"I wonder if Ham and Carl will attempt to get at our outfit," saidShep, the evening before the start was to be made.
"Well, we mustn't forget that they blew up the old boathouse before," answered Snap. "Of course, they may be afraid to try on the same thing—-they'd know they'd be in danger of arrest."
"Let us go down and take a look at the things," put in Whopper. "I wouldn't want to have anything happen to the outfit for a million dollars."
The three boys walked in the direction of the building where the things were stored. Giant was not with them—-he having been detained at home, to do some work for his mother.
Apparently the outfit was as it had been left, and the three boys breathed a sigh of relief. Having overhauled the things carefully, they prepared to lock up once more when Snap noticed a small boy named Joe Bright, hanging around.
"Well, Joe, what's doing?" he questioned.
"Nuthin'," answered Joe. "Say, are you fellows going on a trip toLake Narsac?"
Yes."
"Ain't you afraid of the hobgoblins up there?"
"Not particularly."
"My uncle was up there once and the hobgoblins took his things away from him."
"What did they take?" asked Whopper.
"Took his coat, which he had hung on a tree while he was fishing, and took his basket of fish, too. Say, he was scared when he saw that thing, I can tell you. He wouldn't go there again!"
"Did he see the ghost?" asked Shep.
"No, he didn't see anything, but he heard it moan and groan, and heard it say something about being cold and hungry."
"We are not afraid," said Snap, as bravely as he could. "We are going to keep our eyes peeled for that ghost, and if it shows itself there will be some shooting done. By the way, Joe, how long have you been around here?"
"Two or three hours. I didn't have nuthin' to do, and I like the water."
"Have you seen anybody around this building?"
"Yes, two fellows were here, but they went away when they saw me."
"Who were they?" asked the doctor's son.
"One of 'em was Ham Spink, and the other was that chap who is always with him."
"Carl Dudder?"
"I guess that's his name—-the chap who was going to give the fireworks celebration."
"Humph!" muttered Snap. "What did they do?
"Walked around the building several times and peeped in the windows. One of 'em tried the back door, but just then the other fellow saw me and he gave a little whistle. Then both of 'em walked away pretty quick."
"The rascals!" cried Whopper. "I'll bet a sour apple against a gooseberry they wanted to spoil our outfit!"
"Sure they did," answered Snap.
"I'll tell you what I think," said Shep, after the boys had talked the matter over for several minutes. "I think somebody ought to stay here to-night and watch this outfit. For all we know, they may come back."
"There is an old cot in the boathouse—-a fellow might sleep on that," suggested Whopper.
"Then that is what I am going to do,—-if my folks will let me," answered the doctor's son.
"You'll be lonely," said Snap. "Maybe I'd better stay with you.If Ham and Carl did come back you couldn't manage them alone."
"I could if I had a shotgun."
"Oh, you wouldn't want to shoot anybody, Snap!"
"No, but I could scare 'em off."
"I've got an idea," cried Whopper. "Why not fix it so as to give them a warm reception—-if they do come," and then he explained what he meant.
In the end it was decided that Snap and Shep should remain at the boathouse, and Whopper ran off to tell their folks and to get a few things. As the boys were used to outings the youths' parents thought little of their staying away that night, and only sent word back that they should keep out of mischief.
"We'll keep out if we are left alone," said the doctor's son, grimly.
Whopper had brought with him an old tin pail containing some hot water and half a pound of flour. This was stirred up into a thick flour paste, and to give it the "proper flavor," as Snap suggested, they broke into the mixture two ancient eggs which one of the party had picked up.
Joe Bright had been sent away, with instructions to say nothing about what was going on at the boathouse, and soon Whopper followed him. Then Snap and Shep went into the building and locked the door behind them.
The structure was a one-story affair, with a small loft overhead, for the storage of extra oars and odds and ends of boat lumber. Up into the loft went the two boys and opened the tiny window at either end—-thus letting in some needed fresh air. Then they took the rank-smelling flour paste and poured half of the stuff into an old paint can that was handy.
"Let us take turns at resting," suggested Snap, and so it was arranged.
It was a calm, clear night and before long the town was wrapped in slumber, and only the occasional bark of a dog or yowl of a cat broke the stillness. Out on the river nothing was stirring.
It was after midnight, and Snap had almost reached the conclusion that the alarm had been a false one, when, looking from one of the little windows, he saw two figures approaching the boathouse. The two boys or men had their coat collars turned up and their soft hats pulled well down over their foreheads.
Making no noise Snap aroused Shep, who was sound asleep on the cot.
"What is it?" demanded the doctor's son.
"They are coming. Hush, or they may hear you."
Silently the two boys crawled to the small window facing the town. The two figures outside were now close by and Snap and Shep felt sure they, were Ham and Carl.
"Anybody around?" came the question, in a whisper.
"I don't see anybody."
"We don't want to get caught at this."
"Oh, don't get chicken-hearted, Carl."
"Humph! Please remember what happened last winter, Ham."
"Hush! Don't speak my name, please."
"Well, then don't speak mine."
"I didn't."
"Yes, you did."
"I did not, I say. Come on."
"How are you going to get in? You said you knew of a way. I am certain the doors and windows are all tight."
"Just you follow me and I'll show you a nice little trick."
"But where do you want me to follow you to?" insisted Carl Dudder.
"Under the boathouse."
"Under it?"
"Yes. Here is a place where we can crawl under very easily."
"Yes, but what are you going to do after you are under the building?"
"Get inside."
"Is there a trap door?"
"No, but I know where a couple of boards are loose in the flooring, and we can shove them up easily."
"Oh! All right, go ahead, and I'll follow."
A moment later Ham Spink let himself down in a little hole beside the boathouse. Here his feet were close to the water, but he supported himself on a cross rail nailed from one section of the spiling to another. Carl Dudder followed him, and both moved cautiously forward to the front end of the building. Once Ham slipped and a slight splash followed.
