it was; and later on commended by Thad and Allan, when they heard about
the trouble. The fact was, Giraffe had suddenly remembered something.

"You leave it to me, and see if I don't pull out a trick worth while,"
he remarked mysteriously; and Bumpus saw him turn aside to get down on
his knees.

For some time the fat boy sat there, apparently lost in bitter
reflections. Now and then he would give a start, and look around him
hastily, after which he would heave a great sigh, or else groan
dismally. From this it might be assumed that Bumpus was allowing himself
to dwell upon many a glorious supper he had devoured in the company of
his Boy Scout chums; and just then he was enjoying things the best he
knew how, he would remember the desolation that confronted himself and
Giraffe.

Then he would pick up one of the two partridges that had fallen to his
new Marlin ten bore, look critically at it, feel the meat on the plump
breast; and then shake his head, as though the idea of having to turn
cannibal, and devour the game raw did not appeal at all to him.

On one occasion, when he aroused himself from this abstraction he became
conscious of a strange humming sound.

"What you doin' there, Giraffe?" he demanded, as the noise certainly
proceeded from the spot where his chum was down on his hands and knees.

"Why, you see," replied the other, slowly, "I fetched my little bow and
fire-makin' outfit along with me, thinkin' I might have a chance to try
a scheme I got in my head. I'm gettin' right into it now, because I want
to start business before it's real plumb dark!"

But far from reassuring the dejected Bumpus, these words only made him
grunt. Had he not watched Giraffe working away for dear life with that
miserable little outfit a dozen times, and always with the same
result--getting perilously near success, but always missing it by a
hair's breadth?

What chance did they have of securing the much desired fire, if all
depended on Giraffe succeeding in inducing that twirling stick to
generate enough heat to throw off a spark that would catch in the dry
tinder? None at all. It was only a hollow mockery. Some smart scouts
might be able to do the little trick; but up to now it had baffled the
skill of Giraffe. Why, even Thad had lost pretty much all hope of his
ever succeeding, Bumpus suspected; and believed that the only good thing
about the tall scout's labors was his persistence.

So, shaking his head again dolefully,