CHAPTER XVII
"WILD LIFE"
Albert, rummaging in a trunk that had belonged to his uncle, which piece of baggage had been brought from the hotel with his own, found a mass of papers which, at first glance, seemed to be utterly worthless. But Mr. Bullard smiled cheerfully when he saw them, and said:
"Oh, I've tackled worse jobs than this. We may find something of value in them. Now I tell you what, you boys can go off and amuse yourselves while I look over these documents. I'm used to this sort of work, and you're not. Go off and have a good time, and come back this evening. I'll be all day at this."
"But that doesn't seem fair," objected Pep. "We want to do our share of the work."
"Oh, you'll do it, never fear! I'll leave plenty of loose ends for you boys to clear up," the government agent said.
And with that the boys had to be content. They realized that a trained investigator, such as was Mr. Bullard, would know best how to sift the mass of papers Albert had turned over to him. A chance letter, or slip, might offer a clue the boys would overlook.
"Well, what shall we do?" asked Pep, eager for some kind of action.
"Couldn't we go out and see Albert's uncle—I mean, couldn't he call on him?" suggested Randy. "I don't like insane asylums myself—in fact, I have never been in one—I imagine I wouldn't like it—but wouldn't it be a good thing to call on your uncle, Albert?"
"I'm afraid not, much as I would like to cheer him up. You see he hardly knew me when he came back from New York in that unfortunate condition, and it might only make him worse, or sadden him more, to go and see him."
"I agree with that," Mr. Bullard said. "Have patience, and I think you will soon be able to see your relative, Albert, under happier conditions."
"Oh, do you really?" the lad asked. "I hope so. He is all I have in the world—except you fellows," and he looked affectionately at Pep and his companions.
"Let's take another run over to the fair grounds," proposed Randy. "Maybe something has happened there."
"I guess you're hoping that we'll get a concession after all," laughed Pep.
"Well, yes, I am," admitted his chum. "Somehow or other I feel it in my bones that we are going to come out of this right side up, with care."
"It had better start pretty soon righting itself," remarked Frank. "So far all we've done is to spend money."
"What about that film option?" asked Randy.
"I renewed it," Frank replied. "I had to pay a little higher price, this time, and the option doesn't run for so long. But I figured that if we had any kind of a theatre here at all we'd want the very best films we could get hold of. Only by using them can we make up our losses. So it would have been a pity to have let these films slide, even though we have to put up a pretty good sum to hold them.
"Of course what I did is subject to the approval of you two," and Frank looked at Randy and Pep. For the business was shared in common. "Mr. Strapp and Ben Jolly agreed with me," Frank resumed.
"Well, you needn't worry but what we'll do the same thing!" cried Pep. "We'll leave it all to you."
"Sure," assented Randy.
"Then this arranges matters so that we still have a little time left to look about for some sort of a concession," went on Frank. "But I think we have pretty well decided that we want one in the Zone, or nowhere."
"That's it!" cried Pep. "Let's go over there now, and see if someone hasn't dropped out so we can get in. Something has to happen soon, for there aren't many weeks left before the opening."
Affairs were being rushed at the great exposition, which would be the largest of its kind in the world. More men were coming every day to help install the exhibits, beautify the grounds or add to the beauty of the already marvelous buildings. The Zone was a particularly busy place, for that would be the real money-making part of the exposition. New amusement enterprises were being put up every day, some of them exceedingly weird and novel.
The chums' first act was to apply to the director of the Zone concessions to learn if there was any vacancy of which they might take advantage. They found that official in his office.
"Well, I'm glad to see you boys!" he exclaimed. "I think I have something for you at last."
"Have you, really?" cried Frank, in delight. "Hurray! That's great. Where is the place?"
"I'll show you in a minute. Here," said the director to his secretary, "write this fellow Royston a letter, and tell him I want to see him. I don't like the sort of exhibition he's putting in. He's got to modify it a whole lot before I put my 'O. K.' on it. He isn't the original holder of the concession, anyhow, and it's only by stretching a point that we let him come in. But if he does come he has to conform to our rules. Write him a good stiff letter, and tell him I want him to make it a point to see me. There are too many of Royston's class trying to get in this exposition."
