Camp Venture: A Story of the Virginia Mountains

  CHAPTER III

  _The Doctor's Plans_

  The little company had only a mile, or a trifle more, to go beforereaching their final destination. But it was literally "up hill work."Often it was worse even than that, involving the climbing of cliffs anddifficult struggles to force the mules through rocky and tangledwoodlands.

  It was nearly ten o'clock therefore when they at last came to a halt ina body of thick-growing timber, and after a careful inspection of thesituation, decided to pitch their permanent camp there.

  There were many points to be considered in locating themselves. Theymust have water of course and there was a spring here under the cliffthat rose at the back of the plateau. It needed some digging out to forma basin, but an hour's or two hours' work by two of the party wouldaccomplish that. They must be near the cliff on the other side overwhich their ties and timbers were to be sent into the slide that was tocarry them to the valley below, and this spot seemed the best of allfor the purpose. Finally the timber, consisting chiefly of vigorousyoung oaks, hickories and chestnuts, but having many giant treesbesides, was here especially dense in its growth, and ready to theirhands and axes.

  "There's a steep reach of mountain looming up just behind us," said theDoctor, "and when the snows come it may give us some trouble in the wayof avalanches, floods and the like, but on the whole I think this is thebest spot we could select."

  So the pack mules were relieved of their loads, and turned loose. It wascertain that the sagacious animals would slowly retrace the road overwhich they had come and return to their master in the valley below. Atany rate the master of them was confident of that and his agreement withthe boys had been that the mules should simply be turned loose whentheir task was done.

  "Now let's all get together," said Jack Ridsdale when the mulesdisappeared over the edge of the last troublesome ascent. "Let's all gettogether and lay out our work."

  "That's right," said the Doctor. "We must first of all provide forimmediate needs, and next for a permanent camp. Now first, what are ourimmediate needs?"

  "Water, fire, and a temporary shelter," promptly answered little Tom thereadiest thinker as well as the most experienced woodsman in the wholecompany.

  "Well we'll set two fellows at work digging out a large basin for thatspring," said Jack. "That will give us an adequate water supply for allwinter. You Tom, and Ed Parmly, are detailed to that work. Now as toshelter. Of course we've got to build a permanent winter quarters. Butthat will take several days--perhaps a week, and in the meantime we'relikely to have snows or rains and we must have some sort of temporaryabode. We must build that to-day. How shall it be done?"

  "Easy enough," answered Harry Ridsdale. "We can set up some poles justunder the cliff back there and make a shed open in front and coveredwith bushes so arranged as to shed the rain. Of course the placewouldn't be a good one for permanent quarters, but in November there areno avalanches or anything else of that sort, and so a temporary shedthere will answer our purpose for the present."

  "But how are we going to keep it warm?" asked Ed.

  "By building a big fire in front of it," answered Harry.

  "But suppose the wind should blow hard from the north and blow all thesmoke into our shed?" said Ed.

  "Well, let it," answered Harry. "The smoke will rise, especially in ahigh wind, and our bush roof will certainly be porous enough to let itthrough."

  After a little further discussion it was decided to adopt Harry's plan,and by the time that Tom and Ed had completed the work of digging out awater reservoir, the rest of the party had constructed a temporaryshelter under the cliff, quite sufficient for their immediate needs. Bythis time hunger--that always recurring condition--had seized upon themand they prepared a rather late dinner of squirrels that had been shotby one and another of the party on the journey. They were tired, too,and the need of rest was imperative. So they decided to do no more workthat day, but to devote its remaining hours to the task of planningtheir winter quarters.

  First of all they selected a location for their winter house which theDoctor thought the avalanches and the floods from the mountains wouldnot seriously inconvenience. The ground on which they were camping was asort of plateau, with a cliff rising behind and with the steep mountainside falling away into the fathomless depths in front. The plateauembraced several acres of land, and it was fairly level; but the spotselected for winter quarters was a little knoll which rose above thegeneral level very near the top of the steep front.

  By the time that all this had been accomplished night fell, and therewas supper to get. After supper Jack said:

  "Now we've laid out our camp, but we haven't named it yet. With theenmity of the moonshiners already aroused, it's a venture--our stayinghere I mean--but we're going to make the venture. So I propose that wecall this camp of ours 'Camp Danger,' or 'Camp Risk' or camp somethingelse of the sort."

  "Why not call it 'Camp Venture?'" asked Harry.

  "Good! 'Camp Venture' it is," answered Ed Parmly and the Doctor inunison. "Let it be 'Camp Venture'" and, added the Doctor, "if we are upto our business we'll show our friends that 'Camp Venture' did notventure more than its members were able to carry out. I'll tell youwhat, boys, I'm going to keep a diary setting forth all our adventures,and when the thing is over and done for, I'm going to write a book aboutit."

  "Then we'll all be heroes of romance," said Jack. "Who'll be the villainof the piece?"

  "Not at all," answered the Doctor. "I shall use fictitious names for allof you and even for myself, so that nobody shall ever know who we are orwho it was that lived and experienced and perhaps suffered in 'CampVenture.' I'm not going to spoil you superb fellows by making publicpersonages of you before your time. But I'm going to write a book aboutyour doings and sayings, which will perhaps interest some other boys andhelp them to meet duty as it ought to be met."

  This story is the book that the Doctor wrote.