on t_ 
 
 lumbia River 
 
 or 
 
 dven tares 
 
 in a 

 
 > % # 
 
 & 
 
 L.AWRENCE 'i
 
 -J*-*JP0S&*
 
 "Look at this! Here we are on the Columbia river below 
 the Kootenay branch all mountains and forests clear to the 
 Fraser river, and that must be two hundred miles." [Page 83] 
 
 The Boy Scouts on the Columbia River.
 
 BOY SCOUTS 
 
 IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 OR 
 
 ADVENTURES ON THE 
 COLUMBIA RIVER 
 
 By 
 
 G. HARVEY RALPHSON 
 
 Author of BOY SCOUTS IN AN AIRSHIP 
 BOY SCOUTS IN A SUBMARINE 
 BOY SCOUTS ON A MOTOR CYCLE 
 BOY. SCOUTS IN MEXICO 
 
 Chicago 
 M. A. DONOHUE & COMPANY
 
 COPYRIGHT 1912. 
 M. A. DONOHUE & COMPANY. 
 
 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. 
 
 Electrotyped, Printed and Bound by 
 M. A. DitiKthuo & Co.
 
 STACK 
 AHNCX 
 
 5125912 
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER. PAGE. 
 
 I. THE LUKE or HIDDEN GOLD 7 
 
 II. STRANGE HAPPENINGS IN THE NIGHT 23 
 
 III. A TELL-TALE ALARM CLOCK. 40 
 
 IV. THE BLACK BEAR AND THE WOLF 55 
 
 V. AKBAR AND SAXBY APPEAR 69 
 
 VI. A BRISK BATTLE SOON OVER 83 
 
 VII. THE BLACK BEAR TAKES A DROP 99 
 
 VIII. A BOY SCOUT POSTOFFICE 114 
 
 IX. THE LIGHTS IN THE SKY 130 
 
 X. AN EAGLE TO THE BESCUE 145 
 
 XI. THE BLACK BEAR SCENTS A PROWLER 159 
 
 XII. AKBAR PRESENTS HIMSELF 175 
 
 XIII. JACK TAKES A COLD BATH 191 
 
 XIV. THE QUEST OF THE SKY MAN 206 
 
 XV. A BLACK BEAR IN A CAGE 219 
 
 XVI. THE LAST OF Two VILLAINS 229 
 
 XVII. RIPE FOR ADVENTURES IN THE AIR. . 239
 
 Boy Scouts in a Motor Boat; 
 
 or 
 
 Adventures on the Columbia River 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE LUBE OF HIDDEN GOLD. 
 
 "And so this searcher for the Pirate's 
 Treasure came to the mysterious island, after 
 many days, and encircled it in a boat until he 
 came to a path made of flat rocks, set at reg- 
 ular intervals in the soil. With hope beating 
 high in his breast, he followed this path to 
 the end, and there came to a level space where 
 no vegetation grew. 
 
 1 'Here he began to dig, for he reasoned that 
 the absence of vegetation in that fertile spot 
 indicated that barren earth from the bottom 
 of some deep excavation had been brought to 
 the surface. After two hours of heavy work 
 with a spade, the blade of the implement rang 
 sharply against what seemed to be a metal 
 surface. 
 
 "Further digging revealed an iron chest, 
 
 7
 
 8 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 about four feet in size each way, and so heavy 
 that the resolute searcher, even with his great 
 strength, could not budge it the breadth of a 
 hair. Here, undoubtedly, was the treasure he 
 had crossed a continent and an ocean to find. 
 
 "Finding himself unable to drag the chest 
 out of the grave it had dwelt in so long, the 
 searcher next endeavored to unloosen the 
 strong iron bands which held the cover down. 
 Once under that metal plate, his arms would 
 be up to the shoulders in pieces of eight and 
 precious stones. It was an alluring prospect, 
 and right manfully did the anxious man strive 
 with the iron strips which guarded the wealth 
 within. 
 
 "But, tug and strain as he would, the fasten- 
 ings resisted all his efforts. The bars which 
 crossed the top were cunningly carried to the 
 inside through tight-fitting grooves and there 
 fastened. After all his weary journey, after 
 all his cruel privations, after really coming to 
 the Pirate's Treasure at last, he found him- 
 self as helpless to gain possession of it, even to 
 touch it, as if it had been stored in a bank- 
 vault guarded by a time-lock. 
 
 "And so, after trying in vain until darkness 
 fell to discover some secret spring by means of 
 which the lid of the chest might be lifted, the 
 baffled searcher for the Pirate's Gold restored
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA EIVEE. 
 
 the loose earth to the excavation, smoothed it 
 down as it had been on his arrival, and 
 returned with an empty purse and a heavy 
 heart to his native country. 
 
 "Prom that day forth he was known 
 throughout all the countryside as a gold-mad 
 man. It was believed that his incessant and 
 unsuccessful search for the Pirate's Gold had 
 unsettled his brain. Although he could have 
 led a company to the exact spot where the 
 treasure chest was hidden in the rocky soil of 
 the mysterious island, no one would give either 
 credence to his tale or time or money to the en- 
 terprise, and so he died a discredited man, 
 wanting the barest necessities of life." 
 
 Frank Shaw, the reader, tossed the news- 
 paper aside and arose to his feet with a yawn 
 which ended in a long, satisfying grunt. 
 
 The four boys sitting in the glow of an open 
 grate fire, in the handsome club-room of the 
 Black Bear Patrol, in the City of New York, 
 looked their chum over with varying expres- 
 sions on their faces. There was a smile in the 
 eyes of Ned Nestor which proclaimed misbe- 
 lief in the story of buried treasure which had 
 just been read. 
 
 Jack Bosworth, at the top of whose palatial 
 home the Boy Scout club-room was situated, 
 turned inquiring eyes toward Nestor, as if
 
 10 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 waiting for a verdict from him, while Harry 
 Stevens frowned steadily at the fire. On one 
 face, however, there was a look of entire belief, 
 a look bordering on enthusiasm. Jimmie 
 McGraw, the youngest of the five boys 
 assembled there, lost no time in expressing his 
 opinion of the tale which Frank Shaw had 
 just finished reading. 
 
 "Gee!" he cried, springing to his feet. "I 
 wish I'd V been that feller! If I couldn't 
 V got away with the stuff I'd V been sittin' 
 there yet." 
 
 "All Jimmie 's hopes for future wealth are 
 based on the finding of a pirate's pot of gold," 
 laughed Harry Stevens. "He goes to sleep 
 with a dream book under his pillow every night 
 of his life, hoping a vision will show him the 
 way, during the dark hours, to a ton or so of 
 pieces of eight and a peck of diamonds. Of 
 course round, hard, red American gold 
 wouldn't answer ! The treasure must be in old 
 Spanish pieces of eight, whatever they are 
 or were!" 
 
 "Anyway," Jimmie broke in, "you've got 
 to show me! Where does all the gold go to? 
 There's plenty of it hidden out of sight. I'll 
 bet there's gold hidden right under the good 
 old Bowery!" 
 
 Jimmie, who had been a Bowery newsboy
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 11 
 
 before attaching himself to the adventurous 
 spirits of the Black Bear Patrol, arose, thrust 
 his hands deep into his pockets, and walked 
 slowly about the room, looking at the weapons 
 and trophies and holding up his chin as if he 
 considered his argument unanswerable. 
 
 It was a handsome apartment, and had long 
 been dedicated exclusively to the use of the Boy 
 Scouts of the Black Bear Patrol. The walls 
 were hung with guns, automatic revolvers, pad- 
 dles, fishing outfits, bows, arrows, foils, boxing- 
 gloves, and such trophies as the Boy Scouts 
 had brought from river and forest. 
 
 Above the door was a large shield, from the 
 center of which a huge black bear lifted an 
 inquisitive nose. Small duplicates of this shield 
 constituted the badges of the Black Bear 
 Patrol. The boys were proud of their badge, 
 especially as the Black Bear Patrol was uni- 
 versally acknowledged to be the crack Patrol 
 of New York. 
 
 The members of this Patrol were all sons of 
 very wealthy parents. Mr. Shaw, the father 
 of Frank, was owner and editor of one of the 
 most influential newspapers in the city, the 
 Daily Planet. Jack Bosworth's father was a 
 famous corporation lawyer. The father of 
 Harry Stevens was at the head of a great 
 automobile concern. The parents of the other
 
 12 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 members, with whom this story has no concern, 
 were equally prominent in the business and 
 social circles of the big city. 
 
 Ned Nestor and Jimmie McGraw, present 
 in the Black Bear club-room on this night, 
 were members of the Wolf Patrol, also of New 
 York City, but had long been associated with 
 the Black Bears. Nestor was principally 
 employed in the Secret Service of the United 
 States Government, while Jimmie, originally 
 a street waif, was his constant companion in 
 his adventurous undertakings, as were also 
 some of the members of the Black Bear Patrol. 
 
 Members of the latter Patrol had accom- 
 panied Ned Nestor to Mexico in the interest 
 of the Secret Service, to the Panama Canal 
 Zone, to the Philippines, and to the Great 
 Northwest. Nestor was hardly more than 
 eighteen, much too young for regular enlist- 
 ment in the Secret Service arm of the Govern- 
 ment, yet he was, as has been said, often 
 employed by the Government, frequently 
 working directly under the orders of the 
 ^Secretary of War, or those of the Secretary 
 of State. 
 
 Those who have followed the Boy Scouts to 
 Mexico, to the Canal Zone, to the Philippines 
 and Japan, and to the Great Northwest in
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 13 
 
 previous volumes of this series* will readily 
 understand the nature of Ned Nestor's 
 employment without repetition here. 
 
 On this early May night, bright but cold for 
 that season of the year, the five boys were dis- 
 cussing a vacation trip which had long been 
 planned. On leaving the Northwest, where 
 their efforts had resulted in the bringing to 
 punishment of numerous forest "fire-bugs," 
 the boys had promised themselves a return trip 
 to that wonderful country under conditions 
 more suited to leisure and to forest and river 
 sports. 
 
 Frank Shaw had, on this night, interrupted 
 the discussion with his tale of Pirate Gold, and 
 had for a time switched the conversation in 
 that direction. He had found the story in the 
 morning issue of his father's newspaper, and, 
 as will be seen later, had a secret motive in 
 introducing it at this time. Jimmie McGraw, 
 stalking about the club-room with his hands in 
 his trousers pockets, his mind overflowing with 
 the enthusiasm of the small boy for the pirate 
 tale, was apparently no more of an enthusiast 
 on the subject of buried gold than the son 
 of the famous editor seemed to be. 
 
 "Boy Scouts in Mexico : or, On Guard With Uncle Sam." 
 "Boy Scouts in the Canal Zone ; or. The Plot Against Uncle Sam." 
 "Boy Scouts in the Philippines; or. The Key to the Treaty Box." 
 "Boy Scouts in the Northwest; or, Fighting Forest Fires." 
 Published by M. A. Donohue & Company, Chicago. See advertise- 
 ment elsewhere.
 
 14 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 " There's more gold been wasted in hunting 
 hidden treasures than has ever been brought 
 to light by the searchers," Jack Bosworth said, 
 presently. "It seems to me that the old-time 
 pirates knew what to do with their ill-gotten 
 wealth." 
 
 "Of course they did!" Jimmie exclaimed. 
 "They buried it. They didn't spend it, for 
 they just took what they wanted. Say, but 
 wouldn't it be about right for us to dig up a 
 bushel of pieces of eight? Suppose we take 
 our vacation where there is a chance of finding 
 treasure?" 
 
 For a moment no one replied to the sug- 
 gestion, and then Frank Shaw came to Jim- 
 mie 's assistance. 
 
 "There's a good many places where gold is 
 buried, if you believe the newspapers," he 
 said. "Why, look here," he went on, taking 
 a newspaper clipping from a pocket, "this 
 writer claims that there's a pirate treasure 
 buried away up the Columbia river, some dis- 
 tance below the boundary line." 
 
 Nestor leaned back in his chair and laughed 
 heartily. 
 
 "So that's the idea !" he exclaimed. "You're 
 insisting on the Columbia river trip because 
 you think there's gold hidden up there! I've 
 been wondering why you advocated that trip
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 15 
 
 so strenuously, why you brought up the sub- 
 ject of hidden gold just now!" 
 
 "Well," Frank said, blushing a bit, as one 
 caught in a sly move, "I'll admit that you 
 have named one reason for my choice of the 
 Columbia. But, aside from the possibility of 
 finding buried gold, there's no river trip in 
 the world that can equal it. A summer spent 
 in a motor boat on the Columbia river would 
 be about the height of human enjoyment, it 
 seems to me." 
 
 "It sure is a glorious old stream," Jack 
 Bosworth said. "I've been looking it up since 
 this vacation journey has been under discus- 
 sion. We can get all kinds of wild game and 
 wild thrills, too, and at the same time be only 
 a short distance from a railroad. There's 
 probably about as much buried gold up there 
 as there is under the floor of this room, but I'm 
 for the Columbia, for all that." 
 
 "Pirate treasure on the Columbia!" smiled 
 Ned Nestor. * ' That is a new one on me. Where 
 did you get that idea, Frank?" he added. 
 
 "I never said there was pirate treasure 
 along the Columbia," Frank hastened to say, 
 turning to Jimmie McGraw's eager face for 
 support. "What I said was that, aside from 
 the possibility of finding buried gold, there's 
 no river trip in the world to equal it."
 
 16 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "I smell a gold story in even that sentence," 
 said Jack Bosworth. "What is it, my brave 
 boy f Where have you located this wonderful 
 treasure on the Columbia?" 
 
 "I haven't said anything about locating a 
 wonderful treasure on the Columbia," insisted 
 Frank. "But, all the same there may be one 
 there. A treasure brought over from India 
 away back in 1717, or about that time." 
 
 "Tell 'em about it !" urged Jimmie McGraw, 
 who, it was evident, had already been taken 
 into the confidence of the Columbia river 
 enthusiast. 
 
 "I guess they've all read of it," Frank con- 
 tinued. i i Very early in the eighteenth century, 
 as the story goes, great stores of gold were 
 brought across the Pacific and hidden in the 
 new land. Ever since the beginning of history 
 India, China, Japan, the whole Great East, in 
 fact, have been hiding gold away. One writei 
 says that gold sinks into the caverns of the 
 East as water sinks into the sands of the desert, 
 never to make its appearance again." 
 
 "It goes somewhere, all right," admitted 
 Harry Stevens, from an easy position on a 
 great red divan. "Think of all the gold that 
 has been brought out of the earth since the 
 beginning of the world ! Why, there isn't one-
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA LIVER. 17 
 
 tenth of it in sight now. It is hidden away 
 somewhere, believe me." 
 
 "Yes, it goes somewhere," Frank went on, 
 encouraged by the support of his chum. 
 "Thomas J. Hurley, of the American Insti- 
 tute of Mining Engineers, says in a recent 
 work that every year a great yellow stream 
 flows into the East, a never-ending stream that 
 never turns back. He says that the work of 
 gold-absorption in Asia has been going on for 
 thousands of years, and will never cease. I 've 
 been reading it up, ' ' he added, as Nestor turned 
 a smiling face in his direction. 
 
 "It is interesting, anyway," Nestor said. 
 
 "In the Regency of Bombay alone," Frank 
 continued, referring to a newspaper clipping 
 in his hand, "$60,000,000 in gold are said to 
 be concealed. Every class of Hindus is given 
 to gold hoarding. Even the gods of India 
 whistle for it through the lips of their priests. 
 It comes pouring into the sacred temples from 
 all directions, and finds shelter in subterranean 
 passages to which only priests have entrance." 
 
 "I hope you're not going to run the Co- 
 lumbia river under one of the temples of 
 India," laughed Jack, rather nervously, "and 
 so impregnate its water with gold. Come back 
 to the trip we've been talking about." 
 
 I was asked to account for the alleged 
 
 "
 
 18 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 treasure along the Columbia," Frank said, 
 rather angrily, "and I'm getting at it as fast 
 as I can. The treasure I am speaking of came 
 across the Pacific in the early years of the 
 eighteenth century came from the sacred 
 temples of India." 
 
 "Ever think of turning your genius to fic- 
 tion?" asked Jack, uneasily. 
 
 "Never you mind," Frank continued, with 
 a grin. " This is history. In India at the time 
 I speak of a succession of nominal sovereigns, 
 sunk in ignorance and debauchery, ruled from 
 sequestered palaces, intent only on their own 
 pleasures. It is only natural, then, that 
 Viceroys formed their provinces into inde- 
 pendent states, while Hindu and Mohammedan 
 adventurers carved out kingdoms with the 
 sword." 
 
 "That's history, sure enough!" Harry 
 Stevens interrupted. 
 
 "Of course it is," Frank said, in rather an 
 injured tone of voice. "Well, these self-made 
 Viceroys and Kings and Princes were robbers, 
 and did not respect the rights of those who had 
 accumulated gold, so one Akbar, named for the 
 monarch of the same name, doubtless, got mil- 
 lions and millions of dollars worth of the yel- 
 low stuff together, loaded it on board the 
 strongest vessel he could find, and secretly set
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 19 
 
 out for the new world, where he hoped to retain 
 his wealth in peace." 
 
 "Where did you get the fable?" asked Jack, 
 who had been moving restlessly about the room 
 during the recital. "Who told it to you, and 
 where did your informant get his informa- 
 tion?" added the boy, speaking earnestly. 
 
 Never you mind," laughed Frank. "I sup- 
 pose you're already wise to the hidden gold, 
 and want to get there first ! Well, the gold was, 
 according to the tale, brought over here in 1720, 
 or thereabouts. The early explorers found 
 strange buildings along the Columbia. Captain 
 Gray, who explored the stream in the ship 
 Columbia, in the interest of the Hudson Bay 
 Company, in 1792, told of strange building 
 materials in ruins in the great canyons." 
 
 "It is all rot!" exclaimed Jack impatiently. 
 "Where did he land this wonderful cargo of 
 gold?" 
 
 "It is said that he took it up the Columbia 
 river, deeper then than now, and built his 
 temples somewhere on the west bank, between 
 the meeting of the Okanogan river with the 
 Columbia and the junction of the Spokane 
 river with the latter. At any rate, there are 
 said to be ruins of old building in the canyons 
 of that district."
 
 20 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "Does your father know of this inventive 
 talent in his son?" laughed Jack. 
 
 "That's all about buried gold," Frank went 
 on, "but I've got nine thousand reasons to 
 give you why we ought to choose the Columbia 
 for our vacation trip." 
 
 "Never mind the nine thousand reasons," 
 Ned said, "for we know : 
 
 The tipping of a large screen at the back of 
 the room here attracted the attention of the 
 boys. The screen seemed to be steadied by an 
 unseen hand for an instant, and then fell quite 
 to the floor and a door closed sharply behind 
 a fleeing figure. 
 
 "That's Akbar III., as we call him," Jack 
 cried, as the figure disappeared. "He came 
 from India with father a year ago. He's been 
 standing there listening!" 
 
 "Is he really an East Indian?" asked Ned, 
 carelessly. 
 
 "Sure he is," replied Jack. "If you leave 
 it to him, he's a descendant of the original 
 Akbar Akbar son of Humayun, son of 
 Baber! Father took a notion to him and 
 brought him from India. Funny he should 
 have been listening there while Frank was 
 telling us about the old, old Akbar! I'll bet 
 he's grinning now at the very idea of that old
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 21 
 
 reprobate hiding gold and building temples in 
 the Columbia river country!" 
 
 "You'd lose!" cried Jimmie. "What do 
 you suppose he dropped his caste prejudices 
 for an' come over here? What was he listen- 
 ing for? Huh! He'll be on a hot foot to the 
 Columbia river before morning!" 
 
 "He's no such fool!" scorned Jack, who 
 pretended to regard Frank's story as pure 
 fiction. 
 
 "You'll see!" said Jimmie. "Why, that's 
 what he came here for!" 
 
 "This grows interesting," Ned observed, 
 looking thoughtfully into the flames. 
 
 "You know it!" cried Frank. "When do 
 we start?" 
 
 "Oh, well!" laughed Ned, "If you boys are 
 set on hunting for hidden gold as well as taking 
 a motor boat trip, we may as well get started 
 as soon as possible. Only don't count too much 
 on ruined temples and buried treasure in the 
 valley of the Columbia." 
 
 The other boys joined hands and circled 
 about the room, uttering the calls of the Black 
 Bear and Wolf Patrols. They had long been 
 reckoning on this trip, and now it seemed very 
 near to them. 
 
 "While you boys are looking for ruined 
 temples and gold," laughed Jack Bosworth,
 
 22 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 breaking away from the circle, " I '11 be looking 
 for hidden treasures in the soil. Why, that 
 country is richer than mud! There's where 
 all the fine apples and grains will come from 
 in future years. There is gold in the earth of 
 the Columbia river country," he added, "but 
 you've got to get it out with agricultural imple- 
 ments." 
 
 "You just wait!" Frank said. "I'll convince 
 you!" 
 
 In a short time the boys parted for the night, 
 and the house was still.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 23 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 STKANGE HAPPENINGS IN THE NIGHT. 
 
 Jack Bosworth did not fall asleep imme- 
 diately on retiring, as was Ms usual habit. His 
 mind was excited over the events of the even- 
 ing. He was enthusiastic over the proposed 
 river trip, and, besides, his mind dwelt with 
 peculiar tenacity on the appearance in the 
 club-room of the East Indian. That the fellow 
 had overheard the story Frank had told he 
 could not doubt. 
 
 Would Akbar, as had been suggested, set out 
 at once in quest of the treasure? Was it a 
 fact that he had come to America with the 
 sole view of finding this gold ? And where had 
 Frank heard this tale ? How generally was it 
 known? These were the questions which 
 demanded attention, and which he could not 
 answer. 
 
 " I '11 find out to-morrow, ' ' he thought, * l what 
 Frank means by telling such a yarn, and where 
 he received his information." 
 
 When he tried to sleep temples with fallen 
 walls all overgrown with vines and moss moved 
 in procession through his brain. A dozen times 
 he heard the sweep of waves against project-
 
 24 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 ing walls, and at last lie gave up the notion of 
 sleeping at all that night. For reasons of his 
 own, he did not care to have Frank so eager 
 over this temple matter, and this troubled his 
 dreams, also ! 
 
 While he lay there, wide-eyed, the sound of 
 a closing door in the lower part of the house 
 reached his ears. Wondering who it might be 
 that was stirring at that hour, he arose, clothed 
 only in his pajamas, and sat down by a win- 
 dow facing the street, the sash of which was 
 lifted a foot or more. 
 
 It was now after midnight, and the moon 
 was lifting over the residence district to the 
 east. There were no loiterers in the street, 
 and the hum of the city came faintly to his 
 ears. The house stands on the north side of a 
 fine residence street, and there was a line of 
 shadows along the pavement on that side, the 
 opposite walk being bright under the rays of 
 the moon. The daub of shadows in which the 
 porches and areas on the north side lay nar- 
 rowed as the moon rose higher. 
 
 As the boy sat looking out, and listening, too, 
 for some further sound within the house, a 
 figure appeared on the porch below. There had 
 been no indications of the opening or closing 
 of the great entrance door, and the figure below 
 had not come from the street, so the boy rea-
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA EIVER. 25 
 
 soned that it must have left the interior cau- 
 tiously, slyly! 
 
 Why? Jack asked. Why had he left the 
 house so silently? Was he a member of the 
 household, out for a ramble in the city at 
 night? Was he a stranger, in the residence 
 during the dark hours for no honest purpose ? 
 Jack resolved to remain quiet in the hope of 
 finding answers to these questions. 
 
 The moon, lifting higher and pushing the 
 shadows down as it shone more freely on the 
 front of the house, at length brought the head 
 of the man below into view, leaving the shoul- 
 ders and body dimly seen, as if the fellow were 
 wading in black water up to his neck. Jack 
 had no difficulty in recognizing the face as that 
 of Akbar! But what was he doing there at 
 that time of night ? 
 
 "Now I wonder," thought the boy, "if Ak- 
 bar is prowling around thinking of that hid- 
 den gold ? And I wonder if he is making ar- 
 rangements to go in search of it? If he is, 
 he's a long way ahead of the the Boy Scout 
 expedition, ' ' with which odd conclusion the lad 
 moved about so as to get a better view of what 
 went on below. 
 
 The East Indian stood like a graven image 
 on the porch for a moment, then moved slowly 
 down the steps. He bent his head this way
 
 26 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 and that, and seemed to be watching for some 
 one. Whenever a footstep sounded in a nearby 
 street he advanced a pace and then drew back 
 again when the sound passed on. 
 
 Five minutes passed, and then a figure 
 turned a corner two houses to the west and ap- 
 proached the spot where Akbar stood. The 
 two faced each other silently for a moment, 
 and Jack noted the strange similarity of figure 
 and feature. Then they withdrew to the shel- 
 ter of the deep doorway. By leaning far out 
 of his window, at the risk of tumbling into the 
 area below, and also at the risk of discovery, 
 Jack now and then caught sight of a hand ex- 
 tended as if in impassioned gesture, but not a 
 word of what was being said could he hear. 
 
 Determined to learn something of what was 
 going on, if such a thing were possible, Jack 
 passed out of his suite, after hastily drawing 
 on his trousers and slippers, and stood for an 
 instant at the head of the great staircase lead- 
 ing to the first floor of the house. It was his 
 intention to make his way to the lower hall 
 and station himself on the inner side of the 
 door beyond which this secret conversation was 
 going on. 
 
 From that position it might be possible to 
 learn something of the business being con- 
 ducted there at that unusual hour, but the prin-
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA EIVER. 27 
 
 cipal reason for choosing that point was that 
 he might from there follow the movements of 
 the East Indian if he re-entered the house. 
 Jack was too honorable a boy to be given to 
 the listening habit, but under the circum- 
 stances he considered that he was fully justi- 
 fied in learning all that he could, and in 
 any way he could, of the stealthy interview 
 which was taking place just outside the big 
 door. 
 
 The boy found the lights in the corridor 
 burning unusually low when he closed his own 
 door and stood listening at the head of the 
 staircase. All was still in the house, not even 
 the tumblings of a restless sleeper being heard. 
 
 As Jack stepped downward he noticed that 
 there was a dim glow on the transom of the 
 den, a room directly across the corridor from 
 his own suite. This was unusual, and he paused 
 an instant to investigate. A straight line 
 drawn from his own door to that of the den 
 a room used exclusively by his father would 
 have passed across the entrance to the stair- 
 case, so the boy had only a few steps to take to 
 reach the lighted transom. 
 
 Standing at the door, his hand on the knob, 
 he heard noises inside which sounded like the 
 opening and closing of drawers and the rat- 
 tling of papers. The boy was startled by what
 
 28 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 he heard, for that room was his father's exclu- 
 sive retiring place, and he knew that his father 
 would not be working there at that hour and in 
 that dim light. For all he knew Akbar might 
 have admitted some thief to the house. 
 
 It was an unnerving proposition, these queer 
 doings in that ordinarily quiet house, and Jack 
 was, perhaps, unduly excited at the thought 
 of facing burglars there ; at any rate, the hand 
 on the door knob trembled slightly and rattled 
 the metals of the lock. Then, quick, almost, 
 as a flash, came a voice from the inside. 
 
 "Who is there?" the question came, in a 
 low tone. 
 
 For an instant Jack made no answer. That 
 certainly was not his father's voice. It was 
 equally certain that no one else had a right 
 in that room at that time. Just what to do the 
 boy could not instantly decide. While he 
 waited he heard the front door close softly. 
 Then hurried steps were heard in the lower 
 corridor. That would be Akbar coming in 
 from the strange conference on the porch. 
 
 Jack was now more puzzled than ever as to 
 what course to pursue. If he entered the den 
 he might be attacked and Akbar, alarmed by 
 the noise of conflict, would be able to either 
 leave the house or retire to his own room, thus 
 baffling the intended surveillance made neces-
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVEE. 29 
 
 sary by the occurrences of the time. If he left 
 the den to its fate and followed Akbar, great 
 damage might be wrought there. Jack knew 
 that money was never kept in the den, but he 
 knew, also, that papers of great value were 
 often left there. 
 
 Realizing at last that he could not watch both 
 points of suspicion, Jack finally decided to 
 turn his attention to the preservation of his 
 father's papers and let Akbar 's case go until 
 another time. He could not believe, as Jimmie 
 had hinted, that the East Indian would really 
 set out immediately in quest of the buried gold, 
 if he set out at all, and resolved to have it out 
 with him the next morning. He wished de- 
 voutly for assistance, but was to plucky to call 
 out for help. 
 
 He pushed on the door, but it did not open 
 far. Some heavy hand was pressing steadily 
 against it, for it swung to when the force he 
 was using ceased. There was a silent struggle 
 as the door was pushed back and forth, and 
 then the voice which had spoken before asked : 
 
 "Who is it?" 
 
 "Jack," panted the boy, pushing against the 
 door with all his strength. "What are you do- 
 ing in here in the night ?" he added, thrusting a 
 foot into the narrow opening so that the door 
 might not be wholly closed again.
 
 30 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 Then, much to his astonishment and momen- 
 tary terror, the pressure on the back of the 
 door was removed and a hand and arm reached 
 out into the corridor and seized him by the 
 shoulder. 
 
 "Come in here, quick, and close the door," 
 the voice said. 
 
 Jack obeyed instantly ; in fact, he was prac- 
 tically pulled into the dim room, which seemed 
 in great disorder. In the faint light he recog- 
 nized the man who had spoken as Homer 
 Saxby, chauffeur and man of all work about 
 the house and garage. The man had long been 
 in the employ of the attorney, and had often 
 accompanied Mr. Bosworth on his journeys 
 abroad acting as valet occasionally but 
 there had never been any friendship between 
 him and Jack. 
 
 Saxby was short and muscular, with a bull- 
 like neck and small, sharp black eyes. He was 
 almost as dusky and as dark of hair as Akbar, 
 the East Indian, and was almost as well versed 
 in the languages, dialects and customs of the 
 Far East. He was of middle age, and seemed 
 to have no intimate friends or familiars of any 
 sort, or even acquaintances, outside of the fam- 
 ily he served. 
 
 "What are you doing here ?" Jack asked, his 
 eyes flashing suspicion.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 31 
 
 Saxby did not answer the question immedi- 
 ately. Instead lie asked one. 
 
 "Is there someone moving about out there?" 
 
 "Yes," replied Jack. "Akbar is prowling 
 about the house. I heard a noise and came out 
 to see what it meant." 
 
 Saxby now closed the door gently and turned 
 on the lights, revealing drawers emptied of 
 their contents and lying overturned on the rug. 
 Papers were scattered about in all directions, 
 and a small safe, rarely left unlocked, was wide 
 open, its contents sifting out on the floor. 
 
 "I should think he was prowling about the 
 house," Saxby said. "Look at this room! I 
 saw him leaving it not long ago and came in to 
 see what was up. I was trying to straighten 
 it up a bit when I heard your hand on the 
 door." 
 
 Jack gazed about the apartment in wonder 
 and dismay. 
 
 "There'll be doings when father knows of 
 this, ' ' he said. ' ' Perhaps I 'd better go and get 
 him out of bed." 
 
 "Your father is out of the city," Saxby re- 
 plied, stooping over to rescue a sheaf of papers 
 from the floor. "I went to the Grand Central 
 station with him early in the evening, and re- 
 mained out until half an hour ago. Then, 
 when I came home, I went to the garage with
 
 32 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 the machine and so came up the back stair- 
 way." 
 
 Saxby ceased speaking and lifted his hand 
 in warning. There were footfalls in the corri- 
 dor outside. 
 
 "You may as well open the door, 7 ' Jack sug- 
 gested. " Any one out there would know the 
 room was occupied by the lights being on. It 
 may be Akbar. I saw him talking with some 
 one down on the porch, and he may have 
 brought the fellow into the house, so we'd bet- 
 ter be careful, as there may be two of them." 
 
 "I don't believe it is Akbar," Saxby whis- 
 pered. "He wouldn't dare come back here 
 after making all this muss." 
 
 "How do you know he made it ?" Jack asked, 
 regarding Saxby suspiciously. "He came into 
 the house, I'm sure, and he wouldn't come 
 boldly here if he had been guilty of searching 
 this room." 
 
 "Perhaps he doesn't know that his intrusion 
 has been discovered," suggested Saxby. "He 
 didn't see me when I came up." 
 
 "And the den all lit up in this way!" Jack 
 said. "If he did it, he must know that the 
 outrage is now known, for the room isn't as 
 he left it, if he left it at all tonight. Open the 
 door and we'll see how he acts." 
 
 The knob was turned, but the door did not
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 33 
 
 open. Jack walked over to it and found it 
 locked. He looked accusingly at Saxby and 
 was about to speak when the sound of a heavy 
 article being dragged over the floor came from 
 outside. 
 
 "What's going on here tonight?" Jack de- 
 manded, facing Saxby with suspicious eyes. 
 "Why is the door locked? What is that noise 
 in the hall? Go to the 'phone and call the 
 police. Use father's private one. there on the 
 window-seat." 
 
 "That's out of order," said Saxby. "Keep 
 out of range of that transom!" he added, as 
 Jack moved toward the door. ' * I think I know 
 what that noise out there means." 
 
 Almost involuntarily Jack stepped aside and 
 Saxby did the same. They were not a second 
 to soon, for something whizzed past the 
 boy's head and struck on the opposite wall. 
 Quick as a flash Saxby leaned forward and 
 seized it, keeping out of range of the transom 
 as he did so. 
 
 "What do you think of that?" Jack asked. 
 "What is it?" he added, as Saxby bent over 
 the object. "It might be one of Cupid's 
 dart?!" 
 
 "It is a olart, all right," replied Saxby, his 
 face turning paler. "But anything but a Cupid 
 dart! It's poisoned! A scratch from that
 
 34 BO? SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 point means death! Now you can see why I 
 locked the door. IVe met with such weapons 
 before." 
 
 Then, for the first time in its very exclusive 
 existence, pistol shots sounded in the Bosworth 
 house. For the first time in its history the 
 acrid fumes of powder smoke drifted down its 
 wide corridors. Saxby had fired at the tran- 
 som, from which the dart had come, and the 
 glass rattled down on the floor. 
 
 It seemed to the boy as if he had suddenly 
 been transferred from the eminent 1 ^ respect- 
 able house to some savage land where force and 
 cunning were the prime factors in human life. 
 It was all bizarre, unaccountable, unreal. 
 
 Then there was a fall outside, and in a mo- 
 ment excited voices were heard in the lower 
 part of the house, and in the servants' quarters 
 above. Alarmed by the pistol shots, the occu- 
 pants of the place were stirring. Presently 
 there came a sharp ring of a telephone bell. 
 
 Saxby seemed reluctant to approach or open 
 the locked door, but Jack hastened there and 
 turned the key and the knob. Something stand- 
 ing in the corridor and leaning against the door 
 toppled forward and swayed into the room. 
 
 "He brought a step-ladder from some- 
 where," Jack said, lifting the article out of the 
 way. "That's what he dragged over the floor,
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 35 
 
 and that's what he stood on while throwing 
 the dart." 
 
 " Who's iip there?" came the voice of the 
 housekeeper from below. 
 
 ' ' Jack, ' ' was the reply. ' ' What 's coming off 
 here?" 
 
 "Oh, I don't know," came the voice of the 
 housekeeper. "There's been shooting, and 
 some one may have been killed, and I can't get 
 central." 
 
 "Who was it that just passed down the 
 stairs?" asked Saxby, now standing at the 
 head of the staircase by Jack's side. 
 
 "I don't know," answered the housekeeper. 
 "I heard the door bang, and that's all I know 
 about it. I wish you'd come down and see if 
 you can get central. We must have the police 
 here immediately." 
 
 "Is that wise?" whispered Saxby in Jack's 
 ear. 
 
 Jack thought for an instant and decided that 
 it would hardly answer to bring the police into 
 the house in the absence of his father. The 
 newspapers would be sure to get the story, and 
 the home of the attorney would be besieged by 
 reporters for days. That would never answer. 
 
 "Wait," the boy said, descending the stairs 
 and addressing the rattled housekeeper, "and 
 I'll see what I can do. There's no one hurt,
 
 36 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 and nothing wrong, except that the den has 
 been turned upside down and someone has been 
 trying to kill either Saxby or myself." 
 
 "That's enough, goodness knows!" cried the 
 housekeeper, wringing her hands. "And I 
 heard shooting and breaking glass! Why 
 don't you hurry and get the police here?" 
 
 "All right," Jack replied, "I'll attend to 
 that and you'd better go and waken Akbar 
 and some of the others. We ought to have the 
 house searched, for the man who rifled the den 
 may be still here." 
 
 Saxby opened his lips to say that Akbar 
 would not be found in his room, or even in the 
 house, but Jack stopped him. 
 
 "Let her go," he said, "it will give her 
 something to do, and so occupy her mind, and 
 at the same time let us know if he really has 
 gone. There is no knowing if it was Akbar 
 who climbed up to the transom." 
 
 "Have your own way," growled Saxby, 
 "but, if it wasn't him, what was he prowling 
 about the house for? Tell me that." 
 
 "Why, you were prowling about the house, 
 too," Jack suggested. 
 
