He threw it at Russ and then, from some point back of the fort another "cannon ball" came sailing into it, flying off and hitting Laddie's brother.

"Ouch! Quit that!" cried Russ. "'Tisn't fair throwing sand! A lot of it went down my neck."

"I didn't throw sand!" said Laddie.

"Yes, you did, too! That last cannon ball you threw had a lot of sand wrapped up in it."

"No, I didn't," cried Laddie.

"Don't you think I know!" shouted Russ, scrambling up out of the hole behind his fort. "Can't I feel it?"

Just then another paper "cannon ball" sailed into the fort from a sand hill back of it and it fell at the feet of Russ and burst, letting out a pile of sand.

"There!" cried Russ. "What'd I tell you?"

"But I didn't throw it!" said Laddie. "You looked right at me and I didn't throw it."

"No, you didn't," admitted Russ. "It came from in back of me. I wonder who's throwing sand cannon b.a.l.l.s at us."

And then came another which hit Laddie, sending a shower of the gritty grains down his back.

"Hi! Quit that!" cried Russ. He and Laddie looked all around, but they could see no one. A mysterious enemy was shooting at them.

CHAPTER XXV

THE TREASURE

Once more there came sailing through the air a paper "cannon ball." It fell on the ground between Laddie and Russ and burst open, a lot of dry, soft sand spilling out.

"There!" cried Laddie. "See! I didn't throw 'em!"

"No, I don't guess you did," admitted Russ. "But who did?"

Just then a jolly laugh sounded, and out from behind a ridge of sand--one of the dunes made by the wind--came George Carr.

"Did I scare you?" asked George.

"A--a little," admitted Russ, wiggling to get rid of the sand down his back.

"We didn't know who it was," said Laddie. And he, too, squirmed about, for there was sand inside his blouse.

"I thought you wouldn't," said George, laughing again. "I saw you playing soldiers and I thought I'd make believe I was another enemy coming up behind. You didn't make any fort in back of you," he said to Russ, "and so I could easily fire at you."

"But we don't put sand in our paper bullets," complained Laddie.

"Don't you?" asked George. "Then I'm sorry I did. I hope I didn't hurt you, or get any in your eyes."

"No," answered Russ, sort of shaking himself to let the sand sift down through the legs of his knickerbockers. "But it tickles a lot."

"Well, I won't throw any more," promised George. "But lots of times we play soldier down on the beach and we throw sand bullets. Only we don't ever throw 'em at each others' eyes. Sand in your eyes hurts like anything."

"I know it does," agreed Russ. "Mun Bun got some in his the other day and he cried a lot."

"Well, come on, let's play soldier some more," suggested George. "I'll be on Laddie's side. You go in the fort, Russ, and we'll stand against you. Two to one is fair when the one is inside a fort."

"And won't you throw any more sand bullets or cannon b.a.l.l.s?"

"No, only paper ones."

"All right, then I'll play."

Russ went back in his fort, and Laddie and George, outside the wall of sand, began pelting him with wads of paper. But now the battle went differently. The attacking force could shoot twice as many paper bullets and b.a.l.l.s as could Russ and they soon ran up on him, pelting him so that he had to put his hands over his head.

"All right--I surrender! I give up!" he cried.

"Wait till I haul down the flag!" laughed George.

Then he took down the red and blue penciled handkerchief and he and Laddie took possession of the fort. Russ was beaten, but he did not mind, for it was all in fun. Then he took a turn outside the fort, with Laddie and George inside. However, as this was two against one, Russ could not win, though the three boys had jolly times.

They were pelting away at one another, using paper "bullets" and "cannon b.a.l.l.s," shouting and laughing, when, as they became quiet for a moment, they heard a voice asking:

"What is all this?"

They looked up to see Mrs. Bunker with Mun Bun and Margy.

"How-do?" called George, grinning.

"Oh, we're having such fun!" cried Laddie. "We're soldiers and we got a fort, and we had a flag----"

"It's made out of a handkerchief and red and blue pencils," added Russ.

"I want to play soldier!" exclaimed Mun Bun.

"No, it's too rough for you," explained Russ.

"I want to play, too!" insisted Margy.

"We're done playing fort and soldier," said Russ. "We'll play something else."

"Let's see who can dig the deepest hole," suggested George. "I'll go and get a shovel, and you have yours, Russ and Laddie. Let's see who can dig the deepest hole!"

The two older Bunker boys thought this would be fun, and George ran over to his cottage to get his shovel.

"Can we play that game, Mother?" asked Margy.