"Well, what about some day?" demanded the other, turning to look at him. Sandy gave a reckless little chuckle, and then went on: "Oh! I suppose you'll just laugh at me, and say that I'm foolish to let myself dream in that way; but it's another of Pat's stories that has been setting me to thinking, and wondering whether I'll ever have the chance to shoot one of those tremendous beasts." "What is it now, a tiger, a lion or an elephant?" asked Bob, scornfully. "Oh! no," replied Sandy, promptly; "nothing that can be found outside of this country and Canada. Pat has seen them many times, and even been gored by a great bull moose. You can see the scar on his cheek even now, where he had a bad wound, by which he almost bled to death." [Illustration: "'YES, YOU ARE RIGHT, SANDY, IT _IS_ A BOAT.'"] "And you mean to go away up into Canada to hunt for one of these moose, as they call them?" demanded the older brother, incredulously. "Well, hardly that," answered Sandy, with a little hesitation. "You see, Pat, he says he believes moose can be found up that other big river that flows into the Mississippi above the Ohio. And some day, it may not be for years though, I hope to see with my own eyes whether that is true." "We have taken some long journeys, but that would exceed them all," remarked Bob, thoughtfully; and Sandy chuckled as he realized that, after all, his prudent brother had determined that, if ever that trip were undertaken, he would never allow Sandy to go alone. "I feel rested already," remarked Sandy, sitting up; "and besides, I'm anxious to get back to see how things look, with mother sitting there beside a fire in our new cabin. It will feel so good to have our own roof over our heads again. Oh! Bob, what is that floating past yonder? I do declare, it looks like a boat!" The two sprang to their feet and stared. "Yes, you are right, Sandy, it is a boat; and yet, for the life of me, I fail to see a living soul in it. There is no paddle flashing in the sunlight. It seems to be deserted. Come, let us leave our meat here, and run to the shore, so we can see better." Nothing loath, Sandy trotted along at the heels of his brother, and in the course of a minute or so they had gained the bank of the river. It happened that, when Sandy first discovered the drifting object, it had caught in an eddy that kept holding it back, so that although some little time had elapsed, the object of their scrutiny was still opposite to them. To discover an empty dugout on the river was a strange event, indeed. The Armstrong boys could not remember ever having such a thing happen before in all their experience; and it was no wonder then that they stared and rubbed their eyes as if they could hardly believe what they saw. "Can it be a sly trick on the part of Indians to keep our attention fastened on that boat while they slip up behind us?" Sandy asked, turning his head to look around him at the grim forest.