“I thank you, Mr. Clarke, and I am sure all the boys will be glad to come, but Ethan will come over to get our dinner for us to-day, and there’s no way of getting word to him.”
“Very well; then come some other day. You’ll let us carry you back to your camp in our yacht, won’t you? It’s directly in our way.”
The invitation was accepted, and the canoes taken in tow. Upon the invitation of the boys the party all landed at the dock and went up to the camp together. There everything was of interest, particularly to the girls, who wanted to understand just the uses of all the various camp belongings.
Doubtless very clear explanations were given, for at last when they returned to the yacht they all expressed themselves as delighted with what they had seen, and the boys were glad to renew the promise Jock had given that the invitation to dine at “The Rocks,” the name by which Mr. Clarke called his cottage, would be accepted soon.
Not long afterward, Ethan appeared, and as he began his preparations for dinner, he said,—
“I hear ye had trouble over to the bay to-day.”
“Who told you?” said Ben, quickly.
“I don’ know as I just remember. Everybody was talkin’ of it, though. I warned ye. Yer pa can’t say I was responsible.”
“You aren’t responsible, Ethan,” said Jock, quickly; “’twas Ben.”