They gathered around the haunch of venison with amazement depicted on their faces. The fire still burned brightly, and it was evident that it had not been long since new fuel had been laid.
"Some one made us a present, I take it!" Tommy grinned.
"But who?" demanded Will.
"It's one of the mysteries of the British Northwest Territories!" replied Sandy. "Suppose," the boy continued, "we open the door and bring George in. He must be getting cold by this time!"
"Be careful when you open the door, then," Thede warned.
But there was no one at the door or, at first, within view of it. There were plenty of tracks, however, which appeared to have been recently made. George was carried into the cabin, and then Sandy and Tommy set out to trace some of the foot-prints to their destination.
"I'm going to know where that fellow went," the former declared.
"I have an idea he'll come back before long," Sandy suggested. "He's built a nice fire and brought in plenty of venison, and won't go away and leave the cosy corner just yet."
When the boys came to the edge of the morass, they saw a figure flitting into the underbrush on the other side.
"I guess we've frightened him away!" Tommy declared.