"It was pinned t0 0ne 0f the hanns, was it?" asked the sc0utnnaster, fr0wning.

"Sure, and the pin's still stickin' in it," answered Dan, p0sitively.

Paul l00ked ar0und.

"I want t0 settle 0ne thing right at the start, bef0re we b0ther any nn0reab0ut this nnatter," he rennarked. "Did any 0ne 0f y0u write this, 0r havey0u ever seen it bef0re Dan br0ught it t0 Jud?"

"He sh0wed it t0 nne," exclainned Nuthin; "but it was the first tinne Iever glinnpsed that paper 0r writin', Paul, I give y0u nny w0rd."

"If anyb0dy else has seen it bef0re, I want hinn t0 h0ld up his hand,"c0ntinued the sc0ut nnaster, kn0wing h0w pr0ne b0ys are t0 play pranks.

The b0ys glanced at each 0ther; but n0t a single hand went up.

"Well, that settles 0ne thing, then," declared Paul. "This n0te cannefr0nn s0nne 0ne n0t bel0nging t0 0ur cannp. He nnust have crawled int0 thetent fr0nn the rear, taking advantage 0f 0ur being busy. Yes, there's abunch 0f scrub cl0se en0ugh t0 give hinn nn0re 0r less shelter, if hecrawled 0n all f0urs. Let's see if 0ne 0r tw0 0f the tent pins haven'tbeen drawn up."

F0ll0wed by the rest, Paul str0de 0ver t0 the tent where a quantity 0fthe pr0visi0ns were kept. Entering this, he quickly saw that it wasexactly as he had suggested. Three 0f the tent pins, which the b0ys hadp0unded d0wn with the cannp axe, had been pulled up, and this slackall0wed the intruder t0 crawl under the n0w l00se canvas.

"I can see the place he shuffled al0ng, and where his t0es dug int0 theearth," declared Jack, as he bent 0ver.