As the boys emerged from the clump of pines Bob, who was in the lead, suddenly stopped.

“There’s somebody in the shed,” he whispered. “See the light?”

“Now wouldn’t that jar you,” Jack said in a disgusted tone.

“Who do you suppose it can be?” Rex whispered.

“Like’s not the cook is going to sleep there,” Bob replied.

“Well, what’s the next move?” Jack asked.

“We’ll have to wait and see,” Bob whispered. “I guess it’s his move.”

“But what can we do if he does sleep there?” Rex asked anxiously.

“Well,” Bob replied, “those fellows usually sleep as though they were dead and I guess we can get them without waking him up. We’ll have a try at it anyhow.”

For all of a half hour they waited while the light continued to burn, but at last it went out and the boys strained their ears to catch the sound of any one leaving the shed. But no sound came to them and they were forced to conclude that the cook or someone else was to occupy the place for the night.

“Punk luck,” Bob whispered. “But we’ve got to have those peaveys, cook or no cook.”

“Spoken like a general,” Jack declared as he nudged Rex.

“We’ll give him a few minutes to get to sleep,” Bob said. “Usually it takes those fellows just about one second to be dead to the world, but this one might be an exception.”

“Better say he’d be sure to be,” Jack laughed.

Slowly the minutes passed until, when Rex was certain they had waited not less than an hour, Bob said as he glanced at his watch:

“It’s been ten minutes. He ought to be asleep by this time if he’s ever going to be. You stay here and I’ll see how the land lays.”

He quickly covered the few yards to the shed, and, a minute later, was crouching beneath the little window at the rear. At first he could hear no sound.

“He might have gone back to the camp after all,” he thought.

But a moment later the faint sound of heavy breathing reached his sharp ears.

“He’s there all right and sound asleep,” he thought as he hastened back to where he had left the others.

“All right,” he announced. “He’s in slumberland all right.”

“What if there’s more than one there and the other one is awake?” Rex asked.

“That’s a risk we’ll have to take, I guess,” and Bob shrugged his shoulders.

Still another disappointment awaited them for, when they came around to the front of the shed, they found to their surprise that the door was fastened.

“That’s a funny thing,” Jack whispered. “They don’t usually even have locks on the doors up here.”

“There’s no lock on this one either, unless it’s a bolt on the inside,” Bob said. “More than likely he’s got something propped against it.”

“Well, it don’t make much difference either way,” Jack whispered. “It’s fastened and we want to get in, and the main question is, how are we going to do it.”

“The only way is the little window at the back. Think you can squeeze through it? It’s open.”

“I’ll try anything once,” Jack replied as he started back.

The window was all of six feet from the ground, as the shed at the back rested on piles driven into the soil. It was small and was not glassed in, a piece of burlap serving to keep out the snow and rain. But this was now drawn aside.

“Great guns! A good-sized cat couldn’t get through that hole,” Rex declared as Bob flashed his light upward.

“S-hh,” Bob whispered. “Keep quiet a minute. If there should be anyone awake in there he’ll see that flash.”

But although they waited several minutes, all was still and only the sound of the sleeper inside as he breathed came to their ears.

“I guess it’s all right,” Bob whispered. “When it comes to getting through a small hole Jack’s more than half cat,” he explained to Rex, who nevertheless shook his head doubtfully.

Meanwhile Jack had been taking off his boots.

“Here goes for a try at it,” he declared as he slipped the flashlight into his pocket.

The next moment he was standing on Bob’s shoulders. For an instant he waited listening. Then, letting himself down until he was on his knees on Bob’s shoulders, he cautiously threw the rays of the torch into the room. It was littered with all sorts of paraphernalia pertaining to the driving of logs. Over in one of the farther corners was a big pile of peaveys, but, although the breathing of the sleeper came plainly to his ears, no sign of him could he see.

“That’s funny,” he thought as he cast the light about.

Then his heart sank for, as he looked downward, he saw a cot bed directly beneath the window and on it was stretched a powerfully built man.

“So near and yet so far,” he groaned as he cast another glance at the peaveys.

The next moment he had jumped to the ground.

“What’s wrong,” Bob and Rex whispered at the same time.

“Everything, I guess,” Jack explained. “That guy’s got his bed right under the window, that’s all.”

“Whew! I should say that was enough,” Rex gasped.

“I guess that puts the window out of commission then,” Bob said.

