by Lilian Garis
CHAPTER XXII
PEG OF TAMARACK HILLS
The evening was cool and daylight lingered. True to her promise, Pegwith Aunt Carrie came again to visit Camp Comalong.
"I have the fire all ready to start," announced Julia, "but it is tooearly yet. Girls, do you realize I have been official fireman allsummer?"
"But you wouldn't allow us to interfere, wanted to be fireman,engineer and all that," said Cleo.
"Yes, you claimed we would waste matches," chimed in Corene.
"Do you notice we are all in uniform to-night?" said Louise. "Peg,yours is almost like ours."
"Yes, I have worn a Scout uniform, since--Girls," she said suddenly. "Inever told you, but I am a Scout myself!"
"You are?" in chorus.
"Yes. I joined in Pittsburg. But when I found myself sort of buried inthis mineral work it would be useless for me to talk or even think ofScouting. That was why I didn't mention it."
"And I wanted the child, so much, to go in for all your lovely times,"murmured Miss Ramsdell. "But there was no use. She would stick to herwork."
"And just think, after all, I never found the clue I searched for!"Peg's face now looked more boyish than ever, for it took on thatseriously determined look usually foreign to the feminine.
"What was it?" asked Louise.
"Wait, I'll get my box and show you," offered Peg; and Cleo went tothe "safe" with her to get out the square japanned box. They returnedto the council almost immediately. Then Peg took from the box a numberof stones.
"See," she said to her audience, "you asked me what zinc looked like.Here are some pieces."
The Scouts examined the specimens and passed them from one to another.
"And are they found around here?" asked Miss Mackin.
"Yes; dad found some and I found others. That is what I have beensearching for with my little hand-drill. Don't you remember you saw meon the big rock the day of your picnic?" asked Peg.
"Yes, we thought you were digging gold," joked Corene. "But I supposezinc is quite as valuable."
"Indeed, it is, if we could only find the lost vein," went on Peg."The men you have seen prowling around here are hired by Mr.Fairbanks. But if they had discovered the ore on daddy's claim Ishould have fought them for it," declared the plucky girl,emphatically.
She was taking out from the box stone after stone.
"See this," she said, holding up a flat, gray piece. "This is theclue. See those marks?"
Instantly the same thought flashed through the minds of the Scouts.
The Star Clue!
"We found pieces like that!" gasped Cleo.
"You--found them!"
"Yes, up by the big rock!" Every word spoken now seemed electricallycharged. It was Grace who said this.
"Wait! Wait!" begged Corene. "I'll get ours," and she dashed into thetent to drag from the "safe" the Scout's own treasures. Then she laidthe granite pieces on Peg's lap.
"Oh!" almost screamed the girl. "Do you know what this means! Auntie,they have found the lost star!"
Everyone was talking now, and no one seemed to say anythingintelligible; exclamations and sudden bursts of half formed sentencesfairly puncturing the calm evening atmosphere. Peg was almostovercome, but being a real girl she was not given to such heroics.
"It all formed the cutest little star," exclaimed Julia, finally. "Wemarked the spot so we can't possibly lose it. We will take you rightto it to-morrow morning," she offered sincerely.
"I don't know how I shall wait, but I'll have to, of course," saidPeg. "You see, daddy put that star there the very day he was takenill, and no matter how he tried to direct me I never could locate it."
"But your dear father could hardly tell you anything, darling," saidMiss Ramsdell. "He was not with us long after that."
"However did you come to discover it?" asked Peg, who was piecingtogether the magic stones that formed the star.
"We were following the danger--dynamite signs," said Cleo. "Have youseen them?"
"Oh, yes, indeed," replied the visitor. "They were put there by theFairbanks men to frighten me off. At first I did steer clear of them,but after kicking a few over and then watching the men plant them, Isaw they were perfectly harmless," declared Peg.
"We did that too, kicked them over, I mean," said Julia. "And did theydo that just to frighten you?"
"That and much more. But was there a sign near the star?"
"No; quite some distance from it," replied Corene, "and it was justburied in a little soft pocket."
"That's just what dad said!" exclaimed Peg. "Don't you know, auntie?He kept saying 'by Big Nose in a little green pocket.'"
"Yes? Strange that we should happen to use the same expression," putin Julia.
"And what does it all mean?" pressed the fascinated Isabel.
"It means that below that mark there is a vein of zinc. It runs fromthe rock, and dad was ready to bore for it just there," declared Peg.
The sunset was pouring out its glory and the streams of color cutthrough the trees to beautify the little council group of Girl Scouts.Aunt Carrie told them of the perseverance of her niece, who haddevoted all her girlish energy to fulfilling her father's cherishedplans.
"You see, we came up here to follow out my brother's ideas," said thelittle lady. Julia was now slipping away to light her campfire. "Wehave traveled a great deal, and followed many trails, but this onediscovered in Tamarack Hills offered the biggest prize."
"And just when everything was brightest, daddy had to go," put in Peg."I am sure no one could blame me for seeming queer when I was dutybound to take up his unfinished work."
"Only the thoughtless could ever have questioned your purpose," saidMiss Mackin. "You see how eager our girls were to get acquainted withyou."
"Yes--_your_ girls," emphasized Peg.
"Those other two fright-freaks were simply jealous," declared Gracewarmly. "They must have been furious that a girl like you could getthe best of their big upholstered father."
Everyone laughed at this description. Mr. Fairbanks really was sort oftufted and overstuffed.
"But I simply cannot believe you have found that vein mark that I havesearched months for," repeated Peg. "I don't see how I shall ever waitto go up there. And to think Uncle Edward will be here to-morrow."
"And that you will both stay with us again to-night!" broke in Julia.
"You really couldn't separate those stone pieces, you know," saidCleo. "You will need all those queer markings to follow out your cluewith."
"Yes, I could show those selfsame marks on a drawing that stone wasmarked from. The lines are eaten in with acid," explained the visitorseriously.
"We thought they were made by acid; that is, Mackey did; don't youremember, girls?" asked Louise.
The campfire blazed merrily now and the insistence that Peg and heraunt remain overnight finally was agreed to.
"Put the treasures away," suggested Cleo, "and let us sing 'ScoutsEvery One.' We are going to have such a glorious evening!"
"And yet," said Miss Ramsdell, "my niece tells me you are giving upcamp?"
"Yes, we felt it was so much needed by some city children," repliedCorene, "and we really have had a lovely summer. You see, we all havecottages up here, and can stay till the last boat makes the last tripof the season."
"Oh, no, we can't," corrected Isabel. "We all have to be backSeptember fifteenth in dear old Essveay, you know."
"Right, Izzy," said Corene. "I was just trying to fool myself. Here'sClee, all ready for her song. Get your uke, Louise."
Stars flickered and breezes hummed in with the girls' song; for whatin life is half so sweet as the joy of a peaceful campfire?
And the very next day the star pieces were traced in their mysteriousmarkings, the maps and outlines were matched up and the great zincvein was finally uncovered by trustworthy hands.
All they hoped for was finally fully realized, and Peg's labors werenot in vain.
Leave our little friends here, content
and happy until we meet themagain in the next volume of this series, to be called "The Girl Scoutsat Rocky Ledge."
THE END
