Chapter X: In the Hands of the Rescuers

"Now, keep perfectly quiet. Don't move an inch. We'll have you out of it in a few moments. Here, Dill, give me the rope. Now the end of a rail. The young lady over there with the flaxen hair----"

"It ithn't flaxen. It ith blonde," protested Tommy indignantly.

"I stand corrected," laughed the young man. "Please grab the rope and pull on it. I don't dare throw a rail out there for fear of hitting one of you. Being the farthest out, you will be able to pull the rail right up to you. Never mind if you do settle down an inch or two. I'll have you out at any rate. Do you understand?"

"Yeth."

"Then here goes." The boy tossed a coil of rope so accurately that the coil dropped directly over Grace Thompson's head. She uttered a little scream as the rope slipped over her head, then clawed frantically at it. "That's right," cried her rescuer. "Now pull."

Tommy pulled desperately drawing the rail towards her, but sinking deeper and deeper into the mud until she was nearly up to her armpits. The little lisping girl took fresh alarm. She began to cry, "Thave me!"

"Don't be frightened. Here's another rail!" encouraged the youth. "We've got to build up a bridge. Those limbs and saplings you have out there will make an excellent foundation. Hurry them up here, Dill! The young ladies will grow impatient and refuse to wait for us longer."

The girls declined to laugh at this pleasantry. They were in too much distress. Harriet stood holding a lantern above her head so that the boys might see to work to the best advantage. The rails were drawn out by Tommy in each instance, assisted by the girls between herself and the path. Then the leader set his boys at work felling the largest trees they could find along the trail. The lads went at their work with a will. As soon as the trees and brush were cut down they were carried over and dumped in on the rail and brush foundation, forming a rude bridge. The leader then advanced cautiously over it until he reached a point near to the guardian and the girls.

"Now we will see what we can do."

A rope was passed about the waist of the guardian despite her protests that the others should be gotten out of the morass first. Three boys were put at the shore end of the rope with orders to pull when their leader gave the word. He, on his part, took firm hold of Miss Elting under the arms, then shouted "now!"

Those on shore began to pull. The leader, at the same time, began to lift with all his might, moving the guardian's shoulders from left to right.

"Tell me if the rope hurts you," gasped the muscular young fellow.

Miss Elting came up so suddenly that her rescuer fell over, narrowly escaping a plunge into the morass. The guardian was finally dragged to the path. The rescuers then turned their attention to the other girls. Their wooden raft was slowly sinking under the weight that had been put upon it, but fresh stuff was being constantly piled on it to keep it above the mud. One by one the Meadow-Brook Girls were hauled out.

Harriet had helped Miss Elting aside into the shadows, where she assisted the guardian in scraping the mud from her clothing. At first Miss Elting was barely able to stand. She found herself trembling from head to foot now that the strain, mental and physical, was removed.

"Here's another one!" cried the cheery voice of the leader

"What wonderful boys!" breathed Miss Elting, starting to go to Tommy's assistance.

"Please lie down on the ground and rest, Miss Elting. Don't try to get up until we are ready to start. I can take care of the others as they are dragged out," directed Harriet.

She assisted Tommy to a place beside Miss Elting, the latter insisting upon trying to help the unfortunate and humiliated Tommy in her distressing condition.

"I withh I had thome clotheth fit to be theen," complained the little girl. "Thith dreth ith a thight."

"Be thankful that you are alive," answered Harriet sharply.

"We should have perished, had it not been for you," answered the guardian.

"Considering that I was the only one who didn't get into the mud, I simply had to be the one to go for help. I don't deserve any credit," flung back Harriet, hurrying over to assist the suffering Buster. After Buster, came Hazel, the last to be rescued.

"Have we got them all?" questioned the young man.

"Yes, thank goodness," answered Harriet.

"We are under great obligations to you, young gentlemen. We are in no condition to properly express our appreciation this evening. I hope we may have an opportunity to do so in the morning," said Miss Elting.

"We are very glad to have been able to help you. We needed a little exercise," laughed the young man. "Yes, we shall see you again, but we haven't finished our work yet. What do you say? Shall we fix up some litters and carry the young ladies out?"

"I don't know. We shall see in a few moments. Give them a chance to rest. They are completely exhausted."

"Certainly. We fellows are going on ahead to examine this path. We'll return presently."

The boys trudged off down the trail.

"We shan't go far," called back the leader, then strode off after his companions. Harriet and Miss Elting made the girls as comfortable and presentable as possible, though it was apparent that both girls and clothes needed a thorough scrubbing.

"I don't know how we are going to reach camp," pondered the guardian, while waiting for Grace, Margery and Hazel to rest.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you," exclaimed Harriet; "Jane met these boys this afternoon. Two of them are acquaintances of hers. They are high school boys from the town of Proctor. Like ourselves they are out on a long tramp, and they are camped right near where we are to camp for the night. They assisted Jane to put up the camp and get everything in order. Then, when night came, Jane began to grow worried. She declared that something had happened to us. One of the boys wanted to know which way we were to come and Jane told them."

"'Then they have gotten into the swamp and they're in trouble,' declared one of the boys. It seems that these boys passed through here yesterday, and two of them got into the morass in broad daylight. No wonder we floundered into it trying to get through there in the dark. Of course Jane was wild with anxiety. She said they must help her find us. This they were willing and glad to do. They decided to come to this end of the swamp and begin their search from the point where we were supposed to have entered."

"Did you meet them?" interrupted Miss Elting.

"Yes. Jane rushed them, in her car, to the nearest point on the road, then ran across the field with them to the place where we took the swamp trail. I met them just as I came out into the field. Jane was wild with delight, then she cried when I told her where you were. She wanted to come here with me. I told her to hurry back to camp and prepare hot water, get everything ready, then come for us. She will be back long before we get out of the swamp I think. The boys told me all that I have told you, as we were hurrying in here. It is very fortunate for us that we met them," declared Harriet in a matter-of-fact tone.