"What's that?" cried Carl, in alarm, for he was decidedly nervous.
"My foot slipped, that's all," was the answer.
"Is it deep under here?
"Not over four or five feet."
"Where are those loose boards?"
"Right here. Now take hold of that end and we'll soon have them up and be inside the building," answered Ham.
While Ham and Carl were moving around under the boathouse, Shep andSnap were not idle. The doctor's son, on awakening, had wanted tothrow the flour paste out of the window at the midnight prowlers, butSnap thought of another plan.
"Come on below, and wait until they shove up the flooring," he whispered.
The doctor's son understood, and with caution, so as not to make any noise, the two chums came down out of the tiny loft, bringing with them the pail and the tin can of awful-smelling flour paste.
It was absolutely dark below, but they could plainly hear Ham and Carl working on the loose boards of the floor near the river end of the boathouse. Thither they made their way, Snap with the pail and Shep with the can, both ready for action.
Slowly one board was lifted and pushed aside and a second followed.Then two heads appeared in the gloom.
"Robbers!" cried Snap.
"Burglars!" yelled the doctor's son.
"Shoot them!"
"Don't let them get away alive!"
Then with a vigorous throw Snap landed his pail of stuff full upon the head of Ham Spink. Splosh! it struck the dudish youth squarely in the face and ear. Another splosh followed, and Carl Dudder was likewise decorated.
"Hi! wow!" spluttered Ham. "I—-Oh, what a smell!
"Oh, my eye!" groaned Carl. "Phew! what's this?"
"We're discovered!
"What's this they threw on us?"
"Oh, did you ever smell such stuff?"
"Robbers! thieves!" yelled Snap and Shep. "Shoot them! Give them a dose of buckshot!"
"They are going to shoot us!" screamed Carl Dudder, and dodged down. Then he lost his footing on the wet and slippery rails, clutched at Ham to save himself, and both went down with a loud splash into the dirty water under the boathouse.
"There they go!" cried Shep.
"Let us scare them some more," whispered Snap. "Pretend you don't recognize them."
Quickly a lantern was lit and held over the opening in the floor.Down below two dark forms, covered with mud and flour paste, couldbe seen clutching at the slippery braces of the spiling. Snap andShep could scarcely keep from roaring.
"There they are! Get the gun!" yelled the doctor's son.
"Two dangerous burglars!" cried Snap. "Wonder where they came from?"
"W—-we ar—-are not burglars!" spluttered Carl. "We are—-"
"Do—-don't sh—-shoot!" wailed Ham Spink. "We di—-didn't mean—-"
Bang! went the shotgun Snap had picked up. He fired at the corner of the building, into a mass of rubbish. A piercing yell of terror came up from below, and down dropped Ham and Carl into the water once more. They were too afraid to come up under the boathouse again and so struck out for the river bank some distance away.
"They are going away!" called out Shep. "They are two desperate burglars! Give them another shot!"
"Perhaps they have been robbing some stores," called out Snap. Then he discharged the shotgun once more, and down ducked Ham and Carl again, yelling wildly in their fright. They swam with energy and soon reached the shelter of another boathouse. Here they crawled from the water and took to their legs with all the speed at their command. Both were frightened nearly out of their wits, and for the time being paid no attention to the foul-smelling paste and mud that covered them.
"They—-they thought we were thi—-thieves!" panted Carl, after he and his crony had covered several blocks.
"Yes, and we came near being shot dead!" added Ham.
"I didn't know they were going to stay there to-night."
"Neither did I."
"Those shots will wake up the whole town."
"Yes, and we must get out of sight. Phew! what a smell!"
"They dumped something down on us."
"Must have been rotten eggs. What are we going to do?"
"I don't know—-go home, I guess."
"I can't go home looking this way."
"You'll have to go."
"Well, it's lucky they didn't recognize us."
"That's true. But this suit is about ruined."
"So is mine. And we didn't hurt their outfit at all."
"Never mind, we'll get square with them another time."
After that Carl and Ham separated and each lost no time in sneaking home and washing up and trying to clean his garments. They did not dare to tell their parents of what had occurred and so had to suffer in silence.
The shots from the gun aroused some folks living near the river front, and several men came down to the boathouse to learn what was the matter.
"Two fellows tried to get in here, but we scared them away," said Snap.
"Who were they?" asked one man.
"Two fellows dressed in dark suits and with slouch hats."
"Did you hit them?"
"No, we only fired to scare them off."
"Where did they go?"
"Ran back of Dickson's boathouse," answered the doctor's son.
A brief search was made, but the prowlers, of course, were not located. Then the men went home, and Snap and Shep settled down to make themselves comfortable for the rest of the night.
"Ham and Carl won't forget that reception in a hurry," remarked the doctor's son, and indulged in a laugh, in which his chum joined.
The rest of the night passed without anything unusual happening. Early in the morning Whopper and Giant appeared and were told of what had occurred.
"Served 'em right," cried Giant. "Oh, I wish I had seen them," he added, with a broad grin.
"I don't think they'll try any such game again in a thousand years," said Whopper.
"Make it a million, Whopper," added the doctor's son.
Whopper and Giant had had breakfast and said good-bye to their folks and now Snap and Shep went off to get something to eat. By nine o'clock they returned and said they were ready for the start. The others already had the boat out and the outfit properly stored on board.
"All ready?" called out Snap, who was looked upon as the leader of the club.
"All ready," came from the others.
"Sure we haven't left anything behind—-salt, mustard, vinegar, or canned soft-soap?"
"Maybe Whopper's left his shaving outfit behind," suggested Giant.
"Humph!" muttered the youth mentioned. "Be sure and take Giant's hobby horse with you." And then there was a general laugh, in the midst of which Snap shoved off from the boathouse dock.
It was arranged that Shep and Whopper should row for the first few miles and then be relieved by Snap and Giant. A number of boys had come down to the dock to see them off. There was a general shouting.
