Page:Castlemon--Joe Wayring at Home.djvu/198



OW in the world did you manage to get separated from us so quickly?" asked Roy, addressing himself to Tom Bigden. "The last time I saw you, you were bringing up the rear all right, but when we lost the trail and stopped to hold a consultation, you were not to be seen."

Tom had been expecting this, and he was ready with his answer. Pointing to his boots, which he had purposely stuck into a mud-hole, shortly after his companions left him, he said:

"I got mired in the swamp, and by the time I could crawl out and pour the water from my boots, you had left me so far behind that I could neither see nor hear any thing of you. If I had come directly back to the pond instead of wasting time in looking for you, I might