"Who's afraid?" said Rob, at last, and boldly pushed open the door. He stooped and entered, and the others followed him. They found themselves now in the interior of a low hovel, perhaps fifteen feet across, and rudely circular in form. A wall of roughly laid timbers extended all around, perhaps three feet from the ground, and from these eaves to a conical point there rose the rough beams of the roof, which was covered heavily with dirt, grass, and moss. A hole was left in the middle of the roof for the smoke to escape. In the centre lay the white ashes of many fires, on opposite sides of which stood two half-burned sticks which had supported kettles. The plan of the barabbara, in fact, is precisely similar to that of the tepee of the Plains Indians, except that it is not movable and is lower and even less roomy than a good tepee. "Nobody home!" said Jesse, looking about the dark interior, where the smoke had blackened all the wood, and where only a little light came through the door and the smoke-hole, there being no window at all. "Nor has there been for a long time," said Rob. "These bits of fish are all dried up. The ashes have been wet with rain for a long time. See, back there under the eaves there are a lot of _klipsies_. That's what they call their fox traps. Yes, this no doubt is the camp of a trapper or two who live here in the winter-time." "But where do they go in the summer?" asked John. "Probably to some of their own villages. It's almost too late now to trap foxes for their furs, so the chances are there will be no one here until next winter." "Why, then," said Jesse, his eyes brightening, "we could use this for our house, couldn't we?" "Precisely," said Rob. "That's just what we will do." "That'll be fine," said John, his eyes brighter than they had been for many an hour. "Now if we only had something for a good meal." "Here's an old tin lard-pail they no doubt used for a water-pail," said Rob, kicking about in the heavy covering of grass which lay on the floor. "Now, I tell you, I'll go get some water; you clean the hut, Jess; and, John, you go to the boat and bring over the box of crackers and tomatoes." With light hearts the others complied, each glad that now at least they were free from the dangers of the sea. "I believe we're going to be all right here, John," said Jesse, as the latter started toward the boat. "Surely we will," said John. "Only I know I want a drink pretty badly." When they met at the door of the hut a few moments later Rob offered them his kettle of water, from which he had not yet drunk. John took a deep draught and spat it out with a wry face. "Salt!" he exclaimed. "That's awful!" Rob looked at him in surprise.