"Hope you have a good time!"
"Be sure and bring back plenty of game!"
"Say, if you see that ghost up to Lake Narsac give him my regards!"
"I wouldn't go up to that locality for a farm! You'll be sure to get into trouble. Every spot up there is alive with snakes."
"I'll bet they won't go any further than Lake Cameron or FireflyLake," said one boy, who was a chum to Ham and Carl.
"It's Lake Narsac or bust!" cried Snap.
"Huh! I'll believe it when I see it," returned the boy on shore.
"Don't worry, you'll never get there, Jack Voss," said a man standing by. "You are too much of a coward."
"Won't I?" answered Jack Voss. "A lot of us are going up to LakeNarsac in a few days, or next week."
"Who?"
"Never mind. We are going and that's enough," answered Jack Voss."I ain't afraid of that ghost—-or of snakes either," he added.
"There they go!" shouted Joe Bright, enthusiastically. "Hurrah for the young hunters of the lake!"
"Hurrah!" shouted several and waved their hands and handkerchiefs.
Those in the rowboat waved in return. Then Shep and Whopper bent to the oars; and the summer outing was begun. Little did the young hunters realize how many strange adventures were in store for them.
As my old readers know, the distance to Lake Cameron in an air line was about ten miles, but the river was a winding one and this added three miles to the journey. Beyond the town the banks of the stream were lined with farms, orchards and patches of dense woods, a beautiful outlook and one which the boys thoroughly enjoyed as they rowed along. They passed Simon Lundy's farm—-where they had once had such a curious happening when after apples, as related in "Four Boy Hunters," and then continued along under the overhanging branches of some willows, where it was shady and cool.
"Do you think Jack Voss spoke the truth when he said he was going toLake Narsac?" queried Shep, after he had turned his oars over to Snap.
"It may be true—-although Jack knows how to blow," answered Snap.
"If he goes out it will most likely be with Ham and Carl and that crowd," put in Whopper. "They always travel together."
"I'd like to know how Ham and Carl feel this morning, cried Giant.
"Most likely pasty," answered the doctor's son, and this made the others laugh.
"If that crowd should take it into their heads to go to Lake NarsacI hope they don't camp near us," went on Snap, after a pause.
"They'll try to bother us all they can, you can rest assured, of that," said Whopper. "They seem to live for nothing else."
"Well, we can give them as good as they send, can't we?" asked Giant."I'm not afraid of 'em."
"Of course we're not afraid of them," returned Whopper hastily.
To reach Lake Cameron the young hunters had to take to a side stream lined on either side with blackberry and elderberry bushes. They resolved to push on to the lake before stopping for lunch. Then they would row to the head of the lake, camp there over night, and the next day strike out for Firefly Lake. Here they would put in another day, and then embark for Lake Narsac.
They found Lake Cameron and its shores just as beautiful as during the previous summer. To be sure, the portion that had been burnt down during the great forest fire looked black and desolate but only a small portion of this territory was to be seen from the boat. They passed along the shore opposite and put in at a little cove that looked particularly inviting.
"I'm as hungry as a bear!" cried Whopper. "I can eat about a hundred sandwiches, ten pieces of pie, and any other old thing that happens to be handy."
"Jed Sanborn was telling me he had seen some wild ducks up here last week," said the doctor's son. "If they are around we must keep our eyes peeled for them. They are pretty scarce."
All of the boys wanted coffee, and so some wood was gathered and a campfire started, over which they made the beverage. Snap and Whopper prepared the midday meal and while they did this Giant and the doctor's son got their rods, cast in their lines, and tried their luck at fishing.
"First prize!" called out Shep, in a few minutes, and drew in a small perch.
"If we can get enough, we might have fish for lunch," suggestedWhopper.
"Better keep them for supper," answered Snap. "We'll be good and hungry by night."
"As if I wasn't hungry enough now," growled Whopper.
Shep caught three perch hand running while Giant did not get a nibble. The small member of the club was somewhat disappointed, but suddenly there came a tug that almost pulled him into the lake.
"Got something!" he sang out. "Must be a whale!"
"Maybe it's a maskalonge!" sang out Whopper. "Want any help?"
"No," was the reply, and then Giant began to play his catch with the skill of a natural born fisherman. Soon came a deft swing of the fishing rod and out on the grassy bank landed a lake pickerel of good size.
"A pickerel!" cried Snap. "And a beauty."
"That's better than my three perch," was Shep's comment. "Giant, you're the fisherman of this club and no mistake."
The two boys continued to fish, both before lunch and after, and when they finally wound up their lines they had nine perch, two chub and two pickerel—-certainly a very respectable haul.
"That means fish for both supper and breakfast," was Snap's comment."They'll taste fine, too, coming right out of the water."
Having put away the things used in getting lunch, the four boy hunters embarked once more, and the journey along the shore of Lake Cameron was resumed. As they had not a great distance to go, to reach the other end of the sheet of water, they took their time, watching the trees and bushes for a possible sight of game.
"There are your wild ducks," cried Whopper, after half a mile had been covered.
He pointed inland, to where there was a clearing among the trees, probably some marshy spot. Several wild ducks were settling down, and in a few seconds they were out of sight.
"Want to go ashore?" asked Giant, who was rowing.
"I don't think so," answered Snap. "Perhaps we'll see some of them on the lake."
"I see three now!" called Whopper softly, and pointed almost dead ahead.
"Turn the boat into the bushes," ordered the leader of the club, and Giant did as commanded. Snap was already reaching for a shotgun, and Whopper and Shep did likewise.
The wild ducks had settled on the bosom of the lake and were paddling in the direction of the rowboat. They came on slowly, however, and the young hunters could scarcely wait until they got within gunshot. Giant still had the oars and now he dropped one rather loudly on the bow. At once one of the ducks took alarm and arose in the air.
