ure
yours will be better."

Long Sam was greatly flattered at this compliment, and he proceeded to
build a fire and make the coffee with a practised hand that betokened
long experience in these arts.

"Isn't the table lovely!" exclaimed Josie Holmes, as she brought a few
wild flowers she had found, and placed them gracefully among the ferns
that decorated the feast.

"And thank goodness I haven't seen a spider nor an ant!" cried Nellie
North, who had been, with another girl, told off to keep the table free
of any such marauders. One venturesome grasshopper had made a spring
toward the food, but had been caught and had his energies turned in a
far different direction.

"S'pose we have to wait an awful long time," said Edith, as she looked
longingly at the tempting dishes.

"Never mind if we do!" said Dotty; "there's nothing that can take any
hurt. There's nothing to get cold except the coffee, and Sam will attend
to that. The glass fruit jars full of lemonade are in the brook, so that
will be lovely and cool when we want it. Oh, everything is all right;
and we've only just got to wait. So you girls may as well make up your
mind to it."

Although the wait seemed long, after a time, Long Sam, scouting about,
heard the boys' voices in the distance. He warned the girls and they
were all quiet as mice, awaiting developments.

The crowd of boys came nearer, laughing and shouting, as they reached
their own headquarters.

Sam beckoned to the girls to come and peep through the bushes at the
amazed group, who had suddenly discovered that their food was missing.

"Somebody has swiped it!" cried Elmer Holmes, angrily. "All our grub is
gone! I say, fellows, what shall we do?"

"Do! Go after them and get it back!" cried Jack Norris, and then a
chorus of shouts went up; "the coffee pot's gone!" "All the bacon and
eggs are gone!" "And the bread, too!"

"They sure made a clean sweep," said Bert Fayre. "Who do you s'pose did
it?"

"Some other crowd of fishing chaps," said Bob Rose, confidently, "but it
doesn't often happen,--a thing like that. No decent fellows would do
it."

The girls, only a few rods distant, were peeping through the bushes and
shaking with silent laughter at the discomfited boys. Such looks of
chagrin and dismay as they showed! and such belligerent determination
to hunt the marauders and duly punish them.

"Just you wait till I get hold of the thieves!" cried Elmer Holmes,
"I'll give them what for!"