“It sure does,” Jack agreed, as he began to pull on his boots. “Even Rex’s cat couldn’t get in that window without waking him up and he’s a giant.”

“What are we going to do?” Rex asked.

“I have another plan which may work and may not,” Jack began. “You see he’s got a piece of two by four propped against the door. Now I noticed that there’s a pretty big crack beneath it and if we can get hold of a lath or something of the sort we may be able to push it down. Of course it may wake him up when it falls but, as Bob said a while ago, these fellows usually sleep so sound that a cannon wouldn’t disturb them. Anyhow it’s the only way I can think of. But I’m open to suggestions.”

“I think your idea is good,” Bob whispered. “I don’t believe there’s any other way and if he wakes up, we can beat it.”

“All right then. You wait here and I’ll sneak out back of the camp and see if I can find a piece of stick thin enough to go under the door,” and Jack was off before they had a chance to speak.

He was back in less than five minutes with a lath, which he declared would be just the thing. And so it proved for it slipped through the crack beneath the door with considerable space to spare.

“Easy now,” Bob whispered as Jack moved the lath back and forth.

“There it is,” he declared as he began to push.

A loud bang from within soon announced his success in knocking down the prop.

“If that don’t wake him it’s a wonder,” he whispered.

A sound as of a bed creaking reached their ears.

“I guess it woke him all right,” Jack thought as he held his breath.

But, although the sound had evidently disturbed the sleeper it was soon plain that it had failed to arouse him to full wakefulness, for in another moment the unmistakable sound of snoring assured them that he was still asleep.

“Luck seems to be with us at last,” Bob whispered, as he began to remove his boots.

“Steady there,” Jack laid his hand on his brother’s arm. “I’m going into get them.”

“Not much you—” Bob began, but Jack interrupted him.

“I know just where they are and I know the lay of the land and you don’t so it’s up to me. Now don’t be foolish.”

Bob could not help seeing the force of Jack’s argument and after one more plea, he gave in.

“I’ll have ’em out in two shakes of a dog’s tail,” he promised as he took off his boots which he had not laced up.

And he was as good as his word. The sleeper stirred and muttered something just as the boy reached the pile of peaveys, and he held his breath. But the man did not wake and in another minute Jack was outside again with three of the peaveys.

“Good boy,” Bob declared.

“Gee, but I thought he was going to wake up once though,” Jack said as he again pulled on his boots.

The snow had been melting rapidly for the past two days and now there was only about a foot of it in the woods while many bare places were to be seen in the open. But the snow, though not deep was soft and slushy and it was hard walking. But so pleased were they that they had been successful in getting the peaveys, that they trudged along in high spirits.

“It’s only a little ways down to the rips and I know right where that big pine is,” Bob assured them.

Fortunately their boots were nearly enough waterproof so that their feet remained dry in spite of the wet snow.

“This isn’t exactly like walking on a pavement, is it?” Rex panted.

“Are we going too fast for you?” Bob asked.

“No. I g-guess not,” he replied gamely. “But if you don’t mind I’d like to rest a bit. Got a bit of a pain in my side.”

“Sure we’ll stop. There’s no hurry. Those fellows can’t be through yet.”

“We’re over half way there,” Bob assured him as he leaned against a tree.

Rex quickly recovered his wind and after a short rest they started off again. It was very dark and they did not dare to use the flash light for fear that it might be seen by the men.

“There they are,” Jack suddenly announced as he, being in the lead, came out onto a knoll from where he could see down the river.

The light of two lanterns was visible out on the river but a considerable distance away.

“Yes, I guess that’s they all right,” Bob agreed.

As they started off again they at once plunged into thick woods which grew close to the river’s edge. Their progress was very slow as they had to exercise great care to avoid bumping into the trees.

“This dark is thick enough to cut,” Jack said after he had stumbled over a hidden stump and had barely escaped falling headlong into the snow.

It took them nearly another hour before they reached the point opposite to where they could still see the two lights out on the water.

“Wonder how long we’ve got to wait now,” Jack growled as he sat down on a log close to the edge of the river.

“Goodness knows,” Bob replied. “But it seems as though they ought to be about through by this time. It’s nearly eleven.”

“I’ll bet I could build a pier clear across the river in the time they’ve been at that job,” Jack declared.

“I guess they’re earning their money all right,” Rex said as he sat down beside Jack.

