CHAPTER XXTAKEN AT LASTPaul awoke shortly after Thede’s departure for theEsmeralda, and Clay, Case and himself spent some moments wondering about the success of the night expedition in the rain.Case and Clay only laughed at the idea of the counterfeiters being taken, declaring that the clicking sounds which the men had heard probably came from a long distance, and that, anyhow, there wouldn’t be any counterfeiters present when they came, after a long tramp in the rain, to the locality where they had been.“They are slippery people, these counterfeiters,” Case argued, getting ready for supper, “and are not to be caught napping. When you get where you can put your finger on them, they are not there!”“But suppose, for a minute, that they did catch them,” urged Paul, “what are they going to do with them? They might be kept on theEsmeralda. She is not loaded down with people like theRambler.”“Catch your men before you find places for them!” Case laughed. “If the boys do catch them, we’ll find a place to store them!”“Say,” said Clay, sniffing at the rather meager supper cooking on the electric stove, “is that the best you can do in the way of supper? I could eat all that myself, and then want more! Suppose we go over to theEsmeraldafor supper?”“It is only a short time since you had your supper,” Case laughed. “I was just preparing a little snack because there was nothing else to do. If you want a hearty meal, you sure will have to go to theEsmeraldafor it.”“You know what Alex said about leaving the fish by the roadside,” Clay laughed. “How would you like some of those fish right now? They would go pretty good, eh?”“I wonder if I could find them?” Case said.“In this storm? I should say not! Forget it!”But Case seemed fascinated with the idea of getting those fish, and referred to the fact that they were lying there in the rain, doing no one any good, several times during the next few minutes. At last Clay said with a laugh:“Oh, go on and get the fish, if you are so stuck on doing it! There won’t be any peace on the boat until you have tried! I haven’t any idea that you will succeed, but you can try!”Case arose from the locker, where he had been sitting, and, going to the window, looked out on the driving rain. The night was sultry, and the rain splashing on the deck of the motor boat seemed rather attractive.The boy threw off the light coat he had worn and stood in undershirt and light trousers. After looking critically at his feet for a second, he proceeded to put on a pair of coarse shoes, well calculated for walking in rocky places.“So you are going, after all!” Clay laughed. “Well, good luck go with you! If a crazy notion ever got into a boy’s head, one has entered yours now! The idea of going out in this storm! Why, it is raining some, I tell you!”“Who cares for the rain?” was the reply. “I shall enjoy the trip immensely! If we had Alex or Jule here to explain their line of march, we’d have fish to eat!”“But they are not here,” commented Clay, “and one might as well look for a needle in a load of hay as to try to follow their footsteps. Better give the thing up!”“No,” was the reply, “I’ll get a good bath, anyhow, and I may find the fish, though it’s dollars to apples that I don’t!”The boy took up his searchlight and crossed over to theEsmeralda, which lay between theRamblerand the Mexican shore. Thede had a hearty laugh at the idea of the lad venturing out in the rain.“You’ve got the fish notion as badly as Rube and Buck have the counterfeiters’ hunch,” he said. “When they get where they are, they won’t be there.”“All right!” was the reply. “If I can’t get the fish, I’ll get a good bath! Say, Clay is over there on theRambler, starving to death! Can’t you get him over here and fill him up?”“Sure!” was the ready response. “I can stuff him like we do raccoons!”“I guess that will hold him for a while!” laughed Case.With that he left the boat, and the last seen of him was the round hole made in the night by his searchlight.Clay and Paul were left alone on theRambler. Clay told Paul what he had heard of the plans of the four adventurers, closing with the statement that they would succeed only in getting soaked to the skin.They had a frisky time with Captain Joe, the cub, and the parrot, putting the latter through all his tricks, and the cub also coming in for a share of the frolic. The dog soon grew weary of the game, and took refuge out in the rain.“What’s the matter with Captain Joe?” asked Paul. “He doesn’t appear to be in his usual spirits! Perhaps he’s sulking because he was not invited to the counterfeiter hunt!”The parrot was in a talkative mood, and reeled off such sayings as he had heard the boys repeat by the yard. At last he cocked his head on one side and shouted:“Come out of that! Come out of that! What are you hiding for? What are you hiding for?”“That’s odd!” Clay exclaimed, looking about the cabin of theRamblercuriously. “I never knew the bird to act in that way before. He usually contents himself with shorter questions.”“I believe there’s something going on,” Paul declared, almost in a whisper. “Listen!”Both boys listened for a moment, and then Clay stepped to the door, or window, leading to the aft deck and threw it open, remarking, as he did so, that it was a wonder it had not been open all the evening.Then came the surprise of his life.As Clay threw the window open a grinning face confronted him—a low, mean face, with small, black eyes, a bulldog chin, and a forehead which seemed like that of a snake, it sloped so, and was so narrow. The fellow, who was slender of form, extended a threatening revolver in his right hand and climbed through the window.Clay was not armed, and he knew that Paul was in the same fix. Weapons lay all about him in the cabin, but none was within reach.“What do you want?” demanded the lad, watching for an opportunity to get out of range of the weapon.“You!” was the laconic answer.“But,” Clay began, but the leveled revolver stopped him, for he saw murder in the little eyes.The first work of the intruder was to collect all the weapons in sight and put them out of reach of the boy, who stood in the meantime with his hands raised above his head.Then Paul received his attention. The fellow made a critical examination of the broken leg, smiling as he did so.“You have taken excellent care of him,” was his only comment.“What is it that you want?” Clay asked again, still watching for his chance.“Your boat,” answered the fellow.He paused a moment, as if considering, and then nodded his head in the direction of the place where Paul was lying, with his hands also well up in the air.“And the kid,” he added.“If it is money you want, name the sum,” Clay said. “He has been hurt, and can’t be moved.”The fellow chuckled and made no reply. He took some strong cord from a pocket and proceeded to tie Clay. Was there no chance of escape? If Case would only return!The tying went on, and Clay was obliged to endure it. If some of the boys would come!Where was Captain Joe? Somehow, that dog never was where he was wanted! If he would only come now!Perhaps he had been silenced by a blow on the head. But no; the dog was out on the front deck, and the intruder had entered the cabin from the rear.The man who seemed to have taken undisputed possession of theRambler, first taking care to place the weapons beyond the reach of Paul, proceeded then to put the motors in motion. Clay watched him as he did so with anxious eyes, hoping to see him push the wrong lever, but the fellow did nothing of the kind.All this time rain had been falling in great sheets, but now there came a lull in the storm.The cords hurt Clay’s wounded arm, and he uttered an involuntary groan of pain. As if attracted by the cry, Captain Joe appeared in the cabin doorway!The dog was quick to take in the situation, and, before he could make a move to defend himself, had the fellow by the throat. He had not counted on Captain Joe!The fellow gasped as the teeth of the dog tore at his throat, and he tried to cry out, but was unable to do so. Together they rolled here and there on the cabin floor.The noise of the struggle attracted the attention of Thede, who lost no time in getting on board the boat. At a word from Clay the dog released his hold, and the man fell back in a faint.