No one could equal Giraffe in such a maneuver as this. Nature had given him the advantage over his fellows when endowing him with that extra long neck. And doubtless the shorter Davy, with his thick neck, envied Giraffe, when he saw how easily the other surmounted difficulties in the way of taking an observation, which were bound to prove a barrier to him.
Sure enough. Giraffe caught a fugitive glimpse of something that looked like the back wall of the old cabin, for he saw neither door nor window. How wonderful that the sagacious Penobscot brave could have taken them directly there; and so far as he, Giraffe, had noticed, without once feeling of the bark of the trees, or even sweeping one glance toward the heavens.
Now that the Indian and Thad had dropped on their knees. Of course the others were expected to do the same, and quickly did they follow suit. It must be a part of the game; indeed, Giraffe would have been sorely disappointed had they failed to go through this same experience. In all the books he had read of forest trailing, and advancing upon an enemy’s camp, it was absolutely necessary to go the last part of the journey on hands and knees. And besides, it added vastly to the interest of the thing, Giraffe thought.
So they crept along, getting gradually nearer and nearer to the cabin. So far as could be seen, all was quiet around that place, just as they had left it, in fact. If the hoboes had already arrived they certainly gave no sign of their presence.
Perhaps Sebattis, with his wonderfully trained ear, was able to catch slight sounds that would not reach some of the rest of them, bunglers at best in the science of woodcraft. He seemed to be advancing with perfect confidence; and yet at the same time Giraffe could not but notice that the dusky-skinned Maine guide always kept his gun in a position for instant use.
It made Giraffe remember what he had once read about the early Virginia and New England settlers, pious men, all of them, to be sure; but realizing that each was expected to do his part in taking care of home and family. Giraffe had often repeated the words of their motto to himself, and figured out just what it meant to say “trust in the Lord; but keep your powder dry.” Sebattis felt perfect confidence in his ability to reach the wall of the cabin unobserved; but at the same time he was always ready for accidents.
But they were now about the end of the little creeping journey, for the grim back wall of the trapper’s old weather-beaten cabin was at hand. One by one the crawlers arrived, and ranged themselves as close as they could, following the example of the two who had reached the goal first.
Giraffe was immediately conscious of some sort of movement within. It was as if a party might be laboring at something that rather tried his muscle; for besides the heavy breathing, there came a rustling noise, and then mutterings.
“Gimme that piece of wood over there, Kimball,” a voice suddenly growled. “This stone sure beats my time, the way she sticks. I never thort she was half as heavy. Throw it acrost to me, if you don’t want to git up. Thet’s the ticket. Now, will you be good, consarn you?”
It gave Giraffe a thrill. He seemed to guess that the speaker must be working at the hearthstone, under which the scouts had found all that wonderful plunder. What would happen when he discovered how the package left there was only a false “dummy,” and that the bank loot had been carried off? Before Giraffe could settle this at all in his mind, he heard the man inside give a little shout.