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diff --git a/old/62683-0.txt b/old/62683-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 649afaf..0000000 --- a/old/62683-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,6245 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Camp Fire Boys at Log Cabin Bend, by St. -George Rathborne, Illustrated by Charles L. Wrenn - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - - -Title: The Camp Fire Boys at Log Cabin Bend - Four Chums Afoot in the Tall Timber - - -Author: St. George Rathborne - - - -Release Date: July 17, 2020 [eBook #62683] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CAMP FIRE BOYS AT LOG CABIN -BEND*** - - -E-text prepared by Roger Frank and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made available by -Internet Archive (https://archive.org) - - - -Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this - file which includes the original illustrations. - See 62683-h.htm or 62683-h.zip: - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/62683/62683-h/62683-h.htm) - or - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/62683/62683-h.zip) - - - Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive. See - https://archive.org/details/campfireboysatlo00rath - - - - - -THE CAMP FIRE BOYS AT LOG CABIN BEND - - -[Illustration: A guest at the campfire.] - - -THE CAMP FIRE BOYS AT LOG CABIN BEND - -Or - -Four Chums Afoot in the Tall Timber - -by - -OLIVER LEE CLIFTON - -Author of “Camp Fire Boys in Muskrat Swamp,” -“Camp Fire Boys at Silver Fox Farm,” etc. - -Illustrated by Charles L. Wrenn - - - - - - -Publishers -Barse & Hopkins -New York, N. Y.—Newark, N. J. - -Copyright, 1923 -By Barse & Hopkins - -Printed in the U. S. A. - - - - - CONTENTS - - I. At Nightfall in the Big Woods - II. The First Campfire - III. The Chum Beloved - IV. Unexpected Visitors - V. All Busy as Beavers - VI. The Events of a Day - VII. The Climber of the Beech Tree - VIII. Amos’s Strange Actions - IX. The Right Kind of Pals - X. Amos Decides - XI. Clearing Skies - XII. Setting the Trap - XIII. The Awakening of Perk - XIV. A Stirring Night Ahead - XV. Caught in the Storm - XVI. Where Woodcraft Pays - XVII. A Guest at the Campfire - XVIII. Elmer Has a Plan - XIX. The Long, Long Night - XX. Once More on the Trail - XXI. “Toot—Toot—T-o-oot!” - XXII. Not So Slow, After All - XXIII. What Perk Did - XXIV. When the Sun Broke Through - XXV. Back at the Cabin Again - XXVI. Looking Forward—Conclusion - - - - - ILLUSTRATIONS - - A guest at the campfire - - “A whopping big cat, for a fact!” - - His method of descending the tree was exceedingly clumsy - - Mr. Codling found the litter much more comfortable - - - - - THE CAMP FIRE BOYS AT LOG CABIN BEND - - - - - CHAPTER I - - AT NIGHTFALL IN THE BIG WOODS - - -“How far have we hiked, Elmer, would you say?” - -“About twelve miles, at a rough guess, Perk.” - -“Huh! then we ought to be close to the ford, where this old river -road crosses to the east shore of the Beaverkill, eh, Elmer?” - -“If you listen carefully, Perk, you’ll hear the gurgle of the water -among the stepping stones that lie at the upper edge of Galloway’s -Ford.” - -“That’s a fact; and say, I might have noticed it before now, only I -was so busy watching some honey-bees working in the wild flowers -alongside the road, and wondering if we’d be lucky enough to run -across their hive, away up in the top of some hollow tree. Wow! the -very idea makes my mouth water.” - -“Well, once across the river and we’ll have about four miles more to -tramp before we can pitch camp; is that O.K., Elmer?” - -“A close guess for you, Wee Willie; but over a rough trail instead -of this fairly decent road. Above the ford on this side there’s just -a tote-road leading up to Si. Keck’s deserted lumber camp that lies, -you remember, on the edge of Muskrat Swamp. This road crosses to the -other side, and runs to Crawford Notch, ten miles away.” - -“Huh!” - -The chap who uttered this last exclamation half belligerently was -what you might call a “horrible example” of the folly often -displayed by boys when clapping a “nick-name” on some unsuspecting -comrade. - -Really “Wee Willie” was a full head taller than any one of his three -chums, having possibly “shot up” overnight when about fourteen, as -often happens—he was three years past that age now. - -Perhaps at one time young Winkleman may have seemed puny and -undersized, so that he really merited the queer sobriquet his mates -had fastened upon him. But nowadays it seemed absolutely ridiculous, -and few ever used it save when accompanied by a whimsical grin that -must have become exceedingly annoying to the tall, angular, -sandy-haired and freckled youth; more especially since he had of -late been taking girls to country barn-dances. - -The boy named “Perk,” really Aloysius Green Perkins, a rosy-faced, -genial-looking, and altogether wholesome chap, whom everybody liked, -once more spoke up. He was wheezing, being a bit stout of build, and -frequently mopped his face with a suspiciously dingy-looking red -bandanna; for the summer day had been rather warm, and each fellow -carried quite a weighty pack on his back. - -“I’m more than sorry I kept you waiting for me, because I wanted to -see my dad when his train came in; but I had an important message -for him, you know. So I guess it’s my fault if we have to make the -last lap of our big hike after night sets in.” - -“We should worry a whole lot about that!” disdainfully chortled the -tall tramper. “Here’s Elmer got his fine pocket flashlight along; -and besides, if we feel like it we can hold up a bit, and wait for -the old moon to come along. She’s due shortly after dark sets in, -you remember, fellows, being just past the full stage.” - -“You’ve said it, Wee Willie,” remarked Elmer; “and we ought to be -good for a few more miles.” - -“Huh!” grunted the tall chap, just as before, as though the mention -of that name grated on his nerves. - -“Sure thing,” assented Perk, sturdily, though at the time it is -possible his plump lower limbs were feeling more or less “wobbly” -under him. - -“Here’s the ford, and now to cross over,” remarked the fourth member -of the party, Amos Codling by name, who was rather a newcomer in -Chester; though ever since his advent, some six months previous, he -and Elmer Kitching had been fast friends after a sort of David and -Jonathan fashion. - -The Beaverkill was not at a high stage, owing to summer droughts, -but made up for this by being unusually noisy at the point where its -waters ran past the “stepping stones,” forming eddies, and pools of -foam-crested water. - -The four chums proceeded to cross over. As a rule they were -nimblefooted, and found little trouble in springing from rock to -rock. Once, however, fat Perk came near slipping into the “drink,” -when he made a little miscalculation. However, it happened that wise -Elmer had been “keeping tabs” on the movements of the other, and -managed to throw out a helping hand just in the nick of time. - -So at last they reached the other shore. Perk was heard to draw a -long breath as of real relief; for he believed he had just had a -narrow escape from taking an involuntary bath, in which his pack -must have been thoroughly soaked as well as himself. - -“Now we leave the Crawford Notch road, and take to the trail that -leads to Log Cabin Bend above here,” announced Elmer, who seemed to -be looked upon as a leader among his mates. - -“I reckon now this might be your old trail,” mentioned Wee Willie, -as he pointed indifferently down at his feet. - -Elmer agreed with him, for the “signs” were all there. And so -without wasting any time in argument they started off in single -file, with Perk fetching up the rear. - -Already the sun was low down, and night could not be far distant. -The trees up in this region were unusually tall, for the lumberman -had not as yet attacked the eastern side of the Beaverkill. - -“Say, let me tell you, it’s going to be some gloomy around here -pretty soon,” observed the tall boy, after they had been tramping in -this fashion for at least fifteen minutes, keeping up quite a lively -pace. - -Amos sighed, as though he might be carrying a little more than his -share of boyish troubles himself; at which Elmer half turned his -head to glance uneasily at his chum; doubtless wondering what it -could be that of late was making the other seem so heavy-hearted. - -They continued to plunge along, Elmer setting the pace. Already two -of the four miles had been left behind them, a fact that Perk heard -the leader state with much joy, though he only grunted in his -peculiar way. - -“Hope you don’t lose touch with this blinky old trail, Elmer,” -suggested Wee Willie, apparently with a motive in view. - -“That would be pretty tough on us, for a fact,” chuckled the other; -“and as it’s getting to be something of a strain on my eyes to pick -my way, I reckon it’s time we had a little artificial help.” - -With that there immediately sprang into existence a glow from his -electric flashlight that brightly illuminated the forest ahead. - -“That’s the ticket!” ejaculated the relieved Perk as they continued -to move along their way, winding in among the aisles of the tall -timber, but in the main keeping toward the north. - -“I understand there’s some sort of queer history connected with this -old abandoned cabin at the big bend of the river; do you happen to -know anything about it, Elmer?” asked Amos, presently. - -“Oh! I’ve heard some strange things about it,” came the quick reply; -“but I’m not feeling just in the humor to mention any of the same -right now. They’ll keep until some evening, when we’re sitting -around the fire, and spinning yarns.” - -“Some of them are just _aw_ful,” Perk was heard remarking from a -little distance in the rear, for at times he seemed to lag more or -less; “but of course I never take much stock in such old women -stories.” - -“All the same there _was_ some sort of tragedy took place—” began -Wee Willie, when Elmer stopped him short by saying: - -“Drop that, old fellow; we said we’d avoid any and all unpleasant -subjects for to-night, when all of us are feeling a bit tired and -grumpy. Let’s figure out what sort of supper we’d enjoy most when we -arrive. I always look forward to the first meal in camp.” - -“And the next one, too,” sighed Perk. - -That started them on a congenial topic always deeply absorbing to -healthy and hungry lads; and they continued to lay out a program -which, had it been carried through in its entirety, must have made -serious inroads in the limited stock of provisions carried on their -backs. - -Later on they relapsed into silence again, being pretty well worn -out and in need of refreshment. It was about this time that all of -them received a sudden rude shock when there came a savage snarl; -and as Elmer threw his light to the quarter whence came the -significant sound they discovered a crouching figure on the low limb -of a tree under which the winding trail to Log Cabin Bend apparently -ran. - - - - - CHAPTER II - - THE FIRST CAMPFIRE - - -“Oh! what’s that?” gasped Perk. - -“Stand perfectly still, everybody, or he may jump at us!” commanded -the leader. - -“A whopping big cat, for a fact!” muttered Wee Willie, fumbling -about his waist, where he usually carried a homely so-called -“hunting knife” in a leather sheath, when on the hike. - -“See his yellow and green eyes, will you!” muttered Amos. “He acts -as if as mad as hops because we came along. What ails him, do you -think, Elmer?” - -“I couldn’t say,” replied the other, softly, “unless this one -happens to be a mother cat, with kits somewhere close by. They say -such a varmint is always doubly dangerous to a man in the woods, -especially after nightfall sets in.” - -“What’ll we do about it—back out?” came in Perk’s quavering voice. - -“I’d hate to do that, for fear of losing the trail,” said Elmer. - -“But we’d get clawed up something fierce, wouldn’t we, if it came to -a fight with the savage critter? Just listen to the snarls, will -you?” the stout boy went on to say. - -“Hold on!” suddenly remarked Amos; “leave it all to me, and I think -I can do the business. Just keep quiet for a minute or so, and then -see what’s going to happen.” - -He was heard fumbling with some of the stuff he carried. - -“You haven’t got a gun along now, have you, Amos?” asked Perk, with -possible visions of a wounded wildcat charging them, and committing -more or less scratching and biting before giving up the ghost. - -“Something a heap better’n that,” panted Amos, himself excited for -fear the enraged beast might leap before he got his plans ready for -carrying out. “There, now I’ve got the thing loose; give me just -time enough to put a cartridge in place. Don’t be startled, fellows, -when I pull the trigger. It’s my camera flashlight I’m going to work -on the old rascal. Steady now!” - -“Oh!” gasped Perk, comprehendingly. - -[Illustration: “A whopping big cat, for a fact!”] - -Even as he made this sound there came a dazzling flare that caused -every one to blink as if half blinded; indeed, a flash of lightning -could not have had a more startling effect. - -“He jumped!” cried Perk, “but away from us! You certainly gave him -the scare of his life, Amos, with your bully camera outfit. Let’s be -pushing along, boys; somehow I don’t quite like this section of -woods very much.” - -No one made any objection, and so the march was resumed. It might -have been noticed, however, that Perk made it a point not to lag -behind. He was continually imagining he saw crouching figures on -many a low hanging limb when Elmer’s light moved this way and that. - -So they proceeded until finally Elmer announced that according to -his belief they were close to their destination. - -“Thank you for saying that, Elmer,” remarked Perk, whole-heartedly, -as if he had never listened to more delightful words. - -“Yes, here’s the river on our left,” added Wee Willie, -encouragingly; “and it looks to me as if we might be rounding the -bend right now.” - -“Just what we are,” affirmed Amos. “A bit back we were heading due -east, and now our course is almost north.” - -“Well, there’s the old moon going peeking up on the right,” Perk -commented, cheerily. “I can’t remember a time I felt happier to -glimpse her smiling face. I’m tired of seeing things lying in wait -for us. Ugh!” - -Indeed, all of them felt somewhat the same way, so that when the -moon was discovered through the aisles of the forest her appearance -was greeted joyfully. - -“Keep your eyes on the lookout for any signs of the old cabin,” -Elmer warned his three chums. “It would be a joke on us if we went -past without discovering it. But I’ve a notion this dim trail ought -to lead straight to the door.” - -Accordingly four pairs of eager eyes kept on the alert every minute -of the time, and presently Wee Willie, who possessed remarkably keen -vision, made an eager announcement. - -“There, over a little to the left—I’m sure it must be a shack under -that big tree!” he hastened to say. - -“Something moved just then; didn’t you see it slip away?” Perk added -in a thrilling whisper. - -“You’re still dreaming of cats by the wholesale, Perk!” chided the -tall chum, disdainfully. - -“It was _something_ that seemed to double over, and disappear back -in the shadows!” sturdily declared the stout boy; “mebbe only a dog, -though!” - -“And what would any dog be doing away up here?” demanded Wee Willie. - -“Well, I’ve heard of wild dogs, that have run away from some farm, -and taken to living like their ancestors did by the chase,” Perk -maintained. - -“You only imagined you saw something, so forget it, please,” the -other assured him. “Now, here’s the cabin, let’s see what she looks -like, Elmer!” - -By making good use of his little hand torch the leader was able to -do as requested. They all stared eagerly, and then Wee Willie gave -vent to a grunt of disappointment. - -“Huh! a rickety old shack it is, believe me, boys!” he grumbled. -“The door hangs on one rusty hinge; and it looks to me as if the -roof might be as full of holes as a housewife’s sieve. Say, just -imagine a bally storm hitting us when cooped up in this rotten crib! -We’d get soaked to the bone, chances are. I think we’d be sensible -to make a brush shanty. Besides, now, I wouldn’t be surprised if the -old cabin was haunted.” - -“Oh! what makes you believe so?” demanded the thrilled Perk, his -thoughts possibly flying back to the flitting shadow he believed he -had detected at the time of their arrival on the scene. - -“Never mind what he says, Perk,” soothed Elmer. “Here’s the cabin, -and if it is rather dilapidated, what’s to hinder our mending the -roof to-morrow, I’d like to know? Not much sign of rain to-night, as -far as I can see.” - -“It’s all right, boys,” Amos now went on to say, cheerily; “let’s go -inside and get shut of these pesky packs. My shoulders feel raw from -carrying such a load for miles and miles. Mine must weigh twice as -much as when we started out.” - -“Oh, easily four times that,” chanted Perk, eagerly. “There’s one -good thing, though, they’ll be heaps and heaps lighter going back -home.” - -“Sure thing, if your appetite is what it’s usually been, Perk,” -chuckled Wee Willie, as he pushed after Elmer, who had started to -enter the abandoned cabin. - -“Drop the things here, and let’s get a fire started as soon as we -can,” suggested Elmer. - -“Indoors or out?” demanded Wee Willie, as though by rights he took -that order on his shoulders; for it happened that he had long been -known as a veritable “crank” when it came to building fires, and -could manage to accomplish this result without the use of matches in -half a dozen different ways, some of them really wonderful. - -“Outside for this time might be better, as the night is so warm, and -we don’t want to take chances of burning our shelter down about our -ears,” he was told. - -That was enough for the tall chum, who tossing down his pack -borrowed Elmer’s hand torch so as to be able to gather some wood, -and passing out, proceeded to business. Perk pulled out a fragment -of a candle, purloined from home, which he lighted, and set on the -gaping hearth. - -“It isn’t much of a glim, but better than nothing at all,” he -hastened to say in apology. “I always carry some fag-ends of candles -when I’m out camping; you never know when you’ll need such things in -a hurry. Whew! so this is the shack that gave the place the name of -Log Cabin Bend? You c’n see the stars through the holes in the roof, -for a fact.” - -“We’ll mend that in the morning, Perk, so quit poking fun at our -palatial abode,” chided Amos. “And if you asked me, I’d say there’s -no apparent reason why we shouldn’t make ourselves mighty comfy -here, given a little time, and some elbow grease.” - -Already had the fire-maker managed to start his blaze, though likely -enough he did not scorn to make use of a plain every-day match on -this special occasion, knowing it was hardly the time for any -“fiddling” with tedious methods of inducing a spark, coaxed into -being by means of flint and steel, or some other aboriginal method -of procedure. - -As the flames leaped up, seizing on the dry wood Wee Willie had -arranged so cleverly, the glow attracted the others, who came -trooping out, showing by their actions how pleased they were to be -finally free from their burdens. - -“The first campfire for this outing!” remarked Perk, his round face -aglow, while his eyes sparkled with satisfaction. “And how long will -it be before your fire is fit for cooking over, Wee Willie?” - -The other gave him a queer look, and seemed on the point of saying -something sharp, but restrained himself. - -“Right soon, so you might as well be getting the ham and eggs and -coffee out of the packs, fellows. Say, I’m as hungry as a homeless -dog; so be sure you cook double rations, Perk.” - -“Leave that to me,” chuckled the other, ambling back inside the -cabin in order to round up the necessary cooking implements and then -root out the ingredients of the first meal in camp. - -Elmer walked about meanwhile as though investigating the -surroundings, so as to figure on what they would find it necessary -to do in order to make the old shack habitable. Several times Wee -Willie glanced toward the other as though he might have something on -his mind. Finally he arose from his knees and joined Elmer. - -“Noticed you sniffing like you suspected there might be a skunk in -the offing?” he finally remarked. “Fact is, I thought myself there -was a queer kind of odor around here, inside the cabin in -particular.” - -“That’s the idea I had,” assented Elmer, softly, “but this isn’t -anything in the line of a polecat; if you asked me I’d say it was -some sort of villainous tobacco, such as a tramp might pick up in a -wayside field, and smoke in his pipe as he lay around after his -supper!” - -“By George, fellows! there goes somebody now! I’m _sure_ I saw him -this time!” said Perk excitedly, coming through the door and -pointing through a dusky lane of trees. “Now tell me again that I am -only imagining things!” - - - - - CHAPTER III - - THE CHUM BELOVED - - -After all Elmer’s effort to keep his voice down when talking to the -tall chum, Perk had heard what was said. He happened to be coming -out of the door just at that moment, as luck would have it, and so -caught the full significance of the remark. But try as they might, -no one else saw the lurking figure he again pointed out. - -“I guess you score, Perk,” admitted the one addressed, for whatever -Wee Willie had in the way of faults, and he was not by any means -perfect, he never failed to make amends when an occasion arose for -it. - -“What’s all the talk about, I want to know?” demanded Amos, showing -up just then, and with all a natural boy’s curiosity aroused. - -“Why, Elmer was just saying, and I agreed with him,” explained the -tall pal, “that there was an odor of stale tobacco smoke hanging -around this old cabin. He thinks it may have been some wandering -tramp who put up here for the night.” - -“But,” interposed Perk, “why should he skip out so quick when he -heard us coming along the trail, or else caught the glimmer of -Elmer’s torch? You’d think the poor chap’d feel mighty lonely, away -off the beaten track of his kind, and be glad of our company.” - -“Which remark shows how little you know of the hobo tribe in -general,” chuckled the angular boy. “Most of the Weary Willies are -born thieves, and only want a chance to steal to let themselves -out.” - -“Many are, anyhow,” admitted the more conservative Elmer, “and for -all we know, this fellow has done something that makes him afraid of -officers of the Law.” - -“But he may come back again?” hazarded Perk, dubiously, a cloud -beginning to gather upon his forehead, as though some of his -expectations of a carefree holiday had received a sudden and -unexpected backset. - -“That’s true enough for you, Perk,” agreed the grinning Wee Willie; -“but take my word for it, if he does it’ll not be to make our -acquaintance.” - -“What then?” asked the other, quickly, looking worried still. - -“Oh! I reckon tramps have _fero_cious appetites, and get good and -hungry,” continued the tall chum; “and if he hangs around for a bit -he’ll smell our jolly supper cooking, which ought to make him -well-nigh frantic.” - -“Then you mean he may sneak back here during the night, with the -idea of stealing some of our grub; is that it?” questioned Perk, his -anxiety taking a new turn. - -“It wouldn’t surprise me much if he did,” coolly observed Wee -Willie. - -“But you’re only guessing it was a tramp,” said Amos just then. - -“Why, yes, that’s a fact,” admitted Elmer. “To be sure the man might -be something entirely different from a hobo.” - -“As what, Elmer?” asked Perk. - -“Oh! there are a number of answers to your question, Perk,” the -leader informed him. “For instance, this chap might be some fugitive -from justice who had broken jail, and was in hiding.” - -“Yes, or even a lunatic at large,” continued Wee Willie, perhaps -amused to see how eagerly the other was swallowing all these -suggestions; “for we happen to know such a thing did happen once, -years back; for the State Asylum for the Insane is located not much -more’n twenty miles northeast of our home town of Chester.” - -“Then there might be another explanation for his being here,” spoke -up Amos. “I chanced to be talking with the head game warden only a -week back, and he told me he had never known the game poachers so -daring as this season. They have shot deer, snared partridge and -rabbits out of season, and laid illegal set-lines for black bass in -some of the best lakes of the county.” - -“Yes,” Elmer added, thoughtfully, “it might be one of those bold -game hogs who didn’t want to be seen up here, where he really had no -right to be. But why bother our heads so about the fellow? He’s -skipped out, and the chances are we’ll never glimpse hide nor hair -of him again. Perk was the only one who got a peep at the slippery -rascal.” - -Accordingly the subject was dropped, for the time being at any rate; -but Perk looked unusually grave as he proceeded to get supper, as -though creeping, mysterious men kept looming up before his mental -vision. - -Indeed, doubtless the little mystery connected with the strange -actions of the unknown would give each one of the boys cause for -more or less reflection, and vague speculation. - -The supper was voted a great success. Perk prided himself on his -ability as a cook; and since the others usually commended his -efforts to the skies he almost always insisted on doing the lion’s -share of this work; to which of course no one objected in the least. - -The sliced ham was browned to a nicety, the eggs, carefully packed -so as not to be broken in transit, were “turned” or not, to suit the -individual taste of each fellow; the coffee seemed like ambrosia, so -fragrant and cheering did it appear; while the home-made bread, with -genuine butter for a spread, added much to the enjoyment of their -first meal in camp. - -These four lads of Chester had been accustomed to similar outings -during the summer holidays, and thus banded together called -themselves the “Camp Fire Boys,” a name that seemed to possess a -certain charm in their eyes as it was bound always to recall the -jolly times they had when camping out in company. - -Elmer Kitching had always possessed an ardent love for everything -connected with the Great Outdoors. He came by this nature honestly, -for his father in his day had been a well-known naturalist, whom -such famous men as Teddy Roosevelt himself, John Burroughs, and -others along the same line had been glad to consult when preparing -articles for publication, in order to verify their own observations -concerning animated nature. - -His mother, now a widow, was comfortably well off, and Elmer had a -young sister at home by the name of Rebecca. - -Amos Codling lived with his mother and three younger children. They -had not mingled very much with other folks since coming to Chester; -the widow returned no calls, and seemed content to look after her -family. Some were inclined to think this rather strange; but by -degrees it became the conviction of her neighbors that she must have -seen great trouble, and shrank from contact with the rough world. -Her children were always well dressed, and bright in school; but -even the town gossips could find out next to nothing about the -previous history of the Codling family, save that they came from a -big city. - -Wee Willie Winkleman was the son of the owner of the finest motion -picture theater in Chester. As has been stated before, his -prevailing passion was the ambition to discover new and novel -methods of making fires without the use of matches. That had become -such a “fad” with the tall chum that he even dreamed about it, and -had been known to get up in the middle of the night to try out some -queer scheme which had visited him in his sleep. - -Perk, the beloved pal, was famous for his amiable disposition. Few -fellows had ever seen him show a trace of anger. Indeed, his beaming -smile could, the boys claimed, melt the flinty heart of almost any -farmer around town; though this rule had its exceptions. Perk was -frequently in trouble; likewise rosy-cheeked, and guileless, he was -also addicted to straying from beaten paths in the woods, and -getting lost; but never from the truth, since his word was as good -as most fellows’ bond. His father was a railroad engineer, and -likewise rather ponderous of build. - -As the evening crept along, Wee Willie every once in a while might -have been noticed glancing sharply in the direction of Amos. It -struck him that the other was acting unusually nervous, for he would -get up and walk around for a minute or two, and then again throw -himself down. - -“Something must be bothering Amos, that’s dead sure,” the tall chum -told himself; and at the same time determined to speak of the fact -to Elmer if a chance offered. - -He had never been quite as close to Amos as Elmer, though for that -matter it was extremely doubtful if even the latter had been taken -into the confidence of the Codling boy, who knew how to keep a -“close mouth,” as Wee Willie called it. - -“Still, it may be he’s eaten too much supper, and his digestion is -troubling him,” was the final conclusion Wee Willie reached. - -They sat around for some time, talking after their habit. It was -hard to realize that they were all of sixteen miles from home, and -surrounded by the primeval forest, up there in the Tall Timber, as -that belt of the big wilderness was known. - -“This just suits me to a dot,” Wee Willie said for the fourth time -as he poked at the fire, and sighed with complete happiness. “Guess -I was just born to be a tramp, and make fires across the whole -Continent, I love to hear the crackle of the flames so much.” - -“I’m really concerned about you sometimes, Wee Willie,” said Elmer, -pretending to look serious, though the sparkle in his gray eyes -belied his words and manner. “If this craze for fires keeps up -you’ll be tempted to run with the machine; and then when there’s a -slacking up of business set a few haystacks ablaze just to keep your -hand in.” - -“Not much I will,” retorted the other. “My fad is in inventing new -and novel ways for _creating_ fires. I consider a good blaze man’s -best friend, when held in hand; let it break away, and I own up it -may become his worst enemy. All good things can be abused, remember, -and fire isn’t an exception to the general rule.” - -“About time we looked after our beds, isn’t it?” asked Perk, -accompanying his words with a tremendous yawn. - -“Oh! that isn’t going to take much time,” scoffed Wee Willie, -“seeing how we all share alike. It’s a hard bed for to-night, on the -floor of the cabin. To-morrow we’ll hunt for hemlock browse, and -ease things up. I’m the one who will suffer most, because my bones -stick out so, without pads, like Perk here carries around with him.” - -Amidst considerable merriment they soon laid out their double -camping blankets, of a gray or dun color as most suitable for the -purpose, and “less liable to show dirt spots,” as Perk always slyly -claimed. - -“It’s good night boys for me,” that individual was saying, as he -stripped off his coat, kicked his shoes into a corner and commenced -to crawl under his warm woolen cover. “Say, this feels just great; -you fellows’d better make up your minds to follow my example, and -turn in.” - -He was sound asleep in less than ten minutes, when the others were -ready to seek cover. Wee Willie stared down at his round moonlike -face, and nodded his head as he turned to Elmer and Amos to say -softly: - -“Looks like a sweet cherub lying there, with such a happy smile on -his mug. No use talking, Perk is the best-natured chap in seven -counties. I’ve been mean enough more’n a few times to try my level -best to make him mad, but had to give it up; he just looked at me, -and kept on smiling until I had to turn and walk away bested; bless -his big heart!” - -Elmer nodded in approval of these words of appreciation, and Amos -too showed that he echoed the sentiments expressed by the tall chum. - -“I’ve known a lot of fellows,” he went on to say, “but never his -like. If all boys were built like good old Perk there’d be a heap -less trouble in this world. I know I’d have been saved more or less -suffering myself.” - -Wee Willie looked quickly at the speaker, as though he half expected -Amos to take them into his confidence; but instead the other simply -bent down and started to push his extremities under his blanket. - -The fire still burned without, and although the door was closed, -Perk having succeeded in fastening it with a piece of stout rope, -through innumerable apertures the flickering glow stole, making -queer pictures on the wall beyond, that came and went like phantom -drawings. - -Elmer lay there and watched them for some time, his thoughts far -afield, possibly in his Chester home with the dear ones there. -Gradually his eyes closed and he lost track of even these precious -ties in restful slumber. - -Time passed by, several hours elapsing, when Elmer suddenly sat -half-way up. Surely he had heard the yapping of a dog somewhere near -by. This not only interested him but aroused an intense curiosity. -Then he noticed that both Wee Willie and Amos also