IN THE CAVE
Splash, the big, shaggy dog, ran up and down the shore of the lake,
poking his nose in among the bushes here and there, barking loudly all
the while.
"What's the matter with Splash?" asked Sue of her brother. "Is there a
wild animal here, Bunny?"
"No, I don't guess so," the little boy answered. "Splash is wagging his
tail, and he wouldn't do that if there were wild animals around. He
doesn't like a wild animal. I guess Splash is just glad 'cause he is out
of a boat. Splash doesn't like a boat."
"I do," said Sue. "But we didn't ought to have come away in the boat all
alone, Bunny. Mother told us not to, you know."
"I know she did, Sue, but we couldn't help it. We were just going to
look for Bunker Blue and the wind blowed us away from the island. We
couldn't help it."
"No, I don't guess we could, Bunny. But what are we going to do now?"
"I guess we'll have to walk back to Camp Rest-a-While," answered Bunny.
"We can leave the boat here, and Bunker can come and get it."
"Can't we sail back in our boat, with the umbrella, same as we sailed
down here?" Sue wanted to know.
"We could if the wind would blow right, but it isn't," said Bunny. He
had been among his father's boatmen often enough to know that you have
to go with the wind, and not against it, when you're sailing a boat.
"We'll have to walk, Sue."
"Let's holler and yell," said the little girl, as she straightened out
the dress of her doll.
"What for?"
"So daddy or mother can hear us," Sue went on. "If we holler real loud
they may hear us, and come and get us in another boat. If we hadn't lost
the oars, Bunny, we could row back."
"Yes, but the oars are lost. I guess we'll just have to stay here, Sue.
We're losted again. But I'm not afraid. It's nice here, and if we get
hungry I can catch a fish. I have my pole, and there's a worm on my hook
yet."
"Is he a squiggily worm?" Sue wanted to know.
"He _was_ kind of squiggily," answered Bunny, "but I guess he's all done
squiggling now. He's deaded."
"Then I wouldn't be afraid of him," Sue said. "I could fish with him,
too. I don't like squiggily worms. They tickle you so."
Bunny walked back to the boat, which the wind had blown partly up on
shore. He looked for his fishing pole and line, and, after he had taken
it out, he saw the little basket of lunch his mother had put up. It had
not yet been opened.
"Oh, Sue!" Bunny cried. "Look! We've got our lunch! And there's a bottle
of milk, too! Now we can have a picnic!"
"And you won't have to catch any fish!" cried Sue, clapping her hands.
"I'm hungry Bunny. Let's have the picnic now!"
Bunny was willing, for he was hungry too, and the children, taking the
basket of lunch, sat down in a shady place on the shore to eat. As Sue
was taking off the napkins, in which the sandwiches and cakes were
wrapped, she happened to think of something.
"Oh, Bunny!" Sue said. "Part of this lunch was for Bunker Blue."
Bunny thought for a second or two.
"Well, Bunker isn't here now," he said, "and he can't get here, less'n
he swims. I don't guess he'll want any lunch, Sue."
"And anyhow, he can catch a fish," said Sue. "Bunker is good at fishing,
and he likes to eat 'em."
"I wonder where Bunker is now," pondered Bunny.
He looked back up the lake. He could not see the island where they had
left Bunker. It was out of sight around a bend in the lake shore.
"Do you think he'll swim down here and want some lunch?" asked Sue.
"No," answered Bunny. "We can eat all this. Bunker won't come."
And so the children began on their lunch, sharing some of it with
Splash, who, after a bath in the lake, lay down in the sun to dry
himself.
By this time Bunker Blue, back on the far end of the island, had caught
three fine, big fish. He was so excited and glad about getting them
that, for a while, he forgot all about Bunny Brown and his sister Sue.
Then he happened to remember them.
"I'll go back to the boat and get the children," said Bunker Blue to
himself. "They can catch fish here, and that will tickle Bunny. He never
yet caught real big fish like these."
But when Bunker went to the place where he had left Bunny and Sue in the
boat, the children were not there, nor was there any sight of the boat.
Bunker had been fishing by himself longer than he thought, and by this
time Bunny and Sue were out of sight around a bend in the shore.
Bunker rubbed his eyes. Then he looked again. There was no doubt of
it--the boat was gone, and so were the children.
"Where can they be?" asked Bunker, aloud. But there was no one on the
little island to answer him.
Then the red-haired boy happened to think that perhaps Bunny might have
taken the boat around to the other end of the island. Bunker quickly ran
there, but no boat was to be seen.
"They've either drifted away," said Bunker, "or else they've rowed
themselves away. It's too bad; but they know how to behave in a boat,
that's one good thing. They won't try to stand up, and so fall
overboard. I wonder if I could call to them?"
Bunker shouted, but Bunny and Sue were too far away to hear him. Bunker
then sat down on a stone. He did not know what to do. He looked over to
the main shore, where he could just see the white tents of Camp
Rest-a-While.
"Well, if we don't come back pretty soon, Mr. Brown will know something
is wrong, and he'll get another boat and come over here," thought
Bunker. "Then I can tell him what has happened, and we can go and look
for the children. I guess they'll be all right. All I can do is to
wait."
All this while Bunny and Sue were eating their lunch. They were not
frightened now, and they very much enjoyed their little umbrella-sail
excursion in the boat and the picnic they were having.
But, pretty soon, it began to grow cloudy, and then it began to rain.
"I don't like this," said Sue. "I want to go home, Bunny."
Bunny, himself, would have been glad to be in camp with his father and
mother, but he thought, being a boy, he must be brave, and look after
his little sister, so he said:
"Oh, I guess this rain won't be very bad, Sue. We'll go back into the
woods, under the trees. Then we can keep dry. And we'll take the lunch,
too. There'll be enough for supper."
"Will we have to stay here for supper?" asked Sue.
"Maybe," answered Bunny. "But if we do it will be fun. Come on!"
It was now raining hard. Bunny carried the lunch basket, with the
bottle of milk--now half emptied--in one hand. The other hand clasped
Sue's. They went back in the wood a little way, and, all at once, Bunny
saw something that made him call:
"Oh, Sue! Here's a good place to get in out of the rain!"
"What is it?" Sue asked.
"A cave!" cried Bunny. "It's a regular cave, like robbers live in! Come
on, Sue! Now we're all right! Oh, this is fun!" and Bunny ran forward
into the dark hole in the side of the hill--right into the cave he ran.