“I wonder if he’s dead?” Thede said, as he bent over the unconscious man. “It surely isn’t the fault of the dog if he still has life in his body!”Then he paused a moment and looked about. He saw the plight Clay was in and hastened to release him.“It seems to me that you kept this little performance rather private!” he said as he cut the cords. “How did he get into the cabin?”“Came in by the window, from the after deck,” was the reply. “Strange you didn’t see or hear him when he crossed from theEsmeralda!”“The rain probably prevented the noise he made, if he made any at all, being heard, and the chances are that he didn’t make any! The people who go forth on the mission he seems to have been on usually make as little stir as possible.”The surgeon now gave his attention to the man, who had been severely injured by the dog, who now stood close by to see that he did not escape. He was covered with blood, his throat being badly tom.“It seems to me that I’m having a right smart practice on this boat!” he said, with a smile. “I’ll have to go to the other boat for my instruments. That is a ragged wound!”“Don’t you recognize the fellow?” asked Clay. “Don’t think I ever saw him before.”“You saw his back, and that was under water,” Clay urged. “Now do you know what I mean?”“Not little ‘To the Death’? I never guessed that!”“That’s who it is.”Thede now left for theEsmeralda, and Clay busied himself stanching the blood, which was flowing from the wound in the man’s neck in a steady stream.Presently he heard voices and listened to catch the words. It was Alex and Jule, talking excitedly, and evidently making good use of their legs.“I’m going to get theRamblerand run down,” Alex’s voice said. “If Buck and Rube get the others, there’ll sure be a load!”The rain had ceased, and the stars were shining, lighting the rocks with a silvery radiance. There would be a moon later on.“Now, what does the kid mean by that?” mused Clay, forgetting for the moment to care for the injured man.CHAPTER XXIA NIGHT OF WATCHINGRube and Buck, accompanied by Alex and Jule, passed through the rain with no thought but that of capturing the counterfeiters in their minds. The rain fell steadily, making a great patter on the leaves of the forest trees, so conversation was difficult.“They have chosen a fine locality for the job,” suggested Buck, pausing to wipe the sweat from his face. “This certainly is a section of country where they are not likely to receive many visitors.”“That’s right,” Jule agreed. “This spot makes one think of graveyards and ghosts!”The steady click of metal now came more distinctly, and presently a light was discernible through the trees. Then the party halted for consultation, standing close together to avoid being overheard. There was no knowing how many trees sheltered listeners.It was finally decided that Rube and Alex should proceed to the right, while Buck and Jule took the opposite direction.“We sure can surround ’em, anyway, and we may be able to capture a few of ’em!” Rube suggested. “Mighty slippery people, these gentlemen who make bogus coin!” he added, snapping off his searchlight.The snapping off of the light made the forest as dark as a pocket, but this condition existed for only a few minutes, for the light of a great fire in a cave of large size shone out upon the stealthily advancing men.“It strikes me,” commented Alex, “that they’ve got a heap of nerve to build a fire like that. How do they know who’ll be passing along here?”Rube chuckled softly.“You are in Mexico now, son, where the people wink at all the crimes in the book of laws. Besides, these people are about as likely to have callers as pigs are to fly!”“Well, we’ve got to the nest, now how are we to get inside?” asked Alex, wrinkling his nose in perplexity. “We might rush in on ’em, quick, and catch ’em with the goods!”“Watch, and wait for Buck and Jule to come up,” was the slow reply. “They may be able to suggest some plan. Whatever you do, be careful. These people shoot quick and straight. The first thing you know, you won’t know anything!”They waited a long time for Buck and Jule, but at last they came, having taken a route which led to the other side of the rocky elevation which formed the base of the cave. It was only by the quick display of a searchlight that Rube and Alex located their chums.Then a long conference was held, Jule and Alex being in favor of rushing the place and taking it by storm, while Buck and Rube were more conservative.“Don’t you boys get us into any place we can’t get out of,” said Rube, with a little laugh. “If we go into that cave we are likely to do just that very thing!”“All right,” replied Alex, “if you want to sneak in just go on and we’ll follow!”There were four men in the cave, all so busy over their work that they did not have time to grab a single weapon for their own defense, so the fight which followed was very short.Rube felled one of the four with a blow of his fist, and the others yielded to the persuasions of the automatics. When all were tied up, and after the boys had searched the cavern for more, another consultation was held.“I wonder if they are all here?” Alex said, regarding the captured prisoners with a smile. “Call the roll, someone who knows all the names! I pass on these Mexican names!”The boy’s question called forth only sullen looks and scowls. It was easy to see what would have been the fate of the boys had the conditions been reversed.Both Buck and Rube understood a few words of Spanish, and tried their best to enter into conversation with their prisoners, but all their questions were answered by scowling looks.A search of the cave revealed a complete counterfeiter’s assortment of tools and dies used in the work, together with considerable silver. The dies were destroyed, and as much of the silver as could be carried without inconvenience appropriated.“What are you going to do with the silver?” asked Alex.“Oh, it will come in handy, all right!” answered Buck. “Mexican law provides for turning it over to the government, but as there is no government to speak of, we’ll just geezle it! If we turn it over to the people who have charge of the government, there is no knowing whether it will ever get into circulation.”Once more they tried to talk with the prisoners, but received only scowls in reply. So they gave up the attempt and began the return trip.“This capture has been an easy one,” was Jule’s comment, as the boys walked along in the rear of the two men who were taking good care that the captured men did not escape. “A little bit too easy!”“Why too easy?”“Oh, we may have trouble yet,” was Jule’s reply.It did look that way to the boys. The prisoners kept an eye out for a chance to make a run for it.Now and then one of them halted for an instant to listen, but, hearing nothing, walked on again.“That fellow is expecting someone to rescue him,” Alex said, after some distance had been passed. “Anyhow, we are too near the boats now for any attempt at rescue to prove successful.”“How do you know that?” demanded Jule. “The boats are no protection. If we find them as we usually have, they’ll need help from us. What’s that?”The prisoners had made a break for liberty, and, taking advantage of a rocky spot where walking was very difficult, had darted off, bound as they were. Buck and Rube fired several shots, but the men ran all the faster.At last two of the men were found, lying hidden under a bush, but the others could not be discovered, though the lads searched all around.“We’re lucky to have these two left!” Alex said with a grin. “If the others don’t attack us before we get to the boats, we’ll be lucky. Our searchlights make a good mark!”