 Instead of calling the police, Jack called 
 Ked Nestor's number and asked him to come 
 over at once. Saxbv looked relieved when Jack
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 37 
 
 concluded the short conversation and hung up 
 the receiver. 
 
 "One of your Boy Scouts," Saxby said, with 
 a half sneer. "Well, that may be better than 
 calling the public police into the house. This 
 lad, this Ned Nestor, think 's he's a little brass 
 god on red wheels when it comes to solving 
 mysteries, eh?" he added. 
 
 Before Jack could make a fitting reply to the 
 uncalled for sneer, the frightened housekeeper 
 returned with the information that Akbar was 
 not in his room, and that his bed had not been 
 disturbed. 
 
 "Are his clothes and toilet articles in 
 place?" asked Jack. 
 
 "No!" cried the housekeeper, wringing her 
 hands. "His room is stripped, and I found 
 the window open. He must have left by the 
 roof of the kitchen annex." 
 
 Jack did not think this quick exit of the East 
 Indian at all remarkable, for he knew that the 
 throwing of the dart through the transom of 
 the den would naturally have to be explained, 
 and it was his notion that Akbar was in no 
 position to render a satisfactory explanation 
 of his movements of the night. This flight 
 seemed to clear the atmosphere of suspicion so 
 far as Saxby was concerned, and the boy 
 turned to him with a smile.
 
 38 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "Akbar must have been planning flight for 
 a long time," he said, "and he must have had 
 a fancy for something in some of the drawers 
 in the den. Have you any idea what it was he 
 wanted ?" he added glancing keenly at the man. 
 
 Saxby, although presumably relieved of sus- 
 picion by the flight of the other, did not seem 
 entirely pleased with either the question or the 
 situation. He shook his head, acting anxious 
 and nervous, and insisted on going at once to 
 the den to discover, if possible, he said, what 
 had been taken by the dishonest servant. 
 
 "We can't tell a thing about it until father 
 returns," Jack said. "All we can do now is to 
 try to catch Akbar before he gets out of New 
 York." 
 
 Still Saxby insisted on going to the den, and 
 while the discussion was on the door bell rang 
 and Ned Nestor was admitted. In a few words 
 he was informed of all that was known of the 
 happenings of the night and was then con- 
 ducted to the den. 
 
 "If you'll excuse us," the boy said, turning 
 to Saxby, who had followed on to the very 
 door of the room, "Jack and I would like to 
 look through the room alone. If you'll kindly 
 remain up for a short time, we'll keep you 
 posted as to our discoveries." 
 
 Saxby turned away with an angry frown,
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 39 
 
 muttering under his breath something about 
 "fresh Boy Scouts," and Ned locked the door 
 in his scowling face. 
 
 Much to Jack's surprise, the first thing Nes- 
 tor did was to pick a small alarm clock from the 
 floor, note the time it showed, and proceed to 
 wind it. It had been jarred off its little shelf 
 by the tipping of a tall cabinet. 
 
 "And so Saxby says he entered the room just 
 before you came, does he?" asked Ned. 
 "Well, do you see what time this clock 
 stopped ? Eight o 'clock ! "Well, he was in here 
 at that hour perhaps long before that. I 
 have two ways of proving that to you. See if 
 you don't agree with me."
 
 40 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 CHAPTER HI. 
 
 A TELL-TALE ALARM CLOCK. 
 
 Jack regarded Nestor with an amused 
 twinkle in his eyes. 
 
 "I knew you'd fall for it," he said, grinning. 
 " You take to this Sherlock Holmes work like a 
 duck to a* pond. But, all the same, I'd like to 
 know how you figure out that Saxby was in 
 this room at eight o'clock, or before, when he 
 says he took father to the Grand Central sta- 
 tion and returned less than an hour ago." 
 
 "Well," Nestor said, pointing to the cabinet, 
 the top drawer of which was half open, "you 
 notice the under side of that drawer ? What is 
 it that discolors the wood ? Blood I That's the 
 way it looks to me. Now, see how the blood 
 came there. The cabinet stood right there, 
 under the clockshelf , or really against it, on one 
 side, rather." 
 
 "That's where it belongs," Jack said, won- 
 dering what that had to do with fixing the time 
 of Saxby 's arrival there. 
 
 "See how simple it is," Nestor went on. 
 "Saxby came in here early in the evening and 
 began searching the drawers of that cabinet. 
 What he wanted there is for us to find out later 
 on. He did the work hastily, and searched one
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 41 
 
 drawer before stopping to close another. Now, 
 do you see?" 
 
 "Not yet," Jack replied. 
 
 "At any rate," Ned continued, "he left the 
 top drawer open while he bent his head to look 
 through the bottom one. Then he lifted his 
 head quickly and bumped the upper drawer. 
 There's where he struck it where the blood is. 
 The blow tipped the light cabinet and it struck 
 the clockshelf and knocked the clock down. 
 The clock stopped at eight o'clock, so that is 
 the time it fell. So Saxby was here at eight 
 o'clock, if not earlier." 
 
 "Oh, yes," Jack remarked, "but any other 
 man might have knocked the cabinet and upset 
 the clock. Yon don't know that it was Saxby. 
 He says Akbar was in here." 
 
 "Haven't I mentioned," Ned asked, ignor- 
 ing the reference to Akbar, "that Saxby has a 
 little three-cornered wound on his forehead, 
 just at the edge of the hair?" 
 
 "No, you haven't," Jack replied, "and I 
 don't thinks he has, either. I 've been with him 
 tonight, standing around in this room, and I've 
 seen nothing of the sort." 
 
 "Look closer when you see him again," ad- 
 vised Ned. "I shouldn't have noticed the 
 wound if he hadn't kept putting a hand to it." 
 
 "Then you think Saxby is the one who
 
 42 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 stirred things up in here I" asked Jack, with 
 the manner of one taking a defeat gracefully. 
 "I begin to think so myself." 
 
 "I don't think anything about it yet," Ned 
 replied. "We know, though, that he was here 
 before eight o'clock, and that he had the whole 
 evening before him. He doubtless thought you 
 had gone to bed when he turned up the lights 
 you saw in here." 
 
 "Then he lied about the time," Jack mused, 
 "and that shows guilt." 
 
 "Now for the other reason," Ned went on. 
 "I said I'd give you two. When Saxby came 
 in here his shoes were sticky with clay, clay he 
 never took up between here and the Grand Cen- 
 tral station while riding in an automobile. But 
 of that later on. He came in here and began 
 looking in the unusual places first for what 
 he wanted I don't know yet what that was. 
 
 "He got up on that chair to look on top of 
 the bookcase, and left a roll of clay from the 
 instep of his shoe there. You see how hard and 
 dry it is now. Well, that never dried out like 
 that in an hour. Saxby was in here early in 
 the evening, and was probably searching the 
 place while we were upstairs planning our Co- 
 lumbia river trip, and while Akbar was listen- 
 ing behind the screen." 
 
 "But Saxby says he saw Akbar in here,"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 43 
 
 Jack urged. "Perhaps they were here to- 
 gether. " 
 
 "In that case, Saxby wouldn't have men- 
 tioned Akbar at all; and it is not likely that 
 Akbar would have tried to murder Saxby with 
 a poisoned dart. Now, look at the dart which 
 was thrown through the transom opening. 
 There it is lying under the window casing. I 
 have seen instruments of assassination like 
 that before. The natives of the Far East are 
 adepts in throwing them. Akbar or some of 
 his East Indian chums threw that one, if I am 
 not much mistaken." 
 
 Ned stepped forward and picked up the 
 winged dart from where Saxby had dropped 
 it. It consisted of a long, slender, polished 
 stem of light wood, tipped with metal, and a 
 straight feather cleft into the opposite end. 
 There was a dark stain on the keen metal point, 
 and the wood in which it had been imbedded 
 was discolored, showing a bright green at the 
 lips of the wound which had been made in the 
 casing. 
 
 "So," Ned continued, "this dart was aimed 
 at Saxby 's life. The men were enemies and 
 would not have been here together. More than 
 that, if Akbar was here at all tonight, they 
 were hunting for the same thing something 
 in this room at different hours. Akbar evi-
 
 44 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 dently believed that Saxby had discovered the 
 thing they both wanted, for he mounted to the 
 transom opening and tried to murder him with 
 this East Indian weapon, the poisoned dart.*' 
 
 "This gets me," Jack exclaimed. "I'd like 
 to know what Fate it is that sets us into the 
 midst of a mystery every time we plan for a 
 vacation trip. One would think, to hear you 
 talk of poisoned darts, and all that, that we 
 were in some of the Hindu temples Frank was 
 talking about last night in the Black Bear club 
 room up stairs." 
 
 "Now," Ned said, "do you know where your 
 father went last night ? ' ' 
 
 Jack shook his head. 
 
 "Did you know that he was going any- 
 where?" 
 
 "No," was the anxious reply. Ned's words 
 and manner seemed to indicate that the father 
 might be in danger somewhere. 
 
 "Think," suggested Ned, "think if you hap- 
 pened to hear him mention any plans he had 
 for today, for it is after midnight now." 
 
 "Why, yes," Jack said hastily, "I remember 
 now that he was to go to his offices at nine this 
 morning to meet a client. I can't see why he 
 left the city last night." 
 
 "I don't think he did leave the city last eve-
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 46 
 
 uing," Ned remarked, "at least not Tolun- 
 tarily." 
 
 Jack started at the word and grabbed Ned 
 by the shoulder. 
 
 "What do you mean by that I" he demanded. 
 
 "Now, don't get excited, boy/' Ned went on. 
 "We've got our hands full if we use all our 
 wits, and can't afford to get dippy at the first 
 show of trouble. This man Saxby wanted 
 something your father kept in this room. He 
 wanted it tonight. 
 
 "He knew that your father would be apt to 
 work here until a late hour, and so got him out 
 of the way. Now, now," Ned hastened to say, 
 as Jack dropped into a chair, "I don't mean 
 that your father has been murdered, or any- 
 thing like it. The chances are that he was 
 driven to some lonely spot in his machine and 
 left there, far from any means of transporta- 
 tion to or communication with the city." 
 
 "Then we ought to be doing something!" 
 Jack exclaimed, bounding to his feet. "What 
 has been done here cuts no ice in the light of 
 this tragic possibility. Good old Dad! We'll 
 find him if we have to put thumbscrews on 
 Saxby!" 
 
 "Of course," Ned replied, hopefully, "of 
 course we'll find him. It is only a question of 
 time. Now about Saxby. From his manner at
 
 46 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 the time we shut him out of this room, a few 
 moments ago, I judge that he did not find what 
 he wanted in here and was anxious to continue 
 the hunt. That is the reason why I 've had him 
 watched during the time we've been here." 
 
 " Who was there to watch him?" asked Jack. 
 ' ' The servants are all scared into fits some of 
 them are having three at a time." 
 
 "Jimmie came with me," Ned replied. "I 
 left him in the vestibule. Long before this he 
 is making friends with Saxby." 
 
 "Wise little kid!" Jack exclaimed. 
 
 "Now," Ned said, "we'll open the door and 
 let Saxby in. He may lie himself into a dan- 
 gerous situation." 
 
 "It seems to me that he has already done 
 that," Jack said, "and yet he never tried to 
 conceal his presence here!" 
 
 Nestor threw the door open and stepped into 
 the corridor. Neither Saxby nor Jimmie was 
 in sight. The housekeeper and a couple of 
 frightened female servants stood midway of 
 the staircase, their eyes on a level with the 
 floor. 
 
 "They want to know what is going on," 
 laughed Jack, "and they also want the start if 
 it comes to a marathon! Where is Saxby?" 
 he aded, calling down to the housekeeper. 
 "Tell him to come up here."
 
 ON TEE COttTMBIA RIVER. 47 
 
 "He's gone!" the housekeeper called back. 
 
 ' ' Gone ? ' ' Jack repeated. ' ' Then where 's the 
 lad that came with Nestor?" 
 
 "He went away with him," was the reply. 
 
 "Has Akbar showed up yet?" asked Ned. 
 
 "No," replied the housekeeper, slowly 
 mounting the stairs, "and it is my belief that 
 he never will. I've been looking through the 
 house, and most of the gold plate is gone. He's 
 run off with everything he could carry. Why 
 don't the police come?" 
 
 "How do you know- that Saxby didn't steal 
 the plate?" asked Jack. 
 
 "Because he was here when the loss of it was 
 discovered," was the reply, "and didn't show 
 guilt. He said he was going to notify the 
 police, and the boy said he would go with him." 
 
 "Well," said Ned, rather grimly, "we've lost 
 the man the thieves plotted against, we're lost 
 the plate, and we've lost the thieves. Good 
 thing the house is heavy, or that might not be 
 here now." 
 
 The housekeeper took this grim humor seri- 
 ously and went down stairs with her face in 
 her apron, declaring that her master had prob- 
 ably been murdered and buried under the 
 North River. Then, ordering the servants off 
 to bed, she retired to her room. 
 
 "I'd like to ask you a question," Jack said,
 
 48 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOIt BOAT 
 
 as the two boys stood at the head of the stair- 
 case, doubtful as to the next move. 
 
 "Go ahead," Ned replied. "I don't seem to 
 be very wise tonight, but I'll do the best I can 
 to give you satisfactory answers, though I'll 
 admit that I'm not exactly clear in my mind as 
 to the motive for this mix-up." 
 
 "You recall the discussion regarding the 
 motor-boat trip on the Columbia river!" asked 
 Jack. 
 
 "Certainly." 
 
 "And you recall the fact that Akbar was 
 caught listening behind a screen! " 
 
 "You said it was Akbar." 
 
 "Well, it was. Now, do you know the fel- 
 low really believes all that dope about the 
 treasure hidden in ruined temples?" 
 
 * ' I haven't a doubt of it. Queer chaps, those 
 East Indians." 
 
 "I know he swallowed every word of it," 
 Jack went on. "There's always been some- 
 thing uncanny about Akbar. I've heard him 
 claim kinship with the Akbar said to have 
 sailed to this country with the gold. I half be- 
 lieve he came over with father in order that 
 he might be nearer to the treasure the treas- 
 ure which exists only in the imagination of 
 newspaper space writers and fellows like 
 Frank!"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA BIVEE. 49 
 
 The last was half a question asked of Ned. 
 
 "I see what you are getting at," Ned said. 
 "You think the knowledge that we were think- 
 ing of looking up this alleged treasure during 
 our holiday quickened his movements, and set 
 him hot foot into a quest which he might have 
 taken more time to prepare for if he had not 
 overheard our talk?" 
 
 "Yes; that is just it." 
 
 "Now," Ned said, "that may account for 
 the actions of Akbar tonight, but what about 
 Saxby?" 
 
 "I'm connecting the two in the search of this 
 room," Jack replied. 
 
 "Both looking for the same thing, eh?" 
 
 "It seems that way to me." 
 
 "Well, what were they searching for?" ' 
 
 "For an old, worm-eaten book, I suspect," 
 Jack replied, with some hesitation. "You see, 
 Ned," he went on, "I wasn't quite frank about 
 that hidden temple matter when it was under 
 discussion up in the club room." 
 
 "You had heard the story before, then?" 
 
 "Oh, yes, a great many times from father, 
 and Saxby, and Akbar, and, then, I had read it 
 in the book I have just mentioned the book 
 I think they were looking for." 
 
 "Where did your father get the book ?"
 
 50 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "Picked it up in London. He really thinks 
 there may be something to the story." 
 
 "So Akbar and Saxby knew about the book 
 being here? Well, they raced each other to 
 get it, I guess. Do they both believe in the 
 yarn? Have you talked with them about it 
 lately? 
 
 "You see," Ned went on, "there must have 
 been some sort of arrangement for them to 
 leave the city tonight not together, of course 
 for Saxby could not expect to come back here 
 after taking your father on a wild-goose chase, 
 as I believe he did." 
 
 "No, they never agreed on anything," Jack 
 said. "Each one wanted the book. I am satis- 
 fied of that. Akbar must have thought Saxby 
 had discovered it, for he tried to murder him. 
 At least, I don't think the poisoned dart was 
 thrown at me." 
 
 "Yes," Ned mused, "I take it that Saxby 
 stole a march on Akbar. But what set the 
 thing to buzzing so just now?" 
 
 "I believe our Columbia river trip did it," 
 Jack answered. "You see, I've been talking 
 about it quite a lot, and talking with the two 
 about the temple, too, in a careless way, and 
 I presume they both think we're going out 
 solely after the treasure. They have asked
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 51 
 
 me lots of questions, and seemed friendly to 
 each other up to tonight." 
 
 "Then Saxby played traitor," Ned decided, 
 "and Akbar watched and saw what he was 
 doing. Saxby must have known that Akbar 
 was listening for something new concerning 
 the trip, and Akbar must have suspected what 
 Saxby was at, but the latter only knew that 
 something really new about the trip was doing, 
 for he listened in the club room and learned 
 that the trip had finally been decided on. 
 
 "And he might have been waiting outside 
 the den door, ready to kill Saxby when he came 
 out with the book," suggested Ned, after a 
 short pause. 
 
 "He might have been," Jack went on, "up 
 to the time I saw him on the porch. It was 
 after that that he hurled the poisoned dart. 
 Cheerful sort of a chap, that Akbar," the boy 
 added. * ' Probably he 's after Saxby right now, 
 thinking he found the book." 
 
 "Well, it seems that we have figured the 
 thing out about right," Ned observed. "The 
 men are now deadly enemies, and will chase 
 each other to the ends of the earth. Now, the 
 next question is this : Where did Saxby leave 
 your father'?" 
 
 "It seems to me that we've been awfully 
 slow in coming to poor Dad," Jack replied,
 
 52 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "and yet, we couldn't very well act until we 
 knew where we stood." 
 
 While the boys talked over the situation the 
 'phone in the lower corridor set up a great 
 whirring and Jack hastened down. He was 
 back in a few moments with a smiling face. 
 
 "Dad's all right !" he shouted. " Saxby left 
 ' him on a country road miles out in Westchester 
 county, and he's just got to a 'phone. Say, 
 but he's hot under the collar. Wants me to be 
 sure and have Saxby pinched. Huh ! I guess 
 we'll find him first 1" 
 
 "I can imagine your very dignified father 
 standing in a country road watching his auto- 
 mobile going off without him!" laughed Ned. 
 
 "If he'd 'a' had a gun," Jack said, "he'd 
 'a' shot a tire off. He says he'll be home as 
 soon as he can get here. Found a machine up 
 there somewhere." 
 
 "Glad he's safe!" Ned observed. "Now, 
 what about Jimmie?" 
 
 "Oh, yes; about Jimmie! He followed 
 Saxby!" 
 
 "Speak of angels and you hear the rustle of 
 their wings ! ' ' laughed Ned. * ' The bell Is ring- 
 ing. That may be Jimmie now." 
 
 And Jimmie it was, panting as if from a 
 long run, and very much mussed as to hair 
 and garments. He threw himself into a chair
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA EIVER. 53 
 
 near the door of the den and looked about with 
 shining eyes. The two boys waited for him 
 to speak. 
 
 "Say," he burst forth, presently, "what 
 kind of a game is this?" 
 
 "Saxby didn't call the police, as he said he 
 would, eh?" asked Ned. 
 
 "Call the police!" cried Jimmie. "Huh! 
 He went to a dizzy old joint down on Four- 
 teenth street and hauled me in with him. Ill 
 bet he's got an eye on him, too! I give him 
 me educated left. He's off: on the choo-choos 
 before this." 
 
 "How did you get away from him?" asked 
 Jack. 
 
 "He left me with a gink that wasn't next 
 to me skill as a wrestler, an' I tipped him over 
 and run. He mussed me up some, though," 
 he added, with a grin at his torn garments. 
 
 "Why do you say Saxby has taken a train 1" 
 demanded Ned. 
 
 "Because I heard him talking about time- 
 tables and trains for Chicago. He thought I 
 wouldn't get away for a week, and so talked 
 freely. This is a nice game, I don't think!" 
 
 The three boys discussed plans most of the 
 remainder of the night, after notifying the 
 police to watch the railroad stations for Akbar 
 and the pawnshops for the stolen plate. Early
 
 54 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 in the morning Mr. Bosworth returned, very 
 much in need of sleep and very ragged as to 
 temper. 
 
 "One of the two secured the book," he said, 
 after listening to the story of the night and 
 looking through the den. "No one here knows 
 which one discovered it, but I can imagine that 
 Saxby got it. Anyway, when you boys get up 
 on the Columbia you'll have plenty of excite- 
 ment watching two cranks hunting for a ruined 
 temple which probably doesn't exist." 
 
 Jack's eyes were shining, but he made no 
 reply. 
 
 "That will heighten the interest," laughed 
 Ned. "But, Mr. Bosworth, it would be a joke 
 if there should be a ruined temple in some of 
 the canyons up there, now wouldn't itf"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 55 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE BLACK BEAK AND THE WOLF. 
 
 Every evening for a week the five boys who 
 had decided to visit the Columbia river coun- 
 try met at the club room of the Black Bear 
 Patrol and discussed the details of the trip in 
 prospect. Naturally, they for a few nights 
 talked of the happenings in the Bosworth 
 house on the occasions of the disappearance of 
 the two servants, but, as neither Saxby nor 
 Akbar was taken by the police, this phase of 
 the matter soon passed out of their talk, though 
 not out of their thoughts. 
 
 Now and then, of course, Frank Shaw laugh- 
 ingly referred to the mysterious ruins said to 
 exist somewhere on the Columbia, and Jimmie 
 McGraw often threatened the boys with the 
 displeasure of the ghosts attached to the ruins, 
 but the youngsters were too busy with the de- 
 tails of the vacation to give serious attention 
 to such talk, and the work of preparation went 
 swimmingly on. 
 
 After a good deal of investigation it was de- 
 cided that the motor boat which was to serve 
 as their home for a number of weeks should 
 be built at the automobile factory of Harry
 
 56 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 Stevens' father and shipped to some up-river 
 town by express. 
 
 "If we wanted a crude houseboat," Harrj 
 explained to his chums, "we could build one of 
 lumber at any old river town, but we've got 
 to have a boat that we can shoot up rapids, one 
 that will ride like a duck on rough water. It 
 must be light, and so constructed that it can 
 be taken to pieces when we want to carry it 
 around falls and rapids." 
 
 "Huh!" Jimmie observed. "Such a boat 
 would cost all the money there is in the world. 
 Guess you'd better wake up!" 
 
 "It won't cost us a cent," Harry explained. 
 "Father is going to give it to me, and I'll let 
 you ride in it if you'll stop talking of Hindu 
 temples in the state of Washington." 
 
 "Anyway," Jimmie contended, "it will take 
 a barrel of money to get it out there." 
 
 "Nix!" laughed Jack. "Nix express 
 charges! I'd like to know what Dad is mixed 
 up with these express companies for if we ? ve 
 got to put up our good money to get the boats 
 out to the Columbia river country." 
 
 "When will the boats be ready!" asked 
 Jimmie, capering about the room. 
 
 It seemed almost too good to be true! A 
 whole summer on the Columbia river! 
 
 "Dad says they'll be ready in two weeks,"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 57 
 
 Harry replied, "and declares they'll be as 
 strong as steel and as light as a feather. And 
 now," he added, " where are they to be 
 shipped?" 
 
 "Why, to Portland, of course;" Jimmie 
 stopped dancing a moment as he answered the 
 question. * ' At Portland we '11 get another view 
 of the Pacific ocean. Pretty poor, eh?" 
 
 Ned shook his head. The boats could be bet- 
 ter floated down stream than speeded against 
 swift currents, and he explained that they 
 ought to ship to some point as far north as 
 convenient, and then follow their own inclina- 
 tions as to what to do. 
 
 "We're going for the fun of it," he said, 
 "and we can go up stream or down, or loaf 
 about in quiet stretches for a month if we want 
 to. Of course there are falls and rapids in 
 plenty, but we can take the boats to pieces and 
 tote them around. And fish ! You wait for the 
 mountain trout!" 
 
 "Quit!" roared Jimmie. "You make me 
 hungry! Say," he added, with a wink at Jack, 
 "do the folks eat candles away up north where 
 we are going f" 
 
 "You can drink kerosene if you want to," 
 laughed Ned, "but it is warmer up there in 
 the winter than it is here. Of course," he con- 
 tinued, with a grin in Frank's direction, "if
 
 58 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 you get cold you might build a fire in one of 
 the ruined temples." 
 
 "You just wait!" said Prank. 
 
 "Well," Ned added, "we won't go so far 
 north that we'll freeze. You boys don't want 
 to float exclusively through orchards and grain 
 fields, do you?" 
 
 "Not any!" Jimmie responded. "It is the 
 wild places for mine." 
 
 "Well," Ned said, "by going far north, say, 
 to Nelson, B. C., we can drift down the Koo- 
 tenay river to the Columbia, or, if we feel like 
 it, we can run northeast into Kootenay lake, 
 a fine body of water. There are steamers 
 there." 
 
 "Us for the Columbia!" Jack grinned. 
 "Haven't we got to give Frank a chance to dig 
 gold out of heathen temples? I guess yes!" 
 
 "Well," Ned went on, "after we get down 
 to the Columbia we can run up into Arrow 
 lakes if we want to. Plenty of water up 
 there!" 
 
 "I've been lookin' it up," Jimmie confessed, 
 "an' there's Indian reservations, an' trackless 
 forests, an' mines, an' mountains, an' no rail- 
 road for miles an' miles along the river. We'll 
 ride the boats days an' sleep on the banks 
 nights." 
 
 "And a great, big, fat, ugly bear will come
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 59 
 
 along and eat off little Jimmie's ear," grinned 
 Frank. 
 
 Jimie laid a map of Washington and British 
 Columbia down on the table. 
 
 "Look here," he said, "I want Frank to 
 show me right now where them temples is. I 
 don't want to overlook anything. If Saxby 
 an' Akbar go up there I want to help pinch 
 'em. There's a reward out for Akbar." 
 
 "But what about the pieces of eight?" asked 
 Jack, with a slight sneer. 
 
 "I don't believe in them temples," Jimmie 
 said, "nor yet in any pieces of eight, but I 
 think Saxby an' Akbar do, so I'd like to know 
 where these temples are believed to be. They'll 
 go there, all right." 
 
 "I have heard talk about a map in the old 
 book which disappeared that night," Jack 
 said, "and I've heard father talking of the 
 location of the fabled temple. He said it was 
 in a mountain range north of the river in a 
 rocky canyon now growing trees." 
 
 "It's a pipe dream," said Jimmie, "but they 
 believe in it. That's enough for us to get a 
 line on them. I'll punch Saxby 's nose for 
 tryin' to lock me up !" 
 
 "There's something to the temple yarn," 
 Frank Shaw insisted. "The story never origi- 
 nated in the brain of a crank. It doesn't seem
 
 60 BOT SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 to me that any vessel of the early years of the 
 eighteenth century could ever get far up the 
 Columbia, much less lug along truck enough 
 for a temple, still, as you all know, the stolen 
 book was printed in England years and years 
 ago, and the material for it was collected in 
 India. Anyway, there's belief in India that 
 the gold was taken away by one of the old 
 Akbar persons and buried somewhere on this 
 continent." 
 
 "The legend goes back a good many years," 
 Ned said, "for I've been looking it up a little 
 since the larceny of the book. The story that 
 the gold was taken away seems to be all right, 
 but, so far as I can learn, no one has ever seen 
 a trace of the temple where Akbar is supposed 
 to have placed it." 
 
 "You fellows are all dippy about that tem- 
 ple!" Jack cut in shortly. "Cut it out, and 
 let us get down to brass tacks. What kind of a 
 boat is this going to be a motor boat that can 
 be taken to pieces and put together again when- 
 ever we come to a waterfall or a channel 
 crammed with rocks?" 
 
 "It will be a peach," Harry declared. 
 "You've seen these chair-seats, made up of 
 three or four sheets of wood? Thin pieces, I 
 mean, laid one on top of another, with the 
 grain crossed in each layer? Well, that's the
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 61 
 
 way our boat is to be built, only the material 
 will be more than an inch thick, instead of a 
 quarter of an inch, like a chair bottom. " 
 
 "The glue will soak up," interposed the 
 practical Jimmie. 
 
 "We've got glue in our shop that water 
 won't touch," asserted Harry scornfully. 
 "Well, the boat will be plenty big for five 
 twenty feet long and six feet wide and there 
 will be places to swing bunks and places to 
 store provisions, and all that." 
 
 "And I suppose you'll carry the engine 
 around the rapids in your fingers!" laughed 
 Jack, who was rather in favor of a roomy 
 houseboat. 
 
 "Oh, I can't tell you all about it right on the 
 spur of the moment," Harry laughed, "but 
 you'll find the motor boat all o. k. The whole 
 interior can be enclosed in panels, if we want 
 to shut ourselves in. It's going to be a bird, 
 all right, with about all the conveniences of a 
 private Pullman." 
 
 "I'm not going to stay on board all the 
 time," Jimmie observed. "I'm going to take 
 a shelter tent along and sleep on the shore." 
 
 "I'm going to live on a fish diet," said Jack. 
 "I don't think I ever in all my life had fish 
 enough at one meal."
 
 62 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 1 'Then why don't you go an' buy a whale and 
 eat him up?" asked Jimmie. 
 
 "Oh, the reason I've never had enough at 
 one meal/' replied Jack, "is because I don't 
 hold enough." 
 
 And so the boys planned, and dreamed 
 dreams, and joked, until the motor boat was 
 ready. It was indeed a "bird," as Harry 
 expressed it. It was so constructed that it 
 could be taken apart with very little trouble 
 and no risk whatever. It was very strong, too, 
 and handsomely finished. 
 
 With the motor boat came what the boys 
 called a "tender," an absolutely water-tight 
 boat of unique construction in which gasoline 
 and provisions were to be towed. When 
 entirely closed, the boat looked as much like a 
 long, sharp-nosed projectile as anything else. 
 With the panels all closed, the "tender" might 
 be set adrift in the wildest current with no 
 danger of getting wet on the inside. 
 
 "It's a toy submarine!" Jack exclaimed, on 
 first seeing it. "I believe I could ride Niagara 
 in her. What's she made of?" 
 
 "Layers of steel and wood," replied Harry. 
 "She was built to shoot rapids. Now, what 
 shall we call her?" 
 
 "The tender or the motor boat?" asked 
 Jimmie.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 63 
 
 "We've got a name for the motor boat/' Ned 
 said. "We're going to call her the Black Bear. 
 Harry settled that when he gave her to the 
 Black Bear Patrol." 
 
 "Why not call her the Boy Scout?" asked 
 Jimmie. "She'll go scoutin' around a good 
 deal before she gets rid of this bunch." 
 
 "Ship's feminine," laughed Harry. "You 
 can't call a girl a Boy Scout, can you? I don't 
 know why ships are feminine, but they are, 
 just the same." 
 
 "It's because the riggin' costs so much," 
 Jimmie ventured. 
 
 "That alleged joke is 4,000 years old," Jack 
 put in. "Now, what shall the tender be 
 called?" he added. 
 
 "Greenback/' suggested the irrepressible 
 Jimmie. 
 
 "Why?" asked Jack. 
 
 " 'Cause Greenback would be legal tender," 
 replied the boy, dodging away from a blow 
 aimed by Jack. 
 
 "I've got a name to suggest," Harry said, 
 in a moment. "We've got the boat named for 
 one Boy Scout Patrol, now suppose we name 
 the tender for the other. It shall be the Wolf. 
 There are two Patrols mixed up in this crowd, 
 remember, the Black Bear and the Wolf. That 
 will about even things up."
 
 64 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOA* 
 
 And so the boats were named to the satisfac- 
 tion of all, and, after much discussion, shipped 
 by express to Nelson, British Columbia. The 
 following day the five boys took train for the 
 same point, arriving on the afternoon of the 
 fifth day, after a very pleasant trip. The boats 
 were not expected for a couple of days, and so 
 the boys went to the Sherbrooke Hotel and reg- 
 istered. They were given comfortable rooms 
 and found plenty of amusement, later on, look- 
 ing over the city. 
 
 "She's a busy little beauty," Frank said, sit- 
 ting before his window the next morning and 
 looking out on the town, speaking to Jimmie. 
 "There is the flavor of the West over every- 
 thing." 
 
 "It looks pretty good to me," said the boy. 
 
 "When Nelson is as old as New York is 
 now, ' ' Frank went on, ' ' she '11 be great. Think 
 of the possibilities ! Here the city lies, at the 
 extremity of the west arm of Kootenay lake, 
 a body of water navigable and picturesque, 
 with snow-capped peaks in sight. That is, they 
 are snow-capped at certain seasons of the year. 
 
 "I've been out looking over the city, and it 
 looks good to me. Its lower portion lies in the 
 broad valley-mouth of the Cottonwood, and its 
 upper portion almost touches the shadows of 
 Morning and Evening mountains. Off over
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 65 
 
 ^^^^ 
 
 there," pointing, "is Granite mountain, stand- 
 ing like a guard. Why, this town is the center 
 of the greatest mining region in Canada. 
 
 "Take it from me, in a few years this dis- 
 trict will have an immense population, for peo- 
 ple in search of homes and investments are 
 sure are to take advantage of the rich country 
 , about here the Kootenay country, they call it. 
 It is said to be the most fruitful in the world. 
 And wild scenery within reach ! Well ! ' ' 
 
 " Somehow," Jack said, stepping into the 
 room, "I don't care for the wild places only 
 as I care for the theatre for a change. If 
 you leave it to me, mountains and plains, and 
 rivers and seas, are crude, unfinished, out of 
 drawing, as an artist would express it. It is 
 only the work of man that is artistic and 
 complete." 
 
 "You talk that way out here," Jimmie 
 observed, "and you'll get shot up. I know 
 what these persons think of their country." 
 
 "In a few million years," Jack insisted, 
 with a chuckle, "Nature may be able to put 
 up something equal in artistic effect and con- 
 venience to the Singer building, but I don't 
 believe it. Why, we're catching Nature right 
 in the midst of her job out here, with her sleeves 
 rolled up," he went on. "The rivers are tum- 
 bling the earth into the sea, the little streams
 
 66 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 are washing the mountains down and spreading 
 them over the valleys. Nothing is stable, per- 
 manent. It all looks to me like the mess about a 
 big sky-scraper that is going up on the Great 
 .White Way. The big town for me, except for 
 a vacation!" 
 
 "You're a crank on New York," Frank 
 exclaimed. "You think that nothing counts if 
 it is half an hour's ride from Broadway. Come 
 on, suppose we go down to the river." 
 
 "The Columbia?" asked Jimmie. "Hurry 
 up ! I want to see it. ' ' 
 
 "The Columbia river is still some distance 
 away, ' ' Frank replied. ' * That is the Kootenay 
 river down there. I move that we go and look 
 at it, so Jack can point out what's the matter 
 with it, and explain how it ought to be changed 
 over and made to resemble the North river 
 which isn't a river at all, by the way, but an 
 arm of the Atlantic ocean." 
 
 "Why," grinned Jack, "the North river is 
 the Harlem river. Anybody ought to know 
 that. It cuts across from the Hudson and 
 makes an island of little old New York." 
 
 * ' Island nothing ! ' ' Jimmie exclaimed. 
 "The Harlem river is about as big as a sewer, 
 and New York isn't on an island, and Coney 
 island isn't an island, and and but it's a
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 6? 
 
 mighty good old town, for all that," he added, 
 his eyes shining. 
 
 " Fight it out later!" Frank said, knowing 
 that both boys were talking principally for 
 effect. "Just now, suppose we go down to the 
 river and look at the boats." 
 
 The three boys descended to the street and 
 walked down to the launch-crowded water 
 front. The day was young, the sun was shin- 
 ing brightly, and the early June air was sweet 
 and refreshing. Leaving the principal street, 
 after a time, they walked parallel with the 
 water for a short distance until they came to 
 a narrow street which seemed to lead down to 
 a little private wharf. 
 
 "Come on," Jimmie cried, bounding on 
 ahead. "I'm goin' to see what the water of 
 the Kootenay feels like!" 
 
 "You'll find it good and cold," Frank said. 
 
 "You'll get pinched if you try to go in swim- 
 ming there," Jack warned. "You needn't 
 think there are more no cops because you're 
 out of New York. They have real coppy cops 
 out here." 
 
 "Anyvray," Jimmie insisted, "I'm going to 
 see if there is a place where I can get in with- 
 out makin' an exhibition of meself. Watch 
 me investigate that warehouse on the left!" 
 
 The lad swung down the street and disap-
 
 68 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 peared through the doorway of what appeared 
 to be a large warehouse which fronted the 
 water. Jack and Frank passed on to the edge 
 of the wharf and looked up and down the river. 
 In a moment, while they stood there, a cry of 
 alarm reached their ears, and the next moment 
 Jimmie, clothed only in trousers and shirt, and 
 carrying his coat, shoes and cap in his arms 
 dashed out of an open window of the ware- 
 house and tumbled over on the ground. 
 
 "Gee!" he cried, half laughing, as Jack and 
 Frank came up to him, " chase yourself in there 
 an' see what you'll get against I"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 69 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 AKBAE AND SAXBY APPHAE. 
 
 "You chase yourself out of sight until you 
 get dressed!" Frank exclaimed, while Jack 
 stood back and roared at the ludicrous figure 
 the lad cut with his bare feet and half -clothed 
 figure. The garments he carried in his arms 
 were dropping out of his grasp and littering 
 the street, while one tan sock waved in the wind 
 from the sill of the window from which he had 
 leaped. 
 
