Roy Blakeley: His Story

  ROY BLAKELEYHIS STORY

  Being the true narrative of his adventures and those of his troop onland and sea and in the mud--particularly in the mud. Taken from theTroop Book of the 1st Bridgeboro Troop B. S. A. and arranged by himselfwith the assistance of Pee-wee Harris and

  PERCY KEESE FITZHUGH

  AUTHOR OF

  TOM SLADE, BOY SCOUT, TOM SLADE AT TEMPLE CAMP, ETC.

  ILLUSTRATED BY HOWARD L. HASTINGS

  PUBLISHED WITH THE APPROVAL OF THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA

  1920

  Illustration #1

  "I began sinking as low as my waist"

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  I. TROUBLES OF MY OWN--THE BIG CONCLAVE II. SWATTING THE SPY III. SWATTING THE SPY--CONTINUED IV. THE PLOT GROWS THINNER--OR ELSE THICKER V. LOST VI. THE TIGHT PLACE VII. WEETONKA, THE TERRIBLE CHIEF VIII. RESOPEKITWAFTENLY IX. THE LOST LETTER X. THE RAVENS XI. LOST XII. ARTIE'S ADVENTURE XIII. TRACKING XIV. THE SLACKER XV. DURING NOON HOUR XVI. NOBLE RAGS XVII. THE TWO CROSSES XVIII. SCOUT LAW NUMBER THREE XIX. THE END OF THE MEETING XX. MOSTLY ABOUT SKINNY XXI. SOMETHING MISSING XXII. SHOWS YOU WHERE I DO THE TALKING XXIII. IN THE WOODS XXIV. TREASURE ISLAND XXV. THE SHORT CUT XXVI. IN MY OWN CAMP XXVII. THE GENTLE BREEZEXXVIII. JOLLYING PEE-WEE XXIX. JIMMY, THE BRIDGE-TENDER XXX. GONE XXXI. THE CAPTAIN'S ORDERS XXXII. I MAKE A DANDY FRIENDXXXIII. SO LONG--SEE YOU LATER

  CHAPTER I

  TROUBLES OF MY OWN--THE BIG CONCLAVE

  Well, here I am at last, ready to tell you the adventures of our younglives. Right away I have trouble with Pee-wee Harris. He's about as easyto keep down as a balloon full of gas. We call him the young dirigiblebecause he's always going up in the air. Even at the start he must stickin his chapter heading about a conclave.

  Hanged if I know what a conclave is. It's some kind of a meeting I guess.He said it was something like a peace conference, but believe me, themeeting I'm going to tell you about wasn't much like a peace conference.I told him I'd use my own heading and his too, just to keep him quiet.I think he's got his pockets stuffed full of chapter headings and thathe'll be shooting them at me all the way through--like a machine--gun.

  I guess I might as well tell you about Pee-wee before I tell you aboutthe conclave or whatever you call it He's Doctor Harris's son and he'sa member of the Raven Patrol. He's a member in good standing, only hedoesn't stand very high. Honest, you can hardly see him without amagnifying glass. But for voice--good night!

  He sings in the Methodist Church choir and they say he can throw hisvoice anywhere. I wish he'd throw it in the ash barrel, I know that.He always wears his belt-axe to troop meetings, in case the Germansshould invade Bridgeboro, I suppose. He's the troop mascot and if youwalk around him three times and ruffle up his beautiful curly hair,you can change your luck.

  Well, now I'll tell you about the meeting. We had a big special meetingto decide about two things, and believe me, those two things hadmomentous consequences. Momentous--that's a good word, hey?

  One thing, we wanted to decide about our campaign for collecting booksfor soldiers, and another thing, we wanted to decide how we could allgo up to Temple Camp in our cabin launch, the Good Turn.

  This large arid what--do--you--call--it launch--I mean commodiouslaunch--is a dandy boat, except for one thing--the bow is too near thestern. If we were sardines instead of boy scouts, it would be all right,but you see there's twenty-four of us altogether, not counting CaptainKidd, our mascot--he's a parrot.

  So I got up and said, "How are we going to crowd twenty--four growingboys and a parrot into a twenty foot launch?"

  "It can't be did," Doc Carson shouted. "Then some of us will have tohike it on our dear little feet," I said.

  "Or else we'll have to get a barge or something or other and tow it,"Artie Van Arlen said.

