Trackers of the Fog Pack; Or, Jack Ralston Flying Blind

Nearer came the crashing sounds, and the growls; but by great good luck the angry beast arrived just too late to attain his end; for while he reached up all of ten feet Perk believed, he could not more than barely touch the lower foot of the climber, which was instantly drawn beyond his reach.

For a full minute, more or less, neither of them could spare the breath to make any sort of comment over their narrow escape – it was enough for them to know they had nothing to fear immediately from the irate silver-tip, still standing erect, and emitting those hoarse growls, as if to tell them what he would do if only they ventured within his reach.

Then Perk made a slight move, and Jack feared he might be about to kick at the beast’s elevated snout, which would only irritate Bruin a great deal more.

“Keep quiet, and don’t do anything to stir him up more than he is already,” was the way Jack cautioned his running mate, knowing the impulsive nature of Perk only too well. “He may fade away when he sees he can’t touch us. Just get your breath back, Pal Perk, and wait up.”

“Okay, brother,” replied the other, as though recognizing the soundness of his comrade’s doctrine.

But somehow or other the big beast showed no signs of intending to break the siege by “fading out,” as Jack had termed it; he continued to move around the base of the tree, now on all fours, and again raising up to his full height with ferocious growls if either of them so much as made a slight move.

“Gee whiz! he sure is some wheeze, I’d say, Jack,” Perk remarked, after some little time had passed, with no change whatever taking place. “What if the ole geezer takes a notion to tent aout here at aour tree – say, that’d be the limit, bet yeour boots it would!”

Then he fell silent for a spell, as though mentally calculating the extent of such a calamity on their fortunes.

CHAPTER XVII

Perk Shows His Hand

“Let me tell yeou, partner, that same bar he’s some stickin’-plaster all right!”

A full half hour must have passed without any noticeable change in the conditions. The obstinate beast stayed close to the foot of the tree, never making any attempt at climbing the same; just as though he might be well aware of his own shortcomings.

A number of times, when one of the prisoners among the branches chanced to make some sort of movement, in order to relieve the numbness that had gripped his legs, the bear would exhibit the same ferocity he had shown all through the siege.

“The old chap certainly must have a long debt to pay toward somebody, and is taking it out on us, Perk,” ventured Jack, breaking the silence once more.

“But it doant seem so much like a joke as at first,” grumbled Perk, disconsolately. “What in thunder’d we do if he camped aout on us, mebbe fur a hull day’nd night – gorry! wouldn’t we be in a pickle, though – nawthin’ to eat’r drink it might be, an’ so sore in aour bodies we’d feel like howlin’.”

“Oh! let’s hope it doesn’t turn out so serious as all that,” Jack soothed him somewhat by saying confidently. “What bothers me most is how we’re going to do any sort of business, with that chap hanging out in this neighborhood, and likely to drop in on us any old minute.”

“Drat the luck, any way!” growled the greatly annoyed Perk, aghast at the very idea of slow starvation; with that fat old husky camped at the foot of their tree refuge, daring them to set a foot on the ground.

The morning was wearing away by degrees, with the sun already peeping down into the deep ravine, from its more lofty position in the heavens. Perk was now busily engaged cudgeling his brains in the endeavor to conjure up some species of scheme by which they might have a chance to rid themselves of their four-footed jailor.

All at once Jack saw the other start to feeling of his person eagerly as though some dazzling idea had burst upon his mind. As a rule these occasions were few and far between, and yet Perk had been actually known to originate some amazing schemes, that perhaps did not always turn out as successfully as he himself might have fancied would be the case.

“I could a sworn I fetched it along, thinkin’ there might be some pesky rattlers in this here coulie,” Jack heard him muttering; and then an exclamation of delight announced that whatever he had in mind it had eventually turned up in one of his numerous pockets.

“Hey! what’s in the wind now, I want to know?” Jack demanded, in idle curiosity, since he hardly anticipated that his chum would be able to offer any plausable plan for ridding themselves of that intolerable nuisance encamped below decks.

Perk was holding something up exultantly, and Jack could see it appeared to be a small flask– such things were very common nowadays, with prohibition in the land; but as he had never known his mate to use strong spirits Jack naturally felt more or less surprise to see such a bottle stowed away on Perk’s person. But the word “rattlers” may have given Jack a slight inkling of what it all meant.

