Quincy Allen

“ Altogether, Frank considered him the coolest person he had ever met. If he could control his nerves in this fashion when playing in a match it was no wonder he was looked upon as a coming wonder on the golf links, where such a gift counts heavily.
"You must excuse me for rushing off in such a beastly hurry, fellows!" Gilbert exclaimed, as he looked around for his bag, which, fortunately, had not fallen over the precipice at the time he stumbled; "some other time perhaps I'll run in on you at your camp, and be able to thank you in a more decent way for giving me a lift. ”

“ When Frank said this he found the keen orbs of the hermit fastened on his face as though the other would read his very soul through the windows of the boy's eyes; but not once did Frank flinch.
"That is very true, boy," said Mr. Dennison, [188] "but I believe in justice, and that it is the wrong thing to be too lenient with culprits. When young fellows are given to such practices as this they need to be brought up with a round turn. So I mean to have the constable arrest you all!" ”

“ Then the mystery connected with the hermit had aroused his curiosity. That strange cry, too, lingered in his memory even more than Frank cared to confess to Bluff.
"But what excuse can we give for trespassing if we run across old Aaron, his housekeeper, or any man connected with the place?" he asked Will.
At that the other smiled calmly.
"Well, you know an amateur photographer never wants for a reason when he gets caught intruding on private grounds," he explained; "his enthusiasm is supposed to tempt him to take any risks. ”

“ At the same time Frank found himself wondering what Gilbert would do next. To convince Mr. Dennison that he himself was wholly to blame, it would seem to be the proper thing to awaken him before he quitted the cabin, and show him the cup nestling under the plank.
Frank dimly remembered reading that it was not a wise thing to arouse a sleep-walker suddenly; he understood that the sudden shock had a tendency to affect the brain. Apparently Gilbert did not know this, for he stepped forward and reaching out caught hold of the old man's arm, shaking it as he called:
"Wake up, Uncle Aaron, wake up!" ”

“ Bluff observed.
"That's true enough," said the pilot of the expedition, "but once a trail has been well worn you can find it years and years afterward if you look the right way. It's easy to notice heaps of signs that tell the story, where the earth was worn away by passing feet. When you're in doubt just push back the grass and there it lies as plain as day."
Frank always prided himself more or less on his ability to follow tracks where others might give up the task in despair. ”

“ CHAPTER XX GROPING IN THE DARK
"Well, I feel as weak as a sick cat, after meeting with such an adventure as that!" exclaimed Jerry, after he and his three chums once more found themselves alone in the cabin.
"To think of our being accused of being common, every-day thieves!" grumbled the indignant Bluff. "Why, it just makes my blood fairly boil!"
"But I'm mighty glad to know my films are all right," Will burst forth with, and this remark showed that this important fact took precedence of all others in his mind. ”

“ CHAPTER IX THE FORAGING PARTY
"A 'coon on two legs, as sure as you're born, Will!" ejaculated Bluff presently.
"It's a man!" cried Jerry. "A man with a white beard in the bargain!"
"Frank, it's going to turn out a pretty fair picture, don't you think?" demanded the proud artist, thinking first of all of the success that had crowned his efforts. ”

“ We can go as far as possible, and when it grows dark pull up. Along about midnight, if it stays clear, we ought to have the moon, and it'll give us enough light to go on again."
It proved to be just as Bluff had said, for when the wounded man had been carefully lifted and placed on the litter, with one of the boys ready to take hold of each corner, Frank set forth his plan.
"We'll do the best we can, fellows, until it gets too dark to see well; then we can lie down and rest for hours. When the moon gets fully up, so that the woods are light again, we'll finish our tramp to the cabin. ”

“ Frank assured him. "Then this door is hanging on one rusty hinge; we'll find a way to stand it up again. Let's step inside and look around a bit; I'm more anxious about the roof than almost anything else, for that's apt to leak like a sieve until we fix it."
"Go a little slow," Will warned them, "for I've known of wild cats or other wild beasts taking up their quarters in an abandoned cabin." This remark caused Bluff and Jerry to laugh, for they could themselves look back to a ludicrous experience of the kind. ”

