"I'll get my little pocket electric light," said Bert. He had one, and it gave a good light. He went to his room for it.
Flossie and Freddie did not know what to do. That their lovely party should be spoiled by the missing ice cream seemed too bad to be true.
"Mamma, if we can't find this ice cream, can't we buy more?" Flossie wanted to know "The girls just want some—so bad!"
"And the boys, too," added Freddie.
"Oh, I guess we'll manage to get some for you, if we can't find this," answered Mrs. Bobbsey. "We may have to wait a little while for it, though."
"Well, we'll have a look," said Bert, as he came down with his little electric lamp. Some of his own particular chums, including Charley Mason, followed him out to the back porch. Dinah was in her kitchen, looking behind tables, under the sink, in the pantry and all about, hoping that, somehow or other, the freezer might have gotten in there. But it was not to be found.
"Well, here's where it stood," said Bert, as he looked at the round, wet mark on the porch where the freezer had set. He flashed his torch on it, and then cried out:
"And look, boys, here are some spots of water that must have leaked from the wooden tub that holds the tin freezer. See, the water has dripped down on each step! This is the way they carried off our ice cream."
The others could see a trail of water drops leading from the stoop down the steps and along the stone walk at the side of the Bobbsey house.
"Now we can follow and see just where they took our cream!" cried
Bert. "This is the way Indians used to trail the white settlers."