gave signs of -being awake. - -Now voices could be heard. They were heavy tones that came to -Elmer’s ears, as of mature men. Crunching footsteps followed, then a -loud pounding. - -“Open up here!” boomed a voice, followed by further sonorous knocks. - - - - - CHAPTER IV - - UNEXPECTED VISITORS - - -“All right, dad; I’m up!” - -That was Perk, who, aroused so suddenly by the racket doubtless -imagined himself at home in his own bed, with his father rapping on -the wall when the son indulged in his favorite habit of oversleeping -mornings. - -Elmer, Amos and Wee Willie were already on deck, having jumped to -their feet in a hurry. The gruff voice seemed to be one invested -with some degree of authority; it struck them all “in a heap,” as -the tall chum afterwards described the sudden awakening. - -Again came that loud thumping on the quivering door. - -“Hurry up and open, do you hear?” rasped the voice, now with a touch -of anger in the tones. “Don’t think you can escape, because we’ve -got you cornered like a rat. Better be sensible, and go back with -us!” - -“Oh! my stars! who is it, and what _does_ he mean?” gasped Perk, -realizing at last that things were quite different from what he had -at first imagined. - -Perk was really responsible for the fastened door. He had in his -timidity pictured the frowsy tramp creeping back when they were all -fast asleep, and perhaps almost cleaning out their limited supply of -provisions, thus bringing the glorious camping trip to an untimely -end; since four healthy boys could not be expected to stay up in the -woods without sufficient “grub” to keep the wolf from the door. - -So he had managed to make a shift with a piece of clothes-line -(which was likely to be searched for in vain at home when next -washday came along), securing the door so that it could not be -opened from without unless by a display of extreme violence. - -Elmer was by now across the cabin. He touched the planks of which -the door was composed, to find them still quivering under the impact -of the unknown party’s knuckles. - -“Wait a minute, and we’ll open up; the door is fastened, don’t you -understand? Hold your horses, Mister; I’m undoing it right now!” he -called out. - -Immediately he caught the sound of voices again just beyond. -Evidently the men, whoever they might turn out to be, seemed -astonished at something, perhaps disappointed in the bargain. Once -more there also came to the ears of the boys the eager whining of a -dog. Elmer imagined that this animal might have been partly -responsible for the visit of these midnight prowlers. - -Perk gave a low cry as the door suddenly swung back under Elmer’s -push. The moon was shining brightly, and standing there in its -mellow glow were two stalwart figures and a hound. The first thing -Perk noticed was the fact that both men were garbed in some sort of -uniform, with caps that bordered on the military. - -Meanwhile the two men were bending forward and looking at the -youthful group that filled the doorway of the cabin. One of them -gave a grunt, and followed this with a scornful laugh that grated on -the nerves like a file. - -“There you are, Collins, with all your being so sure we’d find the -tricky chap located here, just because his trail headed this way. -Sold again, Elihu, and off the scent once more! Now perhaps you’ll -pay some attention to _my_ plan of campaign, since yours has petered -out so flat.” - -The other man continued to stare at Elmer and his mates. - -“Who are you chaps anyway, and what’re you doing here?” he demanded. - -“Oh! that’s easily explained,” said the Kitching boy cheerily. “We -all belong in Chester, you see, and make up the Camp Fire Boys’ -Club. Just now we are on one of our regular trips to the woods for -sport, and to wind up the summer vacation. My name is Elmer -Kitching, this is Amos Codling; the tall chum is a son of Caleb -Winkleman who owns the classy motion picture theater in our town; -and the last boy is Perk—his dad is an engineer on the B. & S. -Railroad. Might I ask who you are, and what you expected to find -here in this shack at Old Cabin Bend of the Beaverkill?” - -“That’s a civil question, youngster, and since you’ve been so -obliging, I don’t mind answering it. Me and my mate Andrews here are -guards over at the big State Asylum for the Insane. A few days ago -one of the inmates managed to escape, and we’ve been searching the -whole countryside for him ever since. Our hound here found and lost -his trail again and again in the queerest way ever. The last time he -ran it out the fugitive was heading this way. Somehow I got a notion -he must know about this old cabin here, and was making for it. You -see I originally came from Crawford Notch, and knew all about the -deserted cabin up here. So I influenced my pal to drop around.” - -“Yes,” broke in the man who had been called Andrews, “and when we -caught the glimmer of a dying fire through the trees, Collins here -was dead sure we’d treed our coon at last. But the game is all off -again, it seems; and we can start in looking where we left off; -warning the farmers as we go to keep their eyes peeled for a clever -chap who’ll hoodwink them with his blarney, if he gets half a -chance.” - -“Thank you for telling us,” said Elmer; “and in return let me say -that when we struck this cabin some time after moonrise to-night, -there was an odor of stale tobacco smoke hanging around inside. One -of my chums here also declared he glimpsed some sort of figure -bending over like an animal, and getting out of sight in a hurry!” - -At hearing this the men both uttered exclamations that told of -renewed interest. “That sounds interesting,” said Collins, warmly. -“It might be we can pick up a fresh trail around these diggings. -About where was it he was seen?” - -“Perk, step up here,” said Elmer; “can you point out the spot for -the gentlemen?” - -“Sure thing, Elmer. There, over to the left yonder, see the tree -that seems to bend over toward the southeast—it was right under that -same I sighted a moving figure; but it flashed out of sight before I -could rub my eyes twice to make sure.” - -“That’s aplenty, Perk, and thank you,” said Collins, who seemed a -pretty decent sort of a chap after all, though he must have been -terribly disappointed when his theory turned to bitter fruit; his -comrade’s jeers too had not added to his enjoyment of the situation. - -“Let’s try the dog around that place,” immediately suggested the -other man, plainly full of action. “If it’s our bird, Jock’ll soon -give tongue, and lead us off right smart.” - -“Our only play, I reckon,” agreed Collins. “So good night, boys; -hope you have a bully time of it in camp; used to do that sort of -thing myself years back, and know what it means. We’ll soon be -clearing out of this region, hit or miss, so you won’t be pestered -with our hound barking for long.” - -Elmer and the others saw them hurry away with mingled emotions. -Despite the fact that the night air seemed pretty chilly, and their -garments exceedingly thin, they continued to huddle in the open -doorway, listening and watching. - -Even Perk refused to go back again to his snug blanket so long as -the other three remained there; and once Elmer heard him saying -softly, as though to himself: - -“Poor thing, just to think of him out of his mind, and wandering at -large in these big woods, hungry, and without even a blanket to hug -nights. I almost wish he’d crept in, and cribbed that last loaf of -bread we fetched along.” - -That was Perk all over, full of feeling for any one apt to be -suffering; and it was this spirit of wanting to be of service that -endeared him to the hearts of all his boy friends in Chester. - -“There’s the hound picking up!” snapped Amos, suddenly. - -“But you want to notice there isn’t a note of eagerness in his -baying,” added Elmer, quickly. “If he’s found any sort of scent at -all, it isn’t what he’s been searching for. You can even detect a -sort of disappointed sound about his mournful notes.” - -“That’s what!” echoed Wee Willie. “Either the lunatic has been too -smart for the trackers, or else it wasn’t him after all, and the dog -knows it.” - -Elmer shut the door again, though only with an effort, owing to its -really dilapidated condition. And Perk, as if in duty bound, -proceeded again to adjust his rope guard. It had served them one -good turn already, he figured; because had those two guards burst -suddenly in upon them, their consternation must have been many times -aggravated. - -“A nice state of affairs, I must say!” Wee Willie was grumbling. “We -came all the way up here to camp in solitude and peace, and now see -what we’re up against! Gee whiz! can you beat it?” - -“No, but mebbe we’d better beat it for home,” Perk faintly -suggested, as if even the thought gave him fresh pain. - -“Here, none of that, Perk,” sternly rebuked Elmer. “We’re not the -kind to be frightened off by such a silly little thing as that. -We’ll stick it out, no matter what comes along!” - -“Hear! hear!” came from Wee Willie; while Amos too added his voice -to the chorus, and even Perk hastened to say: - -“Oh! I didn’t really mean it, I assure you, boys, and you can -believe me. I’ll hang on as long as the next one, no matter if the -whole asylum breaks loose.” - - - - - CHAPTER V - - ALL BUSY AS BEAVERS - - -It was some time before the boys could settle down again to sleep. -Perk often believed he could catch a distant yap from the ranging -hound, and it never failed to give him a thrill. The beast had -seemed both big, and inclined to be savage; and Perk could not help -shuddering to think of his getting loose from his leash and coming -on the cringing lunatic somewhere in the lonely timber. - -But finally even the anxious Perk succumbed, and when he again -opened his eyes it was to find that daylight had come, with Elmer -outside starting up the fire, and some one else rattling the tin -pans, as if getting ready for a jolly breakfast. - -As that was encroaching on his private preserves, Perk hastened to -bob up and assure the others he would soon be on deck, prepared to -make a mess of his savory “flapjacks,” as he had solemnly promised -to do the very first morning in camp. - -Soon every one was busily engaged, for there was bound to be “heaps” -of work laid out for that wonderful day. Amos was examining the -dilapidated roof of the cabin and settling just how they should go -about rendering it waterproof; Wee Willie beat some batter in a tin -vessel, under the eye of the self-constituted master of ceremonies -(for Perk had actually donned a snow-white peakless cap, fashioned -after a regular _chef’s_ headgear, doubtless meaning to have no -dispute regarding his recognized rights to the exalted title); while -Elmer had taken to looking around outside, especially over in the -quarter of the leaning birch tree. - -He came over to the fire a little later, and Wee Willie at once -detected indications in his face that made him suspicious. - -“You’ve discovered something new, Elmer, now don’t deny it!” he -immediately asserted. - -“What is it?” hastily demanded Perk. - -“Well,” said Elmer, quietly, “it’s just this; whoever that man may -be, he came back again during the night!” - -This information caused all of the others to show fresh interest. -Perk was just in the act of tossing aloft his first flapjack, and in -his nervousness he actually missed connections, so that the -delectable morsel ignominiously fell into the ashes, and was thus -lost. - -“It wasn’t up to the mark, anyhow,” the nervous cook hastened to say -in apology; “first off the pan shouldn’t be eaten, I always claim. -But you _did_ give me a jolt, Elmer, when you said that.” - -“How do you know?” questioned Wee Willie; “run across the sign, did -you?” - -“He walked completely around the cabin twice,” stated the other. -“From the indications I’d say he must have been a heap surprised to -discover that it had occupants; for I take it, he could hear some of -us breathing pretty hard.” - -“Huh! needn’t all look right at _me_,” Wee Willie hastened to snap, -as he colored up amidst his freckles. “I made out to lie on my side -the whole live-long night, I’d take my affidavy on that. I admit -that once in a while I do snore; but that’s when I roll over on my -back, and have been gorging at supper on such things as mince pie -and other heavy stuff. Go on, Elmer!” - -“I know what you are thinking,” Elmer continued; “how could I decide -that the man didn’t make those marks before we came? I’ll tell you -what proof I have right now. In the first place there isn’t much dew -in the tracks, which I reckon would indicate that the footprints -were made shortly before dawn. Am I right there, Wee Willie? You’re -well up in woodcraft, and ought to be able to say.” - -“Sounds good to me,” grunted the other, wagging his head violently -in the affirmative, while a pleased expression on his thin face told -how much he felt complimented by having Elmer defer in this fashion -to his judgment. - -“Well, I had another good proof,” Elmer went on to say, with one of -his reassuring smiles. “Where the tracks crossed the marks left by -Collins and his pal they overlapped; that is, this footprint broke -into the ones made by the two guards from the asylum!” - -“Splendid work, Elmer!” cried Perk, this time succeeding brilliantly -in tossing up his second flapjack, which alighted successfully in -the pan, with the browned side up. “Guess he did come prowling -around then, and like as not tried the door more’n once. Say, I’m -real glad I fastened it as well as I did.” - -“What do you suppose he wanted?” queried Amos, looking even more -serious than was his habit. - -“Not being a mind reader,” Elmer told him, “I couldn’t say; but to -make a stab at it I’d guess he hoped we’d gone along, and he could -have his old cabin to himself again.” - -“Well, it’ll always be a big mystery who and what this chap can be,” -Wee Willie concluded. “I only hope now he knows we’re stopping here -he’ll take the hint, and keep off the grass. It’ll go rough with any -hobo _we_ catch bothering our traps, let me tell you. Here, put that -one on this warm plate I’ve got on this flat stone alongside the -fire, Perk. It makes a beginning, and we can soon be starting in to -feed.” - -“Somebody open that bottle of maple syrup,” observed the bustling -cook a little later on, as another “cart-wheel” cake went turning -over in the air, to be caught dexterously again in the pan. “And -when I get a third one ready you’d better start in eating while -they’re fresh and hot. The coffee’s done; and of course I don’t mean -to commence until somebody can spell me here.” - -In good time they were doing full justice to Perk’s famous -flapjacks; which each and every camper solemnly declared when -passing up his pie-tin for more were really unequaled by anything -served at the breakfast table at home. - -Of course Wee Willie presently insisted on taking Perk’s place, so -that the _chef_ might take the edge off his own appetite; until -finally all of them declared they could not swallow another bite, -and with three cakes left over. - -“For munching on between meals, if any one wants a snack,” Perk -explained, as he put them aside. “Nothing to be wasted in this -camp—that is, except perhaps the first tryout in a batch.” - -Then they commenced to do things, each one having jotted down -certain tasks that should be attended to without delay. - -Elmer and Wee Willie took upon their shoulders the mending of the -cabin roof; patching up sundry apertures between the logs of the -walls, where the dried mud had long since fallen away through the -action of time and weather combined; and also renewing the broken -hinge on the cumbersome door. - -Perk insisted on cleaning up the breakfast things; somehow he loved -to serve in the capacity of cook, and his mates seemed perfectly -willing to have it so, strange to say. - -As for Amos, already he had his precious camera out, and announced -his intention of searching the immediate neighborhood, in hopes of -securing some unusual picture. - -“I’d like above all things to find a late partridge on her nest,” he -was explaining ere he sauntered forth. “I’ve always wanted to get a -picture of the bird on her eggs, or strutting around with her -chicks; but I’m afraid it’s a heap too late in the season for such a -thing to happen.” - -“As a rule the early brood is pretty well grown by now,” commented -Elmer; “still, I remember finding a nest with eggs in it as late as -this, and you might be just lucky enough. Wish you success, Amos; -and if I can help you in any way let me know.” - -“Perhaps you may when I get a chance to set a camera trap at night, -so some cunning ’coon, or frisky mink, will take his own picture. -That’s my ambition, you know, Elmer, though I’m not building my -hopes too high, not wanting to be disappointed.” - -“I wouldn’t stray too far away, if I were you, Amos,” hinted Wee -Willie. - -“Oh! I’m a pretty fair woodsman,” insisted the other, “and I reckon -now the chances of my getting lost are small. But I’ll just wander -around the Bend here, and sort of get my bearings, as well as keep -one eye out for anything that appeals to me.” - -“And keep the other on the watch for signs of that tramp, or -lunatic, Amos,” Perk insisted on warning him solicitously. - -So Amos walked away, carrying his camera along with him. Elmer -looked after him with an expression akin to concern on his young -face, which shrewd Wee Willie was quick to notice. - -“Something seems to be bothering him, don’t you think, Elmer?” the -latter asked in a low tone so that Perk might not hear what he said. - -“Y-es, I’ve thought so myself lately,” admitted Elmer, slowly; -“though you remember, Amos has always been a sobersides of a chap -ever since we came to know him. There’s a sort of family trouble -weighing down on him, I reckon; something that is no one else’s -business. I’d like to comfort him if only I knew how to go about it; -but I don’t want to kick in where outsiders have no right. But let’s -change the subject, Wee Willie; I dislike talking about any of my -chums.” - -They worked industriously for an hour and more, and under their -clever tactics the roof began to show decided signs of improvement. -Indeed, already one-half of its surface had been rendered impervious -to water, after the boys had succeeded in thatching it with bark -stripped from certain trees, and overlapping like the shingles on an -ordinary house. - -“By the time we get through we needn’t be afraid of the heaviest -kind of a rainfall,” said Elmer, confidently; “unless it’s -accompanied by a fierce wind, such as might strip all this off in a -jiffy.” - -“Where’s Perk gone?” asked Wee Willie; “I thought I heard him saying -something just then, but it sounded as if he was off somewhere.” - -“I saw him prowling around in the brush yonder ten minutes ago,” -Elmer informed him. “Like as not he’s just bent on seeing if there’s -a good spot for fishing at the Bend here; because, you know Perk -dearly loves to pull in the frisky black bass, or the striped perch, -as well as eat the same.” - -“Listen! wasn’t that him speaking again?” hissed Wee Willie, -stopping his task of fastening a strip of pliable bark with small -round tins, through each of which a nail could be driven, such as -are used to secure tarred paper to the roofs of chicken coops and -other small outbuildings. - -“No, you don’t, not this time, you nasty thing!” Perk was heard -saying half in disgust, and with a tinge of consternation in his -tones. “Curl up again, and shake your old locust rattle as much as -you please, who cares?” - -“Perk!” shouted Elmer excitedly, recognizing a certain dreadful -sound that now floated to his ears, “back away! Don’t fool with a -rattlesnake, you silly! Back water, and in a hurry!” - - - - - CHAPTER VI - - THE EVENTS OF A DAY - - -Both boys leaped to the ground without waiting to agree on any -particular program. They had recognized the peculiar buzz of an -angry rattlesnake, so like the shrill sound made by a locust on a -hot August day, and once heard never afterwards forgotten. - -The thought of their chum taking any chances with such a dangerous -viper thrilled them, and also gave them a chill. Elmer snatched up -the first stick he could see, in which he was speedily imitated by -the other. Then they started on the run, heading directly for the -spot whence that furious whirring sound sprang. - -As they went thus they heard another sort of disturbance, as though -some object might be swishing through the bushes, or else beating -the ground. Then again came the voice of Perk, uttering low -warwhoops, as though furiously engaged, while the rattle gradually -became uncertain, and finally ceased to sound. - -“Take that with my compliments, and here’s another of the same sort! -Huh! lunge at a fellow who didn’t mean to bother you at all, will -you? Guess I’ve done for _your_ hash all right, thanks to this bully -pole. Hello! fellows, just come up in time to see me clip him the -last stunner. He’s settled, don’t you think?” - -Elmer breathed easier when he saw that bulky Perk had snatched up a -convenient pole, and with this had proceeded to break the back-bone -of the angry snake. It was even then squirming on the ground, and -judging from its length must be an old campaigner, being fully three -feet, which could be considered fair proportions for a Northern -specimen. - -“He didn’t get to you, I hope, Perk?” was the first question Elmer -asked, at which the other grinned, and shook his head vigorously in -the negative. - -“Glad to say he didn’t, Elmer; but shucks! if he could only have -flung himself his full length, instead of only half, I believe he’d -have struck me. But I did for him, let me tell you, that’s right. -Six rattles, and a prime button to wind up with, to show for my -encounter! Whew!” - -“But didn’t you hear his warning rattle?” demanded Wee Willie; “I -never knew a case where one of his stripe didn’t shake his can like -thunder before you almost stepped on him. They’re the only honorable -snake there is.” - -Perk colored up, and then candidly admitted his shortcoming. - -“Why, er, you see, I just must have thought it was only a locust -buzzing away like all get-out,” he confessed, in some confusion. -“Then all at once he launched himself out at me, to fall short; but -like a flash he was coiled again, and starting in to make that queer -buzzing sound once more. Oh! yes, I did get a shock, and felt as -cold as ice for a few seconds; then my dander seemed to rise, and I -just looked around for a pole, which luckily enough happened to be -handy. It knocked him silly, you can see.” - -“We’ll take no chances with such a slick neighbor,” said Wee Willie, -who happened to be carrying the camp hatchet in his left hand; with -which he now proceeded to decapitate the squirming snake. “There, be -careful not to step on his head, Perk; I’ve heard of a case where a -man died by doing that, the sharp fangs running into his foot -through his soft moccasin.” - -Perk was contented to obtain possession of the rattle as a memento -of his late exciting encounter. He showed some concern over the -matter. - -“I certainly hope there isn’t a nest of these chaps hanging around -Log Cabin Bend,” he remarked, solicitously. “What with watching for -snakes, and escaped lunatics, I can see where we’re bound to be on -the alert every minute of our stay up here.” - -“So far as that goes, it always pays to keep your eyes open when -afoot in the Tall Timber,” Elmer warned him. “You never know what -you may run up against any minute; and preparedness is the right -bower of every woodsman worthy of the name. Already we’ve run across -three instances of this—first there was that crouching cat Amos -frightened off with his flashlight; then came the mysterious party -who slipped away from the cabin at our approach; and now this -venomous snake that was lying coiled in your path, and on which you -might have trod unawares only for his generous warning.” - -“This ought to be a good lesson to me, Elmer,” humbly admitted the -contrite Perk. “I realize that I’m a whole lot short on woods lore, -and all those things some of my fine pards know so much about; but I -mean to soak in a wheen of the same while we’re up here in camp. -Yes, every time I shake this rattle it’ll remind me how wofully -lacking I am in scoutcraft, and everything connected with life in -the woods.” - -“Everything perhaps except the splendid art of cookery, Perk,” -remarked the cunning Wee Willie, adroitly feeding the ambition of -the other to shine as an artist along such lines; “there you’ve got -the bunch of us left at the post.” - -“Yes,” remarked the other, with a puff of unconscious pride, while -his eyes fairly sparkled with pleasure at receiving such a -compliment, “I suppose a fellow can’t be up head in everything; -where one excels, another fails to hit the mark. And perhaps it’s -just as well that I have a knack for the noble culinary art.” - -Perk went back to camp with the others, as though for the time being -his desire to look around had received a decided setback. - -“I’ll come out and put the ugly thing underground later on,” he -said; “for such trash ought to be buried deep, so as to keep the air -around the camp sweet and pure. I burned some insect powder inside -the cabin, you may have noticed, just to get rid of that stale odor -we took to come from rank tobacco. It’s a disinfectant in the -bargain.” - -“That’s right, Perk,” assented Wee Willie, promptly; “anyway, it -almost disinfected me when I poked my head indoors a while back, to -see if there might be any cavity we’d overlooked. Made the tears -come, too, so that Elmer he asked me, when I got back on the roof, -if I’d had any bad news from home. But then I left the door wide -open, so it’ll gradually pass away, let’s hope.” - -The two menders of leaky roofs were soon at their old job, while -Perk readily found something else to occupy his time and attention. -He had pounded nails galore in the wall near the cavity which was -used as a fireplace, and on these he hung such cooking utensils as -they had fetched along with them, consisting of a large sized -coffeepot; a generous frying pan; some kettles in which grits or -rice or oatmeal might be cooked; likewise a little teapot, for Perk -was a regular old maid when it came to the question of drinking a -decoction of the fragrant herb at lunch or supper, preferring it to -Java at any time. - -Along about half-past-ten by Elmer’s little nickel watch who should -come in but Amos, with a look of eager expectation on his face. - -“Guess you struck oil somewhere, didn’t you, brother?” asked Wee -Willie, as if able rightly to interpret this expression of -anticipated triumph. - -“Would you believe it,” crowed Amos, “I had the great good luck to -scare a bird out of the thicket where the berries are growing that -partridges like to feed on early in the Fall; and on investigating -there was a nest, with some eggs in it, and warm at that? Of course -it’s a silly bird that hopes to fetch up a flock of nestlings -hatched out so near frost time, but it was pie to me!” - -“What did you do?” demanded Perk, looking deeply interested. - -“Well, I fixed my camera so it focussed on the nest, with the proper -effect of light,” explained Amos. “Then I crept away to some little -distance, keeping in tabs with it all, so I’d know when to pull the -string that would free the trigger of the camera, and expose the -plate in a jiffy.” - -“And did it work; was the old bird so little alarmed that she’d come -back to her nest before the eggs got chilled?” continued Perk. - -“Just what she did,” assented the eager photographer, “and as soon -as I saw everything was O. K. I did the business. Knew just when the -trigger sprang, too, for I noticed her give a little jump at the -click. Then she flew off again as I stepped up to recover my camera -that lay on the ground. I certainly do hope I’ve struck a decent -picture; but if not I’ll just keep on trying till I do.” - -“That’s the right spirit, Amos,” chuckled Elmer. “Just keep it up -and you’re bound to get there sooner or later.” - -Then the newcomer had to be told about Perk’s thrilling adventure, -as well as shown the rattle of the dead snake by the proud victor in -the battle royal. The reader may rest assured that by the time all -three boys had given their separate version of the encounter, Amos -was fully posted regarding every detail possible. - -“You came out of it in prime shape, Perk,” he said, heartily; “but -luck was on your side. If you’d happened to be a foot closer, there -might have been a far different story to tell; and a heap anxious -lot of fellows up here at Old Cabin Bend. I’ve known of chaps who -were struck by a rattler, and died in spite of being dosed with -whisky, and such things, under the idea that one poison can -counteract another. For myself I like to give snakes a wide berth. -I’ll step out of the trail every time to let one hold possession.” - -“It’s really the safest plan,” assented Elmer. - -“But that isn’t just all my news, boys,” continued the ardent -photographer. “Down under the river bank I found a heap of little -tracks, mink footprints for a certainty, showing that one old chap -roams around there, anyway. And to-night, Elmer, I’d like to have -you help me set my camera trap, hoping to coax Mr. Mink to sit for -his own picture.” - -“You can count on me in anything you ask, Amos,” he was told most -heartily as the roofers again got busy with their pounding. - -After they had partaken of a light lunch, meaning to have the big -meal of the day come at evening, when their tasks would all be -finished, they lay around resting and dozing, for it had become -quite warm. - -Perk, however, showed signs of continued nervousness. Perhaps he had -received a greater shock during his encounter with the rattler than -he cared to admit; then again the suspicion that an escaped lunatic -was hovering around, and trying to spy upon them, was in itself -quite enough to make him uneasy. - -He got up, and threw himself down again as many as half a dozen -times, considerably to the amusement of Wee Willie, who was slyly -watching him. Finally Perk found a seat on a convenient log, and sat -there, staring away toward a little uplift of land that might be -called a forest knoll, where the trees stood up far above the -balance of the timber. - -Wee Willie, watching, saw the fat chum suddenly start, and bending -forward stare very hard at something. His features were working, -too, as though Perk might be laboring under a fresh spasm of -excitement. - -“Well, I just expected it’d happen!” Wee Willie heard him mutter. - -“What happened, Perk?” demanded the other, lifting his head. - -“Why, there he is right now, perched in that beechnut tree up on the -knoll yonder. You can see the dark mass move if you look sharp! Of -course he’s spying on the camp; and I bet you he’s got it all fixed -to visit us this very night!” - - - - - CHAPTER VII - - THE CLIMBER OF THE BEECH TREE - - -“Ginger! there _is_ something big and black up in that tree, as sure -as you live!” exclaimed Wee Willie, excitedly. - -Both Elmer and Amos also stared. Apparently they found it necessary -to agree with what the tall chum had just said. It looked as though -humble Perk had scored again; somehow he seemed to be connected with -almost everything that had happened to them thus far; when as a -usual thing such events took delight in passing him by. - -“There, didn’t you see him move?” he added, with a tinge of triumph -in his voice. “Just think of his nerve, climbing that tree to watch -what we do. If he’d been a signal-sender in the old Boy Scout days -at Chester, before the troop busted up, he couldn’t have picked out -a better location. I bet you he’s watching us right now. What ought -we do about it, Elmer?” - -Considerably to the astonishment of the speaker, Elmer was heard to -give an unmistakable chuckle, as though something amused him. - -“Well,” he went on to say, “we might walk out there and tell that -party we objected to his company; but the chances are he’d sniff at -us, and amble away; for you see it’s only _a bear_!” - -“A bear!” gasped Perk, turning again to fasten his eyes on the -mysterious object perched high in the big beech tree. - -“Yes, a black bear, and I reckon a half-grown cub at that, else he -wouldn’t be so fresh as to climb a tree so near our camp,” the other -continued; while Wee Willie nodded his head in affirmation, and -hastened to corroborate the statement by saying: - -“No doubt about it, Perk, your hobo is a four-legged tramp, all -right. I c’n make him out plainly, now he’s moved a bit; though at -first I began to think it might be a man sitting astride a limb.” - -“But what’s a bear doing up there, I’d like to know?” Perk objected, -hardly liking to give up his side of the case so easily. - -“Why, from away back bears have been in the habit of climbing trees -whenever they felt like it,” the tall boy told him; “and there’s -nothing in the Constitution of the United States that’s going to -make ’em change their habits either—that is, black bears. It’s a -different thing with grizzlies out in the Rocky Mountain country, I -understand; they keep to the ground.” - -Perk sighed with real relief as he hurriedly remarked, and quite -cheerfully at that: - -“Well, I’m glad to know I was mistaken. It gave me a bad feeling to -think that ugly tramp was spying on us. Yes, now the thing shifts -again, and sure enough I can make him out plainly. It’s a real live -bear—not a monster, but pretty hefty for all that.” - -Amos darted into the cabin. - -“Now what’s he after, I want to know?” Perk quickly asked. - -“Just as like as not, that camera of his,” Elmer explained. “Amos is -crazy on the subject of photography, and his first thought always -is, ‘Will it make a striking picture?’ I reckon he thinks he might -be able to creep up close enough to snap that chap off, up in the -beechnut tree.” - -Sure enough out came Amos on the run, and gripping his ready camera. - -“I’d like to get him the worst kind, fellows!” he told them. “Some -of the boys at home will laugh at us when we tell them we actually -saw a black bear up in a tree. I’d make them feel like thirty cents -if I could hold up a photo of the happening, taken at closer -quarters than this.” - -“We’ll all go along, Amos,” suggested Elmer. - -Possibly he fancied that the others might find their presence useful -in some way or other. It might be wise, Elmer even suspected, since -the rash photographer, in his burning desire to get a close view, -might run foul of the claws of Bruin, and need material assistance. - -“Glad to have you,” agreed Amos, a faint smile coming on his usually -wan face; “but let’s hurry, please, because the bear might take a -notion to come down, and then my chance would be gone.” - -“Follow me,” Elmer told him. “We’ve just got to swing around a bit -so as to come up to leeward, for he’d be apt to scent us if we kept -straight on down the wind.” - -“Good boy, Elmer, you’re right!” commended Wee Willie. - -“And now no talking except in whispers, with as little of that as -possible. We don’t want to have our walk for nothing, I imagine.” - -With these words Elmer led off, the others trooping after him, Amos -coming next, then the tall chum, and fat Perk bringing up the rear, -as was ordinarily his custom. - -They soon found themselves deep in the woods, with all sight of the -big beechnut tree on the knoll lost to them. But trust Elmer for -having fixed the location indelibly in his mind. Every step they -took was fetching them just that much closer to their goal; and -while Wee Willie also kept tabs on their progress, not once did he -find occasion to enter the slightest protest concerning the -leadership of Elmer. - -After about ten minutes of this sort of thing, the one in the van -stopped, and held up his hand. They seemed to be at the foot of the -knoll, judging from the lay of the land. Elmer parted some bushes -that hemmed them in, and, looking up, the others saw the very beech -tree toward which they had started. - -There could no longer be the least doubt concerning the nature of -that dark object, for it was a young black bear. Whatever had -tempted him to climb the tree they could only guess; for at the time -they discovered him afresh the clumsy little animal was thrusting -out his muzzle, and seemed to be sniffing the air suspiciously. - -[Illustration: His method of descending the tree was exceedingly -clumsy.] - -“He’s got a whiff of human presence near by, somehow or other,” -whispered Elmer; “do you think you could snap him off from here, -Amos?” - -“To be sure I can,” came the ready response, as the camera owner -shifted his position; and a few seconds later a sharp click -announced that he had done the work. - -“He heard even that little sound,” announced Wee Willie, in a low -tone, “because I saw him give a start. Hurry and duplicate, Amos, -for the rascal means to come down.” - -Sure enough the bear seemed to have decided to change his location, -as if growing uneasy after getting that suspicious waft of a scent -his instinct told him was hostile to his species. - -His method of descending the tree was exceedingly clumsy when -compared with the clever actions of a gray squirrel while skimming -the smooth trunk with ease. Indeed, the bear acted very much like a -boy would have done, coming down stern first, and being very careful -not to let go above until sure of his footing on a limb below. - -Amos kept busy snapping him off in various postures. He evidently -meant to make sure of having some extra fine pictures to show. - -Perk meanwhile began to grow a little uneasy, and even plucked at -the sleeve of Elmer as he managed to say excitedly: - -“What if he’d feel mad and start to tackle the bunch? We haven’t got -even a club or a hatchet along, come to think of it. Are black bears -inclined to be vicious, Elmer; will they bite and scratch like a -wildcat?” - -“Don’t worry about that, Perk,” chuckled the other. “They are most -harmless animals as a rule, hardly more dangerous than so many hogs -in the pasture. Besides, this is only a youngster; chances are he’ll -run for all that’s out as soon as he hits solid ground.” - -“I’ll give a whoop, and help scare him off then,” suggested Perk, -picking up his courage again. - -“Just as you please; and Amos here can snap him off while on the -gallop!” Elmer concluded. - -The bear was now almost at the foot of the tree. Amos stepped out so -as to command a better position for covering the spot. He had just -one more exposure left, when the half dozen would be complete; and -he wanted to make sure this last would not be wasted. - -Perk was waiting, getting redder than ever in the face with -suspended breath and no sooner did he discover that the young bear -had reached the ground than he let out a yell that might easily have -shamed a Comanche Indian. Of course, this started the timid beast -off at a wild pace, while Amos clicked his camera to prove that he -had taken advantage of the opportunity. - -The last they heard of Bruin was the clatter amidst the brushes and -thickets as he scrambled madly through every obstacle to his -progress, only wild to get away from that point of danger. - -Elmer and Wee Willie exchanged looks, and laughed good and hard. - -“Never will stop short of three miles, believe me!” asserted the -latter. “I didn’t believe you had it in you to let out such a -fiendish whoop, Perk. But it paid us for coming over here, for now -we can say with truth we had an adventure with a wild bear, and that -Amos here had to ‘shoot’ six times before the fight was finished.” - -Amos looked decidedly pleased. - -“I’ll have to call this my bear roll of film,” he suggested, patting -his camera affectionately, after the manner of those who are seized -with the photographic craze. “And out of the lot there must be -several half-way decent pictures. I never believed I’d get such a -great chance as this.” - -“Say, things are happening like hot cakes, seems to me,” Perk -remarked, as once more they turned their faces in the direction of -the camp. “Why, we hardly get through with one event before another -comes crowding along right at its heels. We’ve done considerable -camping this summer, ever since we started the Camp Fire Boys’ Club, -but nothing like this ever came along the pike.” - -“Suits me all right!” Wee Willie declared, grinning. “I like -excitement, and just sitting around, loafing, never was my style of -enjoying myself. Why, I’m even hoping we’ll see something of this -chap who was hanging out in the cabin when we came along and -squatted here.” - -“Oh, wouldn’t it be a tough joke on us now if, when we got back, we -found he’d been there in our absence, and helped himself to lots of -our stuff?” - -Perk, as he spoke, looked as though this might not be a groundless -fear after all, but Elmer only laughed at him. - -“I’m going back another way, you notice, Perk. Every now and then we -can get glimpses of the cabin, with our fire burning in front, and -so far I’ve seen no sign of any intruder. Don’t worry about it. In -three minutes we’ll be home again.” - -His prophecy came true, and Perk was relieved to discover that -nothing had mysteriously vanished during their brief absence from -camp. - - - - - CHAPTER VIII - - AMOS’S STRANGE ACTIONS - - -The incident of the climbing black bear was closed around four that -first afternoon in camp. Altogether it had been productive of -considerable excitement, and amusement as well. The day, however, -was fated to see still further singular happenings before closing. - -Elmer was inside the cabin “fussing around,” as he called it. He had -cleaned out the shabby old fireplace, making a few badly needed -repairs, so that the chimney might draw properly when they came to -start a blaze there evenings, wishing to gather around, and chat or -sing as the humor seized them. - -Amos had wandered off again. He said it seemed to be a banner day -with him so that he felt inclined to roam about and possibly make a -few more discoveries that would be of value; which, of course, -pertained to the camera stunt only—he had thoughts for nothing else -apparently. - -Perk and Wee Willie were discussing the menu for supper when Elmer -came out of the cabin door, and approached them. He seemed to be -holding something in his hand, though neither of the other boys -could quite make it out. - -“Well,” Elmer commenced saying, as he came up, “I think I’ve -discovered just why our tramp wanted to get back into the cabin -again last night, going all around twice, looking for an opening -which he didn’t find.” - -“That sounds interesting,” observed Perk. - -“Tell us about it, Elmer,” the tall chum added; “and what under the -sun are you holding there in your hand?” - -Elmer laughed softly. - -“That’s the answer,” he hastened to say, and then held something up -before their eyes. - -“Gee! what a funny knife!” exclaimed Perk. - -“Where’d you run across it, Elmer?” demanded Wee Willie. - -“The blade is open, you see, just as I found it,” explained the -other. “And it was sticking in a log close by the yawning fireplace. -From the odor that hangs about the blade, I reckon Mr. Tramp must -have used it to slice some plug tobacco, that black, tough kind, you -know, for his old pipe, and then thinking to use it again a little -later on, just stuck it into a log of the wall near his head.” - -“Huh! our coming along sent him on the run into the bushes, and he -clean forgot all about his precious old knife—is that what you mean, -Elmer?” - -“Just so, Wee Willie; and missing his knife later he started to come -back to recover it. To such men a knife becomes as precious as—well, -Amos’s camera is to him; or your postage-stamp album might be to -you, Perk. Besides, you can see what an odd sort of a knife this one -is.” - -“I never saw one like it before,” Perk spoke up. “Why, besides the -one big strong blade it’s got a fork, and a spoon attachment, too. -Fact is, it could be used for a whole meal. Yes, and here’s even a -corkscrew along the back. What a queer knife it is, to be sure! I -don’t wonder the poor old hobo valued it.” - -“Perhaps he’s carried it for years and years,” mused Wee Willie, -“and it’s his most treasured possession. I wish he had it in his -greasy pocket again.” - -“But see here, boys,” Perk suggested, “how do we know but that it -might have been there for ever so long—mebbe since the cabin was in -use before that tragedy happened here, that I’ve heard the folks -down Chester way mention?” - -Elmer and the tall chum exchanged meaning glances. They had supposed -that Perk knew nothing about that tragic event, and had agreed to -“keep mum” about it while in camp at Log Cabin Bend, lest he feel -uneasy. - -“Oh! that’s an easy thing to decide, Perk,” the former assured him. -“If you examine the blade you’ll find it’s clear of rust, though far -from bright. Now that couldn’t be the case if it had been exposed -here for years to the damp air, such as would blow into the cabin -with the door swung half-way open most of the time it’s stood -empty.” - -“I get you, Elmer; please excuse my dense ignorance,” said Perk -hurriedly. “Now I wonder whether he’s going to keep on hanging out -around here until he gets back his old knife?” - -“We’ll have to put out a sign, and invite the chap to step up to the -captain’s office and prove property,” Wee Willie argued whimsically -after his fashion. “No questions asked, and no reward expected for -finding the lost trusty blade; only we’d like him to clear out, and -leave us alone. I’ve seen a bunch of tramps, and a mussy lot they -are, taken as a whole. I always try to get to windward of ’em when -watching how they manage to cook a meal in tomato-cans and such.” - -“But we saw no sign of his having had a fire in the cabin,” Perk -went on to remark, reflectively; “and there wasn’t the first -evidence of his having made a bed out of brush. How do you account -for that, Elmer?” - -“Oh! he may have arrived only an hour before we did, and was so -tired he just lay down to smoke and rest,” came the ready answer; -for Elmer always seemed to have a faculty for meeting objections. - -“What will you do with it?” continued Perk. - -“I haven’t decided,” Elmer told him. “I may hit on a way to get it -back into the possession of the owner without hunting him up. Leave -that to me.” - -“There’s Amos coming along,” Wee Willie added; “somehow he seems to -be looking a whole lot happier than this morning. It must have been -his success at snapping off the bear in the beechnut tree.” - -“Yes, that was what did it,” Elmer agreed; though his brow clouded, -for this unexplained mystery that seemed to be always hanging over -his comrade, making him so unhappy, was beginning to worry him -considerably; he wanted to be of service to Amos, yet could not -muster up courage to break in upon the other’s reserve, since it -would seem so much like thrusting himself into business that did not -at all concern him. - -Amos was actually smiling as he approached, and few of the Chester -boys could truly say they had ever seen such a genuine look of -delight on his sad face. - -“What do you think?” he burst out, excitedly, “I managed to get a -glimpse of Mr. Mink, the very first of his kind I ever had the luck -to see alive! Oh! but he’s a slick article, let me tell you, with -his beady little eyes, and soft furry hide. And I planned it all out -just where we ought to set the camera-trap to-night, Elmer, so’s to -coax him to pull the cord, and set the flashlight going.” - -Elmer looked at him with affection. Somehow he had come to care a -great deal for Amos, which in one way was rather strange; for to -most of the fellows the newcomer in Chester had not appealed at all, -owing to his being such a moody fellow. But as is usually the case -with such serious persons, when his face did light up in a smile it -was wonderfully “fetching.” - -“I reckon we’ll manage to get a picture of his Highness, King Mink,” -Elmer assured him; “when we’ve laid ourselves out to the limit. I -know a few tricks along those lines, which are quite at your -service, Amos. But see here, what a queer find I made in the old -cabin.” - -He held up the quaint pocket-knife as he said this, and the eyes of -the other became instantly focussed on it. To the astonishment, -almost consternation, of Elmer, he seemed to be immediately strongly -affected by the sight of the late property of the roving tramp. - -Perk and Wee Willie also stared to notice how the face of Amos, -actually showing a dash of color when he first joined them, now -suddenly became as pale as that of a ghost. His breath came and went -in gasps, though apparently he was making desperate efforts to hold -himself within bounds, doubtless realizing how his startled -companions must be observing him. - -“Where did you say you found it, Elmer?” he finally managed to say, -in what might be termed half gasps, while he could be seen -swallowing something that seemed to rise in his throat, and threaten -to choke him, poor fellow. - -“Why, in the cabin there,” explained the other, hesitatingly. “It -was sticking in one of the logs forming the wall, between the little -opening used as a window and the big fireplace. I think the hobo -must have used it to cut up some hard plug tobacco, for it smells -rank of the stuff; and then carelessly thrust the point into the -log, before our coming frightened him away.” - -“And, what do you think,” Perk now managed to add, “Elmer believes -it was to recover this old knife that the old tramp came back and -walked around the cabin twice last night, looking for a chance to -get inside. Too bad, isn’t it, Amos?” - -Amos, however, seemed to pay scant attention to what Perk was -saying. His distended eyes were fastened on the article which still -lay exposed in Elmer’s open palm. - -“But—couldn’t it have been there a long time, don’t you think?” he -now asked, as though clinging to a straw; “say as much as—six or -seven years?” - -“I’m dead sure it hasn’t,” he was told positively. “In the first -place, other persons besides us have visited the old cabin here from -time to time, and some one would surely have found it. Then again, -look how smooth the steel of the discolored blade is; it must have -rusted if it had been exposed to the weather for even a few months. -Oh! no, Amos, whoever the tramp is, he surely put it where I found -it, and this very night.” - -“I—guess you’re right, Elmer,” fell in trembling tones from the lips -of the other, still looking peaked and white. “W—would you mind my -looking at it?” - -“Certainly not,” said Elmer, at the same time thrusting the queer -knife into the other’s hand, eagerly stretched out to receive it. - -All of them could not help but notice how his hand trembled -violently from some sort of emotion as the fingers closed about the -haft of the knife. Evidently there was some element about the find -of Elmer that affected Amos Codling. He turned the knife over, and -stared hard at the buckhorn handle as though fairly fascinated, -while the other three watched him with surprise bordering on -amazement. - -While the trio continued to stand there gaping, Amos hastily thrust -the object back into Elmer’s hand. He almost acted as though -shuddering at its touch, and anxious to get it out of his -possession. - -“Guess—I’ll go and lie down for a bit,” he managed to say in a -fairly steady voice. “I’ve overdone it in tramping to-day, and feel -worn out. Don’t bother about me, boys; I’ll—be all right soon.” - -With these words he stalked hurriedly into the cabin. - - - - - CHAPTER IX - - THE RIGHT KIND OF PALS - - -“Why, whatever can be ailing Amos?” Perk said softly, immediately -after the strange boy had vanished from view inside the cabin. - -Elmer held up a warning finger. - -“Whatever you say, speak in a whisper, boys,” he went on to remark. - -“Gee whiz! but here’s another mystery looming up!” gasped Wee -Willie. “Why, Elmer, he seemed to recognize that old knife, don’t -you think?” - -“It looked that way,” muttered the other, glancing toward the cabin -with a world of commiseration in his eyes, “and whatever the -memories may be it aroused, I’m afraid they couldn’t be happy ones.” - -“Somebody he knew once owned such a knife, and he asked to see it so -as to make certain,” pursued the wise Wee Willie, reflectively. -“Yes, and I reckon he found the proof he was looking for, too. Let’s -see the thing again, Elmer.” - -“I know what he found, all right,” the other assured him. “Here, you -can see that there are two letters roughly scratched on the buckhorn -handle.” - -“What are the letters?” insisted the tall chum, who when interested -in a subject was a difficult one to make let go. - -“No use trying to hide anything from you, Wee Willie,” Elmer -replied. “They are not fashioned very elegantly, for the handle is -rough, you see; but as near as I can make them out the letters are -S. C.” - -The elongated boy pursed his lips as if intending to whistle; but -evidently thinking better of it failed to emit a single sound. - -“And his name, it’s Codling, remember,” he whispered, with a quick -look over in the quarter where the lone cabin stood under the big -tree. - -“Yes, that looks significant for a fact,” agreed the deeply -interested Perk, adding immediately afterwards, “Poor chap, I’m -awful sorry for him, no matter what the cause of his trouble may be. -He was looking quite happy, for him, as he told about that mink he -discovered peeking out of its hole under the bank; but when he saw -the knife, and heard what Elmer said, the smile froze on his face, -you might almost say. I wish I could help him some way.” - -“None of us can do a thing until he makes the first move,” warned -Elmer, with a determined shake of his head. “I’ve felt this coming -for some time, and wished he’d make a confidant of me, but up to now -he hasn’t seen fit to do so.” - -“Oh! what is that?” asked Perk, in almost awed tones. - -“I think it must be Amos sobbing, and trying to keep his head down -in his blankets,” admitted Elmer, himself almost choking with the -great desire he felt to hasten in and try to comfort his friend. -“But we must pretend we don’t hear him. After a while he’ll feel -better, and join us again, for he’s got a heap of what you might -call grit, likewise pride, about him. Perhaps while we’re up here he -may see fit to tell us his trouble, and then we’ll be able to offer -to help him, if it’s possible.” - -Perk turned his face away. The others, knowing his tender heart, -could give a pretty good guess concerning what caused him to do so. -Indeed, Wee Willie himself had to wink quite violently for some -reason or other, and coughed as if he might be choking over -something that compelled him to drag out his big red bandanna -handkerchief, and blow his nose strenuously. - -“Of course,” pursued Elmer, who had been trying to figure things out -most persistently, “it’s always possible that even if this is the -same knife Amos once knew, some utter stranger may have left it -here. Such things often pass through many hands in trade; or can -even be stolen. Tramps have no sense of honor, most of us believe.” - -“A tramp, greasy and ragged perhaps—ugh! no wonder Amos shuddered -when he saw a picture of some one he once knew, perhaps even cared -for, looking like that,” Wee Willie muttered, with a doleful shake -of his head. - -“Well, we must put it all out of our minds for the time being,” -advised Elmer. “Let’s not add to his suffering by showing him we’re -curious. As for the knife, I’ll replace it where I found it. I’ve -got a little scheme beginning to take shape that may bring results; -and at least get the thing back into the possession of the owner.” - -Both Perk and the tall chum understood that this would be the wisest -course for them to pursue. Elmer knew best how to manage things; -they had always fared well whenever they trusted themselves to his -guidance. - -Presently the half choked sounds from within the cabin ceased. -Apparently the boy had managed to get control over his feelings, -whatever it may have been that caused such a tempestuous outbreak. - -Perk and Wee Willie started preparing supper. The latter had tried -fishing earlier in the afternoon, with more or less success; so that -there was now a frying-pan filled with the results of his labor, and -ready to go on the fire. Perk fairly beamed with pride as he feasted -his eyes on the perch and bass, now nicely cleaned, and washed, and -dusted with flour, before being placed in the hot grease that oozed -from the salt pork in the pan. - -Elmer found something to do that would keep him away from the cabin, -for he thought it best not to disturb Amos just then. The other -would in good time “get a grip” on himself, and be ready to face his -chums again without displaying unusual emotion. - -He came out while supper was cooking, and while he tried to smile as -Perk called out and demanded to know if he recognized the origin of -the delightful odor that was beginning to permeate all the -surrounding atmosphere, it was hardly what might be called a -success. - -“It seems you did catch some fish after all, Perk,” he said in -answer; “and I must say they do smell appetizing,” but that was the -extent of his remarks, nor did either of the boys attempt to urge -him to continue talking. - -Perk was full of consideration for Amos; on his part possibly Wee -Willie may not have been quite so solicitous; because curiosity was -one of the tall chum’s weak points, so that he found himself -wondering more and more what all this mystery, connected with the -Codling boy, could signify. - -Supper time found them gathering around the camp spread. A bountiful -meal had been prepared, such as might make the eyes of the average -hungry boy fairly glisten with satisfaction. - -Amos ate very little. He seemed to have quite lost his usually keen -appreciation for Perk’s cooking, a fact that worried the other -considerably; for he did his best to press this thing and that on -the other, though only to be greeted again with a gentle but -positive refusal. - -“It’s awfully kind of you to offer me the choice bits, Perk,” Amos -would say, “and I’m sure everything does you great credit. I’d be -only too glad to eat like Wee Willie here, if only I felt hungry; -but—well, somehow I don’t seem to care much for anything to-night—I -can’t force myself, you know.” - -But he did keep on sitting there, and listening to the merry chatter -and badinage of his three more boisterous chums, though frequently -Elmer could see that his eyes had a far-away look about them, and -the old peaked expression would struggle back to his face once more. - -The boys had decided to sit around the fire that night, and sing -some of their school songs; but with Amos in this strange humor of -course they could not count on him to join in; and without his fine -tenor the singing was apt to prove only mediocre, so they gave it -up. - -“Perhaps by to-morrow night things may have changed for the better, -and we can try it out then,” Elmer remarked, after Amos had -withdrawn, under the plea that his head ached, and he thought he had -better turn in early. - -So, instead, the other three sat there and talked in low tones as -time passed, with the night growing older. Perk often glanced -quickly around at the somber woods. Elmer could easily interpret -that questioning look, and knew that the other was wondering whether -they might not have another visit from the mysterious tramp whom -they had alarmed by their coming, and yet who declined to leave the -spot, while some of his personal property remained unrecovered. - -There was no use trying to reassure Perk, for he happened to be more -or less timid by nature. The door had been made additionally secure -during the day just passed, so that no matter if the hobo did return -he could not enter. As for his showing ill humor in any way, such as -trying to set fire to the old cabin, Elmer would not allow such a -thought to get a lodging in his mind. - -Then came the moon peeping in upon them, nearly an hour later than -its appearance the previous night, and looking somewhat battered -along one edge, showing how it was in its decline. - -“Time we’re off to our blankets,” suggested Elmer. “Here’s Perk -almost dislocating his jaws every time he yawns. What’s the use of -sitting up any longer when we’ve got fairly decent beds of hemlock -browse under coverings waiting for us?” - -In this he was supported by both his chums, so they all packed off -into the cabin, leaving the fire fixed so that it would burn for -some hours. If the wind arose Elmer meant to step out and make sure -no sparks were being blown into the underbrush; though at that -summery time of year the chances of a conflagration might be -reckoned next to nil. - -So the door was closed and secured, Perk and the elongated chum seen -safely into their blankets, and then Elmer himself took one last -look around before following suit. Amos seemed to be sound asleep; -at least his eyes were closed, and he was breathing easily. Elmer -bent over and adjusted the other’s blanket in a solicitous way. He -did not know that Amos opened his eyes and looked after him -affectionately as he turned away; or that there came a suspicious -moisture trickling down the boy’s cheek that was very like a tear. - -Then darkness fell upon the scene, Elmer having shut off his little -hand electric torch after he had tucked himself under his own -blanket. - -The night passed without any sort of alarm, for which Perk told -himself he was very thankful as he again opened his eyes to find -that it was morning, with his comrades—at least two of them—already -outside, talking in low voices. Amos, however, still lay there, and -seemed sound asleep. Perhaps he had passed a restless night, and -only forgot his trouble in the hours of early morning. - -Perk soon emerged from the shack and joined the others, who were -making preparations for breakfast. Elmer, after asking whether Amos -seemed to still be asleep, drew closer to the others and followed up -his question by saying: - -“Well, my plan worked after all, boys. You remember I said I would -try to get the knife back into the possession of the tramp. I reckon -that’s where it is this morning!” - -“However did you manage that, I want to know?” Perk demanded, -plainly surprised by what Elmer had said so quietly. - -“Yes, open up and tell us the secret, that’s a good fellow,” Wee -Willie urged, as the two of them closed in upon Elmer. - - - - - CHAPTER X - - AMOS DECIDES - - -Apparently Elmer was ready to take the others into his confidence, -for he immediately began to explain what he had done. - -“You remember that I said I’d put the knife back about where I found -it,” he told them; “which was close to that hole in the wall used -for air as a sort of window, alongside the chimney.” - -“Yes, I saw that you had stuck its pointed blade in the log; noticed -that between yawns when I was getting ready to turn in,” admitted -Perk. - -“Well, it was gone this morning,” asserted the other, triumphantly. - -“Yes,” objected Wee Willie instantly—they always said the tall chum -would make a good lawyer, he was so ready with his objections—“but -how do you know the tramp came back again and took it?” - -“Who else would?” asked the puzzled Perk. - -“Why, perhaps Amos got to thinking about it, not being able to -sleep, and for some good reason chose to lay hold of the old thing,” -explained Wee Willie blandly. - -“Listen,” continued Elmer, with that quiet smile of his which the -others knew so well spoke of assurance, “I considered that point -myself, and fortunately there was a way open to prove my case. I’d -smoothed out most of those tracks around the cabin, but when I came -out to take a look, there they were again, showing the hobo had once -more shown up.” - -“Great work!” grunted the skeptical Wee Willie, now convinced beyond -the shadow of a doubt. - -“Better still,” added Elmer, intent on rubbing it in while about the -job, “the marks led straight to that little window. You remember -it’s got a sort of shutter secured with a hasp inside; though air -can come in because of the slits between the slats. Now I purposely -pried an end of one slat loose.” - -“What for, Elmer?” queried the wondering but admiring Perk. - -“So any one who felt like it could thrust an arm through the gap, -and feel around inside,” Elmer told him. - -“Jingo! what a bully scheme!” exclaimed Perk, grinning broadly; “for -of course the knife was within reach from the opening. Now I can see -why you feel so dead sure the persistent old tramp got his knife at -last. Say, it _does_ pay to keep everlastingly at it, eh?” - -“But why go to all that trouble just to please a Wandering George?” -exploded Wee Willie. “For one, I’d have been glad to keep that queer -contraption just as a curiosity, and so as to remember some of the -things that have happened to us up here at Log Cabin Bend.” - -“Just what I didn’t want to have happen,” Elmer told him, sternly. -“I knew that as long as that thing was around, every time it bobbed -up poor Amos was bound to have a bad inning. Now it’s gone, he may -forget more or less about what it brought up in his mind.” - -“Gee! what a mixup we’ve struck, all around,” muttered the tall -chum, rubbing his pointed chin after a habit he had when reflecting; -and then suddenly brightening up, he continued: “but we mustn’t let -such little things spoil our camping trip. Amos will get over it -after a bit. We must all try to keep him interested in things—oh! -what about that camera-trap business you two laid out to carry -through last night?” - -“Why to be sure,” Perk chimed in, “there’s that cunning Mr. Mink who -lost a good supper last night just because you forgot. And I went -and laid a nice fish-head aside for him.” - -“You’re wrong there, Perk,” Elmer assured him, quietly. “It wasn’t -forgetfulness on my part; but Amos had gone to his blanket with a -sick headache, and I just couldn’t find the heart to disturb him. -The trap game will keep just as well for to-night. In fact, if it -should happen to be cloudy all the better, because it is on black -nights such things can be made a success. You see the camera must be -left with the lens exposed, so that when the flashlight is fired the -exposure will be complete.” - -“Then how about daylight coming on, and finding it in that way, to -spoil the exposed plate or film?” queried Perk. - -“Oh! the photographer crank has to keep that in mind,” explained -Elmer. “I understand experts in this line, who spend all their time -and a heap of money in the bargain going to strange sections of the -earth, just to get such