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-had kindled’ a
4
“VF ACK SKINNER
ys looked back over
"called,
-weeks in Timothy Otis’s fishing camp.
“because the boys had not delivered ‘K
iwhen they
Copyright, 1922, by David C,
Cook Publishing Company.
No. 32 { PURLISITED
an WEI .
EKLY.
his shoulder, and
“Vlurry up,-
Neal! ~What are you
waiting for?”
“Why, I’m looking for the pail, Want
to pour some water on the fire, to make
sure it is all out.”
“Oh, I stamped it all out.
pail here. Hurry up.”
Still Neal hesitated.
I have the
» “But “Unele Tin-
sothy always said—
“Oh, let Uncle Timothy rest today.
Don’t’ wait any longer, or we'll be late to
class.”
A little reluctantly Neal walked down to
the water's edge and climbed into the
“Gull.” Jack’s hand was on .the wheel,
and he deftly backed the motorboat, ther
turned her round, and headed Straight
across the shiving expanse of wat
The two boys had been settled “tor six
Tor
six days each week, they worked faithfully,
but never did anything with the nets on
Sunday. That morning they had gone
for a cruise along the shore of Loon Is-
land. Landing a little before noon, they
fire and fried ham and
eggs, to add to the prepared lunch they
had brought with them. Now they were
headed for Superior, the. nearest town on
the mainland, to attend a Sunday-school
service that would begin at three,
They enjoyed this
during the week they saw only the Indians
who lived on the island. . Though now they
were more. friendly, at first a group of the
young red men had resented the white
coming to the island to fish, and
under the leadership of Kago, a ring leader
in all kinds of mischief. had endeavored to
frighten them-a . But Onaway, whose
love had been won by Neal's Uncle, had
warned Neal and Jack, And since, then
and his companions up to the authorit
had a chance to do so, Kago
had let them alone, but tales of his wild
deeds still frequently reached the ears of
the boys,
Onaway came to their cabin now and
“then, and once each week a little’ steamer
put in to their dock and carried away their
shipment of ice-packed fish. But other-
wise they were alone all the week,- So
the hour at Sunday-school always flew too
aed to suit the boys.
“Now for home again,” Jack sighed as
. they, ae off the “Gull” for the return
trip. .* We ean make the island in forty
minutes.”
“Yes, or a little less. Let-us head for
Last End. Mr. Crane sent Onaway a big
roll of Sunday-school papers to distribute
among the villagers,”
Before they had rounded the “point of
rocks behind which: Loon Island was hid-
den from Superior, Neal began to sniff.
“T smell smoke, Hope no one has been
foolish enough to start a fire on any of
these little islands,”
“Well, the most of them are unoc-
eupied, All a fire could do would be to
burn oyer the timber. It is so dry just
now that it would run on until it came to
the water.”
As Loon Island became visible in the
distance, silhouetted against a dark: bank
of clouds, Jack cried, “Look, Neal! Isn't
that smoke hanging over the island? If it
vis~and that's sure xmoke—there must be
——y eT een hy?
a fire in the woods,”
Sunday-school for
DAVID C. COOK PUBLISHING COMPANY,
color in
Ue thought of his
which had been built at a
For a moment the healthy
Neal's cheeks faded,
uncle's camp,
considerable outlay of time and money.
Under Jack’s hand the boat leaped for-”
ward, Five- minutes later, he called,
“That's a forest fire all right. But it's
, too far. east. for the camp to be in danger,
If it started the other side of our place—
and it must hive—the wind -will carry. it,
away from the camp.”
“Yes, but Jack, I am afraid for the
Ojibway settlement. Look! It cannot
be very far from there.” -
“That's so. Ilow could it have started?
Neal, you don't suppose—"” and he broke
_off, his face grave and troubled:
Neal drew a long breath. “1 don’t sup-
pose anything, old man, There will, be
time enough to do supposing after‘ we
haye done our best to help the folks at the
settlement.”
.As they neared the shore they could see
the gleam of the fire. It was not close to
the water's edge, but seemed to be run-
ning a little way. inland. As the. boys
looked, the flames ran up into the top of a
dead spruce, The next moment the whole
tree was in flames; at the same time, not
far from the spruce, the fire was suddenly
dimmed ; a cloud of black smoke rose’ slow-
dy, spread and hung over the trees.
“Someone is fighting the fire,” cried
-Néal and there was a note of relief in his
voice. “ As today is Sunday a number of
>the men who work over at the mill on the
mainland are at home.”
The boys sprang ashore, waiting only to
make their boat fast Down the path
from the group of houses came an old
woman, her-dark face strangely drawn
with fear,
“YWelp! Telp! Why do you not burry
to_help the men save our homes? If they
The burning tree struck the rescuer,
Lit was all out.
