John Henry Goldfrap

“ The steamer gave a shrill whistle.
“All aboard!” yelled the happy tars, grinning up in a superior way at the men left behind. “See what we get for being good little boys.”
“Hurrah for Hilo!” shouted somebody as they got under way, the boats towing behind the steamer.
“Hurrah for Red Head’s goat!”
“Three cheers for the fleet, boys!” cried Ned, looking back at the imposing array of slate-colored fighting-ships, from the stern of every one of which fluttered the Stars and Stripes. ”

“ They were as excited as the men themselves.
Ned reached the signal halliards at last. A score of hands seized the free end of the rope to which the bos’un’s chair was attached and lowered the exhausted lad to the bridge, as soon as he had clambered, with a Jackie’s dexterity, into the swaying contrivance.
What a roar arose then!
“He’s made it!”
“Hip! hip! hurray!”
In the after top Herc, tears streaming down his face, danced a wild jig of jubilation, while on the fore-deck Jackies threw their arms around each other and shook each other’s hands and performed a hundred mad antics. ”

“ Blue Lightning was a slate-colored goat—battleship gray, the sailors called his color—of a combative temperament. He had spent many years in the navy and had been a present to the Manhattan from the crew of the old cruiser Texas, when the latter vessel went out of commission.
“Hooray! Here comes Red Head with his goat!” cried the sailors. “Going to give him a cruise ashore, Herc?”
“Sure,” responded the Dreadnought Boy. “Isn’t he entitled to shore liberty just as much as we are? I guess a good feed of grass and a run will do his temper good. ”

“ Before long the lads and their guides emerged at the foot of the Pyramid and were met by a glare of dazzling sunlight.
“Help! Ouch, I’m struck blind!” cried Herc, as the glare greeted him.
“So am I. It is coming suddenly into the bright sunlight out of that dark hole.”
The boys blinked and winked, but everything was black for a time. Then when they opened their eyes they got a surprise. Taking advantage of their temporary blindness, the two beggars had slipped off.
“Well, let them go,” said Ned. “We haven’t got time to prosecute them anyhow. Let’s join our ship-mates.” ”

“ Ned had not time to reply before a yell and whoop from Herc cut him short.
“Oh, glory! Look at that, will you!”
Blue Lightning had broken loose from Herc’s [199] grip, which had relaxed as he gazed on the Arcadian scene. With a grunt and a jump the goat, trailing several yards of rope behind him, dashed straight down on the unconscious diners. Maybe the sight of food had excited his appetite, or maybe he was actuated just by pure goatishness. Anyhow, like a torpedo-boat bearing down on a squadron, he dashed at the group below.
“Hey! Wow! Look out! Jump! Scat! Vamoose! Beat it!” howled Herc. ”

“ I’m falling off!” he yelled the next instant. He fell forward and managed to clutch the donkey by the neck and one ear. This terrified the animal even more. Plunging and bucking like a fishing cobble in a storm he rushed about the bazaar, eluding all efforts to capture him.
Ned tumbled off his donkey and tried to grab Herc’s beast. But he was shaking so with laughter at the other’s plight that he made a botch of it and landed in a heap, narrowly missed by the donkey’s threshing heels.
The tars yelled themselves hoarse.
“Hang on, Herc! You’ll come in a winner!” they yelled. ”

“ Glasses were leveled at the purple patch lying like a tiny cloud on the far horizon.
“What land can it be?” wondered Ned, shading [176] his eyes, but from the low elevation of the forecastle it was hard to see anything but a faint blue line.
“Must be Oahu,” responded a blue-jacket standing beside him.
“One of the Hawaiian group?”
“Yes; the island on which Honolulu, the principal port of the islands, is located.”
Ned and Herc exchanged delighted glances. It was like coming toward a land of their dreams. ”

“ Their hands grew sore and they ached cruelly in every limb. But they stuck doggedly to their task, “working to save the ship.”
Begrimed with black, and panting, men would stumble out of the bunker as their “trick” was finished and sink down exhausted. But in a few minutes they would be at it again, striving to keep up their good spirits by laughing and joking over their task.
“From now on we’ll be the ‘Black Watch’,” said Ned.
“The black diamonds, you mean,” retorted Herc. “There’s one thing on earth I’d never be.”
“What’s that?”
“A fireman. That isn’t a job, it’s punishment.” ”

