"Well, it will give us something to look up," said Sammy. "We can solve that mystery, and the one about the hermit, too."
He was quite delighted over the prospect, as his chums could easily tell by the light in his eyes. Give Sammy a mystery, or put him on the trail of buried treasure, be it ever so small, and he was happy.
"Well, come on to Camp Mystery," suggested Mr. Jessup. "You must be hungry—I know I am."
With Maybe, the dog, running on ahead, and the hunter and the boys bringing up in the rear, the little procession started off along the snowy trail.
They went on for perhaps a mile, when, through the trees, the boys caught sight of a large house—a mansion in size.
"Is that your cabin?" asked Sammy. "It's big!"
"Is that your cabin?" asked Sammy.
"No, my shack can't compare with that in build," answered the hunter. "That's an old deserted mansion. It used to be a sort of hotel, or boarding house, but it hasn't been used as such in a good many years. It didn't pay.
"I'm a sort of care-taker of it, and I have one or two rooms fitted up that I use when my shack gets filled. But the rest of the place is deserted, except for the bats and rats."