“Let’s have all our mail re-addressed from Timminsport to Henryville,” suggested Fred; “then we can come down here on our skates any time we feel like it and get it.” And this was done.
They found a fairly good general store at Henryville, and made a few purchases of such things as they thought they could use to advantage during their outing. They were about to start up the river again when Jack’s attention was attracted to a large sleigh drawn by a pair of powerful horses. The sleigh was driven by a man who looked as if he might be a German, and on the back seat, wedged in by a number of packages, were two other German-looking individuals.
“One of those men on the back seat is that Herman Crouse, the fellow we rescued from the burning car,” said Jack to the others.
“Yes, and that driver and the other man are two of the fellows we met on the road when we were trying to locate the Lodge,” added Randy.
“It’s queer that that Herman Crouse should be up here,” said Fred.
“Oh, I don’t know. He said he worked a small farm somewhere in this vicinity.”
“I thought it was down near Enwood,” remarked Spouter.
“One thing certain—I don’t like the looks of those other Germans,” came from Gif. “They look like mighty suspicious characters to me.”
Even had the boys wished to do so, they got no opportunity to speak to the man they had rescued from the burning railroad car. The sleigh had stopped at a house in Henryville, and now it passed on around a corner of the road, and was soon lost to sight in the woods.
Now that they knew their letters were on the way, the cadets were in no hurry to get back to the Lodge. They had brought along a few sandwiches and now purchased some fresh doughnuts, in case they stayed away from the Lodge during the lunch hour.
“Let’s take our time and skate up one or two branches of this river,” suggested Gif. “It will be easier than walking, and we may have a chance at some game.”
All were willing, and it was suggested that Gif led the way, which he did. They left the main stream and started up a smaller watercourse leading directly into the forest.
“I just saw a rabbit!” exclaimed Randy presently. “There he is now!” and, raising his gun, he fired quickly. But his aim was not good, and the bunny hopped behind a tree and out of sight.
“Too bad you had to take a shot for nothing,” remarked Fred. “That may put the other game in this vicinity on the alert.”
Soon they came to a point where skating was not so easy. At first they thought to go back, but then it was suggested that they tramp along the frozen-up watercourse on foot.
“I was thinking we might run across some brook mink up here,” said Gif. “Or some ducks.”
“Oh, I’d like to get a mink or a duck if there are any in this vicinity,” answered Jack.
On they tramped until a good quarter of a mile had been covered. Then they caught sight of several rabbits, and brought down two of them. Later still they saw a squirrel, but though Spouter shot at the frisky creature, it managed to elude him.
“Well, we can’t expect to bag everything we shoot at,” consoled Jack.
“I think I know of a short cut from here to the Lodge,” said Gif. “So if you would rather tramp through the woods than go back by way of the river, we might do so and get a chance at some other game.”
“All right, Gif; lead the way,” said Jack, and they went forward under Gif’s guidance.
They were deep in the forest when they heard a whir overhead. They looked up quickly to see a number of partridges sailing past close to the tree tops.
“Quick!” yelled Jack, and blazed away, while all of the others did the same.
CHAPTER XX
LOST IN THE WOODS
There was no time wasted in shooting at the partridges which were flying along so close to the tree tops. The six cadets did their best but four of the charges went wild. The aim of Jack and Gif was effective, and one wounded partridge came fluttering down to the snow while another dropped dead on the branches of a nearby cedar.
“Hurrah! we’ve got two of them, anyhow,” cried Gif, as he reached forward and quickly put the wounded bird out of its misery.
“We’ve got two provided we can reach that one up in the tree,” answered Jack. “I’m afraid it’s going to be some climb to get it down.”
“That’s so,” said Randy.
“Oh, I can get up there in no time!” cried Andy gayly. “Here, take my gun,” and with his usual agility he was soon mounting the branches of the big tree, taking particular delight in shaking down great masses of loose snow on the heads of those below.
As is usual with cedars, the branches were close together, and Andy soon found he would have his own troubles in reaching the point where the dead partridge rested. However, he kept on, worming his way upward as best he could, until he was within a few feet of the prize.
“Some climb, believe me!” he called out to those below. “This tree is almost as close-grown as a cedar bush.”
Up went Andy, and presently managed to get hold of the dead partridge and drew the game toward him. Just as he did this he heard a peculiar sound a few feet below him on the other side of the tree.
“Hello! is somebody following me?” he questioned, looking down to see what the movement among the branches below meant.
There was no reply to his question, and Andy came to the conclusion that the branches must have become crossed in some way and then loosened themselves. He continued his descent, but just as he reached a branch two feet further down a peculiar cry came to his alert ears, a cry not unlike that of an angry cat.
“Hello! something is up in this tree, that is sure,” he told himself.
He listened, and then heard another cry, this time less than two yards below him, coming from one of the larger branches of the big cedar. At once he sent up a shout.
“What’s wanted?” questioned his twin. “Why don’t you hurry up down so we can do some more hunting?”
