Benny met me outside the village, and he looked scared when he saw that I was alone. "Have you seen Bill Wilson?" he shouted, as soon as he could make me hear. "I missed him somewhere," I called. "He must have come back by the east road. Why? What's the matter?" He already was hurrying home so fast that I hardly could catch up with him. As he ran he shouted back over his shoulder something that set my heart to beating and made me forget how tired I was. "Bill hasn't come back." CHAPTER VII "BILL HASN'T COME BACK" ALL it meant to say that Bill hadn't come back did not come over me until I found myself hurrying after Benny down Park Street. Bill had left home on the morning of the second day before, intending to camp out one night and come back the next day. Two nights had passed and he was still away. What had become of him? I hurried along faster and faster, thinking of all the things that might have happened. Mr. Norton and Bill's folks reached the house almost as soon as I did. I don't know how they found out that I had come back. Bill's folks were nearly crazy about him. The first night out, they expected him to be away, of course, and so did not worry much. When dinner time came the next day and he hadn't showed up, they began to wonder what was keeping him, for the other boys who had started at the same time were home. When night came again and he still was away, they began to grow very anxious and sent for Mr. Norton. "I can't understand it," said he. "I supposed that he had come home long ago, and have been too busy to find out. The other three are back, I understand." "Yes, they came back in time for dinner." "I am surprised that William is still out, but do not feel alarmed, Mrs. Wilson. Something has detained him, but it cannot be anything serious. Both roads to North Adams are well traveled and the farmhouses are near together. As likely as not he stopped to help somebody out of a difficulty and it has taken longer than he expected. One of our laws, you know, says that a Scout's duty is to be useful and to do somebody a good turn every day. I'll run over and talk with Wallace. They started together and may have met when they crossed over from one road to the other." Mr. Norton was more anxious than he pretended. Wallie said that he hadn't seen him and hadn't heard him, which was worse, for Bill usually could be heard a long way off. Wallie said that he had called to him every few rods when crossing over to the west road beyond North Adams but hadn't heard a thing. It would have been easy for them to miss each other, unless they happened to take the same crossroad.