pictures for their collection, have devised -some sort of a clever arrangement whereby the pull at the cord by -the wild animal releases the shutter of the camera, which closes -again after a certain length of time, protecting the exposed film -against any light that may come along, such as the rising sun.” - -Just then the object of their conversation appeared, coming from the -cabin. Amos looked haggard and worn. Evidently he had passed a bad -night, and his three chums felt greatly concerned over it. - -Still, as they had agreed to act quite natural, they tried not to -let him see what lay deep down in their hearts. Perk called out to -him cheerily, to ask some natural question, and Wee Willie followed -it up by saying: - -“We were just asking Elmer about that mink you saw yesterday, Amos; -and he told us you’d certainly lay for him to-night. I never got -close to a shy mink, and hardly know what one looks like; so I sure -hope you do strike off a good picture of his Royal Highness. I give -him that title, you see, because his fine pelt has soared to what -dealers call ‘abnormal prices’ in the fur market.” - -“Yes,” Amos agreed, falling into Wee Willie’s pit, and showing -something of interest, “all furs reached stiff prices during the -World War. You see, so many who used to spend their winters trapping -fur-bearing animals, in America, Russia, and other countries, were -called to the colors, so the fur harvest dwindled terribly.” - -“They say it’s an ill wind that blows nobody good,” chirped Perk; -“and what was hard on high-born ladies, and men who must have their -fur-lined overcoats, was a big boon to the poor little hunted -four-footed creatures who have to exercise all their intuitions so -as to save their own coats.” - -“Why,” Wee Willie broke in, “right close by up in Muskrat Swamp -around the headwaters of our Beaverkill River they say the little -beasts never were one-half so plenty as this summer. I warrant you -there’ll be many a dollar picked up there next winter, when some -fellows I know start in trapping them.” - -“Muskrat Swamp,” mused Perk, reflectively, “do you know I’ve never -had even a peep into that queer place, and it lying not much over -twenty miles away from Chester in the bargain. Some day I hope our -crowd goes up there to camp, and prowl around. I’d give a heap to -see what a real swamp looks like.” - -“Not a bad idea, Perk!” called out Elmer, who had heard what was -being said, though up to then for reasons of his own he had not -chosen to break into the conversation, “and we’ll consider it later -on. I’d like to explore that place myself, though I reckon we ought -to have a boat of some kind to do the thing properly.” - -Perhaps all of them would have been considerably astonished could -they have lifted the curtain of the immediate future, and discovered -how soon just such a glorious opportunity was fated to crop up, and -beckon them. - -Breakfast having been duly dispatched they set about the tasks of -the day. The mess of fish had tasted so fine on the preceding night -that Perk found little trouble about enlisting the services of Wee -Willie in an expedition looking to a second installment. They had -dug some angle worms, and soon departed for the nearby river. - -“Don’t expect us back until near noon,” Perk called out, joyously. -“Usually the fish stop biting along toward midday, but if we have a -mess we’ll show up in time for lunch.” - -“Don’t bother your head about that meal,” Elmer told him, “for it’s -only right some one should spell you. We don’t believe in running a -willing horse to death.” - -“That’s white of you, Elmer,” Perk sent back over his shoulder, as -he trotted along by the side of the striding Wee Willie, taking two -steps to one for the long-legged chum. - -Amos hung around the camp. - -He pretended to be working with his camera, but Elmer noticed him -casting nervous glances in his direction from time to time. From -this he wisely concluded that Amos had something on his mind, and -was waiting until he could screw his courage up to the deciding -point. - -Knowing that it was the best thing to do Elmer simply went about his -duties, whistling softly to himself, and paying no particular heed -to Amos. If the other finally made up his mind to confide in him he -felt sure no act on his part was likely to hasten things along. - -Doubtless the fact of the others being off for the morning had -something to do with the decision of Amos; since it gave him an -opportunity to talk with his best chum undisturbed. - -An hour and more had gone. Still Amos sat there on the log. His -camera lay beside him, and the boy was bending forward, resting his -head upon his hand, his elbow against an adjacent tree. - -Somehow his dejected attitude stirred Elmer to the depths and caused -him to change his mind. He felt that he must really make some move -which the other could interpret as an expression of sympathy. As -Elmer told himself: “If the mountain won’t come to Mahomet, then -Mahomet must go to the mountain,” which would be the same thing in -the end. He walked over to where Amos sat. - -If the other heard his footfalls he gave no evidence of the fact -save perhaps a twitching of his free hand which lay on his knee. -Elmer was approaching from the rear. He hardly knew what he meant to -do except to come in personal contact with his chum. In times of -trouble the touch of a friendly hand may mean everything to the one -in mental distress, bringing fresh hope, and a renewal of the -courage necessary to grapple with difficulties. - -So, reaching the other, Elmer put his hand on his drooping shoulder. - -“Amos, can I help you in any way, old fellow?” - -The words were boylike, but sincere, as though they welled straight -up from the heart of the speaker. They acted like a spur upon the -quivering lad, who sprang to his feet wildly, and clutching Elmer’s -ready hand squeezed it convulsively as he exclaimed in a voice -broken with emotion: - -“Oh! Elmer I just _can’t_ stand it alone any longer! I didn’t want -to tell a living soul, but it’s too much for me, yes, far too much! -And I’ve made up my mind to explain what all this mystery means -about that queer knife. Elmer, it once belonged to—_my own father_, -who’s been away for seven years, and all of us have believed him to -be dead.” - - - - - CHAPTER XI - - CLEARING SKIES - - -Elmer continued to hold the other’s quivering hand firmly in his -clasp. - -“Try to control your feelings as much as you can, Amos, old boy,” he -went on saying in his comforting fashion. “And don’t tell me -anything that you may regret. You can depend on it, though, that -I’ll respect your confidence, and not even mention it to Perk and -Wee Willie, without your permission.” - -“Oh! but I want them to know all about it too!” said Amos, looking -up, and winking his eyes violently, “because it’s only right. I -hope, ever so much, that you won’t despise me for s-s-sailing under -f-f-false colors, that’s all.” - -“It’s nothing you have done, I’m sure of that, Amos,” said the -staunch chum, resolutely, “and that’s all we count. You’re not to be -held responsible for the actions of some one else. Now, go on and -tell me what you think best.” - -He stepped over the log and sat down, drawing Amos alongside. -Throwing an arm about the other’s shoulder, Elmer waited to hear the -sad story, which in truth he could already more than half guess. - -“Is it all about some trouble your father got himself into, Amos?” -he asked, seeing that the other hardly knew just how to begin. - -“Yes, yes, that’s it!” sighed Amos. “My father was never known to do -mean things, but he certainly did slip up once, and everything came -from that terrible mistake. Just like a good many others do who are -tempted, he took money that didn’t belong to him, expecting to put -it back when a certain deal was carried through; but something -happened that turned the tide the wrong way, and he found himself—a -defaulter!” - -“Yes,” said Elmer, soothingly, “it is a sad thing for you to -remember; since you must have cared a great deal for your father, -judging from what you say, and how you still suffer.” - -“I loved him, we all did, for up to that time he had always been -good to us,” Amos confessed. “It was in hopes of bettering the -condition of his family that tempted him to do that terrible thing, -too, mother has said since, a thousand times.” - -“He went away, you said, didn’t you?” continued Elmer, when the -other paused as if lost in contemplation of the distant past. - -“Yes, to avoid being arrested, and bringing shame on his family,” -came the answer. “I shall never forget that awful day as long as I -live, though I was pretty young then, hardly ten. It came like a -hurricane out of a clear sky, father showing up, and looking almost -crazy, telling mother all about it, and that he must go away to try -to redeem himself. - -“He left her all the money he had, and told her to take us children -to an old aunt of hers, who had means. Father vowed that he would -make no attempt to communicate with her, or ever come back, unless -he could square himself with the firm whose confidence he had -abused. - -“From that terrible day to this we have never once heard from him. -Mother fully believes he has long been dead. She often talks of him -to me as we sit in the gloaming, and her thoughts go back to the -happy days of her young married life. I have his gold watch, left -for me, but which, of course, I shall not carry until I am grown up -and in business. - -“The old aunt died shortly after we came to live with her, and left -her property to my mother, whom she dearly loved. It was enough to -keep us fairly comfortable, though we have to count the dollars; and -I may yet have to leave school and go to work, so as to help out. - -“There, now you know everything, Elmer; do you think you still care -to be chummy with the son of——” - -“Stop right there, Amos!” commanded Elmer, gruffly, for he was in -reality almost choking with emotion himself in sympathy with the -poor chap at his side, who wanted so to cling to him, and yet -determinedly pushed himself away, as if feeling not worthy to -associate with fellows upon whose heads no such dark shadow rested. -“If anything, you’re more my chum than ever. A pretty pal I’d be to -hold back when you’re in need of sympathy. And both Perk and Wee -Willie will say the same thing, you can bank on it.” - -Amos drew a long lingering breath as of intense relief. He also -seemed on the point of breaking down again, seeing which Elmer -hastened to add: - -“Now brace up, old fellow, and begin to believe things may not be -_quite_ so black as they seem. One thing you can depend on, that not -a living soul in all Chester will ever know about your trouble -through any of us. We’ll keep your secret, and not even drop a hint -to our folks at home. You’re certain about that knife once being -your father’s, are you Amos?” - -“Oh! absolutely!” exclaimed the other; “I’d know it anywhere, for it -used to be a great wonder to me. Besides, I saw his initials -scratched on the handle, just as in the old days. Father had owned -that knife a long time, and used to think a heap of it.” - -Elmer remembering how the unknown tramp had hung around all this -time just to recover the knife, could not help feeling that the -present possessor must also have considerable affection for the -thing, whoever he might turn out to be. - -“But during seven years it could easily have fallen into other -hands, you understand,” continued Elmer. “It might have been lost, -or stolen, in fact, passed through a variety of adventures by now.” - -“I think you mean to say that if my father died some one with him at -the time would have taken possession of the knife,” remarked Amos, -again drawing a long breath; “which is perfectly true. I am not -saying that I believe the tramp to be my poor unfortunate dad; but -it was the sight of the knife turning up in this queer way after all -these years that unnerved me so.” - -“What sort of a man was your father, Amos—I mean did he happen to be -tall, or short; and was he athletic or otherwise?” continued Elmer, -evidently with some object in view; at least the other suspected as -much, for he turned to look inquiringly into his face before -answering. - -“Why,” Amos went on presently, “you see, he never could play -football or baseball when a boy because he had one leg a bit shorter -than the other. This didn’t interfere with his walking at all; -because I’ve tramped many miles alongside him, for we were -always—quite—chummy.” - -“Was it his left leg that was the shorter?” pursued Elmer. - -“That isn’t just a guess, is it?” demanded the other; “you seem to -know, Elmer! Tell me what it means, oh! please do!” - -Elmer looked at him rather uncertainly. Then, as if making up his -mind he had no business to hold back anything from a chum, he went -on to explain. - -“You know I pride myself somewhat on my woodcraft knowledge, Amos; -and it was easy for me to discover that the unknown—er, party who -has been hanging about our camp here, hoping to recover that knife, -had a short left leg; for his right foot always showed much more -plainly than the other.” - -Amos groaned. - -“Then it is he!” he muttered. “Poor dad, and poor mother! Oh! what -wouldn’t I give, if I had never been tempted to come up here with -you to Log Cabin Bend. Then perhaps I’d still be contented in -believing that he had long ago ceased to suffer in body and mind.” - -“Will you tell your mother when you go back home, Amos?” - -“Had I better, do you think?” he asked, almost desperately. - -“You must settle that for yourself, Amos. Think it over before you -decide one way or the other. Your first consideration should be the -happiness of the mother you love so much. Will it do any good to -share your secret with her; or must it reopen old wounds that time -has partly healed?” - -“That’s it!” muttered Amos, shaking his head sadly. “I know how she -will begin to lie awake nights again like she did before, and look -so sorrowful, always watching down the road as if half hoping to see -him come limping along, waving his hand to us, as he did every night -when returning from the office. Yes, I mustn’t be rash: I would cut -my hand off sooner than do a thing to make my mother cry as she used -to years ago.” - -Elmer began to see that possibly it might be up to him to try to get -in touch with the tramp, and learn just who and what he was. He -could understand what a cruel shock it must be to Amos even to -suspect that his father could reach the low level of a common -wanderer on the face of the earth, a hobo! - -“You meant it when you said you wanted Perk and Wee Willie to know -about this matter, did you, Amos?” he asked presently. - -“Yes, I insist on it,” said the other, hastily. “I’m tired of -sailing under false colors. If my chums all know my sad story it -must be up to them to decide whether they want to keep up their -contact with me, or drop me. But you must tell them, Elmer; I -couldn’t have the heart to go over it all again.” - -“I promise you I will, now you’ve given me permission, Amos; and -make your mind easy. I know both of our pards too well to doubt what -they’ll surely do. They may not be able to say much, but their -actions will speak louder than words.” - -“You’re all the finest chums any one could ever have, and it’d -nearly break my heart if you turned back on me. Do you know, I’ve -had the queerest things flit through my mind while thinking it all -over.” - -“Such as what, Amos?” - -“For one thing I would picture my father crouching in the bushes off -yonder and staring hard at us while we sat around the campfire last -night, yet not daring to join the circle. I even wondered, Elmer, -whether he could recognize me, for I’ve changed a lot in these seven -years, of course; and how he must have felt at not being able to -make himself known, just because he thinks that old charge still -hangs over his head.” - -“But doesn’t it?” demanded Elmer, suddenly thrilled somehow. - -“Why, of course not,” said Amos, simply. “When mother came into the -property of her old aunt, one of the first things she did was to -have an interview with the head of the firm my father used to be -with. She found out the amount of his defalcation, and paid it. That -was what cut down our allowance so, and made us scrimp sometimes; -but my mother always gloried in clearing his name. Oh, if he is only -alive, and could learn that, what might not happen?” - -“Courage, Amos!” said Elmer, “you’ve boosted the game a heap in -telling me that.” - - - - - CHAPTER XII - - SETTING THE TRAP - - -Already Amos was looking much better. The hope that Elmer dangled -before his wondering eyes grew in proportion to his ability to grasp -its possibilities. - -If it turned out that his wandering father were really in the -vicinity, surely some way could be found to get in touch with him, -so that he might learn how the cloud on his name had been wiped out -years ago, and that he might have come back to his dear ones, if -only they had had any clue concerning his whereabouts. - -The two boys sat there on the log for almost an hour, talking, and -trying to form some plan whereby this could be effected. Elmer had -found the best medicine in all the world for his chum’s uplifting; -Amos no longer looked as discouraged as before, and even laughed a -little at something humorous the loyal companion related for this -very purpose. - -Elmer, too, was greatly relieved. Why, after all, the situation was -a whole lot better than he had dared hope. He became possessed of an -overwhelming ambition to find the tramp, and bring him the joyous -news. Already in imagination Amos was picturing the joy that would -fill his mother’s heart if the wanderer could only be brought back -home again, after doing penance so long for his delinquency. - -Afterwards Amos took to making little excursions through the -neighboring timber on one excuse or another, though it was not -difficult for Elmer to understand that he indulged in a wild hope a -voice might call to him from out of some copse, and his father -appear in sight, unable to resist the longing to meet his boy once -more. - -But no such happy event came to pass, though Amos continued his -walks, so as to scour the neighborhood in every direction. - -During one of his absences from camp Perk and Wee Willie came in, -bearing quite a noble string of perch and bass and catfish, which -they had succeeded in catching through persistent efforts. - -Elmer took advantage of the opportunity while Amos was away to tell -the two others the whole story as related to him. - -Of course, they were both intensely interested, and frequently -interrupted the narrative to express their sympathy for the comrade -in distress, as well as to vow that not a word of it all should pass -their lips. - -“But, say, it may not be so bad after all,” Wee Willie hastened to -remark, when it had been told. “If the amount taken has been made -good then there can be no charge against Mr. Codling, and he could -walk down the street of the city where they used to live without -being bothered anyway. But then, to be sure he doesn’t know about -this, and still believes the Law is looking for him.” - -“It cuts Amos to the quick to fancy his father as a common vagrant,” -continued Elmer. “Never mention that part of it to him if you happen -to be speaking about these things.” - -“Huh!” mused Perk, pursing up his mouth thoughtfully, “I reckon the -world has kept on treating Mr. Codling rough all these years. The -prosperity he went off to find never came his way, and by degrees -he’s given up all hope, as these hoboes nearly always do, trying to -forget the past, so I’ve understood. Do you think he could be -rounded up, Elmer?” - -“I’m going to try to make it come out that way,” was the quick -reply, “although I don’t know yet just what plan I’ll adopt. Once we -got in touch with him it would be easy, I guess. He might try to -hold out, ashamed to have the wrong wiped out through his wife, and -not by his own efforts; but he couldn’t fight long against being -towed into a safe harbor, after seven years of roving and up against -hard times.” - -“I hear Amos whistling as he comes along,” said Wee Willie just -then; “and it’s really the first time he’s done such a thing since -we started on this camping trip. Shows he must be feeling a heap -better already.” - -“He is,” said Elmer, as he broke away from the two who were cleaning -their string of fish, with the intention of having some of them for -the midday meal. - -“Because,” explained Perk, sagaciously, “fish ought to almost jump -from the water into the frying-pan; you can’t get them too fresh to -please me. And, say, I do just love ’em to beat the band!” - -During the balance of the day they found numerous things to claim -their attention, as is always the case when fellows who know the -game are in camp. For instance, Wee Willie claimed that he was tired -of eating off the ground, and proposed making some sort of rude but -serviceable table that would be much more homelike. - -“And while you’re doing that job,” Amos told him, “perhaps Perk and -myself could hatch up some kind of seats to use when we have to stay -indoors, and can’t squat on these two logs.” - -This idea pleased Perk very much, for if there was one thing he -liked, and felt bound to have whenever possible, it was solid -comfort. - -“I never did see the sense of making a martyr out of yourself all -the time you happened to be away from home, and in the woods,” he -observed sagaciously when on the subject; “so some fellows might -call me a sissy, or an old maid because I insist on fetching along -certain things like my tooth brush, and a few more necessities.” - -“Huh! like this, for instance, I suppose?” chuckled Wee Willie, -appearing at the door of the cabin just then, and holding up an -object which caused Elmer to laugh outright, and even Amos to smile -indulgently. - -“Oh! That’s my trousers’ creaser and stretcher,” blandly admitted -Perk, with a grin; “but honest to goodness I never meant to fetch it -along; and I don’t see how ever it got among my traps unless my -sister Sue did it; she’s as full of mischief as an egg is of meat, -and would think it a good joke on me to find what I’d gone and -lugged all the way into the woods. Think of me creasing this -horrible pair of pants, will you?” - -So they acquitted honest Perk of any evil intention along the line -of playing the dude when in camp. But of course Wee Willie would -lose no opportunity to plague him about his “stretchers” while they -were at Log Cabin Bend. - -During the early afternoon Elmer disappeared. - -He had told no one of his intention, and indeed they did not really -miss him until he had been gone some time. - -“Where do you think he’s off to?” Perk asked the tall chum, for he -had left Amos to complete a rude chair upon which they were working, -and strolled over to where Wee Willie was putting the finishing -touches on their dining-table, an exceedingly rustic affair, but -which promised to be fairly serviceable. - -“Oh! that’s an easy one,” replied the other, in a low tone, and with -a cautious look toward Amos. “You remember he said he meant to try -to locate the man with the queer knife, if he chanced to be still -hanging around in this neighborhood.” - -“But why should he stay, now he’s got back his property, eh, Wee -Willie?” persisted the stout boy. - -“Huh! that’s harder to answer, I admit,” he was told; “unless he did -chance to recognize Amos while we sat around by the blaze of the -campfire, and has been unable to tear himself away. But I leave that -to Elmer; if any one can unearth the tramp he will.” - -“He nearly always does succeed in anything he undertakes,” assented -Perk, with a charming display of blind confidence in the absent -chum. - -Elmer did not come back for nearly two hours, and even then he gave -them no hint as to whether or not he had met with any sort of -success in his scouring of the timber in search of the mysterious -lurker. Perk was for asking him, but Wee Willie displayed his -accustomed shrewdness when advising against such a course. - -“If Elmer wants to share anything with us depend on it he will, -Perk; and until he makes a move that way we’d better keep mum,” was -what he told the other; and Perk, easily influenced, must have -thought it good enough advice to follow, for he made no effort to -“pump” Elmer. - -They had their supper, and some time later Elmer, turning to Amos, -remarked: - -“How about that camera-trap business, Amos; feel like sauntering -over to the bank where you glimpsed that cunning old mink, and -setting things up for getting a snapshot of the timid hermit?” - -Amos jumped to his feet instantly, his eyes glistening. - -“I certainly would like to, Elmer, thank you; and so I’ll hustle and -get my outfit, camera, flashlight pan, and all the apparatus -necessary. Perhaps I startled the old chap when I looked in on him; -but by now he’s had plenty of time to get over his scare.” - -“How about you, Perk?” continued the leader; “you saved one of those -fish-heads as I asked you to, didn’t you?” - -“Three of ’em, Elmer; you’ll find them dangling by a string from -that limb of the hickory sapling yonder.” - -“We’ll toss the others as far away from camp as we can,” continued -Elmer; “else we may be bothered with an army of ’coons fighting each -other while trying to locate the prize their scent tells them is -around here.” - -He and Amos started off, and were soon at the spot. A creek, it -seemed, ran into the Beaverkill at that point, and it was really -under the bank of this the hermit mink lived in a hole that -doubtless had many side passages. - -Elmer examined the ground thoroughly, and then they decided just -where it would be best to place the camera trap. The pan and -flashlight cartridge could lie flat on the ground just alongside, -and the cord that upon being jerked would cause the firing of the -flashlight ran out to a certain point that Amos said would be in -exact focus. - -All these preparations were carried out with as little noise as -possible, the boys seldom communicating while at work save in -whispers; for they did not wish to frighten the timid game, -doubtless at the time deep down in his burrow under the rocks and -earth of the creek bank. - -Finally everything necessary had been carried out. Amos went over it -all for the last time, and concluded that he could not better the -arrangements in any possible manner. - -Accordingly they left the spot, Amos with the avowed intention of -being out at first peep of dawn so as to make sure the shutter of -the camera was closed before sunlight could destroy the result of -their clever trick. - - - - - CHAPTER XIII - - THE AWAKENING OF PERK - - -Because Amos was feeling much more cheerful they sang some that -night. Perhaps the great woods up at Log Cabin Bend had never before -echoed with the rare melody of four boyish voices. The little -four-footed furry denizens of the forest must surely have listened -in sheer amazement to catch the unwonted sounds floating through the -leafy aisles, and believed that their solitude was indeed a thing of -the past. - -It was mostly rollicking school songs, intermingled with some of the -popular military airs of the war time that they favored. Elmer saw -to it that in no case did they switch to anything that had a touch -of sadness about it. He wanted Amos to forget his troubles as much -as possible, not hug them to his heart. - -Fortunately it proved to be a peaceful night, with no trace of -coming storm, which was a good thing for the photographic -experiment. - -At peep of dawn, Elmer waked just in time to catch a glimpse of Amos -stealing out of the cabin, he having managed to get the door open -without making much noise. Although Elmer raised his head he did not -utter a sound to let the other know he had been observed; for he -knew very well that Amos had his camera in mind, and was heading for -the spot where it had been set ready for Mr. Mink. - -On the return of the other bearing his apparatus Elmer was up and -outside getting the fire started. It needed no question on his part -to decide that some sort of success had come to the ardent -photographer. - -“He visited the trap, Elmer, for a fact!” Amos was saying, his face -showing signs of considerable satisfaction. “The flashlight had -burned; and then too the fish-head bait was gone. I think he managed -to work it clear of the cord; but he deserved it, sure he did, the -cunning little varmint. Oh! I’m fairly wild to see what I got out of -it!” - -“Hold your horses until we’ve had breakfast, Amos,” the other -advised him. “Then you can have the cabin to work in, when you start -developing. I wouldn’t be at all surprised to find you’d made a big -hit.” - -“I used to think once I cared a heap to wander the fields with a -gun, and if I could only fetch home some game in my bag, a rabbit, -partridge, gray squirrel, or quail I felt might proud of my skill; -but I can plainly see I’ll never again find any happiness in -killing. This sort of hunting with a camera has got it all beat to a -frazzle.” - -“The beauty of it is,” remarked Elmer, “that you can still be on -friendly terms with the little animals of woods and swamp, and at -the same time secure your greatest triumphs. If that picture turns -out good, I reckon you’ll take ten times as much pleasure showing -it, than if you’d trapped the mink, and had taken his poor little -pelt to sell for a few dollars.” - -“Oh! I’m sure of that, Elmer. And I can see that there are really -unlimited possibilities about this wonderful game. Just think how -proud a man might be if he had an album crowded with such pictures, -which he had collected all over the world, showing animals and birds -in their native haunts, yes, telling how they lived, and reared -their young. I guess the disease has got a firm hold on me, and I’ll -never go back to hunting with a gun again.” - -Other boys than Amos Codling have discovered the same thing; and -many an innocent little creature living in the haunts of the -wilderness owes its continued existence to the lure and fascination -to be found in hunting with a camera. - -When Amos came out of the cabin, after being shut up there an hour -or more, he was looking decidedly pleased. - -“It turned out gilt-edged, Elmer!” he exclaimed, holding up -something with an air of considerable pride. “And, believe me, this -negative is so strong it’s bound to make a splendid print. You can -see what looks like an expression of surprise on the mink’s phiz -when that dazzling flash came. Yes, and he’s tugging at the string -we tied the fish-head to, for all that’s out!” - -Each of the others took a look, and decided that it was indeed a -prize negative. Considering the fact that it had been secured under -such strange conditions, the contrasts were remarkably clean cut. - -Amos was much encouraged by his initial success. Already he was -doubtless laying ambitious plans looking to further triumphs along -the line of what he was pleased to style “auto-photography,” because -each sitter must of necessity snap off his own picture. - -Still, as the morning advanced Elmer could not help noticing that -now and then Amos would allow his gaze to wander to this or that -point. Perhaps he may have been figuring out his next step in the -campaign; but Elmer, noting the anxious expression once more upon -the other’s face, decided that Amos was thinking of his father. - -Perk had developed a sudden interest in woods lore. Up to then this -subject had never interested him to any extent; in fact, he had been -more apt to display concern over a rabbit in the pot, than one -bounding over its native heath. - -He now learned that there was a world of deeply instructive things -to be picked up in connection with all these smaller creatures. Once -Elmer and Wee Willie, that afternoon, began to give up some of the -knowledge they had acquired, Perk started a flow of questions that -seemed capable, like the poet’s brook, of “running on forever.” - -The boys were good-natured, and really felt disposed to encourage -Perk in his pursuit of knowledge. It might be a turning point in the -career of easy-going Perk. Curiosity, along these lines, once -aroused awakens interest, and begets a desire to know more and more, -until all animated nature takes on a new and lively character. - -“Well, now,” for one thing Perk remarked, “I’ve seen a rabbit start -running when I crossed a field, and then act queer, as if suddenly -lame. Yes, I can remember chasing bunny, and nearly overtaking the -little bunch with the cottontail; when all at once it’d spin away -like lightning, leaving me out of breath, and feeling foolish. So -that was all a sharp trick, was it, Elmer?” - -“A very common one, played by mother partridges as well as rabbits,” -he was assured. “It was done just to draw you away from that clump -of grass, out of which the bunny jumped in the start. If you’d gone -there you’d have found a nest of young rabbits too small to escape. -The mother was ready to risk her own life in order to save her -babies.” - -Perk was deeply impressed. - -“Why, I wouldn’t have hurt one of them for anything,” he insisted; -“but then the old lady couldn’t know that, could she? To think of -such devotion even in an humble bunny! Why, it would shame a good -many