"They are flying away!" yelled Shep, and raised his shotgun. Bang! spoke the weapon, and reports from the two other firearms followed. One of the ducks came down heavily, while a second fluttered around badly wounded. The third flew off, apparently untouched.
"We must get that second one!" cried Snap, and fired once more. But the wounded duck had reached the cover of some bushes and was not hit again. The rowboat was hastily turned in the direction and Snap and Whopper leaped ashore. Then the duck tried to fly but a shot from Whopper's firearm laid it low. Soon the boys had both ducks on board and were examining the game.
"They are pretty plump," was Snap's comment, and he uttered the words with satisfaction.
"Not so bad for the first day's record," said Giant. "Fish and ducks."
"Now if we could only get some squirrels, a few rabbits, a deer, and three or four bears—-" began Whopper.
"Do you want to bring down everything within ten miles the first day?" demanded the doctor's son.
"I believe if Whopper was hunting lions he'd want to bring down a dozen the first clip," was Snap's comment. "Let me tell you there will be many days when we won't bring down a thing."
"Oh, I know that," answered Whopper. "I was only fooling. Say, it will be fine to have roast duck for dinner to-morrow, eh?" And he smacked his lips.
"Duck, stuffed with sage and onions!" murmured Giant, patting himself in the region of the stomach.
"No stuffings in this," cried the doctor's son. "I just want pure duck—-a nice brown leg,—-yum."
"Say, you make me duck-hungry already!" cried Whopper. "Let's go on, unless we are going to stay here for the rest of the day."
Once again the oars were taken up, and with scarcely a sound they moved along the shore of the lake. The sun was now well over to the hills in the west, and the trees along the shore cast long shadows over the rippling surface.
"No use of talking, such a spot as this is a regular Paradise," was Snap's comment. "I can tell you, there isn't anything like a life in the open!"
"Especially when it rains," suggested Giant.
"Or when you're caught in a blizzard," added Shep. "Do you remember that blizzard last Christmas?"
"Will we ever forget it," answered Giant. "Just the same, whatSnap says is true—-give me such an outing as this every time.Some fellows are always hankering after the city—-but I never did."
An hour later the young hunters reached the end of the lake, where a small, rocky watercourse joined that body of water to Firefly Lake. Here they went into camp, pitching their tent in a convenient spot among the trees. Over a bright campfire they cooked some of the fish to a turn, and took their time eating the meal. Then they sat around and chatted, and Giant told his chums something which interested them not a little.
The boys were talking about money matters in general and inheritances in particular when Giant mentioned the fact that his mother had some money coming to her, but could not get possession of it.
"You know my mother came from France," said the small member of the club. "She arrived in this country when she was about sixteen years of age, coming with an uncle, who was her guardian. My uncle's name was Pierre Dunrot, and he was by profession a teacher of ancient history."
"No wonder you always get your history lessons so easily," wasWhopper's comment. "It must run in the blood."
"You keep quiet, Whopper, and let Giant tell us about this money," interposed Snap.
"After my mother was in this country about six years, she met my father and married him. My uncle approved of the match, although he told my mother he wished she had married a Frenchman instead of an American. They all went to live at a place called Watchville on the seacoast. My uncle was then writing a great work on ancient history to be issued in ten big volumes."
"Phew! I hope he didn't want any fellows to study it," murmured the doctor's son.
"Mother has told me that my uncle was all right in his mind while I was a little boy and when my father was alive. But after my father died Uncle Pierre grew kind of queer in his head. My mother thought it was too much study and she advised him to take a rest. But he said he must get his big history written and he kept on writing and burning the midnight oil as college fellows call it, and it made him queerer and queerer every day.
"One day he went to the post-office for his mail. That was when I was about nine years old. When he got back he began to dance around and he caught me by the hands and rushed around the house like a crazy man. 'A hundred thousand francs! A hundred thousand francs!' he kept calling out, over and over again. Then my mother asked him what he meant. He said a distant relative had died and left him and her a hundred thousand francs."
"How much is that?" asked Whopper, who knew little about French money.
"A franc is worth about nineteen cents," said Snap.
"Yes, and a hundred thousand francs is about nineteen thousand dollars," went on Giant. "My mother tried to get the particulars from Uncle Pierre, but he was so excited she could not, excepting that half the money was coming to himself and half to her. He said he would see about it the next day.
"That night there came a violent thunderstorm and our house was struck by lightning. The only damage done was to one corner in which was located Uncle Pierre's writing desk. The desk was ripped apart by the lightning bolt and some of his precious manuscripts were burnt.
"When my uncle discovered that part of his great historical work had been destroyed he acted as if he was insane. He was almost on the point of committing suicide, but my mother stopped him. She told him to remember about his good fortune in having all that money left to him, but he only shook his head and said he would rather have his manuscripts back. At last she got him to bed, but in the morning he had disappeared."
"Disappeared?" came from the others.
"Yes. He had put on the oldest suit of clothes he had and gone away. Of course my mother sent out an alarm, and men hunted all over for him. But he was not to be found."
"But you found him later," ventured Snap.
"No, he was never found. When folks learned how queerly he had acted all came to the conclusion that he had gone to the river and drowned himself, and after awhile my mother thought so too."
"And what of the fortune?" questioned Shep.
"My mother tried to find the letter Uncle Pierre had received, but that was gone too. Then she wrote to France. She learned that some money was really coming to her and my uncle, but could not get any particulars. She even employed a lawyer, but after a year the lawyer gave up, too. There was a mystery about the whole affair and the solution, it seems, rested with my Uncle Pierre."
"And you never got the money?" asked Whopper.
"Not a dollar of it."
"It's queer you never spoke about this before," said Snap.
"Well, mother doesn't like to speak of it, because she doesn't want folks to know we had a crazy man in our family. But Uncle Pierre wasn't really crazy—-he was only queer—-and that lightning bolt burning up his beloved manuscripts unset him completely."
"I hope you'll get that money some day, Giant," said Snap. "I wouldn't give up trying for it so easily."
