"They may be green campers, but they're the whitest green campers I ever heard of," I said.
"You said it," Bert shouted. "They told Skinny to stay right there with them and never mind about the fellows over at camp. They told him he could have the tent and the flag and the canoe instead of the cross, and to just stay and make himself at home. When they started for the races down below Catskill, they left him sitting in the canoe—happy— with a capital H.
"After that you know what happened. Skinny and the canoe and the whole shebang went pell-mell through the valley. Lucky the twins weren't there. When I got to Catskill with Skinny, who should we meet but the twins and I told them everything that happened—how you and I rescued Skinny and all that."
I said, "How on earth did you get to Catskill with him?"
"Well, what do you think those twins did? You have three guesses. They bought a tent in Catskill and a lot of canned stuff. One of them telegraphed his father for more stuff—and money, I guess. And we're camping out in a nice little grove right near the Hudson. Good fishing and a row across whenever you want an ice cream soda. Ought to appeal to you, hey? You notice I say we? That's us. Camp McCord is the name of the place and—"
"But how about rescuing Skinny?" I asked him; "how did you get him to
Catskill? How about—"
"Shut up!" he said. "Camp McCord is the name of the place and there
Skinny's going to stay till the Elk Patrol of the Bridgeboro Troop
marches down in a body and hands him the gold cross. Those are the Gold
Dust Twins' orders."
"But Bert," I said, "that isn't the way they present the cross. You have to have a special meeting and the scoutmaster—"
"Scoutmaster be hanged," he said; "the Elk Patrol is going to march down to Camp McCord and hand the gold cross to Skinny. We're just waiting for a letter. Scout Bennett is going to do the handing. We haven't made up our minds yet whether we'll have him kneel down or not."