Guns and Snowshoes; Or, the Winter Outing of the Young Hunters Part 39

He looked at his chums and they nodded, to show that they agreed with him. The two men looked rather dissatisfied.

"So you won't take the deer meat, even after we carried it away over here?" said Vance Lemon.

"No."

"That isn't a very friendly way to act."

"Well, you didn't act very friendly in the first place," answered Shep.

"Having pretty good luck, you say?" asked Giles Faswig, curiously.

"The very best of luck," answered the leader of the Gun flub, and mentioned some of the game brought down. "So you can easily see we don't need this venison at all," he added.

At this the two men looked at each other and murmured something the boys could not catch.

"We came over to--er--to do a little trading," said Giles Faswig. "Got plenty of ammunition on hand, I reckon."

"All we wish," answered Snap, and then he suddenly "smelt a mouse," as the saying goes, and winked at his chums.

"We thought so, and we thought we'd help you out by buying some from you. What sizes have you got?"

"Snap, you don't--" whispered Shep.

"Hush, Shep. Let me run this," whispered the leader of the club, in return. Then he turned to the two men again and mentioned what kinds of ammunition they used and how much they had on hand.

"Thought so," said Giles Lemon. "We'll take half of what you've got and pay you double price for it."

"What!" came from Giant and Whopper, but Snap merely shook his head and winked at them, and then they said no more.

"That's a fair deal, isn't it?" asked Giles Faswig, oilily. "You'll make a clean dollar and a half by the operation."

"We don't want your money," said Snap, decidedly.

"Eh?" came from both men.

"I wouldn't sell you our ammunition at any price, and I don't think my friends care to either."

"That's the talk," put in Shep.

"You don't get anything out of us," murmured Giant.

"Not by a jugful!" added Whopper.

"Then you won't sell us any ammunition?" asked Vance Lemon, and his face grew as sour as the fruit his name represented.

All of the young hunters shook their heads with vigor.

"We'll pay you triple price," said Giles Faswig. "Come, that will be easy money for you."

"Not if you offer us a hundred times the value of the ammunition,"

said Snap, firmly. "You treated us as mean as dirt before. Now, if you want any ammunition, you can tramp back to town and get it."

At this the men broke into a rage and began to threaten the young hunters in various ways. They had brought over the deer meat merely to smooth matters over, so that they could get the ammunition, which they needed sorely.

"Look here, if you threaten us any more, I'll have you up before the squire," said Snap, at last. "You clear out and leave us alone." And then, in high dudgeon, Giles Faswig and Vance Lemon departed, taking the deer meat with them. On their way back to their own camp they met the big bear, and in fright dropped the meat and ran for their lives.

When they got to the camp they told Andrew Felps of the result of the trip.

"Well, we can't stay here without ammunition," said the lumber merchant, in disgust. "I bought up all Riley had, and Jackson said he wasn't going to get any more of those sizes of cartridges until next week. We'll have to give up. Hang those boys anyway!"

And deeply disgusted, the lumber dealer had to give up his outing and go home, and his friends departed with him. They had been more than mean, and, right or wrong, the young hunters had paid them back in their own coin.

CHAPTER x.x.x

A SURPRISE--GOOD-BYE

After that two days went by without anything unusual happening. The boys enjoyed every minute of the time, and with the bear scare at an end, they went hunting and fis.h.i.+ng to their hearts' content. Giant and Whopper caught a mess of sixteen fish, large and small, and Shep and Snap laid low half a dozen rabbits, some squirrels, and also a beautiful brook mink of which they were very proud.

"It is too bad that our outing must soon come to an end," said the leader of the Gun Club. "But as we have had a glorious time I suppose we ought not to complain."

"I saw some silver tail foxes at the ridge to-day," said Shep. "I think we ought to go after them."

"And after that bear," put in Whopper. "We don't want to go home until we lay low his bears.h.i.+p."

"Maybe his bears.h.i.+p will lay us low," put in Giant. "That wouldn't be so nice."

During their spare time the boys had set several traps, and in these they caught some animals of more or less importance. They also brought down two wild turkeys, and resolved to eat one for their New Year's dinner and take the other home.

"Happy New Year!" was the cry, on a beautiful morning, and the young hunters got up to put in a "full day," as Snap expressed it. Right after breakfast they set the turkey to roasting, and made a pie and some other good things. They had a bountiful dinner early and by one o'clock started out for their last hunt.

They had already resolved to cross the lake in the direction Shep had seen the silver-tailed foxes. They went over on their skates, and then donned their snowshoes and were soon deep in the forest. Here they soon struck the trail of the foxes and discovered them in an angle, between a cliff and a series of sharp rocks.

"There's a shot for you!" cried Snap, as four of the rather beautiful creatures came to view, and without hesitation all took aim and fired.

As the various reports died away two of the silver-tailed foxes gave a whirl upward and came down lifeless. The others turned tail and started to rush past the young hunters, but Snap and Shep were too quick and brought them down limping and then the others finished the creatures.

"One apiece!" cried Whopper. "Just what I hoped for!"

"So did I," said Giant.

They tramped on after this, and managed to bring down a big owl, which Snap said they could stuff and put it in their clubroom--providing they ever got one. Then they came to a peculiar trail that bothered them not a little.

"Do you know what I think it is?" said Snap, at last. "It's the trail of a bear and the beast was carrying something pretty heavy."

"Maybe it is our bear!" cried Giant enthusiastically.

"Gracious, I didn't know we owned a bear," answered Shep.