“Fetched this here stuff ’long, Jack, in case either o’ us ran afoul o’ a pizen snake,” came the explanation; “kinder do hate to waste the same on sech a wretched beast; but seems like it might get us outen this nasty scrape.”

Jack was forced to laugh.

“Quite an original joke you’d play on Old Eph, I take it, partner – get the poor stick drunk, you mean, of course; but what makes you reckon he’d take to the bottle; for of course you couldn’t lean down far enough to pour the stuff into his open mouth – that’d be a heap too dangerous, I’d think.”

Perk gave him a reproachful look as he hastened to explain.

“Say, I aint quite that silly, I hopes, Jack ole hoss, as to give that critter half a chanct to nab me. I got another idee, it happens, such as ought to pan aout too, if I kin do what I want without spillin’ the beans, or in this case the bootleg stuff.”

“Sounds good to me, Perk,” Jack told him as if to encourage further explanations. “If you don’t expect him to swallow it what then, partner?”

“Jest yeou watch yeour Uncle Perk get busy, boy, that’s all.”

Long before this both of them had relieved their aching shoulders of the weighty packs they were carrying, attaching the same safely to certain broken limbs of the tree that came in conveniently enough. This allowed of a certain amount of freedom; and so Perk was able to wriggle down several feet, his movements as usual attracting the observation of the jealous guardian, for the great shaggy beast stood upright, with his snout elevated menacingly.

“Be careful now, and don’t give him half an opening to nab your foot, brother,” warned Jack.

“Shucks! he aint got a Chinaman’s chanct to do that same, Jack. Hey! ole boy, do yeou smell it a’ready, to be makin’ sech faces at me? Well, here goes to wet yeou daown nice an’ easy like.”

With that Perk leaned over still more – his hand holding the pocket flask was just a foot or so above the extended snout of the bear, when the first trickle of the liquor started to fall, striking the animal’s nose, and running down on the heavy hair covering his neck and back.

“Glory be! look at the scamp openin’ his mouth and puttin’ aout his red tongue to ketch some o’ the drops!” cried the excited Perk. “Hey! don’t be so het up an’ greedy, Mister; I sure aint atryin’ to get yeou soaked – seems like he’s quite took to the bottle, don’t it, Jack?”

“Like an old toper, for a fact, brother,” the other assured him, laughing as he spoke. “I’ve heard how the young black bears over in Yellowstone Park come up to tourists, and beg for some spirits, to which their taste turns; but I didn’t know a big old tramp like this had a leaning that way. I see you’re trying to keep him from swilling it down, Perk; must have some object in letting the stuff run all over his back as you’re doing?”

“Kinder think I have got sech a neat little scheme, partner; on’y yeou wait up till I put the finishin’ touch to the game – proof o’ the puddin’s in the eatin’ o’ the same, yeou know.”

“I’m waiting to be shown, buddy – you know your hand, and can play it best. Go to it then, and I’ll be the judge to say if it pans out okay or not.”

Perk was now draining the flask of the last drop; for when he made up his mind to do a thing he always went the limit.

“There, that finishes my snake-bite cure, more the pity,” he kept telling his fellow prisoner, with a vein of keen regret in his voice. “No, yeou jest caint have another drop yeou greedy rascal. Seems like yeou made things warm enuff for two ginks what never did any harm to yeou or the fambly; an’ now suh, the tables got to turn – I’m figgerin’ on makin’ the likes o’ yeou as hot as Tophet, that’s right, Old Eph.”

Still holding out the empty flask as though to keep the bear from dropping down on all-fours, Perk carefully took out a match, and held it poised between fingers and thumb. Then it was that what he really meant to do clicked in the mind of Jack; it rather staggered him in the bargain, so that he uttered an exclamation that told the other he had divined his secret.

“Kinder guess yeou’re on to my curves, buddy,” observed Perk; “well, here she goes, an’ hopin’ luck comes aour way.”

He thereupon scraped the head of the match along a certain part of the tree trunk – several times was this repeated, but all to no avail, as the friction did not appear to be brisk enough to start things going.

Then Perk went back to first principles, and gave a quick scrape down the seat of his trousers; whereupon there followed a tiny flash, and the match began to burn brightly.

Waving the bottle, and letting a drop or two ooze from its mouth Perk, watching his opportunity cast the burning match directly on top of the bear’s shaggy neck. He must have held his breath with suspense while so doing, for he felt as though he were casting the die, with everything at stake.