"When I am a man and can afford it, I am going to France and try to hunt it up," answered the small youth.
"Does your mother ever say anything about it?" questioned Shep.
"Not much. She hates to think of my uncle. She was very much attached to him, and to have him disappear like that makes her shudder and feel very bad."
"Were you living over on the coast when he disappeared?"
"Oh, no, we were living at a place called Bartonville, about twenty miles to the north of here. My father used to be cashier of the Bartonville Lumber Company."
"I once heard of a man disappearing and coming home fifteen years later," said Shep. "But he simply ran away because he had some trouble with his wife."
"I heard of a case like that," put in Whopper, with a grin on his face. "That man wanted his wife to make him some gooseberry pie and she wouldn't do it. When he came back he asked her, 'Maria, will you make the gooseberry pie now?' and she answered, 'no.' 'All right,' said he, 'I'll go away again,' and he did."
"That's a whopper all right enough!" cried Snap. "It's about time you turned up. You have been very quiet lately."
"I never tell anything but the strict truth," said Whopper, meekly.
When it came time to retire, Snap asked the others if they should post a guard.
"Oh, I think we are safe enough without one," answered the doctor's son, who was fagged out. "Let's chance it."
"Most of our outfit is on the boat," said Whopper. "I don't believe anybody will carry it off."
"Let us fix the fire so it will burn the most of the night," said Giant. "That will scare off any wild animals that may be prowling around."
Wood was to be had in plenty, and they cut several sticks which were not very dry and would, consequently, burn slowly. They sat up until about nine o'clock and then turned in, resolved to be up at daybreak and on their way once more, directly after breakfast.
It was cozy enough in the tent, which was just large enough to accommodate the four boys. As they were to remain there but one night they had not fixed up any couches further than to throw down some dry brushwood and a few cedar boughs. Giant and Whopper rested at the rear of the tent and Snap and Shep in front, close to the half-open flap.
Snap had been asleep about two hours when he awoke with a start.He listened and heard the bark of a fox not very far from the camp.
"Wish I could bring him down, just for the fun of the thing," he murmured to himself, and then, reaching for his shotgun, he arose and tiptoed his way out of the tent.
The fire had burned low and Snap was wise enough to slink into the shadows, so that the fox might not see him. Just back of the temporary camp was a big rock and toward this he crawled, keeping his firearm before him and ready for use.
Several minutes passed, and then he heard the bark of the fox once more, this time much closer. He strained his eyes to catch sight of the creature, but the darkness under the trees was too great.
After that fully five minutes passed and Snap had about made up his mind that the fox had gotten scared and turned tail, when he heard a cracking of brushwood directly in front of him.
With eyes on the alert he watched in the direction from whence the sound had proceeded, and at last caught the gleam of two small eyes as they looked suspiciously at the campfire.
"Now is my chance," thought the young hunter, and raising his shotgun he took hasty aim and pulled the trigger.
Only a sharp click followed, and all in a flash Snap remembered that in the evening he had cleaned the firearm, but had not loaded it. The fox heard the click, caught sight of Snap, and whirling around made a leap for the woods and was out of sight in a twinkling.
"Well, of all the chumps in this world, I'm the worst!"
Thus it was that Snap upbraided himself for having forgotten to load the firearm. He knew it would be useless to dash back to the tent for ammunition—-the fox was gone and would take good care to keep its distance.
Much chagrined over his mistake, the youth turned back and walked toward the fire. Then he set his gun against a tree and built up the blaze a bit, for the night was chilly. He was just about to leave the fire and crawl back in the tent when a voice reached him:
"Who is out there?" It was Shep who asked the question.
"It is I, Snap," was the reply.
"What's wrong?" And now the doctor's son poked his head from the shelter.
"I heard a fox and thought I'd shoot him——but he ran away," said Snap. He was in no humor to tell about the empty shotgun, for he did not wish his chum to have the laugh on him.
"Oh, is that all. Say, do you know it's cold?"
"Yes, and that is why I am stirring up the fire," answered Snap.
"Do you know, I had an awful dream," continued the doctor's son."It has left me wideawake."
"Better go to sleep, Shep, or you'll be fagged out in the morning."
"I dreamed somebody ran away with our boat and all our supplies," went on Shep. "We didn't have a thing left, and we were in our nightclothes!"
"You must have been thinking of Ham Spink and Carl Dudder, and what they did last year."
"Maybe. Of course the boat and outfit are safe," went on the doctor's son.
"I suppose so—-I haven't looked."
"Just take a look before you turn in, will you?"
"Yes."
Shep's head disappeared, and Snap finished fixing the fire. Then he turned to the lake, where the boat with the most of the outfit had been left, tied to an overhanging tree.
The craft with its contents was gone!
Snap could scarcely believe the evidence of his senses. He pinched himself, to make certain that he was awake. It was true—-the craft was nowhere in sight.
At first he thought to arouse the others but then concluded to look for the boat first. Perhaps it had only broken away and was drifting close by. If so he would bring it back and fasten it securely without giving the alarm.
But a five-minutes' hunt convinced Snap that the rowboat with its valuable contents was nowhere in that vicinity, and then he ran back to the tent much disturbed.
"Get up, you fellows!" he called. "Get up! The boat is gone!"
At first nobody paid attention, for even Shep was asleep once more. But then Giant roused up, quickly followed by his chums.
"What's the matter?"
"The boat and our outfit is gone!"
"Gone!"
"Why—-er—-I dreamed it!" stammered the doctor's son. "Am I awake or asleep?"
"You're awake," answered Snap, and then he continued hurriedly: "Shep, do you think you heard somebody take the boat while you were in a doze and so imagined you dreamed it?"
"I—-er—-I don't know. No, I don't think I did—-my dream was so unnatural. Come to think of it, the boat had wings and flew away. Now, that couldn't happen."
