rnessed the bony horse
into the wagon. After a while the red wagon rested within the
confines of the camp of Dick & Co.

In the bright light of the morning, Harry Hazelton was the first
to be astir. He saw Prescott asleep on the floor of the tent,
rolled up in a blanket, while another blanket rested on Dick's
cot, brought back to the tent, as though some stranger had slept
there.

Outside, attached to the seat of their camp wagon, Hazy found
a note that mystified him a good deal at first. It read:

_"The sun is now well up. I shall go at once to Hillsboro, and
then my great worry will be over. Boys, you will ever be remembered
in the prayers of R.H."_

"Now, that's mighty nice of R.H., whoever he is," smiled Harry
Hazelton, not immediately connecting the initials with the name
of the little, old peddler.

Nor was it until Prescott and Reade were astir that Harry was
fully enlightened as to the meaning of the words scrawled in pencil
on the sheet of paper.

"You boys call me Hazy, and I must look and act the part," laughed
Hazelton shamefacedly, "when we can have such an invasion of the
camp, and such an early get-away with a loaded wagon, and all
without my stirring."

Reuben Hinman was on his way, and, all unknown to himself nearer
the hour when he would meet the high, school boys under vastly
more exciting circumstances.

CHAPTER VI

THE NO-BREAKFAST PLAN

"Let's get the tent down, fellows," Dick called. "Greg is loading
the bedding on to the wagon now."

"Haven't, you forgotten something?" Danny Grin asked.

"What?" challenged Dick smilingly.

"Well, a little thing like breakfast, for instance?"

"We don't get that until after we've had our swim," Prescott rejoined
cheerily.

"I suppose that's all right," observed Tom, his jaw dropping.
"Still, in that case, Mr. Trainer, why didn't you camp nearer
to a stream?"

"The nearest stream fit for swimming is two miles from here,"
Dick replied. "At least, that's what I judge from the map."

"There's the creek the bull-heads came from," suggested Hazelton
hopefully. "That's close at hand."

"I know it is," Dick replied, "but I've had a look at it. That
creek is both shallow and muddy. No sort of place for swimming."

One thing these Gridley High School boys had learned in the football
squad, and that was discipline. So, though there were some gloomy
looks, all remembered that Dick had been chosen trainer during
the hike, and th