“Yes, and the joke is that they won’t get it, not if we succeed,” Bob laughed.

“Serve ’em right,” Jack declared. “A man who goes in for dirty work deserves to get stung.”

“I only wish that Ben himself was out there working in that cold water,” Bob said.

“It’s lucky for them that the weather turned warm,” Rex declared. “It seems almost like a night in June.”

“But, believe me, it hasn’t had time to warm that water up much,” Jack assured him. “And to think,” he chuckled, “that they’re doing it all for nothing.”

“Here they come,” Bob said a few minutes later. “See the lanterns. I guess they’re through at last and now we must get back in the woods and hide until they get a good distance off. If they should see us now it would spoil everything.”

It was so dark that finding a place where there would be no danger of being seen by the men was, as Jack declared, “the easiest thing they could do.” All that was necessary was to go back about twenty feet into the woods and keep perfectly quiet. And this they did.

“Dar, I tink dat pier hold dem log, oui.” Bob nudged Rex as the sound of the man’s voice came to his ears.

“But I’ll bet they don’t just the same,” he whispered.

“Dees water heem bon cold,” another of the Frenchmen declared, as he shivered only a few feet from where they were crouched.

“Well, we geet good pay, oui,” still another broke in. “Come on, we hit trail ver’ queek, geet warm.”

Their voices gradually grew fainter and soon they were out of hearing altogether.

“I’ll bet that water was cold,” Jack laughed as he straightened up and stretched his arms.

“Don’t be in a hurry,” Bob cautioned. “We want to give them plenty of time to get far enough away so that they won’t see us as we’ll probably have to use the flash, and remember, they can’t travel very fast in this snow.”

So they waited for nearly an hour in spite of Jack’s grumbling.

“Better be careful than sorry,” Bob told him when he urged haste. “We’ve got all night.”

But finally even careful Bob was convinced that it would be safe to proceed with their undertaking, and using the flash more freely than they had heretofore, they made their way down to the river’s edge. Here, as they expected, they discovered a square-nosed scow about twelve feet long and nearly half that wide.

“Do you think that there’s any danger of getting tipped over in that boat?” Rex asked in a tone which he tried to make sound anxious.

“Well, if you sit carefully in the exact center and do not move or wink except with both eyes at the same time I hardly think that there is a great deal of danger,” Jack replied in a tone full of sarcasm, but a chuckle just behind him quickly made him wonder if perhaps Rex had fooled him instead of the joke being the other way around.

“My, but you bit beautifully,” Bob said with a slight laugh.

“I guess I did,” Jack acknowledged somewhat sheepishly. “I’ll hand it to you, Rex. I thought you were in earnest. But come on. Let’s get this racing cutter afloat and get busy. Believe me, it’s going to be some job holding her against this current.”

“And it’s apt to take us some time to find the pile of rocks seeing that they are under water and I don’t imagine they made it very large,” Bob said as he put his shoulder to the scow and pushed.

The Frenchmen had pulled the heavy boat well up on the shore and it took the united strength of the three to get her back in the water.

“The Titanic has nothing on this craft when it comes to dead weight,” Jack panted as the boat finally slid off the bank.

“Where’s the oars?” he demanded as he jumped aboard.

“Don’t believe there are any,” Bob replied as he threw the rays about the scow.

“Funny they’d take them away.”

“Perhaps they didn’t have any, but pushed her with their peaveys,” Rex suggested.

“Afraid they wouldn’t be long enough,” Bob said still throwing the rays of his light about.

“Steady there,” Jack cried. “There’s a couple of long poles up on the shore and seeing that they looked wet, I deduce that they have quite recently been in the water.”

“Great, Sherlock,” Bob laughed.

“Well, whether my deductions are right or wrong, one thing is certain and that is that those poles are going to be in the water in about three seconds,” Jack declared as he sprang from the boat to return a moment later carrying the two long poles.

“They used them all right,” Bob declared, and a moment later the scow was out in the stream.

“As near as I can tell,” Bob said, “we want to go straight out.”

“No trouble to want to do a thing,” Jack panted a moment later as the full strength of the swift current caught the boat, “but sometimes it’s a whole lot of trouble to get it, and I guess this is going to be one of them.”

A few feet out from the shore the water was too deep for Rex to reach bottom with his peavey and as there were but two of the poles, he was obliged to sit in idleness while Bob and Jack fought, with all their strength, to keep the unwieldy craft from being swept down stream.

