The fellow stared at seeing a quartette of elegant motor-cycles come dashing up to the loggers’ winter quarters.

“Hello!  Jock.  We’re going into the woods to spend a week or two; wagon following after with all the stuff.  Where do you suppose we could run across old Jesse Wilcox these days; and is he starting to do any trapping?” asked Jerry.

The lumber-camp cook grinned a little as he took in the new and striking hunting apparel which Bluff Masters sported so airily; doubtless he immediately concluded that the whole party must be a set of greenhorns, incapable of knowing enough to come in out of the wet when it rained.

“Oh! yes, he’s to work, they tells me.  Leastwise I heerd ole Bud Rabig complainin’ thet he never did hev a show wen Jesse he was around, ’cause the annermiles they jest seem ter hanker arter Jesse’s traps.  Folks do say he hes a kinder scent he uses ter jest coax ’em like,” replied the cook, not above hoping these sons of Centerville rich people might think it worth while to toss him a generous tip for any information he gave them.

“We are heading for that old camp by the twin hemlocks, where that spring bubbles up, winter and summer.  One of us will be back here to convoy old Toby in with the chuck wagon, and get Erastus over the farmers’ station, where he can catch a late train back.  Just tell them to wait here, if they come before I arrive, and here’s some tobacco money for your trouble, Jock.”

The cook nimbly caught the flying coin, and grinned his thanks.

“Oh!  I’ll tell ’em all right, don’t yer be ’fraid, Jerry.  Say, they was a party o’ three as started in ter camp jest whar ye say, about a hull hour ago.  Boys from Centerville, too, but a tough-lookin’ bunch.  They tried to do me for a breakfast, but I come out with a gun, and they shooed.  Reckon that Pet Peters was wun o’ the gang.”

“Whew!”

Jerry looked at the others in some dismay.

“What’ll we do, fellows; that’s Andy’s right bower.  He must have started the three of them up here last night, meaning to have them squat by the spring first, and keep us off.  And I did want to camp just there above all places!  It’s been on my mind all night,” exclaimed Jerry, disconsolately.

“An hour, you said, Jock?” asked Frank, always quick to decide knotty points.

“I reckons about that; but them fellers was dog-tired, an’ I don’t think they’s agoin’ ter git up to thet spring in a hurry,” replied the cook, still squeezing the half dollar, as if to “make it squeal,” as Bluff remarked later.

“Perhaps we can get there before they do.  Suppose we make a try, Jerry?”

For answer Jerry started his machine on a run, jumped aboard, and was quickly dashing away at rather a reckless pace, considering the rough “tote” road he had to follow.

The others were close at his heels, and altogether the rattling reports of the four exhausts quite excited the lumber-camp cook, who stood there in the doorway gaping, as long as the motor-cycles remained in sight.