Part 34 (1/2)

”It'll be a ht,” warned Bill

”But we'll have a week to do it in if necessary,” said Lester ”And on't know about this place in a on't be worth knowing”

”What's the name of this place, anyway?” asked Fred

”I don't know that it has any name,” was the reply

”Suppose we christen it, then What's the estion met with unanimous approval, and all hoped that what they should find would justify the naht the boys examined curiously the five trees that had helped the cut into the bark that gave them any clue Nor were there any hollow places in any of theht

”Well,” said Fred, as they retraced their steps to the sheltered place they had picked out as a caht

But I think we can be well content to call it a day's work and let it go at that”

”Think of the difference between the e felt thisnow!” exulted Teddy ”Then we didn't know that we'd ever get within a hundred miles of it Noe may be within a hundred feet of it for all we know”

Now that the strain of the chase for the Cove was over, the boys'

appetites returned, and were all the keener because of the abstinence through the day The lads set to work at once and in less than half an hour they had a stea, savory meal prepared in the best style known to Lester and Bill, ere the acknowledged leaders in the culinary line They ate as only hungry, healthy boys can eat, with digestions that asked no odds of any ostrich Not until the last cru of absolute physical content

For an hour orfire they had erly ways and means for the hest pitch They had no definite plans except to hunt and dig until their strength gave out, but there was not one of the cautious Bill, who did not feel sure that victory ithin their grasp

They found it hard to get to sleep, but nature would not be denied and they did sleep at last, to be awakened at the first sign of dawn

They ot out their picks and spades, of which they had brought enough along for eachback They were like so nal should be given

”Suppose we divide the space within easy reach froested Fred ”Each of us can take one and go over it a foot at a ti for a needle that he had dropped If there's any opening that round's heaped up as if soo to that spot and dig”

But half thethat was at all unusual

”Nothing doing on the first try, but we can't expect to win the ga,” said Fred cheerily ”Nohat's next?”

”I tell you what,” suggested Teddy ”Perhaps these trees have so to do with it Isn't it natural to think that if they buried it in the earth at all, they'd do it somewhere on a line between the two cluht line fro that line”

”That's a good idea,” said Lester approvingly ”But instead of starting at one end and digging up every foot of the hat's the ths of ten spaces each and digging at those points?

Wouldn't thedistances of seven feet, nineteen feet, twenty-three feet, wouldn't they first think of ten, twenty, thirty and so on? It's the sih, sihed Bill ”We'll have you elected a professor at Rally Hall for the first vacancy”

But though the plan was good, it yielded no results up to the time the boys stopped work at noon to eat and rest

They were not depressed, but it was only natural that their failure should have taken soe off their first elation Into the old was not buried, but hidden They did not accept this as conclusive, but it helped somewhat to dampen their enthusiasm

”I'm hot and tired,” re in for a swiain”