results. Finally Dick found a plant that he believed to be a wild
potato.

"No, it is not. It hasn't the leaves or blossom of the Indian potato,"
declared Joan.

"That may be, but when it grows old it dries up, you know," argued Dick,
beginning to dig at the root.

The girls wandered about seeking for signs of more mushrooms, but could
find none. Then Dick stood up and stretched his back-muscles.

"My that was tough digging when you have no tool. And it wasn't a potato
after all."

"Well, we've been gone a long time now. Suppose we go back with what we
have," said Joan.

"Yes; even if we can't fill up on steaks to-day, let us eat more of the
greens," added Judith.

So they turned to go back to camp. They climbed over the boulders
similar to those over which they had already climbed, over similar
fallen timber, and finally came to a stream.

"I don't remember a brook when we came," remarked Julie.

"Neither do I," added Judith.

"All places look alike when you're hunting anything. We may have crossed
a bog or a brook and never have noticed it," said Dick.

"Oh, I would have noticed it! I wouldn't be such a poor scout as not to
know where I was going," returned Julie, defensively.

"Now, Dick, I'm sure there was no bog where we came through, but here's
one right ahead of us," called Joan, who was a few paces ahead.

"No, there was no bog!" affirmed Julie.

"Did you bring a compass?" now asked Dick.

"No, we never thought of being lost," murmured Julie.

"We're not lost, just strayed a bit," Dick assured them.

"'Lost, Strayed or Stolen'--it's all the same if we have to miss our
dinner," sighed Joan.

They managed to cross the boggy spot and then trailed to a place that
Dick claimed was the clearing. But it turned out to be a little fen made
by a tiny spring.

"What we should have done was to leave our marks as we came
through--broken twigs, or trampled grass, or some such signs," said
Julie.

"But we didn't, and now is no time to talk of it!" Dick said
impatiently, for he began to realize that they really were lost.

"We can begin right now, however, and then not keep circling around
without recognizing that we were there before!" snapped Julie.

So the girls began, then and there, to leave their signs as they
followed after Dick, who really knew not where he was leading.

"Had we better separate and go in different directions to hunt the
camp?" asked Dick finally.

"Mercy, no! Better be lo