  "What, with a three horse-power engine?" somebody else shouted.

  "You can bet I won't be one of the ones to hike it," Pee-wee yelled;"I'll dope out some scheme or other."

  And believe me, he did.

  Well, after we'd been talking about an hour or so on how we'd manage it,Mr. Ellsworth, our scoutmaster, up and said there was plenty of time forthat as long as we were not going to camp for a couple of weeks anyway,and that we'd better begin thinking of how we were going to start aboutcollecting books for soldiers.

  All the while I had something very important to or say, and I was kind oftrembling, as you might say, "for I thought maybe Mr. Ellsworth wouldn'tlike the idea. Anyway I got up and began:

  "The author that wrote all about 'Tom Slade's adventures in the WorldWar'," I said, "told me it would be a good idea for one to write up ourtroop's adventures and he'd help me to get them published."

  Then up jumped Pee-wee Harris like a jack--in--the--box.

  "What are you talking about?" he shouted; "don't you know you have tohave a command of language to write books? You're crazy!"

  "I should worry about a command of language," I told him. "Haven't Igot command of the Silver Fox Patrol? Anybody who can command the SilverFox Patrol ought to be able to command a few languages and things. Icould command a whole regiment even," I kept up, for I saw that Pee-weewas getting worked up, as usual, and all the fellows were laughing,even Mr. Ellsworth.

  "If you could command a division," Westy Martin said, in that soberway of his, "you ought to be able to command English all right."

  "I can command any kind of a division," I shouted, all the whilewinking at Westy, "I can command a long division or a short division ora multiplication or a subtraction or a plain addition."

  "What are you talking about?" Pee-wee yelled.

  "You're crazy!"

  "I can command anything except Pee-wee Harris's temper," I said.

  Well, you ought to have seen Pee-wee. Even Mr. Ellsworth had to laugh.

  "How can a fellow your age write books?" he fairly screamed. "You haveto have sunsets and twilights and gurgling brooks and--"

  "You leave the gurgling brooks to me," I said; "I'll make them gurgleall right. There's going to be plenty of action in these books. AndPee-wee Harris is going to be the village cut-up." "Are you going tohave girls?" he shouted.

  "Sure I'm going to have girls--gold haired girls--all kinds--take yourpick."

  "Good night!" Pee-wee shouted, "I see your finish."

  Well, pretty soon everybody was shouting at the same time and Pee-weewas dancing around, saying we were all crazy. Most of the Raven Patrolwere with him and they ought to be called the Raving Patrol, believe me.Then Mr. Ellsworth held up his hand in that quiet way he has. "Thissounds like the Western Front or a Bolshevik meeting," he said, "andI'm afraid our young Raven, Mr. Pee-wee Harris, will presently explodeand that would be an unpleasant episode for any book."

  "Good night!" I said. "Don't want any of my books to end with anexplosion."

  Then he said how it would be a good idea for me to write up ouradventures and how he'd help me whenever I got stuck and how heguessed the author of Tom Slade would put in fancy touches for me,because he lives in our town and he's a whole lot interested in ourtroop. He said that breezes and distant views and twilights andthings aren't so hard when you get used to them and even storms andhurricanes are easy if you only know how. He said girls aren't so easyto manage though.

  "I'll help you out with the girls," Pee-wee said; "I know all aboutgirls. And I'll help you with the names of the chapters, too."

  "All right," Mr. Ellsworth said, "I think Pee-wee will prove avaluable collaborator."

  "A which?" Pee-wee said, kind of frightened.

  So then we all laughed and Mr. Ellsworth said it was getting late andwe'd better settle about collecting books for the soldiers.

  We deci
ded that after we got to camp I'd begin writing up ouradventures on the trip, but we couldn't decide how we'd all go in ourboat, and that was the thing that troubled us a lot, because the fellowsin our troop always hang together and we didn't like the idea of beingseparated.

  Well, I guess that's all there is to tell you about the meeting, and inthe next chapter I'm going to tell you all about how we collected thebooks for the fellows in camp, and how the mystery about the boat wassolved. Those are Pee-wee's words about the mystery of the boat. I can'tsee that there was any mystery about it, but there was another kind of amystery, believe me, and that kid was the cause of it. I guess maybeyou'll like the next chapter better than this one.

  So long.

