“Because the path may have been shifting. We’ve only followed the trail through the woods. We haven’t gone off it.”
“That’s so,” chimed in Paul. “We’re still on the path, and it must lead somewhere.”
“Perhaps it’s a cow-path,” suggested Bess. “It’s narrow enough for one.”
“Well, even a cow-path leads somewhere,” said Hazel. “We’ll end up at a stable.”
“Or a dairy,” added Jack. “Some bread and milk won’t go bad if we miss our supper.”
“Oh, we won’t miss it,” declared Walter. “We’re bound to end up somewhere, and even if we come out a mile or more from our camp. And if we see a house, we can hire a farmer to drive us over, if we’re too tired to walk.”
“Yes, we could do that,” Cora assented. “But what plan is best to follow now? Shall we keep on the way we are going, on this path, even though it leads west and our camp is to the east? Or shall we go back until we find a path extending in an easterly direction?”
“Whew!” whistled Jack. “That sounds like a question in my old school geography. What’s the answer, Cora?”
“I wish I knew,” said his sister. “Let’s take a vote on it.”
They discussed the matter a little while, and the general opinion was that it was better to go on than to retreat.