“Call that a map!” he shouted. “Why, say, Roy, that’s the diagram of a
nightmare! Come and look, Dick.”
“You wait until I fix it up,” answered Roy, unruffled, thrusting it in
his pocket to Dick’s disappointment. “It’s got to be drawn over again
with ink.”
“Huh!” scoffed Chub. “The ink will turn pale when it sees that!”
They threw themselves down on the ground in the shade of the whispering
birches, and Snip, who had wandered afield some moments before, came
trotting into sight, his tongue hanging out, and subsided, very warm
and happy, at Harry’s feet.
“He’s been at it again,” said Chub regretfully.
“At what?” Harry demanded.
“Killing bears. We won’t have any left on the island if you don’t stop
him, Harry.”
“You’re very silly,” said Harry.
“Oh, very well,” was the response. “I’m not going to stay here and be
insulted. Me for the water.” With a glance of contempt our hero turned
upon his heel and strode haughtily away.
Chub tried turning on his heel, but as there was a root in the way he
made rather a failure of it. But he had better success with the rest
of the performance, for the look of haughtiness which he assumed sent
the others into howls of laughter. Dick and Roy followed him into the
tent and Harry and Snip wandered away along Inner Beach in search of
blueberries. Presently there was a chorus of yells that sent the hair
along the middle of Snip’s back pointing upward like the quills of
the fretful porcupine and the three boys came tearing along the beach
in their bathing-suits. As they came abreast of Harry and Snip Chub
shouted:
“Last one in is a fool!”
There was a mighty thrashing of the water as the trio floundered
through the first few yards and then three splashes almost simultaneous
followed. In a moment they were all up, laughing and gasping, and
calling to Harry to settle the question of who the fool was.
“Why,” said Harry, “you all went in at the same time, so you’re all
three fools!”
“No sooner said than stung,” cried Chub. “Harry, if you’ll come nearer
I’ll tell you a secret.”
“Yes, and throw water on me,” answered Harry shrewdly. “No thanks; I’m
very comfortable where I am.”
[Illustration: “They followed the edge of the water”]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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