Uncle Caleb was a rich bachelor, and he liked to be comfortable. Besides, he was a man of science, and a student, rather than a hunter; so they concluded that he was quite right in making his little home look so pleasant.
Just then, however, things were in something of an upset condition. The hungry cat in prowling around and searching for something to eat had upset a number of articles, broken a pet dish of the cabin's owner; while there on the table was the partly gnawed strip of bacon at which the animal had been busily at work when interrupted by their arrival on the scene.
"I can save the better part of it," said the easy-going Uncle Caleb, "and besides, there is plenty more in the locker, for I lay in my winter's stock long before the first real snow comes, so as not to be bothered later on by trips to the town where I trade, which is many miles away from here."
When later on he showed them his "strong room" where his stores were kept George in particular was noticed to lick his lips with a satisfied smile on his face as if telling himself that there need be no fear of hunger so long as they stayed with Uncle Caleb.
"Choose your bunks, boys," they were speedily told, "and toss your blankets in the ones you select. It seems that you figured pretty closely, because if there had been another scout in the party we'd have had to get busy building a new bed. As it is, there is one apiece all around."
"But how about you, Uncle?" asked Toby, solicitously; "we don't want to push you out of your regular bed. Let me sleep on that cot."
"No, I prefer to take it," the owner of the cabin replied; "in fact, as a rule I have slept on the cot winters, because I can pull it up in front of the fire on nights that are particularly bitter."
"You must get some howlers up here, sir, I should think," suggested Elmer.
"Along in January we often have a terrible storm or blizzard, when it's utterly unsafe to venture outside the door, because one can never see ten feet away. Men have been found frozen to death close to their own cabins, which they did not dream were so close by when they gave up in despair. The storm that just visited us was pretty severe, but not to be compared with some I have seen."
"George, take your pick of bunks," said Elmer.