CHAPTER IX

OFF IN THE AUTO

“What’s the matter?” cried Ned, as he heard Jerry’s voice.

“Anything wrong?” demanded Bob sleepily. “Has anything happened, Jerry?”

“Not yet,” was the tall lad’s answer. “I fancy I was too quick for them. But I thought I heard someone on board, and I’m certain that a boat scraped against our side. I’m going to have a look.”

“Better be careful,” advised Ned, as he pulled on some garments. “They may be river thieves.”

“Thieves! Thieves!” cried Uriah Snodgrass, sitting up suddenly. “Are they after my specimens! Don’t let them get anything, boys! Those specimens are more valuable than gold! Oh, where are my glasses? I can’t see a thing.”

“Switch off all the lights!” whispered Ned to Jerry. “They can see us in here, and we can’t get a glimpse of them. Turn ’em off!”

Jerry did so, and at once there came another sound as if someone was out on the small after-deck.

“Who’s there?” challenged Ned.

There was no answer. Once more came the noise of a boat rubbing against the side of the _Dartaway_, and a cautious voice could be heard whispering:

“Come on! Can’t do anything now!”

“Who are you? What do you want?” demanded Jerry, but he received no answer.

With a quick spring Ned was at the cabin door that opened out into a sort of cockpit, and thence, by a short companionway to the deck. Throwing the portal open, Ned flashed on a small searchlight. As he played it about the river he picked up a small boat, containing two persons, who were rowing quickly away.

“What did you want? Were you on our boat?” demanded Ned, and then, as the two in the small craft maintained a silence, Ned flashed the light full in their faces. As he did so he gave a cry that brought Jerry and Bob out to him.

“What’s the matter?” cried the tall lad. “Are you hurt, Ned? Did they attack you?”

“No, I’m all right. But look at that boat! See who’s in it!”

Jerry and Bob gazed across the stretch of black and swirling water, illuminated by the shaft of light from the search lantern. It threw into bold relief the boat and the occupants.

“Noddy Nixon!” gasped Jerry, as he saw the face of the bully.

“But who’s with him?” asked Bob. “I’ve never seen him before, that I know of.”

“He’s a stranger, I guess,” said Ned. “Noddy must have hired him to help get ahead of us.”

“But what were they doing here?” asked Bob.

“Trying to sneak up while we were asleep, to see what they could get, I suppose,” remarked Jerry.

“My specimens!” exclaimed Professor Snodgrass, who had come out to join the boys. “That’s what they were after. That yellow grasshopper is what they wanted!”

“I don’t believe so,” said Jerry in a low voice, as he watched the two rowing rapidly away--Noddy and a tall man, the latter with a sleek appearance, as though he was always trying to figure out the easiest way of getting something for nothing.

“Hello you, Noddy!” suddenly called Ned. “What did you want here?”

The bully and his companion kept silent.

“If you come around again I’ll turn the hose on you,” threatened Bob.

There was no reply, and a moment later the rowboat went around the end of a projecting dock, and was out of range of the light.

“Well, if they weren’t after my specimens what did they want?” inquired the professor.

“I’ll tell you what I think,” went on Jerry as they returned to the comfortable cabin, for it was cool in the night air, and they were lightly clad. “I believe they sneaked on board to see if they could get any clews as to where we are bound for.”

“You mean Snake Island?” asked Bob.

“Yes. You see Noddy doesn’t know the exact location, even if, in some way, he has guessed, or overheard, some of us saying that we were going to the Grand Canyon. He needs to know more definitely just where we’re going, so he can sneak along, and try to get ahead of us.”

“Do you mean he was looking for a map?” asked Ned.

“Yes, or something like that. Maybe he thought we would be leaving our traveling directions lying around loose.”

“Say, maybe it would be a good scheme to fix up a fake map, and leave it where he could get it,” suggested Bob.

“Hardly,” decided Jerry. “He’d get on to the fact that it was a fake, for he knows we wouldn’t be as careless as that. I think the best way is to do just as we have been doing--make no map or sketch of where we’re heading for. In fact we can’t, for we’ve got to prospect around ourselves to find Snake Island.”