"Royston," thought Frank. "I wonder if it can be the same one? But I guess I won't make any inquiries now. There's too much else in the wind."
"Now, boys, I'm ready to show you what I can give you," went on the director. "Mind, I'm not sure it will be what you want, but it's all I have to offer, and it will likely be the last place available in the Zone. It was thrown back on our hands because of the death of one of the owners of the enterprise, and the others are too broken-up to go on with it. Come along."
The boys were very hopeful as they followed the official down the main avenue of the amusement space. On all sides of them were busy scenes, every owner of a concession being eager to get his enterprise in shape for opening when the fair was officially declared ready for visitors.
"Here's the place," said the director at length, as he came to a stop in front of a small, partially completed building. A sign outside disclosed the fact that it was to be devoted to a sort of educational exhibit of the art of glass making, and it had been the intention of the promoters to make souvenir articles, showing the different processes of their industry. These souvenirs would be sold.
"You may have this place, if it is of any use to you," said the director. "It has seats in, I believe, and you might easily make it over into a motion picture house. Do you want it?"
Frank and his chums looked at it. Their hearts sank. At the first glance it was evident that it would not do. The size was the fact most potently against it. Otherwise it might have answered. But the building occupied the limit of the land on which it stood. There was no chance for enlargement.
"Well, will you take it?" asked the director. Frank shook his head.
"I'm sorry," he replied, "but it would never do. We could not make our expenses, to say nothing of a profit on the investment we should be obliged to put in. The place is too small."
"That's what I was afraid of," the director went on. "But I made up my mind you should have first choice of any vacancy. Mr. Bullard had spoken for you," he added.
"He sure is a good friend of ours," Randy said, "and I'm sorry this place won't answer. I guess we'll have to go back to New York."
"And I don't like to see that happen," the director exclaimed. "We need a good moving picture show here, but no one applied for that sort of a concession, and I never thought to set one aside."
There was nothing more that could be done, and when the director had returned to his office the boys stood in the midst of the Zone, looking rather disconsolately at one another.
"Too bad; isn't it?" remarked Randy.
"It sure is," was Frank's reply.
"Oh, pshaw! Let's give up and get out!" suggested impetuous Pep. "We're only wasting our time here. I say let's pull out!"
"Not until our second option on those valuable films expires," declared Frank. "We might as well hang on as long as we can since we've paid our money. It's an education to be here, even if the fair hasn't opened."
"Oh, well, I'm not a quitter—I'll stay as long as you fellows do," Pep went on, "but it seems to me we are losing a chance to make good money somewhere else."
"Our other shows are doing well," spoke Randy. "We don't need to worry about them. And this is a chance we'll have only once in a lifetime. I'm in favor of hanging on."
And so the others agreed with him.
"Are you going to do anything about having some films made of the grounds here?" asked Pep of Frank, as they strolled along.
"Well, yes. I think we'll carry out that scheme. It won't cost such a pile, and if we can't use the pictures here, we can in New York, or somewhere else. I'm going to give the order to-day."
Talking of their prospects, speculating on what might happen, the chums made their way past the various amusement concessions.
"Hello, look at this!" exclaimed Frank, stopping in front of a large building. It was one of the most imposing in the Zone, but hitherto it had been concealed from view by a high fence. This was now down, and the structure showed well.
The whole front of the structure was painted in the most gaudy pictures imaginable, showing all varieties of jungle animals, in all sorts of impossible postures, lions fighting elephants and rhinoceroses, camels and giraffes in a duel of heels, snakes swallowing tigers and other absurdities.
The whole front of one section of the building was given over to a sign reading:
WILD LIFE IN THE JUNGLE
Bradley Royston, Proprietor.
"Look at that!" cried Pep. "That must be the same man."
"Yes, and that's the exhibit the director spoke about," added Frank. "Let's get a closer look. It seems to be open to the workmen at least."
The chums approached "Wild Life."