Guns and Snowshoes; Or, the Winter Outing of the Young Hunters Part 11

"We ought to have a name for this camp," observed Snap. "Every really first-cla.s.s camp has a name."

"This is such a very high-toned camp let us call it Hotel Millionaire," suggested Giant.

"The Lakehouse," came from Whopper.

"I've got something better than that," said Shep. "Half of these trees are birch trees, and we used birch bark on the roof. What's the matter with calling the place Birch Tree Inn?"

"That's all right!" cried Snap. "Hurrah for Birch Tree Inn!"

"Good enough," a.s.sented Whopper. "Let's run up a napkin for a flag, for here is where we feed."

"Not much!" came from Giant. "What's the matter with this?" And from an inner pocket he produced a small silken flag. "I brought this along for our camp."

"Hurrah for the stars and stripes!" came from Snap. "We'll raise the flag by all means."

This was an easy matter, for directly in front of the camp, on the lake front, grew a tall and slender sapling. From this they cut the extreme top and the branches, and then ran up a thin rope, to which they attached the flag. Floating in the breeze it looked very pretty, and taking off their caps, the members of the Gun Club saluted the national emblem. Then Whopper and Shep began to whistle the Star Spangled Banner and the others joined in.

The making ready of the camp had taken longer than they had expected, and it was nightfall before they had everything as they wished it. In addition to making the shelter weather tight and warm, they had cut a good sized pile of wood for the fire. All were tired out, and Shep admitted that his back felt pretty stiff and lame.

"I don't think we'd want to work so hard around home," said Giant frankly, and the others admitted that this was so.

They were too tired to do more than prepare an ordinary supper, but this included the beans previously put in soak and then baked and these went very well. Then they brought in some wood, and closed up the doorway of the Inn.

"No need to remain on guard," said Snap. "The fire and the sides of this shelter will keep away all wild animals."

"That's true."

During the afternoon it had begun to snow again, and this made it all the more cozy in the shelter. After supper the boys piled wood on the fire and lounged around, telling stories and talking over the prospects of getting game. All were enthusiastic, and determined not to return home until they had brought down "something worth while," as Snap expressed it.

When the lads came out in the morning, they found that the snowstorm had cleared away completely. The air was clear and cold, with scarcely any wind.

Whopper could hardly wait to get his breakfast, so anxious was he to go after game. Giant suggested that they go on their snowshoes, but Snap demurred.

"Not the right kind of snow yet," he said. "Let us skirt the lake this morning and see what we can pick up near camp."

Before they left the Inn they saw to it that every spark of the fire was extinguished, for the dreadful conflagration of the summer season had taught them a useful lesson. They also placed their matches in a tin can, so that they might remain dry and also to keep them from being lit by some prowling wild beast.

"I once heard of a place being burnt down by a fox," said Giant. "The animal knocked the match box from a shelf on which some rabbits were hanging."

"Well, I've often heard of rats setting fire to buildings by igniting matches," answered Snap.

"Millions of times," came from Whopper. "Rats sometimes do that for a regular business. They make a deal with people who want to get a fat insurance; you know, and then--Oh!" And the remarkable story came to a sudden end as Shep s.h.i.+ed a s...o...b..ll at the youth who loved to exaggerate.

They were soon on the way, Snap, Shep and Giant with their shotguns and Whopper with the rifle. They headed directly along the sh.o.r.e of Firefly Lake, intending to make the complete circuit of that sheet of ice.

They had proceeded only a short distance when Snap held up his hand.

"Rabbits," he whispered. "We are in luck!"

"Humph! I wanted to see a bear," grunted Whopper.

"Now, dolt you spoil this for us," remonstrated Snap.

"Let us fire together," whispered Giant. "I see at least a dozen."

The bunch of rabbits were close to the lake front, nibbling the bark from some young shoots growing in that vicinity. Without delay Snap, Shep and Giant brought their shotguns around in position to fire.

"I'll give the signal," said Shep. "Shep, you fire to the left. I can fire to the right, and Giant can blaze away at the middle of the bunch."

"There they go!" screamed Whopper just then, and he spoke the truth, the rabbits had discovered the hunters and were making mighty bounds to gain the thickets beyond lake sh.o.r.e.

All the boys with shotguns blazed away, and four of the rabbits dropped in their tracks. Another went limping along painfully and Snap caught it with case. But there was no time for a second shot.

"Well, that's not so bad, for a start," observed Giant, as they took up their game.

"If I hadn't yelled you'd have lost the bunch," said Whopper. "Why, I was most tempted to bring one down with the rifle."

CHAPTER IX

INTO A HOLE AND OUT

Inside of an hour the young hunters had pa.s.sed to the extreme end of the lake and were coning down on the other side.

"Here is where the Ham Spink crowd stole our boat," said Snap, indicating the spot.

"Phew! and what a time we did have on the lake afterwards," was Whopper's comment. "Say, I can't understand yet why some of us weren't drowned."

"Don't make so much noise," said Shep. "We'll never get any game if you keep on talking."

After that they went on a distance of a hundred yards in perfect silence. Then Giant came to a halt, and pointed up two trees in front of him. On the branches were half a dozen fat, gray squirrels.

Again those carrying shotguns discharged their fowling pieces, and down came three of the largest of the squirrels. Then Snap let Whopper have his gun and down came another squirrel just as he was about to enter his hole.

"Squirrels and more!" shouted Giant, rus.h.i.+ng forward.

"More?" queried Shep. "We shot only the squirrels."

"True, but you've forgotten what the squirrels hide away."

"Nuts!" exclaimed Whopper. "Just what we want, to eat in front of the camp-fire at night."

It was an easy matter to locate the storehouses of the squirrels, and from each they took a quant.i.ty of nuts. They did not take all, for they did not wish the squirrels that were still alive to starve.

"I guess we have got all the game we'll find around here," observed Shep, as they went on once more. "The banging away will make the rest of the game keep under cover."