"That's another thing we almost ruined," grinned Frank, as the wheel just grazed the hind leg of the cur. "Dogs are the curse of tourists, anyway. If I had my way, they'd all be shot." Amy screamed and clapped her hand to her ears. "Frank, how can you say such things?" she cried, adding plaintively, "I never saw such people, anyway. You can't talk for five minutes without saying something about people being shot." "But we were speaking of animals," said Frank politely. "Same thing," murmured Mollie. "Speak for yourself, please," he retorted amiably, swerving the car at a perilous angle about a turn in the road. "Say, this is pretty country along here, isn't it?" They all agreed that it was, and for a few minutes sat in silent enjoyment of it. While the Hostess House was in process of repair some friendly families living in the vicinity had opened their doors wide to the girls and the other visitors at the Hostess House. The fire had done a great deal of damage, but the house had been amply insured, and the work of rebuilding was proceeding as fast as possible. Meanwhile, the girls were going on with their work as usual, though eagerly looking forward to the time when they should be installed in their proper quarters again. The fire had temporarily put the subject of Will and his mysterious doings out of their minds, but during the last few days their wonder and curiosity had returned. To-day he had consented to accompany them, and during the early part of the ride had seemed in hilarious spirits. Now, for the last fifteen minutes or so, he had appeared gloomy and preoccupied, but as they neared the spot where they had decided to eat their lunch, his spirits seemed to revive somewhat, and he became talkative again. "Say, I'm hungry," he announced, more like the old Will than he had been for weeks. "What are you girls going to give us, anyway?" "Chicken," announced Betty, "and honey and biscuits, and peach cake and jelly, and hot coffee from the thermos bottle, some ham sandwiches and deviled eggs----" "Stop her," pleaded Roy piteously. "Stop her, some one, before I forget myself and decamp with the hamper----" "You'd be forgetting us too, if you tried it," said Frank grimly. "Do you suppose with three ravenous wolves at your back you'd have a chance of getting away with any of that kind of stuff?" "Gee, it's awful the appetite camp life gives you," said Roy mournfully. "I wrote home the other day and told the folks that if I ate like a wolf before, I eat like a flock of 'em, now." "Whoever heard of a flock of wolves?" asked Mollie scornfully. "You must have been thinking of geese." "No," retorted Roy soberly. "I wasn't speaking of you." "Strike one for our side," chuckled Allen, while the others laughed at Mollie's look of surprise. "That was a good one, Roy--right from the shoulder." "Now I _know_ I'm going home," said Mollie forlornly. "Everybody's agin me."