PINE Cone Camp seemed strangely deserted when Miss Ward, Ardeth, Judy and Virginia arrived there at nine o’clock in the station wagon.

Seeking the tent which had been assigned to the Beaver Patrol unit, the new arrivals found it quite deserted.

“Where is everyone?” Ardeth asked in perplexity. “Surely not on a hike so early?”

Swimming suits hung on the clothes lines, attesting to the fact that the campers already had enjoyed an early morning plunge in Morning Glory Lake.

“Look!” Judy suddenly cried, pointing toward a cleared area some distance away at the edge of the forest. “Everyone is over there! Let’s see what’s doing.”

Hurrying over to the group, the girls could not at first discern what it was that had drawn the interest of the entire camp.

Gradually, however, they edged deeper into the assembly and saw that the other Scouts were taking turns peering into a large wooden box, covered with a wire screen. “What in the world?” Virginia speculated.

Just then Beverly, Kathleen and Betty caught sight of their patrol mates in the crowd, and joined them. Judy asked the cause of the excitement.

“Oh, you girls have missed all the fun, being stuck down there at Calico Cottage,” Kathleen told her. “We’ve started a treasure box.”

“What is that?”

“Look in it and you’ll see!”

The other Scouts moved aside to make way for Judy and the newcomers. Gazing into the box, they were amazed to see all manner of strange animals and insects.

“It’s a nature treasure chest!” Kathleen informed her friends. “We already have a mouse, a spider, and three varieties of turtles. Each patrol is supposed to contribute an animal, bird or unusual insect.”

“Does Beaver Patrol have an entry?” Judy asked.

“Not yet. Beverly very nearly caught a little chipmunk, but he eluded her. We’re depending upon you girls to help us.”

“We will,” Ardeth promised. “Just give us time to get our thoughts adjusted, and we’ll come up with a prize winner.”

“There are to be no duplications,” Kathleen warned. “All the patrols are working on it, so we’ll have to get busy.”

“How about a little garter snake?” suggested Ardeth thoughtfully. “If Beaver Patrol goes for that, you’ll have to produce the snake,” Kathleen replied with a shudder. “No snakes for me!”

“I vote we put Ardeth in charge of finding a patrol entry for the treasure box,” proposed Betty Bache, who had joined the other girls. “She’ll get a big boot out of the job.”

“I’ll be glad to take it over,” Ardeth offered, for she thoroughly enjoyed the study of nature and had no fear of animals or insects.

“Good!” Kathleen approved. “That takes a load off my mind.”

The blowing of a bugle summoned all the campers to assembly. Miss Lubell waited until all the Scouts had gathered, and then signalled for silence. It was evident that she had a most important announcement.

“Girls,” she began, “we had planned a hike to Indian Falls this morning, but it will be necessary to make a change.”

A chorus of groans met this announcement, for the girls had looked forward to the outing and outdoor cookery.

“However, we have other interesting plans,” the director went on quickly. “The Civil Air Patrol has notified me that it can make a plane available for the first-aid and exploration excursion I mentioned earlier. But today is the only time the Service will be able to cooperate. Accordingly, we’ve decided to go ahead. All patrols desiring to compete, should sign up at once. Your counselors will provide full details.”

The girls were informed that at ten o’clock all competing patrols would hike a quarter of a mile to Flat Top, an area relatively level and clear of trees.

According to the plan, a Civil Air Patrol plane would fly over the section to drop a message which would give Scouts notification of a fake plane crash. The general location of the accident likewise would be given. Starting with equal information, the units were expected to separate and compete in trying to be the first to reach the designated locality.

Once there, the Scouts were to give first aid treatment to the imaginary victims, and proceed exactly as if the accident were a real one. Three girls from the Garden City Patrol had volunteered to act as the injured passengers of the plane crash. Notes would be pinned to their clothing, stating the nature of their supposed injuries.

Kathleen, Judy, Betty and Beverly teamed up as one exploring unit, representing Beaver Patrol. Ardeth and Virginia decided not to enter the competition, preferring to remain behind to search for a suitable wild pet to add to the treasure box collection.

Shortly after ten o’clock, the representatives of seven patrols were encamped on the table top, anxiously scanning the sky for a glimpse of the expected plane. All the girls had dressed sensibly in heavy shirts, slacks and stout climbing boots. Faces and necks were protected from the sun, but even so, the rays bore fiercely down upon their backs as they sat impatiently waiting.

“Won’t that plane ever come?” Beverly fretted, wiping perspiration from her neck. “We’ve been here an age now!”

“Only ten minutes,” Kathleen corrected.

“Well, it seems a year. Maybe there’s been a mix-up about plans,” Beverly went on. “I wish I’d stayed in camp. This trip will be hard and tiring.”

“Good experience though,” Judy said, continuing to scan the azure, almost cloudless sky. “It will be a test of skill to find our way to the right place, administer first aid, make improvised litters and carry our victims to help.”

