“No, I’m not strong enough yet to do that,” Bennie laughed.
“You never will be!” Dumplin’ retorted, filling his plate again.
After their supper the boys hung their wet clothes by the camp fire, and huddled by it themselves for a while, but Uncle Billy soon ordered them to bed, and they didn’t need to be told twice.
The doctor came into the tent after they had crawled into the grateful, warm blankets on the comfortable air cushions of their sleeping bags.
“Uncle Bill,” said Bennie, “it was my fault we crossed the lake. Spider didn’t have a thing to do with planning the trip.”
“No, we were both to blame,” put in Spider. “We knew we couldn’t row all around the lake, and we wanted to see the grotto and Llao Rock both, so we cut across. I—I guess we didn’t really think.”
“We won’t say anything more about it,” the doctor answered. “It’s come out all right. But maybe next time you’ll believe that I know more about this country than you do, and when I ask for a promise, it isn’t just an old maid’s fancy.”
When he had gone out, Spider whispered across the tent, “He’s a peach, your uncle. Gee, he didn’t bawl us out a bit.”
“Made me more ashamed than if he had,” Bennie replied.
“I guess we gave him a bad time of it, worrying about us. I guess we deserved to get ours.”
“Kid, you’ve enunciated a history full!” Bennie answered. “We’re bum scouts. Never again.”
They were sound asleep when Uncle Billy returned from a last call on his patient at the hotel and went to bed.
CHAPTER XIV Bennie Takes a Day Off to Do a Good Turn—He Washes All the Dirty Clothes
The next day neither of the scouts felt much like strenuous exertion. Their arms ached from pulling the boat, and they both had blisters on their hands, and the excitement had left them rather tired.
Mr. Stone looked at them while they were eating breakfast.
“Well, Bennie,” he said, “what are you and Spider going to do today? I can’t seem to think of anything left around here that will give you as much exercise as you want. Of course, you haven’t yet run all the way down the trail and run all the way back again. You might try that. Or you might row to Llao Rock and tow your other boat home, before the launch has to go for it.”
“Naw, that’s too easy,” Bennie grinned. “I kind of thought we might hike around the rim road. How far is it—forty miles? We’d be back in time for dinner.”