"N-n-not any, Max," persisted Toby, truculently; "she was there p-p-plain as the nose on Steve's face here, when I threw that third f-f-frog ashore; but when I looked again, nixey, she was g-g-gone!"
"We'll have to go over there with you, and investigate this thing," Max announced with a frown. "If there's anybody hiding up in these woods and trying to play mean tricks on us we want to know it right away. We're too far off for any of the town boys to be trying to bother us; and I don't think any country fellow would take the chances of being caught and pounded. It must be some sort of animal!"
"That's what I thought it was, Max!" Toby declared, not deeming it worth while to explain how at first he had imagined one of them might be playing a joke on him.
"Ought we to leave the camp unprotected!" Bandy-legs asked.
"I'll fasten the tent flap, so nothing can get in, and it'll be all right," Max told him; which intelligence pleased the other very much indeed, for he imagined that they might hit upon him to stay behind, and Bandy-legs had as much desire to be in the hunt as the next one.
Accordingly the four boys started on a run toward the distant pond. Toby led the van, because he had already been over the ground twice, and ought to know where he was going better than any one else. Still, it was Max who on several occasions managed to get Toby to veer a little to the right. He was keeping his eyes on the tracks made by Toby in approaching the camp; and knew just when the latter deviated from his former course, as one will naturally lean to the right unless guarding against this tendency.
Even after they arrived at the water they were compelled to continue on for quite a distance, because the frog hunter had covered considerable ground while keeping up his sport.
"There's your fishing pole leaning up against that tree, I think, Toby," remarked Max, finally.
"Yes, that's so," replied the other. "I c-c-chucked it there before I lit out, so's to have a m-m-mark to see when I came b-b-back again."
"And is that the place where you saw your basket last?" asked Steve.