ELain, [Ltrnors,
go. it will be in the snow, with nothing
between us and the cruel sky, that we will
sleep when winter comes:
Jack ran on, while Neal ‘stopped a mo-
ment,’ te question the old woman as to
where the fire-fighters were and what ef-
forts they were making to extinguish the
flames. When he found that she knew
nothing about it, he ran on after Jack,
Soon they overtook a half-dozen women
who were hurrying along, a pail of water™
in each hand. Neal suw that half the
contents had been splashed from all the
pails, IIe relieved an intelligent-looking
young woman of her burden, saying:
“Run back to the “hous s, Marfa, and
bring blankets, as man You can carry,
‘There is water enough in the hrook to wet
them, and we can do more to put out
the-fire with them than we can by throw-
ing water on it.
The fire was separated from the settle-
ment by only a narrew strip. of wooded
land. At the edge of this a half-score of
men, aided by women and boys, were work-
ing heroically, despite the heat, to turn a
fire line. With spades and hoes, even with
pointed sticks, they were dizging in the
hard ground.
Jack caught a spade from the hand of a
woman whose breath was coming in gasps,
“Tet me take your pla You go and
wet a blanket in the creek,
Neal joined Onaway, The lad was work-
ing with a man who seemed to be in com-
mand,
said,
“Yosent Marfa for blankets. We'll wet
them and fight the fire with them.”
The boys threw themselves into the
work with such energy that the tired fight-
ers were stimulated to greater activity.
The blankets dipped in the little water that
still. filled the bed of the creek, were
thrown over the burning bushes and used
‘to beat out flames in the grass,
Neal worked on, bis face almost blistered
by the heat, his throat dry and parched.
But, even amidst the excitement, there
was one fear which he could not shut from
his mind. Was he to blame? “If, it is
from our camp fire, the fault is mine, not
Jack's.” he thought. ‘ Because he hurried
me no excuse for my not making sure
Uncle Timothy has warned
me wany times of the danger of a_ fire
ted in the woods. What is it,
The Indian youth pressed a small pail
filled with water into | Neal's hands,
“Drink, my brother! You are indeed a
brother to Onaway and his people in their
trouble,
“You don’t know, Ob, look there!’
its: branches pinning him to the ground.
Both: nedded approval when Neal ’
August 12, 1922.
A dead pine with a heavy top had heen
burning briskly. Its top was bending: it
would fall in a mement. Directly under
the pine two men were digging desperately.
From out the smoke sprang a slender bey-
ish figure. With a rush he pushed first
one and then the other of the men aside,
Soth were thrown off their feet, and fell
too far away to be hit by the burning tree.
Tkut it struck the rescuer, its branches
pinning him to the ground.
Iustantly Neal and Onaway Ieaped for-
ward, the Indian boy crying, “It is Kago,
the mischief maker. We—Neal Otis, it
be that he has given his life for oth-
n
er: -
It seemed as if Onaway was right when °
the two in spite of danger to themselves
finally got Kago from beneath the flaming
branches and laid him on the grass. But
in a moment he struggled up on his elbow,
and said in a weak yoice, “ Vight the
fire, every one of you! What does it mat-
“Run back to the on po nees. , Marfa, and bring
lank
ter if I
back.”
“ago, you are a brick,” Neal stopped
long enough to declare, hen leaving
Kago in the care of the women. the boys
started back to where they had been at
work.
The fire which had been gradually com-
ing under control, because of the accident
had getten a fresh start, All fell to work
with a will. Somchow Kago’s unseltish-
ness and bravery gave them fresh courage.
Ten minutes later Neal said | wader his.
breath: * We are going to win.”
The sunset’s afterglow was fading from
the western sky when the dirty, -scorched,
and weary fire-fighters trooped back to
the settlement, At last the fire was out;
while here and-there smoke rose from a
wet pile of débris, all new that
the danger was over. As the men stopped,
to exchange congratulations and words of
thanksg Onaway, who “had: left the
others a fev minutes before, came. run-
ning back to join them,
“J<ago is all right. Old Nokomis has
rubbed him well th the salve she uses >
for burns, She has wrapped him in soft
old clothes, and he is asleep.”
at is good news,” Neal, who had ’
dropped down on the ground, sat up to
say. “Are his burns deep? < Will he be
badly scarred?”
‘ot his face er his hands. Nokomis
there is one bad burn just above his
it knee, where the burning trunk
it. Ina month's time Kago will be as well
as ever.”
“Wei want to thank you two boys,”
ve of the older men said a little shyly,
You gave us fresh courage.”
Suddenly Jack sat up, Neal saw that,
(Continued on page 7.
suffer? Save the home, Go