“This is, in the main, a thick settled country, lads,” said Feeney. “But right about here for a few miles there’s hardly anybody but us really livin’ here.”
“It may be that we will take up your offer,” remarked Phil. “But you must not let us stop here unless we pay you a fair price. If those men come back you’ll hardly have room for more.”
“Don’t worry about that. We’ll make room. Them men, I don’t know what they be up to. They won’t be back from Midlandville for a day or two, I guess.”
With no definite promise to return the boys left, going along the road they had come with Nan, and on the way Phil busied himself in studying the pencilled map on the old envelope which had been given to Paul by Coster.
There was a square in the center marked “Tavern,” doubtless the place the boys had seen that day through the thick timber growth. A straight line ran off in one direction to a point marked on the border of the map “south,” followed by the note: “From Tavern half a mile.” Close to this was a rude skeleton, with a black spot close by marked “treasure rock.” The skeleton of a tree had a huge split through the trunk, in which were the words “big split hemlock.”
On the opposite edge of the map marked “north” was added “to railroad, half-mile.” East and west through the center, lengthwise of the envelope, ran an irregular line close by the tavern, which was indicated by the word “highway.”
The whole thing was simple and seemingly plain, and all they apparently had to do was to take a due south course from this building shown as the ghost tavern, for half a mile. Right near where they had paused when Nan was showing glimpses of the old building, they turned the car into a grove of young second-growth spruces and halted. They were now hidden from view from the road, that was clear.
“Can we leave this car here safely?” queried Billy dubiously.
“I doubt if it is safe,” replied Dave, naturally cautious where the Big Six was concerned. “Billy, let’s you and me flip a nickel to see who stays with the car. I ain’t anxious to go that half mile; I am anxious to know the car’ll be here when we come back.”
After some discussion there was a toss up and Dave won. Billy looked vexed.