"Not unless some wizard turned the craft into an airship," answeredWhopper.
All were soon at the water's edge and looking in all directions for the missing rowboat. What had been left of the outfit had been stored in the stern and tied down with a rubber cloth, to keep off the heavy dew. They stirred up the campfire still more, and each provided himself with a firebrand as a torch.
"This is the worst luck yet," observed the doctor's son, with something like a groan. "Supposing we can't get our boat and outfit back—-"
"Oh, we've got to get 'em back!" burst out Whopper. "We'll do it if we have to scrape the lake with a fine-tooth comb."
"I wish it was morning—-we can't see much in the dark, even with the torches," said Shep.
Giant was examining the shore, for the possible discovery of strange footprints. But he could discover none that looked different from their own.
"If I was an Indian I might distinguish them, but to me they all look alike," he said.
What to do next the young hunters did not know. Had they had a second boat they might have rowed up and down the lake, but even this move was denied to them.
"Let us go up and down the shore on foot," suggested Snap. "It is all out of the question to go back to bed—-I couldn't sleep a wink."
It was decided that Shep and Snap should go north while Whopper and Giant went south. All procured new torches, and each took along a gun.
"If you discover anything give the old whistle," said the leader of the club.
The way Snap and Shep had chosen was anything but easy. To the northward the shore of Lake Cameron was rocky and uneven, with many gullies and little streams flowing over the rocks. More than once they thought they heard somebody or some animal moving but the sound proved to be nothing but the falling water. Once Shep stepped into a hollow and was scared by the sudden appearance of several big bullfrogs.
"Wish they were rabbits or squirrels, I might shoot them," he said.
"Well, you can shoot the frogs if you wish," answered Snap. "The hind legs are as sweet as squirrel meat."
"I know that—-but I'm not out for frogs just now. I want to find that boat."
The two young hunters covered a quarter of a mile when they came out on a small point of land overlooking the broad lake. As they, did this Snag uttered a cry:
"What is that out yonder, Shep?"
"Why, I declare, it looks like the boat!"
"Just what I was thinking. How can we get to her?"
"I don't know—-unless we swim over."
"Is anybody on board?"
"I can't make out—-in fact, I am not at all sure it is the boat," was the slow answer.
The object they had discovered was quite a distance out on the lake and the light from their torches reached it but faintly. The thing was drifting down the lake slowly, and as they watched it almost passed from view.
"Here, this won't do," cried Snap. "If it is the boat we must catch her and bring her in."
"It's kind of cold swimming—-this time of night," answered the doctor's son, who did not relish such a bath.
"Here, you hold my things and I'll swim out," declared Snap, "I don't think the water is any colder now than in the day time."
He was soon ready for the plunge, and noting the direction in which the object had last been seen, he waded into the water. The first touch felt icy, but after he had ducked down and taken a few strokes it did not seem so bad. He struck out lustily, and Shep held up both torches, that he might have some light by which to guide himself.
Snap was a good swimmer, but the object out on the lake was further away than he had calculated, and it took him fully five minutes to get in the vicinity of it. The sky had clouded over a bit, hiding the stars, so he could see little or nothing on the water. On the shore he could see the two torches that the doctor's son was waving and that was all.
At last Snap saw the dark object directly ahead of him. By this time he was somewhat exhausted by his swim and he was glad to think that he would soon be able to rest. Then he made a discovery which did not please him at all.
The object was nothing more than a part of a fallen tree, the trunk resting half in and half out of the water and several branches sticking out in as many directions. At a distance it looked a little like the rowboat but the resemblance faded completely as he got closer.
"Too bad! I thought it was the boat sure!" he murmured. "Well,I'll have to rest on the log a bit, before I strike out for shore."
He swam up to one of the branches and caught hold of it. He was on the point of reaching for the tree trunk when an unusual sound came to his ears.
Then Snap made a discovery that almost took his breath from him. On the tree trunk rested a big wildcat, it's eyes gleaming fiercely at the youth in the water!
Snap did not stand upon the order of his going, but went at once. Without a thing with which to defend himself, he had no desire to come into contact with such a savage creature as a wildcat, and, consequently, he dropped back into the water in a hurry and started back for the shore. He almost fancied he heard the wildcat splash in after him, and a chill crept down his backbone which was not caused by the night air.
"Hello! hello!" he yelled to Shep.
"Got the boat?" came back the cry.
"Not much! Get your shotgun ready and fire a shot into the air."
"What's the matter?"
"A wildcat is out here—-on a floating log. I'm afraid he's after me."
"A wildcat! Want me to scare him away?"
"Yes."
The doctor's son now understood, and raising his shotgun with one arm he pulled the trigger.
The report sounded out loudly in the night air and the echoes went ringing over the surrounding hills.
In the meantime Snap continued to swim for the shore with all possible speed. Fortunately he came in where there was a sandbar, so that he could wade to solid ground. When Shep reached him he was panting for breath.
"I wa—-was—-never so scar—-scared in my, life!" he panted. "It was only an old tree, and I was going to take a rest on it when I heard the wildcat. He was a big fellow, and his eyes seemed to bore me through and through. Maybe I didn't strike out for shore in a hurry!
"I don't blame you," answered the doctor's son. "Did he jump in the water after you?"
"I don't know."
"And it wasn't the boat?"
"No, I didn't see a thing of the boat."
Snap lost no time in dressing, and in the meantime Shep kept his eyes open for the possible appearance of the wildcat. But the savage creature did not show itself, nor did the fallen tree come again into view.
The report of the gun had reached Giant and Whopper, and they came up on the run, fearing something serious had occurred.
"We walked along the shore for almost quarter of a mile," said Whopper, "but we didn't see a blessed thing that looked like the boat. I am afraid it's gone for good."
"If it is we'll have to go home, and that will be the end of this outing," answered Shep.
"Oh, we're going to find that boat!" declared Giant. "But I don't think we'll be able to do much until daybreak."
