“Now for another tour,” laughed Mr. Martin, as he and Ted hauled up the anchor. “Back to the lumber camp!”
“And I hope we get the right box,” said Mrs. Martin.
They were going down the river the second day, and expected to reach the lumber camp that afternoon when, as they turned a bend in the stream, Ted and his father, who were out on deck, saw a small boat just ahead of them. There were two little boys in the boat, and as the Pine Tree came into view the boys stood up and cried:
“Help! Help!”
“What’s the matter?” called Ted.
“Sit down, boys. Sit down!” ordered Mr. Martin. “You’ll upset!”
The little lads sat down, but they continued to cry for aid, and Mrs. Martin and Jan came out to see what the trouble was.
“I guess they don’t know how to row, or else they’ve lost their oars and don’t know how to get back where they came from,” said Mr. Martin, as he slowed the Pine Tree and guided her close to the small, drifting craft.
His last guess proved correct. The boys were from a summer camp on the river. They had set out in a boat, thinking they could manage to row, but they knew little of how to do it. First one oar slipped overboard and drifted away, and then the other. The little fellows were helpless on the river, the current of which was carrying them away. So they shouted for help when they saw the Pine Tree.
“I’ll tow them back to camp,” said Mr. Martin.