“ Ned took command as smartly as any commissioned officer. He gave his orders and the patrol, including Herc Taylor, marched to the Jacob’s ladder on the port side of the ship, for the starboard is sacred to officers. They clambered into the drab-colored, hooded steam launch. The engineer tooted the whistle, the craft was cast off and then she cut swiftly over the choppy harbor for the landing stage.
“There they go, looking for the fellows that are playing hooky!” exclaimed a man loudly, as Ned and his detachment marched off toward Chinatown, eyed by a curious throng. ”

“ One wheel of the ’rickshaw struck a rock at the edge of a little bridge and Ben Franklin, amidst the roars of the tars, went sky-rocketing into space over the rail of the bridge. He landed in a lot of soft mud and injured nothing but his dignity.
“You’re a horse that needs breaking,” he said to Herc, as he took his seat once more in the ’rickshaw; and, despite all Herc’s pleadings, he was compelled to pull the mud-stained Ben all through the streets of Yokahama as a punishment for his skylarking. ”

“ A TIGHT PLACE.
“What business have you butting in?” demanded the hawk-eyed man, pale with anger as he saw his gull being taken away from him.
“I don’t recognize you,” spoke Ned coldly. “Come, Childs, put your money back in your wallet and be thankful I arrived in time to save you from being plucked by a rascal.”
“I—I am not going.”
“Not going?”
“No; you see, Strong——”
“Now see here,” began the hawk-eyed man, laying a persuasive arm, which Ned straightway shook off, upon the Dreadnought Boy’s shoulder, “this young fellow and me is good friends—see? I’m going to do him a good turn. ”

“ As he passed along the decks, the blue-jackets crowded about him to press his hand and cheer him. Through the throng Herc pushed his way, having descended from the after mast at express speed.
“Good boy, Ned! Oh, good boy!” was all that he said as he wrung his comrade’s hand, but his voice held an unaccustomed quaver as he spoke [127] and Ned saw what an ordeal Herc had been through.
“It’s all over now, Herc,” said Ned lightly.
“That fellow Sharp, had he——?”
“I don’t know. I’d accuse no man of such a dastardly thing. But I thought, only thought, mind you, that I felt a shove as I fell.” ”

“ Back again on the huge, drab Dreadnought Manhattan, where they made their début into naval life, they formed part of the crew of the flag-ship of the sixteen battleships sent around the world to give other nations an impressive demonstration of Uncle Sam’s great sea-power. The passage down the eastern coast of South America and around the Horn had been made, the great fighting sea-dogs exciting the most intense interest and enthusiasm everywhere. ”

“ Everybody is a boy once more when it comes to the question of hidden treasure. In this book, Captain Lawton has set forth a hunt for gold that is concealed neither under the sea nor beneath the earth, but is well hidden for all that. A garrulous old sailor, who holds the key to the mystery of the Golden Galleon, plays a large part in the development of the plot of this fascinating narrative of treasure hunting in the region of the Gulf Stream and the Sargasso Sea. An aeroplane fitted with efficient pontoons—enabling her to skim the water successfully—has long been a dream of aviators. ”

“ Herc’s face blanched. There is no more terrible word at sea, and no wonder Ned had hesitated to voice his suspicions before. On an ordinary ship it is bad enough, but on a floating arsenal of high explosives, such as is the modern fighting ship, it has an added terror.
“Gracious, Ned! Don’t, for goodness sake, say a word of this! You’ll have the whole ship in a scare.”
“That is just why I don’t mean to say anything till I’m sure. I’ve noticed that the odor is strongest by those port ventilating pipes yonder. I’m going over to investigate again. Want to join me?” ”

“ From the gutters mongrel curs snapped at the boys’ heels, and the uproar, din and sun were enough to upset the strongest nerves.
“These people must all be crazy,” exclaimed Herc to Ned as they maneuvered their donkeys in and out among the throng with more skill than most of the sailors showed. The boys had been brought up on a farm and knew something of riding.
“No, sir; that is, they’re only crazy for one thing, and that is money.”
[252]
“Hookey! You’re right there. Beggars and sand are about all I’ve seen in Egypt so far. I wonder the beggars haven’t bankrupted the rest of the populace.” ”

“ Down in the bowels of the ship the men who would transmit their reports of range and kindred matters to the batteries, sat at what looked like giant switchboards, covered with winking lights of different colors.
In Ned’s turret, the ammunition hoist came up with a bang and clang. Bags of powder and a great projectile were unshipped by the gun crew with what appeared to be magical speed. Every man had his work and knew just what to do.
“Load and stand by,” ordered the ensign in Ned’s turret. “We’re going to have some night target practice, my lads. See to it that you do your best,” he went on. ”

