At the time of the boys' journey this path would probably have been indistinguishable to any but scouts. It brought them soon to an old tumbled-down building which had never been more than a mere shack, and was now so utterly dilapidated that living in it would be quite out of the question. Some remnants of a roof remained in a few shreds of curled, rotten shingles, the foundation was intact, and the sides though bulging and full of gaping crevices were still standing. "Oh look at the house, it's all ruined like Reims Cathedral," Pee-wee shouted. This, indeed, was its only point of resemblance to Reims Cathedral. "Come on inside," he continued, leading the way, "it's a dandy place, it's all caving in." "I suppose they want about a thousand dollars a month rent for this place," said Westy Martin. "Sure," said Roy, "it has all modern improvements, free shower-baths when it rains and everything." Within, the place was dank and musty and cobwebs spread across the openings where the windows had been. Much broken glass and a couple of sash weights fastened to ends of rotten sash cord lay upon the floor. In the corner was a makeshift bed of straw, matted from age, damp and unwholesome. The place was in possession of spiders. Whole boards of the flooring had rotted, yielding like mud under the feet of the scouts. "Some place," said Connie Bennett. "Oh, here's a dime," Pee-wee shouted reaching under an open space in the flooring. "I can get a soda with that." "Here's another," said Westy. It seemed likely that some of the heroes who had made the world safe for democracy had beguiled their time playing craps before going forth to glory. Suddenly Pee-wee shouted, "Oh look at this! I bet it has something to do with a spy! I bet it has secret papers in it! _Look what I found!_" From under the edge of the rotten straw our observant young hero had pulled out an oilskin wallet. There were not many such places as this old ruin that did not yield up their treasures to Pee-wee. The veriest ash heap became a place of romance under his prying hand and inquisitive eye. This find was just one of those ordinary oilskin wallets which had held and protected many letters from mothers and sweethearts and which had been shot through and through in the trenches in France. Black spots of mildew were upon it and it had an oily, unpleasant odor. "_I found it! I found it!_" Pee-wee vociferated, as the scouts all clustered about him eager to see. "You're the greatest discoverer next to Christopher Columbus," Roy said. "Let's see what's inside it." "Didn't I say to stop here?" Pee-wee demanded. "You never thought you'd find an ice cream soda here," Roy said. "You never know where you'll find one," Pee-wee said in high excitement. "Didn't I find a dime in a sewer-pipe?" "That's a nice place to find a soda," Roy laughed. "Open the wallet and let's see what's in it." [Footnote 1: A. W. O. L.--Absent without leave.] CHAPTER VI SUNDAY THE FOURTEENTH