"Now I'll tie you to sh.o.r.e, go in swimming in this clean water, and row you home after I've dried out a bit," said Tom. So he went in swimming with all his clothes on, except his shoes and socks, and soon he was clean.

"Mother will be so glad to get the pond lilies," said Sue.

"And I guess she'll be glad to get my fish," said Bunny. "There's 'most enough for dinner."

Tom was nearly dry when he reached home, and no one said anything about his wet clothes.

"Oh, what lovely flowers!" exclaimed Mrs. Brown. "And what fine fish.

Did you catch them all alone, Bunny?"

"Yes'm, Momsie! Both of 'em. Where's Daddy?"

"Oh, off seeing some men. I believe there's to be a meeting at our camp to-night to talk about your friend Tom and Mr. Bixby."

"I hope they don't send Tom back," said Bunny. "He knows everything about this lake."

After supper several men came to Camp Rest-a-While. They were some of the county officers. Eagle Feather and some of the Indians were present, sitting by themselves, and Mr. Brown sat near Tom.

"May we stay and see what happens, Mother?" asked Bunny.

"I guess so. I don't know just what is going on, but I think your father is going to try to arrange matters so Tom will not have to go back to the hermit's to live."

"Hurray!" cried Bunny. "And while daddy is talking, I hope he'll ask everybody if they've seen my electric train."

"And my Sallie Malinda," added Sue. "My nice 'lectric-eyed Teddy bear."

For all the inquiries that had been made had not brought forth any trace of either of the children's toys. The man in whose barn Bunny had found one car, said he had seen no one hiding it in the hay.

"Daddy is going to say something!" whispered Sue.

"Hush!" cautioned her mother.

Just then Mr. Brown arose and looked at the men in front of him.

[Ill.u.s.tration: TOM WADED IN THE MUD AND WATER TO GET THE LILIES.

_Bunny Brown and His Sister Sue in the Big Woods._ _Page_ 233.]

CHAPTER XXV

THE MISSING TOYS

"Gentlemen," began Mr. Brown, "I have asked you all to come to my camp to-night to settle some questions, and, if possible, to find out what has been going on around here.

"As I have told you, two rather costly toys, belonging to my children, have been stolen. Eagle Feather's horse has been taken away. I know my children's toys have not been found. And I think, Eagle Feather, your horse is still missing?"

"Him no come back long time," said the Indian. "Stable all ready for him--good bed straw, hay to eat. He no come home. Me t'ink somebody keep him for himself."

"That's what we think, too, Eagle Feather," said Mr. Brown.

"Now there is one person I asked to come here to-night who is absent,"

he went on.

"The hermit," said some.

"Bixby," said others.

"I think we all mean the same man," said Mr. Brown.

"Now I have told you about this boy Tom, who was found by my children in a cave near the lake sh.o.r.e," he continued. "He was found crying, saying he was being stuck full of needles. I have not been able to get more than that out of him. He says Bixby made him take hold of two shiny b.a.l.l.s, and then the needles p.r.i.c.ked him. I have my own opinion of that, but I'll speak of that later.

"I asked Bixby here to-night, that we might talk to him. I find that he has a right to hire this boy to work for him, and under the law to keep him all Summer. So it seems that unless we can show that Bixby has treated Tom harshly he will have to go back."

"Unless we can prove that this needle-business was queer," said one man.

"Yes, and that is what I hoped to prove to-night. But since Mr. Bixby is not here to talk to us----"

"Suppose we go and talk to him!" cried an officer.

"He may hear us coming, and run away," said another.

"Not if we go through the cave," suggested Tom. "I got into the cave, where Bunny and Sue found me, by going through a hole in Bixby's stable."

"Then you'd better lead us through the cave," said Mr. Brown. "We may surprise the man at his tricks."

The party was soon going along the lake sh.o.r.e toward the cave.

The cavern was dark and silent when they entered it, but their lights made it bright.

On they went, all the men, with Mrs. Brown, Uncle Tad and the children coming at the rear of the procession. After they had gone far into the cave the whinny of a horse was heard.

"Ha!" exclaimed Eagle Feather. "Him sound like my horse!"

They went on softly through the cave and were soon near the place where Tom had entered it from the stable.

"Be very quiet now, everybody," said Mr. Brown.

"Sh-h-h," said Bunny to his mother and Sue, putting his finger on his lips.

"I'll take a peep and see if any one's in sight," said Tom.

He went forward a little way and came back to whisper:

"There are two horses and a cow in there, and one horse looks like Eagle Feather's."

"Let Indian see!" exclaimed the red man, and when he had peeped through a hole between two stones in the stable wall, while Tom flashed a flashlight through another hole, Eagle Feather cried: