"Course he is," muttered Andy; "and this isn't the first time Rob has made grown men sit up and take notice. But there, he's hit a snarl of some kind!"
"Well, you take my word for it, Rob will unravel it in double-quick order!" the stout boy assured him.
"Silence!" hissed Merritt; and this time he apparently "squelched" Tubby, for the latter had nothing more to say just then; but as he had freed his mind, that was a matter of small consequence.
Rob was skirmishing around as though he might have lost the trail owing to the hardness of the ground. He had held up a hand in order to warn the three officers not to stumble over him, and then with his torch held low, proceeded to examine his surroundings.
They saw him rise up and flash his light to the right, then to the left, and finally straight ahead. Apparently he was making up his mind from the conformation of things which way the two fleeing men might have chosen as they pushed forward in the semi-darkness. In other words, Rob was applying an old principle, trying to "put himself in their place" so that he could decide what their natural action under the circumstances would have been.
He seemed to settle quickly which way had looked the most promising to the anxious eyes of two sorely pressed fellows, one of whom could hardly drag himself along, for he immediately turned toward the left, and again flashed his torch on the ground.
Almost immediately afterward the three scouts in the rear caught a queer little sound, not unlike the faint squawk of an eaglet in its nest at feeding time.
"There, did you hear that, fellers?" demanded Tubby excitedly, though he did manage to keep his voice whittled down to a hoarse whisper.
"It was Rob giving us the sign of the Eagles that told he had found what he was looking for; sure it was!" observed Andy.
"That's all right, but you boys let up on your talking. Understand?" was the warning given by the corporal.