“And they can hear the noise we make going through the bushes a mile off!” added Jule.“Suppose we go on ahead and search the river?” proposed Alex. “We can run up and down the stream, anyway. The stars are shining, and the light is fine. Then we can take theRamblerand run her up and down stream. I’ve got a hunch that they will make for the river and try to cross to the American side.”“I don’t see why they should do that,” was the reply. “There are plenty of mountains, or high ground at least, for them to hide in. But you may be right. We’ll try the river first.”After searching the bank of the river, the boys made for theRambler, crossed theEsmeralda, and went on board. There they found the surgeon bending over the injured man and everything in confusion.“What’s doing here?” asked Jule.Then Clay told the story of the attack on the boat and how Captain Joe came to the rescue.“Good dog!” cried Alex, stroking the dog’s head. “Don’t you, none of you, ever call him a no-account cur again! This makes two men he has pulled down lately. That is a fair record for a cur dog, don’t you think?”“Captain Joe is a peach of a dog!” cut in Jule. “I shall never forget how he jumped that river pirate who was lighting the match to bum my feet!”“Do you know who this man is?” asked Clay, after a short pause, during which the dog was petted and caressed to his heart’s content. “Give a guess.”The boys made a close examination of the man’s features, but they were so bloody that identification was difficult, if not impossible.“I give it up!” said Alex.“So do I!” chorused Jule.Then the surgeon told who the injured man was, and the boys expressed great satisfaction.“We’ll see that he don’t get away a second time,” Clay declared. “He’s a tricky chap, but he will stay put now. By the way, where’s Case—on theEsmeralda, I take it.”Clay and Paul looked at each other with sober eyes.“Case left the boat two hours ago,” answered Clay. “He said he was going to look for the fish you boys left, and should have been back within half an hour.”“He seems to be setting up a rivalry to Alex,” laughed Paul. “That boy certainly can have more adventures in less time than any boy in the wide world!”“Oh, Clay can go some in that line!” laughed Alex, “but where do you think the boy is?”“Why didn’t Captain Joe go with him?” asked Jule.“Because the dog needs rest,” replied Clay. “He has had a hard time of it, haven’t you, Joe?” caressing the dog as he spoke. “And your wound hasn’t healed yet, and you ought to be in the hospital! Tell him that you are in no shape to go chasing over the country looking for lost fish!”The dog made the explanation as plainly as it could be made by one not having the gift of speech, and the boys all laughed and looked pleased.“You are worth a dozen dead dogs yet!” declared Alex.“I’d like to know which way Case went,” wondered Jule. “We saw nothing of him.”“Perhaps Rube and Buck will bring him with them,” Clay said hopefully.“Doesn’t it take a long time to bring those two captives in?” asked Thede, still busy over the injured man, who was now beginning to show signs of returning consciousness.“That’s just what I was thinking,” Alex exclaimed.The boys looked in every direction except at each other. There was in the eyes of every one of them a premonition of evil which he did not want the others to see!“The moon is coming up now, let’s go and look for them!” suggested Jule. “I want to put on a dry suit, then I’ll be ready.”“It strikes me that we have no time to waste, if we want to overhaul the United States Marshal and the Sheriff,” Alex declared. “And we might give a thought to Case while we are out looking the others up. Beats the dickens how we do get scattered!”“All right,” agreed Jule, “if you want to start right now. I’m ready, only it won’t do you any good to tell how hungry you are before you’ve gone a mile. If you drag me off without a chance to change my clothes, I’ll see that you don’t get anything to eat until we get back!”“But suppose I should find the fish, what about that?” Alex replied, starting away.The moon was up above the tops of the trees now, and was at the full. It was a splendid night, and the boys enjoyed it greatly as they hastened along.“Which way?” asked Jule.“I don’t know,” replied Alex. “The counterfeiters’ cave is downstream, but the two men who were found in hiding under a bush gave them a run before they were caught, and I’m all at sea.”“Which way did Case go?”“Again I don’t know.”“Well, we must decide on something pretty soon or it will be morning before we reach a conclusion,” Jule suggested.That was a long night for those who remained on theRambler. The hours dragged slowly, with no word from the boys.Thede dressed the wounded man’s throat and got him into an improvised bed. Then he sat down to await news from the boys. The night passed and the sun rose in a cloudless sky.“I feel like taking up the search myself,” Clay exclaimed. “The boys are probably doing all that anyone could do, yet I think I could do better. I’ve a good notion to see what I could do!”“And leave us alone? I guess not!”It was Paul who spoke, but the very next moment something occurred which gave a new light to the situation.Rube came back, weary and worn, but he came alone!CHAPTER XXIIA SURPRISE FOR CLAYClay and Thede met the bedraggled man at the rail. There were questions in their eyes which they dreaded to put into words.“Mornin’,” came the cheerful greeting.Clay looked him over critically.“You’re a sight!” he said.Rube looked down at his torn clothes, at his sodden boots, and smiled.“They don’t look very spick an’ span, do they?” he asked. “But you ought to see the other boys!”“Where’s Case?” asked Paul. “He went out to catch fish off dry land, and we haven’t seen him since.”In answer to Rube’s wondering look, Clay explained that Case had gone in the hope of finding the string of fish dropped by Jule and Alex. Rube’s only reply was a grin.“Where are the others?” asked Paul, as Rube climbed wearily aboard theRambler. “Is Case with them?” he added.Before making any reply Rube threw himself down with a sigh of relief and drew off his boots, sodden with water from the underbrush.“Yes, Case is with the others,” he replied, then, “and the gang will be here in something like half an hour. Got any notion where we’ve been?” he added with a most exasperating grin.“That’s just what we’re anxious to hear,” replied Clay.“Well,” replied Rube, “we’ve been over to the United States—yes, sir, over to the good old United States!”The boys gave the man an incredulous look, as if doubting his word. Perhaps he just thought he had been over there!“Where did you get a boat?” asked Thede, after a long silence.“The counterfeiters had one,” was the laconic reply, “and we geezled it. We had a fine time over there—not!”“Well, why don’t you open up and tell us about it?” Clay said, irritated at the provoking deliberation of the man.Rube looked hopelessly about, as if expecting aid from some unknown source, and was about to begin when there came a shout from the bank and Buck, Case, Alex, and Jule made their appearance. Rube looked very much relieved, and Clay stepped forward to meet the approaching men, his face wreathed in smiles.“You’re a nice boy to go after fish!” he said, giving the lad a friendly poke. “The next time we send you out, we’ll keep you at home where we can watch you!”Alex displayed a string of fish!“Here’s your old fish!” he said, with pardonable pride. “Now we’ll have something to eat!”“Are those the same fish?” Clay demanded.“The same—the very same!” Case answered. “Say, but I could eat one, scales and all.”While the fish were cooking, and while Alex was bringing everything in the eatable line over from theEsmeralda, Case and Jule told of the adventures of the night.“You see, it’s just like this,” he began, but Jule stopped him with a laughing remark.