CHAPTER XVII--TWO MEN
Naturally enough Cora's words were echoed aloud by some of the party.
"Lost!" cried Belle. "How do you know?"
"We're going in the wrong direction," Cora said. "Don't you know whenpersons get lost in the woods they always go around in a circle? Nearlyalways they turn to the right, as we have done. I forget theexplanation, but it has something to do with the right side of the bodybeing stronger than the left. And that's what we've done. We've wanderedaround in a circle, so of course we're lost."
"That doesn't follow at all," declared Walter.
"Why not?" challenged Cora.
"Because the path may have been shifting. We've only followed the trailthrough the woods. We haven't gone off it."
"That's so," chimed in Paul. "We're still on the path, and it must leadsomewhere."
"Perhaps it's a cow-path," suggested Bess. "It's narrow enough for one."
"Well, even a cow-path leads somewhere," said Hazel. "We'll end up at astable."
"Or a dairy," added Jack. "Some bread and milk won't go bad if we missour supper."
"Oh, we won't miss it," declared Walter. "We're bound to end upsomewhere, and even if we come out a mile or more from our camp. And ifwe see a house, we can hire a farmer to drive us over, if we're tootired to walk."
"Yes, we could do that," Cora assented. "But what plan is best to follownow? Shall we keep on the way we are going, on this path, even though itleads west and our camp is to the east? Or shall we go back until wefind a path extending in an easterly direction?"
"Whew!" whistled Jack. "That sounds like a question in my old schoolgeography. What's the answer, Cora?"
"I wish I knew," said his sister. "Let's take a vote on it."
They discussed the matter a little while, and the general opinion wasthat it was better to go on than to retreat.
"We didn't see any houses in all the distance we came," said Walter,"and it is getting so late now we may have to appeal to a farmer todrive us back. I say go ahead, even if the direction seems to be wrong.We may reach a house this way."
"I guess you're right," admitted Cora, "though it seems illogical to godeliberately away from, instead of toward, our camp."
"Perhaps it isn't called Camp Surprise for nothing," suggested Hazel.
"What do you mean?" asked her brother.
"I mean it may surprise us by appearing when and where we least expectit."
"You always were a hopeful child," laughed Paul. His sister blushed."You believed in Santa Claus long after I had detected our respectedparents sneaking down the back stairs with the presents," he continued."Hope on, foolish one."
"She may be right at that," said Jack, championing Hazel's cause. "Ifthe sun insists on appearing where we think it oughtn't to be the campmay take a notion to do the same thing. Come on! Forward!"
A little anxious, they kept on, rather tired, but not greatlydiscouraged. Youthful hearts are not made for discouragement,fortunately.
"Anything left to eat?" asked Jack after a bit, when the path seemed tobe shifting somewhat toward the east.
"A little," announced Walter, who was carrying the basket. "But youcan't have any."
"Why not?" demanded Jack, indignantly. "I have as good a right as you.Who delegated you to carry the rations?"
"Nobody else seemed to want to. Now I'm in charge of the commissarydepartment, and I'm going to put you, and myself included, on shortrations. We may have to stay out all----"
"Ahem!" interrupted Paul, giving Walter a nudge. "Do you see anythinglike a house through the trees? Cut out that talk about having to stayout all night, if that's what you were going to say," he added in aquick whisper.
"It was," Walter admitted. "But I'll cease."
"You'd better. We don't want the girls to get nervous."
"I don't see any house," Jack reported, having looked in the directionindicated by Paul.
"I thought I saw smoke, and where there's smoke there's generally ahouse or a camp," Paul said. "However, I may have been mistaken."
It was evident that he had been, but a little later, as they once moreemerged from the woods, Cora gave a joyful cry and called out:
"There it is!"
"What, our camp?" asked Belle.
"No, a house! See it?"
They looked to where her finger pointed. Undoubtedly, it was afarmhouse, located on the farther edge of the clearing in which they hadhalted. There was a vacant space about it, and several barn-likestructures. But there was a curious lack of life around the place.
"I don't believe any one lives there," said Jack.
"Don't be a pessimist," urged his sister. "Let's go and find out."
They hurried toward the house, but the nearer they approached it themore it seemed that it was not a farmhouse in the ordinary sense of theword. Though in the midst of cleared fields that must at one time havebeen part of a farm, there were no growing crops. The fields wereovergrown with weeds, there were no horses or cattle to be seen, and nochallenging dog rushed out to bark at the boys and girls.
"Still some old man or woman may live there who can put us on the rightroad," Cora suggested. "We won't give up yet."
Confirmation of Jack's idea that the house was uninhabited was given asthey went up the weed-entangled front path. And the sight of brokenwindows, a door sagging open on fractured hinges gave further aspects ofabandonment.
"Anybody home?" called Walter, knocking on the door, which swayed asthough it wanted to part company from the only hinge that held it up."Who's in here? Hello inside!"
An echo was his only answer, though as they had approached the placePaul had said he heard a noise inside.
"Nobody home," said Jack. "But this is at least encouraging. We aregetting 'warm' as they say in hunt the thimble. Let's go around back.Maybe they don't use the front door."
He started around a side path, followed by Cora, Bess and Belle. Theothers straggled along in the extreme rear. As the four in the leadturned around an ell of the house, Cora uttered a cry and pointed to twomen who were running out of the barn, not far off.
"Look, Jack!" she cried.
Jack stood still, quite taken by surprise, and then Belle added:
"Why, Cora! I declare! One of those men looks like one of the two whoran off with your car!"
"Are you sure about that, Belle?" demanded Cora's brother. "I don't wantto make a mistake."
"I only saw their backs, of course," explained Belle, quite excited."But that one on the left looks like the one who took the wheel andsteered Cora's auto away from the tea room. The coat is just the same."
"Well, it's pretty slim evidence on which to chase after two strangemen," said Jack, "but here goes. Come on, boys!" he called to Walter andPaul. "Tally-ho!"
"What's the excitement?" asked Walter, as he and Paul came runningaround the corner of the house. "Dog after you, Jack?"
"No, but we want to get after those two fellows. See 'em?"
He pointed to the fleeing men.
"Who are they?" Paul queried.
"Belle thinks they're the ones who took Cora's auto. It's a rather slimidentification, but we'll take a chance."
"Yell at 'em," suggested Paul.
"Good idea," commented Jack. "I say there--you two! Hold on a minute, wewant to talk to you!" he cried.
The two men, running away, never heeded nor looked around. They ran ontoward the woods, the boys following, while the girls stood in a groupnear the deserted house.