 "Gee," Jimmie grunted. "Take a look in 
 there, you fellers! You'll miss something if 
 you don't." 
 
 "What is it?" asked Frank. 
 
 "Probably one of the ghosts from the mined 
 temple what ain't," laughed Jack, with 
 sarcasm. 
 
 "Go on in!" urged Jimmie, the frightened 
 look passing out of his face. "Go on in an' 
 see the big show!" 
 
 Frank hastened to the window from which 
 the boy had leaped and looked inside. Then 
 he sprang on the sill and stepped into the 
 interior. As he did so, Jimmie gave a shrill
 
 70 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 scream and rolled on the ground, and Frank 
 leaped back. 
 
 "You little imp!" Frank exclaimed, half 
 angrily. "What did you do that for? I 
 thought some wild animal had you." 
 
 "Had you, you mean!" Jimmie grinned. 
 "What did you see in there?" 
 
 "Nothing." 
 
 "Go on an 7 look again." 
 
 Frank was about to comply when a splash 
 in the river at the distant end of the ware- 
 house attracted the attention of all three boys. 
 
 ' * He 's gettin ' away ! ' ' roared Jimmie. * ' Go 
 an 'stop him." 
 
 The boys dashed down to the wharf end, 
 Frank leading, just in time to see a small row- 
 boat speeding away. The figure in the boat 
 was pulling for dear life, and the boat was soon 
 out of sight behind a cluster of vessels lower 
 down. 
 
 "Ever see that feller before?" asked Jim- 
 mie. 
 
 Then Jack recalled the short, bull neck, the 
 small, sharp, black eyes, seen for an instant 
 when the rower turned, and clapped Jimmie 
 on the back. 
 
 "Saxby!" he cried. 
 
 "The same," Jimmie answered, nudging
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVEE. 71 
 
 Jack. "He's goin' up to the mountains after 
 that gold!" 
 
 "What was he doing in that warehouse?" 
 asked Frank. 
 
 "Looked to me like he was tracin' an old 
 map," Jimmie replied. "The boat he rowed 
 off in was in there on the floor, by his side." 
 
 "Did he see you?" asked Jack. 
 
 "See me? You bet he did. He came after 
 me with a knife in his hand, c-r-e-epin' along 
 like the villain does in the play. Guess he 
 thought I didn't see him. Well, I didn't until 
 I was most ready to plunge from a window into 
 the river." 
 
 "What did he say?" asked Jack, with a 
 wink at Frank. 
 
 "Say! He might have recited l Curfew 
 ShaU Not Ring To-night,' for all I know." the 
 boy answered. "I was busy, just then, gettin' 
 my duds together an' gettin' out. Say, well 
 hear from that chap when we get in the 
 woods." 
 
 The boys retraced their steps to the open 
 doorway of the warehouse and went in. 
 Numerous empty tin cans and paper bags were 
 scattered about on the floor behind a row of 
 barrels in one of the corners toward the river, 
 and a great heap of excelsior, evidently stolen
 
 72 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 from the packing room, showed signs of 
 having been used as a bed. 
 
 "He's been doin' light housekeepin' here, all 
 right," Jimmie concluded. "Now, I wonder 
 why he did that!" 
 
 "Probably broke," Jack suggested. 
 
 "Can't you think of a better reason than 
 that?" asked Frank. 
 
 "Sure I can," Jack replied, after a 
 moment's thought. "He was hiding in here 
 from someone. He even hauled his rowboat 
 in here." 
 
 "Who's he hidin' from?" demanded Jim- 
 mie. "I guess he's been doin' somethin' to put 
 him in bad with the cops." 
 
 "He's hiding from Akbar !" Jack exclaimed. 
 ' l Why, that 's easy ! And that means that both 
 the rascals are in Nelson! They sure believe 
 in that bum story of the ruined temple and the 
 subterranean passage choked with gold 1" 
 
 "Who'd thunk it?" grinned Jimmie. "Say, 
 do you suppose they'll trail us into the Colum- 
 bia river country?" he added, with a rather 
 startled expression. 
 
 "They won't trail us," Jack suggested. 
 "They'll try to beat us to it. I wonder which 
 one will get the jolt first?" 
 
 "Get what jolt?" asked Frank. 
 
 "The jolt of the discovery that there ain't
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 73 
 
 no temple there, never was a temple there ! I 
 reckon that will hold 'em for a while!" 
 " Don't be too certain there's nothing there," 
 Frank said. "All this talk means something. 
 I half expect to find ruins of some kind." 
 
 "I know one ruin you'll find if Saxby gets 
 sight of Akbar first ! ' ' Jack laughed. ' * You '11 
 find the ruins of a human figure!" 
 
 "I hardly think it worth our while, just now, 
 to try to follow Saxby," Frank said, in a 
 moment. "He's lost in some out-of-the-way 
 hole before this, and, besides, we've nothing 
 special to say to him, anyway. Perhaps we'd 
 better go and tell Ned what we saw when we 
 had no guns with us." 
 
 "Gee!" exclaimed Jimmie, glancing down at 
 his bare feet, "I reckon I'd better go and get me 
 duds on! I'll sure get t'run in if I go about 
 in this way." 
 
 The boy was not long in getting into his 
 clothes, and then all three hastened back to the 
 hotel to confer with Ned. They found him 
 engaged in serious conversation with Harry 
 Stevens, who had just returned from the 
 express office. 
 
 Jimmie approached the two with a very 
 sober face and an air of mystery. 
 
 "I'll give you three guesses," he said. 
 
 Ned looked the boy over inquiringly, then,
 
 -74 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 glancing at Jack and Frank, saw that there 
 really was something to tell. 
 
 "Akbar!" he exclaimed. " That's the first 
 guess." 
 
 "Nothin* dom'," said Jimmie. 
 
 "Then I waive the other two," laughed Ned. 
 
 "Why did you guess we had seen or heard 
 of Akbar?" asked Frank, a quick suspicion 
 coming to his mind. 
 
 "Because," Ned replied, "we went out to the 
 express office, just after you left, to see about 
 the boats, and there learned that a man 
 answering to Akbar 's description had been 
 there asking about them." 
 
 "The nerve of him," cried Jimmie. "He's 
 got Saxby beat a mile." 
 
 "What's that about Saxby?" asked Harry. 
 
 "He chased me with a knife that looked to 
 be more'n' nine feet long," explained Jimmie. 
 
 "This morning?" asked Ned, visibly 
 alarmed by the news. 
 
 "Sure," replied the boy, and then the story 
 of what had taken place at the warehouse by 
 the river was told. 
 
 "But the nerve of Akbar!" Jimmie con- 
 cluded. "He's tryin' to get our boats, is he? 
 He'll get a wallop if he don't watch out!" 
 
 "Well," Ned said, "there is now no doubt 
 that the fellows are up here in the belief that
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 75 
 
 there is gold hidden up the river. Well have 
 to keep a keen lookout for them or they'll make 
 us trouble.' 
 
 "How the Old Harry did Akbar know the 
 boats had been shipped here?" asked Frank. 
 "That's what gets me." 
 
 "He probably found out about our plans 
 before leaving New York," was Ned's reply. 
 "He appears to be a foxy sort of chap. I have 
 no doubt he listened to a lot of talk that went on 
 in the Black Bear Club-room. Anyway, he's 
 out here, and we'll have to watch out for him." 
 
 "He's got the coin, too," grumbled Jack. 
 "He stole Dad's gold plate. I'd like to soak 
 him one." 
 
 "If Saxby and Akbar would only get 
 together," laughed Frank, "we'd be relieved 
 of the presence of both. I should like to see 
 the fight." 
 
 "And won't they be disappointed," said 
 Jack, with a nudge at Frank's ribs, "when 
 they get to the end of their journey and find 
 no ruined temple, no gold, no nothing but 
 forests and mountains! I'd like to be there 
 then." 
 
 "Get it out of your system," grunted Frank. 
 "You'll see that there's something to this 
 ruined temple business." 
 
 "Honest," said Jack, "do you still believe
 
 76 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 there is a ruined temple up here, with under- 
 ground passage filled with gold?" 
 
 "I don't know what I believe," replied 
 Prank. "But you'll see that there's some- 
 thing to the story." 
 
 And so the two boys argued back and forth 
 until Jimmie left to look over the town and 
 Ned and Harry went to their rooms to write 
 letters home. In the afternoon Jimmie came 
 running back to the hotel with the startling 
 information that the express company had 
 broken all records and brought the boats in on 
 time. 
 
 "Come on out an' get 'em," the boy urged. 
 "I want to see how they look in the water. 
 Suppose we sleep on board to-night?" 
 
 "Me for the town to-night," Jack replied. 
 "I want to meet some of the boys who run 
 motor launches on the lakes. There's a big 
 club here club of sports, who have all kinds 
 of fun. I want to meet them. ' ' 
 
 "Huh!" Jimmie grunted, "I don't see what 
 there is to look at in this old town. Nothin' 
 doin' for me! I want to get away to the 
 mountains. When I see a town, kids, I want 
 to see some town." 
 
 Now Frank, who had made good use of his 
 time, and had also read up on Nelson and the
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 77 
 
 Kootenay country, came back at Jimmie with 
 great pride in his knowledge. 
 
 "There are two hundred boats in the Launch 
 club," said Frank, "and they hold regattas 
 which take the bun. Why, the west arm of 
 Kootenay lake is a little Adriatic in the good 
 old summer time. Some of the boats are 
 brought from England." 
 
 "Where does all the money come from?" 
 demanded Jimmie. "I guess you think the 
 people up here pick it up in the streets." 
 
 "They do, almost," laughed Frank. "The 
 whole Nelson district is specked with paying 
 mines, and there is a timber camp every few 
 feet. It is a great country." 
 
 "Any lions up here?" grinned Jimmie, who 
 did not enjoy having his expressed opinion of 
 the place so thoroughly upset. 
 
 "Nary a lion," replied Jack, "but they shoot 
 bears and deer and caribou within ten miles 
 of Nelson. And up at the Pool they get rain- 
 bow trout weighing twenty pounds, and Pacific 
 salmon weighing sixty pounds." 
 
 "All right," Jimmie said. "You're tellin' it. 
 I ain't. Perhaps these wise boys of the 
 Kootenay Launch club can tell us how often 
 we'll have to take the Black Bear to pieces 
 before we get to the Dalles." 
 
 "You know they can," Jack put in. "You
 
 78 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 bet our boats won't be the first to float down 
 the Columbia. We'll go and introduce our- 
 selves after dinner. Is it dinner at six o'clock 
 out here, or supper?" 
 
 1 'Neither," laughed Jimmie. "It's chuck 
 time." 
 
 Presently Ned and Harry made their 
 appearance, and then the boys all went over to 
 a business office to which the clerk at the hotel 
 iiad directed them, where they met a Mr. H. H. 
 Currie, of the Kootenay Launch club. They 
 were invited to the club-house, and spent a very 
 pleasant evening there. Some of the members 
 warned the boys against falls and rapids, while 
 others suggested that there were still river out- 
 laws along the waterways. The lads listened 
 to all they heard, but were not at all dis- 
 couraged. 
 
 Early the following morning the boats were 
 taken to the water front and put together, in 
 the presence of an admiring audience. The 
 novelty of construction was commented on 
 favorably, and the water-tight Wolf closely 
 inspected. When all was ready, the boys bade 
 ther friend goodbye and the boats threaded 
 their way among the board-walks of the city's 
 barrier-reef of launch-houses and, gaining 
 the open water of the arm, turned westward 
 followed by hearty cheers.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 
 
 As they rounded Granite promontory and 
 passed toward the narrowing, rocky walls 
 which mark the termination of navigation, Ned 
 flung out an American and a Canadian flag and 
 shook it valiantly toward the towering height 
 of Pulpit Rock, where a cluster of friends still 
 watched, some of them evidently in the belief 
 that the lads were going to their doom. 
 
 They passed through Grohman rapids at 
 slow speed, taking the right side of the 
 island, and followed the vagaries of the 
 current as it swept around sandy points, 
 washing jutting rocks, or filling out 
 broad reaches. Presently the current quick- 
 ened, and, four miles from the city, the 
 boats entered the Granite rapids, shot under 
 the bridge of the Canadian Pacific, and took 
 the boiling waters of the rapids boldly. 
 
 On through Beaseley gorge and Cora Linn 
 rapids, and then the boats faced the head- 
 works of the West Kootenay Power Com- 
 pany's main power plant. Here were Upper 
 Bonnington falls, and Ned did not care to risk 
 a run over the brink, the slope being at least 
 forty per cent. The boats were soon taken to 
 pieces and carried around the dangerous 
 places, although the distance was greater than 
 had been led to expect. 
 
 Through the dancing waters of the Pool and
 
 80 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 then peace ! Taking a shoot around the lower 
 Pool, Ned brought the boats into a bend where 
 great salmon, fresh from their 700-mile trip 
 from the Pacific, make their spawning beds. 
 From this point all was comparatively easy 
 sailing to the Columbia, 27 miles away. 
 
 It was a beautiful morning, and the setting 
 of the scene was all that the most critical 
 adventurer could have wished. The river was 
 wild and careless as to its human freight at 
 times, but there was the lines of the Canadian 
 Pacific in view, tying the lads to civilization. 
 Finally, however, much to Jimmie's delight, 
 the railroad dodged off to the west, but, much 
 to the boy's disgust, soon dodged back again, 
 and kept with the river to Kobeson, where it 
 crosses the Columbia and turns south on the 
 west side. 
 
 The boys were anxious to get out of the rail- 
 road zone, and so made good speed, stopping at 
 none of the little towns along the river. At 
 Murphy the metals shot out to the west, and 
 then the boys, after a short drive down, 
 found a suitable place and went ashore. 
 
 "I'm glad we've got rid of the railroad," 
 Jinmie said, looking about the pleasant scene. 
 "I guess they didn't bring the line along here 
 because the hills and rocks might make trouble.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 81 
 
 I hope we won't see a rail again in three 
 months." 
 
 "You'll not get your wish," Jack replied, 
 "for the Great Northern trails the river, on the 
 west bank, a short distance down. Nature and 
 civilization seem to be pretty well joined here. 
 We are now not very far from Marcus, in the 
 state of Washington, not far below the bound- 
 ary line." 
 
 The boys had chosen an ideal site for a camp. 
 The hills, the forest, the rushing river, the dim 
 haze on the elevations away to the west, all con- 
 spired^ to bring to the breasts of the city-bred 
 boys the keen recognition of the mighty forces 
 at work beyond the sky-scraper zone. 
 
 It was not yet sundown when the lads had 
 completed their evening meal. Indeed, the sun 
 still showed a round disc above the treetops 
 when they packed the dishes away and 
 prepared for a delightful evening. The Black 
 Bear lay open to the evening air, the panels 
 not having been put up. Hammocks had been 
 hung from the corner standards, however, and 
 Jack and Harry lay lazily swinging to and fro 
 as the boat dipped and pulled in the current. 
 Ned, Frank and Jimmie sat by the fire which 
 had been built in the interest of the evening 
 meal. 
 
 The boys had had a hard day and were tired
 
 82 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 out, though each one tried to conceal the fact 
 from all the others. The Columbia river 
 between the junction and the point where they 
 lay is anything but a lake-like body of water, 
 and the lads had been kept busy. Directly 
 Frank called out: 
 
 "Think the man who built the Singer build- 
 ing could put up anything like this, Jack?" 
 
 "It's all right," Jack replied, "only I miss 
 the after-dinner orchestra." 
 
 "Oh, you do?" exclaimed Jimmie, as the 
 boys laughed at the odd idea. "Well, there's 
 your after-dinner orchestra, and if it ain't 
 play in 7 'On the Bowery' I'm a lobster I"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 83 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 A BEISK BATTLE SOON OVER, 
 
 The boys all sprang to their feet and listened. 
 Faintly, softly, through the twilight, seeming 
 at times to be a part of the rippling of the 
 waters and the echo of the rustling leaves, 
 came the mellow notes of a flute. For a moment 
 no one spoke, then Jimmie exclaimed: 
 
 4 ' What do you fellers know about that?" 
 
 "It must be one of Frank's ghosts," Jack 
 replied. " Perhaps the ruined temple is over 
 there. Let's go and see about it." 
 
 " There's woods and mountains over there, 
 and, perhaps, a few mining camps," said Ned, 
 "but I don't believe there are any miners in 
 this country who can make a flute talk like 
 that. I think we'll have to investigate." 
 
 "Not much mining over there," Harry 
 Stevens said, in a moment. "Here," he went 
 on, drawing out a map and bending down to 
 the fire with it. "Look at this. Here we are 
 on the Columbia river, below the Kootenay 
 branch or the end of the west arm of Koot- 
 enay lake, rather and this rough country to 
 the west shows just as it is. All mountains 
 and forests clear to the Fraser river, and that
 
 84 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 must be two hundred miles, as the crow flies, 
 I take it. The Rocky mountains and the 
 Cascades seem to meet here ; still, I don't think 
 there's much mining going on." 
 
 "Well," Jack insisted, "there's some 
 civilized human being in the forest not far 
 away, and we ought to find out what's going 
 on." 
 
 "Of course he's a civilized human being," 
 Jimmie grinned. "If he wasn't he wouldn't 
 be playin' that classical air, 'On the Bowery!' 
 But I'm not goin' to wade into that jungle just 
 now. I'm goin' to remain here an' reflect!" 
 
 "Some one ought to remain here, anyway," 
 Frank said, "so you watch the boats while you 
 reflect, and while we rescue this maiden in 
 distress. Come on, boys." 
 
 The lads secured their weapons from the 
 boat and started off into the dim forest. 
 When the mysterious musician switched from 
 "On the Bowery" to a dreamy waltz, Jack 
 seized Prank about the waist and went dancing 
 into the thicket. 
 
 The four boys started away together, but 
 Ned dropped back, in a moment, and looked 
 toward the river. Jimmie sat by the fire, his 
 head bent forward in a listening attitude, a 
 revolver withing easy reach of his hand. 
 
 "Come on, Ned," Jack called out.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA EIVSS. 85 
 
 "I'll be along directly," Ned replied. 
 
 "All right," came the answer. "Don't let 
 a lion bite you!" 
 
 "Take good care of the boats, Jimmie," 
 iTrank shouted. 
 
 "Go on!" answered the boy. "If any one 
 goes fussin' around here he'll get his crust 
 busted. Say," he continued, whimsically, "if 
 youse come to a bakery, bring me a pie! I 
 forgot to bring canned pie!" 
 
 The three boys shouted back some laughing 
 reply and disappeared in the underbrush which 
 lay under the trees. Then Ned moved closer 
 to the camp fire and hid in a clump of bushes. 
 He was no altogether satisfied that the call 
 from the forest was not a lure that enemies 
 were not lurking about, bent on mischief. 
 
 From the moment the visit to the Columbia 
 river country had been decided on, there had 
 been indications of surveillance. Akbar had 
 listened at the door of the Black Bear club- 
 room in the Bosworth house. Saxby had 
 searched the private office of the master of the 
 house for information concerning a ruined 
 temple, said by fable to be not far from the 
 proposed vacation route. The former had 
 been seen at the Nelson express office, asking 
 about the motor boats, and the latter had been
 
 86 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 discovered lurking in the river-fron^fc ware- 
 house at the same place. 
 
 Besides, at intervals during the ride from 
 New York to Nelson, the boy had caught 
 glimpses of men who seemed to be watching 
 the party. Ned did not believe a word of the 
 extravagant stories told by Frank of the 
 alleged temple and the hidden gold, but he did 
 believe that Akbar and Saxby were infatuated 
 with the dreams of wealth seemingly opened 
 to them by the yarns. Just why they should 
 follow in the footsteps of the vacationists, Ned 
 could not imagine. 
 
 It seemed to him that they ought to be 
 leading the way instead of dogging the trail 
 of the Boy Scouts. The only reason he could 
 find for the course being pursued involved 
 either the loss of the book taken from the den 
 or the failure of the volume to point the way 
 to the fabled treasure. On reflection, Ned 
 accepted the latter reason as the most likely 
 one. 
 
 But here was another point which the boy 
 could not understand. If the two men who 
 were trailing the party had been sufficiently 
 diligent to discover the line of argument 
 when reference to the ruined temple was made, 
 then it seemed that they ought to know that 
 the boys were not going into the wilds of the
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 87 
 
 Columbia with any notion of finding buried 
 gold. Indeed, Ned was certain that the two 
 ex-servants of the Bosworth household knew 
 that the discovery of the gold was not the 
 motive of the trip. 
 
 So, he thought, there must be some other 
 reason for the perplexing surveillance now 
 going on. Of this, of course, he had no proof ; 
 still he knew that Akbar and Saxby really had 
 better reasons than the light talk which had 
 been held in the club-room concerning the 
 hidden treasure for making such a journey. 
 
 Presently, while Ned watched intently for 
 a signal tending to show the presence of a 
 hostile interest, Jimmie arose from his posi- 
 tion by the fire and began gathering dry wood. 
 After he had secured quite a store of this he 
 began cutting green bushes and limbs and 
 heaping them beside the other. Ned looked 
 on in wonder, as the boy was not noted for 
 his industry about the camp. 
 
 After a time Jimmie paused from his work 
 and stood for a minute gazing over the forest 
 into which his chums had disappeared. Ned 
 watched him closely, and was about to disclose 
 his presence there when the boy began heaping 
 the dry wood into three piles, all in a straight 
 line, the fire already burning at one end.
 
 88 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 This finished, he heaped the green boughs on 
 top of the piles. 
 
 While Ned watched with growing interest 
 he heard a soft footfall in the thicket and 
 directly Harry Stevens stood by his side. 
 
 "What's Jimmie doing?" the latter asked. 
 
 "Just what I was trying to puzzle out," was 
 the reply. 
 
 Jimmie now took living brands from the 
 campfire and ignited the three heaps, at the 
 same time throwing green boughs on the fire 
 already going. 
 
 "Four fires!" whispered Harry. 
 
 "Four smoky fires!" Ned corrected. 
 
 "What does it mean?" asked Harry. 
 
 Ned chuckled and drew Harry down by his 
 side. 
 
 "The lad is trying to beat us to the 
 musician," he said. 
 
 "By standing still there by the fires?" 
 
 "No; by resorting to the use of the wire- 
 less." 
 
 "Well, what's the answer?" 
 
 "Indian signs," replied Ned, with a grin. 
 
 "I begin to see!" 
 
 "One column for a camp?" 
 
 "Of course." 
 
 "Two means a call for help?" 
 
 "Yes; that's it, all right, but he's got four.' w
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 89 
 
 * Three indicates good news?" 
 
 "Yes, of course. I remember now, and four 
 means a call to council in other words, 
 Jimmie is saying to some one out in the woods 
 'Come on in and we'll talk it over/ Is that 
 right?" Harry added, half rising to look over 
 the forest in search of some answering signal. 
 
 "Too early to look for an answer," Ned said, 
 "but you have it right. If there are either 
 Indians or Boy Scouts about we'll soon see 
 some answer lifting above the tops of the 
 trees." 
 
 "I don't look for any Boy Scouts up here." 
 
 "I met several in Nelson," Ned said. 
 
 The two boys waited, watching the heayy 
 columns of smoke lift in the sky for several 
 minutes, and then Ned asked: 
 
 "Where are Jack and Frank?" 
 
 "I left them climbing a hill." 
 
 "Did you seem to be any nearer the musician 
 when you turned back?" 
 
 "No I guess he was going faster than we 
 were." 
 
 "I wish we had a small rowboat here," Ned 
 whispered, directly. "I would like to look 
 over the forest from the other side of the 
 river." 
 
 Harry pointed to the west bank below the 
 fires.
 
 90 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 " There's our rowboat," he said. 
 
 "No," Ned replied. "Our rowboat is tied 
 up above the tender. I can see it now." 
 
 Harry shook his chum by the shoulder. 
 
 "Then what is that down there?" he asked. 
 
 "Seems to be a boat," Ned said, calmly. 
 
 "Well, it wasn't there when we camped." 
 
 "No; it surely wasn't." 
 
 "Well, then?" 
 
 Ned rubbed his forehead reflectively. 
 
 "I don't see how it got there," he said. 
 "There are rapids below just around that 
 rocky bend, and no man would be able to row 
 a boat like that up through them. It strikes 
 me that the people who came in that boat came 
 down the river, and are now waiting for us with 
 mischief in their minds." 
 
 "We ought to notify Jack and Frank," 
 Harry suggested. "Some of the loafers may 
 be up in the woods now ; may have tuned up on 
 that flute." 
 
 "They seem to be safe for the present," Ned 
 replied. "We should hear a noise if they 
 were in trouble. The thing to do now is to lay 
 hands on these river pirates." 
 
 As Ned ceased speaking a figure shot out 
 from the shadows nearer the fire and seized 
 Jimmie. The boy struggled valiantly, but his
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 91 
 
 opponent was a muscular fellow and was rap- 
 idly drawing him toward the river. 
 
 "Wait until we see how many of them there 
 are/' Ned whispered as Harry attempted to 
 spring forward to Jimmie's assistance. "We 
 can get that rascal at any time." 
 
 There were at, least three more, for that 
 number appeared on the bank of the river, 
 lower down, and dashed toward the boats. 
 They had evidently come from the vicinity of 
 the rowboat. 
 
 "They're after our boats now," Harry 
 gritted. "Suppose we open fire on them?" 
 
 Ned's idea was to get close enough to the 
 intruders to see what they looked like, so as 
 to be able to identify them at some future time, 
 for he knew very well that they would not 
 stand and put up a fight under fire from the 
 thicket. But before he could make Harry 
 understand that they ought to advance cau- 
 tiously, even capture one of the rascals if pos- 
 sible, that rash young man turned his auto- 
 matic loose. 
 
 The shots resulted in a quick change in the 
 situation. The three men, now at the boat, 
 / turned and ran into the forest, and the fellow 
 who was dragging Jimmie along followed 
 them. In the meantime, however, the motor 
 boats had been released from their fastenings
 
 92 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 by some quick hand, and were now drifting out 
 into the swift current. The purpose of the 
 attack was now quite evident. The boats were 
 in demand! 
 
 By this time Ned and Harry, inactive no 
 longer, were running at the top of their speed 
 along the bank, toward the drifting craft. 
 Jimmie saw that assistance was at hand and 
 devoted his combative talent to the capture of 
 the man who had attacked him. But the fel- 
 low was too quick for the lad, and in a moment 
 he was too quick, followed by a volley of bul- 
 lets from the boy's automatic. 
 
 Then a double splash in the water told Jim- 
 mie that Ned and Harry were trying to regain 
 the boats, so he seized a rope and darted after 
 them, taking up a position a little in advance 
 of the drifting craft. In the meantime Ned 
 and Harry were having a desperate struggle 
 with the current. 
 
 They knew that they would not be able to 
 work the boats back to their former moorings, 
 so they let them float without trying to stem 
 their progress, all the time endeavoring to 
 draw them nearer to the shore. When they 
 came opposite to where Jimmie stood he tossed 
 Ned the end of his rope, and in a moment the 
 danger was past. 
 
 Jimmie was drawn down the stream on a
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 93 
 
 run as the two boats pulled at the line, but in a 
 short time Ned and Harry joined him on the 
 bank and the boats were hauled in and tied up. 
 Then the boys looked at each other for a mo- 
 ment without speaking, Ned and Harry drip- 
 ping with river water. 
 
 "Wouldn't that get you?" 
 
 Jimmie was the first to speak. He looked 
 at Ned and then passed his eyes over the forest 
 to the west. 
 
 "They came pretty near getting the boats," 
 Harry said, dripping and panting. 
 
 "Why did they quit so soon?" asked Jim- 
 mie. "They might have got away with the 
 bluff." 
 
 "Because," Ned said, thoughtfully, "they 
 do not know how to run the motor boat, and 
 did not dare embark in it after they had failed 
 quietly to capture you." 
 
 "That must be it," Jimmie answered, "but, 
 all the same, they'd 'a' got mighty few lessons 
 in boat management from me. Where do you 
 think they came from?" 
 
 "I imagine they've been following us in the 
 hope of annexing the boats," Harry replied. 
 "Such boats as the Black Bear and the Wolf 
 are not often seen in these waters, you know." 
 
 "And one of them played the flute?" de- 
 manded Jimmie, throwing more wood on the
 
 94 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 fires in order that Ned and Harry might dry 
 themselves. "I don't believe it!" he added, 
 giving the negative to his own question. 
 
 "You may search me if you think I have 
 any information on the subject!" laughed 
 Harry. "I don't know a blooming thing about 
 it! For all I know, these chaps may be in 
 quest of Prank's ruined temple!" 
 
 Jimmie grinned, and then turned to Ned, 
 who seemed to be watching some movement in 
 the forest, or above it. 
 
 "Say!" he said, then, "there's the answer to 
 my wireless!" 
 
 "That's right," Harry said. "Indian sig- 
 nals." 
 
 "How many columns of smoke do you see?" 
 asked Ned. 
 
 "Two," replied both the others. 
 
 "That's a call for assistance," Ned said, 
 thoughtfully. 
 
 "Jack and Frank are in trouble, then!" de- 
 clared Harry. 
 
 "I hardly think," Ned said, "that they have 
 had time to get as far away as those columns 
 of smoke are. Those fires must be a mile 
 away." 
 
 "Huh!" Jimmie put in. "We couldn't see 
 'em if they were."
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 95 
 
 "We could if they were high up above us," 
 Ned went on. 
 
 4 * Well, anyway, it's a Boy Scout signal for 
 help," Jimmie insisted, "and I'm goin' to see 
 what it's all about." 
 
 "I believe it's just another scheme to geezle 
 the boats," Harry said, in a moment. 
 
 "Let them alone. Where do you suppose 
 Jack and Frank are ?" 
 
 The question was answered by the appear- 
 ance of the boys in person. They had heard 
 the shots and hastened back to camp. 
 
 "Did you bring your band with you?" asked 
 Jimmie. 
 
 "There's no band in there," Jack replied. 
 "That's nothing but a noise!" 
 
 "We had something more than a noise 
 here," Jimmie grinned, pointing to the boats, 
 much lower down stream than before. 
 
 The situation was explained in a few words, 
 and the boys gathered closer to study out the 
 difficult problem now presented. 
 
 "I can't understand about that music," Ned 
 said, after a short silence. "Did you hear it 
 distinctly after you got into the forest?" 
 
 ' 1 It grew fainter, ' ' Frank replied. * ' Seemed 
 as if the man playing it was riding away from 
 us at good speed." 
 
 "And the Indian signals?" asked Ned.
 
 90 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "What about that feature of the evening's en- 
 tertainment?" 
 
 "Why, we saw your signals/' was the re- 
 ply, "and heard your shots, and so we came 
 into camp." 
 
 "But there was a call for help back of you 
 in the forest," Ned said. "Is it possible that 
 you didn't see that?" 
 
 "Never a see," Jack said. "Of course the 
 trees would prevent our getting a sight of it. 
 You might see it from here, but we couldn't 
 from where we were." 
 
 "It's mighty queer," remarked Frank. 
 
 "Speaking of the evening's entertainment," 
 laughed Jimmie, "what do you think of callin' 
 it off an' goin' to bed ? For a real lively show, 
 with guns in 1. u. e., this seems to be the right 
 thing. I'm goin' to bed an' forget it." 
 
 "Go to it," said Jack. "I'll sit up and give 
 your friends a cordial reception if they show 
 up during the night. Tumble in, kids, and see 
 your uncle stand guard!" 
 
 Ned did not follow Frank and the others to 
 the boat when they prepared their beds for 
 their first out-of-door sleep on the trip, 
 but remained by the comfortable fires which 
 Jimmie had built. The sun had long since 
 disappeared and a silvery moonlight lay over
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 97 
 
 the landscape. Jack was first the break the 
 silence. 
 
 'The strange rowboat is gone/' he said, ex- 
 citedly. "I saw it there a short time ago, but 
 they've come back and sneaked it off. River 
 pirates, eh?" 
 
 " Probably," Ned replied, his eyes fixed on 
 the forest elevations to the west. 
 
 "Then you don't think Akbar or Saxby 
 guilty of that attack?" 
 
 "It doesn't seem as if they would follow us 
 with a force of strangers," Ned replied. "No, 
 I guess river outlaws wanted our boats. And," 
 the boy continued, "I'm of the opinion that 
 they'll keep on trying to get them. You no- 
 ticed that they did not take the chance of 
 smashing them in the rapids? And they not 
 only want the boats, but they want to get one 
 of us to run them. At least that is the way it 
 looks to me now.-" 
 
 "The boats sure do look attractive," Jack 
 agreed. "Are you still watching the Indian 
 signals?" he added, seeing his chum's atten- 
 tion was still fixed on the distant forest 
 
 "I've seldom taken my eyes from them," 
 was the reply. "There are three columns of 
 smoke now, and that means 'Good news.' So, 
 you see, there's been a change in the situation 
 sinc sundown."
 
 98 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "The Canadian Pacific line is over there," 
 Jack mused, half to himself, "and the smoke 
 columns may be just accidental. I shouldn't 
 wonder if tramps were cooking their supper 
 on the railroad's right of way." 
 
 But Ned could not settle the matter so com- 
 fortably. On reflection he became convinced 
 that the attack had really been made by river 
 outlaws who wanted to secure the boats, that 
 the signals were genuine and intended as a 
 means of communication with the authors of 
 the four-column signal, and that the two 
 treacherous servants who had followed them 
 from New York would be heard from later on. 
 
 Although Jack insisted on standing guard, 
 Ned did not sleep much that night. His mind 
 was too full of anxiety to admit of slumber. 
 However, the smoke signals soon died out, and 
 the night lay white under the moonlight, 
 broken only now and then by the call of a 
 night bird or the rustling of the thicket as 
 some wild creature passed that way.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA EIVER. 99 
 
 CHAPTER VH. 
 
 THE BLACK BEAR TAKES A DROP. 
 
 The sun arose in a cloudless sky the next 
 morning and the boys were early astir. Ned 
 and Jack slept a couple of hours while the 
 others were getting breakfast and making 
 ready for the start and awoke as brisk and 
 eager for the day's adventures as were their 
 chums. Before leaving the camp Jack and 
 Harry strolled into the woods and looked about 
 for some signs of their serenade party. 
 
 "If the chap who played the flute wasn't one 
 of Frank's ghosts," Jack said, "we ought to 
 find some of his tracks not far from the river." 
 
 "I reckon it must have been a dream," 
 laughed Harry. 
 
 "Dream nix!" was the reply. "Anyway, 
 that soloist, or some one in here, answered 
 Jimmie's Indian signals. If we go in far 
 enough we may find where he built his fire." 
 
 "Those columns of smoke," Harry insisted, 
 "were, as Ned says, at least a mile away. The 
 reason we saw them so plainly is because they 
 were on an elevation, and the moonlight struck 
 them at just the right angle. If we wait to 
 find where he camped, we'll never get down the
 
 100 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 river. The flute player was nearer to us, but 
 he probably left no tracks." 
 
 Jack was finally induced to take this view 
 of the matter, and the two returned to camp 
 just as the boys were ready to push off. The 
 double-cylinder engine of the Black Bear was 
 popping merrily, and the Wolf lay ready to 
 follow in her wake. Ned took the wheel and 
 they were off. 
 
 In half an hour they came in sight of the 
 rapids whose murmur they had listened to at 
 intervals during the night, and Ned drew up 
 toward the west bank, out of the strong cur- 
 rent. Jimniie shrugged his shoulders and 
 pointed down stream. 
 
 ' ' That 's nothin V ' he cried. i l Why don 't you 
 go on?" 
 
 "Too great a fall," said Jack. 
 
 Harry lifted his field-glass and inspected the 
 swirling waters. 
 
 "I don't see any boulders," he remarked. 
 "Suppose we try it, and see what the Black 
 Bear is good for?" 
 
 There was silence for a moment, and then 
 Jimmie shouted : 
 
 "Off we go! Anybody want to get eut an' 
 walk?" 
 
 "Well," Ned said, "I don't see anj reason 
 why we shouldn't take a chance here. We
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVEE. 101 
 
 shall find a good many places like this in the 
 river, and I don't propose to be taking the 
 boat apart every few minutes." 
 
 Before he ceased speaking the Black Bear 
 was nosing into the current, and the speed of 
 the craft became rather startling. The engine 
 was, of course, kept going, for without speed- 
 way the boat would soon have been overturned, 
 but the current seemed to be furnishing most 
 of the propelling power. 
 
 There was a sharp turn in the river some dis- 
 tance down, and Ned swung far out to the west 
 in order to make it without being sucked 
 against the first angle, where there was a show 
 of boulders. By this time the boat was going 
 like the wind, and the boys were clinging to the 
 steel framework, or anything that seemed 
 stable. 
 
 When the Black Bear came to the head of 
 the bend so that the course before her could be 
 seen clearly Ned's usually impassive face grew 
 set and anxious, and he swung toward the 
 shore. There seemed to be quite a lofty fall 
 directly ahead. 
 
 Harry, who had clung to his field-glass 
 throughout, bent over and whispered in Ned's 
 ear: 
 
 "Don't try that, old chap. There are jagged
 
 102 FSY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 rocks all along that shore. The boat wouldn't 
 last a minute in there." 
 
