At first the dry twigs refused to ignite, but
presently one caught the blaze, then another, and directly Sandy
was obliged to draw his face away from the growing heat.
"There!" he exclaimed triumphantly. "Didn't I tell you I could do
it?"
"You said you could," answered Thede, "but I didn't believe it!"
"Look here," Tommy said in a minute, sheltering his face from the
smoke. "First thing we know, we'll have this whole blooming tree
on fire."
"If it gets good and hot, we can fry fish after the bears go away,"
suggested Thede. "I'm hungry! By the way," he added with a grin,
"where are those fish?"
"Do you think I brought 'em up in the tree?" demanded Sandy.
"You never left 'em down there?" asked Thede.
"Didn't I?" exclaimed Sandy. "What did you do with the ones you
were carrying?"
"Why," replied Thede, "I guess I left 'em in the thicket where we
stood when we made a hop-skip-and-jump for the tree."
"We certainly are a bright mess!" cried Sandy.
"Say," Thede said in a moment, "I'll just bet that's what kept the
bears so still while we've been up here building the fire. They've
been eating our fish! That's why we couldn't get sight of them!"
"Can you see the bears now?" asked Sandy. "I'm sure I can't!"
"They're still back in there eating our trout!' wailed Thede.
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