CHAPTER III.

THE THREATENING PERIL.

“Did you ever see such a queer looking sun, fellows?”

Bud Morgan, when he made this remark to a group of other boys, stood on the campus of the Oakvale High School. Besides Bud there were present Arthur Cameron, Dale Evans, Billy Worth, Chester Brownell and Blake Merton, all of them scouts, although not wearing their khaki suits at the time.

“What else could you expect,” Arthur went on to say, “when we’ve had such a terribly dry fall? Why, the roads are an inch deep with dust right now.”

“I guess I ought to know about that,” added Dale Evans. “Only yesterday I had a chance after school to go with a party in his car. We made a run of thirty miles in all, heading south, and twice we had to stop at wells to wash the dust down our throats. I never saw anything like it.”

Another boy, who had been hurrying toward the group, came up while this talk was going on. His name was Alec Sands, leader of the Otter Patrol of the scouts.

There had been a time when Alec was a bitter enemy and a keen rival of Hugh Hardin for first honors; but when the latter forged ahead Alec came to his senses, and ever since they had been the best of friends, even chums.

“I’m surprised at you, Arthur,” he now exclaimed, which remark of course drew the attention of all the others to Alec, just as he intended it should.

“What for?” demanded the boy spoken to, who had a great reputation among his fellows as a coming authority in things pertaining to surgery.

“Well, in times gone by we’ve always looked up to you as a regular weather sharp and prophet; yet here you are agreeing with the rest of this ignorant bunch, and taking it for granted that the dry weather and the dust is the cause for that red sun. You’re away off, all of you; it’s smoke!”

“Smoke!” exclaimed Billy Worth. “Then, as they expected, the forest has been set afire. Is that what you mean, Alec?”

“Well, where there’s smoke it stands to reason there’s likely to be a fire back of it,” Alec told him, a little sarcastically it must be admitted.

“What do you know about it, Alec?” demanded Dale Evans.

“Yes, open up and tell us, like a good fellow,” added Blake Merton.

A clamorous circle of eager faces met Alec’s eye as he looked around. It pleased him to be the center of attraction, even in such a small matter as this, for Alec had not wholly mastered his love for power, which in the old days had been his besetting sin.

“Well, it was in this way I learned about it,” he began, deliberately. “I had occasion to go down to the post office just before school this morning, and there was a crowd of people around police headquarters. I thought the Chief might have been arresting some negro kid for playing craps, or something like that, so I stepped over just out of idle curiosity.”

“And what was it all about?” asked one of the others, as Alec purposely stopped so as to further arouse their eagerness.

“Why, messengers had come in from up north, asking for help to fight the forest fires that were getting more furious every hour. All sorts of stories were told about farms being burned over, people having to flee in the night with what clothes they had on their backs, and others being trapped in the burning woods.”

The boys exchanged looks of sudden anxiety. It was no laughing matter then, this having a forest fire sweep down upon a little settlement or community, with everything dry as tinder, and ready to burst into flames.

They turned as if by one impulse and looked long and earnestly toward the north. Some of them began to sniff the air suspiciously.

“Say, I do believe the wind’s changing right into the north,” said Chester.

“And I can get a whiff of wood smoke all right!” added Billy.

“I wonder if the fire can be around Rainbow Lake where we always had our summer camp in the good old days?” remarked another member of the group.

They were not alone in their scrutiny of the heavens, for other scholars, girls as well as boys, had begun to notice the distinct odor of smoke in the air, and were commenting on it, showing signs of growing excitement.

“If you look close, fellows,” remarked Alec, who had very keen eyes, “you can see a sort of dull haze low down near the horizon. That’s the smoke, and it’s heading this way in the bargain.”

“Why, you can see it moving like a cloud even while you watch!” declared Dale. “I wouldn’t be surprised if it covered the town like a regular blanket before long and frightened the women folks and children half to death.”

“There’s something doing up that way, all right,” said Blake Merton. “I can just imagine the thick woods that lie all around the base of Old Stormberg in sight of Pinnacle Peak, ablaze.”

“Gee! perhaps I wouldn’t like to be up there to see the sight!” remarked Billy.

“And to help fight the fire in the bargain,” added Alec. “That would be more than half the fun for me. I had one experience some years back when visiting some relatives in the country. It was a hot old time, too, and we came near losing the farm buildings.”

They stood there staring at the horizon toward the far north as though fascinated by the sight of that low hanging but advancing cloud, which all of them had decided must be smoke from the forest fires.

Play was forgotten that morning on the campus. Groups of boys and girls stood about, and talked, and looked. Already the shadow of a possible calamity for Oakvale seemed to have permeated the air. There were no loud shouts heard, and many of the more timid ones even lowered their voices when speaking of the new peril that had arisen to menace the peace of the community.