“ When Jerry Wallington gave expression to his gratitude after this fashion, two of his companions waved their hats as though he voiced their sentiments. One of these boys was Will Milton, and while he did not seem to be quite as vigorous as his chums, still his active life during the last two years had done much to build up his strength. As for Bluff Masters, any one could see from his looks that he had a constitution of iron, while his face told of determination bordering on obstinacy. The fourth member of the little party tramping along this road leading over the ridge was Frank Langdon. ”

“ When Frank hinted that perhaps they had better turn back Will begged him not to give up just then.
"You see we've still plenty of time to make the cabin long before dark," he urged, "and I'm sure we'll find it worth our while to keep on the way we're going. It seems to me the country keeps getting rougher the further we push ahead. Already I'm just tickled to death with what I've seen."
"It's a fact that we've run across as wild a section as I've ever met with," admitted Frank. "I never would have believed there could be such a primitive stretch of land within a hundred miles of Centerville. ”

“ I hope he doesn't own a pack of wolf dogs that would make a jump for stray boys that chanced to get in the grounds."
"I asked particularly about that," said Frank, who somehow seemed to think of nearly everything, "and no one could remember ever seeing any around. So just as like as not the old man doesn't fancy dogs."
"Yes, there are people who shiver every time they meet a collie or a mastiff," admitted Bluff, "though for my part I've always liked all breeds. I believe a dog is man's best friend, as faithful as life itself." ”

“ Frank of course knew next to nothing about the lay of the ground, but he could give a pretty good guess, for he had kept his eyes about him all of the time. Accordingly he laid out the course they would take.
"Unless we strike something tougher than we figure on," he explained to Will, "we ought to make the round and be back in camp long before sundown."
"What if the other fellows do arrive before us," remarked the photographer of the expedition, "they can start in to get supper if they're half starving. I just feel like making hay while the sun shines. ”

“ Even if he did lose a week of time, there were plenty of other things he could be doing, since he had his camera and flashlight apparatus intact.
"Thanks, Jerry. I guess you are right," he told the other. "Every cloud has a silver lining, they say, if only you look for it. I'll try to hope for the best after this. My precious films may come back to me again undamaged. I hope [35] so, anyway; but you know there's no telling what a fellow may do when in a sudden rage."
"Think again, Will," said Frank. "We all agreed that this Gilbert fellow was as cool a customer as we'd ever met. ”

“ I believe you might have carried off the gold prize cup won by Gilbert in the golf tournament last year, perhaps thinking it a lark. So I am prepared to say to you here and now, if such was the case, and you will immediately restore my property to me, I will say nothing about it. If you refuse, it will go hard with you."
"But Mr. Dennison!" expostulated Frank, "we have never so much as set eyes on any sort of a gold loving cup, so you can see how impossible it would be for us to hand it over to you." ”

“ In due time they reached the rocks, and both Bluff and Jerry must creep under the friendly ledge, to see for themselves what sort of shelter their chums had found from the storm.
"Couldn't be beaten, and that's a fact, Frank!" was Jerry's final verdict, after he had remained under the rock for a time.
"And in such a terrible electric storm," added [152] Bluff, sagely, "I don't know of a better place to take refuge than under a shelf of rock. There's no danger of being struck by the lightning, and only a slim chance of an avalanche tumbling down on top of you." ”

“ Jerry hastened to say; "but that doesn't bring us any nearer a solution of the mystery. Why should a white man, and one with a white beard at that, be wandering around our camp in the night?"
They looked at Frank. It was an old habit with the three chums. Whenever an unusually knotty point arose that needed attention, and [83] their powers seemed baffled, Frank was always depended on to supply the needed answer.
"So far as I'm concerned, fellows," he told them, "I can think of only one old man around this vicinity, and that happens to be Aaron Dennison." ”

“ Frank cautioned them, "that old boat isn't to be wholly depended on. I calked the seams the best way I could, but the wood's a bit rotten, and there's always danger that the oakum may work loose. Then the water would come in through the open seams in bucketfuls. So my advice to you is, keep fairly close to the shore all the time, even when cutting off coves."
"That is, you mean keep within swimming distance," added Jerry, "which we'll be sure to do, Frank, make your mind easy. A fellow that's fated to be hanged doesn't want to go and cheat things by being just simply drowned, you know." ”

