Afloat on the Flood, Page 2

  CHAPTER II

  LENDING A HELPING HAND

  "What we see here isn't all of the trouble by a lot," Max ventured, asthey stood and watched the remarkable sights all around them.

  "I should say not," Steve quickly added; "already they've begun to getreports of washouts down below, where houses have left theirfoundations, and gone off on the current; while barns, chicken coops,pig pens and fences are being swept away by dozens and scores. It'sgoing to be the most terrible flood that ever visited this section. Ionly hope nobody gets drowned in it, that's all."

  "I met Gus French a while back," Bandy-legs happened to remember,though he had said nothing of the circumstance before, there being somany exciting events taking place right along, "and he told me theywere a heap worried at their house."

  "What for?" demanded Steve, who had a weakness for the pretty sister ofGus, though of late there had existed a foolish coolness between them,founded on some small happening that grew into a misunderstanding;"their house stands higher than a whole lot in town, and I don't seewhy they'd worry."

  "Oh! it ain't that," the other boy hastened to say; "but p'raps youdidn't know that yesterday Mazie Dunkirk and Bessie French went to stayover Sunday with an aunt of the French girl's about twenty miles downthe river; and they say that the old house is on pretty low ground, sothat if the river rises much more she might be carried off thefoundation!"

  Steve gave a half groan, and Max too turned a little white, for theMazie whom Bandy-legs referred to was a very good friend of his, whomhe had always escorted to barn dances and singing school, and alsoskated with winters.

  "If I had a friend who owned a good motorboat now," said Steve, betweenhis set teeth, "I give you my word I'd like to borrow the same."

  "W-w-what for?" demanded Toby, appalled at the thought of any oneventuring out on that swirling river in a puny powerboat.

  "I'd take chances, and run down below to see if I could be of any helpto the folks there," Steve went on to say, gloomily; "but I don't knowanybody that I might borrow even a skiff from."

  "Yes, and if you did, the chances are he'd think twice before loaningyou his boat," Max told him. "In the first place he'd expect you tosnag the craft, and sink the same, because you do everything with sucha rush and whoop. And then again, the way things look around hereevery boat that's owned within five miles of town will be needed torescue people from second-story windows before to-morrow night."

  "D-d-do you think it's g-g-going to be as b-b-bad as all that, Max?"

  "I'm afraid so, Toby, if half of all that rain gets here, with theriver more than out of its banks now. But, Steve, I wouldn't worryabout the girls if I were you. Long before this Bessie's relativeshave taken the horses, and made for the higher ground of the hills.Even if you did manage to get down there you'd find the house empty,and have all your work for nothing."

  Steve did not answer, but his face remained unusually serious for along time, since he was doubtless picturing all sorts of terriblethings happening to the girls who were visiting down the river.

  As the morning advanced more and more discouraging reports keptcirculating through the stricken town. The river was rising at a ratethat promised to cause its waves to lap the roadway of the bridge bynight-time; and everybody believed this structure was bound to go outbefore another dawn.

  It was about the middle of the morning when the four chums, inwandering around bent on seeing everything that was going on duringsuch exciting times, came upon a scene that aroused their immediateindignation.

  Several rough half-grown young rowdies had pretended to offer to assista poor old crippled storekeeper remove his stock of candies and cakesfrom the threatened invasion of the waters, already lapping his doorand creeping across the floor of his little shop. Their intentionshowever were of a far different character, for they had commenced topounce upon the dainties on his shelves, despite his weak if energeticprotests.

  "What you shoutin' about, old codger?" demanded one of the threebullies, as he crammed his pockets with whatever he fancied in the lineof candy; "the water's coming right in and grab all your stock, anyway;so, what difference does it make if we just lick up a few bites? Mebbewe'll help get the rest of your stuff out of this, if so be we feelslike workin'. So close your trap now, and let up on that yawp!"

  Max and the others heard this sort of talk as they stopped outside thedoor of the little candy shop in which, as small lads, they couldremember having spent many a spare penny.

  It filled them with indignation, first because they thought a good dealof the poor old crippled man who made a scant living selling small toysand candies to the school children; and second on account of the factthat they knew this set of rowdies of old, having had many disputeswith them in the past.

