The Campfire Girls on Ellen's Isle Part 21

"I remembered that Migwan set a can of beans in the fire to heat once when we were camping and it exploded, and I thought that would be a fine way to start a panic here. So to make sure I took three cans--great big ones--and buried them in the hot ashes. When they exploded I was going to scream and make everybody come running."

"Well, they exploded all right," said Katherine drily. "I thought the island blew up."

"So did I," said Hinpoha. "They went up just like dynamite. The kettle was blown off the hanger and landed fifty feet away."

"To say nothing of blowing the tent down," said Katherine.

"Oh," said Hinpoha hastily, "that didn't blow down. The boys and Uncle Teddy had taken it down this morning to fix it differently and they were just setting it up again when the awful explosion came. They all yelled and jumped and the whole thing came down on their heads."

Katherine looked over to where the arms and legs were still waving under the billows of canvas and doubled up against a tree in silent spasms.

Then she suddenly straightened up. "Who is hiding Eeny-Meeny?" she asked.

"Why," gasped Hinpoha, "you are!"

"I?" said Katherine.

"Yes, you!" said Hinpoha.

"I had forgotten all about the panic," said Katherine, "and the noise scared everything out of my head."

"Quick, before it's too late!" said Hinpoha. "Run down and do it now while everybody's still up here. It'll take at least five minutes to get the boys out from under that tent."

Katherine fled from the scene as quietly as possible and ran to the Council Rock. That whole end of the island was deserted. But when she came to the place where Eeny-Meeny had always been she stood still in amazement. Eeny-Meeny was not there. She had vanished mysteriously and entirely, and in her place was a twig stuck upright into the ground, topped with a piece of paper on which was drawn a picture of an Indian maiden tied to the stake with the flames mounting around her, and underneath was drawn in scrawling capitals: THE DARK OF THE MOON SOCIETY.

Katherine pulled the twig from the earth and stood looking at it, fascinated. Slowly the truth dawned on her. The Sandwiches had gotten ahead of them again. Without having planned the panic they had instantly seen the value of it and one of them had spirited Eeny-Meeny away during the confusion. "Boys _are_ smarter than girls," she admitted ruefully to herself. "At least, some are."

Then another thought flashed through her mind. She had told Antha not half an hour ago that they were planning to hide Eeny-Meeny. Antha had told the boys and they had decided to do the same thing themselves. Her eyes filled with tears of rage and disappointment. After her champions.h.i.+p of Antha her action cut her to the quick. Her philosophy had received a rough jolt. Utterly crushed, she returned to the girls and spread the news that Eeny-Meeny had disappeared into the hands of the Dark of the Moon Society. The Winnebagos were sunk in despair, but were rallied by Katherine's oratory. Anyone hearing her would have thought she was speaking on a matter of life and death, so eloquent did she wax and so emphatic were her gestures, as she bade them rise up and rescue Eeny-Meeny at the last minute.

"Not a word to any of them until we are ready to pour the water down into the fire," cautioned Katherine, after she had outlined her plans for rescue. "They must not guess what we intend to do or they'll change their plans and get ahead of us again."

Needless to say, Antha was not admitted into this last council. The suspicion of her perfidy had gone around the circle and it was agreed that she was a horrid little tattletale and deserved to be left out of everything that went on thereafter. As Sahwah had overheard the plot, a large fire was to be built on the beach that night and then at a signal Eeny-Meeny was to be flung into it from above.

"We'll get her first, never fear," said Katherine with a warlike gesture. At times like this she became a creature inspired. Her hair bristled up, her eyes shone, her husky voice gained strength until it rang like a trumpet.

Rather to their surprise, immediately after supper the tom-tom sounded its monotonous call, summoning them to the Council Rock. "What is this?"

asked Hinpoha uneasily. "Something new?"

"I don't know," said Katherine agog, with curiosity and on the alert for anything.

Both exclaimed in wonder when they reached the Council Rock. Around it, in a circle, low seats had been placed, built of rustic logs with comfortable back rests. There was one for each person.

"Where did they come from?" all the Winnebagos were asking.

