"What's in the wind now?" demanded Maurice, already pouring out the amber liquid into the brace of tin cups that served them just as well as the dainty aluminum ones sported by some canoeists they had once known in their Kentucky home town. "Well, you see, our wood isn't apt to hold out all day; and besides, there's another night coming for us in this place. One of us must go ashore later on and do some chopping." "That'll be me, then, to start with. I'd like to get a few of the kinks out of my arms. Here, squat down, and begin work with that mess. Plenty more where that came from, and no bill to settle." In this manner did the early morning meal progress, for the boys, having survived the perils of the night, were feeling quite like themselves again. True to his promise, about nine o'clock as near as they could judge, Maurice climbed down into the dinghy, taking with him their only ax. Thad had even been careful enough to fasten this with a piece of rope-end to the single thwart in the dump boat. "If you should have a turn-over the blooming thing don't know enough to swim, like you do; and to lose it just now would put us in a fine old pickle," he explained, when Maurice joked him about the solicitude he was showing. "That's it," remarked the occupant of the dinghy, as he balanced himself carefully in sitting down; "it might be hard to buy another ax down along here, and one as good as this daisy. Now, when I say the word, give me a dandy push, will you?" "All right," and Thad braced himself for the exertion. "I suppose it will be harder coming out again, with a load of wood. I'm glad you thought of that bully old scheme of dragging some of it aboard with a rope," said Maurice, taking up the paddle. "I'll pay out the painter as you go along," remarked the one who was to remain on board the larger craft. "Push!" Having been given a fine start he plied his blade, and rapidly the little boat drew near the adjacent shore. No accident befell Maurice, and he was able to land safely; after which he drew his small craft well up on the beach, before climbing the abrupt bank just beyond, by means of protruding roots of trees. Thad listened until he heard the steady blows of the ax; and then he went back to some work he had been doing at the time. It might have been about half an hour later that he suddenly caught what seemed to be an angry bark from the shore; and as the sound appeared to come directly from that quarter where he remembered Maurice had been at work, he immediately became quite concerned. The sound came again almost immediately, and seemed even more savage than before. Following it he caught the voice of his pard raised in anger. "Get out, you rascal! Hi! there, what d'ye mean jumping at me like that! Keep off, or I'll give you a dig with the ax. D'ye hear, you big fool?"