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Updated: June 18, 2025
Perhaps all this mystery added to the pleasure of such a fellow as Lil Artha; at least his eyes were sparkling much more than their wont as he continued to ply his pole with the air of a Venetian gondolier along the Grand Canal. Once, however, he must have rammed it too hard into the yielding ooze, for when he tried to pull it out there was considerable resistance.
So the scouts kept giving their views, while Johnny swung there, vainly trying to reach up and catch hold of the limb, with the turkeys twittering, and showing more or less alarm. "Elmer, git me daown outen this, please!" begged the prisoner. "But how can we do it, Johnny, when we don't know the combination of the racket?" demanded Lil Artha.
It may have been noticed also that no one, even bold Lil Artha, the most venturesome of them all, volunteered to make the additional test when morning came. They seemed perfectly satisfied to accept the will for the deed.
As this region had been the scene of some of the earliest camps of the Hickory Ridge scouts, of course, the conversation covered many memories connected with those experiences. The horses had shown signs of playing out some miles back; but Lil Artha proved himself to be an artful as well as clever driver.
He had communicated his plans to the others before this, and they all knew the parts they would be expected to play should it come to a hold-up. Covered by the guns that he and Lil Artha carried, it was doubtful whether the man would dare take chances and try to flee.
"Lil Artha, take Mark and Landy in the smaller skiff; the rest will go with me," he announced immediately. Mark was the nearest chum of the patrol leader, but Elmer disliked favoritism, and hence he thus tacitly placed Lil Artha in command of the second boat.
The stumbling man had naturally taken to the log, passed well along to the other end, and then jumped off. "You take that side and I'll cover this one," said Elmer, without the least hesitation; "ten to one we'll get him again." They did, for Lil Artha quickly found the tracks once more.
Eager eyes were ever on the alert. A number of times Lil Artha, or it might be Toby or Chatz, felt a sudden thrill as some object caught their attention ahead, which at first glance seemed to open up great possibilities.
And when a supply had been made ready, the scouts did not forget to feed their prisoner, who certainly seemed to enjoy it very much, indeed. "You boys are a great bunch," he told Lil Artha, who was looking after his necessities in the line of food; "and after all, I'm not sorry you were the ones to get me, if it had to be.
Lil Artha said the "wind was tempered to the shorn lamb," by which he undoubtedly meant that since they had neither tents nor blankets it considerately did not turn cold, nor were they caught out in a heavy rain storm. Their last outing of the vacation season had proved to be a fine one.
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