“Tell about your adventures first,” he said.Captain Joe, who had been trying all this time to attract attention to himself, now sprang upon Alex and began licking his face. The boy stroked the dog’s head affectionately. His side was still sore where the outlaw’s bullet had cut its way through the flesh.Case replied with a laugh, and went on with his story.Alex and Jule had come across Case, it seemed, when he had given up all hope of finding the fish and was on his way back to theRambler. The three had searched a long time for Buck and Rube, but had found them at last.They had taken what they had believed to be a shorter way to the boat and had lost their way, being at the time of meeting Alex and Jule, traveling in the right direction.“Why don’t you get us over to God’s country?” demanded Jule.“All right!” was Case’s answer. “The counterfeiters had evidently crossed over from the American side of the Rio Grande in a rowboat, for one was found in a little bayou near the point of meeting. This gave Rube an idea.“‘Why not take the prisoners across the river without going to theRambler?’ he asked. ‘If we lock ’em up in a Mexican jail, the chances are that they will be out before our backs are turned. The people over here have little respect for the law.’“This was finally agreed to, and we bundled the prisoners into the boat. It was a tight squeeze, getting us all in, but the feat was accomplished at last and we were across the river in a jiffy.“We landed at a small village—a typical border town, with plenty of Mexicans in evidence. The streets ought to have been pretty quiet at that time of night, but they were anything but that.“A company of United States soldiers—the same we had given a banquet to up the river—had possession of the town, and were making a search for the four counterfeiters! Of course we gave up the two we held, and were warmly thanked by the lieutenant in charge, who had not forgotten us by any manner of means.“We had a midnight supper with the soldiers—a supper which took us far into the night. Then, after making a date with the lieutenant at the mouth of the Pecos river, we returned to theRambler. Not much of a story, after all!”“Well, we’ve got plenty of time to make the Pecos river, as the men will have a long walk, so I propose getting forty winks!” said Clay. “I didn’t get enough sleep last night to put in tea! Who’s for the feathers?”“I’m afraid we can’t meet you boys and the lieutenant at the mouth of the Pecos river,” said Buck, after a short consultation with Rube. “You see, it’s like this,” he continued, “unless you boys want to stick around and watch us work, we’ll have to be on our way. It’s back up the river for us, but we may be at the mouth of the Pecos in time to greet you boys and the soldiers, though it’s rather doubtful.”“Suppose we caucus on the proposition,” suggested Alex. “For one, I’m willing to remain with Buck and Rube.”“Wouldn’t it be better to go to the mouth of the Pecos, and wait for them there?” Clay cut in. “I understand that the Pecos is a peach of a stream when it comes to crooks and turns, and I’d like to see it. If it is a sure thing that you will be there within a few days, we might go on and wait for you there.”“Oh, we’ve got to be there, all right!” Rube declared.“Then we’re all right,” cried Alex. “We’ll just drop down and wait for you there. Now, what will you have to eat?”“Why, we have just had a whale of a meal,” Thede said. “Do you want to stuff us like they do hens for market?”“That was just a lunch,” laughed the boy. “A little fish breakfast! Before the trip ends, I want a chance to show what I can do in the cooking line.”So Rube and Buck went back up the river, while theRamblerturned her prow to the east. Of course Alex and Jule had to have another meal.“Do you think,” smiled Jule, “that we came on this excursion to go hungry? Not much! When we get farther downstream, where we can get ’coons that are good and fat. I’ll show the gang how to cook one. My mouth waters at the thought!”As theRamblerproceeded on her way, it was plain to be seen that Alex had something on his mind. He kept more than usually still, and the frown between his eyes grew more marked.Clay noticed the change in the boy and waited for him to give the reason for it. He knew that in time the answer would come.It came one night when Alex was on watch. It was a brilliant night in June, and the boy had been unusually thoughtful that day.“Suppose,” Alex began, “that a man died and left a big fortune—not a few thousands, but millions—and he had only one heir.”Clay knew that the thing which had been bothering Alex was on the way to the surface, and waited for him to go on.“And suppose this man had a brother who was greedy for the big fortune, and suppose the brother also died, where would the fortune go until the heir became of age?”“To whoever the court appointed guardian,” was the reply. “Is there such a case?”“Would the heir have any say about the appointment of the guardian?” continued the lad.“I think he ought to,” was the answer.Alex was thoughtful for a short time and then drew from an inside pocket a folded newspaper, which he passed over to Clay.“Perhaps you would better read the story for yourself,” he said, “then you’ll know all about it.”The newspaper contained a long account of the death by drowning of one Orlando Stegman.“Where did you get this?” asked Clay, after running hastily through the article. “Is the Orlando Stegman, the person named here, the uncle of Paul?”“Yes,” was the answer. “Another part of the same newspaper contains an advertisement offering a reward for the discovery of the heir. Paul won’t have to dodge about the country any more.”“Did you show him this article?” asked Clay, rising to his feet. “Tell me where you got it.”“It just appeared,” was the reply. “I have no idea where it came from. It is a Chicago paper, and how a Chicago newspaper got down here is more than I can guess.”Clay turned the paper and read the date line.“Why,” he said in amazement, “the paper is over two weeks old. Well, it doesn’t matter how it got here, it is here, and makes a millionaire of the boy we—or Captain Joe, rather—fished out of the Rio Grande! And a pretty good job he did, too!”“I didn’t tell Paul of the discovery,” Alex said, after a pause, during which he blocked the door to the cabin, “because I didn’t want to lose him. Just the minute he gets hold of that paper he’ll want to be off, and I want Rube or Buck, or both, to get well acquainted with him so as to be appointed guardian. How does that strike you?”“Fine!” exclaimed Clay.“We might have guardians in duplicate!” Alex laughed. “Do they ever have guardians in duplicate?”“Sometimes they have three,” was the reply. “But why did you keep so sly about it? You might have told me!”“Well,” was the answer, “I was in doubt what to do about it. You see, I didn’t want you to know about it until I had it all thought out. You would be apt to tell the other boys, and I didn’t want to be bothered.”“What are you going to do now? It is still up to you to decide, you know.”Clay, having given up all idea of notifying the boy of his accession to great wealth, dropped down on the railing of theRamblerand looked at Alex with eager eyes. “Will you tell Paul?”“No, I think not,” replied Alex. “You see, I want to wait until Rube and Buck get here. They may not want to accept the trust.”“I haven’t the least idea that they will; they are modest men, doubting their own ability. You will have to argue pretty hard to talk them into taking the responsibility.”“We’ll find a way!” Alex insisted.This was the third night of the trip to the mouth of the Pecos, theRamblerhaving been tied up the two previous nights because the gasoline tank had sprung a leak and there were no filling stations within reach.
CHAPTER XX
TAKEN AT LAST
Paul awoke shortly after Thede’s departure for theEsmeralda, and Clay, Case and himself spent some moments wondering about the success of the night expedition in the rain.
