"I wish we could stay here," sighed Mrs. Basswood. "But there don't seem to be any accommodations."
"Oh, we'll get through; come ahead!" cried Dave. "If we don't reach Carpen Falls to-night Mr. and Mrs. Wadsworth will worry about us."
Feeling in somewhat better spirits after having eaten, and after having had an opportunity to dry themselves, the tourists brought out their automobiles again, and soon Simpson's Corners was left behind. They had a long hill to climb, and then the road wound in and out among some particularly rough rocks. Then they came out along the edge of a cliff with a vast panorama of woods and waters below them.
"Oh, isn't it perfectly lovely!" cried Belle.
"If I'm not mistaken, Mirror Lake lies off in that direction," said Dunston Porter, pointing with his hand. "That sheet of water away off yonder may be it."
Leaving the cliff, the road wound in and out of the forest for a distance of several miles. Then they came to another little valley, in which the highway was wet and, in some spots, suspiciously spongy.
"Now then, Dave, be careful," warned his uncle. "We don't want to get stuck if we can possibly help it."
"I'll do my best, Uncle Dunston," was the answer.
With the wheels sucking and sousing in the mud, the Wadsworth machine moved forward as rapidly as the conditions would permit. Close behind was the Basswood car, and this time Ben took care not to let the engine slow down too much. Once Dave was afraid that he was going to be stuck, but in a few seconds the danger was past, and in two minutes more they were out on the solid roadway once more.
"We are coming to some sort of a settlement!" cried Mr. Porter, after several miles more had been covered. "See, there it is—right down at the foot of this hill!"