CHAPTER XVII
A NOISE AT NIGHT
When Mr. Brown, Bunny, Sue and Bunker Blue came back from their littlefishing trip, they saw Mother Brown walking about the camp, in and outamong the tents, looking here and there.
"Have you lost something, Mother?" asked Bunny.
"Well, yes, I have--sort of," she said, smiling. "I've lost a pie!"
"Oh, a pie!" cried Sue. "Did you drop it, Mother, and did it fall down acrack in the board walk, like my penny did once?"
"No!" laughed Mrs. Brown. "It wasn't that way."
Then she told of having made four pies, setting them on the table tocool while she went to the spring for a pail of water.
"And when I came back, a whole pie was gone!" she said.
"Well, we certainly didn't take it, for we weren't here," said DaddyBrown. "And you were all alone in camp, Mother?"
"Yes, even Uncle Tad was gone."
"Oh, maybe _he_ came back and took it!" exclaimed Bunny.
"No, he wouldn't do that," said his mother. "Some animal, perhaps a bigmuskrat, like the one Splash tried to catch, came up out of the lake andcarried away my pie. I was just looking to see if I could find any marksof the rat's paws in the soft ground, when you came along. But Icouldn't see any."
"I don't believe it was a rat, or any other animal, that took your pie,"said Mr. Brown, as he, too, looked carefully on the ground around thetable where the pie had been placed. The three other pies were there,but the fourth one was gone.
"There isn't a sign of any four-legged animal having been here," Mr.Brown went on. "I think it was some animal with only two legs who tookthe pie."
"Oh, you mean a--a man!" cried Mother Brown.
Daddy Brown nodded his head for yes.
"Do you mean a tramp?" asked Bunker Blue.
"Well, yes, it might have been a tramp, though we haven't seen anyaround here since we've been in camp. However, if a pie is all they tookwe don't need to worry."
"Perhaps the poor man was hungry," said Mrs. Brown. "I'm sure I hope heenjoys my pie."
"He couldn't help liking it," said Bunny Brown. "Your pies are always sogood, Mother!"
"I'm glad to hear you say that," exclaimed Mrs. Brown. "Well, we haveenough for the next two days, anyhow, and I'll bake again to-morrow."
"Splash didn't take the pie," said Sue, "'cause he was with us in theboat."
"Then it must have been the tramp," Mrs. Brown said. "Never mind, wewon't worry any more about it. Did you have a nice time?"
Then they told about their little fishing trip. When Uncle Tad came backfrom his walk in the woods, he, too, had to be told of the missing pie.Uncle Tad shook his head.
"We'll have to lock up everything around our camp if tramps are going tocome in and take our pies, and the other good things Mother Brownmakes," he said with a smile. "Or else one of us will always have tostay here to keep watch."
"I wish we had Tom Vine back," said Bunny. "I wonder where he is?"
Of course no one knew, and Mr. Brown began to think that, after all, Tomhad done just as Mr. Trimble had said--had run away.
The next day, after breakfast, Sue, who was changing the dress of one ofher dolls, saw brother Bunny walking along the path that led toward thespring. Bunny carried a small wooden box.
"What are you going to do, Bunny?" she asked him. "Get a box full ofwater?"
"Nope. This box won't hold water. It's got holes in."
"But what are you going to do?"
"I'm going to make a trap to catch a fox."
"Oh, Bunny! Can I help you?"
"Yes. Come on. But you must keep awful still, 'cause foxes are easyscared."
"I will, Bunny. And may I bring my doll with me? I can put her to sleepon some soft dried leaves when you want me to help you."
"Yes, you may bring one doll," said Bunny. "But don't bring one of thekind that cries when you punch it in the stomach, or it might make anoise and scare the fox. I'm going to catch one and train him to dotricks."
"How are you going to catch him, Bunny?"
"In this box. Come on, I'll show you."
"I guess I won't bring any of my dolls," said Sue, after thinking aboutit for a minute. "A fox might bite her."
"Yes, that will be better," said the little boy.
So, carrying the box, and some other things, which Sue helped him with,Bunny and his sister went a little way into the wood.
"Don't go too far!" their mother called after them.
"We won't!" they promised. Since coming to Camp Rest-a-While Bunny andSue had not been lost, and they did not now want to have that trouble ifthey could help it.
"Are there any foxes in here?" asked Sue, looking around as she andBunny came near the spring.