  CHAPTER II

  SWATTING THE SPY

  Now I'm going to tell you about how we collected books for soldiersand especially about Pee-wee's big stunt.

  The next morning we started out and by night we had over five hundredbooks. Mr. Ellsworth said they were mostly light literature, but ifhe had only had to carry fifty of them on his shoulder like I did, he'dhave thought they were pretty heavy literature, believe me.

  This is the way we fixed it. The Raving Patrol, (that's Pee-wee'spatrol, you know) used Doctor Harris's five-passenger Fraud car. Itdidn't go very good and Pumpkin Odell (Raven) said he guessed it wasbecause the wheels were tired--that's a joke. They held up all thehouses in Little Valley. That's about sumpty--seven miles or so fromBridgeboro. They've got two stores there and a sign that says "Welcometo Automobilists" and how they'll be arrested if they don't obey thespeed laws. Welcome to jail--good night!

  The Elk Patrol (that's our new patrol, you know) went over to EastBridgeboro with Pinky Dawson's express wagon (one horse power) and somehorse--I wish you could see him. The Elks were a pretty lively bunch,I'll say that, and they cleaned out all the private libraries in EastBridgeboro. They even got cook-books and arithmetics and books aboutgeometry--pity the poor soldiers.

  The Silver Fox Patrol took care of Bridgeboro. That's the best patrolof the whole three. I'm leader of the Silver Foxes. The Ravens call usthe Silver-plated Foxes, but that's because we can them the RavingPatrol and the reason we call them the Raving Patrol is on account ofPee-wee.

  Let's see, where was I? Oh yes, the Silver Foxes took care of Bridgeboro.Brick Warner (He's red-headed) has a Complex car or a Simplex, orwhatever you call it--I should worry. I mean his father has it. He's gota dandy father; he gave Brick five dollars so that we could have ablow--out at lunch time. Oh, boy, we had two blow--outs and a puncture.

  We got over two hundred books that day--light literature, darkliterature, all colors. I could tell you a lot of things that happenedthat day, because we did a lot of good turns, and one bad turn, whenwe grazed a telegraph pole. What cared we? But you'll care more abouthearing of Pee-wee and the raving Ravens and how they made out. ...

  Anyway, I guess I might as well tell you now about the scouts in mypatrol. Don't ever borrow trouble, but get to be a patrol leader, andyou'll have troubles of your own. Then you can pick out the one youwant and I'll drown the rest. After that I'll tell you about the granddrive in Little Valley.

  First in the Silver Fox Patrol comes Roy Blakeley--that's me. I'mpatrol leader and I've got eleven merit badges. I've got two sisters too.One of them is crazy about the movies.

  I've got seven scouts to look after and Captain Kidd, the parrot--he'sour mascot. Our patrol color is green and he's green with a yellow neck.He's got one merit badge-for music. Good night! Then comes Westy Martin,and Dorry Benton and Huntley Manners and Sleuth Seabury, because he's agood detective, and Will Dawson and Brick Warner and Slick Warner andthat's all.

  Now I'll tell you about the raving Ravens. Of course, I can't tell youall that happened in Little Valley that day, because I wasn't there. DocCarson said they had trouble with the motor and Pee-wee. He said thatPee-wee kept running wild an day. But anyway they brought back a lot ofbooks with them, I'll say that much.

  Well, when the day's drive was over, we all took our books to the trooproom and piled them up on the table, and waited for Mr. Ellsworth tocome. He usually comes home from the city on the Woolworth Special. Wecall it the Woolworth Special because it gets to Bridgeboro at five ten.Along about six o'clock he showed up, and we began sorting out thebooks. The biggest pile was brought in by the Ravens, and when henoticed a pile of about twenty or thirty books tied with a brown cord,he asked where those came from. Then up jumped Pee-wee, very excited,and said: "I'll tell you about those."

  "Do tell," said Elmer Sawyer, winking at me.

  "Good night! Pee-wee's got the floor," shouted Westy.

  "Floor!" shouted Dorry Benton. "He's got the walls and the ceiling andthe mantelpiece and everything."

  "Will you pay a little attention?" Pee-wee screamed.

  "We're paying as little as possible," I told him.

  "You're the worst of the lot," he yelled; "that pile of books, the oneswith the brown cord, were given to us by a kindly old gentleman; he--.