 "Then it is us for the running water," Ned 
 said, shutting his jaws tight. "Hold tight, all 
 you fellows," he added, facing the others, 
 "we're going to take a drop." 
 
 "Why didn't you say so?" demanded Jim- 
 mie, with a sickly grin. "I'd 'a' brought a 
 parachute. No wonder them tramps didn't 
 want to take the boats out last night, and they 
 not knowin' how to operate 'em!" 
 
 It now seemed as if nothing could prevent 
 the costly craft being wrecked in the drop 
 just ahead. In places the water poured over 
 the lip of the descent smoothly, but here and 
 there it was broken as if by underlying rocks. 
 Off to the right there was a current which led 
 around the west end, where the obstruction 
 over which the river tumbled seemed to be 
 lower. 
 
 Frank pointed this out and waited for Ned 
 to direct the boat in that direction. Instead 
 of doing this, however, the boy at the wheel 
 called out to the others to hang on tight and 
 steered for the very center of the river, where 
 the water poured over the break in great vol- 
 ume, running smoothly. 
 
 It was all done in an instant. Ned reached 
 forward and put on every inch of power the
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 103 
 
 engine afforded and set his teeth to meet the 
 coming jump. It was a desperate game he was 
 playing, but it seemed to be the only one worth 
 while, the only one that held out any pros- 
 pect of safety for the craft. 
 
 Almost before the boys could catch their 
 breath the prow of the Black Bear was in the 
 air over the swirl below. Frank, who was in 
 the prow, said afterwards that the fall looked 
 about as high as the roof of a twenty-story 
 sky-scraper. 
 
 The boat was well balanced and did not tip. 
 The momentum was doing much to keep it 
 right side up. Ned had figured on this, and 
 now he waited anxiously for the last kick of 
 the propeller against the wall of water. If 
 she cleared the down- tumbling mass they might 
 save the boat. If she did not, they would be 
 lucky if they escaped with their lives. 
 
 The last kick of the propeller pushed hard, 
 and the boat shot clear of the vertical stream. 
 It seemed to float in air for an instant and then 
 drop with a thud which shook the bones in the 
 tensely drawn figures clinging to anything 
 within reach. But the drop was only to the 
 surface. The staunch little boat did not dive. 
 The racing propeller caught the water and 
 pushed her ahead with the speed of an arrow.
 
 104 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 When Ned slowed down the falls were a mile 
 in the rear. 
 
 Jimmie stood up and rubbed his back. Frank 
 and Harry turned toward Ned and looked at 
 him as one looks at an insane person. Jack 
 doubled up with laughter, now and then send- 
 ing out a shout which echoed along the valley 
 with mocking reality. 
 
 1 'What did you do that for?" demanded 
 Frank, rubbing his chin, which had been 
 bumped on a knee in the drop. 
 
 Ned turned the boat toward the west bank 
 and notified Jack with a prod that it was his 
 turn at the wheel. He was a trifle pale, but 
 there was a smile of triumph on his resolute 
 face. 
 
 "What did I do what for?" he asked, 
 stretching his legs as Jack, still roaring with 
 laugher, took the wheel. 
 
 ' * Give us that bump, ' ' replied Frank. ' l You 
 near broke my neck. Why didn't you turn 
 off to the right and drop down through that 
 break?" 
 
 "I took a notion," Ned replied, "to land in 
 deep water." 
 
 Frank studied over the proposition for a 
 minute and then grinned. 
 
 "I'm a dunce," he said. "If you'd 'a' gone
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 105 
 
 down that channel the boat would have been 
 smashed into kindling on the rocks. I see !" 
 
 "You've guessed it!" roared Jack. "I saw 
 by the look on your face when Ned went over 
 the falls that you thought he had gone daffy. 
 Say, but it was funny, the way you stared at 
 
 him." 
 
 "Next time, when you drop out of a twelve- 
 story window, I'll take the elevator," said Jim- 
 mie. "I'm all scrambled, you shook me up 
 so." 
 
 "You'd have been scrambled for keeps if 
 Ned had taken the boat down by any other 
 route," Jack said. 
 
 "The Black Bear ought to be able to go 
 through anything, after that," Frank ob- 
 served. "It is a wonder to me that her engine 
 didn't drop through the bottom." 
 
 "That isn't the way she was built," Harry 
 replied. "I guess Dad knows how to build a 
 boat that won't drop to pieces the first trip! 
 Besides, how much of a fall do you think we 
 went over?" 
 
 "Looked like seventeen hundred feet to me," 
 said Jimmie. 
 
 ""Well, it was about five feet," Harry cor- 
 rected. "If we hadn't been going so like the 
 dickens, I guess we'd have tipped over, but
 
 106 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 speed saved us. Desperate undertaking, 
 though," he added. 
 
 "One I don't care about taking again," Ned 
 said, looking over the propeller and the en- 
 gine. "We'd be in a nice fix if the Black Bear 
 should go back on us." 
 
 The boat was found to be unharmed, though 
 it seemed almost a miracle that the engine had 
 not shifted. The Wolf, having been built in 
 watertight, cylindrical form to meet just such 
 emergencies, was, of course, all right. After 
 a close inspection of the boat Jimmie began 
 getting out his fishing rod. 
 
 "What are you going to do with that?" 
 asked Jack. 
 
 "Get a couple of fish for dinner," was the 
 reply. 
 
 "I've got a picture of you catching fish in 
 those rapids," observed Jack. 
 
 "Huh," grunted Jimmie, "one of the men 
 at the Kootenay Launch club rooms told me 
 that the best place to fish is just below a rush 
 of water. You remember that when we were 
 lugging the boats around Bonnington falls, 
 about eighteen miles from Nelson, we saw a lot 
 of fishers at the head of the pool. There's 
 where they get their prize rainbow trout. The 
 water rushes down the canyons and spreads 
 out in the pool, and I guess the fish wait there
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 107 
 
 for food. Well, this place looks to me like the 
 pool." 
 
 "Go it!" laughed Ned. "I wouldn't mind 
 having a couple of rainbow trout for dinner. 
 See what you can do, little one!" 
 
 Now, Jimmie looked upon the appellation 
 " little one" as a term of reproach, so he 
 frowned and set about his work with a deter- 
 mination to show his chums that he was any- 
 thing but a "little one" when it came to 
 catching rainbow trout. Fishing is not always 
 a swift game. Sometimes there is more need 
 of patience than any other quality, but there 
 is always excitement enough in "rapids" fish- 
 ing to cause one to forget everything else. 
 
 Jimmie got out the little rowboat a light 
 little concern which would carry only two, and 
 which one could handle easily and rowed up 
 to the foot of the swiftly flowing water and, 
 backing the boat about, cast his fly. The cur- 
 rent caught the lure and hustled it off down 
 stream, tossing it about on the surface as it 
 moved on. 
 
 The boys, watching with amused interest on 
 the shore and on the Black Bear, saw him give 
 a quick pull on his line, and saw the line 
 tighten. The boat, prow down stream, quiv- 
 ered and tipped a trifle, but the boy was too
 
 108 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 busily playing the fish to pay much attention 
 to that. 
 
 "Give him more rope!" shouted Jack. 
 
 "Pull him in!" roared Harry. 
 
 "Jump in and get him!" advised Prank. 
 
 It seemed that Jimmie rejected the advice of 
 the first speakers and followed that of Frank, 
 for at that moment the boat swung broadside 
 to the current, and the boy went over, clinging 
 to his bamboo as he ducked under. 
 
 The capsized boy was at least spared fur- 
 ther advice and comment from the shore at 
 that time, for it was a minute before he came to 
 the surface again. Ned was turning on the 
 power in the motor boat, and Jack was swing- 
 ing a life buoy, but Jimmie shoved his bamboo 
 down stream out of the way, wrapped the line 
 once around his right shoulder, and struck out 
 for the shore, which he reached some hundred 
 yards below the mooring place. 
 
 The instant he struck the bank he sat calmly 
 down and began playing the fish once more, 
 while Jack and Frank ran down to where he 
 sat, paying no attention whatever to the shouts 
 of laughter which greeted him, or to Ned, 
 swinging out in the Black Bear to regain the 
 rowboat, fast drifting down stream. 
 
 "What are you doing, little one?" asked 
 Frank. "Pulling in a fish?"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 109 
 
 No," replied the boy, with wry face, "I'm 
 gettin' me shoes shined." 
 
 "Do you think you've got a fish on there?" 
 asked Jack, nudging his chum. 
 
 "No," replied Jimmie, hauling in now with 
 good speed, "I've got a red house with green 
 blinds on this here line. Say, why don't you 
 fellers wake up? Sure I've got a fish on 
 here!" 
 
 And the next moment disclosed the fact that 
 he had really saved the fish, a fine rainbow 
 trout weighing something over three pounds. 
 The boys stood with wide-open eyes as he drew 
 it up to the bank and landed it in his net. 
 
 "Talk about luck!" Jack exclaimed, in a 
 tone of disgust. "If you should fall in a tar 
 pit you'd come out with a clean suit on. What 
 you going to do with that fish?" 
 
 "I'm goin' to frame it!" replied Jimmie, 
 gravely. 
 
 By the time the three got back to the moor- 
 ing place Ned was there with the rowboat in 
 place. He examined the fish critically and ad- 
 vised the boy to catch one for each of the party, 
 to which suggestion Jimmie struck a "never 
 again" attitude and nestled down in a sunny 
 spot on the bank. 
 
 "There's no hurry, is there, boys?" asked 
 Ned, getting out his own rod. "We may as
 
 110 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 well have enough for a square meal while we 
 are at it.' 7 
 
 "Why not run the Black Bbar up the rapids 
 a little ways and anchor her there?" asked 
 Jack. "Then we might all fish in safety. Of 
 course, Jimmie can jump in and bring his fish 
 out, but we don't want to do that." 
 
 Jimmie grinned and lay back in the sun, 
 while the boat was run into position and the 
 lines put out. It was a long time before any one 
 noted a nibble, but after that the sport was 
 swifter, and a large basket of beauties soon 
 adorned the "bridge deck" of the Black Bear, 
 which was directly over the engine. 
 
 "If the man who serenaded us last night 
 will kindly send in his card now," Jack re- 
 marked as the fish, done to a tender brown, lay 
 smoking on the little table in the cabin of the 
 Black Bear, "we'll give him a bite out of our 
 meal ticket. Say," he continued, as the boys 
 looked up with interest in their faces, "what 
 do you think of that stunt, anyway ? Who was 
 that, and where was he going ? He must have 
 heard the shooting, and yet he cleared out so 
 fast we couldn't catch him." 
 
 "That was the man that sent back the Indian 
 signal," Jimmie replied. 
 
 "He'd have needed an airship to get from 
 the point where we first heard him making
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. Ill 
 
 music to the place where the signals were in 
 less than a couple of hours," insisted Frank. 
 
 "We wouldn't know what to do with our- 
 selves if we wasn't mixed up with a mystery," 
 laughed Harry. "If the music was intended 
 for as we'll hear it again. Say x " he went on, 
 "where did that big rowboat go to? It never 
 went through the rapids, and it didn't pass on 
 upstream." 
 
 "That is another mystery," grinned Jimniie. 
 "Who's goin' to stand guard tonight an' catch 
 this here string band of ours no, wind band. 
 Anyway, who's goin' to lay awake an' grab 
 him?" 
 
 "If you boys really think the mystery is 
 worth solving," Ned said, "we may as well 
 remain here tonight and keep close watch. We 
 are not far from human habitations now, and 
 if we should catch a couple of river thieves we 
 might drop them at the first stop down the 
 river. Besides, I'm a little anxious to know 
 who it is giving us so much attention." 
 
 It was decided to adopt this suggestion. A 
 few miles below they would come to the line of 
 the Great Northern railroad, to a copper min- 
 ing country and to two small towns. If they 
 were to be annoyed by thieves, it would be wise, 
 they thought, to have the battle within reach of 
 officers of the law. They were not far from the
 
 112 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 boundary line, and below that imaginary divi- 
 sion of the two countries was Marcus, where 
 the Great Northern crosed the Columbia and 
 entered the Kettle riA^er valley. 
 
 The Great Northern left the river at Marcus 
 and struck it again some distance below We- 
 natchee, many miles down. The north side of 
 the river between Marcus and Wenatchee is, 
 perhaps, as little known as any part of the 
 Northwest. There are mountains and forests 
 and deep canyons through which the waters, 
 hastening onward to the Pacific ocean, rush 
 with almost incredible speed. The lads antici- 
 pated a rough time while passing through this 
 country, and thought it might be well to rid 
 themselves of annoyances in the way of thieves. 
 
 This point decided, they lounged about all 
 the bright afternoon, fishing now and then, but 
 mostly reading or walking delightedly about. 
 Frank was invited to bring on his ghosts that 
 night, and Jack generously offered to put any 
 ruined temple the boy might discover into his 
 watch pocket. But while the boys were wait- 
 ing for some demonstration from their ene- 
 mies, they were also concerned not a little with 
 the problems of the music and the Indian 
 signals. 
 
 "I'm goin' to roost in a tree tonight" Jim-
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 113 
 
 inie asserted. "I want to hear that orchestra 
 play 'On the Bowery' once more." 
 
 "You'll hear no more flute playing like 
 that, ' ' Frank declared. " I 've decided that the 
 player was some excursionist on the Canadian 
 Pacific railroad some romantic chap who pos- 
 sibly left the train at Rossland and strayed out 
 in the forest. I '11 bet a fish he hit only the high 
 places after the shooting began." 
 
 And so the boys laughed and talked of their 
 adventures, past, present, and to come, until 
 the sun went down and the light of the moon 
 lay over the bewitching scene. They kept very 
 still, then, listening for what they scarcely 
 knew.
 
 114 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 A BOY SCOUT POSTOFPICE. 
 
 Jack and Frank sat in the boat, which lay 
 dark on the water only a few feet from the 
 bank, while Ned, Harry and Jimmie lay con- 
 cealed in the shadows to the west. In the still- 
 ness of the night they heard the rumble of far- 
 off trains, and once Harry declared that he saw 
 the light of a boat on the river below and heard 
 the thud of an oar. 
 
 Just as the boys were getting sleepy and be- 
 coming discouraged as to tangible results the 
 mellow voice of a flute came to their ears, from 
 the west, just as it had on the previous evening. 
 The air was "The Sweet Refrain/' a favorite 
 in the music halls of the East Side division of 
 New York, and so artistically was it rendered 
 that the boys sat in silence and listened until 
 the notes died away. 
 
 "That chap's home is sure east of the Bow- 
 ery," Jimmie observed, nudging Harry, who 
 sat next to him. "What do you make of it? 
 What is he followin' us down the river for, an' 
 where did he pick us up?" 
 
 Before Harry could find a suitable reply to 
 these puzzling questions the music began again,
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 115 
 
 seeming to grow louder, as if the player was 
 approaching the camp. Harry gripped Jim- 
 mie's arm in sudden inspiration. 
 
 "You can whistle like a professional, kid," 
 he said, "strike in and see what comes of it." 
 
 The boy "struck in," as requested, but noth- 
 ing came of it. 
 
 "Wait until he stops," Ned suggested, "and 
 then try him." 
 
 This method produced results, for an exact 
 imitation of Jimmie's effort came from the 
 thicket, followed by a laugh, and then silence. 
 
 The boys waited at least half an hour, imag- 
 ining the approach of the strange musician in 
 every movement of the forest, but nothing 
 more was heard from him. 
 
 "Have you your searchlight?" asked Ned. 
 
 "Sure!" replied Jimmie. 
 
 "Then we'll go in and see what we can learn 
 there," Ned went on. "The fellow couldn't 
 have been more than a hundred yards away." 
 
 "He was up on that point," declared Harry. 
 "I half believe I saw his eyes shining in the 
 moonlight. Wait a minute! I'll get my light 
 and go with you." 
 
 "Perhaps you would better remain here with 
 the boat," suggested Ned. "You must remem- 
 ber that this is a party given for the benefit 
 of the river outlaws."
 
 116 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "All right/' Harry said, in a disappointed 
 tone. "I'll go aboard and cheer Jack and 
 Frank up a little." 
 
 "Jack an* Frank are tellin' each other lies 
 about that ruined temple," Jimmie grinned. 
 "They do like to roast each other about that." 
 
 "I don't believe Frank thinks there's any- 
 thing of the kind," said Harry. "He's just 
 talking for the fun of it." 
 
 "Well, Akbar and Saxby seem to believe in 
 the tale," Ned laughed, "for they have fol- 
 lowed us from New York. We ought to be 
 hearing from them directly." 
 
 "Tell you what," Jimmie said, as if impart- 
 ing a great secret, "Jack believes in that ruined 
 temple story himself! He just roasts Frank 
 to keep the argument going. I've heard him 
 talk about the old book that was stolen, and 
 I've an idea he used to study it an' count on 
 coming to the ruins some day." 
 
 "He's kept pretty still about it," laughed 
 Ned. 
 
 "Yes, he has," was the reply, "because he 
 don't want to be laughed at. I believe he knows 
 the exact location where that old ruin is said to 
 be." 
 
 "Ill ask him about it," said Harry. 
 
 "If you do you won't get a civil answer. I 
 can tell you what he thinks about the sitiia-
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 117 
 
 tion of the place. It's on the north side of the 
 'Big W, ' off from the river a ways, in a canyon 
 between two rocky ranges. I heard him talkin' 
 about the 'Big W,' an' looked it up on the 
 map. The river along there is full of falls and 
 rapids, an' there ain't no landing towns for 
 miles on the north side. It is an Indian reser- 
 vation, on the north, an' game is plenty there, 
 though I guess the country is mostly barren 
 mountains an' hills. South is the Spokane 
 grain country, as it is called." 
 
 " You've been dreaming, too, Jimmie," cried 
 Harry. "Go along and solve one mystery be- 
 fore taking up another. Go on with Ned and 
 whistle the flute soloist into camp." 
 
 Harry turned toward the boat and Ned and 
 Jimmie moved into the forest which lifted 
 from the rocky landscape. 
 
 "There's the elevation where Harry saw 
 something shinin' in the moonlight," Jimmie 
 said, after a short tramp. "We might go up 
 there an' see if he left any tracks." 
 
 Accordingly the boys ascended the elevation 
 and looked about. The moonlight was almost 
 as bright as that of the sun, and the boys 
 dropped down on the ground and began a care- 
 ful inspection of the surface. Presently Jim- 
 mie whispered: 
 
 "Tracks I"
 
 118 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "Shoe or moccasin ?" asked Ned. 
 
 "Shoe," was the reply. 
 
 Ned moved over to where the boy lay, his 
 nose within two inches of the ground. 
 
 ' ' Here, ' ' the lad said, pointing. ' ' He walked 
 off that way, into the thicket." 
 
 "There's a pretty good hiding place in 
 there," Ned remarked. 
 
 The boys followed the tracks, now faint, now 
 distinct, until they came to a line of shrubs 
 under the advance guard of trees. There Ned 
 stopped. 
 
 "What do you make of this*?" he asked, 
 pointing. 
 
 Jimmie looked down and gave a low whistle, 
 which was instantly checked when Ned seized 
 him by the arm. 
 
 "More Indian signs," the boy whispered. 
 
 "Boy Scout signs," corrected Ned. 
 
 "What do you make of it?" the boy asked, 
 then. 
 
 "A Boy Scout of the Eagle Patrol has been 
 here," Ned said, reading the signs scattered 
 all about. "How he got here, or why he came, 
 is more than I know. He has been here, how- 
 ever, and left a sort of postoffice for us." 
 
 "Signs in the grass," Jimmie said. "That 
 means 'be careful/ doesn't it?" 
 
 "Yes, three growing sheafs in a row, tied
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 119 
 
 together at the top. That means 'take warn- 
 ing. ' Here 's the same warning in twigs, stones 
 and trees. See, here are three holes in this tree, 
 three white spots where the bark is cut away, 
 one above another. That means 'be careful,' 
 same as the others." 
 
 "I guess he was afraid we'd miss one," said 
 Jimmie. 
 
 "And here's the postoffice," Ned went on, 
 taking a folded sheet of paper from under a 
 log. 
 
 Jimmie opened his eyes wide. 
 
 "Got a letter?" he asked. 
 
 "Can't you see it?" 
 
 "Well, but " 
 
 Ned laughed. 
 
 "Look here," he said, "you see this oblotfg 
 cut in the tree ? Well, now observe the arrow 
 pointing to the right. What does that mean ?" 
 
 "I guess I ain't workin' in that degree," 
 Jimmie admitted. 
 
 "It means that there is a letter hidden three 
 feet away, in the direction indicated by the 
 arrow. See, I followed the sign and got my 
 letter." 
 
 "Gee!" cried the boy. 
 
 Ned unfolded the sheet and laughed. 
 
 "What does it say?" asked Jimmie. 
 
 Ned passed the sheet over to the boy and
 
 120 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 waited for him to master the brief contents, 
 which he was not long in doing. 
 
 ' ' 'Better go ~back home/ Jimmie read aloud. 
 "He's got his nerve with him!" 
 
 " Neglected to sign his name in full," Ned 
 observed. "Says he's a member of the Eagle 
 Patrol, and stops there." 
 
 "Where does he say that?" 
 
 "Note the feather drawn across the bottom? 
 Well, that's it." 
 
 "But you said he belonged to the Eagle Pa- 
 trol before you saw this," ventured the boy, 
 puzzled beyond measure by the queer happen- 
 ings of the night. 
 
 Ned pointed to a feather wound in the warn- 
 ing signal in grass. 
 
 " 'Better go back home!' '" repeated the boy, 
 in tones of indignation. "I suppose we've 
 come all the way out here to be told what to do 
 by a kid that's afraid to show his face!" 
 
 Ned followed the footprints into the forest 
 a few paces and turned back. 
 
 "He'll show himself when he wants to say 
 anything more," he said. 
 
 "Huh!" Jimmie sputtered. "Why didn't 
 he show himself tonight?" 
 
 Ned made no attempt to answer this perti- 
 nent question. He was sorely puzzled over 
 the messages he had received. What was the
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 121 
 
 danger against which they were warned ? Why 
 should they turn back home and lose a per- 
 fectly innocent holiday? Why did the fellow 
 who had warned them conceal himself from 
 sight when almost within sound of their 
 voices ? These questions and a dozen more of 
 similar import raced through the boy's brain. 
 
 " ' Better go back home!' ' Jimmie again 
 muttered. "I suppose this marker wants to 
 scare us away from something good!" 
 
 This was a new way to look at the matter, 
 and Ned asked. 
 
 " Scare us away from what, for instance?" 
 
 " Blessed if I know!" was the reply. "I'm 
 all muddled up. This is a great country for 
 jarrin' folks. Here I got scrambled in the 
 boat this forenoon, an' now I'm so muddled 
 that I don't know which way is straight up. 
 But where do you think that Eagle Patrol 
 feller went? I'll bet a fish feather that he's 
 hidin' around here now, laughin' at us. Here, 
 you chump!" he called out, facing the rising 
 ground in the forest, "why don't you come out 
 an' show yourself?" 
 
 The boys listened a moment for a response 
 to the call, but there was only the flutter of a 
 sleepy bird in the tree under which ther stood. 
 Ned decided to try again. 
 
 "We got your letter!" he said.
 
 122 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 In a moment the music came again, farther 
 away this time, and Jimmie sat down on the 
 ground at the foot of the tree and laughed. 
 The mysterious musician was playing "Home, 
 Sweet Home," probably as a reminder of the 
 brief message contained in the letter ! 
 
 "I'm goin' to take a run an' jump at him!" 
 Jimmie cried, after he had had his laugh out, 
 and after the notes of the melody had died 
 away. 
 
 "No use," Ned advised. "You couldn't fol- 
 low him long in there, even if you knew which 
 way he was going." 
 
 " 'Better go back home!' " Jimmie grum- 
 bled. "I wish I had him by the neck!" 
 
 Ned walked back to the camp in a brown 
 study. He could not understand this. Why 
 should a person give such a warning and still 
 refuse to assign any reason for so doing ? Why 
 should the musician follow them on from one 
 point on the river to another?' How was he 
 traveling? Did the large rowboat belong to 
 him, and was it now hidden in some narrow 
 creek, waiting to move when they passed 
 down? 
 
 The boy was now fully convinced that the 
 flute player had nothing in common with the 
 men who had attempted the capture of the 
 boats. Also that he was not working with the
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 123 
 
 two villainous ex-servants of the Bosworth 
 house. The fellow might be following them 
 merely as a joke, or he might be hovering about 
 to give a warning in which case Ned thought 
 he ought to have the moral courage to say 
 what he had to say face to face. 
 
 "We'll take a long run tomorrow," he re- 
 marked to the boys, as they talked the matter 
 over after his return to the boat, "and see what 
 this mysterious chap does about that. He'll 
 have to go some if he keeps up with us." 
 
 "What's the odds that he doesn't perform 
 before us on his flute tomorrow night $" Jack 
 asked, with a grin. 
 
 "About ten to one," ventured Frank, "but it 
 really depends on how far we're going. Any- 
 way, I'll go you ten to one that he doesn't 
 show up tomorrow night." 
 
 "Ten what to one?" asked Jimmie. 
 
 "Oh, anything, except money," smiled 
 Frank. ' * I don 't gamble. ' ' 
 
 "Ten tricks at the wheel, then," suggested 
 Jack. 
 
 "You're on!" said Frank, and the boys 
 gravely shook hands. 
 
 "You've got your work cut out for you," 
 Jimmie said, glancing at Frank. "Jack '11 be 
 the lazy man of this little old excursion for the 
 next month."
 
 124 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "How far tomorrow ?" asked Harry, turn- 
 ing to Ned. 
 
 "We ought to stop at Marcus," was the 
 reply, "and fill the tanks with gasoline. Then 
 we ought to get around Kettle falls and cut 
 loose from the line of the Great Northern rail- 
 road. I'm anxious to get beyond the sound of 
 a steam whistle." 
 
 "You lose!" Jimmie exclaimed, speaking to 
 Frank. "You lose that bet! See here," he 
 added, taking out a map and turning his 
 searchlight on it. "We're only a short dis- 
 tance from Sayward, where the copper mines 
 are, and the railroad runs through there. Now, 
 this funny man with the wind instrument can 
 get there tonight, take an early train, and get 
 to Marcus before we do. He can watch us fill 
 our tanks and then shoot down the river in a 
 skiff so as to toot-toot to us at night. You lose 
 that bet, little man!" 
 
 "But you're supposing that this funny little 
 man has nothing to do but to follow us and 
 play sweet music and leave letters and Indian 
 signs on trees," Frank said. "The bet is won 
 right now!" 
 
 "That is just exactly the way I dope it out," 
 Jimmie said. "That boy is with us for keeps. 
 I don't know why, but he is!" 
 
 Harry stood guard that night. His four
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 125 
 
 companions occupied their hammocks on board 
 the Black Bear, although Jimmie was deter- 
 mined at first to sleep on shore. The sentinel 
 sat on the prow gazing down the river for a 
 long time, enjoying the beauty of the scene. 
 It was such a night, there in the great North- 
 west, as the city dweller rarely sees. The 
 Columbia river lay like a ribbon of undulating 
 silver in the soft light of the moon. There was 
 a whispering in the trees, and one might well 
 have imagined that the spirits which fable 
 placed in the mysterious temple were abroad 
 in the forest, telling in whispers of their joy 
 of the moonlight. 
 
 Harry's vigil passed on monotonously until 
 midnight, and then he heard the plash of an 
 oar. At first it seemed that he must be mis- 
 taken, for the river was clear, over the rapids 
 above and down the shining surface. Then, 
 from a tiny creek, unobserved before, he saw 
 the unpainted prow of a boat thrust forth. 
 
 Slowly the boat revealed itself until its 
 Jength lay in the river, the bow pointing down- 
 ward. There seemed to be two men in the boat, 
 but Harry could not make sure that there were 
 not three. At least there were two pairs of 
 oars at work. 
 
 Harry, not wishing to take all the responsi- 
 bility, shook Ned by the shoulder, and that
 
 126 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 young man was almost instantly on his feet. 
 Harry pointed down toward the boat and did 
 not speak. Ned looked thoughtful. 
 
 The men in the boat might be employes of 
 the copper mines below, or they might be fish- 
 ermen, or prospectors, or huntsmen, but if 
 they were, the boy thought, they would hardly 
 leave the locality without inspecting the Black 
 Bear. Boats of her build were not common in 
 that country, and curiosity would naturally 
 lead any honest visitors to inquiry and 
 inspection. 
 
 The boat, held by the oars, remained almost 
 stationary in the water for a moment and then 
 slowly turned and started up stream in the 
 direction of the Black Bear. Ned and Harry 
 crouched down and remained perfectly quiet. 
 The rowboat came on slowly, and three men 
 could now be seen, two at the oars and one at 
 the helm. 
 
 The boys got their weapons ready and 
 waited. Much to their surprise, however, the 
 rowboat made a wide detour and passed up 
 stream, leaving a space half the width of the 
 river between the two boats. 
 
 "They've got their nerve!" Jimmie whis- 
 pered, as the distance between the two parties 
 increased. "Look! Look!" he added, clutch- 
 ing at Ned's sleeve.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 127 
 
 Ned's eyes were already fixed on the face 
 to which the boy was calling his attention. Up 
 to this time it had remained concealed under 
 a wide hat rim, but now the moonlight struck 
 it fairly. It was the face of Akbar, and there 
 was a look of triumph on the dusky features 
 which made Jimmie's fingers tighten into the 
 palms of his hands. 
 
 ' ' The sneak ! ' ' the boy whispered. * * Suppose 
 we take a shot at him?" 
 
 But Ned could find no good reason for doing 
 this, much as the proposition pleased him. The 
 fellow had not interfered with them in any 
 way, and, surely, the river was open to all. 
 
 The boat passed on up stream, with Akbar 
 observing the motor boat very closely as he 
 glided by. He seemed to believe the boys on 
 board to be asleep, for the rowers paused at 
 a motion of his haiid, a hundred paces up 
 stream, and the craft began to drift downward 
 in a straight line with the Black Bear. 
 
 "Is that the rowboat we saw last night?" 
 whispered Jimmie, as the two came closer to- 
 gether. 
 
 Ned shook his head. It was not the same 
 boat, and this was an additional element of 
 uneasiness. With two parties sneaking about, 
 the chances for a troubled voyage down the 
 river seemed excellent three parties, in fact,
 
 128 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 for there was the mysterious soloist to con- 
 sider. 
 
 "They're goin' to board us!" Jimmie cried 
 out in a moment, in a tone so loud that it must 
 have been heard on the other boat. 
 
 Ned drew the boy down, half angrily, but 
 the mischief had been done. The rowboat shot 
 away down stream. Ned pushed the lever 
 which brought the engine stroke up to the first 
 spark and took the wheel. In a moment, with 
 a snort from the siren, the motor boat was off 
 in pursuit. The other boys awoke rubbing 
 their eyes. 
 
 " What's doing?" demanded Jack, tumbling 
 out of his swaying hammock. "What are you 
 trying to do at this unholy hourf " 
 
 "We have met the enemy an' they 
 ducked!" grinned Jimmie. 
 
 The speedy motor boat gained fast on the 
 other for a time, and then the latter, swinging 
 off to one side, disappeared in the mouth of a 
 small creek on the east side of the river. When 
 the Black Bear came to the tiny opening the 
 other boat was out of sight, and Ned uttered 
 a sigh of disappointment. 
 
 "Go on in after them!" advised Jack. 
 
 "An' get grounded, an' also get our blocks 
 knocked off by pirates hidin' behind trees!" 
 said Jimmie.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 129 
 
 Ned's inclination was to follow Jack's advice, 
 but he knew that Jimmie's idea was the safest. 
 They would stand no show at all in a fight in the 
 thicket, and, besides, there really was nothing 
 to fight about ! 
 
 Sorely disappointed at the outcome of the 
 adventure, Ned turned the prow of the Black 
 Bear down stream, and the light of morning 
 found them over the boundary line, at Marcus, 
 where they procured more gasoline. The dan- 
 gerous Kettle falls were passed that afternoon, 
 and night found the boys miles away from any 
 railroad line, far distant from any habitation 
 or town. The wilds of the Columbia were open 
 to them at last. 
 
 "Now," Jack said, as they prepared for 
 sleep, "I'm going to stand guard tonight and 
 make sure that I win that bet of Frank. We're 
 a hundred miles from last night's camp, but 
 I'll bet a cooky that we hear the flute soloist 
 before morning."
 
 130 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE LIGHTS IN THE SKY. 
 
 It was another brilliant night, and Ned re- 
 mained with Jack until midnight, not a little 
 curious as to the outcome of the wager. 
 
 "If he does come tonight," the boy said, "I 
 shall think he is making a business of follow- 
 ing us. Our previous camping places were not 
 far apart, and so his showing up on both eve- 
 nings may have been merely a matter of cir- 
 cumstance, but if he comes down here it will 
 show me that he is interested in us in some 
 way." 
 
 "I've got a hunch that he'll come," Jack 
 said. 
 
 "But why why " 
 
 The sentence was never finished, for just 
 then came the soft voice of the flute, flowing 
 through the moonlight from no special loca- 
 tion, seemingly, but pervading the scene with 
 its melody. 
 
 "That gets me!" Jack cried. 
 
 Frank stirred uneasily in his sleep and Jim- 
 mie, who was still wide awake, gave him a jab 
 in the ribs. 
 
 "Wake up an* pay your bet!" he cried. 
 "Here's the bogey man !"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 13] 
 
 "All right!" Frank grumbled. "I'll pay! 
 Say, if you fellows will go out there and catch 
 him I'll give you the largest spread we can get 
 at Sherry's when we go back to New York." 
 
 The music stopped directly, and then Jimmie 
 launched into a whistle which seemed almost 
 an echo of the other's performance. Almost 
 immediately he was joined by the soloist, and 
 the air was finished together. 
 
 Jimmie looked puzzled. His face was turned 
 toward the spot from which the sounds had 
 apparently come, with a wonder in his eyes. 
 
 "I've heard that gink somewhere," he said, 
 presently. "I've heard that song performed 
 in just that way before. I believe I'd know 
 that flute man if I could only get my lamps on 
 him." 
 
 "Jimmie," said Frank, nudging Harry, 
 "you are getting so you can't open your mouth 
 without dropping out a lot of slang. If you 
 don't quit it we'll have to pass you up. Un- 
 derstand? We don't stand for this rough 
 Bowery lingo, this East Side patter. What?" 
 
 "I guess wou can go some yourself," grinned 
 Jimmie. "I'd give two stories off the first 
 sky-scraper I own, though, to be able to size up 
 that gink with the flute." 
 
 "Well, go on ashcre and talk with Mm," 
 urged Jack.
 
 132 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 The boy looked at Ned, as if asking permis- 
 sion to do so. 
 
 "It might be a good idea/' Ned said. 
 
 Jimmie was off the Black Bear in a minute, 
 splashing through the shallow water at the 
 margin because he would not wait for the row- 
 boat and also because he did not jump quite far 
 enough. He was gone half an hour. When he 
 returned his face looked more discouraged than 
 before. 
 
 "Find him?" asked Jack. 
 
 "Nix," replied the boy, with a shake of the 
 head. "There's not a trace of him in there. 
 How did he get here, anyway?" 
 
 "That's what gets us all," Ned replied. "He 
 hasn't got a motor boat, for we could hear the 
 engine popping if he had, and he never could 
 have rowed or floated here in the time we have 
 made. He must have an airship ! ' ' 
 
 ' ' That 's no joke ! ' ' Frank replied. ' ' Honest 
 and true, I believe he has!" 
 
 "Then why haven't we seen it, or heard some 
 of the people at the towns we have passed talk- 
 ing about it? An airship up here would at- 
 tract more attention than a white elephant with 
 red wings." 
 
 "Anyway, if he has an airship," protested 
 Jack, "what's he chasing us up for? Do you
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 133 
 
 really think you've heard that whistle before, 
 Jimmie ?" 
 
 "Sure I do," was the reply. 
 
 " Think hard I" laughed Frank. 
 
 "Was it on the East Side?" asked Harry. 
 
 Jimmie turned his back on the group and 
 climbed into his hammock. 
 
 "I hope he'll come back an' sweep some of 
 the bees out of your garrets," he said, as he 
 composed himself to slumber. 
 
 "It's a fright the way that boy talks slang," 
 laughed Frank. 
 
 Jimmie only grunted, he was already half 
 asleep, and through the shadowy dreams which 
 came later on he seemed to hear that air again, 
 and to see the face and figure of the performer. 
 But, somehow, whenever, in these dreams, he 
 endeavored to get close enough to identify the 
 other a cloud came between them, and he awoke 
 with a start only to sleep and dream again. 
 
 The remainder of the watch that night was 
 uneventful. Nothing more was heard of the 
 mysterious musician. In the morning the 
 shore was searched for some sign of the pres- 
 ence of the stranger, but nothing was found. 
 
 "He might have left us another letter," 
 Harry said. 
 
 "With his old 'Better go home' in it, I sup- 
 pose," scorned Jimmie.
 
 134 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOE BOAT 
 
 " Anything at all!" 
 
 "It seems that he left nothing," Ned decided, 
 reluctantly, as he returned to the Black Bear. 
 "Not even the print of a shoe !" 
 