“Then we’ve got to be on our guard against Noddy,” suggested Ned.

“All the while I’m afraid, since he’s taken to trailing after us,” resumed Jerry. “I’d like to know who that fellow was with him. He looks like a sleek rascal.”

“Like Bill Berry, only different,” was Ned’s opinion. “I wonder where Bill is?”

“Oh, probably hanging around somewhere,” came from Bob. “He and Noddy generally travel together.”

There was nothing more that could be done that night, save to see to it that the cabin doors and windows were securely fastened. Jerry left the searchlight aglow, as he thought this would discourage any further attempt to board the motor boat. And, as a matter of fact, our friends were not disturbed again that night.

They made an early start for Pittsburg the next morning, keeping a watch for Noddy, but they did not see him. By noon they had tied up at the wharf where their boat was to be hauled out for storage.

“Now for the auto!” exclaimed Jerry, when the craft had been safely put away, and such stores as they needed, together with their clothing, weapons and other things, had been piled up ready to be put in the motor car.

They found that the repairs to their machine were almost completed, and that the car had been greatly improved. A new body had been put on, giving more room, so that, if necessary, they could sleep on board. And a small gasolene stove had been fitted up, so that a simple meal could be prepared. You can easily see that this was Bob’s idea.

“Well, we can start in a couple of days,” announced Jerry after a visit to the auto shop.

“And we’ll need that time to give her a try-out,” added Ned.

“And buy what grub we will need!” put in Chunky.

“Oh, forget the everlasting ‘eats’!” begged Jerry. “We don’t need to take much. We can buy it as we go along, and it will be fresher.”

“I meant a few things like sandwiches, pickles and cake,” went on Bob. “To eat between meals, you know. I often get hungry before it’s meal time.”

“Oh, we know it! You needn’t tell us,” cried Ned with a laugh.

They tried their auto the next day, having put up at a hotel near the repair works. The car made good speed, and seemed to have more power than before.

“She’s great!” cried Jerry. “Now for a long trip West!”

Their preparations were complete. Almost at the last minute, though, the professor nearly backed out. He found a curious bug in the hotel where they stayed, and he wanted to remain a week or more, to hunt for others.

“You’d better come on and look for that two-tailed toad, Professor,” advised Jerry.

“Yes, I think I had,” agreed the little scientist. “But on our way back we’ll stop here, and I can have another look for more of those rare bugs.”

The auto, well filled with the goods of our friends, and themselves, was ready for a start, and, having inquired the best route on from Pittsburg, the boys, with Jerry at the wheel, set off one fine morning. What lay before them they little realized.

On and on they went, over fairly good roads, until they came to the open country. Then, having fixed the spark and gasolene levers to carry them at a moderate pace, Jerry settled back to enjoy the scenery.

They had covered perhaps ten miles, and Bob was wondering whether he dare mention cooking a light lunch, as they whirled along, when Ned, who had looked back, uttered a cry.

“What’s up?” asked Jerry.

For answer Ned took a pair of powerful field glasses from a pocket inside the car. He focused them on an auto that was coming rapidly along behind the car of our friends.

“They’ve been following us for some time,” spoke Ned, “and I want to see who they are.” He was silent a moment, and then he exclaimed:

“I thought so! Noddy Nixon again, and this time Bill Berry is with him, as well as that other man! Fellows, he’s on our trail!”

“Well, here’s where he gets off!” cried Bob, as he reached his hand in his pocket, and pulled out a small wooden box. He opened it, and scattered something out on the road.

“What’s that!” cried Jerry.

“Big tacks!” answered Bob. “I thought something like this might happen, so I got ready for Noddy. Some of those tacks will stick point upward, and maybe something will happen. They’re good and sharp, and rather bad for pneumatic tires,” he added with a laugh.

He tossed the empty box away, and he and Ned looked at the car coming on behind them.

“Think they’ll hit ’em?” asked Ned.

“I hope so,” replied the stout lad.

Suddenly there was a commotion, and the pursuing auto was seen to swerve to one side.

“There they go!” cried Bob. “Two tires to the bad, I think! I guess they won’t follow us right away. Speed her up, Jerry!”