“Good!” cried that girl. “It will be just the thing. Are you sure you have enough crackers, Cora? If not we could stop at the store on the point and get some.”
“Oh, there are more than are good for you,” was the answer.
Cora changed the course of the boat to send the craft over toward a pretty little wooded cove where the girls had often gone ashore for luncheon. They always carried in the boat an alcohol stove, with the necessary ingredients for tea.
Soon the Chelton was beached at a place where the small waves would do her no damage, and the girls were preparing luncheon.
They carried their own fresh water with them, not depending on finding a spring. Condensed milk, sugar and some tins of sweet crackers completed the meal, which was served on the grass for a table, paper napkins adding to the luxury of the occasion.
The picnic place was on a spit of land that jutted out into Crystal Bay. It could be approached from either side, and on one side there was some dense shrubbery that hid the water from sight.
It was when Cora and her chums were in the midst of their impromptu luncheon that they heard a boat grate on the beach that was hidden from view by the bushes.
“Someone is coming!” exclaimed Bess.
“Maybe it’s the boys,” remarked Belle.
“It’s about time they followed us,” suggested Lottie. “They don’t give us a moment’s peace.”