“I’m glad you weren’t,” said Mr. Ellsworth, dryly, thinking of the harrowing hours they had spent searching for his dead body.
“Well, they said they had the picture all right and it would be a beaut’. So then the man told us to jump in the aero and he’d bring us up to Plattsburg. You see that red boat over there with Back to Nature Film Corporation on it? That’s ours—I mean, theirs. They’re going to take some pictures here if they can get permission. But we’re out of the movie business for good—aren’t we, Frank? And we’re going to ship our little old canoe down home and get the train tonight—— Hey, Everson,” he said, breaking off suddenly and turning to Garry; “why in the deuce don’t you be a good scout and come over to Warrentown and give us poor fellows a hand? Mr. Wentworth, our scoutmaster, is on the Mexican border and three of our fellows have gone out west to live—the Harris boys—maybe you know of them. Gee, a fellow like you could help us an awful lot. You could be a sort of scoutmaster till the Local Council scares one up. And you don’t live so far—going scout pace. What do you say? Will you?”
Would he!
“He will on one condition,” said Mr. Ellsworth. “You and your friend must join us on our homeward cruise. I’ve heard of the Warrentown Troop and Garry ought to be glad to get into it——”
“They ought to be glad to get him!” shouted Pee-wee.
“Sure, he’s a bargain,” put in Roy. “Now’s their chance.”
“Yes, I think myself it will be an honor both ways,” said Mr. Ellsworth, who had grown very fond of Garry. “He will bring you the Silver Cross——”
“And he’s no rag dummy,” interrupted Roy.
“Our plan,” said Mr. Ellsworth, “is to look about the camp here and set off again in the morning, for time is beginning to be precious. We shall leave Raymond at Temple Camp, in the Catskills, where he’s to stay for the balance of the summer. Then, if you like, we’ll drop you boys and Garry at Edgevale. Our larger boat and one of our members, to whom it belongs, we shall leave at Nyack. The rest of us live in Bridgeboro, New Jersey—we’re the First Bridgeboro B. S. A. Probably some of our boys will hike it home from Nyack while the rest of us cruise down into New York Bay and up our own small river.”
“It’s just a one-patrol river,” said Roy.