“Wow! it’s a go, Perk, you wonderful schemer!” burst from Jack, as he saw a blue flame start up, where the booze had fallen on the thick, rusty looking coat of the astonished animal, instantly increasing as the liquor caught.

Both of them watched with staring eyes to see what followed; but they did not have long to wait. The bear dropped down on all four feet, and twisting his head around commenced snapping viciously at the spot where he already began to feel uncomfortably warm. This caused him to burn his tongue, and from that moment it took on all the aspect of a circus to the two spectators lodged there amidst the branches of that friendly tree; although to be sure it was an altogether different kind of situation to the astonished bear.

The animal developed a surprising amount of agility, twisting and turning in a frantic endeavor to bite at the object that was giving him such a queer sensation as of pain. But all his antics had no effect on the fire in his coat, which was continually extending its circulation by streaks and bounds.

“Go to it, buddy – call aout the hull fire department an’ smother the blaze, or yeou’re sure a goner. Lookit him arollin’ on the ground to beat the band – aint that cute though, partner – jest like sensible human bein’s would do if they had their heads ’bout ’em when on fire. But it aint agoin’ to help the pore ole dick any, either. There, he’s a runnin’ off like fun, headin’ fur some sorter water-hole he knows ’bout, I kinder guess. What a sight that is, Jack ole geezer; but jest the same I’m sorry ’bout that snake pizen stuff, I sure am – didn’t canc’late to have to use it on sech game.”

“That’s all right, Perk; it’d saved the cause, and possibly our lives in the bargain. I’d call it well spent, if you asked me,” Jack told him.

“Say, look at him goin’ licketty split, like the Ole Nick was after him, blazin’, an’ with spurts o’ smoke bustin’ outen his singed hide. He sure enough played outen his class that time, I figger. Mebbe, naow, he’ll cut an’ run next time he meets gentlemen o’ aour stripe.”

The spectacle was so extremely ludicrous to Perk that he writhed and twisted about as if seized with a fit; so, too, did he threaten to burst out into loud laughter only that Jack gave him due warning of what dire consequences would be apt to follow any indiscretion along those lines, which sobered the hilarious one, and brought him back to sanity.

“Kin we climb daown outen this tree naow, partner?” asked Perk, after he could no longer discern any further sign of the badly singed king of the mountain valleys; “I’ll be tickled pink to be able to stretch my legs a bit, seein’ they’re so stiff an’ sore; but it shore was too bad ’bout losin’ my precious snake pizen cure – hopes we aint a goin’ to need it any time, that’s all.”

CHAPTER XVIII

The Circling Buzzards

Jack seemed nothing loth to carry out his chum’s suggestion. Truth to tell he himself felt considerably “cramped” in the lower part of his anatomy – any one who has been compelled to camp amidst the branches of a tree for a period of successive hours, knows the experience is anything but a pleasant one.

So they slipped down, and once more stood on solid ground, with Perk casting suspicious looks in the quarter where last they had glimpsed the fleeing grizzly, with jets of mingled smoke and fire spitting this way and that.

“Huh! here’s hopin’ he’s went for good,” he was saying, meaningly. “Let’s get a move on, partner, an’ vacate these premises pronto – smells too rank fur me jest naow – burnt hair allers did get my goat, ever since that barber coaxed me to have my crop singed – said as haow it’d grow out agin a heap faster if the split ends they was scotched away; but for a whole week afterwards folks used to look at me funny like, an’ move further away. Huh!”

“No hurry at all, buddy,” Jack told him; “that live wire isn’t going to come back this way in a hurry, you can depend on that. Let’s take a look, and make sure nothing has been dropped from our packs, or pockets. On the whole we’ve got a heap to congratulate ourselves on, coming out of such a scrape as well as we did – thanks to that bright thought of yours.”

“Gee! it’s real nice o’ yeou to say that, Jack, ole bean; I’m not sorry we had sech a queer experience; on’y I do begrudge him that real stuff, which is gone for keeps – it wasn’t moonshine, or bootleg either, boy; but worth it’s weight in solid silver – the man says as sold it to me.”

“Well, it did come in handy, for a fact, Perk, and we mustn’t grieve over using it. Just try to imagine one of us did get struck by the fangs of a rattler, and the stuff saved a human life – in this case maybe two. Cheer up – plenty more where that came from, if only you’ve got the coin.”

