“See anybody?” asked Giant in a low voice.

“Not a soul.”

“Supposing we walk around the place first?” suggested Snap.

The others agreed to this, and they circled the lonely structure at a distance of twenty yards.  Nobody appeared, nor did they hear any sound from within.

“I may be mistaken, but it looks deserted to me,” said Snap.

“Well, we thought it was deserted, too, until that fellow shied things at us,” answered the doctor’s son.

At last, growing a bit bolder, the three lads walked slowly up to the cabin, Snap and Giant with their guns ready for use and the doctor’s son with a stout stick he had cut.  Thus they reached the doorway, which was wide open.  Shep looked in, shielding his head with one arm, for he did not know but what he might become the target for anything the strange creature living there should have in hand.

The place was pitch dark inside, and for the moment the doctor’s son could see nothing.  But as his eyes grew accustomed to the gloom he saw a broken table and an old bench, and several discarded articles of culinary ware.

“Do yo—–­you se—–­see him?” whispered Giant.  He was so agitated he could scarcely frame the words.

Shep shook his head, and, growing still bolder, stepped into the lonely cabin.  With added caution his two chums followed.  They tiptoed their way through the two rooms and back again.

“He must have gone out,” said Snap at last.

“Shall I make a light?” And as the others assented he struck a match and lit the pocket lantern he had brought along.

The rays of the small light revealed a curious scene to them.  In a corner, where it had been hurled, lay Shep’s gun.  It had been discharged and the buckshot had gone through one sleeve of the shirt that had been stolen and which likewise lay in the corner.  There was some blood on the shirt, and bloodstains led across the floor to the doorway and outside.

“Must have shot himself,” was Snap’s comment.

“Yes; and ran away after he did it,” returned Giant.

“See anything of my watch?” asked Shep.

“No; and I don’t see my belt or my camera, either,” answered Snap.

“Or my sock,” put in Giant.

The inner room of the cabin was littered up with a variety of things, the wings of birds, feathers of chickens, shells of eggs, bones, bits of tree branches, an old iron chain, a tiny square looking-glass, badly cracked, some stale bread and cake, cores of apples and pears, and a great mass of other trash.

“He’s a regular pig,” was Snap’s comment.

“Wonder if he’ll come back to-night?” was Giant’s question.

“Perhaps, unless he was fatally wounded,” answered Shep.

They made a thorough search for the missing watch, camera, and other things, but without success.  Shep would not touch the shirt, and left it where it was.  But he took the gun, and after examining it proceeded to load up the empty barrel.