"And likewise have come to inquire if the birds and beasts who once dwelt here have all been shot?" added Kirk Talbot. "I'll explain the idea:
"When hunters brave as these
Go to shooting 'midst the trees,
Will the birdlets fly away,
Or will they boldly laugh—and stay!"
"You all seem to be poet laureates," said Dave Brandon.
"What has been done for a camp?" broke in Nat. "Is it near here? Say, where did that strange looking pile of underbrush come from?"
The Nimrods had discovered the shelter.
"It's a fine one," said Ted Pollock, admiringly.
"That it is," assented Nat, suddenly reverting to a serious mood. A trace of sarcasm seemed to lurk in his tone, however, and the boys, at first, thought he was merely trying to deceive them. But in a moment he caught Bob Somers' eye, and, nodding to him in his most pleasant manner, continued: "We have come with the olive branch of peace. I hope you bear us no ill will, and if any damage has been caused, please accept our apologies."