“There is some wild animal in this tree!” answered Andy. “I don’t know what it is, but it sounds like a wildcat.”
“A wildcat!” burst out several of the others.
“And Andy hasn’t any gun!” cried Gif. “Come on, let us see if we can’t shoot the thing!”
“Go slow there,” cautioned Jack. “Let us see if we can’t locate it and find out what it is first. We don’t want it to attack Andy while he is unarmed.”
“Are you in any danger, Andy?” called out Fred.
“Where is the cat—or whatever it is?” asked Randy.
“It’s just below me somewhere. I can’t see it, but I can hear it plainly enough. It’s moving around in those lower branches. I guess I had better stay up here for a while;” and as he spoke Andy mounted to a higher limb. With no weapon handy, he had no desire to face any wild animal.
Those below slowly circled the big cedar, keeping their eyes on the alert for a view of whatever might be prowling around among the branches. They had their guns ready for use, but realized that they must fire with great caution, or otherwise they might hit the lad who was in peril.
“I suppose the wildcat, or whatever it is, was up in the tree and didn’t know what to do when Andy started to come up. The beast knew we were down here, or otherwise it would probably have jumped down and run off.”
“Squirrels don’t cry like a cat, and I heard that beast just cry,” said Jack. “All squirrels do is to chatter.”
“There’s another danger,” said Gif. “If we come too close to that tree we’ll probably drive the wildcat, or whatever it is, up to where Andy is.”
“Here’s the bird!” shouted Andy from above, and threw the partridge down and away from the tree.
Jack and Andy’s twin took a few steps closer to the big cedar, at the same time holding their guns ready for instant use. They peered upwa
rd among the snow-laden branches, and presently caught sight of a slinking form resting in a crotch of the tree.
“There it is!” exclaimed Randy, and was on the point of firing when the wildcat—for such it had proved to be—dropped out of sight and leaped to a branch on the other side of the tree trunk.
“Hi there! don’t drive that beast up here,” called out Andy.
“Andy,” called back his twin suddenly, “weren’t you carrying that flashlight?”
“No, I left it at the Lodge. I didn’t think I would want it on the trip to Henryville.”
“I’ve got my flashlight,” remarked Gif. “Here it is,” and he brought it forth.
The light was flashed up into the tree and around from branch to branch. As the rays traveled through the cedar there was a sudden wild cry from the animal, and then came a swish and a whirr as the wildcat sprang to the outer end of a limb and then down into the snow.
Bang! bang! bang! went the guns in the hands of Gif, Randy, and Spouter. But whether they hit the wildcat or not, they could not tell. There was a whirl in the snow, and then in a twinkling the beast had disappeared into the forest behind them.
“Well, it’s gone, anyhow,” declared Jack, in a tone of great relief. “You can come down, Andy.”
Andy was soon out of the tree, and, having picked up the two partridges, the six young hunters continued on their way, as they supposed, in the direction of Cedar Lodge.
Presently they came to another clearing, and on the far side of this noted some animals hopping about which they felt certain must be rabbits.
“Let’s go over there!” cried Fred excitedly. “Maybe we can make a good haul.”
“It’s a pretty good tramp around to the other side of this clearing,” remarked Gif. “And it looks to me as if it might begin to snow again,” he added, with a glance at the sky which was now heavily overcast.
But all of the others wanted a chance to get more game, so in the end the six cadets tramped around one edge of the clearing until they reached a point close to the spot where the rabbits had been seen. Here the bunnies were out in force, trying to find something to eat, and they had but little difficulty in bagging four of the creatures.
“Well, that’s not so bad but what it might be worse,” announced Jack.
“We should have had more than four,” grumbled Randy. “There were at least fifteen or sixteen rabbits to be seen.” He had missed what he had thought to be a comparatively easy shot.
“Well, we can’t have everything,” declared Spouter philosophically.
They trudged on once more, Gif, as before, taking the lead. But presently the tall cadet called a halt.
“What’s the matter now?” questioned Randy. “See any more game ahead?”
“No.” Gif was staring around first to the right and then to the left. “Hang it if I know whether we are on the right trail or not!”
“Do you mean to say, Gif, you don’t know in what direction the Lodge is located?” questioned Spouter quickly.
“I think it’s off in that direction, Spouter,” was the reply, and Gif pointed with his hand, “but I’m not dead sure of it. Circling that clearing threw me off the track.”
“Well, were you sure of the trail before we came over here?” questioned Jack. “If you were, we can go back you know, even though it is quite a tramp.”
“I thought I was sure, Jack. But now I’m not sure of anything,” answered Gif helplessly. “Someway or other, I seem to be completely turned around.”
“Gee! then we’re in a pretty pickle,” groaned Fred, who was beginning to grow tired of tramping through the snow.
“If we could only get down to the river again we’d be all right,” came from Randy.
“I wonder if I could locate the Lodge from the top of one of these trees,” remarked Jack. “It would be quite a climb to get such a view, but it would be better than tramping around without knowing where one was going.”