human parents, that’s right. And you say partridges do -something the same, eh?” - -“A common trick,” Wee Willie hastened to remark. “Many a time in the -summer, or early in the fall before hunting time came, I’ve had a -bird suddenly flutter out on the woods trail before me, and act as -if she had a broken wing. I used to chase after her at first, until -I got wise to her sly trick. She’d let me almost grab her, and then -just flip on a little further, all the while luring me ahead; then -all of a sudden she’d recover the use of that broken wing and go off -with a buzz.” - -“And did you find young partridges where she came from?” pursued -Perk, with round eyes, and partly open mouth, as though he had begun -to experience a forerunner of the strange fascination that a -knowledge of all these wonderful things has for the lover of the -Open. - -“Lots of times,” Wee Willie promptly replied; “but I give you my -word for it, I was never guilty of trying to knock over a single one -of the frightened brood when they scattered like crazy little -things. Later on, I even refused to bother ’em in the least; though -when the season opened I would take my gun, and hunt as well as the -next one.” - -“Gee! I wish I could sight something like that,” Perk was saying. -“Do you think there are partridges around this place, Wee Willie?” - -“I’ve heard ’em drumming more’n a few times, Perk; and Elmer here -said he’d flushed several when roaming around.” - -“But would any mother bird be apt to have her brood so late in the -summer, do you expect?” continued the other persistently; for when -an idea did find lodgment in Perk’s brain it stuck most stubbornly. - -“I wouldn’t be surprised, for they say this was a late season, on -account of so much rain early in the summer, that drowned out lots -of nests. We might be lucky enough to run across one of these -self-sacrificing old mother birds while up here at Log Cabin Bend.” - -“Huh! hope I’m along if it does happen,” grunted Perk. “I never -dreamed that you could learn such queer and interesting things just -by keeping your eyes and ears open when in the woods. After this I’m -going to investigate for myself. Seems like I’d just begun to scrape -the scales off my eyes; for, say, I must have been blind never to -have paid any attention to these things before.” - -Elmer was delighted to hear Perk say this. He had himself tried more -than a few times to get the other interested in those very things, -but without success. Just what it was that had finally turned the -trick he could not say. Perhaps the hour had struck for Perk to wake -up; then again the sight of Amos beaming with joy over the success -of his night effort may have set the match to Perk’s slumbering -ambition. No matter what the cause, Elmer was vastly pleased at the -result. - -The boys were not idle by any means as the day passed on. They found -numerous things to occupy their time and attention. Some of these -tended to improve the conditions; little conveniences were arranged -as conceived, which were calculated to lighten the burden of getting -meals; or else render their sleeping accommodations more -comfortable. - -So the afternoon began to wane. - -Wee Willie and Elmer had been observing a perceptible change that -was coming over the weather. In fact the day had been unusually hot, -even for late summertime, and after summing up various portentous -facts the weather sharps came to the conclusion that before another -dawn they were likely to have a chance to test the rainproof -qualities of their newly patched cabin roof. - -“Something brooding, that’s certain,” Wee Willie asserted, as he -mopped his perspiring brow, having been chopping wood a short time -before, with the result that the perspiration was standing out in -beads. - -“Did Perk go fishing again?” asked Elmer; “I’ve missed him for some -time now.” - -“I don’t think so,” the other replied, “for there’s his jointed rod -standing over against the cabin right now. I remember seeing him -walk off; and come to think of it he went toward the east, and the -river lies to the west here.” - -They looked at each other, with a growing uneasiness. - -“Ten to one,” asserted Wee Willie, “Perk’s gone off on a little -tramp in hopes of starting a mother partridge whirring before him. -You know what he is when he gets any sort of notion in his head.” - -“But we ought to have warned him against doing that,” Elmer -hurriedly said, “remembering how one of his besetting sins has -always been to get lost!” - -With the prospect of a storm ahead they saw reason to feel concerned -over Perk’s continued absence. - - - - - CHAPTER XIV - - A STIRRING NIGHT AHEAD - - -“I’m afraid we’re in for trouble about Perk, Elmer,” the tall chum -observed, his freckled face set in a frown. - -“Nothing serious, so far,” he was told, for Elmer did not believe in -“conjuring up ghosts” as he termed Wee Willie’s habit of -anticipating calamities that might never come to pass. “Plenty of -time still for Perk to come in before we start getting supper; and -besides the storm hasn’t shown a sign so far.” - -“But we know how easy it always has been for Perk to lose his -bearings in the woods,” persisted the other camper. “Many a time -before now we’ve had to go out and locate him. Seems as if Perk -never will learn how to take care of himself.” - -“He’s just waking up,” remarked Elmer; “and may surprise some of us -yet, once he gets started. Still, it wouldn’t do any harm to give an -occasional shout. If he hasn’t got beyond earshot it might help him -locate the camp again.” - -“I second the motion; and here goes for a starter.” - -With that Wee Willie lifted up his strong voice, and gave a shrill -yell that could doubtless have carried a mile away. Amos came -hurrying out of the cabin as if wondering what was going on. He -seemed relieved to find his two chums standing there. - -“Why, you did give me such a start!” he declared. “I even thought -that lunatic might have hopped in, and tackled Wee Willie. What’s -all the shouting for?” - -“Perk’s wandered off again, and we thought he might stray away, so -we’re meaning to take turns in letting out a bazoo whoop to guide -him this way,” explained Wee Willie, with a grin. “If he was within -a mile I reckon he heard that clarion call of mine, eh, Amos?” - -“Yes, and it ought to tell him which way the cabin lies,” returned -the other, confidently. “But we must keep it up, for Perk, even if -he started right, would be apt to swing to the left, like most -fellows do in the woods when they haven’t learned the trick of -keeping a direct line.” - -“Every three minutes by the watch one of us must shout,” decided -Elmer. - -This program was kept up for half an hour. Several times they would -fancy there was a more or less feeble response, so that the shouting -was quickly resumed; but after straining their hearing to the utmost -they finally felt compelled to admit that this must have been only a -vivid imagination. - -“I sure heard something answer that last yell,” Wee Willie affirmed, -stubbornly; “but then it may only have been an owl up in some old -dead treetop; or a cawing crow some distance away.” - -“How long ought we keep this thing up, Elmer?” inquired Amos. - -“Not more than another half hour,” came the reply. - -“And if nothing happens then?” - -“We’ll have to start out and try to locate Perk,” he was told. - -“I saw him leave camp, and he went that way,” with which Amos -pointed to a certain quarter; at which Wee Willie nodded, and -hastened to add: - -“Yes, I was telling Elmer here I saw him walk away, and he went in -the direction of the east, which wasn’t toward the river at all. I -don’t know how it came I seemed to take it for granted Perk was -going fishing; must have had something on my mind at the time, and -didn’t notice that he hadn’t his rod along. What makes things worse -is that storm!” - -“Storm!” echoed Amos, staring around; “why, it’s as blue as indigo -overhead right now; where’s your storm, Wee Willie?” - -“We seem to feel one coming in our bones,” explained the other. -“Sometimes, you know you can tell that one’s due by certain signs. -And if you look sharp you’ll see clouds gathering over in the -southwest; which is the quarter most of our big summer storms spring -from.” - -Amos did look, and then shook his head as if dismayed at the -prospect. - -“I’m sorry for Perk, that’s all,” he remarked. - -“Oh there isn’t so much chance of anything serious overtaking him,” -Elmer hastily assured him. “To be sure he’s likely to get well -drenched, and perhaps the thunder and lightning, as well as falling -trees around him, may make it unpleasant for Perk; but that’s really -the extent of it. If he wanders far he’s apt to get out of the -timber belt, and run on some farm-house where he could get shelter, -food and ditto a bed.” - -“Yes, no one could ever refuse him anything he asked for, what with -that winning smile of his,” said Amos. - -They continued shouting at more frequent intervals, until all of -them began to get quite hoarse; but there was no perceptible result. -The second half hour thus began to draw toward a close. - -“All useless, seems like!” admitted Wee Willie in disgust. - -“Yes,” Elmer observed, “we’re wasting time doing this, when we’d -have shown better judgment in starting out a while ago. Knowing -Perk’s failing as we do, we ought to have made up our minds that -sooner or later we’d have to go out after him.” - -He had seen to it that the single lantern they carried with them to -the woods was well filled with oil from the extra bottle. - -“Who’s going along?” Wee Willie now asked. - -“I thought at first two of us would be enough,” said Elmer, “but -changed my mind, and so we’ll go in a bunch”; at which information -Amos looked pleased, for he had feared they would figure him out of -the game. - -“I’ll fix my camera so it can’t possibly get wet, if the storm -comes, and the old roof drips in spite of all our fixing,” he -hurriedly called out, darting inside the cabin. - -“Not afraid about leaving our things unguarded, are you?” asked Wee -Willie. “It would be a joke on us if that lunatic happened around, -and cleaned us out of everything.” - -“We’ll have to take chances on that,” Elmer decided, “but I reckon -there isn’t much danger. We can close the door, and wedge it fast, -so that any one’d believe it was barred inside, and that some of us -were at home.” - -“You said it, Elmer,” chuckled the other, “takes you to think up -clever little schemes right along. I suppose we can expect to get a -good ducking before we’re through this job.” - -“Oh! well, we’re not made of sugar or salt, Wee Willie; and we’d -stand much more than that for Perk!” - -“I should think we would!” quickly declared the tall chum, -energetically, as though anxious to put himself on record. “Why, I’d -go through fire and water for him, and think little of it. I’m only -worrying for fear something might happen to Perk, something serious -you know.” - -“Yes, such as a tree falling on him in the storm,” Elmer added, “or -his breaking a leg by tripping over a trailing vine as he ran -headlong, trying to find some sort of shelter. But let’s hope -nothing like that will happen.” - -“I’ve put a cake of chocolate in my pocket, Elmer, in case we don’t -get back to camp to-night, and feel hungry; you fellows had better -do the same. Wonderful lot of nourishment in chocolate you know. -Think I’ll get another, for Perk, when we find him.” - -“Now that’s a good idea,” agreed Elmer, “and I’ll see that Amos -follows suit.” - -“You didn’t want him to stay alone here while we were gone, I -noticed, Elmer. What was the big idea?” - -“In the first place, three might be better in scouring the woods -than two. Then again I was afraid Amos would feel it terribly if -left all alone in a storm, and as nervous as he is just now, -worrying over his father. He was pleased when he heard me say all of -us were to go.” - -“Of course, we ought to try to follow up Perk’s trail as long as -it’s light enough, eh, Elmer?” - -“I expect to, and even afterwards by the help of our lantern, Wee -Willie. If he’s kept turning to the left, as I suppose will be the -case, and we continued along due east, we’d soon be leaving him -further and further away. As it is we can cover several miles before -we’re forced to quit, and a burst of shouts might reach him.” - - - - - CHAPTER XV - - CAUGHT IN THE STORM - - -So plain was the trail of the wanderer that they had no trouble in -following it at quite a rapid pace. Indeed, Elmer calculated that -they were proceeding even faster than Perk himself had gone along; -for as a rule the stout chum was not prone to make speed except when -circumstances demanded that he let himself out—in a baseball game; -or it might be a sack race for a prize. - -More than once did Elmer mentally take himself to task for not -starting out much sooner. The afternoon was closing in, and it would -not be a great while before night came on. Even another precious -half hour of daylight might have proven of considerable value to -them; but then Elmer knew it was useless now to indulge in vain -regrets. - -By the time it began to get so dusky that even his keen eyes had -difficulty in making out the trail, he decided it was necessary to -make use of the lantern. - -They had come quite a distance, Wee Willie figuring it out as -possibly a couple of miles, which must have been a conservative -guess, Elmer agreed. So he struck a match, and presently when the -trail was taken up again the lantern light allowed them to see -Perk’s heavy tracks plainly. - -Already they had changed their course considerably. Perk aimed to -avoid pushing through many of the thickets, and rough places he -encountered; which had a tendency to throw him now to the right, and -again to the left, until naturally he became bewildered, and -doubtless for the life of him could not decide in which quarter the -cabin lay. - -From the indications Wee Willie judged that he had stopped to cast a -stone into numerous thickets, in expectation of starting a partridge -out, which he hoped would betray that queer trick the other boys had -been speaking about. When after much wandering, and repeated -failures to score, Perk finally made up his mind that it was time -for him to turn his face toward camp, he must have been thoroughly -disgusted to discover that he did not have the slightest idea as to -whether the cabin lay on the right, the left, before, or behind him; -and that he was really and truly lost. - -But then that did not have any great terror for Perk. He had been -lost so many times before that it was getting to be an old story. -Doubtless he would keep on trying to “find himself” until he -realized the hopelessness of it all, when he would philosophically -sit down, to make a fire, and toast his shins, until such time as -his mates came along with a rescue party; for he knew they could -easily follow his tracks. - -Perk, however, did not take certain possibilities into -consideration, if he figured it out that way, for one thing the -coming of the storm. At no other time when he played the part of the -“babes in the woods” had anything like that overtaken him; and if -there was one particular type of Nature’s moods which Perk disliked -most cordially it was a storm. - -The lightning always made him jump; the thunder awed him; while the -roar of a violent wind through the trees, sounding like a runaway -railway train coming down the slope, made his flesh fairly creep. So -that it can be seen an experience he would not soon forget faced the -reckless woods wanderer on this occasion. - -They had not been moving again very long after the lantern was -lighted when Wee Willie called their attention to the moaning of the -wind through the tops of the tall trees. - -“That always means storm, according to my weather education,” he -affirmed; “anyhow, I never yet knew it to fail. The clouds are -working up all the time, too, boys. Guess we’ll be swimming before a -great while. Worst of all is the fact that once the water comes -down, good-by to our tracking, for even Perk’s heavy trail would -soon be washed clean out.” - -“And not a single little woods varmint have we run across,” -suggested Elmer, who never failed to notice everything, “which shows -that their instinct tells them there’s something afoot, and that -they’d better hug their underground holes, or hollow trees, for -shelter.” - -“How weird that wind does sound through the treetops,” said Amos, -shuddering as he spoke. “You could almost imagine it came from some -unseen spirits, or that the trees were gossiping, just like a pack -of old women over their teacups.” - -Wee Willie had not thought of that, because he was a practical sort -of fellow; but then Amos happened to be built along different lines, -being given a lively imagination. - -“Here’s where Perk commenced to hurry some,” observed Elmer at that -juncture. “He must have begun to realize he didn’t seem to be -striking the river very fast, for he even ran a short distance, -lumbering along like an ice-wagon, and falling more than a few -times.” - -“Huh! getting some anxious, I warrant you,” grunted Wee Willie. -“Began to be afraid he’d miss his supper if he didn’t do better.” - -“Don’t say that,” urged Elmer, reprovingly; “I’d rather believe Perk -was thinking of the worry he might cause the rest of his chums.” - -“Say,” snapped the other as quick as a flash, “forget what I said, -please, fellows; it came from the lips, but not from the heart. I -didn’t mean it, that’s right. Perk isn’t the chap to think of -himself first; there never was a more loyal comrade, or one who -wanted more to be of service to his pals.” - -That was Wee Willie all over—too ready to say things of which he -immediately repented, when he would strive to make amends. But Elmer -liked him all the better on account of his quick temper, and habit -of speaking without considering the result; Wee Willie had his -faults, but to Elmer’s mind he was an angel compared with some sly -fellows who seemed to have a perpetual sneer in their tones, and a -curl to their upper lips. - -“Wasn’t that distant thunder I heard then?” asked Amos. - -“Just what it was,” Elmer admitted; “so we didn’t hit far out of the -way when we decided we were in for a storm.” - -“But it’s a long way off yet,” urged the other. - -“That’s true, but when the wind starts to blow it doesn’t take long -for a gale to strike home,” the boy with the lighted lantern -reminded him. - -“About how long would you give us before it arrives?” continued -Amos. - -“Anywhere from ten minutes to half an hour,” he was told. “Sometimes -they take a notion to swing around, and attack from a new quarter; -which holds things up more or less.” - -“Huh! you never can tell what a crazy old storm will do,” grunted -Wee Willie. “I’ve had ’em die down on me, but just when I was taking -a good breath, slam bang! and the game was on again, the second -edition being a heap worse than the original dose. It pays to keep -right on the job when there’s a twister working your patch of the -woods.” - -“It pays to keep on the alert, no matter where you are. Preparedness -has won many a battle on the field, in business, and with private -affairs. The fellow who is ready has three chances to one for the -shiftless chap caught off his guard.” - -It was not long before the distant boom of the thunder grew -perceptibly louder, proving that the storm was advancing their way, -and could not be much longer delayed in transit. - -“We might holler a few times,” suggested Wee Willie, “and if by -great good luck Perk is close enough to hear us, so much the -better.” - -“Go to it, then,” advised Elmer, knowing Wee Willie had a voice that -would be apt to carry much further than his own, or that of Amos. - -Without waiting for a second invitation the elongated chum threw -back his head and sent forth one of his shrillest yells. - -“Perk! oh! Perk! Hey! there!” he bawled. - -“Perk! hey there!” came a startling mocking answer that caused Wee -Willie to jump, and stare hard at Elmer. - -“W-why, did y-you hear that?” he gasped. - -“Only an echo,” the other told him. “It repeated your words after -you. As a rule it requires some sort of elevation to create an echo; -but they’ve been known to spring right up from what looked like -level ground. A lot depends on the condition of the atmosphere. I’ve -known of a mighty fine echo that would send back a double line at -you like fun, and yet it came out of a marsh. I admit echoes have -always been something of a puzzle to me; but that was one just now, -all right.” - -“A queer thing,” Amos hurried to say, “and at first I really thought -it was Perk hiding close by, and mocking Wee Willie here. Can you -still follow his tracks, Elmer?” - -“It’s as easy as falling off a log,” replied the one addressed, “but -for a fact I’m more than surprised at Perk keeping it up so long. He -must have been provoked with himself over getting lost, and -determined to make the punishment fit the crime. Why, we’ve come -more than three miles, up to now.” - -“If we’re going to find him before that storm breaks, it’s got to be -done fast now,” Wee Willie told them, when a still more resonant -grumble followed what was plainly a distant flash of lightning. - -“All we can do,” advised the guide with the lighted lantern, “is to -keep moving until we’re up against it, when of course we’ll have to -try to find some shelter ourselves.” - -Wee Willie continued to let out a whoop from time to time. It amused -him, at least, and could do no harm, while there was always a -slender chance that Perk might hear and reply. - -“Wow! things are getting pretty warm!” he announced shortly -afterwards, when a really deafening crash followed quickly on the -heels of a blinding electric display. - -“I felt the first drop of rain on my face when I looked up at that -flash,” said Amos, trying to show the utmost coolness. - -“Yes, it’s going to break right away,” said Elmer. - -“Perk, I wonder where you are?” Wee Willie remarked on a hazard, -remembering what a dislike the lost chum invariably displayed toward -all kinds of strife among the elements. - -“Listen! what’s that?” asked Amos. “Sounds for all the world like a -regular young Niagara going over the falls.” - -“It means the rain is rushing down on us, and that we’re going to be -soaked through and through in a jiffy,” Elmer told him. - -Five minutes afterwards and they found themselves in the midst of as -lively a summer gale as any of them had ever known, with the -artillery in the heavens keeping up an almost constant booming, -occupied by dazzling flashes of lightning; while to the right and to -the left they could hear terrific crashing sounds as trees were laid -prostrate before the fury of the hurricane wind! - - - - - CHAPTER XVI - - WHERE WOODCRAFT PAYS - - -Progress of course was utterly out of the question while all this -racket continued. Indeed, even with the aid of the lantern, and the -almost incessant flashing of the lightning, they could never have -found the marks left by Perk in his erratic wanderings; for already -had the downpour of rain washed them completely out of existence as -though the trail had never been. - -“No telling how long this is going to last, of course?” called out -Amos, and his voice quivered more or less, despite his brave efforts -to appear quite unconcerned, as a veteran of camp and trail should. - -“It may soon be over,” replied Elmer, “and again there’s always a -chance of such a storm holding out all night.” - -“Wonder if we couldn’t find some sort of shelter?” ventured Wee -Willie, doubtless voicing the thought that was in each of his -companions’ minds. - -“Let’s bear off in this direction,” suggested Elmer, turning toward -the right, and as he carried the lantern the others were compelled -to follow him. - -“But the trees seem to be getting smaller over here, Elmer,” -protested the tall chum. - -“Sure thing, I know that,” called the guide over his shoulder, “but -we’re not looking for any big hollow oak, with all this lightning -around, you know. Notice that the ground’s getting rocky, and that -it begins to lie in queer ledges? I’ve seen just such places before, -and I’m hoping we’ll run across a ledge that’ll hang out far enough -to let us crawl underneath.” - -“Wow! that’s the stuff!” admitted Wee Willie, apparently giving in -to the judgment of his leader without any dispute. - -“Something up ahead there that looks like it might pan out,” called -Amos just then; though he could not feel sure he saw correctly, -because of the water that ran down his face, and seemed at times to -act as a sort of curtain hiding out the wretched picture. - -“We’re in great luck!” cried Elmer, ten seconds later, “for here’s -just the sort of ledge I had in mind, with plenty of room for all of -us to creep under the outcropping shelf of rock.” - -Down on hands and knees they went. This was no time for being -particular, when the situation was so desperate; a little dirt did -not matter, for who does not know how the average boy manages to -keep on good terms with grime, without letting its presence -interfere at all with his appetite, or enjoyment. - -“Whirr! whirr!” - -“Hey! what’s all this?” bellowed Wee Willie, already screwed up in a -knot, as he doubled his long legs in the endeavor to push further -under the friendly shelf of rock, one of Nature’s freaks in that -neck of the tall timber, but wonderfully acceptable to those caught -in the wild storm. - -“Only a covey of partridges we’ve scared out of their hiding-place,” -Elmer instantly called back. “They thought they owned it, but we’ve -put in a quit claim. All under, boys?” - -“Say, this isn’t half so bad!” Amos exclaimed. - -“It’s all right,” ventured Wee Willie, “if only we don’t get drowned -in the water that’s going to ooze from our clothes. I reckon I weigh -close on a ton right now; why, I could hardly lift my leg toward the -last, I carried such a cargo of soaked stuff with me.” - -They lay there panting for a while, “resting up,” as a boy would put -it. - -“Any port in a storm, the sailor says,” Elmer presently sang out, -“and this time we can understand what that homely old phrase means.” - -“Getting some chilly though, don’t you think?” said Amos, his teeth -chattering as he spoke. - -“Oh! that’s because we’re wet to the bone,” the tall chum asserted. -“Since we can’t help ourselves we’ve just got to grin and bear it. -Lots of fellows may be a heap worse off than we are right now.” - -He was thinking of Perk, of course; but Amos had another person in -mind when, during a brief lull in the roaring of the storm he was -heard to groan, and say half to himself: - -“I wonder where he can be; and if he’s out in all this terrible -storm, poor old dad!” - -Wee Willie might have reassured him had he chosen. He could have -told Amos that those who have descended to the low level of becoming -plain ordinary hoboes, tramping the highways, and counting the -railroad ties in their peregrinations to and fro over the country, -are as a rule, able to foresee the coming of bad weather, and -generally manage to find some shelter in advance. - -However, he did not say this, because to do so would hurt the -feelings of Amos; who seemed still to have considerable love for the -father he had not seen nor heard from for several long years. - -How the minutes dragged! - -Wee Willie, too, had now begun to shiver, though he would not have -admitted that he was cold had he been accused of such a thing. While -the rain did not gain admittance to the space under the overlapping -ledge of rock, the wind could not be kept entirely out; and owing to -their being so wet this caused them much inconvenience, to say the -least. - -“Don’t you believe it’s letting up some, Elmer?” pleaded Amos, after -a bit. - -“I was just thinking so myself when you spoke,” came the reply. -“Yes, the rain, you see, has almost stopped, though the wind keeps -up a great roaring in the treetops. But it’s lost some of its fury -to boot; I haven’t heard a tree crash down for some time.” - -“Huh! guess all the weak brothers have been knocked silly by now!” -grunted Wee Willie, using this method of speaking because he could -disguise the fact that his teeth were rattling like the castanets he -had once seen a Spanish dancer use at a concert. - -“Make up your mind, the performance is over for to-night,” Elmer -thrilled them by declaring five minutes afterwards. - -“Well, for goodness’ sake, don’t let’s do anything to coax an -encore,” begged Amos. “But I can hear the rain coming down still, -Elmer.” - -“I reckon now that’s just the water dripping from the trees you -hear,” he was assured, which turned out to be the case. - -They hugged their confined quarters for a short time longer; then -Elmer made a move as though meaning to crawl out. - -“Come along, boys!” he called; “we’ll feel a heap better to get on -our feet, and start the blood to circulating again.” - -“You said it, Elmer,” honestly confessed Amos; “why, I’m shaking -like I had the ague right now. And I’m not sure but that Wee -Willie’s going to fall to pieces soon if he keeps on the way he -does, he’s so loosely made up, you know.” - -“Oh! I guess not _yet_ awhile,” snapped the one referred to, who -however lost no time in creeping out from under the ledge where the -wise partridges had taken up their quarters for the night, -anticipating a wet time. - -No sooner was Elmer on his feet than laying the lantern aside he -commenced slapping both arms violently about him, at the same time -jumping up and down after the manner of a savage indulging in a -dance. - -“The only way to get your blood to circulating!” Wee Willie -admitted, as he hastened to imitate the others example; and -presently there were three dancers hopping about, and making wild -gesticulations with their waving arms. - -All of them began to feel considerably better, though their breath -was soon coming in short pants. - -“This is an improvement,” Elmer called out, “but we ought to have a -fire!” - -“Fire!” - -That word always appealed to Wee Willie, even as a red rag does to -an aggressive bull; he never needed more than half a hint to find an -excuse for building one. - -“Whoop! watch my smoke, fellows!” he cried, delightedly. “I’m some -boy when you need a blaze. Don’t either of you dare to offer to -help; because I’m the fire-maker of this circus!” - -One thing that the tall chum always insisted on when in the woods -was to carry his pet camp hatchet along with him wherever he went. -Many times it was likely to prove a grievous burden, but should the -occasion arise when its value could be fully appreciated, like the -present, Wee Willie felt amply rewarded for his forethought. - -He had it loose and ready before Amos could have said “Jack -Robinson,” and picking out an old stump near by attacked it with -great vigor, Elmer holding his lantern so that the chopper could see -what he was doing. - -Of course the fire-maker was after the dry heart of the stump, which -could not have been soaked by the recent downpour. Soon he was -collecting small splinters of this inflammable wood, until he had -quite a decent pile laid by. At the base he inserted the finest and -most tempting of fibers, to which he meant to apply a match -presently; since this was certainly no time for him to show off his -knowledge of wonderful though tedious ways for making a fire without -the aid of common, every-day matches. - -It matters little to one who had made a hobby of the subject, that -everything around may be reeking with water; because he knows a -variety of ways for producing the desired result. Many fellows less -wise would have tried in vain, and used up their whole stock of -matches in endeavoring to coax wet tinder to burn. - -Amos gave an exclamation indicative of solid satisfaction when in -response to the click of the match, carefully protected by Wee -Willie’s hat, a tiny blaze sprang up that rapidly increased in -volume. - -“Hurrah for you, Wee Willie! You’re surely the champion fire-builder -of the universe. You’ll set the world on fire some of these days, if -they don’t watch you pretty close. My but that feels fine already!” - -“Oh! but I’ve got to have heavier stuff to put on top, or it’ll -peter out on us,” objected the other, bustling about. - -He must have figured on just where he could lay hold of the -necessary supplies, for almost in a jiffy he started piling dead -branches over the leaping blaze, which, rapidly drying out began in -turn to take fire, until there was a delightful roaring pyramid of -flames leaping cheerily upward, and sending out such glorious heat -that the boys had to move back a foot at a time. - -Their clothes also began to send out clouds of steam as the genial -warmth commenced the drying process. Everybody showed signs of -feeling a thousand per cent more comfortable; and there was no -longer any necessity for their performing those wild antics, like -warriors before the hunt or battle. - - - - - CHAPTER XVII - - A GUEST AT THE CAMPFIRE - - -“Why, I guess I’m all dry again,” Amos later on remarked with a -degree of satisfaction in his words. “That heat certainly works -fine. After all, it wasn’t such a terribly hard experience.” - -Amos was like most other people who are prone to forget how they -have suffered, once the sun of prosperity shines again; but then it -is fortunate boys are so constituted