  Their former leader, Ted Shatter, had been missed from his accustomedhaunts for some time now, and it was whispered that he had been sent toa reform school by his father, who wielded considerable power inpolitical circles, but could not expect to keep his lawless boy fromarrest if he continued to defy the authorities as he had been doing.

  Since then the "gang" had been led by a new recruit, named Ossie Kemp;and the other two with him were the old offenders, who have appearedbefore now in the stories of this series, Amiel Toots and Shack Beggs.

  "Back me up, boys," said Max, hastily turning to his three chums, "andwe'll run that crowd out of there in a hurry, or know the reason why."

  "We'll stand by you, Max," replied Bandy-legs, quickly.

  "You b-b-bet we will," added Toby, aggressively doubling up his fists.

  "To the limit!" echoed Steve, stooping down to secure a stout stick hisroving eye chanced to alight upon, and which appealed to his fightinginstincts as just the thing for an emergency like this.

  Max immediately pushed straight into the little store, and, as heexpected would be the case, his eyes fell first upon the raidingbullies, and then the slight figure of the distressed crippledstorekeeper, wringing his hands as he faced complete ruin, between hisinhuman persecutors and the pitiless flood.

  At the entrance of a new lot of boys the poor old man gave a cry ofdespair, as though he believed that this would complete his misfortune;then as he recognized Max Hastings a sudden gleam of renewed hopestruggled across his face; for Max had a splendid reputation in Carson,and was looked up to as a fine fellow who would certainly never descendto inflicting pain on a helpless cripple.

  "What's going on here?" demanded Max, as the three rowdies turned toface the newcomers, and, made cowardly by guilt, looked ready to sneakaway. "We're the advance guard of those coming to help you, Mr.McGirt; what are these boys doing here, and did you tell them to filltheir pockets with your stock?"

  "No, no, not at all!" cried the storekeeper, in a quivering voice;"they burst in on me and I asked them to please carry some of the stockI've tied up in packages to higher ground, for I shall be ruined if Ilose what little I've got; but they just laughed at me, and started totaking whatever they fancied. I would not mind if only they saved myproperty first, and then treated themselves afterwards."

  Max frowned fiercely at the three skulking boys. He had purposelyspoken as if there might be men coming on the run to assist old Mr.McGirt; for he knew the aggressive natures of at least Shack and Ossie,though Amiel Toots was a craven who generally struck behind one's backand then ran off; and Max did not care to engage in any fight at such atime and with such a crew.

  "If you don't empty every pocket, and then clear out of here, I'll seethat you are accused of robbery; and when there's a flood like thisthey often hang looters to the lamp-posts, perhaps you know? Thepeople won't stand for anything like that. Hurry and put everythingback or I'll see that you land in the lock-up. Steve, be ready to stepout and give the signal to the Chief if I tell you to. Turn that otherpocket inside-out, Amiel Toots. You did expect to make a fine haulhere, didn't you? Instead of helping the poor old man save his stockyou thought you might as well have it as the water. Are you allthrough? Then br
eak away, and good riddance to the lot of you for apack of cowards and thieves!"

  Amiel Toots slunk away with a cowed look; Shack Beggs and Ossie Kempfollowed him out of the door, but they were black in the face with rageand fear; and the look they shot at Max showed that should theopportunity ever come to even the score they would only too willinglyaccept chances in order to wipe the slate clean.

  "And now, Mr. McGirt, we're ready to help you any way we can,"continued Max, once the three young desperadoes had departed to seeknew pastures for exploiting their evil natures; "where could we carrythese packages you've got done up? And while we're on our way, perhapsyou could get the rest of your stock ready. We'll fetch back the emptybaskets."

  The poor cripple's peaked face glowed with renewed hope, for he hadbeen hovering on the brink of despair.

  "Oh! how glad I am you came when you did," he said, in trembling tones;"I would have lost everything I had in the world, between the water andthose young ruffians. One of them even had the audacity to ask me whyI had bothered cleaning out my cash drawer. If I could only move mystuff up the hill to Mr. Ben Rollins' print shop I'm almost sure hewould find a corner where I could store the packages until the riverwent down again, for he is a very good friend of mine."

