uster if viewed from a distance
upon the lake, and in this group of summer residences appeared to be
almost sufficient excuse for the drawing up of a petition for
incorporation as a village. But very few of the owners of these houses
lived in them during the winter months. The main and centrally located
group consisted of a hotel and a dozen or more cottages, known as "The
Hemlocks," and so advertised in the outing and vacation columns of
newspapers of various cities.

On arriving at "the Point," Katherine and Hazel paid the chauffeur and
informed him they would not need his machine any more that day. Then
they began to look about them.

They were rather disappointed and decidedly puzzled at what they saw.
Evidently they had a considerable search before them to discover the
location of the Graham cottage without making open inquiry as to where
it stood. First they walked out upon the promontory, which had a flat
table-like surface and was well suited for the arousing of the curiosity
of tourists. There they had a good view up and down the bluff-jagged,
hilly and tree-laden coast.

"It's 11 o'clock now," said Hazel, looking at her wrist-watch. "The
motorboat will be here at about 1 o'clock, and we have two hours in
which to get the information we are after unless we want to share honors
for success with the other girls when they arrive."

"Let's take a walk through this place and see what we can see,"
Katherine suggested. "The road we came along runs through it and
undoubtedly there are numerous paths."

This seemed to be the best thing to do, and the two girls started from
the Point toward the macadam highway. The latter was soon reached and
they continued along this road northward from the place where they
dismissed the automobile. Half a mile they traveled in this direction,
their course keeping well along the lake shore. They passed several
cottages of designedly rustic appearance and buried, as it were, amid a
wealth of tree foliage and wild entanglements of shrubbery. Suddenly
Katherine caught hold of Hazel's arm and held her back.

"Did you hear that?" she inquired.

"Yes, I did," Hazel replied. "It sounded like a child's voice, crying."

"And not very far away, either. Listen; there it is again."

It was a half-smothered sob that reached their ears and seemed to come
from a clump of bushes to the left of the road not more than a dozen
yards away. Both girls started for the spot, circling around the bush