“But what does it all mean?” asked Bert. “What are they doing up here, and around our cabin?”
“Give it up,” spoke Tom. “Maybe they’re hunting, as we are.”
“But they had no guns,” Jack said.
“No. Well, we’ll just have to wait and see what turns up,” Tom went on. “I think we gave ’em rather a surprise, though.”
“We sure did,” agreed George. “But that Whalen surprised me, too. I wonder how he got here?”
“Didn’t you say you told him where we were coming?” Tom asked.
“Yes, I did, after he pumped me with a lot of questions. I didn’t realize what I was doing. I say, Tom, I hope I haven’t done any harm!”
“Oh, no. There wasn’t any secret about where we were going to spend the Christmas holidays,” Tom said. “But it is rather odd to find those three so close after us. But maybe it will be all right. They know they are on private preserves—our private grounds—for the time being, and I guess they won’t trouble us.”
“Then it was those three, sneaking around the cabin?” asked Jack.
“Professor Skeel, at least,” Tom went on, “though it may have been only ordinary curiosity that took him there. We’ll take a little trip over to Hounson’s some day, and see what we can pick up there.”