tchet, a
hammer and some nails on the houseboat; a few odd lengths of rope and
heavy twine, as well as the straps from the trunks. By nightfall the
girls had made a raft of some pretensions. It served to bring more of
their grocery supplies to the land. By wading on either side of it to
keep it from tipping, Madge and Phil managed to steer one of their
trunks to the shore.

At Eleanor's suggestion a few extra sheets were carried off the
houseboat. Then Miss Jenny Ann and Nellie set themselves seriously to
work to make a cable for the "Merry Maid." They divided their sheets
into good, broad strips; using six, instead of three strands, they
plaited them into a fairly strong rope. They must run no risk of losing
the houseboat. It must not be allowed to drift away for the second
time.

The girls were tired and hungry at bedtime, though not one whit
discouraged. It would take some time to move what they needed from the
houseboat to the lodge in the wood. But they were equal to the task,
and found it good sport.

Miss Jenny Ann continued to worry over the prospect ahead of them.
Would they be forced to spend the winter on this deserted island? How
could they? They would perish from hunger and cold. Would their
families give them up for lost? How would Miss Tolliver ever open her
school at Harborpoint without her four favorite pupils and one of her
teachers?

For a few days these dreadful ideas continued to haunt Miss Jones. The
girls may have thought of them, but they did not talk of them. Indeed,
they were far too busy. Pioneer life was strenuous. They found little
time for fretting.

CHAPTER XIII

LIFE IN THE WOODS

It was wonderful how quickly they adapted themselves to their new mode
of life. A few days later Phyllis, with a rifle slung over one shoulder
and a dead rabbit over the other, was striding along through a dense
thicket of trees. Her face was tanned, her cheeks were crimson. She was
whistling cheerily.

"Won't Madge be proud of me?" she murmured half aloud. "Ten days ago I
had never fired a gun in my life. Now I have killed this poor little
bunny. Beg your pardon, bunny, I never would have shot you, but we
really had to have something to eat for dinner to-night. It was your
life or ours."

The woods were brown and gold. A heavy frost had fallen early in the
autumn. The little spot of earth through which Phyllis Alden wandered
was empty of other human beings; it looked as though it might hav