“I hope we’re the first to get there,” Kathleen declared. “So far, Beaver Patrol hasn’t shown up too well in the camp competitions. That’s because all of the girls haven’t been together, especially in the evening. This is our chance.”

Judy suddenly sprang to her feet. She had been the first in the group to sight the Civil Air Patrol plane winging in from the east.

“Here it comes!” she cried. “They’ll be dropping a message in a moment. Watch sharp!”

All of the patrols now were alert and ready. The Scouts who had equipped themselves with field glasses, trained them on the approaching plane.

Its wings flashing in the sunlight, the ship came in low enough for the girls to see the forms of the pilot and his passenger. Three times the plane circled the tableland. Then on the fourth trip over, the message tube was dropped.

It missed the open table top by twenty feet, landing amid the trees and brush just below where the Beaver Patrol girls had taken their stand.

“Come on,” Judy shouted, starting off at a run. “I saw where it dropped!”

There was a mad scramble to see who would be the first to reach the message tube. According to the rules of the competition, the directions, once read, could not be kept, but must be left behind for other patrols.

Plunging through the underbrush, Judy was the first to seize upon the shining metal tube. As she opened it to remove the message which had been folded within, Beverly, Kathleen and Betty crowded close to read the directions.

“Plane crash at 9:48 a.m. on Hermit’s Ridge,” Kathleen discerned the writing. “Three passengers in need of help.”

“Hermit’s Ridge!” Beverly explained. “Where is that?”

Judy already was consulting her map of the region.

“You might know it’s a difficult climb from here!” she exclaimed. “We have several choices of a route. We can take the short, hard climb—no trail. That way, it looks to be approximately a mile and a half from here.”

“What are the other choices?” Kathleen questioned.

“We can follow the main highway three quarters of the way, and then make a short climb on Lone Pine Trail. Our third choice is to descend from here to Rocky Point Path and keep on it all the way.”

“I’m for taking the shortest route even if it will mean a harder climb,” Beverly said at once. “Let’s go!”

“Hold on,” Judy directed, continuing to study the map. “I’m in favor of the road myself. It may be longer, but it’s a lot faster, easier walking most of the way.”

“Furthermore, we may be able to catch a ride part of the distance,” Kathleen added. “That would be within the rules. The patrol wins that gets first to Hermit’s Ridge and accomplishes its first aid mission.”

“I’m in favor of the road too,” Betty Bache asserted, siding with Kathleen and Judy. “The various choice of routes is a test of judgment as well as endurance.”

Leaving the message for the other patrols to read, the four girls quickly descended rugged terrain to the paved highway.

“I think we’re making a mistake,” Beverly insisted, shifting her first-aid kit to a more comfortable carrying position. “Not many cars pass on the road at this time of day. The distance is much longer.”

“We can dog-trot part of it,” Judy said, beginning to lope along. “Anyway, we’re well out ahead of the others!”

“I can see another group starting out,” Beverly reported looking back. “They chose the short, hard way.”

“Since we’re out ahead, that might be their only chance to beat us,” Betty reasoned. “I still think we chose the better, faster route.”

Alternately, the girls dog-trotted twenty steps and then walked the same number. In that manner, they did not tire so easily or lose breath.

The road wound on through the forest in dips and sharp ascents. They kept going, ignoring the heat of the sun and their own increasing weariness.

“I’m glad we didn’t take the hard climb,” Judy commented as she and Kathleen paused a moment to wait for Betty and Beverly to catch up. “The going will be tough enough before we reach Hermit’s Ridge.”

At the next sharp bend in the highway, the Scouts were able to look down at the table top some distance below. Not a single patrol seemed to have followed them.

“I knew it!” Beverly exclaimed. “All the others have taken the shorter routes!”

“Let them,” Judy replied cheerfully. “It hasn’t been proven yet that our judgment was poor. We’ve been making fast time.”

“We haven’t caught that ride yet,” Beverly reminded her. “Not a single car has passed us on the road. And we’ve met only one truck.”

Resting only momentarily, the four went on, doggedly determined to be the first to reach Hermit’s Ridge. Soon they lost all view of their competitors who had been swallowed up by the dense forest foliage.

“Say, I think I hear a truck coming now!” Betty presently exclaimed. She paused to cock an attentive ear. “Wow! It’s coming fast, burning up the road!”

“We’ll never flag down that driver!” Judy exclaimed, moving hastily off the pavement.

The heavy freight carrier roared past the girls, its massive tires screaming as it went around a bend.

“What does that driver think this road is—a speedway?” Beverly demanded. “Why, it’s dangerous—”

The four hikers halted abruptly, frozen by the fearful sound of screeching brakes. They could not see beyond the next sharp curve, but the sickening thud was unmistakable. The speeding truck had missed its turn and had skidded off the road!