"Hush! Don't speak so loud," whispered her brother. "You might scare'em."
"Is they any here?" asked Sue, this time in a very soft whisper.
"I guess so," answered Bunny. "They must come to the spring to get adrink of water, same as we do. I'm going to put my trap near thespring."
There was a large flat stone, near the place where the water for thecamp was found. On this stone Bunny put the box, bottom side up. It hadno cover to it. One edge of the box Bunny held up by putting a stickunder it, and to the stick he tied a long string.
"Is that a trap?" asked Sue.
"Yep," Bunny answered. "Now I'm going to put something under the boxthat foxes like. They'll crawl under to eat it, and when they're thereI'll pull the string. That will make the stick come out and the box willfall down, and cover up the fox so it can't get away."
"Oh, that'll be fine!" cried Sue. "But what're you going to give thefoxes to eat, Bunny?"
"I'll show you," said the little fellow. From his pocket he took somebits of bread, a few crumbs of dried cake, a little piece of pie wrappedin paper, and half an apple.
"There!" Bunny exclaimed as he put these things under the raised-up box."Foxes ought to like all that. Now we'll hide back here in the bushes,Sue, and I'll have hold of the long string. As soon as we see a fox, orany other animal, go under the box, I'll pull away the little stick, andwe'll catch him!"
"All right," said Sue. So, the trap having been set, Bunny and Sue hidthemselves in the hushes to wait. But for a long time no fox, or anyother animal, came along. Bunny and Sue grew tired of sitting in thebushes and keeping quiet. They could only whisper, and this was not muchfun.
"I--I guess I'll go home," said Sue, after a bit.
"Oh, no, stay with me!" Bunny begged. "Maybe I'll catch a fox prettysoon. Oh, look, Sue!" he cried, this time aloud, he was so excited."There's a bird going into the box. I'll catch the bird, to show you howmy trap works."
"You won't hurt the bird; will you, Bunny?" begged Sue.
"No, I won't hurt it a bit," Bunny replied.
A sparrow was hopping along the flat stone, toward the upraised box,under which were the bread and cake crumbs, and other good things thatbirds like. Closer and closer to the box went the bird, and finally itwas all the way under, picking up the crumbs.
"Now watch me catch him!" cried Bunny.
He pulled the string, out came the stick, down came the box, and thebird was caught.
"I've got him! I've got him!" cried Bunny. "That's the way I'd catch afox!"
He and Sue ran to the box trap. Bunny lifted it up and out flew thebird, not at all hurt, and only a little frightened. Bunny raised thebox up again, and held it there with the stick. Then he and Sue wentback among the bushes to wait; all ready to pull the string again.
But though Bunny's trap would catch a sparrow, there did not seem to beanything else he could catch. No foxes or other animals came to get adrink, and later Bunny's father explained to him that nearly all wildanimals wait until after dark to get water, for fear of being caught.
After a while Bunny and Sue grew tired of waiting in the bushes.
"I'll just leave the trap here," said Bunny, "and maybe a fox will go inand knock the stick down himself. Then he'll be caught."
"But a fox could easy upset the box," said Sue.
"Maybe he could," agreed Bunny. "I'll put a stone on top of it." And hedid.
Bunny and Sue reached camp in time for dinner. In the afternoon theywent with their mother to pick huckleberries, and helped fill two pails.
"I'll make pies of these berries," said Mother Brown.
"And I hope nobody takes any of the pie," said Bunny. "'Cause I likehuckleberry pie myself an awful lot."
That evening Daddy Brown built a campfire, and Bunny and Sue, withBunker Blue, sat about it roasting marshmallows.
"I wish Tom Vine was here to help eat them," said Sue.
"So do I," agreed Bunny.
But Tom Vine was not there. Where was he? No one at Camp Rest-a-Whilecould tell.
Bunny Brown did not sleep well that night. Perhaps he had eaten too manymarshmallow candies. At any rate, he awoke soon after he went to bed. Hewas wishing he had a drink of water, and he was thinking whether hewould best get up for it himself, or awaken his father, when the littlefellow heard a noise outside the tent. It was a noise as if someone werewalking around. At first Bunny thought it was Splash, but, looking overin the corner of the sleeping-tent, Bunny saw his dog there. Splash,too, had heard the noise, for he was getting up and growling deep in histhroat.
Then, all at once, came a loud bang, as if someone had knocked down fiveor six tin pans.