“Are you trying to rag me a bit?” he asked.
“No, not trying to,” answered Garry with special emphasis on the word “trying.”
Dick was about to make a retort, then kept silent, for he knew that Garry was having a bit of fun with him, and in a battle of words with the sharp-witted leader, he knew from experience that he would come off second best.
All that remained now to do was to set the saplings. Dick filled in the trench so that the saplings would clear the ground by just about half an inch, all that was necessary to bring down the little lever. One by one the saplings were laid and the threads attached, Dick drawing the string taut while Garry held the lever up so that it would not be accidentally pulled down. Finally the saplings were all laid.
“Now we must cover the saplings with some dirt very carefully and smooth it down hard,” said Dick. The dirt was sprinkled on and then bidding Garry guard the lever, Dick patted it down hard on the improvised platform.
“That’s good so far,” said Phil. “But won’t the person who steps on that feel the give of it, and become suspicious?”
“That’s one chance we will have to take, but I intend to sprinkle a few pine needles on top of this and try to give it the appearance of soft ground. You know how often one steps on a springing, spongy surface in the woods.” As he talked he threw handfuls of pine needles on the spot.
“There, guess that’s camouflage for you. I don t think anyone would ever know it had been fooled with,” said Dick, with some pride in his handiwork. And indeed he had good cause to be pleased, for the ground looked not a whit different than the surroundings.
“There is just one thing more. That is the liability of the intruder sneaking around the corner of the lean-to and dodging the trap altogether,” said Dick, “and we can soon fix that with a few saplings. We will make a sort of little fence with an opening only wide enough for an entrance. That will serve a double purpose. It will make the intruder step on the trap, and it will offset the appearance of the brush wall at the back by making it appear that we have simply fixed up our lean-to in fancy fashion.” As he spoke, Dick began to make the “fence,” and the others, catching onto the idea, lent a willing hand.
When it was completed, the shack had a comfortable air about it that led the boys to decide that when the trap had served its purpose, the other trappings would be left as they were.