Frank Allen at Old Moose Lake;

Jeek, Fallon, and Carey, pals of several years standing, and birds of a feather, made their way along the lake trail steadily, their packs not so large as those carried by the boys, for the reason that they had already been to their camp once and had gone back to Todds to get more food.

“Those kids are not in sight,” muttered Fallon as they passed the Parsons’ camp, the fellow looking out of the side of his eye at the place.

“They’re there, though,” answered Jeek. “See the smoke pouring from that chimney? Chances are they are out hunting or fishing on the lake.”

Nothing more was said about the boys, while the trio proceeded along the trail, knowing it well.

“Hay!” suddenly called Jeek, as he lifted his head upon reaching the crest of the trail and looked down to see smoke issuing from one of the two cabins by the lake.

“What’s all this? Somebody in there? Fallon, I thought you locked that place,” cried Jeek, turning accusingly on his friend.

Fallon admitted that he had not locked the place, not thinking it necessary in view of their being away but a few days at Todds.

Having no idea of what was happening, not knowing whether they would be met in a friendly way or not, Jeek drew a revolver from beneath his mackinaw and led the way straight across the intervening space to the log cabin.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Thrice he rapped at the heavy door with the butt of the revolver.

“Who’s there?” came a call from within the cabin.

Jeek tried the door, but it did not yield.

“Open this door and find out!” he cried.

Inside the cabin Snadder looked at Blinky and Blinky looked back, neither able to calculate on the best defense to make, both feeling guilty.

Again came the knocking on the door with the gun.

Snadder strode to the door and threw the latch to one side, just as Jeek placed his shoulder against the strong door, and, as it swung inward, the heavy race-track follower staggered into the living room, trying to catch his balance, his arms going into the air, while the gun seemed to Snadder as large as a cannon.

Instantly the two tramps had their hands in the air, before commanded to do so, for they were plainly outnumbered and did not know what arms the other men might have nor whether such arms might be used.

“What are you guys doing here?” blurted out Jeek angrily.

“Just came in here out of the cold, mister,” Snadder tried to conciliate the three newcomers.

“Eating up the stores, too, eh?” went on Jeek, striding into the small rear room to see empty cans scattered on the floor beneath the bunk.

“Sure, we ate a little, mister. But we’re willing to pay you,” whined Blinky, hoping he could get affairs on a more friendly basis by such an offer.

It was evident, however, that Jeek and his two companions were not going to let the tramps get by so easily.

“Best thing you can do is to get out of here!” said Fallon, making room by stepping further into the place. This left an unobstructed passage through the doorway.

A great deal more light was thus let into the room, and both the tramps instantly recognized, as Jeek pulled off his mackinaw, this burly man of the race-tracks.

Blinky started to recall the acquaintance, but Snadder was too quick and interrupted long enough to hinder Blinky, at the same time putting a hand on Blinky’s shoulder and squeezing it slightly.

“Mister,” he said to Fallon, “can’t we make some kind of a deal? We’re broke, flat broke! We ain’t got a cent, and nothing to eat. Can’t we stay here and work for you fellows?”

“Not a chance!” Fallon’s voice came with a roar as he realized these two strangers were afraid. His courage was aroused by the lack of any aggressiveness. “Get out of here and get out quick. Suppose we want you two dirty hounds around here with gentlemen?”

Though Snadder was a common tramp, though he was without means of living and down in the world, as the saying goes, yet he had a sense of humor and his mind was not sluggish.

“Where do you get that stuff about gentlemen? You think you’re the only gentlemen around here?” he bristled up.

Fallon’s courage fell slightly, but he had to stand his ground. His hand started for a spot beneath his coat.

“Wait a minute,” Snadder fairly yelped, losing temper now, for his own recollection of things of the past was not bad. “You pull a gun on me and I’ll twist your head off!”

Jeek reached for the gun which he had in his hand when he entered, but which he had tossed to the mantel shelf when he removed his mackinaw.

“You, too, Jeek!” called Snadder. “Maybe you don’t remember me so good, but don’t you point that gun at me!”

Jeek started as he heard his name called in such familiar fashion by this tramp. His hand did not grasp the weapon.

Snadder took advantage of the situation on the second, knowing that he had the upper hand for a little while, at least. He now proceeded to make the best of it.

“You remember Blinky, don’t you, Jeek?” he said. “Well, I’m Snadder, who used to cook in hashhouses and Blinky was a stableman on some of the same race-tracks where you used to be. Guess you remember us, eh?”