 "I told you he was up in the air!" Frank 
 declared. "That music never came from the 
 ground." 
 
 The boys set out on their journey early in 
 the forenoon. For two golden weeks they loi- 
 tered along the magnificent river. Now they 
 camped beside a swift stream which poured 
 through a rocky canyon. Now they slept in the 
 boat, rocked in the hammocks, and looking out 
 upon quiet pools where birds came to bathe in 
 the morning, and where silvery fishes leaped up 
 to meet the sunshine. Now they passed moun- 
 tain spurs which crowded hard upon the valley 
 of the stream, now they came to great dark 
 forests where game abounded. 
 
 Many a night they built roaring fires on some 
 rocky "bench" by the shore and slept beside 
 them. Many a morning found them miles from 
 camp, climbing, hunting, loitering, always 
 filled with the wonder of the great Northwest. 
 
 Oh, those days and nights on the Columbia ! 
 They were to remember them all their lives. 
 It was June, and the perfume of the time was 
 over everything. It was vacation, and the 
 elixir of youth was in their veins.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA EIVEE. 135 
 
 One afternoon Jack shot a deer, which he 
 ought not to have done at that time of the year, 
 and proposed a venison stew for supper. But 
 when the meal was ready he turned away from 
 the table. 
 
 "I can see his eyes looking at me out of the 
 bowl," he said. 
 
 "I'm glad of that!" Ned said, heartily. 
 
 The stew was thrown out untasted. The 
 boys were well versed in the lore of the Boy 
 Scouts, which teaches that all wild creatures, 
 except when actually needed for food, should 
 be given the right to live. And, on another 
 afternoon, a black bear came smelling cau- 
 tiously about the camp. He was not a rery 
 ferocious looking creature, and Jimmie went 
 out and tried to bribe him into companionship 
 with a handful of loaf sugar. 
 
 "There's three Black Bears here now," Jim- 
 mie explained to the suspicious animal, "and 
 you'll be the boss of the bunch if you come with 
 us." 
 
 But bruin did not appear to like the looks 
 of things, and the last the boys saw of him he 
 was shambling off through the bushes with a 
 grunt not unlike that with which a hog ex- 
 presses disbelief in representations made. 
 
 The boats behaved admirably, and the drift- 
 ing economized the gasoline so that the supply
 
 136 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 taken on at Marcus would last for a month. 
 They had plenty of tinned foods, and the river 
 itself and the little creeks which emptied into 
 it literally swarmed with fish, so the lads lived 
 like epicures. 
 
 During all this time they had heard nothing 
 of the mysterious soloist, and the river men 
 who had been seen in the rowboats were well 
 nigh forgotten. Ned at times had a subcon- 
 scious impression that the East Indian and 
 Saxby would be heard from in due season, but 
 he did not permit himself to worry over the 
 matter. 
 
 At the end of the two weeks they came to 
 Spokane rapids, and knew that they were at 
 the mouth of the Spokane river, with Metre 
 rapids just below the junction. They remained 
 here for a few days, making friends with peo- 
 ple who passed them on the river, and pre- 
 paring for the long stretch between that point 
 and Wenatchee. 
 
 On the second day Ned and Frank, lying in 
 comfort on the Black Bear, the "roof" of 
 which was usually turned back on the steel 
 supports, unless there was rain, saw a shadow 
 pass over the water and looked quickly up, for 
 there were no clouds in the sky, and the ap- 
 pearance of the shadow seemed unaccountable. 
 'In a second Frank gave a shout.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 137 
 
 " There's the airship!" he said. 
 
 "Looks like it," Ned admitted. 
 
 "But I mean our airship!" Frank con- 
 tinued. 
 
 "Didn't know we had one," replied Ned. 
 "When are you going to take possession of 
 it?" 
 
 "Why," Frank answered, "that's the air- 
 ship we've been looking for! The one our 
 soloist travels in!" 
 
 Ned laughed and turned away. 
 
 "Strange we never caught sight of him be- 
 fore, then," he said. 
 
 The airship sailed over the Black Bear, and 
 seemed for an instant to hover there, then 
 passed on toward Spokane. But as the great 
 planes grew smaller in the distance the clear 
 notes of a fife came down with the sunshine! 
 
 "There's your old bandwagon!" Frank 
 laughed. "There's the ship the soloist has 
 been traveling in ! Now, I want to know what 
 he means by it. He must be on a vacation, 
 too, riding in an aeroplane instead of a motor 
 boat." 
 
 Ned was thinking along the same line, but 
 was asking himself the question as to where the 
 soloist had put in the time during the two 
 weeks they had been sauntering down to 
 Spokane Junction.
 
 138 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "If he's keeping watch over us," he said, 
 with a smile, "he's been oft duty for about 
 fourteen days." 
 
 "Well, he seems to be on the job now, all 
 right," Frank said. 
 
 "I think," Ned answered, thoughtfully, 
 that I ought to run up to Spokane and see who 
 that young man is. If he lands there with his 
 aeroplane, everybody in the valley will know 
 all about him in no time, and he certainly must 
 land somewhere to get gasoline for his motor." 
 
 "Suppose we run up in the Black Bear?" 
 
 Ned laughed and took out a pocket map. 
 
 "We are now about one hundred miles from 
 Spokane," he said, looking the map over, "and 
 in that distance the river has a fall of about 
 twelve hundred feet, or an average of twelve 
 feet to the mile. I guess we won't try to go up 
 there in the boat." 
 
 "But we might make it," urged Frank. 
 "You know we made the river from Nelson to 
 the Columbia, around Upper and Lower Ben- 
 nington falls. The maps do not show that 
 there is any boat route along that river." 
 
 "We had only a short distance to go there," 
 Ned replied, "and, besides, we were rather 
 enjoying the novelty of taking our new boat to 
 pieces and putting it together again. I think 
 we've had enough of that"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVEE. 139 
 
 "Then how are you going to get to 
 Spokane?" 
 
 "We have plenty of time, and I thought we 
 might work up as far as possible without too 
 much carrying, and then go on in a canoe." 
 
 The boys studied over the situation for a 
 long time, and Frank was anxious to visit 
 Spokane, so he encouraged the expressed idea, 
 but Ned finally decided to go on down the river 
 and let the soloist take his own time about mak- 
 ing himself known. 
 
 "He'll be sure to do it," Jimmie said, when 
 the case was stated to the other boys on their 
 return to camp. "I believe he's here to keep 
 a kind of watch over us!" 
 
 "I guess we don't need any chaperon," 
 grunted Jack. 
 
 "Well, he's here to make friends with us 
 before we leave the country," insisted the little 
 fellow. "I've heard that whistle in little old 
 New York, and I know it. There is an Eagle 
 Patrol there, you know, and this chap comes 
 from that." 
 
 "Perhaps he's after the ruined temple!" 
 said Jack, nudging Frank. 
 
 Frank grinned, but made no reply, and 
 Jimmie grinned, too, because he knew that 
 Jack, in spite of his jokes about it, believed as
 
 140 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 thoroughly in the story of the early trip of the 
 East Indians as Frank pretended to. 
 
 So the prow of the motor boat was turned 
 down stream the next morning. From this 
 point on the boys were fronted by new condi- 
 tions. Nearly all the way from Nelson, B. C. T 
 to Marcus, Wash., they had been within sound 
 of a locomotive whistle. From Marcus to the 
 Spokane river they had passed through a val- 
 ley which is sure to become a great orchard and 
 grain producer in time. 
 
 This, however, is probably true only of the 
 valley on the east side of the river. Between 
 the Columbia and the Huckleberry mountains 
 the land is fertile and irrigation is easily 
 brought about where needed. To the west of 
 the river lies the Colville Indian reservation. 
 
 The valley here is much narrower than on 
 the east side of the stream, and there are very 
 few towns on that side. In the interior are 
 some mines, and the railroads are pointing 
 northward. Few streams rush down from the 
 highland to the Columbia, and the forests of 
 larch, spruce and cedar are thick and hard to 
 penetrate. 
 
 Below Spokane junction the Columbia val- 
 ley, on the south, is known as a part of the 
 great Spokane grain and orchard belt. The 
 general course of the stream is west, though it
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. HI 
 
 flows at times to il 1 points of the compass. At 
 the foot of the Buckhorn mountains, something 
 over two hundred miles from the Spokane, it 
 turns south again and waters the Wenatchee 
 country. 
 
 But while the valley of the Columbia, on the 
 south, possesses great possibilities for the 
 future, that on the north is wild and rugged, 
 broken with mountains and not at present suit- 
 able for crop growing. There are numerous 
 towns along the river, on the south side, 
 between the Spokane and the Buckhorn 
 mountains, but none on the north. 
 
 The Columbia takes a long drop from the 
 interior plateau in this stretch, and is there- 
 fore turbulent and wayward. The maps show 
 a dozen important falls and rapids between 
 the Spokane and the Buckhorns, but the boys 
 found more than that. The Black Bear was 
 taken to pieces several times, but the boys did 
 not grumble over the delays or the portages. 
 
 In fact, the party loitered along, just about 
 as it had done above the Spokane. The boat 
 was three weeks in making the first hundred 
 miles. The lads fished and tramped over the 
 hills and slept in the sun. The daily temper- 
 ature stood at about 70 degrees, and there were 
 few rainy days, the average of -sunny days in 
 that country being twenty-two to the month.
 
 148 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 One evening, an hour or more after they 
 had passed a little settlement on the south side 
 of the river, known as Alameda, they drew the 
 Black Bear up the north bank at the head of 
 a long run of rapids which would necessitate 
 the taking of the boat to pieces before continu- 
 ing the journey. 
 
 Jimmie sighed at the prospect ahead. 
 
 "If it wasn't for that old engine," he 
 growled, "I could carry the boat around the 
 bloomin' falls alone! If that aeroplane fellow 
 is ever comin' I wish he'd drop down now an' 
 lift this Black Bear down the river a few 
 miles." 
 
 "We've lost the soloist!" Frank declared. 
 
 "No, sir," Jimmie insisted. "He'll come an' 
 shake hands before he leaves the country. I'll 
 bet he's been folio win' us right along." 
 
 "We should have seen him," Frank sug- 
 gested. 
 
 "You ask Ned," the boy cried, "if they don't 
 paint aeroplanes so they can't be seen at 4,000 
 feet, even on a clear day!" 
 
 Frank grinned at the enthusiasm of the little 
 lad and turned to Ned for an explanation. 
 
 "I have heard that they do," Ned replied. 
 "They have a gray aeroplane paint which 
 makes the planes invisible at 4,000 feet or
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 143 
 
 more. The army people invented that sort of 
 disguise." 
 
 "But the paint wouldn't make the motors 
 run still," Frank insisted. "We could have 
 heard motors, anyway, if this airship had been 
 about." 
 
 "Got you again!" Jimmie shouted. "The 
 army people have invented an aluminum motor 
 which runs without noise. You wait until we 
 get into a war, and you'll have bombs fallin* 
 out of ships that look just like the blue sky!" 
 
 "All right," Prank replied, rather crossly, 
 "111 take your word for it. But I don't ex- 
 pect to meet this mysterious stranger, just the 
 same." 
 
 After supper Frank, Jack and Harry went 
 to bed early in a great bed of spruce boughs 
 which they had collected and covered with 
 blankets, leaving Ned and Jimmie sitting alone 
 by the embers of the fire. It was now middle 
 July, and rather hot for that district. There 
 was a slice of a moon low in the west, but there 
 would be only the stars after eleven o'clock. 
 
 Sitting there in the dim light the boys heard 
 deer and other wild creatures come down to 
 the river to drink. A line of hills on the south 
 side showed clear and white under the light 
 of the moon, and the din of the rapids came up 
 like a slow, monotonous song.
 
 144 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "It beats the Great White Way," Ned said, 
 drawing a long breath. "It beats anything 
 in the world!" 
 
 "YouVe got it right," declared Jimmie. 
 "Do you hear the music in the falls?" 
 
 "In the falls?" repeated Ned. "Listen!" 
 
 "That's our fife player!" cried the little 
 fellow, "and there, over the hills on the other 
 bank, are the lights of an aeroplane."
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 115 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 AN EAGLE TO THE EESCUE. 
 
 It was true enough ! 
 
 The lights over the hills on the south bank 
 could be nothing else. They lifted and low- 
 ered, darting hither and thither like fireflies 
 sporting in the night. 
 
 "Do you think the music comes from 
 there?" asked Jimmie. 
 
 "It certainly does." 
 
 "But that is a long way off." 
 
 "Yes, but there are no obstructions in the 
 air between us and the aeroplane," said Ned. 
 "And the wind is blowing from that direction, 
 what little there is." 
 
 The aeroplane seemed to lower as it 
 approached. Presently its great planes could 
 be seen quite plainly, even in the uncertain 
 light. 
 
 "He's comin' here!" Jimmie cried, dancing 
 about. "I knew he'd be neighborly an* make 
 a call!" 
 
 The music stopped in a moment, but the air- 
 ship came on, sweeping close to the water of 
 the river when it came to it. Then it soared 
 aloft again, noiselessly, almost.
 
 146 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "Come again; Gone again!" laughed 
 Jimmie. 
 
 The aeroplane turned to the west and pro- 
 seeded in the direction of the Buckhorn moun- 
 tains, and was soon lost to sight. Jimmie fol- 
 lowed it with his eyes as long as possible and 
 then threw himself down with a sign of disap- 
 pointment. He had hoped much from the 
 appearance of the great plane. 
 
 "Better go home!" he said, whimsically, 
 repeating the language of the letter. "We 
 don't care about your company, anyway!" 
 
 Ned made no reply. His thoughts were on 
 the possibility of his ever discovering the 
 motive for the strange conduct of the person 
 in the aeroplane. 
 
 Jimmie arose, after a short time, and strolled 
 off into the straggling forest. The valley of 
 the Columbia is very narrow, on the north, at 
 the point where the boys encamped, the hills 
 with their scanty covering of trees coming 
 close to the water's edge, so the boy did not 
 walk very far before stopping at a little eleva- 
 tion in the surface of the earth. 
 
 Ned saw him standing there, looking back, 
 and for a moment paid no further attention to 
 him. But there was an indefinable something 
 pulling at the back of the boy's brain which 
 gaye a sense of peril, and he arose to his feet
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 147 
 
 and looked forward to the spot where he had 
 last seen the boy. 
 
 Jimmie was not there, and Ned stepped 
 along to look for him. When he came to the 
 foot of the elevation he saw the lad lying, face 
 down, on the ground. 
 
 ' ' Jimmie ! " he cried. ' 1 What 's the trouble ? 
 Get up!" 
 
 The boy did not move, and Ned bent down 
 over him. As he did so a bullet sang past his 
 ear, and the next instant the report of a re- 
 volver cut the air. It was dim in the forest, 
 even though the trees were not thick, and Ned 
 could see no indications of the person who had 
 fired the shot 
 
 He, however, was standing in the moonlight, 
 in plain view of the attacking party, and he 
 knew that his only hope of safety lay in get- 
 ting back to the boat. 
 
 There was a space under the bank, when the 
 river was not up, which would serve as a pro- 
 tection if he could only get to it. But he could 
 not leave Jimmie there to be slaughtered, if he 
 were not already dead. 
 
 How the boy had been injured he did not 
 know, and there was no time in which to set- 
 tle the point. There had been no shooting, 
 however, so, Ned reasoned, he must have been
 
 148 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 struck down by some one wielding a club or 
 hurling stones. 
 
 This conclusion meant, if correct, that the 
 person who had attacked the boy must have 
 been close at hand might at that moment be 
 lurking within a yard of the spot although 
 the shot had come from a distance, as Ned 
 knew by hearing the hum of the bullet before 
 the sound of the explosion reached his ears. He 
 dropped to his knees and lifted the senseless 
 little chap in his arms. 
 
 "Jimmie!" he called, softly. 
 
 There was no answer, and the boy's head 
 rolled limply in Ned's arm. 
 
 While Ned crouched there the noise of the 
 breaking of a twig not far off came to his ears 
 with the distinctness, almost, of a pistol shot. 
 
 Smiling, even at that trying time, at the 
 thought of permitting his nerves to race away 
 in that manner, Ned drew his automatic and 
 listened. 
 
 Some one was advancing upon him. There 
 could be no doubt of that. The footsteps came 
 on slowly, cautiously. Wondering why, and 
 trying to find a reason for it, Ned's brain acted 
 quickly, and he saw that the intruder doubtless 
 believed that he had killed his opponent, or 
 seriously wounded him, with that one shot. 
 
 The fellow was so near now that Ned did not
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 149 
 
 dare rise to his feet. Such a step, he believed, 
 would lead to instant destruction. 
 
 Alone and unencumbered, he might have 
 crept away a few paces and made a dash for 
 the shore, but with Jimmie lying helpless in his 
 arms this was not to be thought of. He must 
 find some other way. 
 
 It seemed to Ned that the shot must have 
 awakened the sleeping boys. Then he remem- 
 bered that shooting had been so common a 
 thing about the camps that the boys, even if 
 awakened, would not be apt to take alarm. 
 
 Directly the man who was advancing upon 
 him came to a point where his figure was 
 sharply outlined against a piece of sky which 
 the moon was painting with light. It was a 
 heavy, ungainly figure, but unquestionably the 
 figure of a strong man. 
 
 The face, what the boy could see of it, was 
 heavy, nearly covered with a growth of 
 untrimmed whiskers, and repulsive in the 
 extreme. Ned could not find the heart to shoot 
 the fellow down without warning, though the 
 shot just fired revealed the vicious spirit of 
 the man. 
 
 When the man came within striking dis- 
 tance Ned arose to his feet, his automatic lev- 
 eled at the evil eyes which looked out of the 
 tangle of hair on the repulsive face.
 
 150 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "Stop!" he cried. "Up with jour hands!" 
 
 With a grunt like that of a wild beast the 
 fellow obeyed. 
 
 "What are you doing here?" asked the boy 
 then. 
 
 The repiy came in words which Ned did not 
 understand. 
 
 Then the situation grew a new peril for the 
 boy, for some clumsy object came whirling out 
 of the darkness and struck him on the right 
 shoulder. The automatic dropped to the ground 
 and the man who had been threatened with it 
 sprang forward. 
 
 Then came a second interruption in the form 
 of a pistol shot from the camp. The sleepers 
 were up and doing ! 
 
 The burly figure in front of Ned staggered 
 for an instant, then turned and ran. The three 
 boys surged forward, but Ned called to them 
 to get back to the Black Bear and put up the 
 panels. 
 
 Three shots now came from the line of trees, 
 but the bullets went wide of their mark, and 
 Ned lifted the body of Jimmie and started to* 
 ward the shore. 
 
 There now seemed to be half a dozen men in 
 the attacking party, and all were evidently 
 well armed, for the shots came fast. A bullet 
 clipped a lock of hair from Jimmie 's head as
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVEX. 151 
 
 he was carried along, and Ned felt a sharp 
 sting in his wounded shoulder. 
 
 In a moment two of the boys turned back 
 from the boat, leaving Harry to put up the pan- 
 els, and began firing in the direction of the 
 spiteful bursts of fire they saw under the trees. 
 
 The attacking party seemed to be falling 
 back; reports now came from a greater dis- 
 tance, and the firing soon ceased entirely. 
 
 Fearful that the silence was deceptive, the 
 boys crouched under the river bank and waited 
 while Harry and Frank made a closed, almost 
 bullet-proof, room of the interior of the Black 
 Bear by putting up the panels. 
 
 These panels were of thin wooden slices, 
 crossed in grain, but in the center of each was 
 a thin steel plate. At a reasonable distance 
 those on the inside would be fully protected 
 from bullets of an ordinary size fired from the 
 outside. 
 
 At last all the panels were in place and Jim- 
 mie was carried on board. He moved his right 
 hand as he was laid down and motioned toward 
 his head. 
 
 Then Ned saw that a wound had been in- 
 flicted with a club or some blunt weapon, and 
 that the bruising of the flesh by the blow had in 
 a measure prevented loss of blood. 
 
 "Put over to the other shore," Ned ordered,
 
 152 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 as he stooped over the boy. "We must see if 
 we can find a surgeon at that town up the 
 river. " 
 
 "I wouldn't run away," Jack exclaimed 
 hotly. "I'd stay right here and fight." 
 
 "That's me!" Harry cut in. 
 
 "I admire your courage, but think little of 
 your judgment," Ned replied. "We can attend 
 to those fellows after we know whether we can 
 save the little fellow's life or not." 
 
 "Why, I thought he'd just got a little tunk 
 on the head!" apologized Jack. 
 
 "I thought so too," Harry hastened to say. 
 
 The Black Bear, with the Wolf trailing be- 
 hind, was turned up stream, and soon the few 
 lights of Alameda were seen. Alameda is a 
 very small river town, not far below Equili- 
 brium rapids and not far above Roosevelt 
 rapids. 
 
 As Ned, Frank and Jack stepped out of the 
 boat in which they had made the shore they 
 were met by half a dozen men who regarded 
 them with inquiring glances in which suspicion 
 seemed to be quite a factor. 
 
 "Is there a surgeon here?" asked Ned. 
 
 The men addressed stood stolidly facing the 
 boys for a moment, then turned and began con- 
 Tersing with each other in low tones. Enraged
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 153 
 
 at the cool impertinence of the fellows, Ned 
 repeated his question. 
 
 Then one of the men, a heavy, broad-shoul- 
 dered fellow with a rather clean-cut face and 
 frank eyes, stepped forward. 
 
 "Where are you hurt?" he asked. 
 
 "The wounded boy is in the boat," Ned an- 
 swered. "If you can point the way to a sur- 
 geon I'll be grateful." 
 
 One of the men stepped forward and said 
 something to the man which Ned could not 
 hear. Then he asked: 
 
 "Where did you get that?" 
 
 The man pointed to Ned's right arm, which 
 the boy was holding up by a clutch on the 
 wrist, and which, by the way, was throbbing 
 with pain. 
 
 Ned looked at the shoulder and was sur- 
 prised to see that it was red with blood. 
 
 "I knew I had been struck with a rock, or 
 something of the kind," Ned said, then, with a 
 poor attempt at a smile, "but I did not know 
 that I had been shot." 
 
 "Now you're getting down to the point," the 
 other said. "Who did that shooting?" 
 
 "We did some of it, but we were attacked 
 and the boy in the boat knocked unconscious 
 before we fired a shot," Jack broke in angrily. 
 "Say, what's the matter with you people?" h??
 
 154 BOY SCOUTS IN A MCTCB BOAT 
 
 added. " Can't you point the way to the doc- 
 tor's office?" 
 
 "Keep cool, young feller," another of the 
 group said. "We mean to find out about this 
 before listenin' to any cock-and-bull stories. 
 Did you fellows, any of you, come ir the air- 
 ship?" 
 
 Ned shook his head. 
 
 "We came in the motor boat," he said. 
 "What has been going on here that you should 
 be so suspicious?" 
 
 "Murder and robbery has been going on!" 
 shouted a man at the back of the group, "and 
 we've got to know " 
 
 Then they advanced and grouped about the 
 boys until they were virtually prisoners in 
 the center of a slowly closing circle of excited 
 and desperate-looking frontiersmen. Jack and 
 Frank drew closer to Ned and dropped their 
 hands to their weapons. 
 
 "You're the fellers we want!" one of the 
 circle shouted, shaking a brawny fist almost in 
 Jack's face. "You'll get a doctor here that'll 
 fix you up for keeps ! ' ' 
 
 Jack might have resented this insult, in fact, 
 was about to draw his automatic, when the 
 sound of running footsteps came down the 
 street. The men turned and whispered as they 
 watched the swiftly approaching figure.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 155 
 
 The newcomer, rosy-faced, clear-eyed, 
 blonde, a boy of perhaps seventeen, dressed in 
 much better style than any of those about him, 
 elbowed his way through the crowd about the 
 boys and stood, wide-eyed, looking at Ned. 
 
 By this time Ned was faint from pain 
 and loss of blood. His head seemed to be 
 swimming in a circular sea which darted 
 flashes of fire from every crested wave. He saw 
 the stranger regarding him curiously, but did 
 not see the look of recognition in his eyes. 
 
 Only for the quick support of Frank and 
 Jack, he would have fallen to the ground. The 
 newcomer pushed the men away, with the com- 
 mand that the boy be given air, and took his 
 place by Ned's side. 
 
 Jack and Prank looked on in amazement, 
 thankful for the assistance which had come at 
 that critical moment, still bewildered at the 
 wonder of it. 
 
 The frontiersmen, momentarily checked by 
 the authoritative actions of the boy, now came 
 closer and began asking questions, mixing 
 their interrogations with accusations and 
 reproaches, couched in no mild words. 
 
 "Look here, fellows," the boy said to them, 
 presently, "I know this party. These boys are 
 all right. The wounded boy is Ned Nestor. 
 You've heard of him, I take it. I don't know
 
 156 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 these other boys, but they're o. k. if they're 
 with Ned." 
 
 "Well," Jack cried, catching the stranger's 
 hand, "I don't know you, but you've done a 
 good job here!" 
 
 The men whispered together a moment and 
 then the one who had spoken first stepped for- 
 ward. 
 
 "It's all right if you say you know them, 
 Lew," he said, "but it looks suspicious to us, 
 their coming up here in a boat which looks like 
 the one that lugged off the stolen stuff, one of 
 them wounded from a bullet. Besides, there 
 was shooting down the river, and the chances 
 are that our men attacked them. The men who 
 went after the murderers are still out there 
 somewhere." 
 
 "Yes, I know," the boy addressed as Lew 
 said, "but I tell you that I know this party. I 
 read in the papers about their leaving New 
 York a couple of months ago. They're on a 
 motor-boat trip down the Columbia." 
 
 Ned now leaned forward and laid a hand on 
 the boy's shoulder. There was a faint smile on 
 his face, but his hand shook. 
 
 "You're Lewis Wagoner?" he asked. "I 
 didn't know who it was when I heard your 
 voice, but I know now." 
 
 ' * You 've guessed it ! " laughed Lewis. ' ' But
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 157 
 
 how did you come to get into such a scrape 
 here?" 
 
 Jack and Frank did not wait for Ned to 
 reply, but began at the attack on Jimmie and 
 related the events of the evening up to that 
 time, both talking together at times, so eager 
 were they to get the exact situation into the 
 dull heads of the questioners and get informa- 
 tion as to the whereabouts of the doctor. 
 
 The man who had first addressed the boys 
 now stepped up to Ned and extended his hand, 
 the others observing his action with evident 
 approval. 
 
 "I'm sorry we suspected you boys of the 
 crimes that have been committed here tonight," 
 he said. "If Lewis Wagoner knows you, why, 
 there's nothing more to say. We all work for 
 his father, and all think a lot of the boy." 
 
 Laughingly, Lewis extended his right hand, 
 palm up, the thumb and little finger crossed, 
 the three remaining fingers straight out. Then 
 he raised the hand to his forehead in full 
 salute. 
 
 "What Patrol?" asked Jack. 
 
 "The Eagle, New York," was the astonish- 
 ing reply. 
 
 "So you're all Boy Scouts!" laughed the 
 man who seemed to be the leader of the group. 
 "Well, boys, we may as well take up the search
 
 158 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 for the murderers again. I reckon Lew can 
 entertain these fellows." 
 
 "New York is where I knew Ned Nestor," 
 Lewis said. " I 've been with him on little trips 
 up the Hudson. Now I'm marooned out here, 
 and I guess there'll never be any more Hudson 
 river for me!" 
 
 "We can talk this over at another time," 
 Ned replied, taking the boy by the hand again, 
 "but now we must find a doctor and take him 
 to Jimmie." 
 
 "Jimmie McGraw?" asked Lewis. 
 
 "The same," replied Frank. "He got a 
 bump on the head, and is lying unconscious in 
 the boat." 
 
 "And these chaps have been keeping you 
 standing here!" exclaimed Lewis, indignantly. 
 "Mr. Shelby, will you go after the doctor?" 
 
 "Sure!" was the reply. "Be glad to. Do 
 all we can for any friend of yours. You can't 
 blame us for being watchful, can you, after 
 what's taken place here?" 
 
 "Sure not," Lewis replied. "We'll go back 
 to the boat now, and you send the doctor down. 
 Ned will need fixing up a little, too, I take it. 
 And while there I'll explain why you boys were 
 suspected of being river pirates."
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 159 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 THE BLACK BEAE SCENTS A PBOWLEB. 
 
 The lad whose opportune arrival had rescued 
 the boys from an embarrassing situation en- 
 tered the Black Bear with many exclamations 
 of wonder and delight at the superbly finished 
 and furnished interior. He had examined many 
 motor boats built expressly for long river trips, 
 but had never come upon anything like this. 
 
 However, little time was lost in examining 
 the boat, for Jimmie lay upon a bunk breath- 
 ing heavily and plainly in need of medical as- 
 sistance. While the boys worked over him, 
 doing all they could for his relief, Ned man- 
 aged to wash his own wound and tie it up 
 roughly. He found that the bones were not 
 broken, but that the muscles were bruised, and 
 that the bullet had made a bad flesh wound. 
 
 "I'll be as fit as a fiddle in a few days," he 
 said, in answer to Jack's anxious inquiries. 
 "We can lay up for a week and hunt the ruf- 
 fians who attacked us." 
 
 "They are a bad lot," Lewis began, but at 
 that instant the doctor arrived and made a 
 close examination of the unconscious boy. The
 
 160 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 others gathered around, almost afraid to ask 
 the truth regarding the injury. 
 
 "Well," said the doctor, a rough-and-ready 
 man who handled irrigation deals as well as 
 treated the sick, "the kid will come out of this 
 before long, and be right as a book. He got a 
 bad knock-out but there is no serious injury. 
 The bruise where the blow fell will need car- 
 ing for, and that is about all." 
 
 Then the man of pills looked at Ned's arm 
 and promptly advised him to go to bed. 
 
 "You've got a bad, though not fatal wound," 
 he explained, "and you'll get well all the 
 quicker for resting up. You have lost a lot of 
 blood." 
 
 "I should think so!" Jack cried out. "He 
 came near dropping while in the village." 
 
 The doctor remained only a short time, as he 
 was interested in the capture of the men who 
 had made a raid on the town earlier in the eve- 
 ning. 
 
 Soon after his departure Jimmie opened his 
 eyes and looked about, a sheepish grin on his 
 freckled face. 
 
 "Got me crust busted, didn't I?" he asked. 
 
 "You bet you did ! ' ' answered Frank. 1 1 Who 
 did it?" 
 
 "Search me," replied the boy, wearily. "I
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 161 
 
 didn't see no one until I got this dip on the 
 dome!" 
 
 "He'll come out o. k.,' 7 laughed Lewis. 
 'That slang sounds like Rivington street!" 
 
 "Hello, Lew!" Jimmie cried, opening his 
 eyes at sound of the voice. "Did you come in 
 the airship?" 
 
 "No such luck as that," Lew replied. "I 
 came in the choo-choos to Spokane, and then 
 down the river, walking about half the way." 
 
 "On the water?" queried Jimmie, with the 
 old humor flashing in his eyes. 
 
 "Around the water," Lewis replied. 
 "Around the rapids and things." 
 
 "What is it about that airship?" Jack asked 
 presently. Every person about here seems to 
 know all about it." 
 
 "No one knows anything about it," Lewis 
 answered. "We all saw it yesterday and today, 
 but that is all we just saw it." 
 
 "Didn't land?" 
 
 "No ; that is, no one saw it drop to the sur- 
 face, but there are those who insist that the 
 men who murdered Silcox and robbed his safe 
 came from that same airship." 
 
 "So there really was a murder!" asked 
 Frank. "I thought those chaps were giving 
 us a brace about that." 
 
 "Yes ; the keeper of the store was shot while
 
 162 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 defending his property. The men got off with- 
 out being seen, and with $20,000 in cash which 
 they took from the safe." 
 
 "And they thought we were the ones? Na- 
 turally," mused Ned. "Well, there must have 
 beei* some shooting, for one of the men up there 
 referred to something of that kind." 
 
 "Well, Silcox fired a couple of times, and we 
 think wounded one of the robbers, for we 
 found blood outside. It was late in the after- 
 noon, and there was no one in the store but Sil- 
 cox, and little noise was made. The first we 
 knew there was the shooting, and then two men 
 dashed toward the river. No one saw their 
 faces, or much of their figures, as far as that 
 goes. They crossed the river in a rowboat, 
 drifting down with the strong current, and 
 that is all we know about it." 
 
 "And the men who are searching for them 
 are still out?" 
 
 "Yes." Perhaps they mistook you boys for 
 the robbers." 
 
 "No," Ned answered, "they could not have 
 done that. They wouldn't have gone at it in 
 that way. I think the men who attacked Jimmie 
 wanted to take him prisoner. You see, weVe 
 got rather a duck of a motor boat here, to say 
 nothing of the tender, and there's some one
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 163 
 
 on the river who wants it. They tried to get 
 it when we first started out." 
 
 "I don't wonder they want the boats," Lewis 
 laughed. " I 'd like them myself. ' ' 
 
 "With one of us captured, I think they 
 would have rushed the camp and driven the 
 others off or shot us," Ned went on. "It is 
 probable, from their actions, that they do not 
 know how to run the boat, which explains why 
 they wanted Jimmie." 
 
 "If there's a hot spot on earth," grinned 
 Jack, "we're sure to get into the center of it. 
 Say," he went on, "you live here, don't yon?" 
 
 "Just at present father is trying to get rich 
 in that grain country over in the south. I'm 
 going back to New York this fall." 
 
 "What do you know about the ruined temple 
 down the river?" asked Frank. 
 
 Lewis dropped back in his chair and laughed 
 such an amused, jolly laugh that the others 
 joined in. 
 
 "Ho, ho!" he said directly. "So you're after 
 the East Indian's gold!" 
 
 "I told you so !" Frank observed, turning to 
 Jack. "Everybody up here seems to know 
 something about the hidden temple." 
 
 "Everybody hereabouts has heard some- 
 thing about it," Lewis interrupted, "but no 
 one has ever succeeded in finding it. About a
 
 164 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 year ago a couple of men came here looking 
 for it." 
 
 "And there'll be more here," Jack laughed. 
 "A couple of thieves left New York just about 
 the time we did!" 
 
 "Perhaps the man in the airship is after it, 
 too," suggested Lewis. 
 
 "Say," Frank broke in, a sudden thought 
 making his eyes shine, "you say you belong to 
 the Eagle Patrol?" 
 
 "Exactly." 
 
 "Well, have you got a musical crank in your 
 Patrol who thinks he can run an airship?" 
 
 Lewis looked thoughtful for a minute. 
 
 "We've got a musically inclined boy who is 
 inventing aeroplanes, ' ' he finally replied. ' ( He 
 has a new model every time I see him. The last 
 time I met the boy he had found a man to build 
 one of his aluminum contraptions." 
 
 "How long ago was that?" 
 
 "Oh, a year, perhaps." 
 
 "What kind of an aeroplane was he thinking 
 of building?" 
 
 "One with a noiseless motor; one with aero- 
 plane paint which would, he said, make it invis- 
 ible at a distance of 4,000 feet, even on a bright 
 day." 
 
 "What's his notion?"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 165 
 
 "He says that all future battles will be 
 fought in the air." 
 
 "Now, what's his name?" 
 
 "Leroy, Sam Leroy a broth of a kid he is." 
 
 "Then why didn't he pay you a visit when 
 he passed yesterday?" asked Jack. 
 
 "Pay me a visit?" repeated the other. 
 
 "Sure, that was Leroy in that airship." 
 
 "It doesn't seem possible." 
 
 Then Lewis was told of the signs and the let- 
 ter left by the boy who had played the flute 
 so divinely and drifted off toward Spokane in 
 an aeroplane. 
 
 Lewis clapped his hands enthusiastically. 
 
 "Then Leroy 's got it at last!" Jie cried. 
 "He's got his aeroplane perfected. Oh, that's 
 him all right!" he went on. "He's the best 
 flute player in New York." 
 
 "And belongs to the Eagle Patrol?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 "Then what is he dodging about here for?" 
 demanded Jack. "He seems to know that we 
 are Boy Scouts, for he left signals and a letter 
 for us. Why doesn't he come down for a 
 talk?" 
 
 "Perhaps he wants to beat you to the ruined 
 temple ! " suggested Lewis. 
 
 "But he isn't supposed to know anything 
 about the ruined temple," Jack put in. "We
 
 166 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 don't know anything about it, either; only 
 Frank thinks he can find it and lug home a 
 carload of pieces of eight, whatever they are." 
 
 " You bet I can find it !" Frank insisted. 
 
 "I'd like to go with you," Lewis said, then. 
 " You'll have a gay time, whether you find the 
 temple or not." 
 
 "That is what we're out for," Ned re- 
 marked. " We came out to live in a motor boat 
 on the Columbia, but ever since the start it has 
 seemed to me, from the conversation on board, 
 that we were going after a pirate treasure." 
 
 "You really don't believe in the hidden tem- 
 ple?" asked Lewis. 
 
 "Of course not." 
 
 "Well, there's something over in there," the 
 boy continued. "The men who came here half 
 a century ago say that they found traces of 
 visitors who used material in their boats which 
 never grew in this country, and there is said to 
 be a mound, far down the stream, which yields 
 up trinkets and vessels never known to the 
 Indians. There is some reason for believing 
 that there is really something in the ruined 
 temple story," he continued, "still no one has 
 succeeded in locating it." 
 
