“I would suggest, girls, that we return to our own camp. It may not be there by this time.”
Upon reaching their own camp they were much relieved to find everything as it should be. Nothing had been disturbed. But, ere they had finished their breakfast, three farmers came striding in to know if anything had been seen of the Gipsies.
“They left early this morning,” answered Miss Elting. “Why?”
“Wal, nothing only one of them traded off on me a ring-boned, spavined old hoss, which he said was sound. I’ll catch them when they come this way again.”
“I think I understand why the Gipsies took such an early departure,” said Harriet after the men had gone. “But I do not believe Sybarina had anything to do with such dishonest dealing.”
The day’s route was laid out after breakfast. The boys undoubtedly had gone on, for nothing was to be seen of their campfire. Miss Elting rather thought they would see no more of the Tramp Club after the fortune-telling that Harriet had given the chief the night before. But with the route that Sybarina had laid out for the girls, the guardian believed they could make some time and gain the advantage over the boys.
Camp was hurriedly struck after breakfast. Their route that day lay across lots and their camping place was to be on the edge of a forest easily accessible to Jane with her motor car. Using government maps, as they were doing, they were able to locate every little rise of ground, every hollow and almost every clump of bushes along their way. These government maps Miss Elting had purchased at a comparatively small cost, as any one may do. They are very useful to one who is taking a tramp through the country, and the Meadow-Brook Girls found them so.
Jane accompanied her companions out to the highway and followed along behind them in her car for the first mile. Then their ways parted, the tramping girls to climb a hill, Crazy Jane to follow the highway on to the point where she too was to leave the road and make camp for them. But there was always a long wait for Jane, so the girl occupied the time in driving to the nearest village to make a number of purchases at the stores.
CHAPTER XXII—A COMBIETTA CONCERT
Her shopping done Jane lost no time in cranking up her car, hopped in and with a wave of her hand swung down the road and went honking through the village on the way to the place chosen for the Meadow-Brook Girls’ camp for that night. Jane had avoided all questions about herself and her party, except to say that they were camping. The girl did not propose to leave a trail for the Tramp Club if she could avoid it. As the girls were nearing the end of their journey it behooved them to cloak their movements with secrecy if they hoped to outwit their young rivals and win the race, which they were determined to do.