Part 18 (1/2)
”Sure you want Doctor Ted along,” sneered George; ”you know which side of your bread's b.u.t.tered, don't you, Toby? If a cog slips in your wheels, and you take a hard tumble you'll find his being on hand mighty acceptable. I'd carry splints and bandages in plenty, Ted. And if I have time I think I'll start to shaping up some kind of crutch while you're away. Things like that come in handy sometimes. This is going to be one of those times, I'm afraid.”
”Rats! you old croaker, nothing would ever be accomplished in this world if everybody was like you. They'd be afraid to take a chance. Things that their ancestors used 'd be good enough for them, like the Chinese.
But thank goodness there are _some_ progressive people livin' these days, like Edison, Marconi, and a few others.”
”Jones, f'r instance!” chuckled George. ”Well, if I don't show up at the exhibition good luck to you, Toby. I hope it won't be anything worse than a leg, or your collarbone, or five teeth knocked out. I wish you great success. Tell me all about it when you get back. And I'm in dead earnest about that crutch, too. I think I know how to shape one out of a thick wild grapevine, if I can only find the right sort.”
There was no use trying to talk George down, once he got started, and no one knew this better than Toby, who had been worsted in many a verbal encounter before now, so he only jerked his head contemptuously, and lifting his burden, called out to the others:
”Come along, boys, if you've decided to be witnesses to my triumph.
Mebbe your names will go ringing down the ages too, as being present when the glorious test was made that marked the end of aviators'
perils.”
”One thing I think we'd better do, Toby,” suggested Ty.
”Well, name it,” the other threw over his shoulder as he tramped st.u.r.dily along, carrying his wonderful parachute ready for business.
”When you say you're all ready for the jump I'm going to give the wolf call, so Elmer, Lil Artha and Chatz can have a chance to come around, and share the honor with us of being living witnesses of your work.”
Toby seemed to ponder this for half a minute; and then remarked:
”I guess that would only be fair, because Elmer might feel huffed if I jumped into glory, and him not there to see it. Yes, I'll get up on the tower and when I say the word you give the '_how--oooo_' call that'll fetch 'em running.”
”Consider that a bargain then, Toby,” Ty told him; ”and remember, don't you go to making your jump till they come up. Elmer might be provoked, and believe you sneaked off unbeknown to him to try the same. They're likely somewhere close by, I reckon, and we're apt to run across the trackers hard at work while we're on our way to the haunted house right now.”
But they did not, although they caught the sound of voices through the aisles of the dense woods, and knew that Elmer with his comrades must be somewhere, not far away.
The old building stood there just as they had seen it before. Landy and Ty had not been along when the nutting party met with their first adventure here; but on the preceding afternoon they had surveyed the wreck of a house, so that their only experience had not been the one at midnight.
Besides, now that the halo of mystery had been removed, so that they knew the white object they had seen was only a poor crazy fellow and not a ghost from the other world, the boys experienced far less timidity about approaching the house.
”We'll stay down here, Toby,” said Ty, as he took up a position that was directly underneath the tower.
Ted had carried a burden along with him also. This he now threw upon the ground, and it proved to be one of the stout camping blankets. Toby only chuckled when he saw that.
”Please yourselves, fellows,” he a.s.sured his comrades, ”but you won't need anything like that. I'm going to float like a thistledown. It'll be the triumph of the age, and don't you forget it. Watch what I do, now, everybody!”
With that Toby boldly entered the house, and started to make his way up to the tower. Apparently he must have noticed how one could reach that elevated region, though as yet none of them had thought to go there.
Inside of five minutes the boys below saw him looking down at them from far above.
”Wait till I get my parachute ready, fellows!” he called; ”and there's Elmer and the rest hurrying up, waving their hands like they wanted me to hold on till they got here. Mebbe I will; the more the merrier!
Stretchin' out your old blanket, are you? Well, take my word for it you won't need to grab me any. I'm staking a heap on this thing to hold me up easy. Wow! what's this? Let go, there, you don't get that precious thing away from me! Hey! fellows, here's that crazy man tackled me! He's wantin' to grab everything! Quit pus.h.i.+n' or you'll have us both tumblin'
over the edge! Whoop! somebody come up here and help, or he'll get me!”
The two boys below heard all this shouted at the top of Toby's voice; although of course they had but slight glimpses of the struggling figures above. A desperate wrestling for the possession of the parachute was evidently going on, for they could hear the sound of scuffling feet; and besides, Elmer and the others who were fast coming on the run, seemed to be shouting at the top of their voices, as though under the impression that by the noise of their yells they might alarm the man who was out of his mind and had attacked the scout, believing him an enemy.