“I’m glad you told me this, Bud,” the scout-master confessed, “because it goes part way to clear up the mystery of that fire and robbery.”
“Bud was meanin’ to tell all about it when we got back,” said Hank. “He kept still because he heard Briggs accuse you scouts of the fire racket, and Bud just then thought it too good a joke to spoil. But we’ve been talkin’ it over, and come to the conclusion we owed it to the community to set ’em right.”
This sounded rather lofty, but Paul guessed that there must be another reason back of the determination to tell. These fellows had decided that possibly suspicion might be directed toward them, and, as they had had enough trouble already without taking more on their shoulders, it would be the part of wisdom to start the ball rolling in the right quarter.
“Well, we must be going,” said Paul.
“Do you reckon on stayin’ out your time up here?” queried Hank. 205
“We haven’t decided that yet,” replied the scout-master; “but the chances are we shall conclude to cut the trip short and get back home. This heavy snow has spoiled a good many plans we’d laid out; and we might be having a better time of it with the rest of the fellows at home. We’re going to talk it over and by to-morrow settle on our plans.”
“Here’s where we get busy and start on the return hike,” announced Tom Betts, just as cheerily as though he were not already feeling the effects of that stiff plunge through the deep snowdrifts, and secretly faced the return trip with more or less apprehension.
Hank and his followers came out of their den to wave a hearty farewell after their late rescuers. Just then all animosities had died in their hearts, and they could look upon the scouts without the least bitterness.
“Sounds all mighty fine, I must say,” remarked Bobolink, as they pushed along, after losing sight of the quartette standing at the foot of the snowy hill, “but somehow I don’t seem to feel it’s going to last. That Hank’s got it in him to be a tough character, and it’d be next door to a miracle if he ever changed his ways.”