Case and Clay only laughed at the idea of the counterfeiters being taken, declaring that the clicking sounds which the men had heard probably came from a long distance, and that, anyhow, there wouldn’t be any counterfeiters present when they came, after a long tramp in the rain, to the locality where they had been.
“They are slippery people, these counterfeiters,” Case argued, getting ready for supper, “and are not to be caught napping. When you get where you can put your finger on them, they are not there!”
“But suppose, for a minute, that they did catch them,” urged Paul, “what are they going to do with them? They might be kept on theEsmeralda. She is not loaded down with people like theRambler.”
“Catch your men before you find places for them!” Case laughed. “If the boys do catch them, we’ll find a place to store them!”
“Say,” said Clay, sniffing at the rather meager supper cooking on the electric stove, “is that the best you can do in the way of supper? I could eat all that myself, and then want more! Suppose we go over to theEsmeraldafor supper?”
“It is only a short time since you had your supper,” Case laughed. “I was just preparing a little snack because there was nothing else to do. If you want a hearty meal, you sure will have to go to theEsmeraldafor it.”
“You know what Alex said about leaving the fish by the roadside,” Clay laughed. “How would you like some of those fish right now? They would go pretty good, eh?”
“I wonder if I could find them?” Case said.
“In this storm? I should say not! Forget it!”
But Case seemed fascinated with the idea of getting those fish, and referred to the fact that they were lying there in the rain, doing no one any good, several times during the next few minutes. At last Clay said with a laugh:
“Oh, go on and get the fish, if you are so stuck on doing it! There won’t be any peace on the boat until you have tried! I haven’t any idea that you will succeed, but you can try!”
Case arose from the locker, where he had been sitting, and, going to the window, looked out on the driving rain. The night was sultry, and the rain splashing on the deck of the motor boat seemed rather attractive.
The boy threw off the light coat he had worn and stood in undershirt and light trousers. After looking critically at his feet for a second, he proceeded to put on a pair of coarse shoes, well calculated for walking in rocky places.
“So you are going, after all!” Clay laughed. “Well, good luck go with you! If a crazy notion ever got into a boy’s head, one has entered yours now! The idea of going out in this storm! Why, it is raining some, I tell you!”
“Who cares for the rain?” was the reply. “I shall enjoy the trip immensely! If we had Alex or Jule here to explain their line of march, we’d have fish to eat!”
“But they are not here,” commented Clay, “and one might as well look for a needle in a load of hay as to try to follow their footsteps. Better give the thing up!”
“No,” was the reply, “I’ll get a good bath, anyhow, and I may find the fish, though it’s dollars to apples that I don’t!”
The boy took up his searchlight and crossed over to theEsmeralda, which lay between theRamblerand the Mexican shore. Thede had a hearty laugh at the idea of the lad venturing out in the rain.
“You’ve got the fish notion as badly as Rube and Buck have the counterfeiters’ hunch,” he said. “When they get where they are, they won’t be there.”
“All right!” was the reply. “If I can’t get the fish, I’ll get a good bath! Say, Clay is over there on theRambler, starving to death! Can’t you get him over here and fill him up?”
“Sure!” was the ready response. “I can stuff him like we do raccoons!”
“I guess that will hold him for a while!” laughed Case.
With that he left the boat, and the last seen of him was the round hole made in the night by his searchlight.
Clay and Paul were left alone on theRambler. Clay told Paul what he had heard of the plans of the four adventurers, closing with the statement that they would succeed only in getting soaked to the skin.
They had a frisky time with Captain Joe, the cub, and the parrot, putting the latter through all his tricks, and the cub also coming in for a share of the frolic. The dog soon grew weary of the game, and took refuge out in the rain.
“What’s the matter with Captain Joe?” asked Paul. “He doesn’t appear to be in his usual spirits! Perhaps he’s sulking because he was not invited to the counterfeiter hunt!”
The parrot was in a talkative mood, and reeled off such sayings as he had heard the boys repeat by the yard. At last he cocked his head on one side and shouted:
“Come out of that! Come out of that! What are you hiding for? What are you hiding for?”
“That’s odd!” Clay exclaimed, looking about the cabin of theRamblercuriously. “I never knew the bird to act in that way before. He usually contents himself with shorter questions.”
“I believe there’s something going on,” Paul declared, almost in a whisper. “Listen!”
Both boys listened for a moment, and then Clay stepped to the door, or window, leading to the aft deck and threw it open, remarking, as he did so, that it was a wonder it had not been open all the evening.
Then came the surprise of his life.
As Clay threw the window open a grinning face confronted him—a low, mean face, with small, black eyes, a bulldog chin, and a forehead which seemed like that of a snake, it sloped so, and was so narrow. The fellow, who was slender of form, extended a threatening revolver in his right hand and climbed through the window.
Clay was not armed, and he knew that Paul was in the same fix. Weapons lay all about him in the cabin, but none was within reach.
“What do you want?” demanded the lad, watching for an opportunity to get out of range of the weapon.
“You!” was the laconic answer.
“But,” Clay began, but the leveled revolver stopped him, for he saw murder in the little eyes.
The first work of the intruder was to collect all the weapons in sight and put them out of reach of the boy, who stood in the meantime with his hands raised above his head.
Then Paul received his attention. The fellow made a critical examination of the broken leg, smiling as he did so.
“You have taken excellent care of him,” was his only comment.
“What is it that you want?” Clay asked again, still watching for his chance.
“Your boat,” answered the fellow.
He paused a moment, as if considering, and then nodded his head in the direction of the place where Paul was lying, with his hands also well up in the air.
“And the kid,” he added.
“If it is money you want, name the sum,” Clay said. “He has been hurt, and can’t be moved.”
The fellow chuckled and made no reply. He took some strong cord from a pocket and proceeded to tie Clay. Was there no chance of escape? If Case would only return!
The tying went on, and Clay was obliged to endure it. If some of the boys would come!
Where was Captain Joe? Somehow, that dog never was where he was wanted! If he would only come now!
Perhaps he had been silenced by a blow on the head. But no; the dog was out on the front deck, and the intruder had entered the cabin from the rear.
The man who seemed to have taken undisputed possession of theRambler, first taking care to place the weapons beyond the reach of Paul, proceeded then to put the motors in motion. Clay watched him as he did so with anxious eyes, hoping to see him push the wrong lever, but the fellow did nothing of the kind.
All this time rain had been falling in great sheets, but now there came a lull in the storm.
The cords hurt Clay’s wounded arm, and he uttered an involuntary groan of pain. As if attracted by the cry, Captain Joe appeared in the cabin doorway!
The dog was quick to take in the situation, and, before he could make a move to defend himself, had the fellow by the throat. He had not counted on Captain Joe!
The fellow gasped as the teeth of the dog tore at his throat, and he tried to cry out, but was unable to do so. Together they rolled here and there on the cabin floor.
