'By Jingo, Chippy!' murmured Dick; 'we shall have to get you the Wolf badge.'
'Not me,' grunted Chippy; 'yer must do a lot more than that to get the "Wolf" name, I should fancy. But wot about this work? Wot about Albert?'
He turned to business again, knitting his brows and staring hard at the track their man had left.
'The thing gets queerer still, if it is the man Albert,' said Dick. 'Why should he be here, all this distance from Locking?'
'Six mile good,' put in the Raven.
'Yes,' went on Dick, 'full six miles, and then taking off his boots and stealing about like a thief or an escaped convict, as we thought.'
'Foller 'im up,' said Chippy shortly.
'Right,' said Dick, 'we'll see this out;' and the scouts began once more to work along the trail.
For more than half a mile they followed quite easily. There were many bare patches among the grass, and the heavy shower which had fallen at midday proved a good friend to them, the damp soil giving many excellent impressions of the heavy steps of the man whom they pursued.
The boys had now gained a very lonely part of the heath, for the fugitive appeared to be making for the most secluded corner of the vast expanse. They had been steadily working away from the part where the patrols had been searching, and the distance between them and the rendezvous at the railway-station increased with every stride.