“Right yeou are, brother,” Perk thereupon hastened to say, as he adjusted his pack to conform with the angles of his body. “On’y I got to be doubly keerful from neow on bout runnin’ smack up again a pizenous viper, since it’d be jest too bad to get struck, an’ no cure handy.”

When Perk had anything bothering him he was in the habit of keeping his “misery” constantly on tap; but then Jack was used to such little eccentricities on the part of his bosom chum – Perk’s good qualities more than compensated for his poor ones, a fact which those who knew him realized.

They started on, following the devious windings of the former watercourse, where ages back there must have been terrible floods rush down toward the lowland, after every cloudburst at the top of the mountains. Many years must have passed since those happenings ceased, for the trees and heavy undergrowth rooted in cracks of the mighty rocks told this story of change.

“I sure do hope we doant run into any other kind o’ wild critter, while makin’ this grand sneak,” Perk was telling himself, as he kept close behind his leader, picking his steps as daintily as any high born lady – since that was his method of keeping watch for suspicious moving objects on the ground, such as might turn out to be reptiles waiting to puncture his ankles. “If I was totin’ my Winchester along, an’ met up with a snarlin’ mounting lion, I’d think it a bit o’ luck; but when yeour hands are tied, so yeou dassent shoot a gun, things look kinder different, that’s right, an’ not so good.”

Whenever Jack paused for a brief stop, and stared back, Perk dutifully copied his action, trying to impress certain local features of the landscape upon his memory.

They had by this time come a considerable distance away from the spot where the airship had been abandoned, partly screened by the overhanging branches of several trees, and also a partial blanket of evergreens, small ones they had been able to tear up, and use with rare judgment.

Part of the time it was possible for them to raise their eyes and see the clear blue sky in places. Once Perk discovered a moving object pass before his vision, which he speedily made out to be a buzzard. A second followed close behind, and then numerous other of the carrion eaters, all swinging in the same direction after the manner of their clan.

As his eyes followed the circle of soaring birds Perk had an unpleasant thought strike in that gave him a chill around the region of his heart.

“Hot-diggetty-dig! I wonder neow could it be them gluttonus birds they been pickin’ the bones o’ thet poor Simeon what disappeared ’raound this section o’ kentry? Jack hinted like he kinder guessed the plug uglies had knocked him on the head, an’ tossed his body over some big precipice. Gee whiz! it shore does gimme a bad feelin’ to think thataways, ’specially since chances air we might be headin’ straight along that same road aourselves.”

After that there seemed to be some sort of a horrible fascination about the wheeling line of feathered scavengers, so that at every opportunity, when an opening presented itself, Perk just stared, and stared, frequently stumbling awkwardly over an unnoticed object, and almost losing his balance.

Jack noticed this fact presently, and felt called upon to warn the other.

“Keep your eyes more on the ground, partner, and do less sky gazing,” he told Perk in a low but distinct tone. “A tumble might give you a bad hurt; and besides, we can’t afford to make any sort of racket, you know. Never mind those rotten buzzards – what do we care about their carrying-on.”

Perk suspected that Jack had himself guessed what ailed him, from the way he connected the sailing of the uncanny crew with his companion’s erratic actions. At any rate it rather abashed Perk to realize his weakness could be so readily observed; so he braced himself up, and tried to give a low laugh.

“That’s okay, Jack; I’ll be a heap more keerful. We got to do this grand creep as slick as grease, with them pesky kiotes keepin’ their ears to the ground for s’picious noises.”

As the subject of Simeon’s possible raw deal had fastened itself on his mind, Perk continued to speculate regarding the personality of the missing Secret Service agent. The subject grew more interesting the further he went, and in the end he even asked Jack a question that was bothering him.

“Yeou says as haow yeou knowed this guy Simeon some, didn’t yeou, partner?”

“I only met him a few times about a year back while in Washington; but at that took quite a shine to him,” Jack explained, as Perk nudged up against him, both having stopped to rest after negotiating an extra difficult stretch on their climb.

“He must a been a fair good chap then, I guess, partner, eh, what?”

“I liked him,” Jack added, concisely; “and they thought well of him in the Big Chief’s offices.”

“Any fambly as yeou heard of?” Perk further wished to know.

