28

trailed by the dogs

lucy-ann shrank back against bill and johns when she heard the savage howls and barks. shedidn’t at all like the idea of the dogs being after them!

bill and johns exchanged glances, and bill said something under his breath and looked stubbornand angry. they had all been so pleased at their escape – and now here they were, about to becaught again! nobody could do anything against ten man-hunting dogs!

‘bill! get into the stream and wade up through the water,’ said jack suddenly. ‘that’s what theother man did when he wanted to break his scent. dogs can’t smell a trail through water. let’s allwade up the stream, and try and find a good hiding-place – a big tree, like sam went up.’

‘well – it’s a poor chance,’ said bill, ‘but we’ll try it! blow that helicopter – behaving like thatjust when i wanted to take off to safety! we’d have been quite all right by now if it hadn’t been forthe damage to the steering.’

they all waded into the middle of the little stream. up it they went, the water very cold to theirfeet. lucy-ann was between bill and johns. she felt very glad indeed that there were two grown-ups with them! in the distance the dogs barked again. they were certainly on the trail!

the little company went up the stream as quickly as they could, so that their scent was wellbroken. but they could easily be seen, and it was essential that they should get up into a tree, orfind a cave as soon as they could.

and soon they found just exactly the thing! the stream disappeared into a large hole in themountain. the clear water came bubbling out from there into the sunshine, swirling round the feetof the two men and the children – and of snowy too!

‘look – it comes from that big hole,’ said bill, pleased. ‘we’ll go in there and hope it will takeus all. we ought to be able to hide here till the dogs give up all hope of finding us.’

they crawled in one by one. bill switched on his torch. there was only just room for them all,because a few yards back the hole narrowed down to a tiny tunnel, out of which the stream gushedmadly.

they sat down where they could, squeezed up closely against one another. jack and philip hadtheir feet in the stream. they sat there, listening to the distant yelping of the alsatians.

bill pulled some chocolate out of his pocket. ‘i forgot about this,’ he said, and handed it round.

it was very comforting to have something to nibble. johns had brought some too, so there wasplenty.

‘do you think the dogs have lost the trail now?’ asked jack, not hearing the barking coming anycloser.

‘yes. sounds like it,’ said bill. ‘they’re at a loss, i should think. they must have come to thestream, jumped over it and found the trail was at an end. they probably won’t have the sense torealize we’ve gone upstream.’

‘but i should think the men with them would guess,’ said big stolid johns, who was taking thisextraordinary adventure with the utmost calm, as if things like that happened to him every day. ‘iknow i would! if i were hunting a man with dogs, and we came to a stop by a stream, i’d order thedogs up- or downstream at once.’

‘oh dear!’ said lucy-ann. ‘would you really? well, i’m sure meier will, then, when he catchesup with the dogs, because he’s terribly clever. he’s got the most piercing eyes, bill – honestly,they go right through you.’

‘well, he’d better not try looking right through me,’ said bill. ‘he’d be sorry!’

‘pardon!’ said kiki. ‘sorry!’

‘you forgot your hiccup, old thing,’ said jack, and kiki solemnly produced one. johns laughedsuddenly. he said he’d heard plenty of hiccups without birds, and seen plenty of birds withouthiccups – but when you got the two together it was worth a lot!

‘the dogs are coming nearer,’ said jack suddenly. they all listened, straining their ears. it wastrue. their howls were distinctly louder.

‘meier’s caught up with them, then,’ said dinah. ‘and he’s guessed our trick, and they’re allcoming upstream.’

‘yes. and they’re sure to smell us here,’ said philip. absolutely certain to. we can’t diddledogs like that!’

‘hey diddle diddle,’ said kiki, and screeched.

‘shut up,’ said jack, and tapped her on her beak. ‘do you want the dogs to hear you?’

‘pooh,’ said kiki, and nipped jack’s ear.

‘listen! i can hear the dogs splashing in the stream!’ cried philip. and so he could. the soundcame to everyone’s ears, and lucy-ann clutched bill’s hand even more tightly. would this horridadventure never end?

and then they saw the first dog, his red tongue hanging out, his breath coming in excited pants.

he was half leaping in the water, not wading – in and out he leapt, in and out, coming nearer andnearer.

then came meier’s hateful voice. ‘go on! get them! find them!’

the leading dog came right up to the hiding-place. he could smell everyone in there, as hestood in the stream outside the hole. he did not attempt to go in. he had found what he had beentold to find – he had not been told to capture and hold.

he lifted his head and howled like a wolf. kiki was very surprised. she attempted an imitationbut an alsatian’s howl was beyond her. she only produced a curious whirring noise that made thedog cock his big head on one side and listen.

then the other dogs came up, panting too, their tongues all hanging out. they stood beside andbehind their leader, sniffing. they looked very fierce indeed!

