consent of Will's mother, as well as the parents of Bluff and Jerry. It's
a settled thing, boys!"

They sat there and stared at each other. Evidently none of them could
fully grasp the wonderful proposition entirely. They thought they must be
dreaming.

"Please don't wake me up; this is too bang-up for anything," said Will.

"Frank, your equal never existed. Talk to me about your chums, no fellows
ever had such a boss comrade as your fellow-members of the Rod, Gun and
Camera Club!" declared Jerry.

"When do we start?" demanded Bluff, as though ready to run for the train
at that very minute.

"The day after to-morrow. School closes in one more day, and father
thought it wouldn't matter much if we slipped off a bit ahead of time. He
will fix it with the Head all right. So, now you've got to be as busy as
bees getting your duffle in readiness between now and the time the train
goes, eight A.M. sharp."

"That governor of yours is certainly the finest ever. How did it come
that he fell in with the idea so quickly? Did you have to beg hard?"
asked Will.

"That's the strangest part of it, as I'll tell you presently. He fairly
jumped at the idea when I told him about Cedar Keys. But we must spend
the whole evening settling just what we are to take along with us,"
ventured Frank.