that they can “put their -troubles in their old kit-bag,” and be merry once more. - -“Of course,” observed Wee Willie, “we can’t do a thing now till -morning; even then our only job will be to keep on the move, and -letting out an occasional whoop in hopes of reaching Perk. I’d sure -give something to know what that same Perk is doing right now.” - -“Elmer, what’s that moving out there?” gasped Amos, as though -something suddenly ice-cold gripped his heart. - -“Why, it seems to be a _man_, and he’s heading this way, too!” -exclaimed the tall chum. “Say, wouldn’t it be a queer stunt now if -this happened to be our—well, the party we scared out of the cabin -at the Bend?” - -Amos uttered a plaintive little cry, but hastily followed it by -saying: - -“No, it can’t be, because you see he doesn’t limp at all!” - -The man continued to come straight toward them, though Elmer rather -suspected that he was eyeing them closely as he advanced, possibly -wondering who and what they were. At least he was no tramp, his -appearance indicating more or less refinement; though to be sure he -was fairly dripping just then, as though he had borne the full force -of the downpour. - -“Good evening, boys!” he called out as he drew near. “That fire -certainly looks tempting; and if you’ve no objections I’d like to -warm up a bit. Beastly storm, wasn’t it? I seem to be pretty damp; -but it doesn’t matter; nothing really does when you make your mind -up not to worry.” - -He held his hands out to the blaze as he finished. Elmer stared at -him in a puzzled way. To meet such a light-hearted man after the -passage of so dreadful a storm, and away up there in the woods, too, -was rather bewildering. - -“I suppose you’re all wondering who your unexpected guest will turn -out to be, boys,” suddenly said the man, turning and surveying them -keenly. “Allow me to introduce myself then as Doctor Frank Hitchens, -connected with the State Institute for the Insane. I lost my -connection with a party out searching this region for a clever -inmate who managed to break away recently. At first I imagined you -were my companions in the hunt; but as I drew closer I realized my -mistake.” - -“Oh! is that so, sir?” exclaimed Wee Willie, impulsively. “Why, we -happened to meet your two friends recently. They came knocking at -the door of our cabin, and at first thought they’d cornered their -man. When they found we were only a party of boys from Chester, -camping out, they asked a lot of questions; but we couldn’t give -them any clue, of course. So you’re the doctor from the Asylum, are -you, sir? If you come over on this side of the fire you can dry off -without so much of the smoke striking you.” - -“Thank you, son, I’ll do so,” the newcomer replied, suiting action -to word. - -He seemed to like to talk, as though the sound of his voice might be -pleasant to his own ears. Elmer held back and listened, hoping to -grasp the situation better by observing the expressions that flitted -in succession across the face of Dr. Hitchens. - -In the first place, he concluded that the other must be unusually -smart, for he seemed to be well posted on every kind of subject. As -he spoke, Elmer saw frowns, and then shrewd looks flit across his -face; from which he also concluded that the medical man must be the -possessor of something of a temper; he really looked like one whom -it would be unwise to irritate. - -Wee Willie apparently was quite taken with the doctor. He asked -various questions, and supplied all the information he had at his -command, when the other wished to know this or that. - -“Didn’t Collins or Andrews chance to mention my name to you, when -they made their call last night; or happen to say they had missed -connections with Dr. Frank Hitchens?” he finally inquired, -cunningly, Elmer thought. - -Wee Willie shook his head in the negative. - -“Why, no, sir, not a word did those guards say about having any one -else along,” he hastened to explain. “They had a dog with them, a -sort of hound, I reckon, because he had long ears, and bayed like -one; but somehow they didn’t seem to get a whiff of the scent of the -escaped lunatic.” - -Wee Willie was wise enough not to say anything concerning the fact -that they had frightened some one away from the cabin on first -arriving. Since they were now of the opinion that party had been Mr. -Codling, Amos’s long-missing parent, it was only fair to that -comrade nothing be said about his presence near by. - -“By the way,” continued the doctor, with glittering eyes, “did the -guards happen to mention the name of the—er, runaway?” and Elmer -thought he caught a slight chuckle when that last word was forcibly -pronounced. - -“Why, yes, they told us his name was, let me see, Felix Something or -other—oh! yes, Felix Gould; and that he was a mighty clever -chap—used to be an actor in his palmy days, too, and just -wonderfully smart.” - -“He is all of that,” commented the other, with a faint smile on his -face. “In fact, I don’t believe I ever ran across a more engaging -chap in all my wide experience than this same Felix Gould. The world -had not treated his genius right, which was the main cause for all -his mental troubles. But then they say everything comes to him who -waits; and there are times when even walls do not a prison make. -Life still has compensations for all the ills flesh is heir to.” - -His manner was really quite dramatic when saying this, Elmer -noticed. As for Wee Willie, somehow he seemed to have fallen under -the spell of the other’s masterful manner, for he sat there, and -listened as though entranced, hardly able to take his eyes off the -doctor’s mobile face. - -And then with the abruptness shown by a bolt of lightning coming -from what had been considered a clear sky, a thought suddenly sped -through Elmer’s brain. It dazzled him, too, at first by its -brilliance, yes, and thrilled him at the same time on account of the -element of danger that accompanied the revelation. - -Once this idea seized hold of him, Elmer watched the face of Dr. -Hitchens more closely than ever. He was trying to read the secret of -those rapidly working features, those glittering eyes, and the -strange smile that every now and then crept into view, as though the -physician might be taking infinite satisfaction in having found such -a ready convert to his views in Wee Willie, whom he had apparently -well-nigh hypnotized. - -Amos chancing to turn his gaze toward Elmer saw the other make a -quick little movement with his head. It said “come here” as plainly -as words could have done, an invitation Amos hastened to accept. - -At the same time somehow or other he displayed considerable caution -concerning his movements, though unaware just why he should do so. A -minute afterwards and he dropped down alongside the other chum, who -was so far as appearances went only interested in brushing off the -lower extremities of his wrinkled trousers. - -“What do you think of him, Elmer; a queer sort of a chap, that -doctor is, it strikes me?” remarked Amos, in what he meant to be a -low voice. - -“Be careful how you speak, Amos,” came in guarded tones. “I’ve been -sizing him up and I don’t like his looks. In fact, I think he is no -other than Felix Gould himself!” - -“Oh! my stars! the escaped actor lunatic!” whispered Amos, plainly -aghast at hearing this startling announcement. - - - - - CHAPTER XVIII - - ELMER HAS A PLAN - - -For a full minute nothing further passed between the two chums. Amos -was slyly observing the newcomer, who continued to talk most -eloquently, rattling along on some subject or other, and holding Wee -Willie spellbound. - -“Elmer!” finally whispered Amos. - -“Yes,” came from the other, though Elmer did not desist from his -occupation of making his trousers legs look more presentable, just -as if it mattered in the slightest degree how creased or muddy they -might be, off in the woods as they were, where no critical eye could -ever detect the faults. - -“I—guess—you’re right about that!” wheezed Amos. - -“I’m getting more and more certain with every minute,” asserted the -other. “I can see it in his shifty eyes, and his every action. Why, -he’s as mad as anything, and has been playing a clever little trick -on us. You must know these people who are out of their senses just -love to imitate other folks, and make believe they’re Napoleon -Bonaparte, General Grant, or some noted character in history. He -chances to have a fancy for being the doctor at the asylum; perhaps -he’s studied his ways, and can take the other off to the life. But -we’re stacked up against a bunch of trouble, believe me, with _him_ -in camp.” - -“He’d be a dangerous man to tackle, I expect?” ventured Amos, -dubiously. - -“They always are hard to handle, I’ve heard,” Elmer told him. “Why, -even a weak looking woman, if out of her mind, and violent, will be -all four men can manage; and at that she’ll claw their faces -something dreadful.” - -“Whew! but we ought to get rid of him, some way or other,” continued -Amos. “I wish I knew of a scheme to start: Elmer, how about you?” - -Elmer did not reply immediately. He happened to notice that the -furtive eyes of the man under suspicion chanced to be resting on -them just then; and it was far from his wish to cause the other to -suspect they knew his real identity. - -Possibly Wee Willie asked some question just naturally, as he was -deeply engrossed in certain things the “doctor” had been telling -him; at any rate those searching eyes were again removed from the -vicinity of the spot where Elmer and Amos sat close together. - -“As force is out of the question,” said Elmer, softly, “why the only -thing left is strategy.” - -“Yes—go on, please, for I just _know_ you’ve got a scheme made up,” -breathed Amos. - -“Don’t look so hungrily at me while I’m talking, Amos,” he was told. -“Try and grin, as if what I say might be funny. That man’s eyes are -like those of a rat or a ferret, and can look right through you.” - -It may have been but a wretched excuse for a laugh that Amos managed -to emit; but at any rate such a sound would make it appear as though -he were listening to some humorous observation on the part of his -mate. Elmer, appeased by this, continued to “lift the lid,” as Wee -Willie would term it, and explain what he had in mind. - -“We’ll manage to break into the talk after a bit, understand, Amos,” -he was now saying, “and don’t be surprised when I make a statement -that isn’t exactly true. But those two guards _did_ say they hoped -to run across us again while up here in this neck of the woods; you -heard them, Amos?” - -“I certainly did,” came the quick reply. - -“All right then, a fellow is allowed to stretch things just a little -when the circumstances are as desperate as they seem to be with us -right now. Well, I’m meaning to remark incidentally that we kind of -expect them to drop in on us before morning; in fact, that they may -see the light of our campfire any old time, and show up. Get that, -Amos?” - -The other actually chuckled, this time without much of an effort. - -“I’m on to your game, Elmer,” he announced, eagerly. - -“Do you think it’s a good one?” demanded the originator of the -scheme. - -“Simply great, and that’s a fact. Of course, if he was the genuine -article he’d act as if delighted to know there was a chance for him -to meet up with the balance of the search posse again.” - -“Oh! don’t fool yourself about that, Amos; he’s too smart not to act -as if tickled half to death at the prospect,” resumed Elmer. “I -expect all that to happen.” - -“Then how are we going to know whether he’s the real, or counterfeit -article, Elmer?” - -“They say the proof of the pudding is in the eating of it, Amos. -Lots of things in this world are different from what they seem to be -on their face. No matter what his make-believe is, we’ll know the -truth by his actions, when he thinks no one is looking.” - -“You mean he’s likely to skip out before morning, eh, Elmer?” - -“There’s a big chance that way, I reckon.” - -“Oh! I hope so, I certainly do,” said Amos. “I never did like to run -across any one who was out of his mind; they always made me feel -queer. But I’ve just thought of something, Elmer, that might queer -your fine game.” - -“Is it—Wee Willie?” asked the other, quickly. - -“How on earth did you guess so easily, I’d like to know?” gasped -Amos, quite taken aback for the moment. - -“Just because I had thought about him myself,” came the answer. -“He’s sitting there, and drinking in everything that chap tells him -as if he might be in a daze. Yes, I wondered how he would take it -when he heard me say I expected those two guards to join us any old -time now.” - -“Gee! Wee Willie might blurt out something that would make him -suspect you only said that so as to alarm him!” - -“There’s only one way to prevent that,” his comrade told him. “I’ll -be sure to catch his eye just before I say anything, and give him -the high sign. Wee Willie knows what that’ll mean; he’ll understand -that he’s got to keep his lips tightly buttoned up,—just sit there -and listen. You’ll see how lucky it is we had all those signals -arranged long ago.” - -“That was your doing, Elmer; why, if you’d looked ahead, and seen -just such an occasion as this, you couldn’t have fixed things -better. But won’t Wee Willie be eating himself up with curiosity, -though? He’ll wonder what under the sun it all means.” - -“I expect to find a chance to tell him what’s in the wind, Amos; in -fact it’s more than likely he’ll make such an opening himself, so as -to be in the swim with us.” - -“There, he’s watching us again, Elmer; just as if he suspected we -might be talking about him by ourselves off here.” - -Elmer laughed, and went on to act as if detailing some choice bit of -gossip concerning one of their home pals in Chester. Amos, stirred -to action by the necessities of the case, also managed to look as if -tickled over something, although merriment came hard with a fellow -who for years now had been carrying such a load of anxiety and -boyish sorrow on his shoulders, all connected with the episode of -his father’s vanishing, and the constant sad face of his mother. - -Elmer did not believe in hurrying things. He knew that many a -promising plan of campaign has been ruined simply through an -application of too much haste. The night was long; indeed, it would -likely seem interminable to the three lads who found themselves face -to face with such an unpleasant experience. So he would wait -patiently; possibly luck might favor them, and the unwelcome visitor -announce his intention of leaving, a happening that would make the -carrying out of his cleverly arranged plan unnecessary. - -The minutes dragged past. - -“I saw him yawn right then, Elmer; he’s getting sleepy, I should -say; which looks like he meant to stick by us to-night,” Amos -whispered, after another quarter of an hour had crept by. - -The talkative “doctor” must have tired himself out, or else his mood -changed, for he had about quit speaking to Wee Willie. In fact, the -latter was also beginning to display unmistakable signs of being -ready to turn in, the heat of the crackling fire doubtless causing -his eyes to grow heavy. - -Elmer decided that the time was at hand for him to do something. -Once their unwelcome guest lay down and went to sleep it would be -too late. - -First of all, he was watching to get the eye of the tall chum. Wee -Willie on his part was suddenly surprised, and electrified as well, -to see Elmer make a little movement with his hand which he easily -understood to mean: “Don’t open your mouth to say a thing when you -hear me make a statement; you’ll know all about it later on!” - -Elmer repeated it so as to make sure the other understood, and when -he saw Wee Willie make a similar movement he felt that matters were -settled. - -With that Elmer called out to the visitor: - -“Of course you mean to bunk with us to-night, Doctor? Sorry we -haven’t anything to offer you in the way of food, but we came away -from our camp in a big hurry, anxious about our missing chum, and -failed to fetch grub along. But after the storm, with the woods all -soaked with water, I guess a fire feels too good to leave; how about -that, Doctor?” - -Elmer wisely made out to use that designation whenever possible; he -fancied it might please the other, and allay any suspicion he might -have been entertaining toward the speaker. Those wonderfully keen -eyes seemed almost to pierce Elmer, as the other surveyed him -closely. - -“Thank you, that’s very kind,” he remarked, smoothly; “and I think I -shall accept the invitation in the same spirit it is given. Yes, -this fire does warm one up, after such a soaking; and it would be -foolish for me to leave such good company.” - -“There’s another reason why you ought to stay with us, Doctor,” -continued Elmer, looking so innocent that Amos made up his mind the -other was built for a clever actor. - -“Indeed, what might that be, I’d like to know?” said the other, with -a vein of sudden alarm in his voice. - -“Why, the chances are we’ll be joined by two good friends of yours -between now and sunrise,” continued the boy. “I mean Collins and -Andrews, those fine fellows you brought with you from the asylum, -when you came in search of that cunning Felix Gould!” - -The man was silent for a full minute. He seemed to be pondering over -something, for he frowned, and then forced himself to look pleasant. - -“That is rare good news you are giving me, my young friend!” he -burst out, though had he chanced just then to have turned his head -and looked at Wee Willie, to note the expression of blank -bewilderment to be seen on his freckled face, he might have felt -less confidence. “What makes you think there will be a reunion of -forces to-night? Collins and Andrews are great cronies of mine, whom -I shall, of course, be delighted to meet again.” - -“Why, they said they meant to put in the day searching the woods up -here; and something seems to tell me they’ll surely drop in.” - -“It is very kind of you to tell me such delightful news,” the other -replied. “Yes, I’ll cuddle down here by your fire, and snatch a -little sleep, of which I am in great need; though food is something -I’d like to see before me as well.” - -They all lay down as if to sleep, but it was a very alert group -indeed, stretched out there, including the “doctor.” - - - - - CHAPTER XIX - - THE LONG, LONG NIGHT - - -“What does it all mean, Elmer?” - -Wee Willie whispered this as he managed to roll over close to the -other. It had been just what Elmer was counting on, ever since the -tall chum threw himself down as if carelessly; but nevertheless -picking out a spot where he could manage to get in contact with his -leader. - -“Sh! keep your voice down lower still; he must have the ears of a -rabbit—all these crazy people have!” Elmer told him, cautiously. - -“Wow! do you mean that?” gasped the other, plainly staggered by what -he had just heard. - -“Listen, and I’ll tell you about it.” - -It took Elmer only a brief time to do this, for he chose his words, -and made sure not to add unnecessary details, leaving something to -the lively imagination of the other. - -So Wee Willie had the scales removed from his eyes. He understood -now how the glib tongue of the cunning escaped lunatic had somehow -dulled his wits, and lulled his suspicions to sleep. - -“Gee! so he’s that dangerous Gould chap, is he?” he murmured, as -though it might be difficult for him to grasp this amazing truth. -“He sure had me all balled up by his talk. My cousin out west’d say -I’d been locoed, and I reckon it looks that way. But ought we go to -sleep like innocent babes in the woods, with such a live wire in -camp, and he a luny?” - -“I don’t mean to,” Elmer assured him. “Some one ought to keep awake -so as to watch him, and I guess I’m IT in this case. Already Amos is -drowsy, even if he does know about the danger hanging over our -heads; and I’ve an idea you’d let yourself doze if put on guard.” - -“Huh! try me, that’s all, Elmer,” whispered the other, a bit -indignantly. - -“You can do as you feel like,” he was told; “but as for me I expect -to stay awake. And if he’s watching us right now perhaps we’d better -break away, or he’ll be thinking there’s something up.” - -Amos tried very hard to keep his heavy eyes from closing. Time and -again he would nod and nod, and then with a start rub his knuckles -into his eyes; but presently the whole performance was renewed, -until finally he simply slipped over, and remained motionless on the -ground. - -Elmer looked at him with considerable compassion. - -“Poor chap,” he was saying, under his breath, “he’s had little sleep -since we got up here, what with worrying about that wandering dad of -his!” - -The camp was very quiet, save for now and then the snapping of the -flames as they ate their way into the log Elmer had piled on the -fire. Wee Willie had also tried to keep awake, and for a time seemed -to be successful; but in the end Elmer had reason to believe that -he, too, was fast succumbing to the sway of the slumber king, for he -nodded violently, and could hardly keep his head off his chest. - -It must have been well on to midnight when Elmer noticed the first -move on the part of the “doctor.” The man was sitting up and -observing them with a steady gaze. Undoubtedly he was trying to -discover whether any one of his companions could be awake and in a -position to notice what he did. - -Elmer held his breath, but did not move. He had so fixed matters -that he could see all that went on, though a crooked elbow shielded -his face from the betraying firelight. - -Wee Willie breathed hard. He was fast asleep at last, despite his -positive assertion that nothing could tempt him to lose himself. - -Now the man had started to get to his hands and knees. Elmer -wondered what he meant to do, and the possibility of rank treachery, -such as crazy persons are likely to display on the least occasion, -filled him with dismay. He felt a queer thrill pass through his -frame as the man arose stealthily. - -Another minute would tell the tale, Elmer realized. Should the -insane man start to approach their side of the now half-dying fire -it was his intention to arouse his two companions with a shout, and -spring to his own feet. - -Earlier in the evening Elmer, looking ahead to possibilities, had -managed to drop several billets of wood close to the spot where he -and his mates expected to lie. These would come in handy as clubs in -case there were actual hostilities, which he fervently hoped might -not prove to be the case. - -He afterwards declared that it seemed to him his heart jumped up in -his throat when he saw the man actually take one step toward them. -Fortunately Elmer controlled his feelings, and made no move to -betray the fact that he was awake. - -Relief swept over him upon discovering that the other had changed -his mind, if he really intended doing anything serious; for once -more he turned and crept away. - -Elmer watched his receding figure as long as he could make it out. -Then it became merged in the dim moonlight, and their unwelcome -guest had gone! - -Wee Willie, sound asleep, felt something grip him. He instantly -started to sit up, though only half awake as yet. - -“W-what’s doing?” he muttered, unable to grasp the situation. - -“I only thought you’d like to know he’s gone,” said Elmer, quietly. - -The other was by now fully aroused and seemed to understand what was -meant. - -“You mean Fe—er, the Doctor, do you, Elmer?” he demanded. - -“No other,” he was told. - -Wee Willie stared across to where he had last seen the recumbent -figure of their unwelcome guest. - -“Glad to hear the news, that’s right; when did he slip away?” he -asked. - -“Oh! about ten minutes or so back,” he was informed. “I waited to -make sure of it before I waked you.” - -Amos sat up just then. - -“What’s this I heard you say, Elmer; that he’d quit us?” he demanded -eagerly. - -So Elmer had to tell the story of his seeing the insane man get to -his feet, and how at one time he even feared the other meant to -creep toward them, which would have surely spelled trouble for -everybody. - -“But I’m glad to say he changed his mind,” he concluded, “and went -away peacefully; so I reckon there’ll be no need of these bully -clubs I managed to get together for use in case of a racket.” - -“Gee! what a high old time we’d have had, if the fight came off,” -speculated the lanky one, with half a chuckle. “Some of us might -have had welts all over our bodies that’d spoil our whole outing. -Yes, I’m glad myself it didn’t happen that way. I don’t mind a class -rush, or a football tackle, but excuse me from battling with a crazy -man.” - -“Well, I’m shaking hands with myself over the narrow escape,” Amos -observed, “and Elmer, I want to say right now that dodge of yours -worked like magic. He concluded he didn’t care much to stay over, -and meet up with his warm friends Collins and Andrews from the State -Asylum; in which I should say he showed a whole lot of wisdom; for -they’d have simply declined to let him wander off again.” - -“But say, I’m a whole lot sorry about one thing,” remarked Wee -Willie. - -“Tell us about it then,” urged Elmer. - -“Think of the poor chap going without a single bite for perhaps days -and days, ever since he broke out of the institution, mebbe,” -continued the tall chum, shaking his head sympathetically. “He said -it was a whole day, but I’ve got a sneaking notion it might have -been a heap longer’n that. If we’d had our grub with us I’d -certainly have cooked him a bouncing meal. He’s human, even if -deranged, poor old chap!” - -From which it can be seen that Perk was not the only member of the -Camp Fire Boys’ Club who had a tender heart, and was able to feel -for any one in distress, especially when hungry. Such a dreadful -condition was calculated to appeal to a boy more than anything else -on the calendar. - -“Well, what’s next on the program?” asked Amos, yawning again. - -“I’d say sleep would be the most acceptable to some fellows,” -laughed Elmer. - -“But would it be safe, do you think, with that crazy man hanging -around?” Wee Willie put out at a hazard. “They’re all mighty sly, -remember; and when he made out to walk away mebbe it was all a big -bluff. He might be meaning to creep back here like a red Injun, and -take us by surprise.” - -“Then we hadn’t better all sleep at once,” suggested Amos, aroused -once more by this dismal prophecy on the part of the other. “Now -since I’ve had a few winks myself it seems only right I should take -the first watch.” - -“What time do you reckon it is, near daylight?” queried Wee Willie; -but on putting it to a test by means of the little nickel watch, it -was learned that the night had by no means advanced that far; in -fact it was just twelve. - -“Which means we’ve got about five more hours before the peep of -dawn,” Elmer was saying. “Now let’s make ourselves comfortable -again, and every one try to keep awake; but there must be no -talking, remember.” - -Elmer knew what the result would be, but he expected to keep on the -alert himself every minute of the time, and saw no reason for the -others doing likewise. And the result justified his confidence, for -first Amos fell off, and later on even Wee Willie’s nods as before -became more frequent, until finally his head lay on his breast. - -Carefully Elmer managed to ease the strained position of the tall -chum, so that in the end Wee Willie was stretched out alongside -Amos, and both of them sleeping just as soundly as though snugly -tucked in their own beds at home. - -It was a long, long night to Elmer. - -Only his masterful will kept him awake through those dragging hours. -He heard the screech-owl whimpering to his mate; listened to the -barking of a red fox somewhere in the brush near by; knew when a -’coon scampered out of the way as the fire, replenished with another -log while all of the boys were awake, snapped sharply, and threw out -a sudden red glow. - -Yes, it must have been one of the longest nights in all Elmer’s -experience, but when the first faint streaks of daylight began to -appear through the trees lying toward the east he felt satisfied -that he had not broken his word given to himself that he must not -once waver in his self-appointed task. - -The insane man had not returned, but then there had been no -certainty concerning this. No one could tell what a mind diseased -might conjure up; and while they had treated Felix Gould in a -friendly spirit he might not be able to appreciate this, and even -look upon them with suspicion, as intending to hand him over to -those who searched the tall timber for an escaped lunatic. - -And so when daylight came on Elmer, poor tired fellow, felt glad. - - - - - CHAPTER XX - - ONCE MORE ON THE TRAIL - - -At least the signs all pointed to its being a fine day. Elmer was -glad of that, for they expected to have their hands full finding -Perk; and a continuation of the storm of the preceding night must -have broken up their plans more or less, besides proving -uncomfortable. - -He was in no hurry to arouse the others. - -“Let them sleep,” he said to himself, with a whimsical look on his -own rather peaked face; “they need it, poor chaps; and neither of -them is as used to doing without as I’ve schooled myself to be.” - -So he moved about just as softly as possible while replenishing the -fire; and it was really the flames snapping that finally aroused Wee -Willie. He sat upright, and still rubbing one eye stared rather -sheepishly at Elmer. - -“Huh! a fine sentry I’d make, I guess, to sleep on my post,” he -mumbled scornfully. “For five cents I’d ask some one to give me -sixteen good kicks.” - -“Oh! that’s far too much hard cash,” chuckled Elmer; “lots of -fellows would be glad to do it for nothing, Wee Willie. But let’s -forget our troubles now the morning’s come, and our unwelcome guest -hasn’t returned.” - -“Yes, one trouble seems to have skipped out; but there are others -still,” complained the tall chum. “First there’s Perk missing, and -nobody knows which way to look for him, now the trail’s all washed -out. Then the second thing that makes me sad is the lack of -breakfast.” - -He put both hands on his stomach, and grunted dismally. - -“I guess it hasn’t happened but a few times in all my whole life,” -he went on to confess, “that Wee Willie has been forced to go hungry -in the morning; and I want to tell you right now it’s little short -of a calamity in my estimation. Why, I’ll be shaky all day long; you -can’t expect to keep the furnace agoing without stoking once so -often.” - -“But how about that cake of chocolate each of us took along, so as -to stave off starvation?” asked Elmer, maliciously. - -His chum made a wry face. - -“Well, you see chocolate may be all very fine in its place; but it -never can make me forget how much I love coffee, bacon and eggs, -with flapjacks to wind up the meal on. Now don’t think I’m scorning -chocolate, because it isn’t so; I’ll eat every scrap of my cake, and -be glad to have it; but oh! what an empty void there’ll be after I’m -done.” - -Amos must have heard them talking, for he now sat up and wanted to -know who had mentioned coffee. - -“Thought I whiffed it brewing, for a fact,” he sniffed, making a wry -face, “but it was all imagination. Think of starting a whole long -day on a silly piece of chocolate; but if the rest of you can stand -it I’m not going to kick.” - -“That’s sensible of you, Amos,” laughed Elmer; “though kicking -wouldn’t be apt to help matters any, it strikes me. Let’s sit around -and talk of our late visitor.” - -“Yes, we’d like to hear more details about how he went away,” urged -the lengthy chum, as he clawed in a pocket for the square of hard -chocolate, which upon being produced he started to gnaw at eagerly -as if the mere thought of having no breakfast in prospect made him -simply ferocious for something upon which to “fill up.” - -Elmer told all he knew as they sat there, waiting for the sun to -appear and warm the chilly early morning air, before thinking of -making a start. - -“Well, I’m glad for one,” ventured Amos, “he decided to take French -leave, and it was all owing to your fine trick, Elmer, in making him -believe those two asylum guards were around here, and apt to drop in -on us any old time. Only for that he might be sticking to us as -tight as any old plaster; or the Old Man of the Sea who fastened -himself to the back of Sindbad the Sailor, you may remember, and -refused to dismount.” - -They were not long in making way with their scant allowance of -chocolate. Elmer knew that it would be of considerable benefit in -allaying the pangs of hunger; but Wee Willie could not forgive -himself for not fetching a supply of “real stuff” along. - -“Shucks! we might have known we’d be out all night, and want -breakfast after a hard day’s work, and a night in the open, without -even our blankets to make things seem half-way cozy. Catch me doing -such a silly trick again—if I do I’ll eat my hat, believe me.” - -“The Camp Fire Boys never make the same mistake twice running,” -boasted Amos, and then in a lower voice adding: “though they do have -a way of finding out fresh ways for doing the wrong things.” - -“They’re only human, and you know what is said about it being the -common lot of man to err,” Elmer told him. “But if we make it a -practice to learn