lumberman in amazement.

Scarcely had he spoken when there leaped into view a full-grown wolf. As
he confronted the boys and the old man, he snarled viciously, and his
eyes appeared to gleam like two balls of fire.

"It's a wolf, sure enough!"

"Shoot him, somebody! Shoot him!"

"Where's my gun?"

"The guns are all strapped down on the bobsled!"

Such were some of the cries which came from the Rover boys when they
found themselves confronted by the wolf. They fell back several paces,
and Uncle Barney did likewise. The old lumberman had gone to Rockville
armed, but he too had strapped his weapon fast on the bobsled, so that
he might assist the boys in hauling the load.

As the little party fell back wondering what was best to do, the wolf
gave another leap, thereby reaching the doorway of the little cabin.
Then, with a snarl, he whirled around, leaped into the snow behind some
hemlocks, and in a moment more had disappeared from view.

"Well, what do you know about that!" cried Fred faintly.

"And to think we weren't ready to shoot!" groaned Randy.

"We're a fine bunch of hunters, we are!" scoffed Andy.

"Well, we didn't expect to find a wolf in possession of this hut,"
remarked Jack. "Just the same, I wish we had been able to get a shot at
him," he added wistfully.

"I should have carried my gun," remarked Uncle Barney. "It was a mistake
to put it on the sled. That's just my luck, confound it! Whenever I go
out free-handed, I'm almost certain to see something worth shooting,"
and he shook his head grimly.

"You didn't say anything about wolves being on the island," said Fred,
while the old man was looking around inside the cabin with both
flashlights.

"There are very few wolves in this neighborhood," was the reply. "The
last wolf I saw on the island, outside of this one, was two years ago."

As the door to the cabin had been closed, the boys wondered how the wolf
had gotten into the place, but Uncle Barney showed them a small,
broken-out window in the rear of the shelter. This window was now partly
covered with snow.

"I suppose the wolf thought he couldn't get out that way on account of
the snow, and consequently he had to come by way of the door," explained
the old lumberman. "Well, I'm mighty glad he didn't go any damage."

An examination revealed the fact that no other living thing was in or
around the cabin, and as soon as they were satisfied of this, the boys
brought in the bobsled. In the mea