g up, feeding it, and huddled Injun
fashion with their blankets over their shoulders, smoking their old
pipes, and thinking (I guessed) that they were doing something big,
being uncomfortable. But it takes more than such foolishness--wearing a
big six-shooter when there is nothing to shoot, and sleeping out in the
rain when cover is handy--to make a veteran. Veterans and real Scouts
act sensibly. (Note 28.)

When next I woke and stretched, the sun was shining and it was time to
get up.

CHAPTER VI

A DISASTROUS DOZE

The two fellows were sound asleep when we turned out. They were lying in
the sun, rolled up and with their faces covered to keep the light away.
We didn't pay any attention to them, but had our wet rub and went ahead
attending to camp duties. After a while one of them (Walt, it was)
turned over, and wriggled, and threw the blanket off his face, and
blinked about. He was bleary-eyed and sticky-faced, as if he had slept
too hard but not long enough. And I didn't see how he had had enough air
to breathe.

But he grinned, and yawned, and said: "You kids get up awful early. What
time is it?"

"Six o'clock."

He-haw! And he yawned some more. Then he sat up and let his blanket go
and kicked Bat. "Breakfast!" he shouted.

That made Bat grunt and grumble and wriggle; and finally uncover, too.
They acted as if their mouths might taste bad, after the pipes.

We hadn't made a big fire, of course; but breakfast was about ready, on
the little fire, and Fitz our cook sang out, according to our
regulations: "Chuck!"

That was the camp's signal call.

"If you fellows want to eat with us, draw up and help yourselves,"
invited General Ashley.

"Sure," they answered; and they crawled out of their blankets, and got
their pieces of bark, and opened their knives, and without washing their
faces or combing their hair they fished into the dishes, for bacon and
bread and sorghum and beans.

That was messy; but we wanted to be hospitable, so we didn't say
anything.

"Where are you kids bound for, anyway?" asked Bat.

"Over the Divide," told General Ashley.

"Why can't we go along?"

That staggered us. They weren't our kind; and besides, we were all Boy
Scouts, and our party was big enough as it was. So for a moment nobody
answered. And then Walt spoke up.

"Aw, we won't hurt you any. What you afraid of? We aren't tenderfeet,
and we'll do our share. We'll throw in our grub and we won't use your
dishe