They followed the shore for a short distance further, and then went back to the temporary camp. It was now half-past three in the morning.
"It will be growing light in another hour," said Whopper. "I move we get breakfast and be ready to start off as soon as we can see."
His suggestion was carried out. Snap's swim had made him cold, and he was glad enough to drink two cups of steaming hot coffee. The boys had brought some doughnuts along, and these, with the coffee and some fried fish, gave them a very appetizing breakfast. They took their time eating, waiting impatiently for the first signs of light in the eastern sky.
At last it was light enough to see almost across the lake, and then they looked in all directions for some sign of the missing rowboat. The craft was not in sight, and once again the party divided, this time Whopper and Snap going to the south and Shep and Giant to the north. Each took his gun along, and it was Snap who told them to make sure the firearms were loaded.
"You never want to go out with an empty gun," he said.
"Humph!" muttered Giant. "Did you ever do such a thing?" But Snap pretended not to hear and did not answer.
Whopper and Snap covered almost half a mile before they came to a turn in the lake shore. Here there was quite a good sized cove, and much to their surprise they saw two large tents standing among the trees. Nearby was the remains of a campfire, with sticks, an iron chain, and a big iron pot over it.
"I didn't notice this camp when we came up," said Whopper.
"All the folks here must be asleep," said Snap. But as he spoke a man came from one of the tents and stared at them. It was Andrew Felps, the rich lumber merchant who owned much of the land around the lake and who had treated them so meanly the summer and the winter previous.
"Hi, you!" roared Felps. "What are you doing around here?"
"Looking for our boat," answered Snap.
"Humph! This is a pretty time to visit our camp, I must say!"
"We didn't know you had a camp here," said Whopper.
"I'd like to know what you are doing here—-after my ordering you away last summer and last winter," went on the lumber merchant, sourly.
"Didn't I say I was looking for our boat?" said Snap.
"Well, if you've got a boat you must be camping up here."
"We stayed ashore over night, that's all. We are bound for Lake Narsac," said Whopper. "Did you see a boat drifting past?" he continued.
"No, I didn't," snapped Andrew Felps. "Look here," he continued. "If this is a trick, let me warn you. You can't camp around here, and that settles it."
"We don't want to camp around here, Mr. Felps," answered Snap. "All we want is our boat, which got away from us last night. If you saw anything of the craft—-"
"I want you to get out of here!" roared the lumber merchant."I won't have you hanging around!"
At this moment two men came from one of the tents. They were Giles Faswig and Vance Lemon, the lumber merchant's two friends, and the men who had once tried to get the boys to let them have some ammunition. They had treated the young hunters so meanly that the latter had voted not to let them have any powder or cartridges and this had broken up the outing of the Felps party.
"Hello, those young rascals are out here again!" muttered Vance Lemon, who was naturally as sour as his name implied.
"Say, I've fixed them," whispered Giles Faswig, with a wink at Lemon."I'll tell you about it later. I took a walk late last night, andI discovered they were camping not far from this spot."
"We are not young rascals!" cried Snap, indignantly. "We are just as good as you are, and maybe better."
"Bah! don't talk to me!" growled Vance Lemon.
"You thought you were smart last winter, when you refused to sell us a little ammunition," broke in Giles Faswig. "I haven't forgotten that dirty trick."
"You know well enough why we didn't let you have the ammunition," answered Snap. "You didn't deserve it."
"Humph! Just wait, and you'll find out—-" The man did not finish.
"Now I want you two boys to go away—-and stay away!" cried AndrewFelps. "If you are bound for Lake Narsac better be on your way."
"We can't go until we have found our missing boat," said Whopper."It must be somewhere on this lake."
"Make them go away," said Giles Faswig, and then he whispered something in the rich lumber dealer's ear. Whatever he had to tell made Andrew Felps grin.
Snap and Whopper saw the whispering and the grin, and instantly they suspected some trick. They well remembered what a rage Faswig had been in when they had refused to let him have any, ammunition.
"Look here, if you know anything about our boat I want to know it," said Whopper, without stopping to think twice.
"Your boat?" repeated Vance Lemon, and then he looked at Giles Faswig, who winked.
"Yes, our boat," repeated Whopper. "We tied it to a tree last night and now it is gone."
"I didn't touch your boat," growled Andrew Felps.
"Nor did I," put in Vance Lemon.
"You had better be gone about your business," came from Giles Faswig."We didn't come up here to be bothered by a lot of kids."
"We want our boat—-and we are bound to get it," said Snap, firmly.
"Well, go find it," cried Andrew Felps.
"We want to know if anybody in this camp knows anything about the boat."
Just then a boy of eight or nine years of age came out of one of the tents, rubbing his eyes sleepily.
"Uncle Giles," he said, walking up to Faswig, "where are we going to-day, and what are you going to do with that boat you brought in when I woke up last night?"
Snap and Whopper listened to the words of the small boy with keen interest. Instantly they came to the conclusion that the lad must be speaking of their own craft.
"Hush, Dick!" cried Giles Faswig, hastily. "You go back in the tent and stay there until these strangers go away."
"What boat did your uncle bring in last night?" asked Snap, walking up to the lad.
"See here, you leave my nephew alone!" roared Faswig.
"Can't I speak to him?"
"No, I don't want him talking to the likes of you."
"He said you brought in a boat last night when he woke up," came fromWhopper. "Was it our boat?"
"None of your business!" snapped Giles Faswig, and as he spoke he took his nephew by the arm and turned him back into one of the tents. "Stay there, now mind!" he added, in a low, tense voice.
"It's a good deal of our business," said Snap, "if it was our boat."
"Come on and take a look around," added Whopper, and started for the other side of the cove, where a mass of brushwood and overhanging trees screened a portion of the water from view.
Giles Faswig strode up to the two young hunters and caught Snap by the arm. The next instant the hand was shaken off violently and the youth stood before the man with blazing eyes and doubled-up fists.
