Go Ahead Boys and the Racing Motorboat Part 34

"I think the joke's on George more than even it is on Peewee and String," laughed Grant.

At this moment Sam, who had been asleep in his room appeared, rubbing his eyes and gazing in surprise at the boys. "What's wrong?" he demanded gruffly.

"Nothing," said George, beginning to laugh again.

"It seems to me you make lots of fuss when nothin' is the matter. What are you all down here for anyway?"

"Why, George got us down here to help him get a man who was in the boat-house."

"Huh, what's that you say?"

"Why, George discovered somebody in the boat-house and he routed us all out to help him get him."

"Did you get him?" inquired Sam.

"We got all there was to get," laughed Grant.

"What do you mean?" demanded Sam, looking around the room and for the first time suspecting what had taken place.

"Why, we mean that you had that wax figure of yours down here and we all thought it was a man."

"I don't blame you," said Sam solemnly. "That's one of the best wax dummies I ever made."

"But why did you leave it where you did?" inquired George.

"Why, I figured it out this way," said Sam slowly. "If a scarecrow will keep crows out of a cornfield, why couldn't I rig up something to scare off anybody that wanted to damage the Black Growler?"

"That's good sense," said Grant soberly.

"Of course it is sense," declared Sam. "I put the dummy down there so that if anybody looked into the boat-house he would see it and he would think somebody was on guard."

"That's right," said Fred. "We had two dummies on guard to-night. One inside the boat-house and one outside."

"That may be all true," spoke up George, "but there was only one of them that followed you into the river."

"You would feel better if you had," declared Fred. "Now, then, I don't see that there's anything more for us to do except to go back to bed."

"But where's my dummy?" demanded Sam.

"That's right," said Fred. "We never fished it out of the river. I guess you'll find it all right, Sam, somewhere in the slip."

In a brief time Sam's possession was rescued from its place of peril, but the boatman's lamentations were the last words the boys heard when they departed.

"Color's all washed out. It doesn't look more than half human," Sam was declaring as he stood in the moonlight examining the dummy which he had fashioned after his arrival at the boat-house. "Sam has an extra a.s.sortment of legs and arms in his room," exclaimed Grant, as the boys entered the house. "He seems possessed to have them around him."

"Perhaps they will come in handy some day," laughed George.

"I don't know how."

On the following morning, however, when the Black Growler was withdrawn from the slip and once more was sent over a part of the course there was a goodly supply of Sam's legs and arms on board. Just why he had insisted upon taking them, he did not explain. So human were the pieces in their appearance that a stranger might have been startled when he first saw the heap.

As usual the Varmint II was speedily trailing the Black Growler. Indeed it was not long before the two boats were moving side by side, only a few feet intervening.

The Go Ahead boys had been singing a song which has long been famous on the St. Lawrence,

"Saw my leg off, Saw my leg off, Saw my leg off, Short!"

"That's what you'll have to do," called one of the men on board the Varmint II, "to lighten your load the day of the race."

"We won't wait until then," called back George. "We'll see if we can't lighten up a bit right now."

As soon as he had spoken, taking one of the artificial legs from the pile he flung it far behind the swiftly moving motor-boat.

Instantly the men on the Varmint II rushed to the stern of their boat and in astonishment were all looking at the leg which now could be seen floating on the surface of the river.

CHAPTER XXV

THE OWNER OF THE BOND

A loud laugh arose from the people on board the Varmint II when the floating leg was more clearly seen.

Indeed the last sound that came to the ears of the Go Ahead boys from their rivals when the boat no longer was seen was a mocking echo of their song,

"Saw my leg off-- Short!"

A half-hour afterward the Go Ahead boys stopped at one of the largest islands and all four went ash.o.r.e.

On their return to the dock they were followed by a very persistent Armenian who apparently was unshaken in his determination to sell certain articles he was peddling.

"I tell you," said Fred sharply, turning upon the dark-complexioned man, "we don't want any of your rugs or table cloths."

"Yees, kind sir, but just see these mooch fine han'ki'chiefs."

"But we don't want any," said Fred.

"But, my gud sir, they are ver' cheep."

By this time the boys had arrived at the landing and still the persistent peddler gave them no rest. He was calling his wares and insisting upon an inspection of them, ignoring the protests of the boys.

Finally in despair Fred reached beneath the seat and drew forth one of Sam's artificial legs. He waved it before the startled Armenian who gazed at it a moment in manifest fear and then uttering a loud scream ran back to his basket.

A laugh arose from the a.s.sembly on the dock who had been watching the experiences of the boys. The Armenian, however, did not delay and when the Black Growler departed, the boys were able to see the disappearing figure of their tormentor walking rapidly up the hill.

There he turned and looked back at the dock, but although the boat had departed, apparently his fears were only slightly relieved, for he soon disappeared.