had had enough. Come, what do you say?” And the old hunter held up his clinched fists.
“I – I don’t want to fight.”
“That means that you back down. All right. After this you let my girl alone – and let these lads alone, too. If you don’t, you’ll hear from me in a way you won’t like.”
There was an awkward pause, and Dan Marcy wiped the blood from his face, and shoved off on his ice boat.
“We’ll see about this some other time,” he called out when at a safe distance. “I shan’t forget it, mind that!”
“He’s a bully if there ever was one,” observed Harry.
“And a coward into the bargain,” put in Joel Runnell. “Watch out for him, or he may play you foul.”
“I certainly shall watch him after this,” said Joe.
“We’re glad you came along,” came from Fred. “We want to ask you something about hunting. I’ve got a new double-barreled shotgun and so has Joe, and we want to go out somewhere and try for big game.”
“And I’ve got a new camera, and I want to get some pictures of live game,” added Harry.
“You can’t get any big game around Lakeport. If you want anything worth while you’ll have to go out for several days or a week.”
“We’re willing to go out as long as our folks will let us,” explained Harry. “We haven’t said much about it yet, for we wanted to see you.”
“We thought you might like to take us out, or rather go with us,” came from Joe. “If you’d go with us we’d pay the expenses of the trip, and give you your full share of whatever game we managed to bring down.”
At this Joel Runnell’s gray eyes twinkled. He loved boys, and knew the lads before him very well. All the powder and shot he used came from Mr. Rush’s hardware establishment, and his flour from the Westmore mill, and he was always given his own time in which to pay for the articles. Moreover, he was not the one to forget the service Joe had rendered his daughter.
“I’ll go out with you willingly,” he said. “I’ll show you all the big game I can, and what you bring down shall be yours.”
“Hurrah! It’s settled!” cried Fred, throwing up his cap. “We’ll have just the best time that ever was!”
“Where do you want to go to?”
“I was thinking of camping out up on Pine Island,” answered Harry. “But of course we have got to see my father about it first.”
“Pine Island is a nice place. There is an old lodge up there – put up five years ago by some hunting men from Boston. It’s a little out of repair, but we could fix it up, and then use that as a base of supplies.”
“Just the thing!” said Joe, enthusiastically. “If we liked it would you stay out with us for two or three weeks?”
“To be sure. There is a little game on the island, and we could easily skate to shore when we wished. When do you want to go?”
“As soon as we get permission,” said Harry. “We’ll find out about it to-morrow.”
After that the boys could talk of nothing but the proposed outing and what they hoped to bring down in the way of game. Harry wanted pictures worse than he wanted to bring down game; nevertheless, he said he would take along a gun and a pistol. “Then I can snapshot my bear first, and shoot him afterward,” he said.
It was not until the day after Christmas that the Westmore lads got a chance to speak to their parents about what was uppermost in their minds. At first Mrs. Westmore was inclined to demur, but her husband said the outing might do their sons some good.
“And they couldn’t go out with a better fellow than Joel Runnell,” added Mr. Westmore. “They’ll be as safe with him as they would be with me.”
As soon as it was settled that they were really to go, Harry rushed over to Fred’s house. Fred had already received permission to go, and now all they had to settle on was the time for their departure and what was to be taken along. Christmas had fallen on Thursday, and it was decided to leave home on the following Monday morning, weather permitting. As to the stores to be taken along, that was to be left largely to the judgment of Joel Runnell and to Mr. Westmore, who also knew a good bit about hunting and life in camp.
CHAPTER VI
ORGANIZING THE CLUB
“Boys, we’ve got to organize a club,” said Joe, as they were talking the matter over, and getting one thing and another ready for the trip.
“Just the thing!” shouted Fred. “Let us organize by all means.”
“What shall we call ourselves?” queried Harry. “The Outdoor Trio.”
“Or the Forest Wanderers,” came from Joe.
“Bosh!” interrupted Fred. “We’re going out with guns. You’ve got to put a gun in the name.”
“How will Young Gunners do?”
“Gun Boys of Lakeport.”
“Young Hunters of the Lake.”
“Bull’s-eye Boys.”
“Yes, but if we can’t make any bull’s-eyes, what then?”
There was a general hubbub and then a momentary silence.
“I’ve got it,” said Joe. “Let us call ourselves The Gun Club. That’s a neat name.”
“Hurrah for the Lakeport Gun Club!” shouted Fred. “Three cheers and a tiger! Sis-boom-ah! Who stole the cheese?”
There was a general laugh, in the midst of which Laura Westmore came up.
“Gracious sake! what a noise you’re making! What is it all about?”
“We’ve just organized the Gun Club of Lakeport,” answered Harry.
“Indeed. And who is president, who is vice president, who is secretary, and who is treasurer?”
At this the three lads looked glum for a moment. Then Joe made a profound bow to his sister.
“Madam, we scarcely need so many officers,” he said, sweetly. “We’ll elect a leader and a treasurer, and that will be sufficient. You can be the secretary – to write up our minutes after we get home and tell you what happened.”
“I move we make Joe leader,” said Fred.
“Second the commotion,” responded Harry, gravely. “’Tis put and carried instanter. Mr. Joseph Westmore is elected to the high and dignified office of president, etc., of the Gun Club of Lakeport. The president will kindly deliver his speech of acceptance at the schoolhouse during next summer’s vacation. He can treat with doughnuts – ”
“Just as soon as his sister consents to bake them for him,” finished Fred.
At this Laura burst out laughing. “I’ll treat to doughnuts on one condition,” she said.
“Condition granted,” cried Fred. “What is it?”
“That you make me an honorary member of the club.”
“Put and carried, madam, put and carried before you mentioned it. That makes you the secretary sure.”
And Laura accepted the position, and the boys got their doughnuts ere the meeting broke up.
The news soon spread that the Gun Club of Lakeport had been organized. Many boys who possessed guns asked if they could join, and half a dozen were taken in. But of these none could go on the outing as planned, although they said they would try to join the others just as soon as they could get away.
“I’ll tell you one thing I am going to take along,” said Harry. “That is a pair of snowshoes.”
“Right you are,” returned Fred. “Never had so much fun in my life as when I