elt a tug
at his line. He landed a pound perch almost under Tom's nose.

"Good enough business, this," declared Tom contentedly. "I hope
the fellows have everything else ready."

Tom carried the lantern; each boy carried a string of fish. As
they neared camp, Danny Grin espied them, and ran forward to
see the size of the catch.

"Here they are!" called Dalzell. "They've fish enough to feed
a fat men's boarding house!"

"Bring them here," called Dick from a board beside which he and
Greg crouched, each with a knife in hand.

One after another the fish were scaled and cleaned with a speed
known only to old campers. Dave had two frying pans hot over
a fire. In went the perch, sputtering in the fat and giving forth
appetizing odors.

"My, but they're going to taste good!" declared Danny Grin.

Leaving Greg to finish with the cleaning of the fish Dick passed
to another campfire, throwing into a hot pan the material for
fried potatoes.

Ere long the meal was on the table---two boards placed across
the tops of two boxes. It was a low table, but it served the
purpose.

"My, but this fish tastes good!" murmured Tom Reade, as he picked
a piece of fried perch free of the backbone and began eating it.

"We'll all of us find it the best meal ever, just because we've
tramped far enough and worked hard enough to make any kind of
decent food taste great," Dick smiled.

The supper over, and one of the campfires replenished, all six
of the youngsters took the dishes down to the lake, carrying along
two kettles of hot water, where a general dish-washing ensued.
With so many to do the work, the camp was spick and span within
twenty minutes.

"Now, I'm going to enjoy one thing that I haven't had all day,
and that's some real rest," Prescott declared, throwing himself
down upon the grass. "I don't believe I shall move until bedtime."

But he did. Already trouble was hovering over the camp. From
out of the darkness beyond three pairs of eyes studied the campers
in silence. One pair belonged to Bert Dodge, another the young
Bayliss, and the third to a man of about middle age.

Dodge and Bayliss were thoroughly angry.

CHAPTER V

BERT DODGE HEARS THE BATTLE CRY

Ten minutes after Dick had thrown himself on the grass a rustling
was heard above the camp. Then down the slope strode three figures.

Dick sat up, regarding the visitors in silence until they came
within the fringe of the light of the campfi