  "All right," said Steve, "and we know Mr. Rollins well, too. I've evenhelped him gather up news for his weekly paper, _Town Topics_. So loadup, fellows, and we'll see what can be done. It wouldn't only take afew trips to carry this lot of stuff up there."

  Each boy took all he could carry and started off, while thestore-keeper commenced hurriedly packing the balance of his stock intrade into bundles, pleased with the new outlook ahead, and gratefulfor these young friends who had come so unexpectedly to his assistancein his darkest hour of need.

  After all it was hardly more than fun for Max and his comrades, becausethey were all fairly stout fellows, and accustomed to an active outdoorlife. They were back again before the owner of the little shopexpected they could have gone half the distance.

  "It's all right, sir," Bandy-legs hastened to assure Mr. McGirt; "theeditor of the paper happened to be there, hurrying out some handbillswarning people to prepare for the worst that might come; and he saidyou were quite welcome to store your stuff in his shed. He only wishedeverybody else down in the lower part of town could save theirbelongings, too; but there's bound to be an awful loss, he says. Now,let's load up again, fellers; I feel that I could stagger along underwhat I've gathered together here; and this trip ought to pretty wellclean things up, hadn't it, Max?"

  "I think it will," replied the other, also collecting a load as largeas he believed himself able to carry. "And if I can find our man withhis wagon, Mr. McGirt, I'll have him take what furniture you've got inthat little room back there, and put it with your stock in the printshop."

  "Thank you a thousand times, Max," said the old cripple; and somehowthose four lads fancied that they had been repaid many times over forwhat they had done as they saw his wrinkled face lose its look of worryand taken on a smile of fresh hope and gratitude.

  It happened that Max did run across their hired man busily engaged incarrying some one's furniture up the hill; and he agreed to look afterthe cripple the very next thing.

  "Be sure you make him ride with you, Conrad," was the last thing Maxtold the man, who faithfully promised to look after the little oldstorekeeper, and see that he got to a place of-safety.

  It was now getting along toward noon. No sun shone above, indeed, theyhad seen nothing but a leaden sky for a number of days; which of courseadded to the gloom that surrounded the unfortunate town, as well as thefarms and hamlets strung along the valley through which the EvergreenRiver flowed.

  "Get together again after we've had some lunch!" Steve told his threemates, as they started for their respective homes--rather reluctantly;because so many exciting things seemed to be happening every half hourthat none of them wanted to miss any more than they could help.Indeed, it is a question whether anything less serious than satisfyingthe cravings of hunger, always an important subject with a growing boy,would have induced them to go home at all.

  "How high was it the last report?" asked Bandy-legs; for somehow therealways seems to be a peculiar fascination about learning the worst,when floods rage, and destruction hovers overhead.

  "Two feet, nine inches above the danger line, and still coming up aninch an hour, with another big rain promised soon!" replied Steve,promptly, though he did not seem to take any particular pride in thefact that all previous records had already been broken by the usuallypeaceful Evergreen stream.

  "G-g-gosh!" gasped Toby, "there never was, and never will be again sucha fierce time in old Carson. B-b-beats that morning I found all themanimals from the c-c-circus a gathered in my back yard where I had myown little m-m-menagerie. S-s-see you later, everybody," and with thathe actually started on a run for home, doubtless only thinking that hemight in this way shorten the time he would be forced to stay away fromthe river front, where things were happening it seemed, every minute ofthe day.

  Few regular meals were served in Carson that day. People were too muchalarmed over the dismal prospect facing the manufacturing town to thinkof taking things easy. They stayed on the streets, and gathered ingroups, talking about the flood, and trying to find some loophole ofhope; but many pale faces could be seen among the women, and there wasan increasing demand for wagons to haul household goods from the lowersections to places of safety.

  That was certainly a day never to be forgotten in Carson; and what madeit even worse was the gloomy outlook which the weather predictions heldout to those already in the grip of the greatest flood in the historyof the valley.