“No, not here,” answered Mr. Weldon. “Our next scenes will be taken at Cub Mountain, about fifty miles from here.”
“I know where Cub Mountain is,” said Mr. Martin. “I’ve been there, but I didn’t intend visiting it on this tour. You see, we are touring around for our summer vacation,” he added.
“I see,” remarked Ned Weldon. “Well, Mr. Portnay and the rest of the company, or at least most of us, will be at Cub Mountain this time to-morrow, or a little earlier. We are taking scenes about a log cabin on the mountain. If you are there you can very likely see Mr. Portnay and get back from him your box which his man took in mistake for the make-up chest.”
“Couldn’t we catch Mr. Portnay before then?” asked Mr. Martin. “I mean, couldn’t we trail after him now and come up with him somewhere before he reaches Cub Mountain?”
“You might try,” said the man who played the part of a cowboy. “He is going through Midvale, which is about halfway there. Probably he’ll stop in Midvale all night. He’ll be very sorry this has happened, and he’ll be glad to give you back your box.”
“Thank you,” replied Mr. Martin. “Then I think the best thing for us to do is to take the trail after this Mr. Portnay. I can get back the albums without having to worry Mr. Cardwell about them. Come on, children!”
“Yes, I’s comin’,” murmured Trouble.
Into the auto scrambled the Curlytops and Trouble. Mrs. Martin took her place beside her husband, and, waving a farewell to the cowboy actor, they started on the trail of Mr. Portnay.
The green meadow by the white bridge was now almost deserted. The curious ones from the city of Cresco had left, and so had the moving picture people, with the exception of the actor who had solved the mystery of the disappearance of the albums.
“Well, we are having rather an exciting start of our tour,” laughed Mrs. Martin, as the auto rolled along the smooth road. “First we meet these interesting moving picture people, and then we have to chase after them. It’s very exciting.”