something every time we find we’ve figured wrong, -well soon be all puffed up with knowledge.” - -So they chatted, often in a joking vein, as boys sometimes will on -whose shoulders troubles fall even as lightly as water on a duck’s -back. - -“About time we thought of starting out, isn’t it?” asked Amos, -showing a return of his eagerness, the others could easily guess -why, knowing what they did about his intense interest in the tramp -whom their coming had disturbed when in possession of the cabin at -the Bend. - -“Yes, for now the sun is up, and by degrees the woods will dry out,” -Elmer decided. “After such a drenching rain we’ll find every little -creek full to the banks, though they’ll soon lower again, I reckon.” - -“What about my tuning up, and giving Perk the merry ha! ha?” -demanded Wee Willie, who apparently must feel in good voice. - -“Whenever you please,” Elmer told him; “we’ll try not to be -frightened at the racket, knowing it’s only you.” - -Wee Willie looked queerly at him, and then went on to say half -humorously: - -“Huh! don’t know whether to take that as a compliment or not. Makes -me think of that fable of old Æsop about the lion and the donkey -going hunting in company, and coming to a cave where a flock of -goats had taken refuge. You see, it was arranged that the donkey -should go inside, and frighten the game out; while the lion would -lie in wait, and kill the goats as they appeared. Well, Jack went in -and began to hee-haw, and carry on something fierce; the goats came -rushing out, and the lion got his dinner all right. After everything -was over the proud donkey appeared, and asked his partner what he -thought of his performance. ‘Did I do my part well?’ he wanted to -know. ‘Elegantly,’ the lion told him; ‘you made the greatest noise I -ever heard; and in fact I myself might have been frightened if I -hadn’t known that you were only a donkey!’” - -Of course both Amos and Elmer laughed, and Wee Willie, too, joined -in, for he was one of that kind of fellows who are capable of -appreciating a joke, even at his own expense. - -Elmer showed his careful woodcraft training by making sure that -every ember of the fire was utterly extinguished before quitting the -scene of their night’s camp. He knew full well about the danger that -always lurks in a fire left smouldering by those breaking camp; for -later on perhaps a violent wind might arise that would carry the red -embers into some patch of dead leaves, and thus result in a serious -conflagration. Tens of thousands of acres of most valuable woodland -have been annually destroyed just through such criminal -carelessness. If hunters and campers would only exercise the proper -amount of care, most of these forest fires might be avoided, and -beautiful timber tracts remain intact, to delight the eyes of those -who sought their solitudes for rest and recreation during vacation -times. - -At last they got started. - -Every little while Wee Willie would throw back his head and awaken -the echoes with a really stentorian whoop, such as might well have -made an Indian brave look envious. They always listened afterwards -with a degree of eagerness, in hopes of catching some return call; -but time after time it went with only a mocking crow winging its -flight overhead uttering a derisive “caw”; or else a blue jay -scolding the invaders of its woods haunt. - -Elmer tried to figure out about what course Perk was most apt to -take. In so doing he had their recent experience to guide him; for -he easily remembered how the lost boy kept unconsciously edging -toward the _left_, as wanderers most generally do. - -“I notice you keep on the watch all the while, Elmer,” said Amos; -“while Wee Willie and myself use our eyes to scan the woods on every -side, hoping to discover a sign of a moving form, or maybe a -handkerchief waving at us from some far-away tree on a rise, you -scan the ground. Do you expect to run across his trail again, where -he started in after the rain was over?” - -“I can’t say I expect that, Amos,” he was told, quietly; “but it’s -always possible, you know. Perk must be somewhere within five miles -of us right now, if only we could get in touch with him.” - -“It would certainly be a grand good thing if we did raise his track -once more,” Wee Willie attested; “we’d keep on like so many wolves -chasing their quarry, until we ran him down. But, Elmer, I hope we -won’t have any difficulty about making our way back to camp after we -pick Perk up?” - -There was a tiny vein of anxiety in the tall chum’s query; in fact, -Wee Willie was speculating at the time whether he could contrive to -live through the day with just that small cake of chocolate to -sustain his sinking energies. Already he began to claw at any -berries he chanced to see close to his hand in passing, as though -the red Antwerps might help him ward off the dreadful feeling of -distress that came with “Nature abhorring a vacuum.” - -“I’ve got my bearing well in hand,” he was calmly assured. “Just as -soon as we find our chum you’ll see me head around, and I warrant I -can take you in a bee-line to our jolly old cabin.” - -“That’s the right name to give it, Elmer,” agreed Wee Willie, -contritely. “At first it looked so forlorn and disreputable that any -style seemed to fit the outfit; and I guess I tacked on a lot of -sarcastic names such as ‘old,’ ‘shack,’ ‘shanty,’ and the like. But, -say, right now I beg pardon; that same cabin holds the wherewithal -that links my body to this earth, all our stock of delicious food, -and for that reason if nothing else, it’s going to be the ‘dear old -cabin’ to me from this time on.” - -Elmer came to a sudden stop, and held up his hand. - -“Listen!” he said abruptly. - - - - - CHAPTER XXI - - “TOOT—TOOT—T-O-OOT!” - - -Hardly had half a minute silently passed when a thrill shot through -each figure. No cawing crow could make that peculiar sound; no -red-headed woodpecker tapping at the rotten limb of a tree utter a -scream of similar import. - -Elmer did not, like some boys would have done, immediately whirl -triumphantly on his mates, and say impressively: “What did I tell -you?” On the contrary he looked very happy as he simply said: “Sound -familiar, boys?” - -“It’s Perk, all right!” snapped Amos, joyously. - -“Yes,” added Wee Willie in a tone of absolute relief, as though a -tremendous weight had dropped from his narrow shoulders, “that’s the -gay toot of the old tin fox-and-geese horn Perk always makes a habit -of carrying around with him.” - -“I agree with you, boys,” said Elmer simply, as he once again -started to “lead the pack.” - -All of them became quite merry from that moment on. It was as though -the expectation of having their long quest rewarded by the discovery -of the lost chum filled them with supreme happiness. - -Naturally the first thing that sprang from this condition of affairs -was a revival of reminiscences connected with that self-same tin -horn of Perk’s, now destined to have new glory placed to its credit. - -“I remember how Perk always carries that old horn along with him -everywhere,” said Wee Willie, with a laugh. “Why, last winter when -we went in sleighs to country barn-dances, on the way home at -midnight, with the moon right overhead, and every fellow trying to -get ahead in the mad race back, above the calls of the boys, and the -laughing and shrieks of the girls when there was an upset, you could -always hear that old horn tooting like mad. Perk just couldn’t be -happy without it. They say he takes it to bed with him; and one -night frightened his folks half to death by sending out horrible -squawks while in his sleep.” - -That caused all of them to laugh again, for they were feeling -decidedly merry by now. Impending success always begets such a -condition with boys, who only see the present, or the immediate -future, and do not worry as to what Time may have in store for them. - -“There was another story told about Perk and his horn that I -remember,” mused Amos. “Sounds almost too rotten silly to be true, -and I kind of half suspect some fellow manufactured it. But they say -that last Fall, in the thrilling football game between Chester High -and that strong eleven coming up from Bellwood when luck allowed our -chum, playing with Chester, to kick the deciding goal, while the -crowd yelled like mad, his old horn was heard above all the din; and -they do say he had it with him all along, concealed somewhere; but -everybody laughs when they tell you that yarn, so I reckon it’s all -made up out of whole cloth.” - -“Give him another whoop, W. W.!” said Elmer. - -Gladly did the tall chum avail himself of the privilege, and this -time they felt a full confidence while listening for a response. - -“There, that’s the boy, all right!” cried Wee Willie. “We ought to -congratulate each other on the success of our search, because the -game is winding up.” - -“So is Perk, it seems,” chuckled Amos, in amusement, as other weird -blasts came to their ears, all from the same quarter. - -Elmer changed his course just a trifle. It was like a mariner after -a storm adjusting his compass once more, now sure of his points, -after being able to take a reckoning during a burst of sunlight. - -How different everything looked under the new order of things! No -one longer thought the woods gloomy, or filled with unknown perils; -the cheery sunlight breaking through the opening overhead seemed to -cast a halo over the aisles of the tall timber, making them look -like fairyland itself, such is the effect of impending victory on -the human mind. - -“I wonder if the poor fellow is nearly half starved at that?” Wee -Willie was saying, as he trudged ahead; for no one could think of a -single thing that did not have some bearing on Perk. - -Amos was seen to tap his pocket suggestively, as though wishing to -make assurance doubly certain before speaking. - -“Well, I’ve kept his square of that fine chocolate carefully, and -it’ll be pretty refreshing, I reckon. You all know that Perk is -wildly fond of the stuff, and eats it by the yard, week in and week -out. They say that’s one reason of his being so fat.” - -“Aw! they’re only joshing you, Amos,” chortled Wee Willie. “He comes -by that just naturally, you see. When Nature shapes a boy to be as -round as a rain barrel it doesn’t matter one whit what he eats, or -how much, he’s bound to keep on filling out. Just the same way if a -fellow’s going to be thin and scrawny, like me, f’r instance, you -c’n stuff and stuff him with every sort of fattening food; and, say, -he keeps on growing skinnier all the while. I’ve been through that -thing, and there’s absolutely nothing in it. I eat because I like my -food, and not just to try to pick up a pound or two of flesh.” - -Elmer laughed as if amused. He knew Wee Willie’s principles of old, -and doubtless also fancied there was considerable of good hard -common-sense in what he had just said. - -By now the blare of the fish horn was quite loud, as from time to -time it continued to well forth. Wee Willie occasionally sent out an -answering yell, just to reassure Perk. - -“It’s going to make our work lighter if he keeps on tooting away,” -was his explanation for this periodical outburst. “If all of a -sudden he let up, why, we might have some trouble in actually -locating Perk; because, you see the woods are growing mighty dense -around here. Such monster trees, too; I don’t believe I’ve seen -their equal anywhere about Chester. Why, you’d nearly think you were -out among those monster redwoods of California.” - -“There’s one that’s hollow,” observed Amos, pointing; “and what a -fine old refuge the big cavity would be in a snow-squall, for it -faces the south. A hunter caught in a big fall of snow could even -have a little fire going to keep warm by, if he took care not to -burn his house down in the bargain.” - -“There’s one that must have been struck by a bolt last night,” -suddenly observed Elmer, with a touch of awe in his voice; for the -wreck of the great forest monarch was supreme, branches and -splintered wood covering all the immediate neighborhood. - -“I’m glad Perk didn’t forget what he’s been told about such things, -and seek shelter in a hollow tree while a thunder storm was raging,” -Amos continued. “A poor chap wouldn’t know what hurt him, if he had -been in that tree, or even hiding under its sheltering branches, -when the bolt fell.” - -Elmer turned a trifle more to the left. That last toot gave him his -clue, and he felt certain now that even though they should catch no -further signals from Perk’s fish-horn he could pilot the expedition -straight to the spot where the missing chum was awaiting their -coming. - -“Why, he’s right close by,” said Wee Willie. - -“Given ten minutes more, and well be shaking his hand,” affirmed the -guide, positively. - -“Good old Perk!” Wee Willie could be heard saying over and over, -while his freckled face fairly beamed with satisfaction. - -It spoke well for the sunny disposition of the rotund comrade when -his mates displayed such enthusiasm over the prospect of once again -coming in personal contact with him. And it must be remembered that -the separation was only a matter of less than twenty hours; whereas -from the wild ebullition of their feelings one might fancy Perk had -been gone for ages and ages. - -Perhaps in times past the queer sound of that battered horn which -was Perk’s especial delight may have jarred on the nerves of Wee -Willie, for it certainly produced what might be called a discordant -series of notes; but just now he reckoned them the sweetest chords -he had ever known; which only goes to prove the truth of that old -saying to the effect that “circumstances alter cases.” - -Suddenly there was a startling movement, and some object broke from -the heavy brush to one side of them, dashing away with great speed; -while the trio of boys stood there as if rooted to the spot. - - - - - CHAPTER XXII - - NOT SO SLOW, AFTER ALL - - -“Hello! hello! Perk!” called the long-legged chum. - -“Hi! there, Wee Willie! you’ve been an awful long time coming!” said -a voice so close by that it thrilled them through and through. - -They instinctively started on a gallop, broke past a screen of -bushes that lay in a little opening of the timber, and there saw -Perk, standing with outstretched hand, and a wide grin ornamenting -his glowing face. - -Elmer actually threw his arms about the boy, he was so wildly glad -to see him once more safe and sound; Wee Willie, too, did not seem -ashamed to follow suit; while Amos less familiar, seemed satisfied -to pounce upon one of Perk’s chubby hands, which he started working -up and down as methodically as though he had been a milkman, as the -tall chum said, and was schooled in the method of adding to the -daily output of the herd by means of the barn pump. - -Perk was laughing, even while his eyes showed plain signs of being -humid, so great was his emotion. - -“Say, don’t squeeze me into a jelly, boys, please!” he breathlessly -protested, in mock seriousness. “Why, you’d think I was the Prodigal -Son come home to Dad’s house to help eat the fatted calf. And -speaking of _eating_, oh! have any of you got a crumb, or something -to stay the awful feeling of emptiness in the pit of my stomach?” - -Amos thereupon dragged out the square of chocolate, possibly -mentally lamenting that he had been so greedy as to devour every -scrap of his own cake. Upon this fat Perk descended like a hawk, -though the others were more or less surprised to see him -scrupulously divide it in exact halves before consenting to put a -particle of it in his mouth. - -“Yum! yum! that _does_ go to the spot!” he hastened to mumble, -rubbing his paunch with evident gratification; while the look in his -eyes as much as said: “The only bad thing about is the limited -supply.” - -“How did you put in the time while that storm was booming, we all -want to know, Perk?” Wee Willie was now saying. - -At that the other grinned happily. - -“Oh! I’ve had a wonderful time, all told, fellows,” he announced. -“Since I left camp I’ve been through a heap of adventures, believe -me. No use harping on a disagreeable subject, so you’ll just have to -imagine how I got twisted up in my bearings, and finally had to -admit that I was once more in the same old fix,—actually and truly -lost. - -“Then the storm caught me while I was sitting beside a little fire -I’d managed to make, for these days you know I always keep a supply -of matches on hand for just such emergencies. Well, it put my fire -out in short order, and there I was, getting soaked to the skin, and -picking my way along through the black woods, not knowing when I -might run slap against a hungry wild cat, or else that bear we saw -up in the tree. - -“After I got so wet it didn’t matter, I just kept moving about till -the storm let up. Then feeling chilly I began trying out the -setting-up exercises that they use in the army, which soon made me -comfy again.” - -“No use talking, you are improving, Perk,” said Wee Willie, -admiringly. - -“Oh! I’m getting there, by degrees,” the other told him, with a -queer look on his face that even Elmer could not understand; Perk -seemed to be cherishing a secret of some sort, which he was loath to -impart until he had piqued their curiosity to the utmost; that was -all Elmer could settle in his mind. - -“But you’re fairly dry right now, seems like,” said Amos; “how did -you manage to do that, Perk, if it’s a fair question?” - -“Fire, again,” chuckled the other; “nothing like it to dry you out; -only it did make me feel homesick to see those flames playing so -merrily, and me without a single scrap of grub to keep up my -strength—that was really the worst part of the whole business, -boys.” - -“But with everything so soaking wet around, how did you manage to -get a fire started?” demanded Wee Willie, incredulously. - -“Huh! needn’t think you’ve got a foreclosure on all the woodcraft -knowledge that’s lying around loose, Wee Willie,” snorted the fat -chum, grimly. “Say, I’ve been taking lessons, and experimenting in -some of the ways you have for making a fire. I haven’t so far been -able to bring a blaze by means of a twirling stick with a bow to -turn it; but shucks! it isn’t any great punkins to knock some dry -wood out of an old log, and start it to going, if you’ve only got -plenty of matches along; which was what I did!” - -Wee Willie whistled, to indicate his surprise. Really it was next -door to thrilling to know how the once dull Perk seemed to be -picking up points in woodcraft; even though he did persist in still -getting lost periodically. - -“You’re sure a comer, Perk!” declared the tall chum. “Mebbe I’ll be -glad to sit at your feet and soak in wisdom one of these days.” - -“No blarney or soft soap, please, fellows,” continued the other, -suspecting that they were only “joshing” him. “I hope I am -improving, that’s all; and that some day I’ll even learn how to find -my way back to camp on a bee-line. But whew! it was something fierce -when that bolt shivered one of the big trees not so far away. I -thought for sure my time had come, it sort of knocked me over, you -see.” - -“We had something of the same experience,” Elmer told him; “and can -understand how uneasy you must have felt.” - -“Only,” added Amos, quickly, “Elmer managed to pilot us to where -there was a fine shelf of rock, under which we crept, so as to get -out of the downpour. We didn’t dare stay under a tree, with all that -lightning bursting around us.” - -“I knew that too,” Perk hastened to explain, “and so I passed by a -splendid hiding place in a hollow oak. It looked mighty tempting, -though, when I first discovered it by a flash of lightning; and I -had to take a grip on myself to keep from giving in.” - -“You certainly deserve a heap of credit, Perk; we’re proud of you,” -he was told by Elmer, which praise made the fat boy’s blue eyes -gleam with supreme happiness; Perk evidently considered it the -highest possible honor to be complimented by the one to whom he was -accustomed to look as a leader. - -“Of course, I tumbled around a good bit while making my way along in -the dark,” the other frankly continued; “and I’m scratched up -something fierce; but it’s all in the game, and you won’t hear me -squealing any, boys. I’m only thankful it’s finished as well as it -has; and mebbe I’ve picked up a few points for taking care of myself -in the wilds. Anyhow I c’n make a fire, no matter how wet everything -is around; and say, that’s something worth while—for Perk!” - -Again and again did he look particularly at Amos, Elmer could not -help noticing; and he found himself wondering why the new chum -should engage so much of Perk’s attention. There was also something -most mysterious in the way he kept grinning; Elmer knew Perk in and -out, and could not understand what the other had concealed “up his -sleeve.” Usually frankness itself, Perk must be practicing a new -role to act in this fashion, Elmer concluded. He would certainly -bear watching, for he acted as though hardly able to keep from -springing some surprise on them. - -“But you fellows are as dry as a bone!” Perk now exclaimed, as he -put his hand caressingly on Elmer’s sleeve; “so I reckon you either -didn’t get wet in the storm, or else have dried off since before a -jolly blaze.” - -“Oh! we had a fire, all right,” mentioned Wee Willie, “and got dry -in almost no time. The blaze had a result, though, we didn’t figure -on.” - -“What was that?” demanded the other curiously, again grinning -mysteriously. - -“Oh! it was seen by some one, and we found we had an uninvited -guest,” explained Wee Willie. - -“Huh! you don’t tell me; now that’s some queer!” exploded Perk, -round-eyed by this time. “Who was your visitor, Wee Willie?” - -“A dapper-looking chap who told us he was Doctor Hitchens, from over -at the State Asylum for the Insane,” said the tall chum. “He was a -wonderful talker, you must know, and fairly got me under his spell. -But fortunately Elmer here sized him up at his true worth. Whom do -you think he turned out to be, Perk?” - -“Not—the—tramp?” gasped the other, incredulously. - -“Shucks! no,” retorted Wee Willie, disdainfully; “who but that -cunning Felix Gould, the chap you may remember those uniformed -guards were looking for when they knocked at our cabin door the -other night.” - -Perk was seemingly much impressed by this startling information. - -“Gee whiz! tell me all about it, Wee Willie,” he hastened to cry. -“How did Elmer know; what happened later on; and how did you manage -to get rid of the crazy man without having trouble?” - -This was just the opening wedge for Wee Willie. He took the center -of the stage and proceeded to spin the whole exciting yarn; while -Perk stood there, his face expressing alternate awe and then -amusement. Several times when so far as Elmer could see there was no -occasion for such a thing he seemed to be overwhelmed with a wild -desire to laugh; which would end in a coughing fit, during which Wee -Willie considerately “held up” his explanation. - -“What can ail Perk?” Elmer was asking himself, unable to understand -such unusual actions on the part of the chum who in times past had -always been frankness itself. “He’s certainly keeping _something_ -important back, meaning to give us all a surprise. I wonder what it -is. He’ll bear watching, I reckon, Perk will.” - -By degrees the story was told, down to the point where Elmer woke -the other two up, to inform them his little trap had worked, and how -Felix had taken himself off, unwilling to wait until those -blue-coated guards from the big institution run by the State came -along to renew acquaintance with “Doctor Hitchens.” - -“Well, you did have a thrilling experience for a fact,” Perk blurted -out in his customary breezy fashion, when Wee Willie finally -subsided. “I should say it was a lucky thing he skipped out, and -never tried to do you any harm. Ugh! I was always afraid of crazy -people; they make me feel cold through and through. So I’m mighty -glad he saw your blaze, and not my little fire. Fancy spending a -night alone in the woods with a wild man, watching to see when you -went to sleep, so he could mebbe throttle you!” - -“It was an experience none of us is likely to forget, for a fact,” -Elmer candidly admitted; “but we came through it all safe and sound, -so we feel as if we had a lot to be thankful for.” - -“Now,” remarked Perk, presently, “if a stranger came to my fire, and -wanted to be taken in, I’d give him the glad hand; but all the same -I’d ask him for his credentials. It isn’t safe to believe everybody -a friend in these parts, Wee Willie. You think you’ve got a story to -tell that’s going to make the fellows down Chester-way sit up and -take notice. Well, I can match you, understand!” - -“W-w-what’s that, Perk?” stammered Wee Willie; while Elmer nodded -his head as much as to say: “it’s coming out now; go to it, Perk, -old chum!” - -“Why,” said Perk, “you’re not the only pebble on the beach; because -I entertained a stranger at my fire last night, just the same as you -did!” - - - - - CHAPTER XXIII - - WHAT PERK DID - - -The tall boy stared hard at Perk when he made that astonishing -announcement. - -“What! did he drop in on you too?” he gasped, and then added -quickly: “but you just said you’d be wild if a crazy man came into -camp. Perk, whatever are you giving us? It isn’t like you to yarn.” - -“Oh! let me tell you,” continued the other, softly, like one who -delighted in making hay while the sun shone; it wasn’t often Perk -had a chance to whet the curiosity of his chums, and evidently he -was bent on making the most of the present opportunity. - -“Wish you would!” grumbled Wee Willie, looking unhappy because he -was unable to see through the maze that confronted him, and -understand just what that smirk on Perk’s round phiz meant. - -“To go back,” remarked Perk, reminiscently, “I had managed to build -a bully fire, and was getting nicely dried out. That was along about -midnight, I should say. The storm was past, and since the lightning -had stopped except away off in the distance, I wasn’t afraid any -longer to occupy a hollow tree I’d marked down, and under which I -found my wood-pile. - -“Well, there I was, beginning to feel that life wasn’t so tough a -thing after all, when I heard some one calling. Oh! yes, it made me -have a funny feeling I admit, because there I was away off by -myself, alone in the flooded woods, with the trees still dripping, -and the thunder growling in the distance. - -“But I could tell that whoever it was trying to attract my attention -he must be in some pain; and so I made up my mind it was up to me to -start out and find him. That was the time, boys, I wished I had a -gun along with me; for I remembered about that crazy man, and it -didn’t make me at all happy either. - -“I went out, after fixing my fire so I could easy enough get back, -if nothing grabbed me. He kept calling, and soon I came on him, -trying his best to limp along. You see, he’d gone and sprained his -ankle pretty badly, and couldn’t bear to put that foot on the -ground. - -“That stirred me, I tell you, fellows. I tried to remember -everything I’d ever been told about sprains, and what was best to do -for them. Come to look and I found that it was a bad injury, with -his ankle a heap swollen; and, say, I bet you it hurt like -everything; all of which was especially bad for him, because, well -for a good reason. - -“I made him lean on me, and step by step managed to get the poor -chap over to my fire, where I stowed him on some branches I’d gone -and gathered and dried out with the heat. Then I took off his shoe, -and bathed his ankle with cold water from a little creek that was -running bank-full close by. - -“He said he felt a lot better afterwards, but kept groaning every -once in a while, I didn’t know just why, except that he knew he’d -probably not be able to walk decent for weeks again. That makes some -difference to a fellow, I happen to know, because I’ve had a -sprained ankle myself, and had to stay out of school for three whole -weeks, using a cane afterwards.” - -“Huh! that _was_ a terrible time for you, Perk,” grunted Wee Willie, -“and ever so many fellows saying they envied you the chance. But -keep right along telling the details. Was he a dark-faced, -wiry-looking chap; and could he talk like a house afire?” - -“Not my visitor, Wee Willie. I hope now you don’t think I -entertained that wild man, like you did?” Perk protested. - -“Hardly possible,” said Elmer, “for he went away in the opposite -direction to this; and besides, couldn’t have been at our fire until -midnight, and then bobbed up away off here at the same time.” - -“Just so,” continued Perk, sagaciously; and then went on to tell how -he had arranged things for the comfort of his caller. - -Elmer already “smelled a rat.” He began to see which way the wind -was blowing, and could now understand why Perk had been casting so -many queer glances in the direction of Amos. There was a _reason_, -and a good one for this; and Elmer was now in a fair position to -read between the lines as it were. - -“Now I know,” broke in Wee Willie after a bit, “why you broke that -cake of chocolate in two, and ate only half of it; you mean the rest -for this fellow you’ve taken under your wing, eh, Perk?” - -The other nodded eagerly. - -“I’m sure he must be nearly as hungry as I am,” he explained, -“though he said he wasn’t, and that he’d eaten a full supper last -night, which of course I didn’t. But it wouldn’t be fair for me to -swallow the whole cake, so I’m saving his share.” - -“I believe you’d do the same for the worst scoundrel unhung, if he -happened to fall into your hands, like this chap with the sprained -ankle did,” Elmer boldly told him. “You’ve got a heart as big as a -bushel basket, Perk; and think of every one before yourself.” - -“But how anybody could do different, I can’t for the life of me -see,” protested the other, simply. - -By now Elmer believed he began to see light. Wee Willie, however, -proved denser, for he was still wrestling with the problem in his -mind, wondering who on earth it could be Perk had come upon so soon -after the storm, and whose injuries he had attended to as best he -knew how, with his limited knowledge of “first aid.” - -Amos, too, was hanging on every word that was spoken. Apparently he -had also conceived some sort of plausible explanation for Perk’s -actions. When the latter found Amos so eagerly observing him, with -that hungry light in his eyes, he hastily turned his head away. -Elmer wondered why Perk did not seem to be embarrassed in any way, -so he must conclude that the other simply meant to enjoy their -bewilderment as long as he reasonably could, before lifting the -curtain and disclosing his secret to full view. - -“It’s going to break right away,” Elmer told himself, confidently. -“He just can’t hug that much longer to himself. Besides, Perk never -could be cruel, even to an insect. Haven’t I seen him carefully step -over an ants’ nest many a time, when other boys would carelessly -trample it underfoot? And he’ll soon realize that in holding back -he’s causing some one to suffer.” - -So Elmer did not raise a hand to hasten the disclosure, content to -let matters take their course. Wee Willie on his part now began to -scent some wonderful mystery. - -“See here, Perk,” he broke in, with an assumption of severity; -“you’re trying to pull the wool over our eyes, for some reason or -other, I guess. Now quit your kidding, and show us. Where’s your -friend? Produce this man with the sprained ankle, won’t you, Perk? -We’d all like to make his acquaintance, don’t you know? Here’s Elmer -getting as impatient as anything, even if he doesn’t show it; and as -for Amos, why he can hardly wait for you to lift the lid. I’m in the -same box myself; so lead us to him, Perk!” - -“He’s close by here, I want you to know,” explained the fat chum, -chuckling in his mysterious way. “Mebbe you’ll be surprised to meet -up with him. It might even be you’ll think I builded better than I -suspected when I answered that call for help, and ventured out to -find this poor chap.” - -He was looking straight at Amos while saying this, though apparently -speaking to Wee Willie. Amos was as white as a sheet, and his limbs -seemed to be trembling under him, for some reason or other. There -was also a pleading look in his eyes that made Perk squirm, and feel -that he was displaying unnecessary cruelty in holding back as he -did. - -“Please, oh! please take us to him right away, won’t you, Perk?” - -“That’s just what I’m going to do, Amos,” he replied. “So come -along, all of you, and meet my friend, the man who doesn’t expect to -walk for a whole month, because it happens to be his only good foot -that’s knocked out of business, since he’s lame in the other!” - -Saying which, he started the excited boys on a bee-line through the -woods. