Pee-Wee Harris Adrift Part 4

To increase his astonishment and cause his br.i.m.m.i.n.g cup of joy to overflow a tree stood upon the little speck of green land laden with white blossoms, which wafted a faint but fragrant promise to the enchanted scout upon the distant sh.o.r.e.

"That's an apple tree," said Pee-wee, his mouth watering. "I'm going over there to discover it and then it's mine, the whole island's mine because findings is keepings, that's international law."

No doubt he felt that the League of Nations would stand in back of him in the matter of this epoch-making discovery.

CHAPTER VIII

PEE-WEE EXPLORES THE ISLAND

There was no doubt at all of the reality of this extraordinary apparition. Pee-wee, who was always sure of everything, was doubly sure of this. Squint and rub his eyes as he would, there was the desert island in the middle of the river with the tree surmounting it.

By all the precedents in history this island was his. He had as much right to it as the king of Spain had to San Salvador, more in fact, for the king of Spain had never seen the island of San Salvador.

If there was any good in history at all (and Pee-wee had his doubts about that) why then this mysterious island belonged to him. Miss Bunting, if she had any sense of fairness at all, would concede this.

If the good old rule of findings is keepings applied to monarchs it certainly applied to Boy Scouts. So Pee-wee prepared to set sail and formally take possession of his discovery. He would sail around it as Columbus had sailed around the coast of Cuba. . . .

Entering the troops' deserted old car he got the oars of the old flat bottom boat belonging to the troop. He also procured a black marking stick used for marking scout signs on rocks, and a pasteboard target on the back of which he printed in ostentatious lettering.

THIS DESERT ISLAND IS DISCOVERED BY WALTER HARRIS AND ALL PRETAINING TO IT INCLUDING APPLES AND EVERYTHING AND OTHER KINDS OF FOOD AND WILD ANIMALS IF THERE ARE ANY ALSO PRESIOUS METTLES AND ALL NATIVES MUST SWEAR TO WALTER HARRIS I MEAN THEY MUST SWEAR ALLEAGANCE AND SAID WALTER HARRIS SHALL HAVE THE RIGHT OF SETTLEMENT.

P. S. ESPECIALLY APPLES.

Having thus established his rights according to the most historical rule for the acquisition of new territory, Pee-wee set sail in his gallant bark and after an uneventful voyage of seven minutes drew his boat half-way up the rugged sh.o.r.e.

Though his back was toward the island during the entire cruise, he knew that land was near fully a minute and a half before reaching it by the presence of several gra.s.shoppers kicking vainly in the surf. But what particularly attracted his attention as indicating the presence of human life upon the island was part of a cruller bobbing near the sh.o.r.e. This startled and impressed him as the footprint in the sand startled and impressed Robinson Crusoe.

Pee-wee could hardly believe that on the very day which had begun so inauspiciously he had actually set foot upon a strange island, but there it was under his very feet and it could not get away for he was standing on it.

Having fastened his sign to the tree trunk he proceeded to explore the island. This was done mainly with his eyes since the island was too small for the usual form of exploration.

It consisted of a little spot of land about fifteen feet in diameter, held together by the roots of the tree. It was hubbly and gra.s.s-covered and one side of it had a kind of ragged edge. It seemed to be subject to earthquakes for as Pee-wee stood upon it he felt a slight jarring beneath him. Undoubtedly the island depended on the tree more than the tree depended on the island; one might have fancied that the island carried too much soil.

But Pee-wee's surprise at the instability of his Conquest was nothing to his astonishment at the voice which he presently heard above him.

"h.e.l.lo, what are you doing down there?"

Pee-wee looked up and beheld a boy seated comfortably in the branches of the tree. He was looking down through the profusion of blossoms with an exceedingly merry face, and had apparently been witnessing the arrival of the discoverer with silent amus.e.m.e.nt.

"Some desert island, hey?" he laughed.

"Are you a native?" Pee-wee shouted.

"Sure, I'm part of the wild life of the island, I'm a scout," the boy called down. "Come on up, there's room for two on this branch. If the island should lurch you might get your feet wet."

"What is this island anyway?" Pee-wee asked, somewhat taken aback by the discovery that he was not the discoverer. "Where does it belong?

Anyway I'm the boss of it because I discovered it. I just put my sign up and you can come down and see it if you want to and swear allegiance."

"What are you talking about?" the boy called down. "I was on it before it was born."

"Do you mean to tell me I didn't discover you?" Pee-wee shouted up.

"No, _I_ discovered _you_," said the other boy.

"What do you mean, _you knew it before it was born_?" Pee-wee demanded skeptically. "How could it have been before it was? If a thing isn't, how can you know it? You're crazy. I was the first one to discover it since it was here and you're a part of it. But anyway I'd like to know how it got here, that's one thing _I'd_ like to know."

"Come on up here and I'll tell you," said the wild native.

Pee-wee climbed up and sat on the limb beside his new friend. He was a boy somewhat older than Pee-wee with a face so round that the face of the man in the moon would have seemed narrow by comparison. And there was a redness in his cheeks which made his head seem almost like an apple grown prematurely ripe upon that blossom laden tree. He wore the negligee scout attire and his happy-go-lucky nature was made the more piquant by the easy, humorous fashion in which he sat upon the limb, swinging his legs.

Pee-wee could not have found it in his heart to quarrel with any boy whose face looked so much like an apple, and, moreover, it was apparent that here was a boy whom it would be utterly impossible to quarrel with on any ground whatever--or in any tree whatever.

"Gee whiz, this is a funny thing," Pee-wee said; "I was kind of making believe that I was an explorer, but anyway I'm glad you're here."

"I'm here because I'm here," said the other boy.

"Gee, I can't deny that," said Pee-wee.

"It doesn't make any difference to me," said the boy; "I'd just as soon be in one place as another."

"As long as it's not school," said Pee-wee.

"Oh, that's understood," said the other boy; "let's talk of something pleasant."

"I bet there'll be a lot of apples here later," said Pee-wee; "when it's vacation, hey?"

"I don't know whether they'll be here," said the other boy, "because you can't trust this blamed island over night, but they'll be on the tree, wherever it is, and the way to find them will be to look for the tree."

"_You said it_," said Pee-wee. "What's your name?"

"Roland Poland," said the boy; "Roly Poly for short."

"Mine's Walter Harris, but they call me Pee-wee. How did this island get here anyway?"

"It started being an island under my very feet," said Roly Poly.

"There are five scouts in my patrol besides myself; we're just getting started----"

"I'm the only one in my patrol," Pee-wee interrupted. "Where do you come from?"

"From North Bridgeboro," said Roly Poly, swinging his legs. "The six of us went to camp for the day just above old Trimmer's land up the river."

"I know him," Pee-wee said; "he's a grouch."

"Very muchly," said Roly; "he's worse than algebra."