"Well, Archie wrote that he had laid out a plan for his amusement this
winter. You know he is independent, having come into quite a snug
fortune. He is as fond of outdoor life as any member of this club, and,
having a tutor to accompany him, is able to do lots of splendid stunts
that less fortunate chaps can only dream about."

"The lucky dog!" commented Bluff, enviously.

"It seems that this year he was about to carry out a long-cherished plan
of his. He purchased a beautiful little motor-boat, about twenty-seven
feet long, and carrying a twelve horse-power engine. He says she can make
twelve miles an hour if pushed, but being beamy she is as steady as a
church floor and mighty comfortable; just the kind of a craft for
cruising along a river or the bays of a coast."

Jerry groaned.

"You're killing me by inches! To tell us all this and then ask us to
settle on going up there into the woods for a two-weeks' spin! It's a
crime, that's what!" he exclaimed.

"Wait!" said Frank, mysteriously; and the others immediately drew a bit
closer, almost holding their very breath with eagerness and anticipation.

"He had this boat taken to a Southern town on the railroad, where a
navigable river flows through Northern Florida into the Gulf. Here he
also shipped all his provisions, intending to make a start just before
Christmas, when the unexpected happened. He had an accident--broke
through the ice when skating, came near being drowned, and has been laid