“Hold my gun and my haversack, fellows,” said the patrol leader.
To the surprise of the others he started to climb a tree that had low limbs some of them not more than eight feet above the surface of the bog.
“What in the dickens is he up to?” exclaimed Step Hen.
“Watch, and you’ll see,” Allan went on to say.
“Do you know, Allan?” demanded Giraffe.
“I can give a guess, but I don’t want to spoil it all by telling,” the other replied. “Both of you stand right where you are, and don’t move a foot ahead, or you may get in the same trouble Bumpus did, and without his means of crawling out of the hole.”
At these mysterious words Giraffe and Step Hen exchanged looks of amazement. They could not for the life of them imagine Bumpus capable of doing anything that would be beyond them.
“There, Thad’s managed to get to a place just above where Bumpus must have been stuck,” Allan went on.
“He’s actually laughing!” exclaimed Step Hen.
“What’s struck you as funny, Thad?” called out Giraffe, unable to hold in.