“Well, we have captured our first deer, haven’t we?”

“I wish we had never seen him,” answered Archie.  “We’ve lost our guns by the operation.”

“I am afraid so; but we will, at least, make an attempt to recover them.”

“How will we go to work?”

“We will dive for them.”

Archie shrugged his shoulders, but made no reply.

Frank’s first care was to bandage Brave’s neck with his handkerchief.  He then divested himself of his clothes, and, after wringing the water out of them, he spread them out in the bow of the boat to dry.

“I don’t much like the idea of going down in there,” said Archie, looking dubiously at the dark, muddy water; “there may be snakes in it, or it may be full of logs, or the bottom may be covered with weeds that will catch hold of a fellow’s leg and keep him down.”

“I can’t help it,” said Frank; “we must have the guns; I’d rather risk any thing than lose them.  The only thing I am afraid of is that the water is too deep.  I’ll be a little careful at first”

So saying, he lowered himself over the side of the boat, and, drawing in a long breath, sank slowly out of sight.

Meanwhile Archie was pulling off his clothes, and, when his cousin appeared, he exclaimed,

“How do things look down there?  Rather muddy, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” answered Frank, as he wiped the water from his face, “but the bottom is all clear, and the water is only about fifteen feet deep.”

“Did you see any thing of the guns?”

“No, I couldn’t stay down long enough to make observations.  I’m going to dive this time,” he continued, as he commenced climbing back into the boat.

“Well, here goes!” said Archie.

And, clasping his hands above his head, he dived out of sight, and Frank followed close after.

When the latter again appeared at the surface, he found Archie holding on to the boat, with one of the guns elevated above his head, to allow the water to run out of the barrels.

The boys climbed up into the boat, and dived again, but neither of them met with any success.  The next time Archie was again the fortunate one, for, when Frank rose to the surface, he was climbing up into the boat, with the other gun in his hand.

“I don’t call this a very unlucky hunt, after all,” said Frank.

“Neither do I,” said Archie.  “I say, Frank,” he continued, “I wish we could reproduce in our museum the scene we have just passed through.”

“So do I. If we could represent the buck in the act of upsetting us, it would be our ‘masterpiece,’ wouldn’t it?  But I am afraid that is further than our ingenuity extends.”

The boys drew on their clothes, which were but partially dry, and, after pulling ashore to get the hounds, which had kept up a loud barking all the time, they turned the boat’s head toward home.

After changing their clothes and eating a hearty dinner—­during which they related their adventure to Mrs. Nelson and Julia—­they carefully removed the buck’s skin, and hung it up in the shop by a fire to dry.