occasion
arose when defense would be necessary.

"Oh!" exclaimed the fat boy, when with a sudden whirr a partridge arose
close beside them, and flew away with a rapid motion.

He saw the Southern boy throw his stick to his shoulder, as though
taking aim.

"Oh! what a dandy shot that would have been, Thad, if I had had a gun!"
Bob exclaimed, eagerly. "I could have dropped that beauty like a stone."

"Well," replied the other, "since it's the close season on partridges
perhaps it's just as well you didn't have a gun. But I wouldn't be
surprised if we got up more'n a few of those fellows here. The island
would be a great place for their nests."

"Then I wish they'd let a poor feller know when they meant to scoot
off," remarked Bumpus, wiping his face with his handkerchief; "because
that one nigh scared me to death, he went buzzing off so sudden-like."

"You'll never make a hunter, whatever else you turn out to be, Bumpus,"
Thad remarked, smiling, as he turned to look at the red face of the
perspiring fat boy.

"I don't know," the other said, with a vein of regret in his voice; "I
always wanted to roam the woods, and do all that sort of thing; but then
you see Nature, she wasn't kind to me. I don't seem to be made just
right for tramping. And I must say some things do make my heart jump
like fun. Oh! well, there are other things a scout c'n do,
perhaps,--findin' boats, and lookin' for bee trees mebbe."

"Lots of things, Bumpus," replied Thad. "You can't change your make-up;
and so you'll have to do what suits you best. Shall we head to the left
here, Bob; or take to the right?"

Secretly Thad was keeping his eyes on the ground part of the time as he
pushed on. He had an idea they might find footprints that would lead the
way to some old cabin or hangout, where perhaps the game-keepers used to
live when they were employed to patrol the district, so that no one
hunted or fished against the orders of the rich man who owned the
country around.

"Well," replied the other, after taking a glance about him, "I don't
suppose it matters much which way we turn, since we propose to look over
the entire island one way or another, suh. Say we turn off here to the
left, and circle around. Or if you would rather have it, we might
separate and spread out like a fan."

Bumpus drew in his breath with a half gasp. It looked so very gloomy
around the spot which they had reached that not for worlds would he
drift away from his asso