Page:The Secret of the Caves.djvu/68

"We want to camp around there for a few days and we were figuring on buying some supplies. If it's far away we'll buy all we need right now and carry the stuff with us."

The old man leaned farther over the counter.

"Ye're agoin' to camp at Honeycomb Cliffs!" he exclaimed incredulously.

"Why, yes."

"For three or four days!"

"Perhaps longer."

The old gentleman shook his head solemnly.

"Ye're strange to these parts, ain't ye?"

"This is the first time we've ever been down this way."

"I thought so," returned the old man with a great air of satisfaction, as though his judgment had been verified.

"Well," said Frank, becoming a trifle impatient, "we'd still like to know how much farther we have to go."

"It's a matter of about ten mile by the road. Then ye'll have to walk a ways."

"Ten miles. Why, that isn't very far. We'll just buy enough food to last us a day or so and then if we need more one of us can come back here. There's no use packing along too much."

"And ye say ye're goin' to camp there?" persisted the old man, as though he could not quite grasp the fact.