 "That gink in the aeroplane told us to go 
 back home!" Jimmie awoke to say, and then 
 dropped off into a doze again.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 167 
 
 "That's Leroy!" Lewis cried. "Oh, just 
 wait until I get my hands on the boy. I'll trim 
 him!" 
 
 "Do you think he's looking for the temple ?" 
 asked Jack, carelessly. 
 
 "He may be; or he may be testing his 
 machine for long distance runs." 
 
 "I just believe he heard about our trip," 
 Prank mused, "and thought he'd go us one bet- 
 ter in an airship. I'd like to know where he is 
 tonight." 
 
 "He was here today." 
 
 "Yes, we saw him then ; but he's likely to go 
 off again and not show up for two weeks." 
 
 Jack, who was now standing by an open 
 panel, looked back into the room and beckoned 
 to Lewis. When the latter approached the 
 opening he in turn motioned to the other boys 
 to get closer. 
 
 "What do you make of that?" 
 
 He asked the question in a low tone, for just 
 outside, within twenty yards of the Black Bear, 
 sailing calmly eastward, was the aeroplane, its 
 gray planes glittering in the last light of the 
 moon. From where the boys stood they could 
 see the driver quite distinctly. He was not 
 looking down, so they could not distinguish his 
 features. 
 
 "Call him I" suggested Frank.
 
 168 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "Leroy I" yelled Lewis. 
 
 There was no answer. Instead the motors 
 were thrown into high speed, and the airship 
 dashed upward and northward like a rocket. 
 
 " That's a queer caper!" Lewis exclaimed, 
 chagrined and half angry at the discourteous 
 action of the boy in the aeroplane. "He cer- 
 tainly heard me." 
 
 "To be sure he did," Jack remarked, "but I 
 wasn't thinking of his impudence, I was won- 
 dering how he ever got up a machine that 
 makes no noise to speak of. Why, he could 
 scoot all around a military camp in that air- 
 ship and never be detected." 
 
 "He's certainly been shooting around us," 
 Frank said. "Mighty strange he doesn't land 
 and give an account of himself if it is Sam 
 Leroy." 
 
 ' ' I don 't think there 's any doubt about that, ' ' 
 Lewis explained. "Leroy is a crank on aero- 
 planes, and he is also a flute soloist. I reckon 
 he's doing this to have a good story to tell about 
 you boys when you all get back to New York." 
 
 "Something more than that," Jack argued, 
 suspiciously. He's got a motive in what he's 
 doing. You'll see, in time!" 
 
 Lewis remained on the Black Bear until a 
 late hour and then went home, promising to 
 return in the morning. Jimmie improved so
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 169 
 
 rapidly that it was not necessary for any one 
 to watch with him during the remainder of the 
 night, and Ned declared that he could sleep 
 like a top, in spite of his wounds, so by one 
 o'clock the lights were out and the boys were 
 asleep. 
 
 The fact that the boat lay within a few feet 
 of the little pier at the foot of the one business 
 street of Alameda, and the further fact that 
 the men of the town were up and about, search- 
 ing the river and the valley on both sides of it 
 for the murderers of the merchant, caused the 
 boys to retire without leaving a guard, a thing 
 they had not done before for a long time. 
 
 Jack slept lightly, however, for his mind was 
 troubled. With Ned and Jimmie on the invalid 
 list, he knew that slow progress would now be 
 made. In fact it had already been proposed to 
 tie up there for a week. 
 
 This was not at all in accordance with the 
 notions of the boy. As the reader already 
 understands, Jack really had strong belief in 
 the story of the ruined temple. As Jimmie 
 had explained, the boy laughed at Frank for 
 his optimistic opinions on the subject more to 
 keep it under discussion than for any other 
 reason. 
 
 Jack knew that neither Scoby nor Akbar 
 possessed the old book describing the location
 
 170 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 of the old temple. He knew that neither one 
 of the unfaithful servants held the map point- 
 ing the way to the lonely locality described in 
 the book. He knew positively that they had 
 nothing save hearsay to guide them. 
 
 He knew that the two were all at sea in their 
 quest because lie, himself, had the precious 
 look in his possession! 
 
 On the very day before the search of Mr. 
 Bosworth's den, Jack had taken the book to 
 his room for the purpose of studying out the 
 suggested route to the canyon where the ruined 
 temple was supposed to be. That was the rea- 
 son why the exhaustive search made by Saxby 
 had not proved successful. 
 
 Afterwards, when discussing the matter 
 with Nestor and his father, he had not men- 
 tioned having the book because he did not care 
 at that time to admit his great interest in the 
 subject. Besides, if no one knew that he had 
 the book, the chances of his being molested by 
 those seeking it would be lessened. 
 
 He did not believe, of course, that Ned or his 
 father, or any of the boys belonging to the 
 party, would knowingly reveal his secret, still, 
 he could not tell what slip of the tongue might 
 place the information in the possession of the 
 villainous servants. 
 
 Later on, when the existence of the mysteri-
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 171 
 
 ous temple became merely a joke with the boys, 
 he did not care to show just what his feelings 
 in the matter were. So he became the leading 
 scoffer and kept the matter going as a joke. 
 
 His idea, on this restless night, was to get to 
 the vicinity of the old temple he was certain 
 in his own mind that there was a temple ! as 
 soon as possible and make investigation with- 
 out the knowledge of his chums. If he found 
 what he sought, the victory would be doubly 
 sweet because of his winning it alone ; if, how- 
 ever, he never found the location described or 
 the temple, then there would be no one to laugh 
 at him for his credulity and misplaced 
 industry. 
 
 So he was restive under the delay. It had 
 been a long time since he had heard from Scoby 
 or Akbar, yet he was certain that they had not 
 given up the hunt. He was positive that they 
 were steadily drawing nearer to the Black Bear 
 as the Black Bear drew nearer to the mysteri- 
 ous canyon he sought. 
 
 There was, indeed, a suspicion in the mind of 
 the lad that both Saxby and Akbar suspected 
 his possession of the book and the map. Saxby 
 had often talked, in a seemingly careless way, 
 with him about the hidden treasure, and knew 
 that he, Jack, had read the book and was 
 greatly interested in it.
 
 172 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 Saxby would naturally reason that if the 
 book was not in the den on that night then it 
 must be in one of two places in the possession 
 of Jack or Akbar. Akbar, too, knew, in a gen- 
 eral way, of his, Jack's, reading the book, and 
 he would not be long in reaching the conclu- 
 sion that if Saxby did not have the book Jack 
 must have it. 
 
 Jack did not doubt that Saxby and Akbar 
 had been playing the sleuth on each other ever 
 since that night, and he decided in his own 
 mind that by this time Akbar had reached the 
 conclusion that Saxby did not have the book or 
 the map. It would be perfectly easy for Akbar 
 to reach such a conclusion, for, with them in 
 his possession, Saxby would have pointed 
 straight for the location described. This he, 
 evidently, had not done. 
 
 So, Jack figured, both Saxby and Akbar were 
 not far away at that time. Blind luck might 
 lead them to the temple and the treasure. Jack 
 was not so much interested in the pieces of 
 eight Jimmie laughed about as he was about 
 the old temple. 
 
 Besides, there were the men who attacked 
 the merchant, and later assaulted Jimmie. 
 They, too, might be in quest of the thing he, 
 himself, was in search of. 
 
 With this burden on his mind Jack, as has
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 173 
 
 been said, slept lightly on that night. The day 
 before he had promised himself that he would 
 soon reach the point in the river from which 
 the craigs he sought would be in sight. He had 
 not figured out the details of his trip to the 
 canyon just how he was to elude the others 
 and proceed to the canyon alone but he had 
 not imagined that part of the affair as dif- 
 ficult. 
 
 But now the events of the evening had neces- 
 sitated a tie-up, and Jack was not at all pleased 
 with the idea, though he did not openly express 
 his disgust at the turn things were taking. 
 When he opened his eyes, about three o'clock 
 in the morning, he was actually wondering if 
 it would not be possible for him to take the 
 little boat and some provisions and go on down 
 the river alone ! 
 
 Of course he would leave a note for the boys, 
 saying that he had gone off into the hills for 
 a little quiet hunting, so they would not be wor- 
 ried over his disappearance. Then he could 
 find the places described in the book and 
 pointed out on the map and set about his 
 search. 
 
 What a triumph it would be if he could only 
 discover the temple, perhaps grown over with 
 vines and brambles, fallen into decay as to wall 
 and tower, but still showing the handiwork of
 
 174 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 that old Akbar who had toiled up the wide 
 Columbia to hide his treasure ! How he would 
 laugh at the others ! Of course there would be 
 no pieces of eight, for they were Spanish coins, 
 but there would be gold ! 
 
 While, half awake, the boy dreamed of the 
 success of his secret plans, there came a thud 
 at the stern of the Black Bear, and then the 
 boat swayed slightly, as if under a heavy 
 weight. In a moment there came a sound of 
 whispering voices. 
 
 Jack slipped softly out of his hammock, 
 crouched low, and moved toward the stern. The 
 side panels were up, shutting out the night, 
 but the panels at the prow and stern were open 
 from the top to within a few inches of the 
 floor. 
 
 As the boy looked out of the opening, two 
 figures stood outlined against the starlit sky.
 
 ON TEE COLUMBIA RIVER. 175 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 AKBAB PKESENTS HIMSELF. 
 
 Jack's first impulse was to awaken Prank 
 or Harry, but a little reflection convinced him 
 that the noises consequent on the rousing from 
 slumber of two such sleepy heads as they were 
 would be sure to frighten the intruders away. 
 
 His idea was to at least ascertain who the 
 nocturnal visitors were, and to capture one or 
 both, if that were possible. So he reached for 
 his automatic and remained quiet, watching 
 and listening. 
 
 The two figures standing between the boy 
 and the patch of dim light to the north seemed 
 to be those of men abnormally tall and slender. 
 Their faces were turned toward the interior, 
 but he could not distinguish the features of 
 either. 
 
 Directly Ned stirred restlessly in his sleep 
 and uttered a faint moan. Then the intruders 
 drew back on the rim of the deck beyond the 
 panels and crouched lower. 
 
 When Ned quieted down again they returned 
 to the opening and one of them put his head 
 inside. The other figure disappeared from 
 yiew.
 
 176 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "The nerve of Mm!" Jack thought. 
 
 There was only the light of the stars, as has 
 been said, but Jack sensed something familiar 
 in the long, lithe figure bending over the edges 
 of the panels and peering inside. The turning 
 of the head, the sinister undulations of the long 
 neck, the cautiously lifted hand, spoke to him 
 of Akbar! 
 
 "I guess he's come at last!" the boy thought. 
 "Now, I wonder who that other gink outside 
 is ? If Ned was awake I wonder what he'd tell 
 me to do! I feel like taking a shot at the 
 brute!" 
 
 Then something unexpected happened. A 
 click of metal at the prow attracted Jack's 
 attention, and he turned his head quickly to 
 see the oblong space of light darkened. There 
 were other clicks the snap of springs. The 
 panels were being put up ! Probably the man 
 who had disappeared from sight was doing 
 that. 
 
 "Perhaps he's afraid we'll take cold," Jack 
 thought, with a grim smile as, one after one, the 
 panels went into place. 
 
 In the meantime, the man peering into the 
 interior, scarcely moved. He was bending for- 
 ward, as if to observe what was going on in the 
 darkness. 
 
 Jack was thinking pretty fast, but to little
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 177 
 
 purpose. What did it mean ? Why were these 
 nocturnal visitors closing the panels? 
 
 The boy could not answer these questions for 
 a moment, but when the front panels were all 
 up and the man at the stern drew out of the 
 opening and began to put up the panels there, 
 the purpose of it all came to him. 
 
 It was a peculiar, stifling odor that first laid 
 the train of thought which brought him to a 
 realization of what was going on. .The odor 
 was that of chloroform ! 
 
 Jack bent forward and, taking Frank by the 
 arm, clapped a hand close over his mouth and 
 whispered in his ear : 
 
 "Cut out the racket, now! Don't move! 
 Don't wiggle! There's doings on board the 
 Black Bear! Wake up!" 
 
 Frank did wiggle and grunt, however, for 
 the pressing palm of his excited chum shut off 
 his wind and seemed about to choke him to 
 death. Finally he managed to get out from 
 under the hand. 
 
 "What the " 
 
 Jack pulled at his arm to command silence 
 and pointed to the stern. 
 
 "Look there !" he said, in very faint whisper. 
 
 The noise inside had not been heard above 
 the sliding of the panels and the rippling of the 
 current, and what Frank saw was the closing
 
 178 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 up of the square at the back. Then the stifling 
 odor came to his nostrils and he attempted to 
 rise to his feet. 
 
 "Cut it out!" Jack whispered. 
 
 "What is it ?" Frank demanded. 
 
 "Only a visit from Akbar!" 
 
 "What's he shutting us in for?" 
 
 "Why, he wants to steal the boat, and us 
 in it!" 
 
 ' ' Wake up ! " Frank came back. 
 
 "See," Jack went on, "he's trying to put us 
 to sleep with chloroform, so we'll be good boys 
 until he gets time to knock us on the head. ' ' 
 
 "Then why don't we have something to say 
 about this? What are we sitting here for? 
 Waiting for him to put us to sleep ?" 
 
 "Listen!" whispered Jack. "When he has 
 the panels all in but the top ones, we'll creep 
 back there and haul him inside. He won't be 
 expecting anything like that, and will come in 
 like he was greased!" 
 
 Frank grunted as if in disbelief of this last 
 statement. 
 
 "Then you sit down on him hard and I'll 
 wake up the others and turn on the lights, and 
 there you are." 
 
 "Mighty fine!" Frank whispered. "Suppose 
 you sit down on him!" 
 
 "All right!"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 179 
 
 The panels were nearly all in, and the over- 
 powering odor of chloroform was becoming 
 decidedly unpleasant, so the two boys moved 
 toward the stern, ready to seize the long arms 
 when they were thrust inside again and draw 
 the lithe body in after them. 
 
 While they crept forward they felt the boat 
 moving. The motion was not like the rocking 
 of a boat at anchor. It was like the breezy rush 
 of a boat going forward at a rapid rate of 
 speed. 
 
 '"ihey've turned her loose!" Frank whis- 
 pered. 
 
 Without waiting to reply, Jack pushed Ids 
 hand through the opening, now lacking only 
 one panel, and was fortunate enough to seize 
 the snake-like neck of the figure he saw just 
 outside. 
 
 Frank was at his side in an instant, his hands 
 pulling at the shoulders, the hair, the arms, of 
 the struggling figure Jack was endeavoring to 
 draw through a six-inch opening ! 
 
 The boat swayed and dipped as if some 
 heavy weight had been suddenly added to its 
 burden, and then a long, wavering shriek came 
 from the outside. 
 
 The boys heard someone running to the 
 prow, as if to enter by that way and make 
 attack in the rear, but they knew that the hos-
 
 180 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 tile visitors had themselves barred the way to 
 such a move. 
 
 Then, when the struggles of the man outside 
 grew fainter, the boys felt a strong tug against 
 their strength and knew that the associate of 
 the captured man was trying to draw him away 
 by sheer strength. 
 
 "Hang on, Frank!" Jack panted. "Hang 
 on; we'll pull him through the panels before 
 we '11 let him get away ! ' ' 
 
 Then some one crawled past Jack and turned 
 on the light. Frank promptly threw a shoe at 
 the bulb and crushed it. 
 
 "You idiot!" he said. "You'll have bullets 
 coming in here." 
 
 Bullets did rattle against the panels on the 
 outside, but did no harm, and then there came 
 shouts from the shore, followed by the quick 
 swaying of the boat and a heavy splash in the 
 river. 
 
 "Have you got him yet?" 
 
 That was Harry's voice, and Jack felt the 
 boy's hand on his arm. 
 
 4 * Sure I 've got him, and got him right ! Pull 
 in! Pull in! He's been trying to cut my 
 hand!" 
 
 By this time Ned and Jimmie were astir. 
 Ned sprang to his feet while Jimmie lay wide- 
 f;yed and marveled at the commotion on board I
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 
 
 Ned, quick to understand the situation, 
 began removing the panels at front and back, 
 and in five minutes the air was clearer and 
 Jack's captive, unconscious and blue and pur- 
 ple about the throat, was dragged in. His com- 
 panion had fled. The boat was moving swiftlj 
 down stream, and Ned's first move, then, was 
 to cast out the anchor. It dragged for a min- 
 ute, the water being deep, then caught and the 
 boat swung around. 
 
 He was obliged to find another incandescent 
 bulb before he could make light other than that 
 supplied by the flashlight Frank now turned on 
 the captive. 
 
 "It is Akbar!" Frank said, a note of tri- 
 umph in his voice. "We caught him with the 
 goods." 
 
 Jack made no reply, but when Ned had 
 adjusted his bulb and the lights struck upon 
 the whole figure he released his hold of the fel- 
 low and sat back on his heels, a disappointed 
 look on his face. 
 
 "I really thought it was!" he said. 
 
 "Looks like him," Frank ventured. 
 
 "It is him!" Jimmie cut in, lifting himself 
 on an elbow to look down on the silent figure on 
 the floor. 
 
 "No," Jack said, regretfully, "it is not
 
 182 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 Akbar, but a man very like him. I thought it 
 was when I got him by the neck." 
 
 "Is he dead?" 
 
 This from Harry, who was beginning to look 
 rather troubled. 
 
 " Just unconscious from the hug this Black 
 Bear gave him," Ned laughed. 
 
 "Then it must have been Akbar who ran 
 away, ' ' Frank suggested. * * What a coward the 
 fellow is! Still, I guess he was threatened from 
 the shore." 
 
 "What did they do it for?" came Jimmie's 
 voice. 
 
 "To get the boat," Jack answered. "See how 
 the air still stinks in here ! They wanted to put 
 us to sleep and send us over the rapids, I take 
 it" 
 
 This is the way the boy had figured it out 
 the instant the odor of chloroform came to his 
 nostrils, 
 
 Ned turned on the motors and the boat 
 speeded back to the old anchor place. Half a 
 dozen rough-looking men who had been out 
 hunting the murderers stood on the little pier 
 as the boat came up. 
 
 "What's been doing?" one of them asked. 
 
 Jack explained what had taken place. 
 
 "Those dusky fellows," the man who had 
 asked the question then said, "have been about
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVEK. 185 
 
 town for three days. If we could have laid 
 hands on them today, after the murder or 
 yesterday, rather, for it is now most morning 
 we would have locked them up as suspects, 
 but they disappeared early in the afternoon." 
 
 The man stepped into the boat and studied 
 the face of the still unconscious captive. 
 
 "Give him a dip in the river," he advised. 
 
 "Go ahead an' do it," urged Jimmie. "That 
 will bring him to his senses if he ever had 
 any." 
 
 "Souse him!" Harry added. "I like to see 
 the bubbles come up." 
 
 "And don't let go when you have him in the 
 water," continued the visitor, with a sly wink. 
 
 But Ned prevented the thing being done. 
 Although he had no sympathy for the man who 
 had attempted the lives of all on board the 
 Black Bear, he did not care to burden his con- 
 science with an act of brutality. 
 
 The prisoner was taken ashore and turned 
 over to the keeper of the town jail. 
 
 "I want to talk with him sometime today," 
 Jack said, as the fellow was carried away. "He 
 may know something about Akbar's intentions 
 and plans." 
 
 As will be surmised, the boy's real motive in 
 seeing the prisoner was to learn, if possible, 
 the exact measure of Akbar's knowledge of the
 
 1S4 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 mythical temple! The nearer he came to the 
 location where the temple was believed to be 
 the more infatuated he became with the idea of 
 searching it out unaided and alone ! 
 
 In the afternoon the boy could get no infor- 
 mation whatever out of the prisoner. The fel- 
 low pretended that he did not understand what 
 was said to him, and only grunted when qmes- 
 tioned. 
 
 On the second day, accompanied by Lewis, 
 and leaving Ned and Jimmie in a quiet little 
 family home at Alameda, the boys dropped 
 down to the head of the rapids and tied up. 
 Then followed a week of exploration which the 
 lads always remembered. 
 
 It was glorious weather, and the boys never 
 seemed to tire. The Great Northwest seemed 
 to take them into her confidence, and to reveal 
 to them many a secret of the forests, mountains 
 and river. They were golden days and nights ! 
 
 After all is said, it is probable that river 
 trips similar to this one are the most enjoyable 
 form of vacation. The summer on the seashore 
 grows monotonous, the vacation on the moun- 
 tain is suitable only for the most sturdy young- 
 sters, and the interior of great forests is too 
 often a shut-in place. 
 
 The river trip supplies a constant change of 
 sene. Besides, the owners of a speedy river
 
 THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 185 
 
 boat can join in the amusements of civilization 
 whenever the wilds grow unattractive. The 
 Columbia river comes tumbling down from the 
 backbone of the North American continent, 
 and so is often obliged to take great leaps and 
 bubble over rocky beds, making portages fre- 
 quent, but there are plenty of rivers in the 
 country where such conditions do not exist 
 
 One day when Jack and Lewis sat alone on 
 the ledge of rock which shut in the valley on 
 the north, the latter asked: 
 
 "Have you ever thought of going to Omak 
 lake?" 
 
 Jack did not reply instantly. The mention 
 of the name had given him a glad suprise. 
 Omak lake! He had seen that name in the 
 book brought from home ! The body of water, 
 wherever it was, must have been christened a 
 long time ago, he thought! And the name! 
 Clearly of East Indian origin ! Could it be that 
 he was actually coming into the district he had 
 dreamed of so many nights ? 
 
 "Where is this lake?" he asked, in as car* 
 less a tone as he could assume. 
 
 "About ten miles to the north," was the 
 reply. 
 
 "We might go there tomorrow," Jack sug- 
 gested. 
 
 Lewis grinned provokingly.
 
 186 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 ' ' Tomorrow ! " he repeated. * ' Better say we 
 might start tomorrow." 
 
 "But only ten miles " 
 
 "Unless you fly there in this aeroplane Leroy 
 is dodging about in, you'll travel about a hun- 
 dred miles or more before you get to the lake. 
 Half this distance will be around cliffs and 
 mountain spurs and the other half will be 
 straight up in the air and down to the surface 
 again." 
 
 "Looks like a rough country off there," Jack 
 admitted, looking over the rapids and down to 
 the "Big W." "Still," he added, "I wouldn't 
 like to leave the district without seeing it. 
 
 "Then we'll take the boats back to Alameda 
 tonight," Lewis replied, "leave them there, 
 and in the morning come down in a rowboat, 
 tie it up here, and take a hike for Omak lake. 
 How's that?" 
 
 "How long will it take us to get there?" 
 asked Jack cautiously. 
 
 "It may take a week." 
 
 "And we'll have to pack our provisions?" 
 
 "Of course. That is reservation land, and 
 we'll not be likely to come across a department 
 store," laughed the boy. 
 
 "Then why not leave Frank and Harry here 
 with the boats and go on alone?" asked Jack. 
 "If they want to go in, why, they can do so
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 187 
 
 after we come back. What I don't like about 
 your plan," he added, "is the leaving of the 
 boats up there at Alameda with no guard. Ned 
 and Jimmie are not fit to take care of them, 
 and the craft seem to be in pretty good 
 demand." 
 
 "That's true," Lewis replied. "Well, then, 
 we'll talk it over with Frank and Harry, and 
 go in tomorrow." Perhaps they won't want to 
 go at all." 
 
 Of course it will be understood that Jack's 
 purpose in leaving the others behind on this 
 difficult trip was to gain for himself all the 
 glory of the discovery of the ruined temple! 
 He was not an especially selfish boy, but he had 
 said so much against the theory of the ancient 
 book that he did not want his chums to know 
 that he was really interested in the matter 
 until after he had proved successful in his 
 quest! 
 
 At times he regretted taking the stand he 
 had in the matter, but he thought he had gone 
 too far to withdraw, and so he planned to take 
 Lewis with him and make the search without 
 the assistance of his friends. If he found the 
 temple, or anything which might have stood 
 for it in the minds of explorers, he would be 
 glad ; if he did not, no one would know! 
 
 That night the matter was talked over, and
 
 188 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 Frank and Harry declared they would remain 
 with the boats above the rapids and await the 
 return of Jack and Lewis. Nothing whatever 
 was said of the ruined temple. In fact, 
 Jack thought Frank altogether too reticent 
 on the subject, for the region about Lake Omak 
 was the region the boy had often referred to 
 in his talk about the treasure, although he had 
 never mentioned the lake by name. 
 
 Early in the morning Jack and Lewis were 
 off by daylight, each with a great packet of 
 provisions on his back. Frank and Harry sat 
 thoughtfully by the fire after the early break- 
 fast. Frank began laughing, presently, and 
 then burst out: 
 
 ' ' Jack thinks he 's foxy, ' ' he roared. ' ' "Won- 
 der if he doesn't know that I'm on to his game t 
 Wonder if he thinks I don't know he's gone in 
 there in search of the ruined temple? Say, 
 Harry," he went on, "we're going in there 
 also! We'll get a guide up at Alameda and 
 beat them to it." 
 
 "It's a fool search!" declared Harry. 
 
 "That may be," Frank admitted. "To be 
 honest with you, I haven't much faith in the 
 existence of a temple in there. What would the 
 East Indians want to come over here for to 
 hide their gold away from unscrupulous rulers 
 when they might have selected one of the South
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 189 
 
 Sea islands? No, kid, I don't believe a word 
 of it!" 
 
 "But " 
 
 "Oh, yes, I got to talking that way and kept 
 it up, and Jack got to talking the other way 
 and kept that up. I'm sure he's got the book 
 his father says Saxby stole! I've seen him 
 studying over some sort of volume he always 
 hides when any one comes near. You see, we've 
 both been lying about our belief." 
 
 "If you think it all bunk, why do you want to 
 go in there?" 
 
 "Just to get ahead of Jack, and show him 
 he's not the only warm baby in this bunch," 
 Frank laughed. 
 
 "All right," Harry chuckled. "I'm ready. 
 We'll leave the boat up river and go after them 
 right away." 
 
 The situation was explained to Ned and Jim- 
 mie, and the latter sprang out of bed and began 
 dressing in haste. Frank and Harry grinned, 
 but said nothing. 
 
 "You can't lose me," the little fellow said. 
 
 But Ned advised against Jimmie going, and 
 the lad went back to bed, determination still in 
 his eyes. 
 
 "You just wait," he growled. "I'm going 
 over to that lake! Think I come out here to
 
 ISO BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOA1 
 
 knit frizzly little collars an' wear pink ribbons 
 in me hair?" 
 
 The boys were off before noon, and Jimmie 
 watched them go almost with tears in his eyes. 
 As they disappeared down the river a shout 
 went up from the straggling street and, looking 
 up, Jimmie saw the aeroplane swinging down 
 from the sky. 
 
 "If that's Leroy," the boy mused, excitedly, 
 "I'll bet them fellers won't have anything on 
 me! There! He's going to land! Now for it," 
 and the boy jumped into his clothes and ran.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 191 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 JACK TAKES A COLD BATH. 
 
 If you look at the map of the west end of 
 the Colville Indian reservation you will see a 
 yellow splash, which indicates that the makers 
 f the map believe that section to be good grain 
 country. You will also see shadowy lines wind- 
 ing around on the yellow splash, which lines 
 indicate that the country is hilly, if not actu- 
 ally mountainous. There are no towns indi- 
 cated by the makers of the maps. 
 
 Along the north bank of the Columbia there 
 is a line of high hills they do not call them 
 mountains there and these Jack and Lewis 
 toiled over under a summer sun until the for- 
 mer was nearly ready to drop with fatigue. 
 When they gained the valley on the opposite 
 side they dropped under the shelter of a cliff 
 and wiped the sweat from their faces. 
 
 Before them lay a broken country. Far off 
 to the north, beyond the locality pointed out 
 as the bed of the lake, a spur of lofty mountains 
 lifted, seemingly, to the sky. Jack got out his 
 water canteen and drank to the health of th 
 summit!
 
 192 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "We're coming to visit you, old man!" he 
 shouted. 
 
 Lewis regarded his friend with a curious 
 smile. 
 
 "I knew it!" he said. 
 
 "Knew what?" demanded Jack. 
 
 "Knew that you were coming in here in 
 quest of the temple these ginks have been 
 imagining." 
 
 "How did you know?" laughed the other. 
 "I've been talking right against the theory of 
 the temple!" 
 
 "Yes; but you like to talk about it! Well, 
 the mountains which you see are said to be the 
 ones which conceal the hidden canyon which in 
 turn conceals the temple." 
 
 "Have you ever been here before?" asked 
 Jack. 
 
 "Never," was the reply. 
 
 "But the locality has been frequently trav- 
 eled over?" 
 
 "No; I think not." 
 
 "But you said there had been people over 
 there looking for the temple ?" 
 
 "Yes; but not exactly. You see, the temple 
 is popularly believed to have been built within 
 sight of the lake." 
 
 "Well, what do you think about it?" 
 
 "I think it was never built!"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 193 
 
 "You may be right," Jack admitted. "I'm 
 half inclined to your opinion, yet I've started 
 in to look it up, and so I'm going to find it if it 
 is above ground and my curiosity and grub 
 holdout!" 
 
 "We may as well be moving on," Lewis said, 
 after a long rest, during which little else than 
 the hidden temple was talked about. " We have 
 a short distance to go, if you figure miles as 
 the birds fly, but a long ways when you consider 
 how much up-and-down surface we've got to 
 climb." 
 
 The boys did not make good progress that 
 day, however, for Jack was new to mountain 
 climbing and soon wearied. Lewis loitered 
 along, hardy and apparently tireless, and told 
 the boy strange tales of the people who had 
 visited that section in quest of the temple and 
 the mysterious things which had happened to 
 them. There had been a tragedy, too. 
 
 "The only party I ever heard of going on 
 into Omak mountains the spur north of the 
 lake of the same mountain came back minus 
 two members," the boy explained, watching 
 Jack intently. Jack's eyes lighted with the 
 lust of adventure, and that was all. Lewis 
 went on : 
 
 "They reported at Alameda that they 
 reached the foot of a mountain at nightfall and
 
 194 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 made camp there. They said they reached the 
 angle of a deep canyon, running into the moun- 
 tain, and arranged to follow it up as far as 
 possible the next day. The next day never 
 came for at least two of them." 
 
 "What happened?" asked Jack, all interest. 
 
 "During the night, they said, an unearthly 
 light, like a burst of sulphurous fire, showed in 
 the canyon. The two who advanced toward it 
 never came back. Their companions heard 
 their voices for a few moments, and then they 
 were drowned by a flow of weird music. Then 
 a great crash came, and the canyon was only a 
 deserted old notch in the mountain no flames, 
 no music, no investigators!" 
 
 "Honest?" asked Jack. 
 
 "That is the way they told the story when 
 they came out." 
 
 "But they found the bodies of their com- 
 panions?" 
 
 "They said not." 
 
 "And they are in the mountains still?" 
 
 "I believe so." 
 
 Jack mused a moment and then asked : 
 
 "What sort of people made up that party?" 
 
 "Oh, that's different," laughed Lewis. "I Ve 
 been anticipating that question. Well, the party 
 was composed, so far as I can learn, of two 
 gentlemen and three thieves."
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 195 
 
 "I thought so! And yet no one investi- 
 gated?" 
 
 * * Oh, yes, there was an inquiry. An attorney 
 and a detective came on from New York, and 
 the whole region was searched. But, by the 
 time the searchers reached Alameda, the three 
 members of the party who had escaped were 
 nowhere to be found." 
 
 "Of course it was murder?" Jack asked. 
 
 "Probably." 
 
 "And robbery. The men were wealthy? And 
 carried plenty of money and valuable jewelry 
 on their persons. Well?" 
 
 "Yes ; that is the way I sized it up." 
 
 "What were the wealthy men doing in 
 there?" asked Jack presently. 
 
 "I don't know. Looking for the same thing 
 you are in quest of, perhaps." 
 
 "I'd like to know," Jack said, impatiently, 
 "how many people there are in the world who 
 know all about this alleged temple ? It seems 
 to me that, it takes rank with the treasure of 
 Captain Kidd. Everybody knows all about it, 
 but no one finds it. Look here," the boy con- 
 tinued, "were the two men murdered because 
 they were likely to discover the whereabouts 
 of the ruins, or were they murdered for what 
 valuables they had on their persons? What 
 sort of men were the three thieves?"
 
 196 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "My notion is that they were murdered for 
 what they had on their persons, though there 
 are those who believe that some mysterious in- 
 fluence which guards the temple put them to 
 death and destroyed their bodies." 
 
 "The more I hear about this thing," Jack de- 
 clared, "the more I'm determined to get to the 
 bottom of it. Fine roast I'll have on Frank 
 when I come back with the full particulars!" 
 
 That night the boys made a simple camp half 
 way to the lake. The next night they camped 
 on the north side of the body of water lying 
 between the river and the mountain. On the 
 third night they built their cooking fire at the 
 angle of a deep canyon running into the 
 mountains. 
 
 "We've made good time, better than I antici- 
 pated," Lewis said, as they fried fish and bacon 
 over a bed of coals. "According to all 
 accounts, it took the party I have been telling 
 you about a week to get out." 
 
 "Is this the spot where they camped?" 
 
 "This is the spot where they said they 
 camped. ' ' 
 
 "Then up there," pointing up the narrow 
 canyon, "is the place where the two men came 
 to then death?" 
 
 "Yes,- that is the place. One of the men 
 who came in with the lawver and fl^ ^
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 197 
 
 described it to me. I brought you directly 
 here because I knew you would want to make 
 your investigations and get back as soon as 
 possible." 
 
 "Right!" Jack cried. "Well make our 
 beds here, under this ledge, and sleep like lit- 
 tle children! Then, tomorrow, we'll find the 
 temple." 
 
 Jack was going on with his enthusiastic talk 
 when Lewis lifted a warning hand. 
 
 "Just a minute!" he said. 
 
 Jack stopped with a word on his tongue's 
 end and stood at attention. It was very still 
 there, save for the call of a bird high up on 
 the mountain. The sun was going down over 
 a jumble of lower hills to the west, and already 
 a dusky mist lay over the canyon into which 
 they looked. 
 
 "What is it?" asked Jack, in a moment. 
 
 The answer came from the canyon, and not 
 from the lips of the boy of whom the question 
 had been asked. 
 
 "Ha! Ha! Ho! Ho!" 
 
 "There's some one in there!" Jack whis- 
 pered. "I'll bet some of the toughs who 
 attacked the merchant are hiding here!" 
 
 "Ha! Ha! Ha!" 
 
 The laugh was weird, defiant. Jack reached
 
 198 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 for his automatic and advanced a step, but 
 Lewis caught him by the arm. 
 
 "Don't go in there," he said. "I half 
 believe the thieves arc there." 
 
 "Then we ought to get them." 
 
 "Alone? Say, but you're a bad actor! What 
 could we do with a bunch like that?" 
 
 "It may only be some of the boys doing this 
 for a joke, or the boy of the aeroplane. They '11 
 laugh at us if we back out now." 
 
 " I 'd rather face a joke than a bullet ! ' ' Lewis 
 said. "Especially when I have no chance to 
 return the compliment." 
 
 The boys drew away from the entrance to 
 the canyon and hastily gathered up their camp- 
 ing articles and provisions. It was quite evi- 
 dent that they could not remain where they 
 were through the night and rest in safety. 
 
 "They'll be down on us as soon as we get 
 to sleep," Lewis said. "Now," he went on, 
 "the man I told you about, the fellow who 
 came in here with the lawyer and the detective, 
 told me of a place they found a cute little 
 place where we can pass the night without 
 listening for callers." 
 
 ' i I wish Ned was here, ' ' Jack grumbled. 1 1 1 
 don't know what to do in a case like this. He 'd 
 know mighty quick what to make of that idi- 
 otic laughter in there."
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA EIVEK. 199 
 
 "Come on!" urged Lewis, and they walked 
 through the gathering twilight to the north, 
 keeping close to the foot of the undulations 
 which led sharply to the greater bulk of the 
 mountain itself. 
 
 There were shrubs and vines here and there 
 in crevices, and in little dips they passed grass 
 was growing luxuriously. In places the rock 
 of the mountain came down to the uneven 
 ledge they were following, and sometimes che 
 face of the precipice thus formed wore a 
 tangle of vines, some in blossom, some only 
 "scratchy," as Jack expressed it, but all bent 
 on hiding the face of the rock from the light 
 of the sun. 
 
 They tramped along for what seemed to 
 Jack to be three hours, and then Lewis stopped 
 at a sharp angle, looked over the valley for a 
 moment, and turned into a thicket at the base 
 of a vertical wall of rock. 
 
 "Here we are," he said. "Walk in and 
 make yourself at home!" 
 
 Jack stepped into the thicket, passed through 
 a mass of clinging vines, and found himself in 
 an alcove of rock. Lewis sat on a boulder which 
 had fallen from the roof, and grinned as he 
 looked around. 
 
 "In there," he said, presently, "is a tunnel. 
 I guess some earthquake made it a million
 
 200 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 years or more ago. Anyway, it is a slip in the 
 rock, and there 's a crack we can follow up if we 
 have to hide. That is one fine thing about this 
 country. You can find plenty of hiding 
 places !" 
 