“ Herc Taylor lolled negligently back in the ’rickshaw in which he and Ned Strong were being spun along on a smooth road outside Yokahama.
“It’s comfortable, all right, but somehow I hate the idea of seeing a human being playing the part of a horse,” rejoined Ned.
In front of the two Dreadnought Boys, between the shafts of the ’rickshaw, a half naked Jap toiled along at a dog-trot. His skin was as dry as a bone and showed not a sign of fatigue, yet he had drawn the boys some distance in the vehicle which is peculiar to Japan. ”

“ In less time than he would have thought possible Ned and his twenty picked men joined him below. Among the fire-fighters was Herc. They were all responsible men, chosen for their ability and experience. They must have known that their task was going to be difficult to a degree and dangerous, too. But no traces of anxiety appeared on their faces. Such is the training of a man-o’-war’s-man. He is taught not to flinch from any duty but to obey all orders implicitly, even though he may sometimes doubt their wisdom. ”

“ THE DREADNOUGHT BOYS ON A SUBMARINE.
To the inventive genius—trade-school boy or mechanic—this story has special charm, perhaps, but to every reader its mystery and clever action are fascinating.
THE DREADNOUGHT BOYS ON AERO SERVICE.
Among the volunteers accepted for Aero Service are Ned and Herc. Their perilous adventures are not confined to the air, however, although they make daring and notable flights in the name of the Government; nor are they always able to fly beyond the reach of their old “enemies,” who are also airmen. ”

“ The sailors fretted as the great ships crept along, seeming barely to move. On each side extended the glittering, barren desert. Occasionally a cavalcade of camel men passed. That was about all that relieved the monotony. But just the same, Ned was impressed. All about them lay a wonderful region famed in song and story.
“Herc, do you know that the Holy Land lies almost within reach of the guns of this ship?” asked Ned, as the two lads leaned over the side of the shaded forecastle drinking in a slight [247] breeze which had sprung up at sun-down. ”

“ He——”
“A nice sort of friend you are,” shot out Ned witheringly. “It’s just such land-sharks as you that get gullible young fellows like Childs here into trouble. If it hadn’t been for me, you’d have stripped him of his money and then left him to face the music of a court-martial. I don’t blame him, a young, inexperienced sailor. But I haven’t words to express my scorn of such creatures as you, who would try to induce a lad to desert his country and the flag he has sworn to serve under.” ”

“ Two days before, the massive, formidable squadron had steamed in column through the Golden Gate in perfect condition, and dropped anchor in San Francisco’s historic, land-locked harbor.
It was due to sail ere long across the broad Pacific for Hawaii and the “purple east,” returning to America by way of the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean. Small wonder that the men of the fleet were all on tip-toe with excitement over what lay ahead of them on this wonderful voyage. None were more enthusiastic over the [21] prospect of visiting unknown waters than were Ned Strong and Herc Taylor. ”

“ But the lads, who are, after all, typical of most young Americans of their type, are resourceful enough to overcome every one of their dangers and difficulties.
How they discover the whereabouts of little Joe, the “kid” of the patrol, by means of smoke telegraphy and track his abductors to their disgrace; how they assist the passengers of a stranded steamer and foil a plot to harm and perhaps kill an aged sea-captain, one must read the book to learn. A swift-moving narrative of convincing interest and breathless incident. ”

“ Arm in arm, the two young blue-jackets set off under the trees. In many of the branches hung little articles formed of bits of glass decorated [235] with bright colors. As the breeze blew, the bits of glass jangled together with a pretty tinkling sound that made Ned exclaim admiringly.
“The Japs are the only people on earth who could have thought of such a pretty device. Isn’t it delightful, Herc?”
“Humph, sounds to me like they were washing dishes or using their knives and forks. It’s just the noise our mess makes at dinner. That reminds me, I’m awfully hungry.” ”

“ Although the boy had shipped a new uniform, rating badge and all, the dark marks of his encounter of the previous day with the park runaway still showed.
“What is the matter with your face, Strong?” asked the captain. His voice was rather stern. Perhaps he thought his favorite among the crew had been mixed up in some brawl ashore.
“Why, I,—that is, we—sir, I mean Herc—Coxswain Hercules Taylor and myself stopped a runaway horse in Golden Gate Park yesterday afternoon, and I guess I got a little battered up.”
“Good gracious, you boys are always having adventures. Whose horse was it you stopped?” ”