"Nonsense!" said Pa. "Gipsies don't go around stealing thirteen-year-old boys, who can make as much noise as Bill can."
"Well, I saw some, anyhow," I told him.
Just then Skinny jumped out in front of the rest of us, with his eyes shining and his cheeks redder than I ever had seen them before, and stood there with his arms folded, like a bandit, or a Scout, I don't know which.
"Fellers," said he, "Scouts, I mean. We got Bill into this scrape and we will get him out again. This is a job for us, not for the police. If anybody can find Bill, bet your life we can. We know the call of the Ravens. We know the signs and we know Bill better than his own folks know him. We'll track him. We'll follow him to the ends of the earth. Will you go with me?"
We sprang up with a cheer, forgetting how tired we were, those of us who had just come home from the long walk.
"Everybody scatter and look for signs."
"Wait a minute, boys," said Ma. "It's almost dinner time. You must not start without something to eat. There is no telling when you will get back. Let me give you a bite in the kitchen first."
That was just like Ma. We saw in a minute it was the thing to do and hurried in for a quick lunch.
"The boy is right," we heard Pa saying. "They'll find him, depend upon it. I never knew those boys to get into a scrape yet that they couldn't pull out of. But it won't hurt if the rest of us look around a little, too."
"Who saw him last?" asked Skinny, after we had started.