“What’s that you say?” exclaimed Arthur, while Billy’s eyes were like small editions of saucers, in so far as being round was concerned.

“We belong at the State Asylum for the Criminal Insane,” explained the taller man, whom Hugh now understood must be a guard.  “There was a notorious party shut up there, and he managed to escape by the aid of his money and the help of some friends outside.  Men are searching the whole country over for signs of him.  We got a clue that he might be found up here in this region, and that he was being taken care of in a camp, until such time as he could cross the line into Canada.”

“Can we lower our hands now, friend?” asked Hugh, seeing that Billy for one was getting very red in the face with the exertion of stretching upward so long.

“I guess you don’t none of you look very dangerous,” he was told, “so drop back as you please.  We can’t take chances, you understand, so we’ll ask you to produce proofs that you’re what you claim.  Then if everything is O.K. p’raps now you might invite a couple of hungry and tired guards to hang around a while until you rustled up a bit of grub, and a cup of hot coffee which would go straight to the spot, for we haven’t had a thing to eat since last night.”

“Oh! that’s really too bad!” exclaimed Billy, immediately sympathizing with any one who knew, the pangs of hunger.  “Sure, we’ll invite you to stay with us to lunch.  Luckily my policy of always providing a little extra will come in handy, for we can fit you out with a pretty fair meal.”

Even the shorter guard grinned on hearing this.  He seemed to have quite lost the feeling of suspicion he had at first entertained toward Hugh and his chums.  In fact, he even stood his repeating rifle up against the tree nearest him, and seemed bent on taking things easy.

Hugh was pleased because the adventure had after all turned out so harmless.  He had been a little startled when the demand was first made that they should surrender, and mention made of the startling fact that they must consider themselves under arrest.

Every one busied himself in gathering wood, and making preparations for building a fire, even though, under ordinary conditions the boys might not have started in to cook for some time to come.  Billy, however, seemed to consider it always in order to think of such an important subject as “preserving life”; for that was what he was pleased to call eating.  No one ever heard a groan or complaint from Billy when the order was given to prepare a meal; if the occurrence happened six times a day he would have shown up smiling and hungry on each and every occasion.

The taller guard became more and more friendly as he watched these preparations going on.  He also asked numerous questions concerning Hugh and his chums.

“Now that I think of it,” he remarked presently, “it strikes me I read something about a batch of Oakvale scouts that helped the people over in Lawrence when they had that big flood there.  Are you some of that lot, boys?”