A frown came scowling across the face of the burly race-track follower, and his upper lip curled away from his teeth of yellow tinge.

“I don’t know either of you!” he spat out the words in contempt of the two men and of Snadder’s words.

“You don’t, eh?” Snadder wondered why this man didn’t wish to continue the acquaintance of several years ago. “Maybe you will remember Blinky better if I remind you of the time that the two of you doped that horse Maybe So and you put too much dope and the horse took sick. And maybe if I remind you——”

“Shut up!” roared Jeek. “I don’t know nothing about any of that crooked stuff. I was never on a race-track——”

Blinky, usually whining in his attitude, now was bristling with anger over the failure of Jeek to recognize him after he had helped the tout and paddock bettor in many a race-track game.

He shook a pudgy, fat fist at the burly red-faced man, anger almost hindering him from uttering words; but he managed to say:

“Maybe you don’t remember the time you swiped a hypodermic needle and used it on two horses in the same stable where I was working, and maybe you don’t remember that you paid me ten bucks to keep still when they started investigating!”

This appeared to hit Jeek a little harder than Snadder’s remarks. As a result he yelped at Fallon to close the door, which, during all this conversation, had been standing wide open, cooling the rooms down to an uncomfortable temperature.

“Tell you what you fellows do,” he snapped, when the door had been closed. “Get in a pile of logs and cut us a fresh supply right away. Meanwhile we’ll talk this over among ourselves and see what can be done about you.”

Snadder knew he and Blinky had won in their skirmish, and yielded to the suggestion of Jeek, for there was at least this much in prospect; that, after the three men talked over the matter, Snadder and Blinky might have a place to sleep and something to eat for a few days more.

In an hour’s time they had brought in enough logs to keep the fire going for two days, and they had also enough additional wood cut on the outside for two days after that.

“Tell you what we’ll do,” said Jeek, when the announcement was made that the tramps had done their part of the bargain. “You two fellows go over to that other cabin, start a good fire there, get the place warmed up good, and then we’ll take that place and you can have this for a few days—don’t know how long, because we’re going to hunt for that big bull moose and maybe we’ll be going to town pretty soon.”

The truce was made, the two tramps soon had the larger cabin toasty warm and the transfer was made, the two tramps having to haul over the canned food to the larger cabin. Jeek was determined that he should govern the amount which they had.

By this time the afternoon was spent and darkness was coming on them. As Snadder and Blinky were hauling in an armful of the canned goods, they heard Jeek in the living room of the larger place saying:

“Them boys have got to pay for that dog—one way for another. They’re up here at the Parsons’ camp, and they’ve come after the old king moose, same as we have. Now, they ain’t going to get it, because I’m going to see they get chased back to Columbia.”

Snadder nudged the fat Blinky, and both listened.

“Did you try to make his father pay for the dog?” asked Carey.

“Didn’t have time. We were in a hurry to get up here, and they tell me old man Allen has just had a fire and an accident, so I figured he wouldn’t be in a humor to pay. But we can make that boy pay, all right,” Jeek rambled on.

Whatever Carey said was in a low tone of voice, and the tramps did not get the import of it.

But they decided that the same boys that had put them out of the Parsons’ camp were the ones that Jeek meant. The fact that the letter “P” was on some of the silver led to this conclusion.

Snadder stuck his head into the doorway, speaking:

“Jeek, are you talking about them boys about a mile back in that good-looking camp? They put us out of their camp a couple of days ago, and I’ve got it in for one of them, the young fellow that’s the leader. He acted too smart to suit me.”

Jeek scrutinized the face of the tramp rather closely before he made any reply, for this might get him into too tight a fix.

“What did they look like?” he asked guardedly.

Snadder described each of the boys very minutely.

“Yes, they’re the young upstarts. They belong at a town down the Harrapin River—Columbia. All swell-headed,” he added. “They killed my dog the other day and I was going to use him at this camp. Dog was worth a couple of hundred dollars.” Jeek went on to explain what he thought of the group of boys.

“Can’t you make them pay for killing a dog in this state? Mighty funny laws if you can’t,” suggested Snadder.

“I don’t know nothing about the laws of the state, but I know they’re going to pay for that dog—somehow. Fact is, I don’t know as they belong in this region right now, anyhow. I think their health would be better back home.” Jeek threw out these remarks as bait to the tramps.

But, from the conversational point of view, there was no reaction. Snadder knew that Jeek would do some thinking.