And all the respectable home-loving birds were seeking their
nests.
And so these two strolled on, and for a few minutes neither spoke.
"Well then, suppose I give you a tip," Tom said. "Will you promise that
you'll make good? You claim to be a scout. You say that when you get
your mind set on a thing, nothing can stop you. That the idea?"
"That's it," Hervey answered.
"You wouldn't drop a trail after you once picked it up, would you? Some
animals take you pretty far."
"You bet nothing would stop _me_ if I once got the tracks," Hervey said.
"I wouldn't care if they took me across the Desert of Sahara or over the
Rocky Mountains."
"Hang on like a bulldog, hey?" Tom said.
"That's me," said Hervey.
"All right, it's a go," Tom concluded. "I'll see if I can give you a
pointer or two down near camp in the morning. Ever follow a
woodchuck--or a coon? Only I don't want any badge-getter falling down on
a trail, if I'm mixed up with it. That's one thing I can't stand--a
quitter."
"I wouldn't anyway," Hervey said with great fervor; "but as long as I've
got you and what you said to think about, you can bet your sweet life
that not even a--a--a jungle would stop me--it wouldn't."
"That's the kind of a fellow they want for an Eagle Scout," Tom said;
"do or die."
"That's me," said Hervey Willetts.
CHAPTER VI
THE EAGLE AND THE SCOUT
And so these two strolled on. And presently they came to a point where
the wood was more sparse, for they were approaching the rugged lower
ledges of a mighty mountain, and the last rays of the dying sun fell
upon the rocks and scantier vegetation of this clearer area, emphasizing
the solemn darkness of the wooded ascent beyond.
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