"That's the ticket!" cried Bobolink, excitedly. "See, fellows, how it's
skinned where his shoes scraped along it."

"As sure as shooting he climbed up into that tree!" declared one,
excitedly.

"Then scatter, and examine the ground around the trunk!" said Paul.

A minute or so later a happy whoop announced that one of the searchers
had discovered the wished-for signs; and away the whole troop went on
a trot, following the leader.

Meanwhile the photographers managed to get in some of their efforts,
possibly unbeknown to the rest. Exposures where the subjects are
unconscious of their posing always turn out best; since they avoid
stiffness, such as ruins so many otherwise interesting pictures.

Here, with the woods for a background, Paul, acting by agreement as
temporary scout master, drilled his followers in scout law, sign, salute,
and the significance of the badges which they wore, all of them, of
course, of the tenderfoot type, since few had as yet started to qualify
for any higher plane.

Signal flags had been brought along; and a class in semaphore work proved
that some of the members of the troop were making rapid progress along
that line. They had mastered the Morse code, too; and had the occasion
arisen might have sent messages over the wire, although probably none
save Paul could have received the same, unless the words came painfully
slow.