CHAPTER VII.
ON THE RIVER ROAD.
“Well, wouldn’t that give you a heart-ache, now?” remarked Giraffe, making a wry face, as he looked at his seven mates.
“Just to think of it!” exclaimed Bumpus, “we were all sleeping sweetly like babes in the woods, out there in the hay, while our game passed us by. A healthy lot of scouts we seem like, don’t we? When people hear of this they’ll vote us a leather medal. Always on guard, hey? Never letting a single thing worth while slipping through our fingers? Oh! my stars, somebody fan me!”
Thad laughed at the fat scout.
“I wouldn’t feel so bad if I were you, Bumpus,” he remonstrated; “there’s nothing on us that I can see. This happened to be an accident that we couldn’t help. How were we to guess that the man we came after would drop in here and rob the farmer? The fortunes of war, Bumpus. Besides, it gives us a pointer. We know now that Wandering George isn’t far ahead of us; and we’re going to catch up with him before a great while.”
“That’s the way to talk, Thad!” commented Step Hen. “We never give up when we get started on a game. Keeping everlastingly at it is what wins most of all. George was kind to leave his card behind him; and in the morning we’ll start out fresh on the trail.”
It would appear from this that none of the others felt at all depressed because of the strange happening; and realizing this even Bumpus was soon looking satisfied again. The farmer declared he would not try to sleep any more that night, but as for the scouts they could see no reason why anyone else should follow his example, when that sweet hay called so loudly.
The consequence was that before long there was an exodus to the barn, for since the small hours of the morning had come the air was decidedly cool, and none of them felt comfortable.
Nothing more developed during the remainder of that night, and the first thing some of the sleepers knew they were hearing the bugle sounding the reveille. Bumpus had been aroused by Allan poking him in the ribs, and telling him it was sun-up; for somehow the two had bored into the hay together the second time.
Giraffe attended to the fire, as usual, and as everybody wanted to get warm there was no lack of cooks. The work of the farm had started long before, and already the girls were coming in with full buckets of new milk; while the cackling of many hens announced that the biddies were giving an account of themselves.