 Jack peered into the natural tunnel and got 
 out his searchlight. 
 
 "What are you going to do?" asked Lewis. 
 
 "See what's in there." 
 
 Lewis stepped out to the entrance of the 
 niche in which they stood and looked in the 
 direction of the canyon. 
 
 "All right," he said, turning back. 
 
 "What did you do that for?" asked Jack. 
 
 "I wanted to know if we were being 
 watched." 
 
 "Anybody in sight?" 
 
 "Too dark to see, but I could have heard 
 voices. Then, you know, they wouldn't be 
 crawling along in the darkness." 
 
 "I wish I knew who they were," Jack grum- 
 bled. "Seems as if we've been trailed by 
 unknowns ever since we started on our motor 
 boat trip." 
 
 The boys listened a short time, then pro- 
 ceeded along the tunnel, which w r as not more 
 than a yard wide, and was sometimes so low 
 that they were obliged to crawl on their hands 
 and knees.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 201 
 
 The flashlight revealed only bare rock. 
 There had been a readjustment of levels, at 
 some distant time, and the rock had cracked 
 there, one side of the break slipping down and 
 tipping away to the west. Such freaks of 
 nature are not at all rare in the mountainous 
 districts of the world. 
 
 After proceeding some distance the boys 
 heard the noise of running water. The sound 
 grew louder as they advanced, and when at 
 last they entered a chamber in the rock they 
 felt the spray of a waterfall on their faces. The 
 flashlight showed a channel about five yards 
 in width through which speeded a roaring 
 torrent. 
 
 The chamber in which the boys now found 
 themselves was, perhaps, ten paces in width 
 and twice that in length, the latter dimension 
 following the break in the rock. Across this 
 curious opening, at about the center, dashed 
 the subterranean stream, the surface running 
 a couple of yards below the lips of the cut it 
 had made in the floor of the cavern. 
 
 Across the torrent the boys could see a dark 
 spot in the north wall, as if the tunnel they had 
 followed was continued on that side. 
 
 Jack turned his flashlight about the place 
 with acute interest. In Mexico he had come 
 upon something of the kind, and he surmised
 
 202 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 that the apartment he saw was not the only 
 one under the mountain. The same cause that 
 had produced this one might well have pro- 
 duced others. 
 
 But the walls of the chamber seemed to be 
 smooth and unbroken. Lewis watched him for 
 a moment and then pointed across the channel. 
 
 "When we get over there," he said, "we 
 may discover something worth while." 
 
 Jack regarded his friend with inquiring eyes. 
 
 "How are we going to get across ?" he asked. 
 
 Lewis took a long rope from his waist and 
 held it up with a grin. 
 
 "I thought we might need it, ' he said. 
 "Now, you ain't afraid of getting wet, are 
 you?" 
 
 "I should say not," Jack replied, but he 
 looked into the dark water below with a little 
 shiver. "What's the proposition?" 
 
 "This chamber," Lewis continued, "is as 
 far as explorers have ever gone. I did not tell 
 you this before, but this place is quite well 
 known that is, its existence is pretty well 
 known. But no one, so far as is known, how- 
 ever, has ever crossed this stream. It is 
 believed that this cavern ends the tunnel." 
 
 "Well, it doesn't," Jack said, turning his 
 flashlight on the dark spot in the wall across
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 203 
 
 the torrent. "Come here and you can see the 
 light penetrating an opening in the rock."' 
 
 "A torch wouldn't supply that sharp point 
 of light," Lewis remarked, "and so the con- 
 tinuation of the tunnel has never been sus- 
 pected. Now, we will take our evening bath, 
 if you have no objections." 
 
 "How?" asked Jack. "You make the cold 
 chills run up and down my back by the very 
 mention of going in there." 
 
 He threw a stone in, but it was swept down 
 stream and under the exit arch by the rapid 
 current. 
 
 "No one knows how deep it is," he said. 
 
 "We don't care," Lewis replied. "We're 
 going to take off our clothes, tie them up in neat 
 bundles and toss them across. Then we're 
 going to tie this rope to that point of rock at 
 the east and hang to it while the current 
 swings us across." 
 
 ' ' It won 't, ' ' Jack ob j ected. * * It will hold us 
 where the pressure is strongest, in the middle 
 of the stream." 
 
 "I'm going to try it, anyway," Lewis said, 
 tying the rope to the rock pointed out and 
 trailing the length of it into the water. 
 
 Jack watched him with a smile on his face. 
 
 "You're all right!" he said, presently, "but 
 how are we going to get back?"
 
 204 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "Never thought of that!" said the other, 
 scratching his head. 
 
 "Easy!" Jack laughed. "Make two ropes 
 out of that one and take one with us." 
 
 "Sure," said Lewis. 
 
 After cutting the rope and seeing that the 
 part attached to the rock was firm, the boys 
 laid aside the second piece to use in fastening 
 their clothes in a compact bundle. 
 
 "Now," said Lewis, "you hold the light and 
 I'll catch hold of the rope and jump in, after 
 I strip. When I get across you put the search- 
 light into the bundle and throw it across. 1*11 
 light a match so you can see where to throw 
 it. Then you come." 
 
 "Wait!" Jack advised. "What about eats? 
 I'm going back to the niche in the wall of rock 
 and make some bacon sandwiches. We may 
 be in there quite a long time." 
 
 "All right only hurry." 
 
 In a short time the boy was back with a lib- 
 eral supply of bread and fried fish and bacon. 
 These were closely wrapped and packed in with 
 the clothes, which were soon removed, and then 
 Lewis, who had been holding the flashlight, 
 extended it toward Jack. 
 
 "I'll go now," he said. 
 
 "Nix!" cried Jack, with a provoking laugh. 
 "Me for the river first."
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 205 
 
 Before Lewis could protest the boy was in 
 the current, clinging to the rope. He kicked 
 out sturdily for the other side, but the current 
 was swift, and Lewis saw him drawn down 
 to the full length of the rope as his hands 
 slipped on the wet hemp. 
 
 Then, in a moment, the swimmer disap- 
 peared under the arch which served as an exit 
 for the turbulent waters. Lewis shouted, but 
 no answer came. The rope was still drawn 
 taut, however, and the boy took hope from the 
 fact. 
 
 Jack must still be clinging to the end of it, 
 and might draw himself out if he had not been 
 weakened by coming in contact with the walls 
 of the outlet.
 
 206 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 THE QUEST OF THE SKY MAN. 
 
 When Jimmie reached the open street, his 
 head still bandaged and his clothes only half 
 on, he found a group of men watching the aero- 
 plane. The propeller was now still. There 
 was dead silence as the great machine, with the 
 dipping swoop of a gull after a leaping fish 
 in the water, hovered over the low houses and 
 finally lighted in the road a few rods away 
 with neatness and precision. 
 
 The men rushed forward as the driver, a tall 
 lad of perhaps eighteen, with a slender, sinewy 
 form, dark hair and eyes and a wholesome face, 
 stepped down, but he motioned them back. 
 
 "Kindly keep away from the machine," he 
 said. 
 
 Jimmie rushed forward with a grin which 
 seemed to obliterate every feature of his face. 
 
 "Leroy !" he cried. 
 
 "The same!" replied the boy. "I came 
 down to see you, Jimmie," he added. "Want 
 to take a little ride?" 
 
 Jimmie jumped for the machine. As he did 
 so Ned came out of the house where he was 
 stopping and called out to Leroy :
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 207 
 
 "Don't take that kid away, Sam! He isn't 
 fit." 
 
 "Are you?" asked Leroy. 
 
 1 i Sure ! ' ' replied Ned. l ' I 'm dying for a ride 
 through the air." 
 
 "Let her go!" Jhnmie urged, fearful, now, 
 that he was going to lose his promised 
 adventure. "Ned's too sick to go." 
 
 "I can take you both," Leroy said. "Of 
 course it will be something of a load, and the 
 kid will have to be held, like a baby, but he 
 doesn't weigh more than a pound, so it will 
 be all right." 
 
 The crowd looked enviously on as Ned 
 climbed aboard the machine, took Jimmie in 
 his lap, and the great bird started away, slip- 
 ping over the smooth road for a few yards, and 
 then vaulting into the air. 
 
 "What does all this mean?" asked Ned as 
 the little landing town was left in the distance. 
 "Why haven't you come to us before?" 
 
 "Oh, I made a mystery of it just for the fun 
 of the thing, ' ' laughed Leroy. ' ' Then, you see, 
 I wanted to know that I wasn't here on any 
 fool errand before I told what I was doing." 
 
 "Did you find it?" asked Ned. 
 
 "Find what?" 
 
 "The temple." 
 
 * * Temple nothing ! ' ' Leroy exclaimed. " I 'm
 
 208 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 after something more valuable to me than any 
 old temple." 
 
 "What did you try to send us back home 
 for?" asked Jimmie, scornfully. 
 
 "I knew you wouldn't go," laughed Leroy. 
 
 "You're a nice Boy Scout," Jimmie said, 
 then, "to show signals of distress and duck 
 away." 
 
 "I squared that with another smoke column, 
 didn 'ill" asked the driver. ' ' But I can 't tell 
 you all about the trip until we get where we 
 can talk without making so much effort. By 
 and by we'll come to a valley, across the Colum- 
 bia, and then I'll drop down and we'll hold a 
 talkfest!" 
 
 They reached the little valley before many 
 minutes had passed, and the Nelson, as the 
 aeroplane was called, dropped down on a 
 grassy plain. 
 
 "Now," Leroy said, "I know why you are 
 here. I learned all about your trip before I 
 left New York, so you won't have to spin any 
 long stories. I suppose I shouldn't have come 
 if you had not started, for I wouldn't have 
 taken up this enterprise alone, and I was cer- 
 tain of your assistance as soon as you reached 
 this point." 
 
 "Of course," Ned said, wondering what 
 Leroy could have in mind.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 209 
 
 "You will be surprised when I tell you what 
 my mission up here is," the boy went on, "but, 
 whether I succeed in it or not, I want you to 
 believe what I tell you is the exact truth." 
 
 "Sure!" Jimmie said. 
 
 "You remember the Leroy embezzlement 
 case, a year ago?" asked the boy. 
 
 Ned recalled the case, which had puzzled the 
 detectives of two continents. 
 
 "Yes," he said. "The newspapers said 
 Richard Leroy stole half a million and got 
 away with it." 
 
 "Well, he didn't." 
 
 "Didn't get away with it?" 
 
 "Didn't steal it." 
 
 "Oh," said Ned. 
 
 "It looked bad for him," Leroy went on, 
 "and so he ran away." 
 
 "I remember." 
 
 "And came up here." 
 
 "Say!" Jimmie began, but Ned checked 
 him. 
 
 "Came up here and hid himself in the moun- 
 tains came with a trusted friend and sent his 
 guides back, loaded with presents, to report 
 his death in the hills." 
 
 "And so he is believed to be dead?" 
 
 * ' Yes ; an attorney and a detective were sent 
 on from New York an attorney for the bank
 
 210 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 and a detective from the Pinkerton office. They 
 never found the two men never found a trace 
 of them. They never even found the guides, 
 who, by the way, were suspected of murdering 
 the men." 
 
 "And this Richard Leroy is 
 
 "My brother!" 
 
 1 1 1 see, ' ' Ned said slowly. * i And now ? ' ' 
 
 "I am up here to take him back to New 
 York." 
 
 "Acquitted of all blame?" 
 
 "Yes; the president of the bank stole the 
 money. He confessed when he faced death 
 not long ago." 
 
 "I must have missed that never saw that 
 in the newspapers." 
 
 "It was never printed in the newspapers, 
 and never will be. My brother goes back to his 
 old position in the bank, and the president 
 retires. It is a part of the bargain that the 
 president's crime is not to be given out to the 
 officers of the law nor to the newspapers." 
 
 "He has made restitution?" 
 
 "Oh, yes, what restitution he can make has 
 been made. He has restored the money, but 
 he can never restore the mother who died 
 because of her son's alleged disgrace. I feel 
 like murdering him! Suppose Dick is dead? 
 Suppose he has been devoured by wild beasts ?
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 2H 
 
 Suppose he has left the country, never to 
 inform us of his whereabouts?" 
 
 "I think," Ned replied, "that you'll find 
 him up here somewhere. He came here to hide 
 until his innocence could be established?" 
 
 "Yes; and now I have come for him." 
 
 "Do you know where to look for him?" 
 
 "Not exactly. The men who took my brother 
 and Dunlop, his friend, into this country can- 
 not be found now, but I have good reason to 
 believe that they are located in one of those 
 valleys over there," pointing beyond the snow- 
 capped peak of the elevation beyond the lake. 
 
 "You have already been in there?" asked 
 Ned. 
 
 "Yes; but I have failed. I hope, with your 
 assistance, to be more successful on this trip. 
 Shall we be moving ? ' ' 
 
 Ned thought over the situation for a moment 
 and said: 
 
 "There are four boys in there somewhere, in 
 two parties, and I'd like to get on the ground 
 without their knowledge." 
 
 "That will be all right," Leroy replied. "I 
 can sail the Nelson by moonlight or starlight 
 as well as by sunlight. We'll wait until dusk, 
 if you think best, and come into the spur from 
 the north." 
 
 1 ' That will be fine !" Jimmie burst out. "I'd
 
 212 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 like to drop down on one of their heads ! They 
 wouldn't let me go with 'em!" 
 
 Leroy had a bag of provisions with him, 
 and the boys made a hearty supper before 
 taking to the air again. 
 
 "Are you going to show lights over the 
 mountain, and so attract their attention?" 
 asked Ned, as they started away. 
 
 "If he does," Jimmie interrupted, "he'll get 
 a piece of lead in his machine. The men that 
 robbed the store are hiding in there. I heard 
 one of the officers at Alameda say so." 
 
 "That's a fact," Ned agreed. "I never 
 thought of that." 
 
 "In that case," Leroy said, "we'd better 
 come down in some valley shut in by the hills 
 and look quietly about until morning. I wish 
 I knew of such a place." 
 
 "Why didn't you pick up a guide?" asked 
 Jimmie. 
 
 "I had a man who said he knew all about 
 this country, up to a week ago, but he ran off 
 and left me." 
 
 "What sort of a man ?" asked Ned, a sudden 
 suspicion in his voice. 
 
 "Short, heavy, dark, bull-necked chap." 
 
 "That was Saxby," Ned exclaimed. "That 
 is a trick he played to get in here. You found 
 him at Nelson?"
 
 10I.DMBIA RIVER. 213 
 
 ON THE COL. 
 
 the reply, "I found him at Nel- 
 "Yes"was 6 claimed to know a11 ab ut the 
 
 and ^T country. He took me in nicely, 
 rh-er that * * ""> tt all, as I 
 
 but I suppose t^ mal > ded references of him." 
 should teve demi ly f ? w any ,,^ no , wl ! d f o the 
 
 "Did he really g<* T ver? asked Ned - 
 districts vou traveled^ Leroy ' w !* f n en S a ging 
 
 "Well," answered L^fess a fairly good book 
 
 smile, "he seemed to posst whe f e C Uld have 
 knowledge of it, though w ery to T me ' X 
 
 procured that is a myster] h f3 T so , u g ht books 
 first thought of coming up he nd found ver y few 
 describing the territory and , 
 of them." Addled in Ned's 
 
 "I guess," Jimmie, stiU hua this Sa ^ b 7 Per- 
 lap, like a baby, interrupted, "th h< ! Don>t 
 
 son is next to himself most of the? ?" before 
 you think we'll hear more froni^ <<TT 
 we get out of the state?" he asked' e(L 
 
 " Without doubt," Ned replied^ the 
 probably making for some point dowi e 
 where he believes the hidden treasure?" 
 undoubtedly believes that we are after ha ^ J 01 
 prize. I have an idea, too, that he h tlie mur " 
 forces with the men who committed tl 
 der at Alameda." :bar and 
 
 " It will be a warm old time when AkbP^' 
 Saxby get into action!" chuckled the boy. 
 I ope I shall be there to see it !"
 
 212 BOY SCOUTS IN A MC 
 
 like to drop down on one of their 
 wouldn't let me go with 'em ! 
 
 Leroy had a bag of provisi- mention of 
 and the boys made a hearty ^ ituation with 
 taking to the air again. 
 
 "Are you going to show hostile forceg 
 
 mountain, and so attract t rhere . g g ^ 
 
 asked Ned, as they starte^ of cutthroats> 
 
 "If heploes," Jimmie jse gide partner ig in 
 
 a piece of lead in his ) ig gtm in the ring? and 
 
 robbed the store are ieveg> possibly? all point _ 
 
 one of the officers r buried gold! It really 
 
 "That's a f ae J 3uld be plenty of fi rew0 rks 
 
 thought of that.' 
 
 "In that cai Jimmie, "an' don't forget 
 come down in >0 y s cou ts, each one tryin' to 
 and look quv , W y temple first three parties, 
 I knew of sr s bunch!" 
 
 "Why d:' mch,' as you call it," suggested 
 
 Jimmie. L uest of a brother who came here 
 
 "I had^ wa it the slow motions of justice." 
 
 this court we're headed for the place where 
 
 and lef j is supposed to be," insisted Jimmie, 
 
 ''"WJ" 3 bound to get to it if there's any- 
 
 suspic jie sort in these mountains." 
 
 "SI o boys laughed at the little fellow's 
 
 '"Jon, but they both knew that it was 
 
 is a o come true. They were on the ground, 
 
 hirjrtainly would not take their departure 
 
 out some knowledge of the mysterious 
 
 iple, if anything of the kind was there.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 213 
 
 "Yes," was the reply, "I found him at Nel- 
 son, and he claimed to know all about the 
 Columbia river country. He took me in nicely, 
 but I suppose that I'm to blame for it all, as I 
 should have demanded references of him." 
 
 "Did he really show any knowledge of the 
 districts you traveled over?" asked Ned. 
 
 "Well," answered Leroy, with an engaging 
 smile, "he seemed to possess a fairly good book 
 knowledge of it, though where he could have 
 procured that is a mystery to me. When I 
 first thought of coming up here I sought books 
 describing the territory and found very few 
 of them." 
 
 "I guess," Jimmie, still huddled in Ned's 
 lap, like a baby, interrupted, "this Saxby per- 
 son is next to himself most of the time ! Don't 
 you think we'll hear more from him before 
 we get out of the state?" he asked Ned. 
 
 "Without doubt," Ned replied. "He is 
 probably making for some point down the river 
 where he believes the hidden treasure to be, and 
 undoubtedly believes that we are after the same 
 prize. I have an idea, too, that he has joined 
 forces with the men who committed the mur- 
 der at Alameda." 
 
 "It will be a warm old tune when Akbar and 
 Saxby get into action!" chuckled the boy. "I 
 hope I shall be there to see it !"
 
 214 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 Leroy looked puzzled at the mention of 
 Akbar, and Ned explained the situation with 
 regard to that persistent rascal. 
 
 "And so," mused Leroy, "the hostile forces 
 are gathering! Let us see. There is Saxby, 
 probably associated with a band of cutthroats, 
 then there is Akbar, whose side partner is in 
 jail in Alameda but who is still in the ring, and 
 there are the river thieves, possibly, all point- 
 ing for this alleged buried gold! It really 
 seems as if there would be plenty of fireworks 
 directly." 
 
 "Yes," grinned Jimmie, "an' don't forget 
 two parties of Boy Scouts, each one tryin' to 
 get to this shadowy temple first three parties, 
 if you count this bunch!" 
 
 "But this * bunch,' as you call it," suggested 
 Ned, "is in quest of a brother who came here 
 long ago to await the slow motions of justice." 
 
 "Yes, but we're headed for the place where 
 the temple is supposed to be," insisted Jimmie, 
 "and we're bound to get to it if there's any- 
 thing of the sort in these mountains." 
 
 The two boys laughed at the little fellow's 
 prediction, but they both knew that it was 
 likely to come true. They were on the ground, 
 and certainly would not take their departure 
 without some knowledge of the mysterious 
 temple, if anything of the kind was there.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 215 
 
 4 'When did you see this man Saxby last!" 
 asked Ned, presently. "I have an idea that he 
 left you because he found congenial spirits. It 
 does not seem to me as if he would leave you 
 when you were headed toward the very point he 
 sought, and then try to make his way to the 
 place alone. That is why I suggested that he 
 might have joined forces with the men who 
 murdered the merchant at Alameda." 
 
 "I saw him last when not far from Ala- 
 meda, ' ' Leroy replied. ' ' He left the aeroplane 
 on the plea of getting a shot at a deer we saw 
 in the forest, and never came back. After 
 waiting an hour or more for him, I sailed 
 away. Later I saw him with four very rough- 
 looking fellows, skulking in a thicket near the 
 town." 
 
 "Then that settles that!" Jimmie remarked. 
 "He's with that bunch of thieves, all right 
 enough! With four men to help him, he's 
 likely to make things hum before the officers 
 get him!" 
 
 "Yes," Ned replied, "there is sure to be 
 trouble. I'm afraid that Jack and Lewis or 
 Frank and Harry will encounter the outlaws. 
 Perhaps it would be well for us to drop down 
 into some quiet valley and look about." 
 
 "Very well," Leroy replied, and in a 
 moment the great bird was shooting off to tha
 
 216 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 north, to the east of the range of mountains. It 
 was dusk now, and the paint on the aeroplane 
 was of that neutral color which renders objects 
 upon which it is used indistinct even at short 
 distances, so the lads were not afraid of being 
 seen by those below them. Besides, the motors 
 of the Nelson worked almost noiselessly, so 
 there was little or no danger to be feared from 
 the outlaws. 
 
 After winging its way to the north for some 
 distance, the great airship wheeled and came 
 slowly back to the south, over the range now, 
 with the boys searching the surface below for 
 a suitable landing place. 
 
 What they sought was a place of conceal- 
 ment for the ship as well as a desirable level 
 for landing purposes. It was their intention 
 now to leave the machine under guard of one 
 of their number and search the valleys during 
 the night, when the light of cooking fires might 
 readily be seen, and when voices were more 
 likely to be heard. 
 
 Leroy had already, apparently before the 
 arrival of the outlaws, explored the entire 
 region from his aeroplane without finding a 
 trace of the two men he was seeking. He had 
 sent out signals which he was sure his brother 
 would have answered if he had seen them, but 
 no hint of the men had he found.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 217 
 
 Before seeking Ned, whom he had followed 
 and serenaded in a spirit of mischief, he had 
 about abandoned hope of discovering the 
 whereabouts of his brother, but now, with the 
 assistance of the Boy Scouts, he was certain 
 that he would be able to accomplish the task 
 he had come there to perform. 
 
 After a time the boys came to a valley, very 
 dim in the uncertain light, which seemed broad 
 and level enough at the bottom to furnish a 
 safe landing place, so Leroy spiraled down 
 until he had a good view of it. There was long 
 grass growing in some parts of the secluded 
 nook, and vines and bushes in other parts, but 
 there was a clear spot in the center which 
 received the rubber-tired wheels of the ma- 
 chine without noise or risk, and the lads were 
 soon out on the ground. 
 
 Jimmie, who now, under the excitement of 
 the moment, seemed to be as well and strong 
 as ever, notwithstanding the fact that his head 
 was still bandaged, at once darted off on a tour 
 of investigation. He had heard Ned and Leroy 
 talking of leaving someone on guard, and was 
 suspicious that he would be the one chosen for 
 that duty, so he took advantage of the first 
 busy moments after the landing and disap- 
 peared in the darkness. 
 
 The valley where the Nelson had landed
 
 218 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 small ; the boy soon came to a stiff slope which 
 gave promise of being a fine observatory, and 
 so he began the climb. He was still weak, 
 however, and often stopped to rest. On one of 
 these occasions he heard, quite distinctly, the 
 murmur of running water. 
 
 He looked in every direction and listened, but 
 could see no stream making its way down the 
 face of the mountain. Mystified at what he 
 heard, yet unable to solve the puzzle, he was 
 preparing to climb still higher when he came 
 to an opening in the side of the slope. He 
 stepped inside, and then the location of the 
 running stream was no longer a mystery. 
 
 The din of the waters increased as he 
 advanced into the narrow tunnel in the rock, 
 and presently he distinguished a vanishing 
 gleam of light in the distance. Then human 
 voices reached his ears, and, surmising that he 
 had come upon the camp of the outlaws, he 
 crouched down to await the next act in the 
 strange drama. 
 
 He wished for a moment that Ned had 
 accompanied him, then the glory of doing 
 something important "all by his lonesome," 
 as he put it, stimulated his flagging courage, 
 and he awaited the unknown with a brave 
 heart.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA EIVEE. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 A BLACK BEAR IN A CAGE. 
 
 Lewis, standing in the cavern, at the lip of 
 the rushing stream, waited for what seemed 
 to his excited imagination a long time before 
 the face of his chum again appeared above the 
 foaming waters. He had known Jack only a 
 short time, yet the two lads were so similar 
 in their tastes that a great friendship had 
 sprung up between them. 
 
 In a moment Lewis saw that Jack's hands 
 had slipped on the wet hemp, and that he was 
 almost at the very end of the rope, trying to 
 draw himself up hand-over-hand. This was 
 a difficult task in the face of that swirling tor- 
 rent, and Lewis motioned that he would draw 
 up the line, which he did, much to the relief of 
 the half -drowned boy. 
 
 Jack was shivering when he grasped Lewis' 
 hand and was drawn out on the side from 
 which he had entered the stream, but, after 
 wrapping himself in his coat for a few 
 moments, he was ready for another trial. 
 
 " That's an uncanny place, that tunnel the 
 water drew me into," he said. "I thought of 
 about every mean thing I ever did while
 
 220 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 strangling in the dark, with the current pound- 
 ing against the top of my head. There are 
 fish in there, too, and they banged against my 
 face like slimy snakes as they were swept down 
 stream. Ugh!" 
 
 "Well," Lewis advised, "don't take so much 
 rope next time. Take hold close up and let it 
 out a little as you kick yourself across. If you 
 do your very best, the chances are that you'll 
 only reach the other shore close to the outlet." 
 
 Jack considered this very good advice, and 
 on the next trial succeeded in getting across 
 and climbing up out of the water, his teeth 
 chattering with the chill of it. 
 
 "Say," he called across to Lewis, "you'll 
 have to throw me some matches. I had some 
 in a waterproof box, but I lost it in scrambling 
 out of the drink. " 
 
 Lewis felt in all his pockets, then went 
 through them again, but ended by shaking his 
 head gravely. 
 
 "I haven't got any more matches than a 
 robin," he said. "I'll have to toss the search- 
 light across, and you must be dead sure you 
 catch it. We'd be in a deuce of a mess in here 
 without any light." 
 
 "Well," Jack called back, "toss my clothes 
 over first. I'm freezing. Then, as soon as I
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 221 
 
 get dressed you can pitch the light over. "I'll 
 catch it, all right." 
 
 Lewis did as requested, and Jack was soon 
 dressed. The former then threw his own 
 clothes across and was about to send the flash- 
 light after them when he paused and 
 suggested : 
 
 "Perhaps I'd better tie a string to it, so if 
 anything goes wrong we won't lose it." 
 
 "Oh, I'll have no trouble in catching it," 
 Jack laughed. ' ' Let her come ! ' ' 
 
 Lewis gave the important article a toss 
 toward Jack's outstretched hands, not more 
 than eighteen feet away, and the latter stepped 
 to one side to catch it, the throw not having 
 been a direct one. But Jack's foot rocked on 
 a loose stone as it descended, his ankle turned, 
 and down he went, trying as he fell to seize the 
 flashlight as it passed the very tips of his 
 fingers. 
 
 But he did not quite reach it. The precious 
 electric darted past his hand and struck the 
 wall back of him. There was a cry of alarm 
 from Lewis, a crash of breaking glass, and then 
 the light disappeared. A second later Jack 
 heard the now worthless thing roll slowly down 
 the declivity on which he stood and drop into 
 the stream. 
 
 "Good thing I got my clothes over," Lewis
 
 222 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 said, with a forced laugh. "I can get over in 
 the dark easily. Start up a whistle, so I'll 
 know where you are. My! It's as dark as a 
 pocket in here!" 
 
 * ' Wait ! ' ' Jack exclaimed. * ' Don 't come over 
 here. We've got to go back ! We can never go 
 on without a light. There may be breaks in 
 the floor of the tunnel, and we would be drop- 
 ping into them head first. Wait until I get my 
 clothes off and I'll come over." 
 
 Lewis seemed to be studying the situation 
 over, for he made no reply for a moment. 
 
 "All right!" at length came over the stream, 
 but the voice semed hoarse and affected, and 
 not at all like that of the lad on the opposite 
 bank. 
 
 Jack caught the strange note in the voice and 
 listened. Above the din of the waters he heard 
 a slight shuffling of feet straight across. That 
 might be Lewis pulling at the rope, or it might 
 
 Jack did not carry out the thought, for a 
 strangling cry came out of the darkness, and 
 he knew. 
 
 1 i Lewis ! Lewis ! " he called. 
 
 There was no answer from the opposite side, 
 but it seemed to the listening boy that the cur- 
 rent below was beating against an obstruction 
 which had not existed a moment before. That
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 223 
 
 would mean that some one was crossing the 
 river, presumably to seize him just as Lewis 
 might have been taken. 
 
 Grunts and sighs of exhaustion now came 
 from below, showing that the surmise that 
 some one was crossing by means of the rope 
 was correct, and Jack stood ready to help the 
 adventurous one back into the water as soon 
 as he should attempt to land. There was no 
 doubt in his mind now that they had come upon 
 the outlaws who were being pursued by the 
 people of Alameda. 
 
 In that case, the boy thought, Saxby would 
 probably be foremost in whatever was done 
 In whatever evil and vicious plans for the mur- 
 der of the captive might be made. He decided 
 right there that he would leave his mark on 
 the party before being taken. 
 
 Presently the noises in the water ceased for 
 an instant, the current roared more fiercely, 
 as if angry at an additional obstruction, and 
 then a despairing cry cut the air. The cry 
 wavered, smothered, then swept away. There 
 was only one deduction to be drawn from all 
 this : The swimmer had either lost hold of or 
 broken the rope and had been swept into the 
 outlet. Jack knew that, in that case, nothing 
 could save him. 
 
 While he listened in the darkness for fur-
 
 224 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 ther sounds, Lewis' voice came from over the 
 stream : 
 
 "Oh, Jack?" 
 
 "All right, Chummie!" 
 
 "Are you all right?" 
 
 "Surest thing in the world! How about 
 you?" 
 
 "I'm tied up like a codfish ready for ship- 
 ment!" was the reply. "I guess the bogey 
 man got me ! Did you give him a clip when he 
 tried to land?" 
 
 "No; I think he broke the rope and went 
 down stream. If he did, that is the last of 
 him." 
 
 "Can you get across?" asked Lewis, then. 
 "There are others about. They have gone 
 around the cliffs to head you off on the other 
 side. The man who went down was to chase 
 you into their hands. Come on across, and 
 we'll get out of this." 
 
 "Can you catch your clothes if I throw 
 'em?" 
 
 "No, of course not; I'm all corded up. 
 Bring 'em over with you.'' 
 
 "But they '11 get wet." 
 
 "Never mmd that; they'll soon get dry when 
 we reach the warm air of the vallev again. 
 Hurry up! These cords cut like knives!'' 
 
 "Wait until I find a place to tie this rope,"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 225 
 
 Jack replied, "and I'll be right over. Gee, 
 but I hate to take another dip in that water!" 
 
 But he did finally take a dip in the water, 
 and came out, soaking wet, of course, on the 
 other side, with his chum's clothes, also drip- 
 ping, under his arm. Feeling about in the 
 darkness, he found Lewis, cut the cords which 
 held him, and the two, shaking with the cold, 
 started along the winding tunnel, back to the 
 open air of the valley. 
 
 But they were not yet rid of the surprises 
 of the subterranean place. As they reached the 
 narrow slit in the rock through which they had 
 entered the chamber Jack turned back and 
 strained his eyes through the black interior. 
 Then, with a quick exclamation of surprise, he 
 seized Lewis by the arm. 
 
 "Just wait a second!" he cried. "There's 
 some one over there with a light. Do you think 
 the men who started around the cliffs to head 
 me off have had time to get back under the 
 mountain?" 
 
 "They certainly have not had time to 
 clamber over the heights and get in here," 
 Lewis replied. "Besides, that is a flashlight! 
 The outlaws had nothing of the kind. There ! 
 Listen to that!" 
 
 "That" was the long, low snarl of a wolf I 
 
 "It is either Jimmie or Ned!" Jack ex-
 
 226 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 claimed. "But how the dickens did he, who- 
 ever he is, get in here ? Why, we've made good 
 time, and have just gotten in ourselves ! Any- 
 one who followed us must naturally be a day 
 behind us! Wait!" 
 
 The low, long-drawn-out growl of a bear 
 wavered through the cavern, and then the flash- 
 light across the stream began a curious acro- 
 batic performance. 
 
 1 ' What 's that about ? ' ' asked Lewis. ' ' Seems 
 the lad has gone crazy!" 
 
 Jack did not reply. He was too busy reading 
 "wig- wag" signals. 
 
 "One," he said, as the light shot up a ver- 
 tical ray, then swung off. to the right, embrac- 
 ing an arc of 90 degrees, and returning without 
 pause to the vertical again, "one again. Now, 
 two," as the motion was repeated on the left, 
 "and again two. That combination means t J*. 
 Now, can't you guess who it is?" he added, 
 giving his friend's arm a pinch. 
 
 "I sure can guess," was the reply. 
 
 "One," Jack went on, as the light wavered 
 again. * * That is ' I '. And here 's one, two, two, 
 one. That's M'. 'Jim'. That's enough, kid," 
 he then called out. * ' Come on across the brook. 
 The water's fine!" 
 
 "How?" demanded the boy. 
 
 Jack and his friend retraced their steps and
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 227 
 
 explained to the little fellow that he would have 
 to take hold of the rope and swim for it, first 
 throwing the light across. 
 
 "And we'll try not to muff it!" Jack called 
 out. 
 
 Jimmie was not at all averse to a swim, for 
 he did not know how cold the water of the 
 underground stream was. So he tossed his 
 light across, seized the end of the rope Jack 
 had used on his return trip, and leaped in. 
 
 Then his weakness made itself manifest, for 
 he did not seem to have the power to force his 
 way across in the face of the current. He hung 
 on bravely, but made no progress. Jack threw 
 off his coat and, taking hold of the rope on his 
 side, dropped in and drifted down to the strug- 
 gling lad. 
 
 "Here!" cried Jimmie, as Jack seized Itim 
 by the hair of his head and called to Lewis to 
 draw in on the rope, "I'd just as leave be 
 drowned as to be snatched baldheaded! Let 
 go!" 
 
 But Jack hung on, much to the little fellow's 
 disgust, until both were on the ledge where 
 Lewis stood. Jimmie 's teeth rattled like stones 
 in a bag as he faced the others. 
 
 "How did you get in here?" he asked. 
 
 ' ' Never mind that now, "Jack replied. ' 1 We 
 might ask you the same question, for we last
 
 228 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 saw you at Alameda, but there is no time. Close 
 the light and follow on behind. There'll be 
 doings here in a short time if we don't get out.'' 
 
 "Can't get out any too soon to please me," 
 chattered Jimmie. "I never was so cold in me 
 innocent life." 
 
 But once more the departure from the cham- 
 ber was interrupted, for half a dozen torches 
 showed redly down the tunnel, and then the 
 gleam of rifles came with sullen threat of a 
 new danger.
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 THE LAST OF TWO VILLAIN& 
 
 "Get out your guns, fellows," Jimmie whis- 
 pered, as the lights, shining on rough faces, 
 came nearer. "They can come only one at a 
 time and we can hold 'em off until their whis- 
 kers turn gray." 
 
 "You've got your nerve !" Lewis laughed, as 
 he caught sight of one of the hairy faces under 
 the foremost torch. "Those are the man- 
 hunters from Alameda. Hello, Sol !" he added, 
 calling out to the leader of the posse. 
 
 "Who is it?" came the question. 
 
 "Lewis," was the reply. "What do you 
 want in here?" 
 
 "Well," replied the other, approaching and 
 dropping the butt of his automatic rifle to the 
 level rock, "we thought there might be more 
 of the thieves in here, so we trailed on in." 
 
 "Did you capture some one out there?" 
 asked Jack. 
 
 "Four as tough looking fellows as ever stole 
 a horse," was the reply, "and one of them has 
 a, bullet wound in the shoulder. That's the man 
 the murdered storekeeper shot, sure enough." 
 
 "I hope so," Lewis replied. "But we may
 
 230 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 as well get out into the valley, ' ' lie added. " I 'm 
 
 freezing to death." 
 
 - Sol, the leader of the posse, now turned to 
 
 Jinnnie. 
 
 "Are you one of the boys who came here 
 in the aeroplane?" he asked. 
 
 1 1 Sure, " replied the boy, and Jack and Lewis , 
 regarded him with envy. This, then, ac- 
 counted for his being there so soon after their 
 arrival! 
 
 "Who came with you?" demanded Jack. 
 
 "Sled and Leroy," was the reply. "I left 
 'em in a valley on the other side of the ridge. 
 Guess they'll be anxious about me." 
 
