owner himself.

"I'd rather not, if it's all the same to you, Bluff," he remarked
slowly.

"Oh! well, just as you say," declared the other, shrugging his broad
shoulders as though it did not matter much after all, and as if taking
care of the camera might possibly prove a task rather than a pleasure;
"I reckon you're thinking about the chances of my dropping it
overboard; or our running into a storm where the little old black box
might get soaked and ruined."

"Not so much that, Bluff, as that I want to do some work on the
camera," explained Will. "There's a little matter that really needs
adjusting, and I told myself I'd fix it this morning sure. Then again
I've laid out a scheme for to-day that if it works will call for the
use of the camera."

"That's all right, Will," remarked the other, briskly; "it doesn't
matter a pin to me, only I thought you mightn't ever be going all the
way to that village; and something fine could be run across between
here and there."

He dropped the subject and began to talk with Frank about other
things. Will looked a little uncomfortable. He disliked being thought
selfish, and seemed almost on the point of changing his mind. Then on
second thoughts he determined to carry out his original plan.

Frank looked over the old boat that had been patched up as well as the
conditions allowed.

"It seems to hold pretty well," he told the two who expected to make
use of it during the day. "Of course if the lake gets very rough so
that you pitch about considerably, keep on the watch for a sudden
inflow of water. The planks will hold, but I'm not so sure about the
oakum I pounded into the open seams."

"But you did a good job, Frank," objected Jerry, "and so far none of
it seems to have started to loosen."

"That's because we haven't had a chance to subject it to any big
strain," Frank explained. "When a boat tosses up and down on the waves
it gets a terrible wrench with each jerk. I've known seams to open at
a time like that when they were believed to be closed as tight as a
clam."

"Oh, well, we mean to follow your advice, Frank, and keep fairly close
to the shore," Bluff promised.

"And if there is any trouble both of us are good swimmers, you
remember," added Jerry confidently. "All I hope is that we get those
precious eggs packed in a way that they won't be scrambled on the
journey home. It'd be rough now if after all our hard work we had that
happen. I prefer my eggs boiled or