“You’re holding your own,” he encouraged them.

“That’s what the corporal said,” Jack laughed. “Tell you the story later,” he panted.

As they neared the middle of the river the water began to shoal rapidly.

“This is the shallow place Pat was talking about, anyhow,” Bob declared, “I guess your peavey’ll reach now, Rex,” he added, and Rex sprang to his feet eager to do his part.

It seemed to him almost like looking for the proverbial needle in the haystack to try to find a pile of rocks out there in the darkness, but he had learned to have great confidence in his friends’ ability to accomplish things and he had no doubt but that the “needle” would be found sooner or later.

For some time they pushed the craft about, this way and that without success. It was, as Jack declared, the hardest kind of hard work, and before long all three, and especially Rex, were nearly at the limit of their strength.

“Throw over the drag and we’ll rest awhile,” Bob panted.

At one end of the scow was a heavy rock to which was attached a rope, and Jack, who was standing at that end, was quick to obey the order. The boat swung around and, for a moment drifted slowly down stream.

“Don’t believe she’ll hold,” Jack said. But, even as he spoke, the rock caught and the drifting stopped.

“Whew!” Bob puffed as he sank down on one of the cross boards. “I wouldn’t want to keep that up for more than three or four hours at a stretch.”

“Make it minutes and you’ll be right where I live,” Rex laughed as he followed suit.

“Let me know when you children get rested and we’ll begin again,” Jack jeered as he too sat down at the end of the scow.

Neither Bob or Rex deigned to reply to the remark. They were too busy getting back their breath, and for several moments no one spoke.

“How about it, children?” Jack asked at the end of perhaps ten minutes. “Think you can try it again?”

“I guess so, mighty chief,” Rex replied and all laughed.

“Get your poles in behind there, then,” Jack ordered, “while I raise anchor.”

But the anchor would not rise. He tugged and pulled until his breath came in gasps, but it would not budge.

“That rock must have got wedged in between two others down there,” he finally announced as he gave it up for a moment.

“Wait a minute and we’ll push her up above and you can try it the other way,” Bob suggested.

Both pushing at the rear Bob and Rex forced the scow foot by foot up against the current until the rope was pulling on the stone from the other direction. Jack was right in his surmise that the anchor had gotten wedged in between two other rocks, for a good hard pull now brought it up.

Twice more they were obliged to “lower anchor” and rest.

“It seems as though we must have stuck these poles into every square inch of the river within a mile of here,” Jack declared as he started to pull the stone up for another try. “Do you suppose we’re anywhere near the old pier?”

“Well, of course, it’s pretty hard to be sure in the dark,” Bob replied. “But it doesn’t seem as though we can be very far off. What’s your idea?”

“Don’t know’s I have any,” the boy replied. “Only I’m getting a little tired of poking holes in the water here and have ’em fill up so quick that you can’t tell whether we’ve been here before or not.”

“You’re getting a bit mixed I’m afraid,” Bob laughed. “But let’s try once more and if we don’t hit it we’ll go into a committee of the whole and discuss ways and means.”

“The moon’s coming up anyhow. Perhaps that will help,” Rex said.

“Mebby, but I don’t see how.”

Rex knew that Jack was trying to be cheerful.

But their search was nearly at an end for they had pushed the scow hardly fifty feet when its bottom was scraping and in another moment they had come to a stop.

“Hurrah! I guess we’ve hit it,” Jack shouted as he at once “heaved the anchor.”

“And it’s about time we did,” Bob added.

A rapid investigation with the peaveys proved that they had at last hit the right spot and they lost no time in setting about demolishing the pier. The water, at this point, was only about two feet deep and Bob explained that in the summer, when the water was low, a good-sized island occupied the center of the river at that point.

It was slow work tearing the pier down with their peaveys, for some of the rocks were as large as a strong man would want to lift, and there were a good many of them.

“If this water wasn’t so blooming cold we could roll up our trowsers and do it in a short time,” Bob declared after they had been at work for the better part of an hour.

“This way suits me all right,” Jack assured him, and Rex also showed no inclination to adopt Bob’s suggestion.

“I guess you’re about right,” Bob assented. “We’re getting there slow but sure.”

They kept steadily at the work for another hour and had about completed the task when a sudden interruption happened.