But the big boy who had dropped down through the chimney hole straightened up suddenly.  Bunny could see him patting Splash on the head.

And that was rather strange, for Splash did not easily make friends with strangers.  He would not bite them, but he would bark at them, until some of his friends had said it was all right, and that he need bark no more.

But, after his bark of surprise this time, Splash seemed to have suddenly made friends with the big boy who had come sliding down the chimney hole of the cave.

“Who—­who are you?” asked Bunny again.

Instead of answering the big boy laughed.  Then he asked: 

“Are you Bunny Brown and his sister Sue?”

“Ye—­yes—­yes, we are,” Bunny said.  “But how did you know?”

“Oh, I can tell, all right.”

Splash seemed very glad to meet the strange boy.  There was still light enough coming down the chimney hole for Bunny to see the dog’s wagging tail.  And Splash did not wag his tail for persons he did not like.  This must be a friend.

“Is—­is you a robber?” asked Sue.  She had hidden her face in the pile of bags, and was holding closely to her doll.

Again the big boy laughed.

“No, I’m not a robber,” he said, “though I did take a piece of your mother’s bacon.  But I’ll pay her back for it.  How in the world did you find my cave, and where is your father, or Bunker Blue?  And what are you doing out alone in this storm?  Are you——­”

But Bunny Brown broke in on the questions.

“Oh, I know who you are!  I know who you are!” Bunny cried.  “You’re Tom Vine who ran away from us!  Why did you run away?  Daddy has been looking for you.  You are Tom Vine; aren’t you?”

“Yes, Bunny, I am.  Wait a minute and I’ll light a lantern, and you can see me better.  Look out, Splash, so I won’t step on you.”

So that was why Splash had made such good friends with the big boy who came down the cave chimney hole—­Splash knew Tom Vine, of course, even in the darkness.

Tom walked over to one of the boxes, and brought out a lantern.  This he lighted.  Bunny and Sue blinked their eyes at the sudden light, but they were soon used to it.  Then they looked at Tom.

Yes, it was he.  But he was even more ragged than when they had first seen him.  He was laughing, though, and did not seem sad.

“And to think when I came home, and slid down the chimney of my cave, which I sometimes do, when I don’t want to go around to the front door—­to think when I did this I should find Bunny Brown and his sister Sue here!” said Tom.  “How in the world did you find me?”

“We weren’t looking for you,” answered Bunny.  “We were in the boat, with Bunker Blue.  He went on an island to fish, and we sailed away with the umbrella.  We landed here and I found this cave, to get out of the rain.  I told Sue it was a make-believe robbers’ cave.”