The boys could scarcely sleep that night, so excited were they over the prospect ahead.  All of them were up at dawn and procured breakfast as quickly as they could.  Then the game-bags were filled with provisions, the guns were overhauled, and Snap got the rope he had mentioned.

“Now I guess we are ready,” said Shep.

“Wait till I kick out the fire,” said Whopper.  “Don’t want the place to burn up while we are away.”

The fire extinguished, they set off on their journey and were soon a goodly distance from the lake.  The snow had disappeared and the day promised to be an unusually warm one.  They did not look for any game, and when a rabbit crossed their path nobody shot at it.

“We are after other game to-day,” observed Snap, grimly.

“If only we have the same success as we had when we caught that nigger,” came from Whopper.  “That was dead easy.”

“I don’t think we’ll catch him asleep,” said Shep.  “He is a wide-awake fellow, if nothing else.”

On and on they went, covering several miles.  They passed the trees that were loaded with nuts, but did not stop, and soon came in sight of the clearing.

“Now go slow,” cautioned Snap.  “If he sees us from a distance he may take it into his head to run away.”

“Maybe one or two of us had better go forward and investigate,” suggested Giant.

This was thought a good plan, and Snap and Shep went forward, slowly and cautiously, until they gained the very edge of the clearing.

“I see smoke coming out of the chimney,” said Snap.  “That would seem to show he is still there.”

The door to the old cottage was tightly closed, and growing bolder, the two young hunters walked to it and knocked loudly.

“See that he doesn’t slip out the other way,” whispered Snap to his chum, and Shep at once ran around to the other side of the building.

As there was no answer to the summons, Snap knocked on the door a second time.  Still there was no response.

“Guess I’ll go in,” he murmured, and pushed the door open.

The apartment beyond was the living-room of the old cottage and a glance showed him a smouldering fire in the fireplace.  Nobody was visible.

From the kitchen the boy hunter went into the room beyond and then ran upstairs.

“See anybody?” called Shep, as Snap showed himself at a broken-out window.

“No.  Call the others.”

Shep did as requested, and soon all of the young hunters were making an investigation of the premises.

“He must have gone away this morning,” said Giant.  “See how the fire is still burning.”

“I wish I knew where he had gone to,” said Snap, with a long sigh.

“Perhaps we can find out if we search closely.”

In the cottage they found the remains of some meals the stranger had had, and also some scraps of paper, including an envelope addressed to Lusher Barrock.