"I think you are a very brave and resourceful girl, Harriet. You will get some honor beads for this. Girls, shall we sing 'Forty-nine Blue Bottles' now?" questioned Miss Elting quizzically.

"No!" shouted Tommy, so loudly that the Tramp Club, who had gone a short distance down the trail, heard and thought that the girls were calling them back.

"Did you call us?" hailed the leader, running back toward the girls.

"No," returned Miss Elting. "We are all right, thank you."

The boys continued on down the trail. Half an hour later they returned to find the girls somewhat rested and ready to proceed on their journey.

"Do you think you feel strong enough to go on?" asked the leader of the Tramp Club solicitously.

"Yes," replied Miss Elting. "We are anxious to meet Jane and get settled for the night. You have not told us yet to whom we are indebted for our rescue."

"My name is George Baker. I'm the captain of the Tramp Club. They're a fine lot of fellows, but full of mischief."

"As I said before, we haven't words with which to express our gratitude to you for what you have done for us," said Miss Elting. "Ah! There are your friends. Won't you introduce us to them? I'll first introduce my Meadow-Brook Girls." Miss Elting introduced the girls to the Tramp Club as a body, after which the captain did the same with his friends. The names of the members of the club as given by the captain in his introduction, were Dill Dodd, Fred Avery, Sam Crocker, Charles Mabie, Will Burgess and Davy Dockrill.

"Taken altogether, ladies," remarked the captain, "we are a choice band of ruffians on the road, though sometimes gentlemen when we are at home."

"I disagree with you," laughed the guardian. "I shall never meet any finer gentlemen than I have met to-night."

The captain doffed his hat. Tommy was regarding him out of the corners of her eyes. She seemed about to say something; then, apparently changing her mind, smiled impishly to herself and remained silent.

"I told your friend, Miss McCarthy, to set the boys at work getting things ready for the ladies when they reached camp," said the captain. "My, but I got some thrills riding out here with Miss McCarthy. We must have driven out here at the rate of about a hundred miles an hour. I never before rode so fast in my life. Here, fellows, what's the matter with you! This is no marathon. The young ladies can't hit up that pace and keep on their feet. Slow down."

"We can walk jutht ath fatht ath any boy in bootth," retorted Tommy indignantly.

Captain Baker touched the rim of his hat.

"I'll argue it out with you some other time, Miss Thompson," he said.

"Oh!" moaned Margery, staggering a little.

The head tramp immediately sprang to Margery's assistance. "Let me help you," he insisted, taking Margery by the arm. Miss Elting stepped up on the other side of Margery, taking the latter's free arm.

"Now, you will be all right, dear," encouraged the guardian.

Harriet, in the meantime, was assisting Tommy along. The boys ahead began to sing. In this way the party followed the trail out to the field. The girls breathed sighs of relief as they emerged into the open.

Just then, out of the darkness, rushed a figure, throwing itself upon Tommy and Harriet.

"Oh, you dear girls!" cried Jane, flinging an arm about the neck of each. "I nearly cried my eyes out over you. But, when the boys started out to find you, I knew it would be all right. Everything is ready for you. Nice warm baths, and there will be a pot of hot coffee for you. I'll whisk you to camp in short order."

"Never mind the whisking," spoke up the guardian. "Captain Baker has told us about your whisking him out here this evening."

Jane threw back her head and laughed.

"How about going back? I'll tell you what, boys. I'll take the girls and one of you, then I'll come back and get the rest."

"No thank you, we will walk it," answered the chief tramp promptly.

"Never," insisted Jane. "You come with us, young man. I'll be back here in half an hour for the rest of these brave boys."

The captain declined to desert his men. Jane therefore urged him no further. The boys assisted in helping the Meadow-Brook Girls into the car, then Jane drove away at a rapid rate. She let the girls out at their camp, located in a very pretty and now moonlit valley.

"You'll find everything ready. I'm going back for those unruly boys," Jane announced, turning her car about and racing back over the road, her hair streaming over one shoulder, her eyes sparkling with the excitement of it all. The tramps had another lively ride to camp. Jane did not spare them. She took an almost savage delight in trying to frighten them, but did not succeed very well in this attempt. If they were afraid they failed to show it.

On reaching camp the tired wayfarers lost no time in making for their tent where hot water for their baths awaited them. By the time Jane returned with the members of the Tramp Club the Meadow-Brook Girls, clad in dry, fresh clothing, were ready to receive their guests. They presented a wholly different appearance, now, and the boys gazed at them admiringly.

"Jane, the boys must join us at supper," declared Miss Elting.

George shook his head.

"There are too many of us. We'll eat you out of house and home."

"There's lots more stuff to eat in the automobile," declared Jane hospitably. "You wait till I unload the real supplies."

She dragged out a hamper. It was filled with good things to eat, and what particularly pleased the boys, was the unexpected invitation to eat with their new found friends.

Though the girls were tired and exhausted from their trying experiences in the swamp, it proved a happy evening. It was decided to remain in camp all next day to rest. Strangely enough Captain Baker announced that they too had already concluded that they needed a rest. He said they would do some foraging next day, and bring the girls some good things to eat to pay them back for what they had eaten and for the exciting ride Jane had given them.

Miss Elting smiled knowingly. The tramps appeared to be gentlemanly boys, however "full of mischief" they might be.

It was ten o'clock when the Tramp Club said good night and set out for their own camp.

"Now, children, go to bed at once," directed the guardian. "We have had excitement enough for one day at least."

The girls agreed with her, and half an hour later the camp had settled down for the night.