The boys were not slow to appreciate the ludicrous side of Nugget"s adventure, and they laughed long and heartily.
Then the miller told how he found the canoe in a stretch of back water that ran a few yards in from the creek, and how surprised he was when he pulled the ap.r.o.n off the c.o.c.kpit and saw Nugget fast asleep.
"I noticed that inlet," said Ned, "but I didn"t see anything of the canoe."
"Because I pulled it out in the bushes," replied the miller. "The current has a natural drift toward the place, and clogs it up with rubbish sometimes. The lad had a narrow squeeze of it when he went through that hole in the dam. I intend to fix it as soon as the water goes down a little."
"I don"t want to go through any more such places," said Nugget. "I suppose that ap.r.o.n was what kept the water out. I shipped a little bit, though I didn"t know it until this morning, when I found my clothes all wet. My extra suit is in your canoe, Randy. I had dry shirts, though.
Say, wouldn"t I look nice marching down Fifth Avenue in this rig?"
The boys laughed at the idea, and then drew their chairs away from the table, and chatted for half an hour with the miller, relating all that had happened on the previous night, and telling him of their proposed trip to the Susquehanna. He, in turn, gave them much interesting information about the creek, where to camp and where to fish.
Ten o"clock came before any one realized it, and the boys prepared to depart, in spite of their host"s earnest invitation to stay for a day or two. Nugget changed his clothes, and started for the inlet with the miller, while the others embarked in their canoes, after thanking the miller"s wife for her hospitality.
The inlet was half a mile down the creek. The boys reached there first, and were joined by the others two or three minutes later.
Fortunately Nugget"s paddle was not lost. He had found it stranded along the sh.o.r.e while on his way to the mill that morning.
The boys lingered a moment to shake hands with their kind hearted friend, and thank him for his services.
"That"s all right," said the miller, "only too glad to oblige you. Be sure and stop when you pa.s.s here again. My name is John Kling."
"We"ll spend a week with you next time," returned Ned, as he grasped his paddle.
"Please have the dam mended before then," drawled Nugget.
The miller laughed and waved his hand, and amid a chorus of "good-byes"
the Jolly Rovers paddled away from sh.o.r.e. The shadow of misfortune was forgotten, and the future was full of bright antic.i.p.ations, as before.
The birds sang among the leaves, the fish leaped in the ripples, and the sunlight danced on the blue water.
The little island, where the boys had spent such a wretched night, was soon far behind, and they entered upon a more beautiful stretch of country than they had yet seen. The water was very sluggish, and on each side were great hills densely covered with pine and spruce trees.
The temptations to stop were so frequent that by mid-afternoon the boys were scarcely five miles from the mill--that is to say by water. It was probably less than half that distance in a straight line.
"I"m really hungry again in spite of that big breakfast," said Clay.
"Can"t we stop and have lunch?"
"I second that," cried Randy.
The others were of the same mind, and as a very pretty spot happened to come within view about that time, they paddled across to it and landed.
Closer inspection only added to the charms of the place.
It lay on the right sh.o.r.e, at the mouth of a deep, dark ravine. A beach of smooth pebbles sloped back to a gra.s.sy bank three or four feet high, and on the plateau above were a dozen or more ma.s.sive girthed pine trees, whose fragrant needles carpeted the ground. A fair sized brook gurgled through the center over a bed of mossy stones, and emptied into the creek.
"We might travel a good many miles and not find such a place as this,"
said Ned. "Suppose we stay here for a day or two. Tomorrow is Sunday and we would have to stop then anyhow."
This suggestion was adopted without a dissenting word and the boys became enthusiastic over the prospect. Randy wanted to begin fishing at once, while Nugget proposed an exploration of the ravine. A few sensible words from Ned cooled their ardor, and they started in with a will to arrange the camp.
The tent was staked in a carefully selected spot, and then the canoes were unloaded and placed on the beach in a row, bottom up, so what little water was in them might drain out.
While Nugget and Clay carried the provisions and other articles up to the tent, Ned and Randy washed the dirty dishes of the night before.
Then the blankets were put to air on a stout line stretched between two trees, and a great heap of firewood was collected.
"That"s all for the present," said Ned, as he finished tying the pennant to the front tent pole. "You can do a little fishing now if you want to.
Don"t venture far away from the camp, because I"m going up the ravine to look for a farmhouse."
Randy declared that he was tired and would rather stay by the tent, so Nugget and Clay prepared their rods and went down the creek a short distance to a jutting point of rock. With a diminutive hook they caught a couple of minnows, which they used for bait.
For a long time their patience was unrewarded, but finally Nugget had a strike, and after a severe struggle he landed a fine ba.s.s that could not have weighed less than a pound. Clay caught a smaller one, and after that the fish stopped biting.
At sundown they put up their rods and went back to camp. Ned had just returned, bringing with him a pair of dressed chickens and a pail of milk.
"These will make us a good dinner to-morrow," he said. "I had a hard time finding the farmhouse. It was more than a mile away, and the path led through the woods for nearly the whole distance. I suppose you are pretty hungry by this time. If you all pitch in and help we"ll soon have supper."
In a short time the fire was blazing merrily. Ned was as good as his word, and the _menu_ he set before the boys that night was a tempting one. It included fried ba.s.s, ham and eggs, and baked potatoes, with milk and pie for desert.
As the night was warm all indulged in a delicious swim after the supper dishes were cleared up. At nine o"clock they turned in and tied the tent flaps shut. Even this precaution was felt to be unnecessary, since the very loneliness of the place was a protection against harm.
Randy, who occupied the proud position of log keeper to the Jolly Rovers, sat up for a while to jot down the events of the cruise in a blank book. He finally extinguished the lantern with a sigh of satisfaction, and was soon sleeping beside his companions.
Sunday dawned bright and clear, but the boys did not get up until nine o"clock. The pine needles made a couch that was hard to leave. The day was observed in a spirit of proper regard. Its monotony was somewhat alleviated by the dinner of fried chicken, but all were glad when night came.
CHAPTER VII
BATTERS AND JOE
Ned was up with the sun on Monday morning. He pulled the tent flaps wide open, so that the cool air would stream in and awaken his companions.
Then he threw a towel over his shoulder and marched down to the mouth of the brook to wash his face and hands.
But this laudable purpose was quite driven from his mind by the discovery which greeted his eyes when he arrived there. On the spit of jutting sand which had formed at the junction of the creek and the brook was the deep imprint of a boat"s keel, and close by were half a dozen large footsteps.
They looked quite fresh, and had evidently been made by two persons.
Some were long and pointed; others square toed, and shod with nails or pegs.
As Ned gazed on these evidences of a nocturnal visit, he felt pretty much as did Robinson Crusoe when he discovered the print of naked feet on his island.
It was impossible to tell where these strangers had been, since the gravel beach and the gra.s.sy soil beyond it left no traces.
Ned washed his face and hands and returned to the tent with a troubled mind. The boys were awake by this time, and he told them of his discovery.
"Hullo! that explains something," exclaimed Clay. "I got awake last night, and struck a match to find the pail of water that was standing outside the tent. I thought I heard a noise down by the creek, but I was too sleepy to bother about it, and went back to bed."