‘not a nice sight,’ murmured bill to johns, who was staring stolidly at the dogs as if he wasperfectly used to being hunted by a pack of alsatians and didn’t mind it at all.

‘keep still,’ bill commanded everyone. as long as we don’t attempt to move or get away, thedogs won’t do anything more than stand there and stare.’

there came the sound of shouts and meier and erlick appeared, very red in the face withrunning. meier stopped dead when he saw the pack of dogs standing looking in the hole where thestream poured out.

he pushed erlick behind a tree quickly. it was plain that he feared bill might have a gun. heshouted out loudly.

‘come on out! the dogs have found you. if you don’t want them to set on you, come on out –and throw any gun you’ve got down on the ground, and put your hands up. we’ve got youcovered.’

‘pleasant fellow, isn’t he?’ said johns to bill. ‘it’ll be nice to get hold of him. do we go out,boss, or don’t we?’

‘we don’t,’ said bill shortly. ‘i doubt if he’ll dare to set the dogs on us. he knows the childrenare here.’

‘meier wouldn’t stick at anything,’ said jack. and he was right. when there was no answer, andnot even a movement from the hole in the hill, meier began to lose his temper as usual. heshouted out something in a foreign language, then changed to english.

‘you heard what i said. you have one more chance. the dogs are ready to pounce. they’llround you up all right, and i warn you, their teeth are sharp, so don’t resist!’

still nobody moved. lucy-ann shut her eyes. she really couldn’t look at the eager, pantingdogs any more. she could see that they were just awaiting the word to rush into the cave and dragthem all out.

and then philip suddenly moved, and before anyone could stop him, he was outside the cave.

‘put your hands up!’ called meier, and philip put them up. the dogs sniffed at him, and underhis breath philip talked to them.

‘don’t you remember me? i’m philip. you slept with me up on the rock. fine dogs you are.

we’re friends, don’t you remember?’

the dogs did not understand one word, but they understood his tone of voice. they rememberedthis boy. they felt his friendliness and his attraction. the leader began to whine a little. he longedto have this boy pat his head. but philip had his hands above his head, and had only his voice tocharm the dogs with.

he went on talking to them in a low voice, whilst the other children, and bill and johns,watched spellbound. they all thought the same. philip, philip, what is there in you that makes allcreatures your friends? what gift have you got, so rare, so irresistible? ‘lucky boy!’ thought bill.

‘and lucky for every one of us that you can charm these dogs!’

meier called out angrily. ‘where are the others? tell them to come too, or i’ll give the order forthem to be dragged out!’

the leader dog stood up and put his paws on philip’s shoulders. he licked the boy’s face. it wasa very wet lick, but philip did not even turn away his face. that was the signal for all the otherdogs to come round too. quite forgetting meier, they milled round philip, trying to get near him,sniffing at him, giving him a lick when they got near enough.

he put down his hands. meier would not dare to take a shot at him now in case he killed a dog!

he ran his hands over their backs, patted their heads, rubbed their noses, and all the time he talkedto them in the special voice he kept for animals.

meier snapped out an order to the dogs. ‘fetch them out! get them! bring them here!’

the dogs turned their heads automatically at his commanding voice. they hesitated. the leaderlooked at philip. ‘come with me,’ said philip. ‘come. you will find more friends in here.’

and, to meier’s everlasting astonishment, the boy actually led all the dogs to the cave, where atleast four of them squeezed in to lick lucy-ann, jack and dinah! they sniffed doubtfully at billand johns, growled at snowy and kiki, and then, when philip laid a hand on bill’s arm and thenon johns’, they accepted them as friends too.

‘philip! you’re a marvel!’ said bill, in heartfelt admiration. ‘it’s magic you use – can’t beanything else!’

‘what a boy!’ said the stolid johns, allowing his face to change its expression for once in awhile, and show great admiration.

‘meier’s shortly going to have a fit, i think,’ said jack. ‘he just can’t understand all this!’

‘fetch them out, i say! i’ll shoot the lot of you dogs, if you don’t obey orders!’ stormed meier.

‘what’s come over you? fetch them out!’

the dogs took absolutely no notice at all. their leader had accepted philip as master now, andthey all followed his decision. what philip said they would obey. they feared meier, but theyloved philip.

meier suddenly fired his revolver in a fury. he did not fire at the dogs, but over their heads.

they jumped and growled, turning their heads towards him. bill judged it was time to dosomething.

‘philip! will the dogs obey you? will they go for meier and erlick? if they will – order themto! we’ll give that couple a taste of their own medicine!’