“You’re to hunt in pairs,” he instructed the Cubs. “The treasure chest has been hidden somewhere within a quarter mile of the Cave. The first pair to find it should signal by giving the Cub whistle. Then we’ll all join on the beach for a feed before going home.”
Dan and Brad drew identical numbers which meant they were to hunt together. Eagerly they scanned their slip of paper on which appeared the scrambled sentence:
“Dinf eht glgyascr koa.”
“The first two words are ‘find the—,’” Dan discerned at a glance. “But what are those other two mind-teasers?”
“The last one is oak,” Brad contributed. “‘Find the oak!’ But what kind of oak?”
“Scraggly oak!” Dan deciphered the final word. “Come on, Brad!”
With a shout, the two boys were off, leaving the other Cubs to puzzle out their various clues. Clattering down the steps, the pair raced across the smooth sand.
The light of a pale moon plainly silhouetted a stunted oak tree against the dark sky. Making a bee line for it, the boys searched diligently for another clue.
“Here it is!” Dan suddenly shouted.
At the base of the tree he had found a small cardboard box. Inside was another scrambled sentence which directed the boys to search for a large piece of driftwood.