The noise of the struggle attracted the attention of Thede, who lost no time in getting on board the boat. At a word from Clay the dog released his hold, and the man fell back in a faint.
“I wonder if he’s dead?” Thede said, as he bent over the unconscious man. “It surely isn’t the fault of the dog if he still has life in his body!”
Then he paused a moment and looked about. He saw the plight Clay was in and hastened to release him.
“It seems to me that you kept this little performance rather private!” he said as he cut the cords. “How did he get into the cabin?”
“Came in by the window, from the after deck,” was the reply. “Strange you didn’t see or hear him when he crossed from theEsmeralda!”
“The rain probably prevented the noise he made, if he made any at all, being heard, and the chances are that he didn’t make any! The people who go forth on the mission he seems to have been on usually make as little stir as possible.”
The surgeon now gave his attention to the man, who had been severely injured by the dog, who now stood close by to see that he did not escape. He was covered with blood, his throat being badly tom.
“It seems to me that I’m having a right smart practice on this boat!” he said, with a smile. “I’ll have to go to the other boat for my instruments. That is a ragged wound!”
“Don’t you recognize the fellow?” asked Clay. “Don’t think I ever saw him before.”
“You saw his back, and that was under water,” Clay urged. “Now do you know what I mean?”
“Not little ‘To the Death’? I never guessed that!”
“That’s who it is.”
Thede now left for theEsmeralda, and Clay busied himself stanching the blood, which was flowing from the wound in the man’s neck in a steady stream.
Presently he heard voices and listened to catch the words. It was Alex and Jule, talking excitedly, and evidently making good use of their legs.
“I’m going to get theRamblerand run down,” Alex’s voice said. “If Buck and Rube get the others, there’ll sure be a load!”
The rain had ceased, and the stars were shining, lighting the rocks with a silvery radiance. There would be a moon later on.
“Now, what does the kid mean by that?” mused Clay, forgetting for the moment to care for the injured man.
CHAPTER XXI
A NIGHT OF WATCHING
Rube and Buck, accompanied by Alex and Jule, passed through the rain with no thought but that of capturing the counterfeiters in their minds. The rain fell steadily, making a great patter on the leaves of the forest trees, so conversation was difficult.
“They have chosen a fine locality for the job,” suggested Buck, pausing to wipe the sweat from his face. “This certainly is a section of country where they are not likely to receive many visitors.”
“That’s right,” Jule agreed. “This spot makes one think of graveyards and ghosts!”
The steady click of metal now came more distinctly, and presently a light was discernible through the trees. Then the party halted for consultation, standing close together to avoid being overheard. There was no knowing how many trees sheltered listeners.
It was finally decided that Rube and Alex should proceed to the right, while Buck and Jule took the opposite direction.
“We sure can surround ’em, anyway, and we may be able to capture a few of ’em!” Rube suggested. “Mighty slippery people, these gentlemen who make bogus coin!” he added, snapping off his searchlight.
The snapping off of the light made the forest as dark as a pocket, but this condition existed for only a few minutes, for the light of a great fire in a cave of large size shone out upon the stealthily advancing men.
“It strikes me,” commented Alex, “that they’ve got a heap of nerve to build a fire like that. How do they know who’ll be passing along here?”
Rube chuckled softly.
“You are in Mexico now, son, where the people wink at all the crimes in the book of laws. Besides, these people are about as likely to have callers as pigs are to fly!”
“Well, we’ve got to the nest, now how are we to get inside?” asked Alex, wrinkling his nose in perplexity. “We might rush in on ’em, quick, and catch ’em with the goods!”
“Watch, and wait for Buck and Jule to come up,” was the slow reply. “They may be able to suggest some plan. Whatever you do, be careful. These people shoot quick and straight. The first thing you know, you won’t know anything!”
They waited a long time for Buck and Jule, but at last they came, having taken a route which led to the other side of the rocky elevation which formed the base of the cave. It was only by the quick display of a searchlight that Rube and Alex located their chums.
Then a long conference was held, Jule and Alex being in favor of rushing the place and taking it by storm, while Buck and Rube were more conservative.
“Don’t you boys get us into any place we can’t get out of,” said Rube, with a little laugh. “If we go into that cave we are likely to do just that very thing!”
“All right,” replied Alex, “if you want to sneak in just go on and we’ll follow!”
There were four men in the cave, all so busy over their work that they did not have time to grab a single weapon for their own defense, so the fight which followed was very short.
Rube felled one of the four with a blow of his fist, and the others yielded to the persuasions of the automatics. When all were tied up, and after the boys had searched the cavern for more, another consultation was held.
“I wonder if they are all here?” Alex said, regarding the captured prisoners with a smile. “Call the roll, someone who knows all the names! I pass on these Mexican names!”
The boy’s question called forth only sullen looks and scowls. It was easy to see what would have been the fate of the boys had the conditions been reversed.
Both Buck and Rube understood a few words of Spanish, and tried their best to enter into conversation with their prisoners, but all their questions were answered by scowling looks.
A search of the cave revealed a complete counterfeiter’s assortment of tools and dies used in the work, together with considerable silver. The dies were destroyed, and as much of the silver as could be carried without inconvenience appropriated.
“What are you going to do with the silver?” asked Alex.
“Oh, it will come in handy, all right!” answered Buck. “Mexican law provides for turning it over to the government, but as there is no government to speak of, we’ll just geezle it! If we turn it over to the people who have charge of the government, there is no knowing whether it will ever get into circulation.”
Once more they tried to talk with the prisoners, but received only scowls in reply. So they gave up the attempt and began the return trip.
“This capture has been an easy one,” was Jule’s comment, as the boys walked along in the rear of the two men who were taking good care that the captured men did not escape. “A little bit too easy!”
“Why too easy?”
“Oh, we may have trouble yet,” was Jule’s reply.
It did look that way to the boys. The prisoners kept an eye out for a chance to make a run for it.
Now and then one of them halted for an instant to listen, but, hearing nothing, walked on again.
“That fellow is expecting someone to rescue him,” Alex said, after some distance had been passed. “Anyhow, we are too near the boats now for any attempt at rescue to prove successful.”
“How do you know that?” demanded Jule. “The boats are no protection. If we find them as we usually have, they’ll need help from us. What’s that?”
The prisoners had made a break for liberty, and, taking advantage of a rocky spot where walking was very difficult, had darted off, bound as they were. Buck and Rube fired several shots, but the men ran all the faster.
At last two of the men were found, lying hidden under a bush, but the others could not be discovered, though the lads searched all around.
“We’re lucky to have these two left!” Alex said with a grin. “If the others don’t attack us before we get to the boats, we’ll be lucky. Our searchlights make a good mark!”
“And they can hear the noise we make going through the bushes a mile off!” added Jule.
“Suppose we go on ahead and search the river?” proposed Alex. “We can run up and down the stream, anyway. The stars are shining, and the light is fine. Then we can take theRamblerand run her up and down stream. I’ve got a hunch that they will make for the river and try to cross to the American side.”
