“No,” remarked Bart. “I noticed when the Chinese pointed the glass he aimed it in a different direction from that in which the Modoc lies.”
“Then what boat are they expecting?” asked Ned.
“That’s too big a question for me,” replied Bart. “It certainly is a queer thing to see a Chinese and a white man in such close company, off here in the woods.”
“And then the auto,” put in Fenn. “What do you suppose that’s for?”
“It’s part of the same game,” was Frank’s opinion.
“Well, I don’t know that it’s up to us to discover it,” went on Fenn. “It’s about time we got back to the ship, anyhow. Come on. We’ll keep on this way, and fetch around to the beach in a circle. Then we’ll not run across those two queer men.”
The boys advanced, laying their course as best they could. Now and then, through the trees, they could get a glimpse of the lake, and they knew they were going in the right direction.
They came to a little gully, in a dense part of the woods, and had to descend into it, to get across, as it extended for quite a distance in either direction. Frank led the way, half slipping, half sliding down the sides. As he reached the bottom he gave a startled cry that alarmed his companions.
“Hurt yourself?” asked Bart.
“No, but look what I’ve found!”