“I’ll do the climbing,” answered Gif quickly. “I got you fellows into this mess, and it’s up to me to get you out.”
“Oh, don’t think I’m complaining,” returned Spouter quickly.
“None of us is complaining, Gif. We all know it’s the easiest thing in the world to get lost in a big woods like this—especially when there is snow on the ground to cover up the landmarks.”
A tall pine was selected, and the others boosted Gif upward as far as they could. Then he mounted from branch to branch, and the others waited below as patiently as possible for what he might have to report. In the meantime a few flakes of snow came drifting downward, and soon it was snowing steadily.
“Well, what can you see?” called out Jack, after those below had waited quite a while for their chum to make a report.
“I can’t see very much on account of the snow coming down,” announced Gif. “I can see the edge of a clearing that might be the one where Cedar Lodge is located, but I am not certain of it.”
“Well, take another good look,” advised Spouter. “Wish we had field glasses,” he added.
It was a full fifteen minutes before Gif rejoined the others. He had located but one place that looked like the clearing surrounding the Lodge, but, as he had said before, he was by no means certain that this was the right location.
“Well, we might as well try it anyway,” announced Jack. “We can’t stay here all night.”
“It’s too bad it began to snow so heavily just as I was climbing the tree,” remarked Gif. “If it hadn’t been for that I might have gotten quite a view and maybe located the bungalow without difficulty. However, this may prove to be the right trail after all. Come on, before it gets dark.”
“Wish I had something more to eat,” remarked Andy. The few sandwiches and doughnuts they had brought along had long since been eaten.
As they walked on the way seemed to grow more difficult. They soon found themselves at a point where there were a series of rocks backed up by low-hanging bushes thickly covered with snow. There was no wind, but the snow was now coming down more thickly than ever.
“Gee! it looks to me as if we were lost,” remarked Fred.
All gazed around them, but saw little to give them satisfaction. Behind them lay the thick forest, and in front of them the rocks and bushes. It was now growing dark, and this added to their uneasiness.
“Well, what shall we do next?” questioned Gif.
Nobody answered that question. They were undoubtedly lost, and what was to be done about it was a serious problem.
CHAPTER XXI
A NIGHT UNDER THE CLIFF
“One thing is sure,” said Jack presently. “We can’t stand out here in this snowstorm all night.”
“Let’s go on at least a short distance further,” broke in Spouter.
“Maybe we’ll come to some sort of trail that Gif will recognize,” put in Randy.
“I’m getting dead tired. I can’t tramp more than a mile or two further,” said Fred.
“I don’t believe any of us care to go any such distance as that, Fred,” returned Jack kindly. “Here, give me your gun. I’ll carry it for you,” for it was plainly to be seen the youngest Rover was becoming exhausted.
All were tired out from their skate and their tramp, and climbing among the rough rocks covered with snow was by no means easy.
Soon they reached another line of rocks, this time much higher than those they had been crossing. At one end of the rocks was a small cliff. At the top of this several cedars had once stood, but the winds of the winter before had blown them over, so that, while the roots were still imbedded in the cliff, the tops rested in the snow below.
“Great salt mackerel!” cried Gif in dismay. “Well, now I have spilled the beans!”
“What’s up now?” questioned Randy quickly.
“I heard my uncle tell about this place. He visited
it just after those trees fell over. He said the spot was about three miles from the Lodge.”
At this there was a groan from the twins and Fred.
“We can’t walk that distance in this snowstorm,” said the latter decidedly.
“Not over those rough rocks, anyway,” added Randy. “I feel as if my ankles were getting twisted out of shape.”
“Do you know in what direction the Lodge is from here?” questioned Spouter.
“I do not, except that you have to be on the top of the cliff to get to it. We were evidently headed the right way, although we must have walked in a big semicircle since we left the river.”
“I’m going to climb to the top of the cliff and have a look around,” declared Jack. “Here, take these guns and the game.”
It was no easy matter to mount to the top of the cliff which at this point was at least fifteen feet over their heads. But Jack finally made it, and was followed by Spouter and Gif.
Here, however, the view was no better than from below—the thickly falling snow hiding the landscape on every side. Night was coming on and it was growing colder, and the boys could not help but shiver.
“I guess the best thing we can do it to try to make ourselves comfortable for the night,” remarked Jack.
“How can we make ourselves comfortable without anything to eat?” questioned Spouter.
“We’ve got the game. We can start a fire and cook some of that.”
“And besides, you must remember we have the things we bought at Henryville,” said Gif.
The three rejoined the others, and the question of what to do was put to the younger Rovers. Fred and Andy declared they could not tramp much further, and at once agreed that it would be best to try to make themselves comfortable for the night.
“It looks as if there might be some kind of shelter under those fallen cedars,” said Randy. “Hanging down from the top of the cliff, they form a sort of lean-to.”
“I was thinking of that,” said Jack. “Let us get under them and investigate.”
“Beware of more wildcats,” cautioned Andy.
“We’ll use my flashlight,” said Gif.
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