There was no water at hand, so I took the little pail in which the lunch had been brought, and set off down the mountain in quest of some. Descending into a little hollow, I found a spring issuing from beneath a large rock. It was very cold water; the spring was shallow, yet with the dipper, I was able slowly to dip up a three quart pail nearly full. It was a delicate task to carry it up the steep mountain side, without spilling it. When at length I rejoined the party, at the foot of the crag, Tom and Willis were coming up from another direction. "Hullo, Ad!" exclaimed Tom. "Seen any game?" I thought from the way he spoke that he and Willis had seen something in that line. "No," said Addison, "we have been looking for something different. Have you seen any?" "Yes, sir-ee!" said Tom. "What was it?" inquired Kate. "_Deer_," said Tom with a knowing look at the rest of us boys. "You don't say so!" exclaimed Addison. "Really _deer_! How snug did you get to a _deer_?" "Snug enough to put our hands on him!" said Willis, with a chuckle. "What, have you killed a _deer_?" asked Addison, incredulously. "Really and truly we have!" said Tom, with a ring of exultation in his voice. "'Twasn't a very big one, though," he added. "No," said Willis, "it was only a yearling _deer_. We came upon him behind a tree root. He only ran a few steps and then turned round to snuff at us. Tom let him have a load of heavy shot and knocked him stiff as a mitten." "We shot two hedgehogs, too, up there at the balm o' Gilead hill," said Tom. "Did you skin that _deer_?" Addison inquired, laughing. "Yes; and we've got ten or twelve pounds of the meat, wrapped up in the skin." "But where is the skin?" I asked. "Oh, we left the skin, with the meat wrapped up in it, back here a few steps by a rock," replied Thomas. "I thought," he added with a knowing glance at us boys, "that I wouldn't bring such a thing as a green hide right up here where you had your luncheon spread out." "Thomas," said Kate, looking sharply at him, "you are telling some kind of crooked story." "Willis," said Thomas carelessly, "go get that _deer_ hide." Willis hesitated an instant, then went off through the bushes and in a few moments returned with a gory skin, rolled up, with the _hair_ side carefully turned in. "Want to examine it, Kate?" said he, holding it towards her. "No, no," said Catherine and Theodora both in a breath. "Do take the dreadful thing away! But there's something wrong about your story all the same, Tom," Kate added with a searching look at him. "I can tell when you are fibbing just as well as need be; and I shall find out what you boys are looking so funny at each other for, yet." "You are a very knowing girl, Kate," said Tom. "But let's have some luncheon and change the subject." "Not till you go down to the spring and wash your hands," said Catherine, "after handling that dreadful thing." Peace having been restored by the washing of hands, luncheon was eaten.