“ Presently they heard a bolt withdrawn, a rather ponderous affair it seemed; and somehow this struck Frank as rather queer. Why should any one living so far away from town, and off the beaten track of travel, take such pains to secure his door?
"Gee whiz! I shouldn't think they'd ever be bothered with hoboes or sneak thieves away up in this part of the country," whispered Bluff, who always had a mind of his own and was hard to repress. ”

“ Since the gaps in the open seams were so large that it would leak like a sieve, he realized his work would have to be done at the spot where the boat was found. This meant only a tramp of a quarter of a mile at most, going and coming.
"I'll get busy the first thing in the morning," Frank told Will. "Altogether, the job oughtn't to take me more than a day. Then we can all get together and drag the boat down to the water, and one of us can paddle around to Cabin Point, where there's a splendid cove to tie up in." ”

“ Then as Bluff and Jerry began to manifest signs of restlessness Frank gave the order to move along once more. Will declared that he felt able to keep on for a time, long enough, probably, to take them over the remainder of the ground.
There were numerous occasions when one or [227] another stumbled, for with poor illumination it was not always possible to see small obstructions. Once or twice the man on the litter groaned, and at such times the boys took themselves to task with fresh energy, afterwards trying more than ever to avoid all such petty pitfalls. ”

“ It promised to be an interesting trip, for they would pass along a shore neither of them had ever examined at close range before. To those who love outdoor life there is always a novelty about exploration. With new and interesting scenes opening up constantly before the eyes the senses are kept on the alert.
Bluff even had the temerity to suggest that Will loan them his camera for the occasion. ”

“ Bluff ventured, "and laid the foundation for his fortune while living here in this cabin. And this hole under the loose plank—wouldn't it [45] be just the jolliest hiding-place for a miser to stow his valuables in?"
"Either that," added Frank thoughtfully, "or else the half dollar managed to slip down through a crack. Have you examined it to see the date, Jerry? Because if it happens to be one that was coined within the last half-dozen years we'd know it couldn't have been left here long ago." ”

“ Bluff grumbled because none of them proved to be a modern Joshua, able to command the sun to stand still for a sufficient time to cover the remaining distance.
"Never mind about that, fellows," Frank observed, after laughing heartily at the quaint remark; "what we want to do just now is to make Moogs here as comfortable as we can, and then try to get some rest. All of us are tired, and we've still a mile and a half to cover."
"And I want to serve warning right now," Jerry announced, "that the first thing we do when we strike camp is to get the fire going, and a big pot of coffee boiling. ”

“ There's always a chance ahead of you."
"Well, right here we're bounded on one hand by the big water, which cuts off about half your chances," suggested Jerry.
"Some time or other you might go to the lake shore village," said Bluff; "because if I'm any [203] judge of things you'd find some remarkable characters there to snap off."
"You've already got pictures of old Aaron and his hermit shell; one of the latter being a cracking good snap of the house. How did the other view turn out, Will?"
Again that quick look of intelligence passed between Frank and Will. ”

“ At my age I cannot afford to take chances of meeting with some accident when wandering around the woods at night-time. Good-bye, lads, and remember I shall hope to have you take supper with me some evening soon, when we can get better acquainted."
After Mr. Dennison and Gilbert had departed Frank thought again of the injured woodcutter, and, hastening out, they soon had him under the roof of the cabin.
In the morning it was decided that, as the weather seemed promising, two of them had better start for the village with the wounded man and Sandy. ”

“ All of them lived in the town of Centerville, where, on account of their love for the open and for camp life, they had become known as the "Outdoor Chums." Fortune had indeed been kind to these four boys, and allowed them to enjoy opportunities for real sport that come the way of few lads.
They had first called themselves the "Rod, Gun and Camera Club," because their activities [3] in the woods partook of the nature of these several branches of sport. Will was an ardent photographer, and his work had received high praise. ”