"Wait a minute!" called Mother Bunker. "If you two men are going tramp hunting, that means I shall be left alone here with the children. And if any of the tramps get away, and come around where we are——"
"That's so!" exclaimed Daddy Bunker. "I didn't think of that. What shall we do?" he asked Captain Ben. "It will take two of us to round up the tramps, and yet——"
Just then the whistle of a boat sounded down near the beach where the Bunker party had landed in the Spray. Captain Ben glanced down, and as he did so a smile and look of relief came over his face.
"This will make it easy," he said. "There's Captain Blake and some boys I know. They were in the war with me. Some of them can stay with Cousin Amy and the children, and the rest can come with us and help catch the tramps."
"I wish I'd been a soldier boy, then I could help catch tramps, too!" exclaimed Russ.
"Hello, Captain Ben! What are you doing here?" called Captain Blake, who had brought a group of boys from a warship to the island for a day's outing.
"We're having a picnic," replied Captain Ben. "And you're just in time, boys!" and he greeted the jolly sailor lads.
"Just in time for lunch, do you mean?" asked one rosy-cheeked lad, as he danced around on the sand after leaping from the motor boat.
"Yes, I guess we have some lunch left, if the six little Bunkers didn't eat it all up," went on Captain Ben.
"Six little Bunkers!" repeated Captain Blake. "That sounds like a troupe of circus performers."