yell on the other side of the oasis.Evidently he had just discovered the skulking animal and was shoutingto start him in full flight across the sandy waste. But he did notshoot, for which Dick was glad.

  Now, having arrived at the border of the scrubby trees, Dick jumpeddown and fastened his horse to a convenient branch. It was his
intention to enter the patch of timber on foot, as Roger was doubtlessdoing from the other side. They could scour the whole of it in a brieftime, and find out whether so much as a cup of water was to be obtained.

  He could hear Roger advancing opposite to him, and knew they wouldsoon meet. Even then he caught sight of the other moving along, thoughevidently hopeless of finding anything in the shape of game.

  Dick had just opened his mouth to say something when he was thrilledto hear a dreadful, rattling sound that he knew only too well. At thesame time Roger sprang hastily back, and uttered a loud cry of alarm.