  "A which?" Doc Carson said.

  "Don't you know a kindly old gentleman when you see one?" Pee-weefairly screamed.

  "Let's see one," Artie shouted.

  And that's the way it went on till Mr. Ellsworth came to Pee-wee'srescue like he always does. He said we should let Pee-wee have thechair.

  "Here's a couple of chairs for him," we shouted.

  "He can have the table too, if he wants it," I said; anything to keephim quiet.

  "I don't want to be quiet," Pee-wee screamed.

  Good night, that was some meeting. Well, pretty soon Mr. Ellsworth gotus all throttled down and Pee-wee started to tell us about his visitto the kindly old gentleman. It seemed that was one of the houses thatPee-wee called at alone and the kindly old gentleman fell for him likegrown up people mostly do. I don't know what it is but everybody seemsto like Pee-wee. You know just because you jolly a fellow, it's not asign you don't like him. Pee-wee is one bully little scout, I'll saythat much.

  "Do you want to hear about it?" he said.

  "Proceed with your narrative," I told him; "begin at the beginning, goon till you come to the end, then stop."

  "Be sure to stop," Westy said.

  Well, then Pee-wee went on to tell us about the kindly old gentleman. Helived in a big white house, he said, with grounds around it and a bigflag pole on the lawn, with a flag flying from it. He said that the oldgentleman didn't talk very good English and he thought maybe he was aGerman or French or something or other. He guessed maybe he was aprofessor or something like that. Anyway, he took Pee-wee through hislibrary, picking out the books he didn't want, till be had given himabout twenty or thirty. Then they tied them up in a brown cord andPee-wee took them out to the Fraud car.

  Well that's about all there was to it, and I guess nothing more wouldhave happened, if I hadn't untied the cord and picked up the book thatlay on top. It was a book about German history, princes and all thatstuff, and I guess it wouldn't interest soldiers much. Just as I wasrunning through it, I happened to notice a piece of paper between theleaves, which I guess the old gentleman put there for a book-mark. Assoon as I picked it up and read it, I said, "Good night! Look at this,"and I handed it to Mr. Ellsworth.

  It said something about getting information to Hindenburg, and abouthow a certain German spy was in one of the American camps in France.

  Mr. Ellsworth read it through two or three times, and then said, "Boys,this looks like a very serious matter. You said the old gentleman spokebroken English, Walter?"

  That's the name he always called Pee-wee.

  "Cracky," I said, "Pee-wee's kindly old gentleman is a German spy."

  "Sure he is," said Westy Martin, "and he's only flying the Americanflag for a bluff, he's a deep dyed villain."

  "He can't be dyed very deep," said Doc Carson, in that sober way ofhis; "because we haven't any German dyes to dye him with."

  I was just going to say something to kid Pee-wee along, when I noticedthat Mr. Ellsworth was
very serious, and Pee-wee was staring like aghost.

  "Boys," Mr. Ellsworth said, "I have no idea of the full meaning ofthis paper." Then he said how maybe in collecting books we had caught aspy in our net. He said that he was going to take the paper anyway andshow it to the Federal Commissioner, down in the Post Office Building.

  "If he's a spy, we'll swat him all right," I said.

  "We'll more than swat him," Mr. Ellsworth said, and I could see by thelook in his eye that he meant business.

  CHAPTER III

  SWATTING THE SPY--CONTINUED

  We didn't swat him in that chapter because I had to go to supper, butwe'll surely swat him in this one. Positively guaranteed.

  Pee-wee was proud that he made such a hit with the old gentleman andespecially because he got so many books from him. But when he realizedthat the paper I found in one of the books had something to do withspying, it was all Mr. Ellsworth could do to keep him quiet. He told usall not to say anything, because maybe, the old man might find out thathe was going to be nabbed and go away. I guess Pee-wee felt prettyimportant. Anyway I know he was frightened, because all the nextmorning he kept asking me if he'd have to go to court and things likethat.

  "The only court you'll go to, is the tennis court," I told him; so wemade up a set with my two sisters, Ruth and Marjorie, and the girls beatus three games. While we were playing, along came Mr Ellsworth andCommissioner Terry with two strange men, and I could see Pee-wee wasvery nervous. They sent the girls away and then began to ask Pee-weequestions. I could see that they thought the discovery we made waspretty serious.