So, after a while nobody seemed to know just where the boat upset. The scouts who were there that summer knew. But after that it was a kind of a—you know—a legend, sort of. I guess the trustees were glad of that because scouts couldn’t go grappling any more.
It was all nice and forgotten, sort of, when all of a sudden last summer, Harry Donnelle came to see us at Temple Camp. He’s a big fellow and he lives near me and he’s especial friends with my sister, only she says I have to cross this part out, but I won’t do it. That fellow was in the war, and he just didn’t get killed as many as four times. He’s been in South Africa, too. His middle name is adventure. Gee whiz, I hope he marries my sister.
Anyway he heard about that accident because birds come and whisper things to him, that’s what he says. Believe me, I think they shout at him. Anyway he found out. So one dark, gloomy afternoon he took three of us up to that old camp, and he made a couple of other fellows row around in a boat down on the lake.
They built a big fire up at the old camp in the mountain and then the fellows in the boat noticed just where the reflection hit the water. Then they made a kind of a diagram on a map of the lake that showed just exactly where the boat upset. First they tried to drive a pole in, but the lake was too deep. So then they made notes on the map and dotted lines and everything that showed that the spot was in a line exactly southeast of the willow tree, I don’t know how far.
Gee whiz, there were going to be big doings next day—but that was the end of it. And I guess the trustees were glad of it. That very same night away went Harry Donnelle to Hudson Bay—he got a telegram, that’s all I know. He forgot all about the buried treasure. Mr. Temple said that was just like him. All he wanted was the fun of the thing. I bet the trustees were glad when he went away. He sent me a post card from a trading station in Hudson Bay. It had a picture of trappers on it and everything and he didn’t say anything about this fine diagram. When he came back he brought my father a bull moose’s head.
I never saw that diagram, and I should worry about it, that’s what I said. Because anyway the money didn’t belong to me. I always heard it was in a big portfolio with a lot of other maps and things in Administration Shack. I guess they kept it as a kind of a curiosity.
Anyway nobody ever said anything about it. The buried treasure was dead and buried and we should worry about it because, believe me, there’s plenty to do at Temple Camp these days without going fishing with grappling irons. I’d rather be jollying Pee-wee than doing that.
CHAPTER XIX
WE MEET A STRANGER
I just thought I’d tell you about it so you’ll know. But I wasn’t strolling around with Brent as long as it took to tell it. In a couple of minutes we were back.
He said, “Whatever you do don’t start that stuff with Hervey around. First thing you know he’ll be getting himself in trouble. He’s just about due for a new mix-up with the management.”