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIV - - WHEN THE SUN BROKE THROUGH - - -“There!” - -That was all Perk could say as he gripped Amos’s sleeve with a -convulsive hand, and pointed beyond. His heart seemed to be up in -his throat, threatening to choke him. But it was quite sufficient. - -The man who had been reclining must have heard voices, for he was -already struggling to a sitting posture. Amos took one look. The -face was prematurely old, and just then wrinkled with physical pain; -but the eyes of love may not be deceived long. With a sobbing cry -Amos rushed forward. - -“Father!” he cried in a choking voice, dropping beside the man, and -throwing both arms about his neck. - -The other boys stood stock still. Not one of them but who felt -himself rendered dumb with the conflicting emotions that ran riot -through brain and heart. They saw the tramp push Amos back to look -hungrily into his eager face; and then despite the anguish it must -have caused him through that swollen ankle he almost fiercely -squeezed the other to him, while tears ran down his sunburned -cheeks. - -The boys turned their faces away, feeling as though it might not be -exactly a delicate thing for them to witness the holy joy that -accompanied this meeting between their chum Amos and the father who -had gone away seven years ago under a cloud, and whose family had -believed him to be dead all this time, because he had failed to -communicate with them. - -Presently Amos called to them to come and meet his father. He seemed -almost transformed, such was the happiness shown on his boyish face. -Elmer could not believe it was the same sober-looking Amos whom he -had come to know; the long-borne burden had been taken from the -young shoulders, and thrown aside, never again to bow him down -before his time. - -So in turn they shook hands with Mr. Codling. He did not look so -very much like a homeless tramp, Elmer quickly decided. Indeed, now -that he forgot his suffering in the great peace and joy that had -come to him, he seemed a very decent-looking and intelligent man -indeed; and Elmer liked the kind expression he could see in the -returned wanderer’s eyes. - -“First of all,” said Elmer, business clean through, “let’s have a -look at Perk’s work. It’s possible we may be able to better it; -though I reckon he’s done his level best.” - -To this the injured man made no remonstrance. Indeed, he could -hardly tear his eyes from the face of Amos, who sat there beside him -all the time Elmer and Wee Willie went about their work. - -“Tell me about your mother, boy,” the wanderer was saying, -feverishly. “How is Amanda; yes, and the little ones? Did she take -you to her aunt’s as she promised? And oh! I am shivering for fear -you may have bad news for me. I’ve stood a great deal, and tried to -believe my punishment was just; but I hope there is no break in the -family—that all are yet alive.” - -“It’s all right, father,” Amos hastened to tell him. “And you’ll -never in the wide world know Kittie and Louise, yes, and Peter, the -baby you last saw. Why, just think of it, he’s eight now, going to -school, and mother says that every day he’s getting to be more like -you were when you first knew her.” - -This affected Mr. Codling greatly, for his face worked convulsively, -though he also smiled through it all. - -“Oh! if you only knew how I have suffered, son, all these years,” he -went on to say, “but I would not break my vow. They should never see -nor hear from me again unless I could wipe out the bitter past. But -I am grateful to know that while I wandered the country over, always -trying to rise above the level to which I had sunk, at least my dear -ones have not suffered from want.” - -“Believe me, mother will go wild with joy to see you again,” Amos -told him. - -The man, old beyond his years, looked pained at first. - -“Do you think so, Amos?” he muttered, as though hardly daring to -believe such good news. “It will take a terrible load off my heart -when I am able to redeem the past, so far as a mere return of the -lost money can ever make amends.” - -Amos laughed. - -“Don’t let it worry you, father,” he hastened to say. “That was all -attended to long ago. Why, for more than six years now there hasn’t -been the slightest thing against you; and Mr. Hastings never let it -be known that he had lost a large sum of money through your fault. -So you see there has really been no publicity at all; in fact, these -good chums of mine are the only ones who know about it; and they’ve -promised never to let it go any further.” - -“But—I’ve been expecting all this time that the money would be paid -over only through hard work on my part,” stammered Mr. Codling, -weakly; “and here, when I’m making my way back in the direction of -my old home, meaning to wipe out my error, you’re telling me there -is nothing to be done. Whose money was it that settled the claim -against me?” - -“Oh! mother attended to all that, sir. Why, I believe the very first -thing she did after her Aunt Letty died and left everything to us, -was to hurry to see Mr. Hastings in the city, and arrange with him -to take up his claim. So you see no outside assistance was needed; -we took care of things right in the family, father.” - -“But—Aunt Letty wasn’t so rich but that this must have sadly -crippled your dear mother’s resources, Amos,” expostulated the man, -suppressing a groan that might have been from mental pain, though -Elmer and Wee Willie were gently handling his swollen ankle at the -time. - -“Oh! there was quite enough left, sir, to keep the wolf from the -door,” the brave boy hastened to declare, though Elmer remembered -him saying something that was quite different not so very long back. - -“It is wonderful, simply wonderful!” murmured the wanderer, heaving -a sigh of supreme contentment, such as probably had not passed his -lips for seven long agonizing years. “To come back after this age -and find that God has been so kind, so forgiving as to leave me all -my dear ones. I can never be grateful enough to Him for these -mercies. The hours will seem like years to me until I can look again -into her blessed eyes, and hear her say that true love has survived -it all.” - -“If you knew how often she speaks to me of you, father, how many -times I’ve found my mother crying to herself after the children were -all in bed, you’d have no fear about that. Her one great dread was -that you might be dead, and we’d never know about it at all.” - -“I can see now how cruel, yes, and foolish, I was to bind myself by -that vow, and keep from communicating with my family all this time. -I might have been saved much suffering, and spared her the same. But -I believed I had almost broken her heart by my folly, and meant to -punish myself in justice. A baffling Fortune gripped me, too; twice -I was in almost good shape to come back and clear my name, when a -sudden shift swept my savings away, and left me stranded again on -the rocks.” - -“But it’s all right now, father; and after we can get you down to -Chester, the town where we are now living, you will soon be able to -walk again.” - -“That’s going to be a difficult job, I’m afraid, son,” said the -other, with a grimace, as though a pain reminded him just how badly -off he was. “You see, I’ve always been under a handicap, with that -one short leg; and now that the other is knocked out of business, -I’m nearly helpless.” - -“Oh! leave that to my chums here, father,” Amos cheerily told him. -“They are master hands about doing things; and I reckon we’ll soon -be able to make some kind of litter on which we can carry you every -step of the way.” - -“How fine of you to say that; and how proud I am of my boy! I only -hope and pray that the bitter experiences through which I have -passed may always serve as a guide-post to you through life, warning -you of the hidden perils when once wrong thoughts find entrance to -the mind.” - -Meanwhile Elmer and Wee Willie had done their best to ease the pain. -A sprained ankle can be a thing of anguish, and its effects are -often felt for many moons after it happens; indeed, most persons -would really sooner endure a broken leg than such an affliction, -since a fracture mends much quicker. - -They found that Perk had done very well, considering his -inexperience; his work was of course a bit bungling, though it had -done wonders in easing the pain, and also helped keep down the -swelling considerably. - -“We’ll keep you quiet while up here with us, Mr. Codling,” Elmer -told him; “and in a few days you’ll be in much better shape. Then, -as Amos says, we’ll manage to rig up a stretcher, and carry you all -the way to Chester; or else to some farm-house on the main road -below, and phone for a car to meet us.” - -“Thank you a thousand times, Elmer,” said the other, earnestly. “You -are all splendid chaps, and I’m a fortunate man to find myself so -well taken care of. I shall be counting the hours and minutes until -I can see my family again; but with Amos beside me, to answer all my -questions, I’ll try to rest content. Surely I have no reason to be -unhappy, now that the clouds have rolled away, and the sun of peace -is shining for me and mine again.” - -He smiled bravely, and Elmer had a faint suspicion there was a -sparkle in his eyes that meant something. Just as he formerly -guessed that Amos must be carrying a heavy and secret load on his -young shoulders, from his serious manner, so Elmer now shrewdly -decided that Mr. Codling was keeping something back, something which -presently he would be springing as a surprise. - -“The first thing we have to do is to get back to the cabin,” Wee -Willie suggested. - -“You’ve said it,” Elmer admitted, “and suppose you get busy with -that good hatchet of yours, so we can make a temporary litter.” - -“Leave that to me,” chuckled the tall chum, who really liked nothing -better than to be thrown on his own resources, since it always -served to bring out latent powers which he had hardly known he -possessed, as well as wrought a sense of independence such as a -progressive boy liked full well to feel. - -He began chopping at small but sturdy second-growth ash saplings -growing from the butt of a tree that had been thrown down in some -previous storm, and soon had quite a collection on hand. - -“Now, if you’ll help, Elmer,” he observed, “we’ll rig up a stretcher -good enough for an emergency; though later on I’ll promise to better -it in every way.” - -To this Elmer agreed, and they had little trouble about carrying out -the assignment. It was not a “thing of beauty, and a joy forever,” -as Wee Willie candidly admitted, but then they would only require it -for a short journey, and on that account it would hardly pay to go -to any great trouble. - -They lifted Mr. Codling on to this. Fortunately he was a small man, -so the labor of transporting him would not be very great; and there -was Amos only too willing to “spell” either of the litter-bearers. - -Elmer considered well before making a start. He wished to be -absolutely certain of his ground, since it would be too bad if they -missed the cabin, and hence lengthened their tramp. Wee Willie also -figured things out in his own mind; and from the way he wagged his -head in appreciation, after Elmer led off, it was plain that his -judgment must be identical with that of his chum. - -Amos talked almost incessantly, for he had a thousand things of -interest to pour into the eager ears of his long-lost father. Mr. -Codling never gave even the faintest groan during the entire -journey, though there must have been times when he found himself -jostled more or less, since the trail was rough, and the slightest -jerk would probably send a thrill through his leg. - -But his mind was filled with a peace that passed understanding. All -the agonies of seven years had rolled away. Once more he looked -ahead to happiness during the balance of his sad life. Only again -and again across his face would come a look of intense yearning, as -voluble Amos did his best to picture just how pretty Kitty, the -twelve-year old girl, was growing, so like her mother too; and what -a smart scholar Louise had turned out at school, a perfect genius, -many said; while Peter, bless his heart, was the dearest little -chap, of whom any parent could be proud. - -It began to tell on the two boys after a while, but still they -stubbornly refused to let Amos or Perk take a hand. - -“You’re doing your part, Amos, walking beside the litter, and -keeping your father’s mind taken up with all those splendid things,” -said Elmer; “because I know we must joggle him sometimes, and every -little jolt hurts a sprained ankle. We are getting along all right; -and the cabin is close by now.” - -“I glimpsed the river through the trees just a minute back, anyhow,” -asserted Wee Willie, sturdily. - -Amos looked at each in turn affectionately, Perk could see—Perk, who -kept hovering alongside the tall chum, hinting again and again that -he considered it “mean if they didn’t intend to let him take a turn -too.” - -“One thing sure, Amos,” said Mr. Codling, warmly; “you’re highly -favored in your pals, for they’re the greatest lot of boys I ever -ran across!” - - - - - CHAPTER XXV - - BACK AT THE CABIN AGAIN - - -“Elmer, you’re sure a wizard when it comes to finding your way -through the tall timber!” cried Perk, presently; “because there’s -our jolly old cabin dead ahead. Why, you came as straight as a bee -could fly to its hive, after loading up with honey.” - -“Nothing easier, once you get the hang of it,” laughed Elmer, -pleased nevertheless because he had hit it so accurately; while Wee -Willie also grinned, as though he considered that he also had -occasion to pat himself on the back, seeing that he had fully agreed -with Elmer’s deductions in the start. - -All of them were delighted to see the cabin again. It may previously -have appeared old and dilapidated in their eyes, but just now they -forgot all that. - -“Me to get a fire going,” roared Wee Willie, after Mr. Codling had -been carried carefully into the shelter, and placed on one of the -rude “springless beds,” as Perk called the blankets on the floor, -under each of which some hemlock browse had been placed so as to -make things a bit more comfortable. - -“What shall we have for our noonday repast, at eleven in the -morning?” demanded Perk, almost beside himself with hunger. - -“Better piece off with something that’s ready,” advised wise Elmer; -“it would take too long to cook things, in our near-famished state, -though of course a fire is necessary.” - -“You just bet it is,” said Wee Willie, already bustling about -outdoors in gathering the “fixings” for a blaze. “I’m nearly dead -for a cup of coffee.” - -“It will sure taste like nectar to all of us,” agreed Perk. “Well, -if the rest of you say so, we’ll postpone the big meal till later -on. Guess we’ll find plenty of stuff handy so as to take the edge -off our ferocious appetites; and that’ll give me a chance to lay out -a spread so as to make you sit up and take notice this evening.” - -They were soon as busy as beavers, hastening back and forth, while -the injured man lay there and followed each one with his eyes. -Whenever Amos came near how his gaze would fasten hungrily on the -boy! It was as if Mr. Codling almost feared this might all be on a -par with some of the dreams he had had during his long exile from -home; and that he would suddenly wake up, to find himself back under -the old distressing conditions. - -Presently the delightful fumes of boiling coffee filled the air, and -every one commenced sniffing eagerly, as though this excited them -almost beyond restraint. - -“All ready here!” sang out Perk, in his cheery fashion; “gather -round the festive board, and get busy!” - -Amos would not dream of eating a bite until he had fetched his -father’s breakfast to him. It gave the boy unlimited happiness to be -able to wait on the one whose homecoming he knew would make his -mother feel so joyous. - -Presently all of them admitted they were a hundred per cent better -off than before; that “tired feeling” had vanished under the magical -influence of the Java; and the sandwiches which Perk made from bread -and butter, some cheese, and bits of ham which had been left over at -their last regular meal. Then there were crackers of several sorts, -which could be used to “fill up the chinks” as Perk put it; so that -in the end every one confessed that it was impossible for him to eat -another bite. - -Mr. Codling continued to smile at times in that queer way. - -“Guess he won’t be able to hold it in much longer,” Elmer told -himself, “whatever it can be. Twice now I’ve seen him open his mouth -as if to speak, and then shut it again, with a little shake of the -head. But it’s bound to come out, and I reckon he means to give Amos -a little surprise.” - -None of them felt much like doing anything of importance that -afternoon, for they had had so little sleep during the preceding -night that they were tired and heavy-eyed. - -Perk, yielding to his special hobby, did go over to a certain spot -on the river bank, and fish for an hour or so during the afternoon; -with such good luck that they were assured of a fine mess of perch -and bass for supper. He set to work cleaning his catch, an operation -which Wee Willie did not attempt to interrupt. That was always a -nice thing about Wee Willie; when he saw that anyone felt really -happy in doing a job for which he himself had no great hankering, he -would never attempt to ask a division of the labor. And so Perk not -only caught his fish, but made them ready for the pan, and would in -probability also do the cooking in the bargain. There never was a -more good-natured and willing chum than Perk, as Wee Willie often -told himself, with one of his grins; and it is also to be hoped he -fully appreciated those winning qualities in the stout youth. - -The supper was a grand success. - -Perk “blew” himself for the occasion, as he called it, and really -prepared enough for two-thirds of a dozen instead of just five -mouths. - -“Huh! you never _can_ tell in these queer times when you’re going to -have company drop in on you,” he remonstrated, when Elmer mildly -expressed his surprise at the enormous amount that came to their -rough-and-ready table. “Only last night you entertained one stranger -at your fire; while I had Mr. Codling pop in on me unexpected like. -Then remember how those two guards from the asylum came tapping, -tapping at our cabin door the first night we were here? So I believe -in preparedness. An ounce of prevention is worth more’n a pound of -cure. If anybody should step in, all we’ve got to do is to say ‘sit -down, and fill up, friends!’” - -Nevertheless when the meal was through it was really surprising how -little had been left; for their appetites seemed capable of -stretching in a remarkable way, and Wee Willie acted as though he -could never reach his limit. - -“I declare,” he confessed, after a fourth helping to the stew Perk -had concocted from canned beef, succotash, and some cold potatoes, -“I’m beginning to suspect my legs must be hollow all the way down, -because how else could I stow away what I’ve devoured?” - -And after that, of course, Wee Willie might expect to have a deal of -fun poked at him in connection with his queer anatomy. - -They ate supper inside the cabin, so as to be near Mr. Codling; -though of course such old campers as Wee Willie and Elmer, perhaps -Perk in the bargain, would have preferred sitting outdoors, so long -as the weather was fine, and the “skeeters” not too vicious. - -At last, the tin dishes and cups had all been washed up in thorough -fashion, Elmer and Wee Willie insisting on doing that unpleasant -part of the dining program; though Perk protested that he always did -like to “splash things around,” and had even fetched a new dish mop -along to try out; but they elbowed him aside unceremoniously, the -tall chum saying commandingly: - -“Here, you clear out, Perk! Think we’re going to let you have a -monopoly of this business? Guess the rest of us want to keep our -hands in, don’t we? You’ll be boasting, when we get home, you just -ran the whole camp; and we don’t want to get the laugh on us. Now -forget it, and talk with Mr. Codling. You know all his folks down -home, and can tell him Amos doesn’t overshoot the mark when he says -little Peter is a darling, ditto—Louise, and—yes, Kitty in the -bargain.” - -At that Amos had to smile, because the said Kitty was a big girl for -her years, and Wee Willie had been known to fetch her flowers, even -a box of candy on one occasion, when she passed her twelfth -birthday; he also had a tacit understanding with Kitty to “beau” her -to the first barn dance the next Winter, if her mother considered -her old enough to attend such jolly gatherings. - -Mr. Codling waited until they were all gathered together later on, -with the “chores” completed, and the decks cleared. Then he spoke -up, just as Elmer had been anticipating would be the case. - -“I’ve got something to say to you, Amos,” he remarked first of all; -and though his voice trembled, Elmer made sure that it was only -through joy, and not because there was any further cause for -lingering regrets. - -“All right, father,” the boy immediately said, coming to the side of -the speaker, and bending over; “I’m ready to tell you anything you -want to know, so don’t hold back. I haven’t got a thing to keep from -you, remember.” - -“But this is something that concerns me, first of all, my boy,” -continued the other. “Listen then. You know I vowed never to come -back unless I found myself able to take up that terrible debt of -mine, and face the world again as an honest man. Yes, and I told you -how twice I slipped back after I believed myself on the road to -fortune. Well, three turned out to be the magical number with me, -Amos; in Alaska I struck rich pay dirt, and I’ve come back with all -the money we shall ever need again in this world!” - - - - - CHAPTER XXVI - - LOOKING FORWARD—CONCLUSION - - -No one said a word for a full minute, though Wee Willie and Elmer -and big-hearted Perk exchanged glowing looks, and happy nods, as if -the great news pleased them beyond measure. - -Amos, with swimming eyes, bent over, and laid a hand on his father’s -shoulder. There was simple affection in the act, and nothing more. - -“I’m sure glad to hear that, father,” he said as well as he could; -“for it’ll make you a whole lot better satisfied; but you’d be just -as welcome home if you didn’t have a nickel.” - -“That’s the best part of it,” observed Mr. Codling, “and what makes -me so satisfied with the wonderful way things have turned out. But I -worked, and prayed, and in the end hit it rich, so that when I sold -out my claim in the new diggings I had a sum that was more than I -ever expected to realize, even in my wildest dreams.” - -Taken in all, that was a most happy evening for them. How the sound -of those fresh young voices as they sang their favorite songs made -Mr. Codling shut his eyes and dream of past days, when he took -Amanda Green to singing-school evenings. Again he could in -imagination hear her sweet voice in carols of the times, as the -scroll of the past was unrolled before his mental vision. - -“By all odds this has been the happiest evening I ever spent, -barring none,” he assured Elmer when, later on, they gave up singing -and began to make arrangements for sleeping. “In other days I never -realized my blessings half enough; but now that I’ve passed through -the valley of humiliation things look vastly different to me. Thank -you again for the pleasure it has given me to hear you sing. And I’m -very glad my boy has such a promising voice, because music used to -be my one passion—in those other days, you know.” - -They were shy one blanket, now that they had a guest. Mr. Codling -understood how he had been given Elmer’s spread, and started to -protest; but he was speedily “sat down upon,” as Wee Willie -expressed it in his boyish vernacular. - -“Elmer’s going to share my blanket, don’t you see, sir?” the -attenuated chum blustered, before his mate could say a word. “I’m so -thin I don’t take up half the room Perk here does. Besides, it’s -summer weather, and shucks! any fellows as used to camping out as we -are don’t need to bother much about coverings; this hemlock stuff is -good enough for me.” - -So it was arranged, and during the balance of their stay at Long -Cabin Bend Elmer and Wee Willie expected to share the latter’s -blanket, which fortunately enough was of unusually generous -proportions. - -During the night, after the late moon arose, and it was partly light -inside the cabin, Elmer, waking, saw Amos sitting up and looking -steadily toward the spot where his father lay. He could easily -understand the deep emotion that must possess the boy, as after a -vivid dream he was hardly able to bring himself to believe the -wonderful thing could be true. - -So the night passed, and another day dawned. - -All were stirring early, for they had laid out many things to be -accomplished between sunrise and the coming of night. - -While Perk “wrestled” with breakfast, beaming with delight because -he actually loved to cook, Elmer took another look at Mr. Codling’s -ankle, Amos hovering near, eager to be of any service. - -“It’s doing as well as can be expected,” was the comment of Elmer. -“These things are never over with in a hurry; it takes time, and a -lot of patience to recover from a sprain. If I was down home I could -help things along some by rubbing a certain liniment on, that’s the -boss thing for sprains. But you’ll have to make up your mind to keep -quiet up here, sir.” - -“I suppose so, Elmer,” said the patient, with a sigh, “and I -oughtn’t to have a word of complaint. In fact, I’m too happy after -having heard the good news from Amos that my little family is well, -to think of grumbling. The whole thing seems almost like a page -taken from a book—my making up my mind to play the part of a tramp -as I drew closer to my old home, partly because I was afraid of -discovering that something dreadful had happened to my dear ones; -and also because I did not know but that there might be a warrant -out for my apprehension, which troubled me more or less. - -“Then came the storm, and my misfortune, which I thought terrible; -yet it brought me in touch with Perk here, and finally the rest of -you. Oh! if only I had dreamed that Amos was one of your number, -while I hung around the cabin, waiting for a chance to recover my -lost knife, how gladly would I have made my identity known. But, -after all, it’s come out ten times better than I ever hoped for; and -I’d be an ingrate to complain.” - -However eager he may have felt to be heading toward Chester, where -those dear ones lived from whom he had been separated so long, Mr. -Codling grimly resolved not to let Elmer and his chums see his -distress of mind. He felt that it would be a shame to cause these -fine lads to cut their camping trip in the tall timber short on his -account. - -But Elmer was revolving a scheme over in his mind, which he confided -to Wee Willie on the sly; and the latter as usual declared that it -“filled the bill to a dot.” - -Without letting the others know what he was doing the tall chum -busied himself that very afternoon, away from the camp, making his -stretcher, on which the injured man could be carried out of the -woods. Elmer proposed that they leave their things in the cabin, -manage on the following day to get to some farm-house on the -Crawford Notch road, and either make an arrangement with the owner -to take Mr. Codling to town in a rig, or else ’phone for a car to -come up and get him. - -Of course, the devoted Amos could not dream of being absent when the -wanderer arrived, and so he would accompany his father, to enjoy the -wild delight that was sure to overwhelm the Codling home. - -He could return in a day or two, if his yearning for taking -flashlight pictures still gripped him, which Elmer believed would be -the case; and so spend the balance of their vacation with his chums. - -“It’s ten whole days till school takes up, you know,” Wee Willie had -remarked, when he and Elmer talked this over. “Plenty of time for us -to have all sorts of bully adventures. And if we think it a good -plan, while we’re down at that farmer’s place to-morrow, what’s to -hinder our laying in a fresh stock of grub?” - -“Not a thing, that I can see,” agreed his comrade, nodding his head. - -“Some of these farmers have heaps of good things laid away for -winter,” proceeded Wee Willie, who was hungry, it may be assumed, at -that very minute; “so, as long as we’ve got the hard cash still in -our treasury, after selling our stock of ginseng roots to that firm -in St. Louis we might as well do things up brown. We can fetch back -a lot of fresh eggs, mebbe a home-cured ham, several live chickens -for feast days, and if he’s got any _honey_ Perk’d be almost tickled -to death to have it to go with his flapjacks; because, mebbe we’ll -never have any luck locating a bee-tree while up here.” - -All of which goes to prove what every one knows to be a fact, that -with the vast majority of boys the best part of camping consists of -the “eats.” But in that respect boys do not differ greatly from -those much more mature in years, since the natural man comes to the -surface as soon as the primeval wilderness takes the place of -civilized comforts. - -When that night the subject was broached, Amos showed his sincere -appreciation for his chums’ consideration. - -“This is mighty fine of you, boys,” he mumbled, thickly, at the same -time looking so very happy; “and you can bank on it I’ll hurry back -here to stay the balance of our vacation—after I’ve seen father safe -home, and just hung around a day or so to enjoy the situation.” - -Mr. Codling tried weakly to protest, saying that he was already -giving them too much trouble; and that another day lost would cut -into the glorious time they had been anticipating; but they would -not let him proceed. - -“It’s all fixed up, sir, so our plans can’t be changed now,” Wee -Willie assured him. “I’ve been making my stretcher on the sly, and -I’ll show it to you after a bit. Besides, the sooner we get you down -home the better for everybody. We can understand how wild Amos here -is to have his mother know the good news, and if we can manage it, -you’ll both be there by this time to-morrow night.” - -The many things the boys had planned to do while in camp could wait -until their duty to Mr. Codling and their chum had been fulfilled. -Amos, of course, would insist on leaving his camera and flashlight -apparatus behind when he took his father home. In this way he would -be drawn to rejoin them later, so as to pursue those novel and -interesting studies of shy wild animal life which seemed to be -taking such a firm hold upon him latterly. - -This program was carried out to the letter, for as luck would have -it the weather proved favorable on the following morning. They -closed the cabin again, and all started forth. Mr. Codling found the -litter much more comfortable than the rough-and-ready one upon which -he had made the trip from the big hollow tree at Perk’s woodland -camp, to the cabin. - -[Illustration: Mr. Codling found the litter much more comfortable.] - -By taking things easy, and changing stretcher-bearers frequently, as -one or the other showed signs of tiring out, they managed to reach -the road, and later on a farm-house where the owner agreed to use -his own old car to take Amos and his injured parent to Chester. - -The last Elmer, Wee Willie and Perk saw of them they were waving -their hands wildly from the “tin Lizzie” as the car started noisily -down the road leading to Chester, some twenty-three miles distant, -by way of Crawford Notch. - -“Well,” said Perk, after they started back to the cabin, carrying -the supplies purchased from the farmer on the stretcher, “that winds -up one of the most thrilling happenings that ever came our way. As -long as I live I’ll never forget how I fetched him to my fire, and -then discovered that it was Amos’s long-missing dad. But it’s all -right now, boys.” - -“Yes,” chimed in Wee Willie, merrily, “everything is lovely and the -goose hangs high. Just to think of it, how bully things turned out, -with him fetching back a regular fortune with him, or papers to show -he’s got it in bank up there in Alaska, which means the same thing.” - -“Beats any movie picture I ever stared at with goggle-eyes,” Perk -went on to confess, with his customary frankness; and then gave a -sigh, adding: “but it’s all over now, and I reckon the rest of our -stay up here will be just along the usual humdrum lines of camping. -Still, we have to eat, so I’ll have my chance for getting up new and -novel dishes to try on the dog.” - -The others only laughed to hear him talk; for they knew Perk too -well to feel offended at anything he said. But, indeed, Perk need -not have feared a humdrum existence, if only he could have lifted -the curtain of the immediate future. - -And if the reader feels any curiosity to learn about how Wee Willie -startled his camp-mates with a _mutiny_; as well as the strange -series of thrilling events that made their further stay in the -wilderness something never to be forgotten, all this and much more -will be found detailed at length in the volume that follows this, -under the suggestive title of “_The Camp Fire Boys in Muskrat Swamp; -or, A Hunt for the Missing ’Plane Pilot._” - - - -***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CAMP FIRE BOYS AT LOG CABIN -BEND*** - - -******* This file should be named 62683-0.txt or 62683-0.zip ******* - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/6/2/6/8/62683 - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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