The path through the woods was not well defined and at one place forked in several directions. Stuffer did not notice this and kept to the right when he should have gone to the left. Andy followed without question, and thus the two cadets, instead of nearing the old barn, plunged deeper and deeper into the woods.
“Say, Stuffer, this doesn’t seem to be right,” observed Andy, after a full mile and a half had been covered.
“Huh! I know I am right,” was the reply. “We’ll get to the barn in a few minutes.”
They continued to go forward, up a slight rise of ground and then down into something of a hollow. Andy was just about to say again that he thought they were on the wrong path when he caught sight of a small campfire.
“They have arrived and lit a fire!” answered Stuffer. “I don’t blame them. It is pretty cold. But they are running the risk of being discovered.”
“Stuffer, this isn’t the location of the old barn. We are not near the lake.”
“The locality doesn’t look like it. These are hemlock trees, while back of the barn there are chestnuts and walnuts.”
“That’s so too,” and now Stuffer became doubtful.
Moving a little more slowly, the two boys drew closer to the campfire. They saw that it was in a little clearing, to one side of which were some rocks and a spring of water. On the other side several small trees had been cut down and a rude shelter erected, covered with an old wagon top and several old horse blankets.
“Must be a gypsy camp,” said Stuffer, in a low tone, as the two boys stepped behind some bushes to gaze at the scene presented.
“They are tramps,” was Andy’s answer. “Don’t you see the hoboes lying around?”
He pointed to the forms of three men resting near the campfire. They were all rough-looking individuals and their clothing and shoes were much dilapidated. Several empty bottles lay scattered around, indicating that the fellows were drinkers. Near the shelter were a pile of chicken feathers and the skin of a lamb.
“I’ll tell you what I think,” whispered Andy. “These are not only tramps but also thieves. They have been robbing the farmers’ henroosts and somebody’s sheepfold. They’ve got a regular hangout here. I wonder how many of them there are?”
“I see three—but some of the crowd may be under the shelter. If they are thieves they ought to be locked up.”