"Don't you try that again, Mr. Faswig," said Snap, in a cold, measured voice. "You have no right to touch me."
"And you have no right in this camp."
"You clear out!" came from Andrew Felps. "I don't want you around another minute."
Faswig stepped in front of the boys and so did Felps and Lemon. All three of the men looked ugly, and Snap and Whopper did not know what to do.
"Mr. Felps," began Snap, after a painful pause, "I want you to listen to what I have to say. Last night our rowboat with our outfit on board disappeared. I don't know if it drifted off or was stolen. If it was stolen, and we find it out, somebody is going to be arrested for the theft."
"Ha! do you call me a thief!" burst out the lumber dealer, in a rage.
"Not at all I am only telling you a few plain facts. We have every reason to believe our boat is somewhere around this camp. If it is I want to know if you are going to give it up peaceably, or if we'll have to send down to town for an officer of the law?
"You—-you—-" commenced Andrew Felps, and then looked at GilesFaswig, who had turned slightly pale.
"This may not be a serious business to you but it is to us," continued Snap. "There are four of us in our party, and if you have our boat, we can all testify to that fact. Three of us can stay here and watch you while the fourth goes for the officer."
"Do you think we'd steal a measly rowboat?" asked Vance Lemon, but he glanced at Faswig as he spoke, and his tone was an uneasy one.
"I don't know what you'd do. But that boy, said something about bringing in a boat last night, and I want to know if it is our boat."
"How do I know whose boat it is?" growled Giles Faswig.
"Has it got the nameSnapperon it?" asked Whopper.
"I didn't notice. I saw a boat drifting on the lake and hauled it in, that's all," answered Giles Faswig, curtly. "For all I know, you are trying to get somebody else's property away from me."
"You let us see that boat, and we'll soon tell you if it is ours or not," said Snap.
"I was out on the shore last night and I saw something drifting by and drew it in," explained Giles Faswig. "I hauled it back of yonder bushes. If you can prove it is your property you can take it, but not otherwise."
"We'll soon find out," answered Snap, and walked over in the direction pointed out. As he did this, Whopper put his little fingers in the corners of his mouth and gave a piercing whistle.
"What's that for?" demanded Andrew Faswig, in alarm.
"We want our crowd down here—-and some others," said Whopper.
"Some others? Who?" asked Faswig, and now he was also alarmed.
"Some folks who will give us all the help we want," said Snap, quick to understand the ruse his chum was playing.
"How many people are up here?" asked the rich lumber dealer, nervously.
"Oh, seven or eight," answered Whopper, but did not add that he was counting in Felps's own party.
Behind a thick mass of brushwood rested theSnapper, as the boys' craft had been christened. The boat was very much as the lads had left it, but Snap was quick to detect that the painter, which had before had a frayed-out end, had been cut by some sharp instrument, probably a knife.
"This is our boat," said Snap, as he looked the craft over.
"Humph, can you prove it?" growled Giles Faswig.
"Yes, and I can prove more if I have to," added the leader of the hunting club.
"What?"
"That the rope has been cut."
"What does that signify?" asked Andrew Felps.
"It shows that the boat didn't drift away. Somebody cut the rope and made off with her."
"See here—-" began Giles Faswig, and then stopped short. There was a shout, and Giant and Shep burst into view.
"Got the boat, eh?" cried the doctor's son. "Good!" And then he looked curiously at the men, and so did Giant.
"Come on and shove the boat out," said Snap. "We'll talk this over later." And before anybody could stop him he was in the craft and pushing out of the bushes.
"Say look here—-" began Andrew Felps, but the boys paid no attention. All got on board theSnapper, and in a moment more the craft was out in the middle of the cove.
"Don't you try to make any trouble for me!" shouted Giles Faswig."I simply found that boat adrift and brought her in here for safety."
"And I don't believe a word you say," answered Snap. "I think you visited our camp and stole the boat."
"And that is what I think," added Whopper.
A wordy war followed lasting fully ten minutes. It was plainly to be seen that Giles Faswig and his companions were much disturbed, thinking the boys would make trouble for them. At last the young hunters rowed away and went back to their own camp. It was now growing quite light.
"Did you ever hear of such meanness," was Snap's comment. "They meant to keep our boat hidden until we had left this vicinity. Then maybe, they'd cast it adrift and say they had nothing to do with taking her."
"Well, we found out how mean they were last year, so it is nothing new," said Shep. "You were lucky to locate the craft."
"It was all through that boy," returned Whopper. "I pity him if he has Giles Faswig for an uncle."
"I think the best we can do is to leave Lake Cameron at once," saidGiant. "We don't want to run into that crowd again."
The others agreed, and by eight o'clock that morning the tent was taken down and stored away and the journey to Firefly Lake was begun.
It was a clear, warm day, with bright sunshine overhead. The woods were full of birds that sang sweetly, and being so near to nature's heart, the young hunters soon forgot their troubles.
The stream leading from Lake Cameron to Firefly Lake was a tortuous and rocky one, and more overgrown with bushes than it had been the summer previous. At one point the spring freshets had rolled in a number of big stones and these the boys had to roll out of the way before the rowboat could get through. Not wishing to damage theSnapper, they proceeded with care, so by dinner time less than half the distance to the smaller body of water was covered.
"We won't get to Firefly Lake until to-night," said Snap. "But who cares? We have plenty of time."
All were hungry for a taste of roast duck, and so they stopped off long enough to cook a fine dinner. For dessert they had some blackberries which they chanced to find growing near the watercourse, and they stopped so long over their midday meal that it was after two o'clock before the journey was resumed.
"Do you remember the awful windstorm we once struck up here?" queriedShep, as they rowed along.
"Will we ever forget it," cried Whopper. "Gosh! I thought I was going to be blown into the next century! Say, did I ever tell you how it blew my socks inside out?" he added, with a grin.
"Hardly," answered Giant, and laughed.