Heerd tell 'bout sich, but never cud find anythin' but a cold trail. So
I kim over ter see ye; an' p'raps now ye'd open up an' 'xplain."

"I'll be only too glad to do that, if you'll take a seat at our
camp-fire here for a little while, Phin Dady," Thad remarked, making a
movement with his hand to indicate where the other could find a
comfortable spot to rest.

The man looked closely at the speaker; then turned his head, and
deliberately made a motion with his hand, that must have been intended
for some concealed confederate. After which he stepped over, and took a
seat, but not the one Thad had indicated as the post of honor.

"Reckon I'll sit hyar, ef so be it's all ther same ter you-uns," he
said, as he dropped down, and swung his rifle across his knees. "Yuh
see, I likes ter look at everybody w'en I gets ter talkin'. It's more
sociable like."

But Thad knew better. The gleam in those beady eyes told him what the
true meaning of this action must be. When a man has been hunted, in and
out of season, for the better part of his long life, he naturally become
most suspicious of every stranger, young and old. Many had been the
shrewd games engineered by the revenue men to catch this old weasel
asleep. He trusted no one all the way, even his best friends, who might
be tempted to betray him because of the reward that was offered for his
capture.

But although Thad had guessed just why the other chose the seat he had
taken, it would have been most unwise on his part to have shown any
resentment; or even to let Phin Dady know that he understood.

"You see," Thad began, simply, "we were warned to be careful before we
left Asheville, because people said that the fact of our wearing
uniforms might make the mountain folks think we had something to do with
the army. I was explaining all about what the Boy Scouts represent to
Mr. Reuben Sparks only a short time ago, and he was greatly interested.
If you'll listen, then, I'll go back, and tell what we aim to do; and
why we have left our homes to take a long hike through a mountainous
region, for up where we live we have no such big hills as these."

So Thad began, and told in as simple language as he could find just what
objects were kept in mind among all troops of Boy Scouts, whether in
America, England, Australia, South Africa, Germany, France or any other
country on the face of the globe.

Fortunately Thad was a good talker. He knew how to make use of a whole
lot of lit