“He told me he was a widower – I thought he must be up against some sort of mind trouble – it just impressed me that way, though he never let out a word of his personal affairs; but I never saw him smile, even when others in the party were cracking jokes, and laughing their loudest.”

“Huh! too bad sech a fine guy should a been sent out on a tough job like this one,” was all that Perk remarked, half under his breath, as though what Jack had told satisfied his curiosity, and further increased his respect for the brave brother officer whom he knew only by report.

These things were bound to crop up in his mind from time to time, and give him reason for further thought; for whatever the sad fate of Simeon might be it seemed to have some connection with their own fortunes.

Then Perk’s roving fancy came back again to the adventure through which they had so recently passed, with such wonderful success. Figuratively he patted himself on the back, because it had been wholly his conceit, that of setting their grim four-footed jailor on fire, and causing the beast to break the siege in hot haste.

“Huh! not so bad – fur me,” Perk told himself, with one of his queer chuckles. “Ole Perk he kin wake things up once in a coon’s age, if he sets his mind on doin’ the same. Kinder guess it’d pay me to sorter cultivate that streak o’ ingenuity – mebbe I’m movin’ along to be some sorter inventor like Tom Edison – yeou never kin tell ’til the time comes. ’Twouldn’t be so funny after all, come to think o’ it – my ole man had a gift thataway, even if he never did set the State o’ Maine on fire. Huh! if things keep on amovin’ like this, little ole Perk mebbe’ll amount to some punkins after all!”

CHAPTER XIX

Taking Great Chances

Jack could read his chum almost as easily as he might an open page. Consequently he readily surmised what was making the other feel so good – he saw Perk’s chest swell up, and his whole person partake of the joy that accompanied his secret thoughts. Not for worlds though would he wish to let the other know how it amused him.

“Let him enjoy the thrill while it lasts, the dear old chap,” he told himself in a whisper. “It isn’t often he plays the high hat role; and after all’s said and done his queer little game did pan out just fine – no shooting, or whooping things up; just making it hot for that ill-tempered live wire of a silvertop bear.”

What was causing Perk to feel so good was the thought of what would happen should any one ever again try to coax that identical bear to partake of the tempting fluid that had brought about his recent panic and flight.

“Me, I’d shore hate to be in his shoes, if that big hulk broke loose an’ made things fly,” was the way he wound up his soliloquy; when other more vital matters began to engage his attention.

It was by now long after noon, and as usual Perk had begun to feel a bit “queer” down in the pit of his stomach. For this feeling there was, as he very well understood, but one sovereign remedy. Accordingly he gave a little tug at his companion’s arm, and hastened to suggest:

“Jack, haow ’bout holdin’ up, an’ having aour lit snack – aint no tellin’ when a better chanct’ll come aour way, I kinder guess?”

“It wouldn’t be a bad idea, Perk; and to tell the truth I’m feeling as if I needed a bite or two so’s to keep up this climbing. Hold on, here’s as good a spot as any – let’s go!”

Two minutes afterwards and they were seated crosslegged on the ground, amidst a generous growth of covert, which would likely screen them effectually from any prying eyes.

Jack realized that by this time they must have climbed far enough up the mountainside to bring them fairly close to the opening of the pass that led into the valley of the giants.

If this were true then it behooved them to exercise a greater amount of caution than ever, lest they betray themselves to some vidette who might be posted near by.

With this idea in view he considered it the part of wisdom to take Perk into his confidence, so that as they exchanged views they could tone down their voices to the whispering stage.

Meanwhile Perk had produced the aforesaid “snack” in the shape of a small package, neatly done up by that efficient waiter friend, and containing, it turned out, another kind of sandwich, with a tasty brand of cheese as the “filler.”

“Jest didn’t dare try to hitch that ere tank o’ hot coffee along on this tough hike, partner,” explained Perk apologetically, after listening to the need of caution mentioned by Jack. “So we’ll have to munch this spread dry; or else locate a spring so’s to wet aour whistles.”

“That isn’t much of a hardship,” he was told; “but we may be lucky enough to run across fresh water; and you could fill that empty flask of yours if you wanted.”

“By gum! not a bad idee that, Pal Jack; shore I’ll do that same right willin’ly, if the chanct comes aour way. Haow ’bout the next move, sense it seems we’ve got this far okay?”