“I don’t see why they should do that,” was the reply. “There are plenty of mountains, or high ground at least, for them to hide in. But you may be right. We’ll try the river first.”
After searching the bank of the river, the boys made for theRambler, crossed theEsmeralda, and went on board. There they found the surgeon bending over the injured man and everything in confusion.
“What’s doing here?” asked Jule.
Then Clay told the story of the attack on the boat and how Captain Joe came to the rescue.
“Good dog!” cried Alex, stroking the dog’s head. “Don’t you, none of you, ever call him a no-account cur again! This makes two men he has pulled down lately. That is a fair record for a cur dog, don’t you think?”
“Captain Joe is a peach of a dog!” cut in Jule. “I shall never forget how he jumped that river pirate who was lighting the match to bum my feet!”
“Do you know who this man is?” asked Clay, after a short pause, during which the dog was petted and caressed to his heart’s content. “Give a guess.”
The boys made a close examination of the man’s features, but they were so bloody that identification was difficult, if not impossible.
“I give it up!” said Alex.
“So do I!” chorused Jule.
Then the surgeon told who the injured man was, and the boys expressed great satisfaction.
“We’ll see that he don’t get away a second time,” Clay declared. “He’s a tricky chap, but he will stay put now. By the way, where’s Case—on theEsmeralda, I take it.”
Clay and Paul looked at each other with sober eyes.
“Case left the boat two hours ago,” answered Clay. “He said he was going to look for the fish you boys left, and should have been back within half an hour.”
“He seems to be setting up a rivalry to Alex,” laughed Paul. “That boy certainly can have more adventures in less time than any boy in the wide world!”
“Oh, Clay can go some in that line!” laughed Alex, “but where do you think the boy is?”
“Why didn’t Captain Joe go with him?” asked Jule.
“Because the dog needs rest,” replied Clay. “He has had a hard time of it, haven’t you, Joe?” caressing the dog as he spoke. “And your wound hasn’t healed yet, and you ought to be in the hospital! Tell him that you are in no shape to go chasing over the country looking for lost fish!”
The dog made the explanation as plainly as it could be made by one not having the gift of speech, and the boys all laughed and looked pleased.
“You are worth a dozen dead dogs yet!” declared Alex.
“I’d like to know which way Case went,” wondered Jule. “We saw nothing of him.”
“Perhaps Rube and Buck will bring him with them,” Clay said hopefully.
“Doesn’t it take a long time to bring those two captives in?” asked Thede, still busy over the injured man, who was now beginning to show signs of returning consciousness.
“That’s just what I was thinking,” Alex exclaimed.
The boys looked in every direction except at each other. There was in the eyes of every one of them a premonition of evil which he did not want the others to see!
“The moon is coming up now, let’s go and look for them!” suggested Jule. “I want to put on a dry suit, then I’ll be ready.”
“It strikes me that we have no time to waste, if we want to overhaul the United States Marshal and the Sheriff,” Alex declared. “And we might give a thought to Case while we are out looking the others up. Beats the dickens how we do get scattered!”
“All right,” agreed Jule, “if you want to start right now. I’m ready, only it won’t do you any good to tell how hungry you are before you’ve gone a mile. If you drag me off without a chance to change my clothes, I’ll see that you don’t get anything to eat until we get back!”
“But suppose I should find the fish, what about that?” Alex replied, starting away.
The moon was up above the tops of the trees now, and was at the full. It was a splendid night, and the boys enjoyed it greatly as they hastened along.
“Which way?” asked Jule.
“I don’t know,” replied Alex. “The counterfeiters’ cave is downstream, but the two men who were found in hiding under a bush gave them a run before they were caught, and I’m all at sea.”
“Which way did Case go?”
“Again I don’t know.”
“Well, we must decide on something pretty soon or it will be morning before we reach a conclusion,” Jule suggested.
That was a long night for those who remained on theRambler. The hours dragged slowly, with no word from the boys.
Thede dressed the wounded man’s throat and got him into an improvised bed. Then he sat down to await news from the boys. The night passed and the sun rose in a cloudless sky.
“I feel like taking up the search myself,” Clay exclaimed. “The boys are probably doing all that anyone could do, yet I think I could do better. I’ve a good notion to see what I could do!”
“And leave us alone? I guess not!”
It was Paul who spoke, but the very next moment something occurred which gave a new light to the situation.
Rube came back, weary and worn, but he came alone!
CHAPTER XXII
A SURPRISE FOR CLAY
Clay and Thede met the bedraggled man at the rail. There were questions in their eyes which they dreaded to put into words.
“Mornin’,” came the cheerful greeting.
Clay looked him over critically.
“You’re a sight!” he said.
Rube looked down at his torn clothes, at his sodden boots, and smiled.
“They don’t look very spick an’ span, do they?” he asked. “But you ought to see the other boys!”
“Where’s Case?” asked Paul. “He went out to catch fish off dry land, and we haven’t seen him since.”
In answer to Rube’s wondering look, Clay explained that Case had gone in the hope of finding the string of fish dropped by Jule and Alex. Rube’s only reply was a grin.
“Where are the others?” asked Paul, as Rube climbed wearily aboard theRambler. “Is Case with them?” he added.
Before making any reply Rube threw himself down with a sigh of relief and drew off his boots, sodden with water from the underbrush.
“Yes, Case is with the others,” he replied, then, “and the gang will be here in something like half an hour. Got any notion where we’ve been?” he added with a most exasperating grin.
“That’s just what we’re anxious to hear,” replied Clay.
“Well,” replied Rube, “we’ve been over to the United States—yes, sir, over to the good old United States!”
The boys gave the man an incredulous look, as if doubting his word. Perhaps he just thought he had been over there!
“Where did you get a boat?” asked Thede, after a long silence.
“The counterfeiters had one,” was the laconic reply, “and we geezled it. We had a fine time over there—not!”
“Well, why don’t you open up and tell us about it?” Clay said, irritated at the provoking deliberation of the man.
Rube looked hopelessly about, as if expecting aid from some unknown source, and was about to begin when there came a shout from the bank and Buck, Case, Alex, and Jule made their appearance. Rube looked very much relieved, and Clay stepped forward to meet the approaching men, his face wreathed in smiles.
“You’re a nice boy to go after fish!” he said, giving the lad a friendly poke. “The next time we send you out, we’ll keep you at home where we can watch you!”
Alex displayed a string of fish!
“Here’s your old fish!” he said, with pardonable pride. “Now we’ll have something to eat!”
“Are those the same fish?” Clay demanded.
“The same—the very same!” Case answered. “Say, but I could eat one, scales and all.”
While the fish were cooking, and while Alex was bringing everything in the eatable line over from theEsmeralda, Case and Jule told of the adventures of the night.