 "Well," the other went on, "you kids left 
 the motor boats without guard, and there's 
 always a good demand for boats of that 
 description in this country. Perhaps you'd 
 better go back and look after them!" 
 
 This with a low chuckle. 
 
 "Why," Jack replied, "we left Frank and 
 Harry in charge of the boats." 
 
 "And they dug out the same day for this 
 locality," replied Sol. "They left Ned and 
 Jimmie in charge, and they came away in an 
 airship!" 
 
 "I'd like to know how you found all this 
 out," Lewis observed. "You've been in here
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA EIVEE. 231 
 
 three days. How do you know what's been 
 going on at Alameda?" 
 
 "Well," replied Sol, "we've just left Frank 
 and Harry, as you call 'em, outside, and we 
 saw some people coming this way in an air- 
 ship. That accounts for your party, I take 
 it?" 
 
 "It seems to me," grumbled Jack, "that 
 Frank and Harry got here in less time than it 
 took us to arrive ! They must have started a 
 number of hours after we did." 
 
 "Anyway," answered Sol, "they've got a 
 camp over in a valley to the west, and are 
 going in quest of the hidden temple you've all 
 been talking about, in the morning. We told 
 'em to save their shoes and their strength, but 
 they're going, just the same. Ha! That's 
 good bunk about the temple!" 
 
 "Hurry up!" Jimmie exclaimed, as the two 
 showed a disposition to continue the conversa- 
 tion. "I want to get out of this. I'm freezing, 
 an' Ned will think I've got muddled in the 
 cupelo an' wandered away." 
 
 The party lost no further time, but made 
 its way out of the subterranean passages as 
 swiftly as possible. They faced the south when 
 they at last stood on the ledge outside, and 
 away to the left the flush of coming day lay 
 over the sky. At the edge of the declivity they
 
 232 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 found a guard of two men standing orer the 
 four outlaws who had been captured as they 
 left the tunnel in order to move to the other 
 end of it and so cut off the retreat ef the boy 
 they had left on the other side of the stream. 
 
 " Where's Jake?" one of them aaked, look- 
 ing questioningly at Jack. 
 
 "The man you left on guard in there!" 
 
 Jack asked the question on the impulse of 
 the moment, for reason told him that the fellow 
 could be asking for no one else. 
 
 "He tried to swim the river," h went on, 
 "and was swept away." 
 
 The boy thought his questioner turned a 
 little whiter at the information, and was about 
 to question him when a second captive asked: 
 
 ' ' Did you see him the man that was swept 
 away?" 
 
 "How could I in the darkest hole that ever 
 set a body crazy for light?" 
 
 "Well, you'd have known him if you had, I 
 take it," said the other. "He said he knew 
 you, and wanted to get to you for a talk." 
 
 "Saxby!" cried Jack, a quiver at the awful 
 fate of the man shaking his limbs. "Did Saxby 
 die like that?" 
 
 The other nodded and turned away, but Jack 
 was in no mood to be cheated out of the rest 
 of the story, so he asked:
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 233 
 
 . . 
 
 ( He came to you with a story of a ruined 
 temple, didn't he?" 
 
 The other nodded and glanced curiously at 
 his questioner. 
 
 "You told him you could help "nm find itl" 
 
 Another sullen nod. 
 
 "Well, is there such a thing as a ruined tem- 
 ple hereabouts ?" 
 
 "Blessed if I know," was the reply. "We 
 never found anything that looked like one. The 
 man Akbar who tried to kill Scoby might have 
 found one, but we did not." 
 
 "So Akbar was here, too?" asked Jack. 
 
 "Where is he now?" Jimmie broke in. 
 
 "He crept up to our camp and Scoby shot- 
 just took a chance shot, you know and well, 
 you'll find him over in the gulch somewhere, I 
 take it." 
 
 "Dead!" exclaimed Jack, with horror in his 
 eyes. "Dead!" 
 
 "As a herring," was the heartless answer. 
 "What did he go for to pryin' about our camp 
 for, then? Anyway, it was Jake Saxby what 
 finished him not me." 
 
 There was a brief silence, and then Jimmie 
 spoke, showing a new side to his bubbling 
 nature : 
 
 ' * They both came to their death ! They trav-
 
 234 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 eled thousands of miles to find graves that have 
 been waiting for them since they were born!" 
 
 " That's right, Jimmie," Jack said, "though 
 I don't know where you ever stumbled on the 
 belief of the fatalists. They came out here 
 to murder each other, or any one who stood in 
 their way, and this is the end! They died 
 without coming to the goal they hoped for. 
 It is all in the game!" 
 
 He tried to smile at the last sentence, but his 
 face still showed the shock he had sustained. 
 He had known both of the dead men well at 
 the home of his father in New York, and 
 though they had both discarded all law in their 
 attempts to gain a fabled treasure, it seemed 
 to him that the punishment had been almost 
 too swift and too severe. 
 
 "Well, they will trouble us no more," Jim- 
 mie observed. ' 1 They didn 't last long out here, 
 did they?" he added. "I guess they wasn't 
 familiar with the roles they were playing.'' 
 
 "No ; they were not naturally outlaws," Jack 
 said. "Their better natures were warped by 
 the thought of easily-acquired wealth. I'm 
 sorry!" 
 
 Taking the prisoners with them, the vigilants 
 nov proceeded down the slope, over a ridge 
 which taxed the strength of the wounded boy,
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 235 
 
 and so on into a valley through which a slen- 
 der thread of water ran. 
 
 Frank and Harry arose from blankets 
 spread before a bed of coals as the party 
 approached and stood gazing at Jimmie with 
 astonishment showing in their sleepy faces. 
 Jimmie grinned and made faces at them, and 
 the two dripping boys hovered the fire. 
 
 "I guess you ain't the only ones!" he cried. 
 
 "How did you get in here?" asked Frank. 
 "And where is Ned?" 
 
 "Ned and Leroy are over here in a valley 
 somewhere," Jimmie replied. "I'm blessed 
 of I know where the bloomin' valley is, but 
 they're in it, all the same if they're not out 
 lookin' me up." 
 
 "So you found Leroy, did you?" asked 
 Harry. 
 
 "No; he found us." 
 
 "What's he doing here?" Harry went on. 
 "Why has he been trailing us all along and 
 made himself known only now?" 
 
 "He's here on business!" Jimmie replied, 
 with a grin. "You wait until you see him. 
 He'll tell you all about it, I reckon." 
 
 While the four boys compared notes, each 
 smilingly accusing the other of trying to 
 "make a sneak" on the temple, the vigilants 
 were preparing a breakfast of corn pones,
 
 236 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 bacon, eggs, and coffee. It was broad daylight 
 when the meal was disposed of, and then Frank 
 proposed that they go in search of Ned and 
 Leroy. 
 
 "I think I know this aviator lad," he said. 
 " Anyway, I know a boy who used to coax 
 policemen off their beats with his flute." 
 
 "I wish I owned his aeroplane," Jimmie 
 exclaimed. "Say!" he added, in a moment, 
 "why can't we get him to go on down the river 
 with us, or go anywhere, for that matter? 
 We're out for a vacation, and I'd like to have a 
 go with an airship. He might take us over the 
 South Pacific!" 
 
 "I reckon you don't know much about the 
 South Pacific," Frank answered. "I'd like to 
 take a trip in an aeroplane, but I'm afraid 
 I'll have to get back to little old N. Y. when 
 this excursion is over. You and Ned might 
 go." 
 
 "I couldn't go," Harry observed regretfully. 
 
 Jack shook his head and looked troubled. 
 
 "I'll have to go home, too," he said. 
 
 "Oh, well," said Jimmie, "we don't know 
 as anyone can go. Leroy may have too much 
 business on his hands to take any of us. But 
 if he can go on a tour, you bet that Ned and I 
 will be in with it!"
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 237 
 
 "Haye you talked with Leroy about itt" 
 asked Frank. 
 
 "Aw, quit! "cried the little fellow. "What's 
 the use of wakin' me up, if it is a dream? 
 Mebbehe'llgo!" 
 
 "I suppose three can ride the machine, all 
 right?" asked Jack. 
 
 "Sure; we rode down in it." 
 
 "And carry plenty of gasoline?" Harry put 
 in. 
 
 "Yes, and provisions," Jimmie replied. 
 "It is a peach of a machine, and Leroy is 
 going to get money for the model from the 
 little old U. S. A. The engines are almost 
 noiseless, and the paint renders it nearly in- 
 visible when a mile high." 
 
 "There she is now!" Frank exclaimed. 
 * ' Judge for yourself. ' ' 
 
 The Nelson was indeed making her way over 
 the rough country in the direction of Alameda. 
 There seemed to be three persons on board of 
 her, which Jimmie could not at all understand, 
 as Ned was the only one left with the aviator. 
 
 Instead of dropping down at Alameda, how- 
 ever, the aeroplane struck out toward the east 
 at a great rate of speed. In five minutes she 
 was just a speck on the sky, and in a minute 
 more was entirely out of sight, flying low when 
 last seen.
 
 238 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOE BOAT 
 
 "That's another mystery!" Jack exclaimed. 
 "Who is in there with him?" 
 
 "I'll tell you," Jimmie replied. "Leroy 
 came in here looking for his brother, who has 
 been hiding here. That is a long story, so I'll 
 not stop to tell it here. But it looks like he 
 found him, and the man with him, and is now 
 taking him to Spokane on the way back to 
 New York." 
 
 "Then he's left us here to look out for our- 
 selves?" 
 
 "I reckon we can do that, all right, all 
 right," Jimmie laughed. "We did it before 
 he came to us, didn't we? Besides, I guess 
 he hasn't done anything of the kind. I'll bet 
 you a cookie he'll come back after Ned."
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 239 
 
 CHAPTER XVH. 
 
 EIPE FOE ADVENTURES IN THE AIR. 
 
 Ned and Leroy passed a very unpleasant half 
 hour following the departure of Jimmie. They 
 were setting out in search of him when a faint 
 glow of light at the verge of the valley to the 
 west attracted their attention. The illumina- 
 tion seemed to come through some half opaque 
 material, for it was dim and steady. 
 
 When the boys came to the vicinity of the 
 light they found themselves at the opening of 
 a rocky canyon, an entrance overgrown with 
 tall grass and bushes, for water no longer swept 
 down the cut, and the earth where deposited 
 by former floods was fertile. Beyond the 
 thicket was the illumination. 
 
 At first they could not make out what kind 
 of a structure the lights shone from, or whether 
 they were houses at all, but, on drawing closer, 
 they saw that they shone forth from a window 
 of a stone structure which nearly blocked the 
 canyon. The sash they saw was glazed, and the 
 glass seemed to be tinted, like the stained glass 
 used in the windows of cathedrals. 
 
 "Here's your ruined temple inhabited!" 
 Leroy laughed.
 
 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 "It surely is something," Ned admitted. 
 "It is a wonder you did not find it on your 
 previous trip to the place/' 
 
 "Never came into this valley before," Leroy 
 replied, "and, besides, if I had I could not have 
 seen that contraption from my machine. See 
 how the walls of the canyon hover over it ; see 
 how the thicket guards the front. It must be a 
 very old structure, for it was evidently built 
 when the canyon was flooded at certain seasons 
 see the channel, dry now, and filled with 
 grass and weeds, which runs under it." 
 
 "I suppose you have an idea who you will 
 find in there?" asked Ned. 
 
 "I know whom I hope to find." 
 
 The boys approached the window and lis- 
 tened. There came the sound of voices from 
 the interior, speaking in English. r ^.hey 
 advanced to the window, made their way 
 around an angle of the house, and felt along 
 for an entrance. It was a large building, for 
 they walked at least a hundred feet, close to 
 the canyon wall, always with their fingers on 
 an unbroken surface of stone wall. 
 
 At last they reached the rear, where a door 
 stood ajar. Looking in, Leroy saw his brother 
 sitting at a table with his friend, evidently just 
 beginning his evening meal. With a shout of 
 pleasure he stepped into the great room, closely
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 241 
 
 followed by Ned. There is little need of say- 
 ing here what brother said to brother at that 
 meeting. There is little need of following the 
 boys as, astounded and impressed, they wan- 
 dered through the great stone building which 
 had been the home of Richard Leroy and his 
 devoted friend for so long. 
 
 It was, to shorten the description, a wonder- 
 ful structure of stone, with great chambers 
 and wide, comfortable hearths. There were 
 few entrances, and only one great window on 
 each side, two of these very high up, giving on 
 the Trails of the canyon and admitting fresh air 
 but little light. The floors were of stone, and 
 a great vault at one corner of the large chamber 
 where the men had been found disclosed an 
 iron frame and a comparatively modern lock. 
 
 "I guess we've found the hidden temple!" 
 Leroy laughed, as all four sat down to a plenti- 
 ful supper. ' * But, all the same, no East Indian 
 ever built this. No old priest ever hid his gold 
 in its vaults for there are no vaults!" 
 
 "I don't know what you are talking about," 
 Richard Leroy said. "This building was put 
 up in the early years of the struggle between 
 the Hudson Bay Company and the Montreal 
 rival of that great monopoly. The Hudson 
 Bay Company had a lease of the country which 
 is new British Columbia, and built a fort at the
 
 242 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 junction of the Okanogan and Columbia rivers. 
 The Montreal people, it is said, built this store- 
 house. While the Hudson Bay people held the 
 country for years, the French company man- 
 aged to get a good trade in furs here. When 
 the two corporations consolidated, this old 
 structure was deserted and, apparently, for- 
 gotten. It occupies so sequestered a nook in 
 the mountains that few know that it exists." 
 
 "And yet," Ned suggested, " it must have 
 been seen by some one, years ago, who tied the 
 Akbar legend to it. Without the building, the 
 fable of buried gold might never have been 
 invented. You see," he laughed, "some one 
 tried to account for the existence of this build- 
 ing by a great stretch of the imagination, hence 
 the connection of the two the account of 
 Akbar 's immigration and the structure." 
 
 It may well be imagined that the brothers 
 sat late that night, recounting their experi- 
 ences and adventures. Now and then they vis- 
 ited the machine to see that all was well there, 
 and more than once close search of the valley 
 was made for the missing boy. In the early 
 morning Leroy took his brother and his chum 
 into the car and started for Spokane from 
 which city they were to journey to New York 
 promising to return that same afternoon and
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 243 
 
 join Ned and his friends in an exploration of 
 the lower Columbia. 
 
 Before Leroy's return, however, Ned saw 
 his four friends, accompanied by Lewis, clam- 
 bering over a summit which shut his valley in 
 from the south. Wondering if they would be 
 able to discover the ruined storehouse which 
 had so long posed as the ruined temple, Ned 
 secreted himself there and remained quiet. 
 Just as Ned had expected, the walls of the 
 structure were so well hidden in the canyon 
 that the boys passed within a few yards of it 
 without being aware of its existence. 
 
 When Ned called them back and exhibited 
 "the hidden temple" with a laughing face, 
 there was unlimited hilarity in the party, Jack 
 Bosworth being the only one to look a bit dis- 
 appointed. He had honestly believed in the 
 tale written down in the book, and was, as well, 
 not a little nettled that what stood for the tem- 
 ple had been discovered by Ned, after all. 
 
 Jimmie laughingly suggested that they 
 search the subterranean vaults for gold, but, 
 as there were no vaults received only jeers for 
 his proposal. 
 
 In the afternoon Leroy came back with his 
 aeroplane and carried the boys out to the 
 Columbia river and the motor boats. The vig- 
 il ants came in later with their prisoners, who
 
 244 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 were, later on, given long terms in the peniten- 
 tiary for murder. As Saxby, the member of 
 the attacking party who was not on trial, could 
 not dispute the claims set up by the defendants 
 that he had fired the fatal shot, the prisoners 
 could not be convicted of first degree murder. 
 
 The next morning Ned and his friends, glad 
 to feel the Black Bear under their feet again, 
 were off on their way to the Pacific. Leroy 
 followed along in his aeroplane, usually with 
 Jimmie as a guest, and many a night the two 
 parties passed around cheerful campfires. It 
 was a long trip down the Columbia, and a 
 thrilling one, for the lads took their time and 
 enjoyed every minute of it. 
 
 They ran rapids, passed around falls, swept 
 past ranches and little towns on the " benches," 
 saw thrifty orchards and grain fields, inspected 
 great blocks of timber which will one day give 
 place to agricultural products, and finally came 
 to the close of their delicious outing. 
 
 During the run, of course, the subject of an 
 extended trip in the Nelson had been discussed, 
 and Leroy had promised to take Ned and Jim- 
 mie with him on a trip to some summer land 
 where the experiences would be new and excit- 
 ing. When Jack, Frank and Harry turned 
 their faces regretfully to the east, Ned, Jimmie
 
 ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER. 246 
 
 and the aviator saw them depart with real 
 regret. 
 
 The Black Bear and the Wolf were taken 
 apart and stored away in a Portland ware- 
 house, for Ned did not know when they might 
 want to use them again. An effort had been 
 made to have Harry take the boats home with 
 him, but this he declined to do, saying that 
 some day he would use them again on the 
 Pacific coast. 
 
 Then, one night when the three boys sat in a 
 hotel parlor, studying over the maps of the 
 North, preparatory to setting out in the Nel- 
 son for adventures beyond the Arctic Circle, a 
 stranger of most dignified appearance asked 
 for a short talk with Ned in private. It was 
 midnight before Ned joined his friends 
 again. Then he was in the best of spirits and 
 the light of adventure was in his eyes. 
 
 "Boys," he said, with a smile, "I've got a 
 commission for the Nelson!" 
 
 Jimmie swung his cap in the air and began 
 to dance about the room, though he had, a few 
 minutes before, pleaded guilty to being sleepy. 
 
 "What is it?" Leroy asked. "Something 
 good, I hope." 
 
 "Well," Ned replied, "there's trouble down 
 in South America a revolution, or something
 
 246 BOY SCOUTS IN A MOTOR BOAT 
 
 like that, and Uncle Sam wants to know some- 
 thing about the situation down " 
 
 * ' Hurrah ! ' ' yelled Jimmie. 
 
 "Wants to know something about the situa- 
 tion down there," Ned went on, "and so we're 
 going down there to see if we can't avert a war 
 by discovering the whereabouts of an Ameri- 
 can millionaire who is said to be illegally held 
 in captivity there." 
 
 "We'll get him!" cried the little fellow. 
 
 "When do we start?" asked Leroy. 
 
 "Just as soon as we can get ready." 
 
 "Say at daylight ! " laughed the other, and at 
 daylight, after a strenuous night's work, the 
 Nelson lifted in the morning air, her great 
 planes shining in the sunlight, and struck out 
 for the continent of South America. 
 
 The story of the Boy Scouts' adventures 
 there will be told in the next volume of this 
 series: "Boy Scouts in an Airship; or, The 
 Warning from the Sky." 
 
 THE END.
 
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 | COMPLETE EDITIONS THE BEST FOR LEAST MONEY 
 
 Donohue's Plays, Dialogs, 
 Readings, Recitations, Etc. 
 
 CAREFULLY compiled series of books, which includes 
 eveything that is fresh, popular and up-tw-date. Em- 
 bracing, Humorous, Sentimental, Patriotic, Serious, 
 Comic, Eloquent, Pathetic, Character and Dialect 
 Sketches that are always in demand. 
 
 MODEL SERIES OF SPEAKERS AND DIALOGS 
 
 Nos. 1 to 14, recitations and dialogs for all occasions, 
 price, lOc each. 
 
 COMIC READINGS AND RECITATIONS 
 
 192 pages all comic and humorous, price, 25c in paper. 
 50c in cloth. 
 
 PATRIOTIC RECITATIONS AND READINGS 
 
 192 pages for all patriotic occasions, price, 26c in paper. 
 50c in cloth. 
 
 TOMMY'S FIRST SPEAKER 
 
 Over 300 short, simple pieces for little tots. Cloth, 
 50c. 
 
 TOMMY'S SECOND SPEAKER 
 
 Over 200 serious, quaint pieces for older ones. Cloth, 
 Me. 
 
 DEARBORN SPEAKER AND DIALOGS 
 
 Original and selected readings for all purpose* with obser- 
 vations for study and practice. Cloth, 75c. 
 
 YOUNG FOLKS DIALOGS AND DRAMAS 
 
 Short, pretty, funny for all occasions, paper 25c. Cloth, 
 5#c. 
 
 EVERYBODY'S SPEAKER AND ENTERTAINER 
 
 Contains select readings, dialogs and dramas. Illustrated. 
 Cloth, $1.00. 
 
 AMERICAN STAR SPEAKER AND ELOCUTIONIST 
 
 Complete text on how to recite. 225 selections, 560 
 pages. Cloth 91.50. 
 
 The above books have been carefully prepared for pupils 
 f all ages, and are especially adopted for the use of Schools, 
 Churches, Lyceums, Anniversaries, Temperance Societies, 
 Lodges, in fact, they are indispensable when preparing for unit 
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 on receipt of price, in currency, money order or 
 
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 791-727 S. DEARBORN STREET :: CHICAGO
 
 Boy Scouts 
 
 SERIES 
 
 EVERY BOY AND GIRL IN THE LAND 
 
 WILL WANT TO READ THESE INTERESTING 
 AND INSTRUCTIVE BOOKS 
 
 Boy Scouts 
 
 - -" jf 
 i > '' 
 
 WRITTEN BY 
 
 That Great Nature Authority and 
 Eminent Scout Master 
 
 G. HARVEY 
 R ALPHSON 
 
 of the Black Bear Patrol 
 
 The eight following great titles ax* 
 now ready, printed from large, clear 
 type on a superior quality of paper. 
 embellished with original illustra- 
 tions by eminent artists, and bound 
 in a superior quality of binder's oloth, 
 ornamented with illustrative cover* 
 stamped in two colors of foil and ink 
 from unique and appropriate dies: 
 
 1 Boy Scouts in Mexico; 
 
 or, On Guard with Uncle Sam 
 
 2 Boy Scouts in the Canal Zone; 
 
 or, The Plot Against Uncle Sam 
 
 3 Boy Scouts in the Philippines; 
 
 or, The Key to the Treaty 
 
 4 Boy Scouts in the Northwest; 
 
 or, Fighting Forest Fires 
 
 5 Boy Scouts in a Motor Boat; or, 
 
 Adventures on the Columbia Hirer 
 
 6 Boy Scouts in an Airship; 
 
 or, The Warning from the Sky 
 
 7 Boy Scouts in a Submarine; 
 
 or, Searching An Ocean Floor ' 
 
 8 Boy Scouts on Motor Cycles; 
 
 or, With the Flying Squadron 
 
 The above books are for sale by all booksellers, or will be s*t 
 prepaid to any address, upon receipt of 60o each, or any three fa* 
 91.16. or four for $1.60, or seven for $2.45, by the publisher* 
 
 M. A. DONOHUE & CO. 
 701-727 S. Dearborn Street, CHICAGO
 
 Boy Scout Series 
 
 Nature, Adventure, Travel 
 and Camping Stories 
 
 Large, clear type; appropriate decorative end sheets; illustrated 
 
 frontispiece; attractive covers embossed in colors from 
 
 special designs, cloth bound. 
 
 Just the kind of interesting books that live, natural 
 boys love to read. They are good, clean, healthy, vigor- 
 ous, outdoor-life stories, embodying the ideals and apply- 
 ing the principles of the Boy Scout movement. 
 
 Every book in the Boy Scout Series is written by that 
 great and popular author of books for boys, Major Archi- 
 bald Lee Fletcher. 
 
 1 Boy Scout Rivals; or, a Leader of the Tenderfoot Patrol. 
 
 2 Boy Scout's Test of Courage; or. W nning the Merit Badge. 
 
 3 Boy Scout's Signal Sender; or. When Wigwag Knowledge Paid. 
 
 4 Boy Scouts on a Long Hike; or, to the Rescue In the Black Water Swamp. 
 
 5 Boy Scout's Woodcraft Lesson; or Proving Their Mettle in the Fie d. 
 
 6 Boy Scout Pathfinders; or the Strange Hunt for the Beaver Patrol. 
 
 7 Boy Scouts on Old Superior; or, The Tale of the Pictured Rocks. 
 
 8 Boy Scouts In the Everglades; or, the Island In Lost Channel. 
 
 9 Boy Scouts in Northern Wilds; or, the Signal From the Hills. 
 10 Boy Scouts on the Great Divide; or, the Ending of the Trail. 
 11 Boy Scouts in the Coal Caverns; or, Light In Tunnel Six. 
 12 Boy Scouts In Alaska; or the Camp on the Glacier. 
 
 Every Boy Scout and every other live boy will want 
 all of the above books, and they may be procured from 
 the dealer where this book was purchased, or will be sent 
 postpaid to any address upon the receipt of 20c each, or 
 6 for $1.00, ky the publishers. 
 
 M. A. Donohue & Company 
 
 701-727 South Dearborn St. Chicago, 111.
 
 ALWAYS ASK FOR THE DONOHUE 
 
 Complete Editions and you will get the best for the least tuoney 
 
 -w^ SELECTED WORKS OF 
 
 EUGENE FIELD 
 
 A VERY ATTRACTIVE 
 * * selection of popular 
 books by this favorite and 
 gifted author. Each book 
 contains a carefully selected 
 and classified list of poems 
 thathayeendearedthe author 
 to millions and given him a 
 place among the immortals. 
 These books should be in 
 every library, both public 
 and private. 
 In Four Volumes. Boxed. 
 
 Cloth Binding. 
 Price, $3.00 per set. 
 Single Volumes 75c each, 
 postpaid. 
 
 IN WINK-A-WAY LAND 
 
 THE contents of this volume is especially selected and arranged 
 for the little folks. All are suitable for use in school exercises 
 and on "Eugene Field Day." , , 
 
 HOOSffiR 
 
 CS 
 
 THIS is a series of patheae. amusing and entertaining poems 
 rendered in Indiana dialect on notable Hoosier scenes with 
 parodies on poems by James Wbitcomb Riley. 
 
 JOHil SMITH, U. S. A. 
 
 THE romantic story of John Smith, also includes many other 
 poems, all of which afford suitable material for "Field 
 Readings" and general school and ohurch entertainments. 
 
 THE CLINK OF THE ICE and other poems 
 
 EDITION containing portraits and autographs. Stories of 
 inimitable wit and humor with lullabies and sketches of every 
 day scenes that made Eugene Field famous. All worth while. 
 
 Printed from new plates on good paper, uniformly and neatly 
 bound in cloth; gold titles on front and back. 
 
 For sale by all book and newsdealers or sent postpaid to 
 any address upon receipt of price in stamps, currency, postal or 
 express money order, by the publishers. 
 
 M. A. Donohue & Co., '
 
 ALWAYS ASK FOR THE DONOHUE 
 
 Complete Editions and you will get the best for the least money 
 
 Henty Series 
 
 FOR BOYS 
 
 G. A. Henty was the most prolific writer of boy* 
 stories of the nineteenth century. From two to 
 five books a year came from his facile pen. No 
 Christmas holidays were complete without a new 
 "Henty Book." This new series comprises 45 titles. 
 They are printed on an extra quality of paper, from 
 new plates and bound in the best quality of cloth, 
 stamped on back and side in inks from unique ana 
 attractive dies. 12 mo. cloth. Each book in a printed 
 wrapper. 
 
 1 Among Malay Pirates 
 
 2 Bonnie Prince Charlie 
 
 3 Boy Knight, The 
 
 4 Bravest of the Brave 
 
 5 By England's Aid 
 
 6 By Pike and Dyke 
 
 7 By Right of Conquest 
 
 8 By Sheer Pluck 
 
 9 Captain Bayley'? Heir 
 
 10 Cat of Bubastes 
 
 1 1 Col. Thorndyke's Secret 
 
 12 Cornet of Horse, The 
 
 13 Dragon and the Raven 
 
 14 Facing Death 
 
 15 Final Reckoning, A 
 
 16 For Name and Fame 
 
 17 For the Temple 
 
 18 Friends, Though Divided 
 
 19 Golden Canon 
 
 20 In Freedom's Cause 
 
 21 In the Reign of Terror 
 
 22 In Times of Peril 
 
 23 Jack Archer 
 
 24 Lion of St. Mark 
 
 25 Lion of the North 
 
 26 Lost Heir, The 
 
 27 Maori and Settler 
 
 28 One of the 28th 
 
 29 Orange and Green 
 
 30 Out on the Pampas 
 
 31 Queen's Cup, The 
 
 32 Rujub, the juggler 
 
 33 St. George for England 
 
 34 Sturdy and Strong 
 
 35 Through the Fray 
 
 36 True to the Old Flag 
 
 37 Under Drake's Flag 
 33 With Clive in India 
 
 39 With Lee in Virginia 
 
 40 With Wolfe in Canada 
 
 41 Young Buglers, The 
 
 42 Young Carthaginians 
 
 43 Young Colonists, Tho 
 
 44 Young Franc-Tireurs 
 
 45 Young Midshipman 
 
 AH of above titles can be procured at the store where tkia 
 book was bought, or sent to any address for 50c. postage Baud, 
 by the publishers 
 
 M. A. DONOHUE & CO., 
 
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 Complete Editions and you will get the best for the least money 
 
 " Jack Harka way " 
 
 Series of Books 
 
 For Boys 
 
 By Bracebridge Hemyng 
 
 "For a regular thriller com- 
 mend me to ' Jack Harkaway.'" 
 
 This edition of Jack Harkaway 
 is printed from large clear type, 
 new plates, on a very superior 
 quality of book paper and the 
 books are substantially bound in 
 binders' cloth. The covers are 
 unique and attractive, each title 
 having a separate cover in colors 
 from new dies. Each book in 
 printed wrapper, with covet 
 design and title. Cloth 12mo. 
 
 1 Jack Harkaway's School Days 
 
 2 Jack Harkaway After School Days 
 
 3 Jack Harkaway Afloat and Ashore 
 
 4 Jack Harkaway at Oxford 
 
 5 Jack Harkaway's Adventures at Oxford 
 
 6 Jack Harkaway Among the Brigands of Italy 
 
 7 Jack Harkaway's Escape From the Brigands 
 
 of Italy 
 
 8 Jack Harkaway's Adventures Around the World 
 
 9 Jack Harkaway in America and Cuba 
 
 10 Jack Harkaway's Adventures in China 
 
 11 Jack Harkaway's Adventures in Greece 
 
 12 Jack Harkaway's Escape From the Brigands 
 
 of Greece 
 
 13 Jack Harkaways Adventures in Australia 
 
 14 Jack Harkaway and His Boy Tinker 
 
 15 Jack Harkaway's Boy Tinker Among the Turks 
 
 We will send any of the above titles postpaid to any address. Each 
 
 75c 
 M. A. DONOHUE & CO. 
 
 701-727 DEARBORN STREET :: CHICAGO
 
 FOR THE DONOHUE 
 
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 JUST THE BOOK 
 FOR EVERY HOME 
 
 Our 
 
 Baby's Journal 
 
 DAINTY, BEAUTIFUL AND ATTRACTIVE 
 
 WHEN THE STORK LEAVES A WEE LITTLE 
 darling in your home, or that of a friend or rel- 
 ative, there is nothing more acceptable or essen- 
 tial than a book in which to record everything concern- 
 ing the new ; irrival. If you have nothing else to leave 
 to your children, a book containing baby's name, hour 
 and day of birth, weight, measure and photographs at 
 various ages, first tooth, first steps; all notable events, 
 would be the most acceptable. 
 
 "Our Baby's Journal" is that book 
 
 This is a work of art throughout 
 
 Cover decorated on front and back 
 in soft multi-colors of beautiful and 
 pleasing design. Eight pages are in 
 water colors done in unique and ar- 
 tistic style by the very best artists. 
 Printed on the finest quality of 
 lithographer's paper and delicately 
 bound, to meet the most exacting 
 tastes. 
 
 A copy of this beautiful book will be sent to any 
 address postpaid, upon receipt of 50c in stamps, money 
 order or currency, by the publishers. 
 
 M. A. DONOHUE & CO. 
 
 7tl-727 S. Dearborn St. CHICAGO 
 
 Ask for Catalog of other Art Gift Booklets
 
 Life and Sayings or 
 
 THEODORE 
 
 By THOWIA8 VU. 
 
 Introduction by Charles Walter Brown, A. M. 
 
 An ideal American, the pride of the Rough Riders, 
 320 pages, new plates, embellished with numerous illus- 
 trations printed on super-calendered paper, beautifully 
 bound in silk-finished binders' cloth, stamped with 
 unique die in gold and ink. Containing complete biog- 
 raphy and symposium of brilliant thoughts and stirring 
 words from the Essays and Orations of President 
 Roo?evelt with classified index. A desirable book and 
 one that embraces the best that President Roosevelt has 
 done in a literary, political and military way. 
 
 K_lfe and De.e>cis of 
 
 ETHAN ALLEN A* TI c *.. 
 
 By Charles Walter Brown, A. M., Author of "John Paul Jones," "Nathan 
 
 Hale," "LaFayette" Etc. Illustrated. 
 The hero of Ticonderoga and leader of the Green* 
 Mountain Boys is best known for his characteristic de-l 
 mand upon the British garrison at Fort Ticon deroga, onl 
 Lake Champlain, to surrender "in the name o f the Con-l 
 tinental Congress and the Great Jehovah." This book! 
 not only givea a full account of the exploits of Colonel] 
 Allen, out contains also a brief history of Vermont,! 
 formerly called the New Hampshire Grants, in her con-l 
 tention with the New York authorities, who opposed! 
 Vermont's admission into the Union, but which was! 
 finally accomplished by Ethan Allen. "It is the best! 
 life' of Ethan Allen published." Chicago Chronicle. 
 12mo, cloth, nearly 300 pages. 
 
 The t^lf& and Deeds of 
 
 JOHN PAUL JONES of Naval Fame 
 
 By Charles Walter Brown. A. M. f Author of "Nathan Hale," "Ethan Al- 
 len," "LaFayette," Etc. Illustrated. 
 
 American history gleams with the brilliant achieve- 
 ments of her adopted sons. No historian ever wearies 
 in telling of the glorious deeds and self-eacrinces of La- 
 Fayette, DeKalb, Pulaski, Kosciuszko, DeGrasse, 
 Rochambeau, Steuben, St. Clair, D'Estaing and John 
 Paul Jones, who gave up home and country to aid the 
 struggling colonists in their long fight for freedom. 
 This is one of the most patriotic books, both from a 
 literary and artistic standpoint, ever issued. It is 
 printed on a superior quality of paper with a dozen or 
 more half-tone portraits of the principal actors who par- 
 _ _ ticipated in our struggle for independence, together with 
 
 a chart and views of Jones' most daring exploits on the coasts of England 
 and on the Black Sea, with his portrait in the full uniform of Admiral 
 of the United States Navy, of which he was the founder. Cover stamped 
 in red, white and gold on a navy blue silk cloth, showing in beautiful col- 
 ors the Colonial flags and American shield with its thirteen stars and 
 stripes, with Jones' sword in gold as ornamental back stamp. "This 
 book is a credit to any publishing house." Detroit Free Prut. Size, 
 5H*7Ji; nearly 300 pages; 12mo; cloth. 
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 COMPLETE EDITIONS THE BEST FOR LEAST MONEY 
 
 WOODCRAFT 
 
 for Boy Scouts and Others 
 
 By OWEN JONES and MARCUS WOODMAN 
 
 With a Message to Boy Scouts by SIR BADEN- 
 POWE JL,, Founder of the Boy Scouts' Movement. 
 
 Tl 1 
 
 NE of the essential requirements of the Boy 
 Scout training is a Knowledge of Wood- 
 craft. This necessitates a book embracing 
 all the subjects and treating on all the topics that 
 a thorough knowledge of Woodcraft implies. 
 
 This book thoroughly exhausts the eubject. It im- 
 parts a comprehensive knowledge of woods from fungus 
 growth to the most. stately monarch of the forest: 
 it treats of the habits and lairs of all the feathered and 
 furry inhabitants of the woods. Shows how to trail 
 wild animals; how to identify birds and beasts by 
 their tracks, calls, etc. Tells how to forecast the 
 weather, ana in fact treats on every phase of nature 
 with which a Boy Scout or any woodman or lover of 
 nature should be familiar. The authorship guarantees 
 it's authenticity and reliability. Indispensable to "Boy 
 Scouts" and others. Printed from large clear type on 
 superior paper. 
 
 Embellished With Over 100 Thumb Nail 
 Illustrations Taken From Life 
 
 Bound in Cloth. Stamped with unique and 
 appropriate designs in ink. 
 
 Price, 75C Postpaid 
 M. A. DONOHUE & CO. 
 
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 from which it was borrowed 
 
 SRtF JAN 21 
 
 QU 
 
 .Date: Tue, 17 Sep 91 12:06 PDT 
 To: ECL4BAT 
 
 Subject: SRLF PAGING REQUEST 
 
 Deliver to 
 Shelving # 
 
 UCSD CENTRAL 
 
 A OOO 057 886 4 
 
 Item Information 
 
 Ralphson, Harvey G. 
 
 Boy Scouts in a motor boat 
 
 Item : 
 
 ORION # : 348028 IMC 
 
 Requester Information 
 Unit : UNKNOWN 
 Terminal : 
 
 User Information 
 
 Name inness 
 
 Lib card 
 Phone 
 
 grad/lit 
 
 or advei
 
 DC SOUTHERN REGIONAL III 
 
 ^/-^