Long before the bell rang to call them within the buildings the pall of smoke had reached the town, and enveloped it. It looked weird and yellow and threatening. It also caused the tears to come unbidden to weak eyes; and whichever way they looked they could see the housewives of Oakvale standing at their front gates to exchange comments with the neighbors, equally appalled and alarmed.

“Huh! I don’t see how there’s going to be any lessons to-day with all this excitement in town,” remarked Billy, as he heard the summons to indicate that school was about to take up.

“It’s worse than the day the circus came to town,” suggested Spike Welling, who was another member of the scout troop.

When the scholars had come together in the large assembly hall it could be easily seen that many of them were in a poor condition for study or recitations. Some of the girls looked alarmed, and others had the appearance of being on the border of an attack of hysterics. Home was certainly the best place for them under such distressing conditions.

The principal, Professor Marvin, who was new to the school that year, though already well liked, looked exceedingly grave as he watched the scholars file in to take their accustomed places.

“He’s going to make some sort of an announcement, take my word for it,” Dick Bellamy managed to whisper to Billy, as their heads came close together.

“Gee! I only hope it means we’re going to be dismissed for the day,” muttered the stout boy. “Then there might be some sort of way for a fellow to get up there, and see just what a forest fire looks like.”

Professor Marvin stood up, with elevated hand, and you could have heard a pin drop, since the utmost silence fell upon the assembly.

“I have a most important communication to make to you this morning, young ladies and young gentlemen,” said the head master, who always made it a point to speak in a dignified way when addressing them. “Word has been received that the forest is on fire to the north of our town, and that there is serious danger of its coming this way. Men are needed to help fight the flames, and it would be folly to try and keep you here in school when no one is fitted for lessons. So I am going to dismiss you for the day. It depends on the weather whether there will be any further session of the school during the remainder of the week.”

Some of the boys acted as though they felt like giving a cheer, but something seemed to restrain them. If people were suffering, perhaps being ruined by the spread of the fire, so near Oakvale, it was no time for merriment or exulting over an unexpected holiday.

In their regular order, just as they had been taught in their fire drills, the scholars filed out of school. There was no confusion, no pushing, and little excitement visible.

No sooner had they reached the grounds than they looked about them, appalled at the changes which had taken place in the short time they had been inside. The smoke cloud had swooped down upon the town with a vengeance. They could see waves of the dense vapor scurrying along. At times it was hard to see a block away.

Some of the smaller children coming from the kindergarten classes in another school building near by, were crying as they ran along toward home, nor could any one really blame them for feeling frightened.

“Whew! this beats anything I ever saw before!” Monkey Stallings was saying as he caught up with several other boys. (He had come by that queer name through his great love for acrobatic feats, and one of his favorite pranks was to hang by his toes from the limb of a tree as though he were in truth a simian.)

“There goes a party of fire-fighters off in that car!” exclaimed Billy Worth, as a large touring car swept past, headed into the north, filled with some of the lusty men of the town, all in old clothes as though they anticipated a pretty hard tussle with the fire after they reached the front.

The look Billy cast after them told that deep down in his heart he was wishing he had a chance to hang on behind, so as to get up where things were happening. Billy liked to be in the midst of stirring events, though one would hardly believe it when they observed his build, for he was unusually stout.

“Guess there’ll be mighty little business down in Oakvale to-day,” suggested Don Miller, the leader of the Fox Patrol. “There goes Mr. Allison, the grocer, with Mudge, the butcher, in a buggy. As you live, there’s our principal, Professor Marvin, crowding in along with them.”

“He’s the right kind of school teacher; let’s give him three cheers when he passes by!” cried another of the boys.

They did give them with a hearty vim, and the head master seemed pleased, for he waved his hat at them and bowed. Evidently, when there was a need of men, Professor Marvin was ready to meet his obligations. He would undoubtedly do his little part in fighting the flames or saving imperiled country folks from being burned alive.

More than ever did Billy wish he could start off. He was trying to figure out whether it would pay to ask some of the other fellows to join him, and get a rig of some sort at the livery stable. They could, in this way, manage to make their way up closer to the raging fires, and see what things looked like, perhaps find a chance to help some of those who were being burned out.

“If only I could see Hugh now, we might manage to get up a scheme between us,” he was telling himself; and then calling out to the others he continued: “Has any one seen Hugh since we came out of school?”

“Yes, I had a glimpse of him running for all he was worth,” one boy announced.

“Oh! I wonder what’s up?” exclaimed Billy; and then he held his breath in rapture as the bell of the church where they held their meetings began to toll so loudly that the sounds could be heard all over town.

There were three sonorous strokes, then a pause, followed by three more. And every scout recognized it as the signal agreed on that was designed to be a “hurry call” for the troop to assemble at the meeting place!