“You see, it’s just like this,” he began, but Jule stopped him with a laughing remark.
“Tell about your adventures first,” he said.
Captain Joe, who had been trying all this time to attract attention to himself, now sprang upon Alex and began licking his face. The boy stroked the dog’s head affectionately. His side was still sore where the outlaw’s bullet had cut its way through the flesh.
Case replied with a laugh, and went on with his story.
Alex and Jule had come across Case, it seemed, when he had given up all hope of finding the fish and was on his way back to theRambler. The three had searched a long time for Buck and Rube, but had found them at last.
They had taken what they had believed to be a shorter way to the boat and had lost their way, being at the time of meeting Alex and Jule, traveling in the right direction.
“Why don’t you get us over to God’s country?” demanded Jule.
“All right!” was Case’s answer. “The counterfeiters had evidently crossed over from the American side of the Rio Grande in a rowboat, for one was found in a little bayou near the point of meeting. This gave Rube an idea.
“‘Why not take the prisoners across the river without going to theRambler?’ he asked. ‘If we lock ’em up in a Mexican jail, the chances are that they will be out before our backs are turned. The people over here have little respect for the law.’
“This was finally agreed to, and we bundled the prisoners into the boat. It was a tight squeeze, getting us all in, but the feat was accomplished at last and we were across the river in a jiffy.
“We landed at a small village—a typical border town, with plenty of Mexicans in evidence. The streets ought to have been pretty quiet at that time of night, but they were anything but that.
“A company of United States soldiers—the same we had given a banquet to up the river—had possession of the town, and were making a search for the four counterfeiters! Of course we gave up the two we held, and were warmly thanked by the lieutenant in charge, who had not forgotten us by any manner of means.
“We had a midnight supper with the soldiers—a supper which took us far into the night. Then, after making a date with the lieutenant at the mouth of the Pecos river, we returned to theRambler. Not much of a story, after all!”
“Well, we’ve got plenty of time to make the Pecos river, as the men will have a long walk, so I propose getting forty winks!” said Clay. “I didn’t get enough sleep last night to put in tea! Who’s for the feathers?”
“I’m afraid we can’t meet you boys and the lieutenant at the mouth of the Pecos river,” said Buck, after a short consultation with Rube. “You see, it’s like this,” he continued, “unless you boys want to stick around and watch us work, we’ll have to be on our way. It’s back up the river for us, but we may be at the mouth of the Pecos in time to greet you boys and the soldiers, though it’s rather doubtful.”
“Suppose we caucus on the proposition,” suggested Alex. “For one, I’m willing to remain with Buck and Rube.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to go to the mouth of the Pecos, and wait for them there?” Clay cut in. “I understand that the Pecos is a peach of a stream when it comes to crooks and turns, and I’d like to see it. If it is a sure thing that you will be there within a few days, we might go on and wait for you there.”
“Oh, we’ve got to be there, all right!” Rube declared.
“Then we’re all right,” cried Alex. “We’ll just drop down and wait for you there. Now, what will you have to eat?”
“Why, we have just had a whale of a meal,” Thede said. “Do you want to stuff us like they do hens for market?”
“That was just a lunch,” laughed the boy. “A little fish breakfast! Before the trip ends, I want a chance to show what I can do in the cooking line.”
So Rube and Buck went back up the river, while theRamblerturned her prow to the east. Of course Alex and Jule had to have another meal.
“Do you think,” smiled Jule, “that we came on this excursion to go hungry? Not much! When we get farther downstream, where we can get ’coons that are good and fat. I’ll show the gang how to cook one. My mouth waters at the thought!”
As theRamblerproceeded on her way, it was plain to be seen that Alex had something on his mind. He kept more than usually still, and the frown between his eyes grew more marked.
Clay noticed the change in the boy and waited for him to give the reason for it. He knew that in time the answer would come.
It came one night when Alex was on watch. It was a brilliant night in June, and the boy had been unusually thoughtful that day.
“Suppose,” Alex began, “that a man died and left a big fortune—not a few thousands, but millions—and he had only one heir.”
Clay knew that the thing which had been bothering Alex was on the way to the surface, and waited for him to go on.
“And suppose this man had a brother who was greedy for the big fortune, and suppose the brother also died, where would the fortune go until the heir became of age?”
“To whoever the court appointed guardian,” was the reply. “Is there such a case?”
“Would the heir have any say about the appointment of the guardian?” continued the lad.
“I think he ought to,” was the answer.
Alex was thoughtful for a short time and then drew from an inside pocket a folded newspaper, which he passed over to Clay.
“Perhaps you would better read the story for yourself,” he said, “then you’ll know all about it.”
The newspaper contained a long account of the death by drowning of one Orlando Stegman.
“Where did you get this?” asked Clay, after running hastily through the article. “Is the Orlando Stegman, the person named here, the uncle of Paul?”
“Yes,” was the answer. “Another part of the same newspaper contains an advertisement offering a reward for the discovery of the heir. Paul won’t have to dodge about the country any more.”
“Did you show him this article?” asked Clay, rising to his feet. “Tell me where you got it.”
“It just appeared,” was the reply. “I have no idea where it came from. It is a Chicago paper, and how a Chicago newspaper got down here is more than I can guess.”
Clay turned the paper and read the date line.
“Why,” he said in amazement, “the paper is over two weeks old. Well, it doesn’t matter how it got here, it is here, and makes a millionaire of the boy we—or Captain Joe, rather—fished out of the Rio Grande! And a pretty good job he did, too!”
“I didn’t tell Paul of the discovery,” Alex said, after a pause, during which he blocked the door to the cabin, “because I didn’t want to lose him. Just the minute he gets hold of that paper he’ll want to be off, and I want Rube or Buck, or both, to get well acquainted with him so as to be appointed guardian. How does that strike you?”
“Fine!” exclaimed Clay.
“We might have guardians in duplicate!” Alex laughed. “Do they ever have guardians in duplicate?”
“Sometimes they have three,” was the reply. “But why did you keep so sly about it? You might have told me!”
“Well,” was the answer, “I was in doubt what to do about it. You see, I didn’t want you to know about it until I had it all thought out. You would be apt to tell the other boys, and I didn’t want to be bothered.”
“What are you going to do now? It is still up to you to decide, you know.”
Clay, having given up all idea of notifying the boy of his accession to great wealth, dropped down on the railing of theRamblerand looked at Alex with eager eyes. “Will you tell Paul?”
“No, I think not,” replied Alex. “You see, I want to wait until Rube and Buck get here. They may not want to accept the trust.”
“I haven’t the least idea that they will; they are modest men, doubting their own ability. You will have to argue pretty hard to talk them into taking the responsibility.”
“We’ll find a way!” Alex insisted.
This was the third night of the trip to the mouth of the Pecos, theRamblerhaving been tied up the two previous nights because the gasoline tank had sprung a leak and there were no filling stations within reach.