He looked inquiringly at the stout man. "Should think you'd find it lonesome and dull up here."
The other knocked the ashes out of his pipe.
"Sometimes, boy," he responded, slowly, "but I don't git bothered much by people that have questions to ask. Now I suppose you're as curious as most people, and are a-wonderin' who the old codger is."
He paused, and refilled his pipe.
"Well, I'm Neil Prescott, at nobody's service."
The boys grinned, and introduced themselves. Then Sam began to tell Mr. Prescott how they had seen the light of his fire the night before.
"Well, what of it?" asked the stout man, gruffly.
"Nothing," said Sam, somewhat surprised. "Only I thought——"
"A power of things, no doubt, an' all of 'em wrong."
"You didn't need a blaze like that to cook by, did you?"