He had a thousand things to tell the boys, but, of course, he did not
want to exhaust the subject in the beginning. By degrees they should hear
all about his many adventures. It would be his daily pleasures
to thrill his boy visitors with these truthful stories as they gathered
each night around the roaring fire and rested after the day's work.

The shades of night, their very first night in those wonderful North
Woods of which they had dreamed so long, were fast gathering now.

Already the shadows had issued forth from their hiding places, and the
woods began to assume a certain gloomy look.

Later on, the moon, being just past the full, would rise above the top of
the distant hills toward the east. Then the woods might not seem so
strangely mysterious.

"When you're ready to begin getting supper, Uncle Jim," said Max, "you
must let us lend a hand. We don't know it all by a long sight, but we can
cook some, and eat--wait till you see Steve begin, and Toby--Why, hello,
here we've been chattering away like a flock of crows and never noticed
that our chum Toby was missing all the while!"

"Missing!" echoed Steve, jumping up eagerly at the prospect of their
first adventure coming along; and no doubt already picturing all of them
stalking through the big timber, lanterns and torches in hand, searching
for the absent chum.

"Who saw him last?" asked Max.