lp them out as far as he could do so.

"I can give you plenty of eggs," he said, "and enough coffee for
several meals. It happens that I'm shy on bacon just now, and intended
to run in to town to stock up either to-day or to-morrow, when I have
my eggs to dispose of. What I can spare, you're entirely welcome to."

Nor would he allow them to pay a cent for what he handed over to them.

"What I've heard about you boys from Mr. Witherspoon here has aroused
my interest greatly," he told Tom and Josh as they were about to
depart; "and I'd be glad to know more about such a splendid movement as
this promises to be. You must keep me informed of your progress. I
would appreciate an occasional letter. Then, if it happens that your
account of the outing is ever put in print, Tom, remember me with a
copy."

"I certainly will, sir," the patrol leader promised, for he realized
that the gentleman and his wife led a lonely life of it, removed from
association as they were, with most of their fellows.

They reached the camp in three-quarters of an hour after leaving the
house, and received a noisy welcome from the rest of the boys, who gave
their leaders the regular scout salute as they came into camp.

Then once again the affair was discussed, this time with Mr.
Witherspoon to listen and give occasional comments. It ended in their
original plan's being sustained. They would not give up, and would try
to carry out the plan as arranged before the hike was started.

Tom had an idea that they must be near the cabin of Larry Henderson,
the naturalist whom he had met in Lenox, at the time of the snowball
battle with the Pollock crowd.

"He gave me directions how to find his cabin," Tom explained to his
companions when they were discussing this matter, "and I believe we
must be somewhere near there right now. I asked Mr. Clark, and what he
could tell me only confirmed my idea."

"But Tom, do you think we could get some supplies from him?" asked
Josh.

"There's a reasonable chance of that," he was told. "I understood him
to say he always kept a supply of all sorts of food on hand. It was to
lay in a lot that took him down to Lenox that time, you know."

"Then goodness knows I hope we can run on his shack to-day," said Felix
fervently. "We want most of all coffee, potatoes, onions, bacon, ham,
and, well anything that can stop the gap when ten campers are half
starved."

"Shall we get started right away, Tom?" asked George, who loo