"We made them," announced the Captain with pride. "What do you think of them? Don't you like them?"

"Splendid!" said Aunt Clara. "How did you ever get them made without our knowing?"

"Down in a cave under the east bluff," said the Captain. "That's where we had our workshop. We used to slip away quietly one or two at a time and work on them whenever we had a chance. Sit in them and see how comfortable they are."

The Sandwiches were circling around like polite shopkeepers, begging the girls to try first this seat and then that, to find out which suited them best. Wondering, the girls sank back into the seats, trying to get the meaning of this new development.

"There's something else coming," said Slim importantly, going off with the Captain.

Soon they reappeared, carrying a sort of pedestal with a flagpole attached to it. "It's for Eeny-Meeny to stand on," explained the Captain proudly, "and we put up the pole so the Stars and Stripes could float over her and the people going by in boats could see her."

He set the pedestal down and turned toward the tree where Eeny-Meeny had stood. "Why, where's Eeny-Meeny?" he asked in amazement.

"Where is she?" echoed Slim.

The girls sat dumb. "_You_ ought to know where she is," said Katherine accusingly to the Captain at last. "You took her during the panic yesterday."

"We--took--her--during--the--panic?" said the Captain wonderingly. "We never did! What do you mean? I never noticed until just now that she wasn't in her place."

"You have too got her," said Hinpoha. "The sign of the Dark of the Moon Society was left tied to a twig where she had stood."

"The sign of the what?" asked the Captain.

"The Dark of the Moon Society," said Katherine sharply. It struck her that the Captain was trying to appear dense.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said. He looked perplexed for a moment and then strode over to Anthony and caught him by the neck.

"Where's Eeny-Meeny?" he said in an ominously even voice.

"I don't know what you're talking about," said Anthony, struggling to pull out of his grasp. "Ouch! Quit your pinching me."

The Captain took a little firmer hold. "You'd better tell," he advised.

"It might not be healthy for you to keep it to yourself. So that's what you meant when you said you knew something we didn't."

Anthony still wiggled and tried to free himself, protesting his innocence.

Uncle Teddy pounded on the tom-tom. "Will somebody please tell me," he said, "what's the matter with you boys and girls. There's been something going on under the surface for the last week. Just now one of you mentioned a 'Dark of the Moon Society.' Will whoever it is please tell?"

There was a rustle from where the girls sat and Sahwah rose to her feet.

"The time has come," she said with twinkling eyes, "for all dread secrets to be revealed. You just asked who the Dark of the Moon Society was. I've known for quite a while, and now I'm going to tell."

You could have heard a pin drop and all eyes were fixed on her expectantly. "There isn't any DARK OF THE MOON SOCIETY!" she announced.

"Or rather, I'm it."

An incredulous murmur went around the circle.

Sahwah continued. "I kidnapped Eeny-Meeny during the panic yesterday and hid her in that roll of sail cloth. The whole thing is a joke, gotten up for Katherine's benefit. She was having such a terrible fit of blues Gladys was afraid she would never get over it unless she had something to occupy her mind, so I started this business to give her something to think about. I wrote those mysterious warning notices and posted them around the camp. When I saw what a beautiful effect it was having on Katherine I couldn't resist the temptation to keep it up. I knew how fond she was of Eeny-Meeny and decided that if anything threatened her Katherine would think of nothing else night and day. I pretended I had heard voices of the boys plotting to take Eeny-Meeny and burn her up tonight.

"That night when Katherine thought I was walking in my sleep I had been up putting a notice on Eeny-Meeny. When I saw Katherine I was afraid she would be suspicious of my being out at that hour and the only thing I could think of was to pretend that I was asleep." Here Sahwah interrupted herself with a convulsive giggle. "And she tied a string to my foot and kept ahold of it for the rest of the night!"

"And I jumped into that tub of water thinking I was on the trail of the Dark of the Moon Society!" exclaimed Katherine, righteous wrath and amazement struggling for possession of her.

"And I destroyed three perfectly good cans of beans getting up a panic!"

said Hinpoha.

"And brought down the house," added the Captain, who had been one of those caught in the fall of the tent.