“I think he’d like it,” suggested Mrs. Dalton. “He’s always very friendly with Rick and Ruddy. Why don’t you call him up and ask him?”
“Please do!” begged Rick.
“All right,” assented his father, rather reluctantly. “But it seems to me like a pretty large order.”
However Mr. Campbell, who lived a few houses down the street, was soon talking over the wire to Mr. Dalton, and the upshot of it was that he readily agreed to take the boys and dog with him in his large touring car. He was going all the way to San Francisco and Bitter Sweet Gulch was not much off his trail, he said. He would be glad to leave the boys and Ruddy there.
“Well, this looks better,” said Mr. Dalton, when he had expressed his own thanks and those of the boys. “It will be a lot easier going by auto, especially with the dog. Of course it may take a little longer, but that can’t be helped. I’ll telegraph Uncle Tod you are coming.”
Rick and Chot did an impromptu war dance about the room, and Ruddy joined in while Mazie smiled happily, glad that she had been the means of solving what had been a difficult problem.
Reservations that had been asked for in regard to railroad tickets and sleeping car berths were cancelled, and the boys began to go over again the lists of things they were going to take with them. Mr. Dalton went to call on Mr. Campbell to get the names of the different cities, where stops would be made, so he could get in touch with Chot and Rick on the way out.
“Oh, boy! Isn’t this the best ever!” cried Rick to Chot each time they met in the days that intervened before the start.
“Couldn’t be better!” was the answer.
Mrs. Dalton shook her head and sighed once or twice.